A Challenge To Add Flavor To The World

𝐅𝐄𝐁. 𝟖, 𝟐𝟎𝟐𝟔: 𝐅𝐈𝐅𝐓𝐇 𝐒𝐔𝐍𝐃𝐀𝐘 𝐈𝐍 𝐎𝐑𝐃𝐈𝐍𝐀𝐑𝐘 𝐓𝐈𝐌𝐄

𝐑𝐞𝐚𝐝𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝟏: 𝐈𝐬𝐚 𝟓𝟖:𝟕-𝟏𝟎

𝐑𝐞𝐬𝐩𝐨𝐧𝐬𝐨𝐫𝐢𝐚𝐥 𝐏𝐬𝐚𝐥𝐦: 𝐏𝐬𝐚 𝟏𝟏𝟐:𝟒-𝟗 “𝐓𝐡𝐞 𝐣𝐮𝐬𝐭 𝐦𝐚𝐧 𝐢𝐬 𝐚 𝐥𝐢𝐠𝐡𝐭 𝐢𝐧 𝐝𝐚𝐫𝐤𝐧𝐞𝐬𝐬 𝐭𝐨 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐮𝐩𝐫𝐢𝐠𝐡𝐭.”

𝐑𝐞𝐚𝐝𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝟐: 𝟏 𝐂𝐨𝐫 𝟐:𝟏-𝟓

𝐆𝐎𝐒𝐏𝐄𝐋: 𝐌𝐀𝐓𝐓 𝟓:𝟏𝟑-𝟏𝟔

𝐊𝐞𝐲 𝐕𝐞𝐫𝐬𝐞: “𝐋𝐞𝐭 𝐲𝐨𝐮𝐫 𝐥𝐢𝐠𝐡𝐭 𝐬𝐡𝐢𝐧𝐞 𝐛𝐞𝐟𝐨𝐫𝐞 𝐦𝐞𝐧,” (𝐯.𝟏𝟔) 

          The Gospel reading on this Fifth Sunday in Ordinary Time is not just an inspirational teaching of Jesus Christ to his disciples and to the crowd who have been following our Lord, but it is a direct challenge for all of us to make this world a better place to live in.

          In the days of Jesus, to be referred to as the “𝐬𝐚𝐥𝐭 𝐨𝐟 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐞𝐚𝐫𝐭𝐡” was the greatest compliment that can be given to any man. Why? Because it speaks highly of a person’s character and value. To be called the salt of the earth in those days was to highlight a person’s usefulness and how he was perceived not only by his family and peers but by the community in general.

         And today, amidst the stench of graft and corruption around us and the immoral conduct of the country’s public officials – a culture that is slowly creeping into the moral scruples of the citizenry – Jesus is encouraging us to make a difference, to embrace a radical paradigm shift in our mindsets and behavior that in so doing the life we live can add flavor to this dysfunctional environment we live in.

         For a person to be equated with salt was to draw attention to his purity as salt was in those days considered as the purest of all things because it came from the purest of all sources – the sun and the sea and even to this day, Jewish sacrificial offerings are made with salt. This is why for a Christian to be the salt of the earth that person must be an example of purity.

         It is not enough that we pay lip service to our commitment as a Christian. How often do we hear people professing how they love to serve in the Lord’s vineyard, how they have offered their lives to the Lord, how they love the church or community they serve in. But their actions do not mirror what comes out of their lips.

        The problem that most communities or ministries have is that the words that come out of our lips are often in contradiction with our deeds and we may not even be aware of it. Why is this so? We cannot see it because our intentions are clouded with our desire to create a good impression for ourselves.

        What also amuses me no end is when I see some supposed disciples doing things they normally do not do but are now very active doing everything necessary to invite the attention of their members in the ministry because of their aspirations to get elected to a position of leadership. And there are times we cannot see through the subtlety of these actions as they may be clouded with their angelic appearances.  

        In this Gospel passage, Jesus used ordinary images, such as salt and light, to convey the truths he wanted to impart to his disciples and to the Jews. We may ask what does salt and light have to do with our mission to build God’s Kingdom on earth?

        The greatest and most obvious quality of salt is that it lends flavor to things. Food without salt is insipid and this is what Christianity is to life. Christianity lends flavor to life. Hence, if a seasoning has not flavor, it has no value whatsoever. This is the same for us Christians because if we make no effort to influence the world around us, we are of little value to God.

        Jesus uses the image of salt to describe how we are to live in the world. As salt purifies, preserves, and penetrates, so we too must be like salt in our society, in our church or community to purify, preserve, and penetrate our society and our church for the Kingdom of God and of his righteousness and peace.

         The essence of this Gospel passage and our being equated with salt is to remind us that idleness invites disaster. If we as a Christian disciple do not fulfill our purpose as a Christian which is to “𝐝𝐞𝐧𝐲 𝐨𝐮𝐫𝐬𝐞𝐥𝐯𝐞𝐬, 𝐩𝐢𝐜𝐤 𝐮𝐩 𝐨𝐮𝐫 𝐜𝐫𝐨𝐬𝐬 𝐚𝐧𝐝 𝐜𝐨𝐦𝐞 𝐟𝐨𝐥𝐥𝐨𝐰 𝐉𝐞𝐬𝐮𝐬” (𝐋𝐤 𝟗:𝟐𝟑) and go to the ends of the earth and “𝐦𝐚𝐤𝐞 𝐝𝐢𝐬𝐜𝐢𝐩𝐥𝐞𝐬 𝐨𝐟 𝐚𝐥𝐥 𝐧𝐚𝐭𝐢𝐨𝐧𝐬, 𝐛𝐚𝐩𝐭𝐢𝐳𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐭𝐡𝐞𝐦 𝐢𝐧 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐍𝐚𝐦𝐞 𝐨𝐟 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐅𝐚𝐭𝐡𝐞𝐫 𝐚𝐧𝐝 𝐨𝐟 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐒𝐨𝐧 𝐚𝐧𝐝 𝐨𝐟 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐇𝐨𝐥𝐲 𝐒𝐩𝐢𝐫𝐢𝐭.” (𝐌𝐚𝐭𝐭 𝟐𝟖:𝟏𝟖) then we are on our way to disaster.

         Just as seasoning brings out the best flavor in food, we as the salt of the earth should not merely blend in with others but we must influence others in a more positive way.

        Jesus also used the image of light and a lamp to underscore his illustration. Lamps in those days served a vital function as they also do today. They enable people to see and work in the dark and to avoid stumbling. The Jews also understood “light” as an expression of the inner beauty, truth, and goodness of God.

        “𝐈𝐧 𝐲𝐨𝐮𝐫 𝐥𝐢𝐠𝐡𝐭 𝐰𝐞 𝐬𝐞𝐞 𝐥𝐢𝐠𝐡𝐭” ( 𝐏𝐬𝐚 𝟑𝟔:𝟗). “𝐘𝐨𝐮𝐫 𝐰𝐨𝐫𝐝 𝐢𝐬 𝐚 𝐥𝐚𝐦𝐩 𝐭𝐨 𝐦𝐲 𝐟𝐞𝐞𝐭 𝐚𝐧𝐝 𝐚 𝐥𝐢𝐠𝐡𝐭 𝐟𝐨𝐫 𝐦𝐲 𝐩𝐚𝐭𝐡.” (𝐏𝐬𝐚 𝟏𝟏𝟗:𝟏𝟎𝟓). God’s Grace not only illumines the darkness in our lives, but it also fills us with spiritual light, joy, and peace. Jesus used the image of a lamp to describe how his disciples are to live in the light of his truth and love.

        Just as natural light illumines the darkness and enables us to see visually, so the light of Christ must shine in our hearts that will enable us to see the heavenly reality of God’s Kingdom. In fact, our mission is to be the light-bearers of Christ so that others may see the truth of the Gospel and be freed from the blindness of sin and deception.

        Jesus said that nothing can remain hidden or secret. Even in the church or community that we belong to, we can camouflage our real intention and try to hide our true intention from others, but nothing can be hidden from God who sees everything.

        Unknown to us we may be inviting tragedy when we shut our eyes from the consequences of our sinful ways and bad habits, even when we know what those consequences are. As we are enveloped by our personal intentions and desires, we keep these bad habits out of sight by hiding them from others and even from God. Nonetheless, nothing can be hidden from God who sees all.

        As a light, a Christian should serve as a guide who must clear the way for others to also come to know Christ. We must stand as a warning light to tell others of the danger that lies ahead especially when their faith is being put to a test. And a Christian should not only be visible within the church or community whose light stops at the church entrance. This means that the light we have as Christians must be visible in the way we treat our neighbors or the person beside us.

         In other words, the world has to see our good deeds. As Greek was the universal language in those days, there are two words the Greeks use in describing that which is good. One is the word “agathos” which means good in quality and the other is “kalos” which means a thing is not only good but is also beautiful and attractive.

         In this passage today, Jesus used the word “kalos” which means that the good deeds of a Christian must not only be good but attractive as well. Thus, the good deeds that we do must not only bring good to others but must be able to attract others to share the faith that we have.

        A true Christian is one who doesn’t think of what he has done but what God has enabled him to do. A true Christian does not draw attention to himself, but he directs attention to God. A true Christian is one who doesn’t do things in response to the expectations of others, but as a response to the call of God. A Christian who lives for Christ should glow like a light and be a salt to show others the way to Christ.

        Like salt, a true Christian is one who adds flavor to the world around him. I believe that it is time that each of one of us should ask “am I that kind of salt? Do I add flavor to my environment? Do I only try to look pious for others to see? A good way to end the day is to ask yourself before retiring for the night “have I been the salt and light in everything I did during the day?”

         Indeed, this Gospel today is an invitation and a challenge for all of us to become a better version of ourselves. (𝘌𝘥 𝘔𝘢𝘭𝘢𝘺 – 𝘍𝘦𝘣. 8, 2026)