God’s Living Word Today - Tuesday, June 9, 2020
[1 Kgs 17:7-16 and Matt 5:13-16]
"You are the salt of the earth. But if salt loses its taste, with what can it be seasoned? You are the light of the world......Just so, your light must shine before others, that they may see your good deeds and glorify your heavenly Father." [Matthew]
We know that the evangelist Matthew put many of Jesus' teachings together in creating the Sermon on the Mount, but the overall intent of Jesus becomes clear as we read through the Sermon. To be salt of the earth and light of the world requires a great deal of wisdom and courage to accompany our faith.
We commonly use the expression, "salt of the earth," to describe a reliable, wise and unpretentious person who is always willing to "do their part" and show the common sense that comes from wisdom. To hear someone described as "the light of the world" is less common except, perhaps, in the descriptions we hear at canonization ceremonies. Those words could have been used when St. Teresa of Calcutta was canonized, her life comes to mind when we think of a life that is "the light of the world."
Take some time to think about the people around you. Do you know someone who is thirsting for the Lord but who doesn’t even know it yet? Is there someone who might respond to an invitation to take a drink from the living waters of Christ? By all means pray for that person, but make sure to ask the Spirit to help you become the salt that will awaken in other people a thirst and lead them to Jesus.
Fr. Dennis