Shake Salt / Shine Light

Parables
September 27, 2026

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Scriptures

• Matthew 5:3-16
• Romans 12:1
• John 8:12
• Colossians 4:5-6

KEY POINTS

• Jesus does not say we will become salt and light. He says we are. That is our identity in Him.
• Every person already has influence. The question is whether that influence points people to the Father or to ourselves.
• Salt belongs in covenant, worship, and offering. Our first calling is to present ourselves to God as a living sacrifice.
• Salt left in the shaker is good for nothing. Light hidden under a basket cannot help a dark house.
• Jesus is the Light of the world. We shine only because His light lives in us.
• Speech seasoned with salt is gracious, wise, and aimed at outsiders — not sharp, dismissive, or self-promoting.
• Good works are meant to make people glorify the Father, not us. If helping others always points back to you, it has stopped being light.
• The first mission field is the home. If salt and light are missing there, they will not travel far outside it.
• A Beatitude life — poor in spirit, merciful, peacemaking, hungry for righteousness — is what salt and light look like in ordinary places.
• Don’t waste the salt and light God has already put in you. Surrender, receive fresh mercy, and shake it out.

DISCUSSION

• Pastor Bob said Jesus did not say “you will become” salt and light. He said “you are.” How does that change the way you see your life?
• Where are you most tempted to leave  salt in the shaker or hide the light?
• The woman at the golf course said the people there were “carrying something genuine.” What makes Christian influence feel real instead of fake?
• Romans 12 says influence starts with offering yourself to God. What does intimacy with Him look like in your actual week?
• Colossians 4 calls us to speech seasoned with salt toward outsiders. Who is one “outsider” you will see this week, and what would gracious speech sound like?
• Pastor Bob warned helpers not to point people to themselves. How do you know when care has become about you instead of Jesus?
• Your greatest mission field is the home. What is one way you can shake salt and shine light there first this week?