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We've just completed the Beatitudes, a mini-series and we come now to Matthew 5 and verse 13.  Let me start with a story of a man.  Some of you may be familiar with this man.  His name is Dwight Lyman Moody or DL Moody for short. He lived about 100 over years ago and he is a well-known preacher and pastor.  It is said that in his lifetime, he preached the Gospel to some hundred million people across the Atlantic, in North America and also in Europe and it is also said that he personally has led a million people to the Lord Jesus Christ. So a phenomenal man, a man God greatly used but he was not only influential in the public speaking arena but he was also an influential man in a very private, personal and quiet way.

The President or the 28th President of the United States of America, Woodrow Wilson had an encounter with Dwight Lyman Moody and this is what Woodrow Wilson said about this man. He said, ”I was in a very common place - Woodrow Wilson - I was sitting in a barber chair when I became aware that a personality had entered the room. A man had come quietly in upon the same errand as myself to have his hair cut and he sat in the chair next to me.  Every word the man uttered, though it was not in the least didactic, showed a personal interest in the man who was serving him and before I got through what was being done for me, I was aware that I had attended an evangelistic service huh…he had  been preaching the Gospel, because Mr. DL Moody was in that chair. I purposely lingered in that room after he had left and noted the singular effect that his visit had brought upon the barber shop. They talked in undertones.  They didn't know his name but they knew that something had elevated their thoughts and I felt that I left that place as I should have left the place of worship. My admiration and esteem for Mr. Moody became very deep indeed.”  Moody came into a barbershop and influenced the people in the barbershop. He was a godly, a positive influence that day.

Now, not all of us will preach the Gospel like DL Moody did.  Not all of us would have the privilege to preach to a hundred million people but all of us can be an influence like DL Moody in a quiet, small and maybe very personal way. I think that is what Jesus is talking about when He gave us these words in Matthew 5:13 when He says “You are the salt of the earth.”  He says we are to be an influence like salt, that's His point.  That's His purpose of saying this statement.  Christians, people who are in the kingdom of heaven, are to exert an influence in the world we live in.

Now you ask - what is the purpose of salt?  You say it's an influence, that's true but in what way is or in what ways will salt exert its influence? So I searched out the purposes of salt, the usages of salt and there's a website that tells me that there are some 14,000 uses of salt today so today's sermon will be rather long, 14,000 points so you'll be ready to sit here with… now of course that's not what we're going to do.  I don't think Jesus is referring to those 14,000 uses when He spoke it in those days and I don't think that's the understanding of the people in those days as well but I think in the Bible, it does give us some general idea of what that may sound like or look like when you think about salt, there are few immediate applications of it.

Number one, I think salt today we use it as a preserving influence isn't it?  Almost every scholar, almost every preacher who preaches on this text would say that Christians are to be like salt in that we are to be an, a preserving influence in this decaying world we live in.  It's obvious, salt is used to preserve food especially in those days in the Middle East, it's very hot and they obviously do not have Hitachi or Samsung refrigerators so food that you have harvested or caught will turn bad very fast unless you salt it so that's a very common use and I don't think that's strange to us here in Singapore er we have a lot of salted stuff – er we have salted fish, great with clay pot rice er we have salted shrimp, we have “haebi” [local dialect: shrimp], a very nice tasty stuff and we have salted cuttlefish, “juiher” [local dialect: cuttlefish].  We have salted vegetables, salted eggs, we have a lot of stuff alright that are salted, besides it being pleasant or nice to eat, the main reason we salt our food is to preserve it.

Now some of you would say now Christians are to be that preserving influence in this world, whether by our speech or by our example, we are to be retarding this decomposition or this rotting of this world but you say this world is not that bad.  Actually the world has been improving so why would the assumption of Jesus be true that we are living in a rotting world when I see technologies improve?  We see cars being faster.  We see buildings grow taller.  Isn't this world an improving world?  Why is Jesus saying that this world is a, hinting that this world is a rotting world?

Well, I suggest that this poem might be very helpful. This poem is called the Paradox of Our Time.  I heard about it many years ago and it has stuck with me. It goes like this…..

The paradox of our time in history is that we have taller buildings but shorter tempers. Agree?
Wider freeways but narrower viewpoints;
We spend more but have less.
We buy more, but enjoy it less.
We have bigger houses and smaller families….actually in Singapore not true lah [local slang], houses are getting smaller too, er
more conveniences, but less time, how true!
We have more degrees, but less sense;
more knowledge but less judgment;
more experts, but more problems;
more medicine but less wellness.
We drink too much, smoke too much, spend too recklessly, laugh too little, drive too fast, get angry too quickly, Stay up too late, get up too tired, read too seldom, watch TV too much and pray too seldom.
We have multiplied our possessions, but reduced our values.
We talk too much, love too seldom and hate too often.
We have learned how to make a living but not a life.
We've added years to life, but not life to years.
We've been all the way to the moon and back, but have trouble crossing the street to meet the new neighbor.
We've conquered outer space, but not inner space.
We've done larger things but not better things.
We've cleaned up the air, but polluted the soul.
We've split the atom, but not our prejudice.
These are the times of fast foods and slow digestion, tall men and short character, steep profits, and shallow relationships.
These are days of two incomes, but more divorce, of fancier houses, but broken homes.
These are days of throw-away morality, one night stands and pills that do everything from cheer to quiet to kill.

Just a…, I do not even know who wrote this poem but just a, a great thought, that it might look great on the surface, but mankind, humanity is rotting on the inside.

Now, this is what Paul said, in 2nd Timothy, but understand this, that in the last days there will come times of difficulty for people will be lovers of self, lovers of money, proud, arrogant so on and so forth. What Paul is saying is that this world, these last days, the days after the death and resurrection of Jesus Christ, in which we live is going to be difficult, because man will get worse and worse and we will get further and further from God and that's why Christians, you're called into this world to stay in this world to be an influence to slow down and retard that rotting away of this world. So Christians, you are the salt, you're to be that preserving influence, probably that's what the disciples would understand it to be.

Now besides preserving foodstuff, salt in the Bible is also used to speak of purifying stuff, so it's a little step further - salt is used not just for preserving, but for purifying, cleaning, healing. I, I see that in 2nd Kings when there's a story of the healing of the waters, there's a miracle that will be performed and God said to Elisha or Elisha said to a servant, “bring me a new bowl and put salt in it.” Salt. “So they brought it to him then he went to the spring of water and he threw salt in it and said, ‘Thus says the Lord, I have healed this water; from now on neither death nor miscarriage shall come from it.' So the water has been healed to this day, according to the word that Elisha spoke.” (2 Kings 2:20-22) So obviously, the healing is from God, but he has seen it fit to use salt as a symbol of that healing, salt as a symbol of that cleansing agent, purifying, it's healing. Erm, besides that, you look at Ezekiel - there's a story of or there's a comment by God that says, “And as for your birth, on the day you were born your cord was not cut, nor were you washed with water to cleanse you, nor rubbed with salt,” (Ezekiel 16:4) So in those days babies are rubbed with salt when they are born - you say why? So that it's tastier, no, obvious, obviously not, you don't eat babies, but why do you rub babies with salt?  It's a kind of cleansing, antiseptic agent, even up till today when you have sore throat what does your mother tell you to do, eat salt? No lah, you gargle salt water and even today in the hospital if you have a wound on your leg, you know what is the most common solution used to wash your leg?  Chlorhexidine no, no, no, no, not these high class stuff, sometimes they use it, but the commonest usage is of saline wash. What is saline – saltwater - so salt is well known to have that purifying, cleansing function.

By the way, in the Old Testament, the sacrifices that people are commanded to sacrifice to God - they are all salted with salt, you, you can find various references in the Bible.  You have to salt it and so on, so I'm saying that the use of salt in the Bible and in that culture, number one, preserving influence, number two, purifying influence. Number three, it has a pleasing quality to it, I think we all understand. Er it is said in Job 6, “Can that which is tasteless be eaten without salt,” (Job 6:6) Hey, pass me the salt, this one cannot eat, why - without salt the food is bland.

Now the Bible, later on in the New Testament also says, “Let your speech always be gracious, seasoned with salt,” (Col 4:6) So be someone who speaks graciously, kindly, with salt, it's pleasant, not be a harsh, not be a difficult person but let this be the kind of life and speech you should have, that's what Christians should be.

You might have heard about this man, James Dobson. He is the Founder of Focus on the Family, an international setup to help families, promote good family life, but many of you might, might not know that before he founded Focus on the Family, he was a school teacher and there's this story of him like 50 years ago alright? He was teaching in the school and in that school, in that class, there was a girl who was rather overweight, unpopular, nobody liked her and she had no friends except for one friend throughout her school life.

12 years after she graduated from that school, she gave Doctor James Dobson a call. Now that's not easy because in those days, you can't find phone numbers as easily as we have it today, so she has to search and so on and it was 12 years ago, but she managed to get hold of his number, called him and says, “Mr. Dobson, do you remember me?” “Yah I do.” “Mr. Dobson, can I find out which church you want to, you are attending and I like to join you in church.” “Of course, join me.” And she joined in that church for several months. Later, she came to know the Lord Jesus Christ.  James Dobson then asked her, “Hey, I've always wanted to ask you, it's been 12 years since you graduated, why is it that you would take all the trouble to locate my number, give me a call and come to my church? I mean, you know no one else in this church, why would you come?” And she said to him, “because when I was in junior high school, you were the only one who treated me with respect and I want to know your God.” Simple as that.

James Dobson, one man, was that very quiet but powerful influence. It's like salt. Salt doesn't scream, huh, salt doesn't shout, salt exerts its influence in a very quiet but very powerful way. That's, I think what Jesus is saying when He said, “You are the salt of the earth.” You are to be that positive, godly influence. It may be pictured more specifically as preserving, it might be pictured more specifically as purifying or you may be someone who is pleasing others, being a joy for others to know but altogether, I think you are to be that positive, godly influence and you are therefore really important in the world. God has left us, Christians, in this world to be that positive influence and you're precious in God's sight.

You know, when you think about salt, you don't think about precious right? Because salt is cheap. Today I can go to NTUC [local supermarket] just across the road and one pack of salt, maybe er cost me one dollar, so it's cheap stuff. But that's not the way it is in those days, with technology and so on, salt is cheap today, but in those days, salt is very precious.

Er let me just give you some reasons why they think it's precious. For example, Roman soldiers, when they work for the Roman Empire they are paid with salt. So if you're not doing a good job, we have a saying that goes, he is not worth his salt because they're paid with salt. The Latin word for salt is the word, anybody knows?  The Latin word for salt is the word “salarium” from which you get the word, salary, that's how it's derived and to the Romans, they think that there is nothing more precious than the sun and salt. Wow, that is important, salt is precious, you are paid with, for it, you are paid with it.  It's so precious to the Roman thinking and not just the Romans, the Greeks too.

The Greeks called salt “theion” from which you get the English word, theology, and so on which refers to God. So they say salt is something divine.  Plato, the philosopher, says that salt is a “substance dear to the gods”. So what am I, what am I saying? I'm saying salt is really important, it's really precious. So when Jesus says, “You are the salt of the earth”, the disciples will receive that and say “I'm cheap”, no, no, no they won't think that.  They won't think that, they say, “wow, Jesus is saying I'm precious, I'm important, I have a great and important role to play in the world”, and that is so true, you are important in God's point of view in this world and it's therefore important for Christians to get out into the world to be an influence in the world. I mean that's why Jesus said, I've left you in this world, I have not, I'm not calling you back with me, but I've left you in this world because you are important.

We always think about this. Salt often time stays in the salt shaker but the tragedy of it being in the salt shaker for its entire duration is that, no contact equals no impact. I hope you get my point because there are many Christians today, many churchgoers today who think that the key end, the key purpose of Christianity is to be able to attend church service on Sunday. If I come to church on Sunday I'm a good Christian, that's what Christianity is about, it's about now, it's about this time, under this roof, in this hall, we gather, we praise God, that's Christianity. No!  That is like all the salt coming together and doing nothing about it.

Now I'm not saying don't come to church next Sunday.  We need to gather to be worshipping God.  We need to be gathered to hear God's Word,  I think that is  proper and right but if you think that's all there is to Christianity, you're wrong, because God's purpose for us is to be creating impact, to be an influence so instead of being in the salt shaker, salt should be scattered, it should be out there, you know “Salt Bae”, OK, anyway it's to scatter the salt, that's where it should be, that's where it belongs because when salt is scattered this is what happens, contact for impact.

You know why Christians and why churches today are not as influential as God wants us to be? It's because we have this salt shaker mentality.  Oh I'm very scared of the world.  Er I'm very scared of that contamination so I'll get my kids, I'll get myself to hide in the church.  I will not have any Chris.., non-Christian friends.  I don't want to talk to non-Christian colleagues.  I don't want to be in the world, I just want to be in the salt shaker. Maybe that's you, no wonder we have not a single ripple effect in the community or in the world we live in and if you die or if this church is gone tomorrow, Punggol will have no idea that we are gone, because no contact equals no impact.

Now as a church we are very clear in Gospel Light - this gathering is important, but this is not what it is all there is to, to Christianity, that's not pursuing the full will of God. I believe God's will is for us to be making disciples, to be blessing the community, to be out there, contact for impact.

AT Pierson, I forgot to say this, “We are not responsible for conversion, we can't save souls”. I mean salvation is the work of God, we can't save souls, but this is what we are responsible for, contact, we have to go to them, live our lives before them and share with them the Gospel, that's our job. So as salt, are you going out as contact? So like I said some months ago, before we came to Punggol our people, many of Gospel Lighters, we will go door to door, knock on doors, you say why? Well, I think that's a little bit of contact for impact, we want to share with you, that there's a church coming near, we want to serve you, hey join us if you can and that's a little step we are doing. This, this evening, this afternoon we are going to be part of this religious, racial carnival, you say why? Because we want to go there for contact, we want to get to know the residents, the residents may come by our booth and ask what's this church about, what are you doing and we love to tell them about Jesus. So last year we were there, some of our brethren would, would go and give out flyers, speak to the people they, they make balloons and, and get to know the kids and their families. why do this? Contact for impact.

Besides that we have started some initiatives. We are very thankful for, ground-up initiatives not things that we tell people to do, but members, Gospel Lighters, you who are followers of Jesus Christ, you yourselves say, I want to share the Gospel.  I want to be a blessing to people.  I can teach English so let me start a conversational English class and all these, many of them are maybe from China, from Taiwan, they don't speak English as a language themselves but they want to learn so let's teach them and the purpose, contact for impact. So we see a good number turn up - this is the second run already.  We are thankful that even in the class there are opportunities to share with them a little bit about the Gospel of Jesus Christ and even at the end of the last semester there was an opportunity for us to declare the Gospel of Jesus Christ, contact for impact.

Besides that we have a table tennis group here in Punggol, some of the fit young people there are playing table tennis, you say, wa…this church very secular, yah, yah, we do very simple things, we do very normal things but we do normal things to get in touch with people who need the Gospel.  It's all about bridge building, it's all about going out there, it's all about not staying in the salt shaker. Getting out because we believe we are the salt of the earth.

Tuition ministry, that's another one. Why teach tuition? By the way we have professional tuition teachers who are doing this for free, you say why? Everybody does it for money, no, we do it for the Lord,  we do it for the Gospel and there are people who volunteer their time to and this is not something that we tell them to do, they want to do it, that's the joy I have when people are saying this is what I want to do for Jesus, this is what I  want to do for God, God bless their hearts.

Recently we started this “Zhan Mei Cao” morning exercise, I'm told er, I think a dozen, a dozen, people from the community came and join us for “Zhan Mei Cao”, I mean, how great - you exercise and at the same time, you reach out to people.  We have a ministry called the daily, Their Daily Bread, where they go out to the 1-room flats in Chin Swee, Havelock area, giving them foodstuff, befriending them, building relationships, some of them join us in church on Sunday mornings, you see them. The bus fetch them all the way from Outram, right up to here, it's been many years. Why so much trouble, why go all the way there? Well, we believe we are here, like the salt and we can't be the salt if we stay in our salt shaker, there must be a willingness to go contact for impact.

This is a picture of our Filipino brethren, er they go to er, Waterway Point, which is just nearby and they have picnics, outings, you say for what? For fun, that's true but they also invite people in the neighborhood and Punggol area to join them, they get out there to make an impact. Er our ladies, this is Orchard Road, they go to Orchard Road, you say, wah, so much barang, barang, (Malay: belongings) you know what's inside? Food. And they lay out the mats, they lay out the food and all the Filipino brethren or people who walk by are welcomed to eat together with them, contact for impact.

Our team, this is the latest team that has traveled to Philippines, they're right there now preaching the Gospel.  Er these are some pictures of those who have been there, Mark, I think this looks like Mark, sharing in a classroom.  Go to Philippines for what? Because if you don't go you can't share.  Contact for impact and he goes to share the Gospel, this is a picture of Haniel, in a, in a bigger setting - he's right in the middle because the mic is down, no sound system, hey but no problem we are still going to tell you the Gospel of Jesus Christ, that you may come to know Him.

You see, the church must be going to make contact, contact for impact. Now, I want to say this is also true for you personally. You know why God has put you in IBM and let you stay in Ang Mo Kio and be in Ama Keng Primary School, you say why? Because I'm like that grain of salt that has been scattered to a place where maybe there's no grain, other grains of salt and that piece of meat is rotting, it's a people who are going further and further from God, they are people who do not want to know God, they're people who are rebelling against God and God wants me to be like that grain of salt to preserve, to purify, to bring joy, I must be out there, so besides you working in your office, besides you studying in school, do you realize that God wants you to be that salt? To be that positive, godly influence, it's about being missional because most of us are not missional, we are not intentional about living out that Christian faith to be a blessing to others. Jesus is saying, if you are someone in the Kingdom, you will be such an influence - would you be someone who will contact for impact?

I like what Sinclair Ferguson said because some of us we may think, but I'm one guy in this big office, I'm, I'm the only Christian in my class.  In my whole neighborhood, I, it seems to be that I'm the only believer, wah, it seems overwhelming. Well, Sinclair Ferguson says “We must never give in to Satan's lie that we can be effective only when we have large numbers and show of strength. Jesus' illustration of salt is an encouraging reminder that the apparently cheap and insignificant can influence its environment out of all proportion to our expectation.”

You know that piece of steak - all it needs is a pinch of salt, beautiful after that!  Just a pinch and just you, just your family could make a difference to where God has called you to be. Some of you may say, ah, but I'm a nobody, I'm not trained in Bible College, I'm, I'm not very smart, I'm not very capable, erm really I'm not rich, I don't have great status in society, I can't do much, right?  You know what Jesus says? He said to the disciples - who are the disciples?  Scholars and scribes and Pharisees? No, fishermen, uneducated, ignorant, full of problems - fishermen and Jesus says, “You, you are the salt of the earth!”  It's really not about you, it's about Me in you, but you are the salt of the earth. I want to say to you because some of you may be sitting here and say, Pastor, this is a great sermon, great sermon for those who are smarter, great sermon for him, for her, for them but not for me. I say it's for you, Jesus chose simple people to tell us, He will use the simple, the foolish to confound the wise, includes you, you in the Greek you already are the salt of the earth.   In fact, I'll say this, in the Greek is also very emphatic in that He says, you alone are the salt of the earth. Hey, your teacher may not tell you that, your boss may not tell you that, your neighborhood may not tell you that but God tells you, you alone are the salt of the earth, you're really precious, you have a big role to play.  Would you live up your faith in such a vibrant and dynamic way?

Well, I've only spoken about four words, you are er, not four, sorry 2,4,6,7, 7 words you are the salt of the earth, but there are a lot more words here so let me end off by explaining what it all means.  Jesus says you're the salt of the earth.  I hope you see your impact.  I hope you see the importance you have, but the third thing I want to help you see is the impediment to living out that purpose.  It is hinted in this phrase, if salt has lost its savor, it, if it's not so salty anymore.  Now you maybe, you may be mystified you say this doesn't make sense I studied chemistry when I was younger and I'm told that sodium chloride NaCl, remember that? Sodium chloride inherent property is that it will be salty - it cannot lose its saltiness.  Ah, Jesus is not very scientific, Jesus maybe good for spiritual things but science He's lousy, that's not true. Well it's because, now, you are absolutely right, by the way if you are chemistry student, I agree with you.  Sodium chloride in and of itself cannot lose its saltiness.  It can't, it's just what it is but I think in those days, every commentator would explain it in this way, they're two possible explanations. One is that this salt that they have in those days are not the pure refined kind of salt we have crystal white and so on, it is like rock salt, bigger pieces, bigger chunks, and it's actually a kind of a compound where there is sodium chloride, but also other things mixed into it so this rock of a salt, sometimes is er affected by moisture and when water comes in, sodium chloride being very soluble will be leached out so what's left behind looks like salt, it's called rock salt, but it is no more salty because the sodium chloride has gone, so that salt, rock salt has lost its flavor or saltiness.

Another explanation is that this rock salt sometimes is mixed with contaminants like gypsum and so on, it's alkaline and, and it makes it not salty - it neutralizes that saltiness, whatever the case may be I want to say to you, I don't think Jesus is unscientific, it's what it is. But His point is this - Christians like salt become useless, if we lose our distinctiveness.  If salt is no more salty it is useless.  If followers of Christ, if Christians are no more Christ-like, if you're losing your walk with God, you are useless. To be fair, think about it - if you're in school, in office and in your workplace but you behave and you think and you desire and you labor for exactly the same things as the world, what kind of an influence would you be?  Pointless, useless so we become useless when we become saltless or we may cease to be an influence when we are like the world and we are not following Jesus.

Many years ago, that's about I think 20 years ago, I was in Milan.  I mean that is a faraway place, in Italy erm and there was this two, in Milan, as far as I know the only thing people go for is shopping, Prada and whatever you have and the only other thing I wanted to be there for is this, this, this church building, famous church building, you got to wait out there in the hot sun - I think that was about an hour, you pay $12 then, that's a lot of money and I went in for just about two minutes. Because in that, in that church is this famous painting by Leonardo da Vinci, the Last Supper.

Now it doesn't look like this now it's, it's pretty much torn down.  I mean it's just run down and so on but this is just a nicer reproduction of it.  Now of course you know that in the Last Supper, right in the middle is Jesus Christ. Now I suggest to you, he probably doesn't look like this at all but that's Leonardo da Vinci's idea, actually a lot of the things here, I don't think are quite biblical but that's his idea. Of the 12 disciples, the one I wanted to look out for is Judas. Do you know where Judas is? Well of the 12, look at them, not easy to tell but you want to find the answer you go back, Wikipedia or Google will tell you, Judas, the los..Last Supper, Leonardo da Vinci but let me tell you where he is now, and he's right here, this guy, alright? People think this is Judas and there's something about Judas that Leonardo da Vinci drew, that indicated his uselessness.

There was a detail that Leonardo da Vinci had, that hints of the fact that Judas will lose his purity, he would be useless. Close up, it is related to the sermon today and if you still can't get it, that's right, that salt, that has been, the shaker that has been toppled, and the salt that is spilled. Leonardo da Vinci is trying to say he has lost his salt as it were, now of course that's not what Jesus meant but I thought this is a very interesting point that Leonardo da Vinci had about salt and purity and usefulness but it comes back, reminding us that Jesus is saying, if one loses his distinctiveness, he loses his Christ-likeness, he is like the world and he's not following Jesus, he, he becomes useless, he's to be thrown.

Another very interesting thought, alright? I, I just thought this is so, so short a verse but so much packed into it.  Another interesting thing that you might like to know is that the word, lost its taste, in the Greek is actually just one word, moraino - you say what's moraino?  Well, the word moraine, er is derived from a word called morose, from which we might get the English word, ah? Moron that's right - moron, you idiot, that's the word, moron, morose, moraino and that's the word, it becomes insipid, it becomes bland, tasteless, a fool so this word moraino occurs only four times in the New Testament.  I, I've put it up for you to see here, four times, Matthew 5:13, Luke 14, Romans 1 and 1st Corinthians. When it is used in Matthew 5 and Luke, it is said to lose its savor, but when you look at it in Romans 1 and 1st Corinthians 1, it is made foolish.

Now it's interesting, so when you come back to this verse, but if salt has become foolish, now that may not be a very good picture so that's why I think they translate it to be “lost its savour, becomes insipid”, but I think it's an interesting point that maybe a link that says if you lose your distinctiveness, if you lose your walk with God, you're a fool, you are a fool, God makes you to be salty and you lose your saltiness by following the world, you are a fool.

Let me give you an example about the bat.  Er you will be familiar with Aesop's fables.  Aesop has lots of er interesting stories about animals that teach us so much. Here is a story about the bat.  It is said that in the past, the animal kingdom, and the birds will have a war.  Sometimes the birds will win, sometimes the animals, the beasts will win. Sometimes when the birds win, the bat will say I'm a bird, I've wings.  Sometimes when the beasts win, the bat will say I'm like you, I'm a beast – he holds back its wing so he flip-flops, flip-flops, flip-flops and after a while, both the beasts and the birds reject the bat. They know that he is a traitor – he is playing 2-face, 2-sides and so ever since then the bat has been banned from being with the birds or the beasts and they are banished to the caves only allowed to come out at night.

Now that's why you have bats, alright, according to Aesop but you know the bat is a picture, according to Aesop, a picture of compromise that belongs nowhere.  He's a fool, but maybe you are a bat, I'm a bat because we say we belong to Jesus but so often we go to the side of the world. We love the world.  We chase for fame and success and finance like the world does, no difference and when times are hard, oh then we come to God - “Jesus, I love you, help me!” And then maybe when the trials are over, you go back to the world, you play two sides, you're a fool and you are useless in either case.  You know I think one of the most miserable kinds of people today are, are Christians who live in the world, like the world, for the world.  One of the most miserable kind of people and if you have been in such a stage in your life, you know there's no joy in you. So are you a bat? Because if you are one, you are a fool and you are useless in the kingdom of heaven, you're not living the life God wants you to live.

I was reading the Bible with my son Shawn, Matthias and Shawn came to this passage. I mean I allow him to read on sequentially and we came to… Shawn – do you remember? - he does! Okay.  We come, we came to Luke 14.   Luke 14 actually says almost exactly the same thing as Matthew 5.  Salt is good but if salt has lost its taste, how shall its saltiness be restored..….bla…bla…bla…. bla…. it's the same, but what's interesting in Luke 14 is that I noticed before Luke 14 verses 32, 34 to 35 is, verse 33 that says “So therefore, anyone of you who does not renounce all that he has, cannot be my disciple” So if you read the Bible continuously, I think it's not far off for us to imagine Jesus saying if you want to be my disciple, you've got to renounce everything.

It means earlier, he clarified - it means you hate your father, you hate your mother.  You hate evil in your own life, deny yourself, take up the cross because only then can you really be my disciple. Anyone who does not renounce all cannot be my disciple and when you do that or when you don't do that, you're like that salt that has lost its taste.  What if, what am I saying?  I'm saying that if you want to be an influence in the world, if you want to be the salt that God has called you to be, you've got to be following Jesus.  You can't be living for the world and like the world, you've got to renounce all that and you've got to abandon your life here and you've got to follow Jesus there.

Remember that phrase - contact for impact - not just contact with the world but let me tell you, you've got to have contact with the Savior. It's only that man who is in contact with the Savior.  That man who is following Jesus that he will be salty and that he will be a blessing and following Jesus demands a price, demands a cost and that's why earlier in Luke 14 - Shawn was asking me what does it mean for a man to sit down and to count the cost of building the tower.  Now you've got to think about it.  If you really want to follow Jesus, you got to renounce all and if you do, you'll be like that salt but if you don't, you'll lose your saltiness.

Time is catching up, I didn't know my sermon will be so long, but let me tell you lastly about Kenneth, Kenneth in this picture here, he was baptized earlier this year. Some of you would be here and witnessed his baptism, he just came to faith this year and he had this thing to say about his mom who is pictured here, Peggy. He said, “She was uptight, hot tempered and aggressive - that's his mom - that's who she is but after turning to Christ 2 years ago, she has transformed into a joyful and peace-loving individual. It was stunning! I see how, I saw how she cared for my father as he slipped further into the unforgiving jaws of dementia and was moved by her actions. This life transformation must have come from the great power of God Himself. The change I saw in my mother's life was the chief reason behind my decision to accept Christ as my Savior.” And I don't know Peggy that well, but I suppose she's not going to be a professor in some university, erm she's probably not someone who is well known in society. She's a very ordinary person like you and me but she was and is the salt of the earth, that grain that was needed in the Koh family that his son, her son might come to know the Lord and let me tell you why she has this transformation.  She's telling us… she tells me that she's listening to the Word of God every single day. She has a TV - she's very proud of the TV.  It's given by someone else, not that she bought it.  She says a nice TV and on the TV day and night, she'll be listening to the Word of God preached over and over and over again.  No wonder she is someone who is in contact with Jesus, learning of Jesus, following Jesus and that changes her life.  Saltiness is seen and now her son comes to her, comes to Christ because she is the salt. So Peggy, I want to say to you, as what God says you are the salt of the earth and I will say to all of you - if you know Jesus as your Savior, you are the salt - keep following Jesus and God will use you to be a positive godly influence in the world you live in.

Let's bow for a word of prayer together. I'd just like to give you this time to think and to consider the Word of God.  Contact for impact!  Are you intentional about making contact, where you live, where you work, where you play because God did not save you so that you can be an engineer, God did not save you so that you can be an architect, God did not save you, so that you can be in the office just working.  God has saved you and placed you so that you are like the salt scattered!  Live out the intent and purpose for your life would you?

You say, what do I need to do to be an impact to the world?  Let me tell you it's very simple.  Contact for impact, be in contact with Jesus Christ.  You know it comes back to those words Jesus said “Follow me and I will make you fishers of men”. Follow Him!  Let this be your primary objective.  Let this be your primary pursuit, I want to follow Jesus - know Him, grow in Him, obey Him, and God will then make you to be the influence He wants you to be.  It's all God, folks.  It's not you trying to do this, changing yourself, it's letting God change you so maybe there is sin in your life right now, maybe there are decisions you need to make right now, would you do that?

You know when we get to heaven I, I wish I could go there and see the many lives, God has used me to impact, maybe a small impact but I'm glad I could be an impact.  I pray you will be the man and woman God wants you to be.

Maybe this morning you're here for the first time I want to say to you, this is the will of God - He wants you to be kept from sins' decay and Jesus is the ultimate salt.  He came and died on the cross to bear away your sins.  The Bible says you are a sinner, but Jesus came for sinners, He calls you today to repent and to believe in Jesus Christ, that you may be cleansed, you may be saved. Would you do that this morning?  Would you be rescued from sin?  I pray you will.

Father, bless Your Word to every heart this morning. We ask this in Jesus' Name, Amen.

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