Salt

Is everyone holding some salt? This kind of sermon is a little bit nerve-wracking... What are we going to be asked to do with this salt?

When I was at the terribly embarrassable and humiliatable age of 12, my Dad preached a sermon at a church in Sydney. It was part of his job as a missionary to use part of the time we were home in Australia visiting churches and talking about the work in West Papua. Now this was a very full church (it may have been a special occasion) and the aisles were very narrow (this becomes relevant!) and Dad got up and said something like this, “All of you agree that mission is crucial to church life. And all of you know that you are part of God’s mission. I do not need to tell you that again. You know it. What we all find harder is actually ‘going’. So, this morning we’re going to practice ‘going’ by moving from one part of the church to another....Go!”

It was a disaster. Everyone stood at once and no one could go anywhere. It was the sort of church where doing anything like that got people very very annoyed and some of them did go. They left.

But 30 years later it is a message that has stayed with me.

We, too, know that communicating the love of God is what it means to be the church. And that we are part of God’s mission. Three weeks ago Moriah reminded us that knowing God is such a gift; one that God wants us to share with all people. Aron and Graeme helped us see that actions speak louder than words – and last week Barbara shared how stepping out of our comfort zone, to listen, to be a friend... can speak volumes about who God is.

And in lots of ways we are ‘going’...some of the ideas from the May Mission Month board:

Salt was highly valued in the ancient world. The Greeks called salt divine. Jewish sacrifices included salt. And in Matthew 5:13 we, as followers of Christ, are called to be salt in our world to add flavour to life. To give people a taste of something good – a taste of God.

As you look at the salt in your hands, ask yourself:

- Who – whose life - does God want you to add flavor to?

- Where are you meant to spreading your salt?

- Is your salt worth it’s salt?

- Or are you spreading salt where there is plenty, over-salting one dish while others are left bland?

There are three maps. While James plays through our next song please feel free to come forward and place your salt on one of maps – where you would like to have a flavorsome influence in our world and in our country and in our local community.