"The Good Life" - Week 17

Week 17 - Matthew 5:13-16

"You are the salt of the earth. But if the salt loses its saltiness, how can it be made salty again? It is no longer good for anything, except to be thrown out and trampled by men. You are the light of the world. A city on a hill cannot be hidden. Neither do people light a lamp and put it under a bowl. Instead they put it on its stand, and it gives light to everyone in the house. In the same way, let your light shine before men, that they may see your good deeds and praise your Father in heaven."


Jesus refers to his followers as salt and light. These don't seem to be the most flattering images that could be used to describe Christians. But that is partly because we don't appreciate salt and light as people in the first century would have.

Today, salt has become a bad thing in our culture. Salt receives bad press as a cause of high-blood pressure. Some of us are on salt-restricted diets.

And light? If anything we have an overabundance of light rather than darkness. Most people have never experienced true darkness. Harnessed electricity has allowed us to overcome God's intention with the rhythm of day and night.

But in the first century, these two elements were vitally important. Salt preserved meat that otherwise would have rotted and light revealed what otherwise couldn't be seen.

How salty are you? How much are you preserving a world that seems continually bent toward rotting?

How bright are you? Are you hiding your light? Or are you like a city on a hill illuminating a world trying to hide in darkness?

As you dwell in Matthew 5:13-16, here are a few questions to consider and comment on:

1) What are the qualities of salt that Jesus might be referring to as he relates his message to the crowd? How does salt make a difference in the world?

2) What is the warning Jesus gives about being salty? What extreme does Jesus warn us to stay away from?

3) What are the qualities of light that make it an apt image for describing Jesus' disciples? How does light make a difference in the world?

4) What is the warning Jesus gives regarding light? What extreme does Jesus warn us to stay away from?

5) There seems to be a tension between salt and light in the way Jesus describes it. What tension is Jesus recommending that we maintain as Christians who are called into the world?

6) We can't just focus on what salt and light do for the world. How does salt and light make a difference in the world? What challenge does that give us as Christians?

7) What are some ways that Christians (those committed to putting the kingdom on display) might seek to implement this passage in order to proclaim the good news in 2012?

"The Good Life" - Week 16

Week 16 - Matthew 5:10-12

"Blessed are those who are persecuted because of righteousness, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven. Blessed are you when people insult you, persecute you and falsely say all kinds of evil against you because of me. Rejoice and be glad, because great is your reward in heaven, for in the same way they persecuted the prophets who were before you."


OK, so who is with me? Let's go out and get persecuted so we can be blessed with the kingdom. Who's with me? (Says the coach before leaving the locker room)

Part of me wonders how a Christian in the United States can even hear this as good news. Either we feel guilt about our low level of persecution or a challenge to live our faith more provocatively so we can receive more persecution.

But let's be honest: Guilt isn't Jesus aim here. He doesn't deal in guilt. Perhaps a bit of Godly sorrow, but guilt? The second challenge (to live our faith more seriously) isn't a bad one.

If you feel like the persecution you've received is difficult to compare with those who receive "real persecution," that's because you're alive and the "persecuted," as you define it, are not.

This passage ought to make us grateful to some degree to live where we do. But it ought to also make us question if our discipleship is radical enough to warrant persecution.

My thoughts are all over the page.

I want to hear your thoughts on this passage. Instead of asking prepared questions, dialogue with this text this week. What is God putting on your heart?

Please share your ideas and wisdom with me!

"The Good Life" - Week 15

Week 15 - Matthew 5:9

"Blessed are the peacemakers, for they will be called children of God."

What is peace? Most people assume peace is the absence of conflict.

But the Hebrew word, shalom, has a much more robust definition than that. Shalom is about wholeness. Rather than peace being defined by a negative description (the absence of conflict). Shalom is a peace that fills relationships and infuses conflict with resolution and completeness.

I know a lot of marriages and families that have the absence of conflict because they just stopped talking to one another. But under the surface, conflict and tension are a constant. Some might call that a peaceful family, but I'd describe it as a family that lacks any kind of peace.

They've merely learned to walk around conflict. They've learned to bury conflict rather than resolving it. They've learned to allow conflict to be the norm rather than peace.

Jesus blesses the peacemakers. And though it's counterintuitive, peacemakers spend a lot of time pointing out conflict and sorting through it. Peacemakers are conflict experts. And Jesus wants to encourage more of his disciples to find comfort where others fear to dwell, in the middle of conflict.

As you dwell in Matthew 5:9, here are a few questions to consider and comment on:

1) How would you define peace? Where in your life do you experience peace?

2) What is the difference between a peacemaker and a peacekeeper?

3) Who in your life would you point to as the greatest example of a peacemaker? What makes you describe her/him as a peacemaker?

4) How does power and position play into the discussion of peacemaking?

5) Why are the peacemaker's called "children of God"? Is that a unique designation from anyone else in the world? If we're all children of God, what makes that blessing unique?

6) Who do you need to make peace with this week? Do you need to make peace with a spouse? A parent? A sibling? At church? In the office? What steps will you take?

7) What are some ways that Christians (those committed to putting the kingdom on display) might seek to implement this passage in order to proclaim the good news in 2012?