Salt and Light

This past Sunday, our sermon focused on the way that God was calling Israel to glorify him, love others, and be the light in the land they were about to enter. God knew that due to Israel’s strategic location along key trade routes in the Middle East, people from all walks of life would pass through their nation and have the chance to see Israel’s heartfelt faith, compassion for the vulnerable, and obedience to the Law. Israel was to model for the world a different way of life that would ultimately draw people to the one true God of the Bible. God knew that by placing his people in this location and calling them to embody a Kingdom way of life, his promise to bless all the nations of the world (Genesis 12:1-3) would begin to come true.

Simply put, God was placing Israel in the right place, at the right time, to maximize their spiritual impact on the unbelieving nations around them. God just needed Israel to be a willing partner in his plan to reach and redeem the world.

I believe God is doing the same thing today. God has a deep desire for everyone to be saved and to come to a knowledge of the truth (1 Timothy 2:3-4). Jesus’s strategy to pursue that goal was to entrust the Gospel message to his disciples (that means us) and then send them out into the world as witnesses to his death, burial, and resurrection.

In order for us to embrace this mission on a day-to-day basis, we’ll need to change the way we think about our daily rhythms and life circumstances.

For example, what if we chose to view the neighborhood we live in, the school we attend, the job we work at, the dinner table we eat at, and the network of relationships we have as places where God has intentionally planted us so that we can have a positive spiritual impact on people who need Jesus? Instead of viewing those things as a coincidence or a matter of personal choice, we should consider how they represent the unique mission field where God has planted us so that we can be the salt and light that ultimately leads people to Jesus.

This Sunday, we are going to be offering some words of blessing and encouragement to all of our students, parents, and educators who are about to begin the 2026-2027 school year. We will be praying over them, sharing encouraging passages from Scripture, and calling the entire church to be salt and light in all of the places we go. We want all our students to know that they have a Kingdom-minded and mission-driven family of faith who believes in them, supports them, and is there for them.

We look forward to praying over our students, parents, and teachers this Sunday, and we hope you’ll invite a friend to join us as we call the church to be salt and light in the world!

Blessings,

Bryan Fojtasek