Fifth Sunday after the Epiphany: Gospel, Matthew 5:13-20            

Matthew 5:13-20

Our discussion of the Beatitudes from our gospel reading last week culminated in my writing that the list of “blesseds” refers to Jesus. He is the blessed Man. He is the fulfillment of all that is slated there as the ground of a God-blessed life. Our text today confirms it.

Jesus goes on in His discourse to point to the responsibilities the Christian carries as He walks in the world. We are lights to be observed and salt to be tasted. And these tangible additions to the society where God has placed us come from Him. We have no light in ourselves and no salt in our shakers. God provides both. Light and salt, then, are consequences of a life given and received. They come from His life. They do not generate it in and of themselves.

The grand conclusion Jesus draws is that no matter how great our light or salty contributions to the shadows and bland flavor of the world, it is Jesus who makes all the meaningful difference. And that is true as well regarding our entrance into His life. If we can’t top the Pharisees, well then we have no hope and neither does the world of which we are a part. The salt and light do the same as all the circumstances that make us “blessed.” They point us to Jesus. Only His light, salt, and life lived without blemish give us entrance into the Kingdom prepared for us before the foundation of the world.

I’m hopeless and so are you. That is, without the Lord Jesus. With Him? Hope has no bounds. God be praised!