You Are The Salt Of The Earth . . . You Are The Light Of The World
- By Paul Joshua Bhakiaraj
- Published 07/17/2007
Paul Joshua Bhakiaraj
Paul Joshua Bhakiaraj is the husband of one wife and father of three children. A Commended Worker from the Brethren Assemblies, he serves as the Director of the Mylapore Institute for Indigenous Studies, a research institute dedicated to the study of Christianity in South Asia. Besides overseeing research and its dissemination through books and journals, including the Dharma Deepika: A South Asian Journal of Missiological Research, he also teaches at seminaries and is a popular speaker at various youth and mission conferences.
In The Gospel According to Matthew 5:13-14 we find Jesus Christ's declaration, "You are the salt of the earth....You are the light of the world". Today over, 2000 years since He made that comment, what does it mean for His disciples as they live their lives in this world of poverty and plenty, pleasure and pain, promise and peril?
The gravity of that statement, I believe, will be recognised and understood, not so much by theological tomes, as helpful as they may be, but by a life lived in humble service of Him who uttered those very words. Lest service of Christ be misunderstood as an escape from this earth, note however that service done in His name, as the verses itself suggest, will drive us back to the 'earth' and the 'world'. Salt and Light, in that sense, finds salience within 'earthly' frameworks, precisely in the face of threats to life such as insipidity and darkness.
This blog represents my reflections on that mandate. I hope to periodically reflect on its connotation within the context I inhabit and share some of its challenges for me and my fellow disciples of Jesus Christ. May His Spirit teach and guide us as we seek to respond to The Salt and Light Mandate.
The Salt and Light Mandate
The gravity of that statement, I believe, will be recognised and understood, not so much by theological tomes, as helpful as they may be, but by a life lived in humble service of Him who uttered those very words. Lest service of Christ be misunderstood as an escape from this earth, note however that service done in His name, as the verses itself suggest, will drive us back to the 'earth' and the 'world'. Salt and Light, in that sense, finds salience within 'earthly' frameworks, precisely in the face of threats to life such as insipidity and darkness.
This blog represents my reflections on that mandate. I hope to periodically reflect on its connotation within the context I inhabit and share some of its challenges for me and my fellow disciples of Jesus Christ. May His Spirit teach and guide us as we seek to respond to The Salt and Light Mandate.
The Salt and Light Mandate
