YOU ARE SALT.

You are the salt of the earth; but if the salt loses its flavor, how shall it be seasoned? It is then good for nothing but to be thrown out and trampled underfoot by men.”
Matthew 5:13

God’s people are His preserving agents for a world that is corrupted and degenerating because of sin. Your life is designed and commissioned by God to enhance a community and to preserve what is good and right. There is deep significance today for a godly life that is involved in its community. The presence of Christ in you makes all that He is available to others. His salvation can free an addict, mend a broken home, heal the pain of the past, restore a wayward child, and comfort a grieving heart. All of this is available to those around you as Christ expresses His life through you.

If we are not in a right relationship with our Lord, however, Jesus said we are like salt that has lost its saltiness and is, therefore, good for nothing. None of God’s saving grace and power can be dispensed through us to others. How do we test the “saltiness” of our life? Look at our family. Are we preserving it from the destructive influences that surround it? Examine our workplace. Are the sinful influences in our work environment being halted because we are there? Observe our community. Is it a better place because we are involved in it? What about our church? The evidence that we have been used by God as a preserving agent is that things are becoming spiritually better around us instead of worse. If people around us are deteriorating spiritually, we need to go to our Lord and allow Him to adjust our lives so that we can be used to preserve
others.

*From Experiencing God Day-by-Day for February 20th by Henry and Richard Blackaby. This devotional is used daily by the students and staff of the Lord Immanuel Institute Foundation, Inc. (LIIFI), a Christ-centered secondary school located in the town of Lobo, province of Batangas, and 94 miles south of Manila, Philippines.

Loved Ones:

You are salt. You are light.

Jesus said: "You are the salt of the earth; but if the salt loses its flavor, how shall it be seasoned? It is then good for nothing but to be thrown out and trampled underfoot by men. You are the light of the world. A city that is set on a hill cannot be hidden. Nor do they light a lamp and put it under a basket, but on a lamp stand, and it gives light to all who are in the house. Let your light so shine before men, that they may see your good works and glorify your Father in heaven."

Matthew 5:13-16

The Lord Immanuel Foundation, Inc. seeks to build a Christ-centered disciple-making community empowered only by the Holy Spirit. If you are a disciple of Jesus Christ, it means that you are learning "to give Jesus Christ total access to your life so He will live His life through you." He lives in you and through you by the power of the Holy Spirit, the same Spirit that raised Jesus from the dead (Romans 8:11).

God is always purposeful and His purposes are always redemptive. They are ageless, set in eternity. As a disciple of Jesus Christ, you have the awesome privilege of joining Him in His activity to redeem souls, communities, and nations. He invites you and has chosen you because He loves you. One of the reasons that Jesus Christ died for you is to give you this privilege. It is a responsibility as well.

The Lord Jesus calls you salt. Salt is not just the combination of 2 elements: sodium and chloride. It is a preservative. It gives flavor so the food is not bland or unappetizing. It has a permeating quality, not usually seen. Just like salt, your Christlike life and love penetrate a dying, decaying society through your quiet but eternal impact. Is your life "salty"? How do your family, classmates, fellow-workers, authority figures see your life? Are you an influence for good in your community? Are other people's lives being restored because of you?

St. Francis of Assisi said, "Always preach. Sometimes use words." Are your words "salty" in the tongues of those who need Jesus, that is, are you sharing the gospel in a loving and winsome way? Are you making others realize that the gospel is the 'saline solution'? Are they becoming your fellow-disciples of Jesus Christ because of your witness?

As His disciple, the Lord Jesus also calls you light. Light dispels darkness. Jesus said that you give "light to all who are in the house" (Mat. 5:15). Your household means more than your family. It means all who are in the sphere of your influence. He even says, "You are the light of the world." (Mat.5:14). Wow!

You are a city that is set on a hill that cannot be hidden (Mat. 5:14). When a room is dark, you do not get bucketfuls of darkness and throw them out of the window. You simply turn on the light switch. It is always better to light a candle than curse the darkness. Does Christ shine through you wherever you go? Do you share the light of the gospel wherever you are, to whomever and whenever the Holy Spirit leads you, especially when it is most challenging and inconvenient? Psalm 119:105 says that God's word is a lamp to our feet and a light unto our path. Is the word of God alive in you, inspiring others to walk in the light of His word? Are you a true lighthouse that guides those who are lost in the sea of sin, despair, and hopelessness?

Truly, as salt and light, you are an "answer to societal change", an agent of transformation to transformnations. Always thank God for the privilege of creating you to be His partner in His Kingdom work for His redemptive purposes.

So, loved ones, be salt. Be light.

May God bless you as you do.

From a fellow-disciple of the Lord Jesus Christ,

Elizabeth Zaraspe Yoo, MD, MEd

YOU ARE LIGHT.

“Let your light so shine before men, that they may see your good works and glorify your Father in heaven.” Matthew 5:16

There is no mistaking the effect of light upon a darkened place. Light boldly and unabashedly announces its presence and vigorously dispels darkness. God’s desire is to fill you with His light. He wants you to shine as a brilliant testimony of His presence and power in your life, so that the darkness in the lives of those around you will be displaced by the light of God’s glory.

If, however, you notice the world around you becoming darker and darker, don’t blame the darkness, it is simply doing what darkness does. the only remedy for darkness is light. If the world is becoming darker, the problem is with the light. Jesus said His disciples should be the “light of the world” (Matt. 5:14). What an awesome responsibility—to be the ones through whom God would shine His divine light and dispel the darkness from around others! In announcing His own coming, Jesus said, “The people who sat in darkness have seen a great light, /And upon those who sat in the region and shadow of death/Light has dawned” (Matt. 4:16).

There is no ignoring Jesus’ arrival upon earth! Darkness was dispelled! Everywhere Jesus went, God’s truth was boldly proclaimed, people were healed, hypocrisy was exposed, and sinners found forgiveness. The world was never the same once the Father introduced His light through His Son. Can that be said of you as well? Do your coworkers recognize the light that is within you? Does the presence of Christ radiate from your home into your community? When God’s light is allowed to shine unhindered through your life, the darkness around you will be dispelled.

*From Experiencing God Day-by-Day for February 21st by Henry and Richard Blackaby. This devotional is used daily by the students and staff of the Lord Immanuel Institute Foundation, Inc. (LIIFI), a Christ-centered secondary school located in the town of Lobo, province of Batangas, and 94 miles south of Manila, Philippines.

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