Seasoning, Sustaining, Shining

Pastor Rocklyn Clarke - Sunday February 21, 2010

© 2010 Life Church Ministries, Inc.

http://www.LifeChurchMinistries.org/

*
Notes
V Introduction
* Bible Reading 2/14 - 2/20: Ex 37 - Lev 10; Mat 28:1 - Mark 5:20; Psalm 34:11 - 37:40; Proverbs 9:9 - 10:7
> Review
V New Material
> Preparation
V Seasoning, Sustaining, Shining
> Preparation - Matthew 5:13-16
> Standing Issues
> Introduction - Importance of Corporate Worship
V Introduction - Announcement
* Clarify "spiritual beggars" - Rev. 3:14-22
* Prayer Workshop - Today at 12N
V Transition
* Prayer can lower your blood pressure.
* I have high blood pressure.
* High blood pressure - sodium content of food
V KFC Chicken Thighs
* Original Recipe - 220 Cal, 620 mg NA
* Extra Crisply - 340 Cal, 780 mg NA
* Spicy Crispy - 360 Cal, 1010 mg NA
* Grilled - 150 Cal, 350 mg NA
* "Speaking of salt . . ."
* Read the Passage (as a group) - 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.
* Exegetical Idea
Jesus' disciples are the earth's preservative and the light by which people see God's glory on earth.
V What does this mean?
* Jesus is speaking to disciples - not mere churchgoers.
* He lists the attributes he values generally - Matthew 5:1-10
* He personally affirms their mismatch with the world - Matthew 5:11-12
V These attributes and this mismatch are central to the purpose of disciples: being salt and light.
* The persecution and mismatch that we experience are a direct result of our "saltiness". If we stop being "salty" we stop being useful.
V Salt
* Seawater - 3.5% salt.
* Used in grain offerings - Leviticus 2:11-13
* Elisha uses salt to heal a spring - 2Kings 2:19-22
* Newborn children were rubbed with salt - Ezekiel 16:1-6
* "salted with fire" - Mark 9:49-50
V Salt acts as a preservative.
* Salting Food - 20% salt content required to kill most bacteria.
* Read "How to Preserve Meat With Salt"
http://www.ehow.com/how_2121012_preserve-meat-salt.html
* Salt doesn't preserve anything unless it gets out of the salt shaker.
* A single grain won't work - it takes a collection.
* Light doesn't do any good unless it's where people can see it.
V Is it True? Do I believe it? - What are some examples?
* The Civil Rights Movement in the U.S.
* Alcoholics Anonymous etc. - Founders Bill Wilson & Bob Smith were strongly influenced by the Christian organization the Oxford Group.
In 2006 AA reported 1,867,212 members and 106,202 AA groups worldwide.[11] The Twelve Traditions informally guide how AA groups function, and the Twelve Concepts for World Service guide how AA is structured globally.[12]
V What difference does it make? So What?
* The Church doesn't always seem like salt and light to me.
V We fail because:
* We aren't real disciples (i.e. followers of Jesus) - just religious.
* We stay bottled up in the church world.
* We try to engage the world by ourselves.
V We can succeed by:
* Know the difference between discipleship and mere church-going.
* Seeing the world as the place where we do God's work.
* Making a firm commitment to partnership with other disciples.
* Homiletical Idea: Season, sustain, and shine - BIG IDEA!!!
V Purpose of the Sermon (what listeners should do)
* Be disciples (like the audience for this passage).
* Season
* Sustain
* Shine
* Act collectively
V Be disciples (like the audience for this passage).
* It's about more than going to church.
* Do you want to be like Jesus? If so, what are you doing about it?
* Whatever stands in the way of you being a disciple is also standing in the way of you being salt and light. You have to do something about it!
* Remember the seed that fell among thorns - Matthew 13:22
V Season
* You can't season anything from within the walls of the church building.
V Season compatible foods.
* Illustration - Pepper On My Cereal
Several years ago I made my self a bowl of cold cereal. I sprinkled on some sugar substitute and then reached for the cinnamon and finished it off with milk. When I started to eat it I noticed that it had an unusual kick to it.

A few days later I came downstairs to once again make myself a bowl of cereal. I sprinkled on some sugar substitute and, once again, reached for what I thought was the cinnamon. As it turned out, what I grabbed was pepper - I caught my mistake just before I was about to pour pepper on my cereal. It was then that I realized that this must have been what happened the previous time when I ate my cereal with that extra “kick”.
V What interests do you have outside of church?
* Give God a chance to use you as seasoning among people with whom you have shared interests.
* This is the type of setting where you can be most yourself - hence, most natural and relaxed.
V Sustain
V Food is always "trying" to go bad.
* Our environment is full of bacteria - both beneficial and harmful.
* In a live person, the immune system fights off harmful bacteria.
* When we die, the bacteria in our bodies no longer have any opposition, so they start to digest us.
V Many bacteria behave differently depending on whether they are alone or in a group.
* Bacterial signaling., quorum sensing
* Biofilms, dental plaque
V Salt creates an environment that inhibits bacterial growth.
* Osmosis
V Because of their alienation from God, people are constantly under the negative influence of sinful thoughts and habits.
* This can obviously be spiritually fatal.
* We are the preservative that keeps the bacteria from taking over.
V Shine
* You can't shine properly inside the walls of the church building.
* You need to get outside!
V Expect to be used somewhere where there is opposition.
* We salt food to prevent destruction by bacteria that are already there.
V Act collectively
V Like bacteria, grasshoppers exhibit group behavior.
* Grasshoppers respond to overcrowding.
* Increased tactile stimulation of the hind legs (several contacts per minute for 4 hours) causes an increase in levels of serotonin.
* This causes the grasshopper to change color, eat much more, and breed much more easily. It becomes a locust.
* It is estimated that the largest swarms have covered hundreds of square miles and consisted of many billions of locusts.
* Stop thinking as individuals and grab a partner.
V Conclusion
* Be disciples
* Season the places where God plants you.
* Sustain the people to whom God connects you.
* Shine so that others can see what God is doing and praise him.
* Act collectively
V Altar Call / Welcome Cards / Communion
* Welcome Cards - refer to script
* Benediction - Numbers 6:24-26
“‘“The LORD bless you and keep you; the LORD make his face shine upon you and be gracious to you; the LORD turn his face toward you and give you peace.”’
* Men's Prayer
V Life Group Material
V Life Group Word Material
These are sample discussion questions / topics. Your life group leaders may choose to adjust these questions, substitute new ones, or spend the Word section of the meeting in a different way altogether.

Scripture taken from the HOLY BIBLE, NEW INTERNATIONAL VERSION (NIV) Copyright © 1973, 1978, 1984 International Bible Society. Used by permission of Zondervan Bible Publishers.
V Matthew 5:11-16
“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.
“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.
V Discussion Questions / Topics:
* Have you ever been mistreated because you follow Jesus? Discuss.
* During Jesus' time on earth salt was used both to season and to preserve food. Have you seen followers of Jesus be "salt" in the world around them? Have you been salt? Discuss.
* Have you seen Christians be light in the world around them? Discuss.
* Have you ever seen non-Christians praise God because of good deeds performed by Christians? Discuss.
V Luke 18:9-14 (repeated from last week)
To some who were confident of their own righteousness and looked down on everybody else, Jesus told this parable: “Two men went up to the temple to pray, one a Pharisee and the other a tax collector. The Pharisee stood up and prayed about himself: ‘God, I thank you that I am not like other men — robbers, evildoers, adulterers — or even like this tax collector. I fast twice a week and give a tenth of all I get.’
“But the tax collector stood at a distance. He would not even look up to heaven, but beat his breast and said, ‘God, have mercy on me, a sinner.’
“I tell you that this man, rather than the other, went home justified before God. For everyone who exalts himself will be humbled, and he who humbles himself will be exalted.”
V Discussion Questions / Topics:
* Have there been times in your life when you were more like the Pharisee in this passage? Discuss.
* Have there been times in your life when you were more like the tax collector in this passage? Discuss.
V Life Group Witnessing Activities
* Key Passage - 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.
V Activities
* Pick a partner with whom you can work on being salt and light in the world around you for the next month. Tell your life group whom it is.
* Pray regularly with your partner for God to show the two of you some places and ways that you can use your gifts and resources to do good.
* Get together with your partner to act on what God shows you.
> Scriptures For 02/21/2010 Life Church Sermon
Scripture taken from the HOLY BIBLE, NEW INTERNATIONAL VERSION (NIV) Copyright © 1973, 1978, 1984 International Bible Society. Used by permission of Zondervan Bible Publishers.