The Call to be Salt and Light – Matthew 5:13-16 || In Jesus' day, as in ours, people used salt for a variety of reasons. It preserved food, helped with healing or triggered chemical reactions (such as melting ice). But salt’s main use was to enhance flavor. Jesus called us, as his followers, to make life “taste” better for others, as he did. As God’s light shines through us, we can make the world a brighter, “tastier” place to be. Let’s start with the image of salt. One writer said, “Some Christians act as if Jesus said, ‘You are the vinegar of the earth.’” Eugene Peterson renders this verse as “You're here to be salt-seasoning that brings out the God-flavors of this earth” (The Message). Who has blessed your life by adding flavor and joy to it? For whom can you do this? Jesus’ second image is light—a lamp in a dark home, or a city on a hill, seen for miles around. What does it mean to you to “let your light shine for Jesus”? As people see who and what you are, do they also see Jesus and his qualities and values? Are there any people or circumstances that make you afraid to shine your light?

Prayer: Lord Jesus, I want to be salt and light in my home, my community and the world! Free me from a limited earth-bound perspective. Infuse me with your kingdom outlook—your love for all. Amen.

The Call to Share Jesus' Earthly Ministry – Luke 9:1-6, 10:1-9 || Luke’s research (cf. Luke 1:3) led him to describe two times when Jesus sent out groups of his followers (Matthew’s gospel only mentioned one sending—cf. Matthew 10). Their task was perhaps a bit surprising: these called and sent followers were to do the same kinds of ministry Jesus himself was doing. They carried with them his spiritual authority and power. Jesus’ commission took in two main activities: proclaiming God’s Kingdom and healing the sick. Matthew 8:16 quoted Isaiah 53:4, linking healing to God’s saving servant. Did Jesus only heal physical illnesses, or did he also restore emotional and spiritual wholeness? Do you believe doctors, counselors, nurses and others do Jesus' healing work today, using methods that didn’t exist in Jesus' day? Can Jesus also work through other than usual medical techniques, in ways that seem more “miraculous”? Luke 9:3 may sound startling: “He told them, “Take nothing for the journey—no walking stick, no bag, no bread, no money, not even an extra shirt.” Would you go on a mission trip under instructions like that? Israelite culture in Jesus' day placed a higher premium on hospitality to strangers—in fact, almost required it. How does this example show the ways in which time and place shaped even Jesus' teachings?

Prayer: Saving, healing Lord, thank you for the wholeness you’ve brought to me, and the hope you give me for the places where I’m still hurting and broken. Equip me to share and heal as you did. Amen.

The Call to Change the Whole World – Luke 13:10-21 || Our world often connects size with power. People often assume either good things or bad about a business or a church based solely on its size. But Jesus said it works the other way: power, whatever it looks like now, in the end produces world-changing results. One woman healed in one synagogue—how could that make a difference? It was a sign of God’s power at work, and like a tiny mustard seed growing into a tree, or a bit of yeast reshaping a whole loaf of bread, that power was changing the whole world. As at other times in Jesus' ministry, in this story his healing power ran afoul of jealously guarded laws and traditions. Luke said the synagogue leader was “incensed that Jesus had healed on the Sabbath.” Which are you more comfortable with: established procedures and order, or God breaking into 21st-century lives in sometimes surprising and “disorderly” ways? Tiny mustard seeds become trees; tiny bits of yeast penetrate whole batches of bread. Jesus and his few followers didn’t look like much against the vast and powerful Roman Empire—but there was a cosmic power at work in them that would reshape the whole world long after Rome fell. In what ways has Jesus’ power reshaped your life? How, in ways big or small, have you been able to extend that power to others?

Prayer: Lord Jesus, I often feel like a mustard seed—tiny, almost invisible, unable to make much of a difference. Thank you for reminding me that each one of us matters, and that I can make a difference for you. Amen.

The Call to serve “the least of these” – Matthew 25:31-46 || After talking about the Temple’s destruction and the end of the world (in sometimes puzzling terms), Jesus gave a word picture of the final judgment. His words about the judgment, though probably not exhaustive, clearly conveyed his Kingdom’s priorities. Kingdom people, he said, care for the hungry and thirsty, the poorly-clothed and strangers, the prisoners and the sick—people whom Jesus called “the least of these brothers and sisters of mine.” We sometimes say we should “see the face of Jesus” in people in need. But in Jesus' story, both those accepted and the ones turned away were surprised. Jesus seemed to be saying that we should notice all people in need of help and treat them as if it were Jesus himself in need. In what ways can you sense God reshaping your attitudes toward “the least of these” in your community and world? In Jesus' day, the Aramaic phrase “son of man” most generally meant a human being, not a divine figure. But by verse 34, and for the rest of the story, he is “the king.” What does it mean for you to accept and honor Jesus as the king of your life?

Prayer: King Jesus, show me the “least of these” in my wealthy neighbor who struggles emotionally or spiritually, my poor friend who suffers financially, my sick friend who needs your comfort while dying—and in myself, who needs more of you in my life. Amen.

The Call to Carry On Jesus' Work – John 20:19-22 || Jesus was alive—but his followers were still afraid. As they huddled behind locked doors, Jesus suddenly stood among them. As he did often in his gospel, John chose words that echoed the Genesis creation story. Genesis 2:7 said God “blew life’s breath” into the first human. Here Jesus offered his disciples God’s peace, said he was sending them as God had sent him, and then “breathed” on them and said, “Receive the Holy Spirit.” Pastor Roger Frederickson wrote, “As God had breathed His life into that first man and He became a living soul, so now His Son shares the intimacy of His own life with His disciples that they may be a new humanity, recreated and empowered for their mission.” In what ways have you sensed God’s power at work in your personal journey with Jesus, and through you when you take part in some aspect of God’s mission? Reflect on Jesus' words in verse 21: “Peace be with you. As the Father sent me, so I am sending you.” By many standard measures, Jesus did not lead what we would call a “peaceful” life. Are there ways in which Jesus' call, Jesus' “sending,” has disrupted any of your peace and comfort? In what ways have you sensed God’s peace in yourself, particularly in unsettling situations, as you respond to Jesus' calling?

Prayer: Creator Lord, you make beautiful things, and day by day you are making me new. Keep sending your holy disturbance into my life, so I may more and more walk in the true peace you offer me. Amen.

The Call goes on to the end of the age – Matthew 28:16-20 || Writing some 30-40 years after Jesus' resurrection, Matthew said the disciples “worshipped him,” a clear sign that they saw Jesus as God. Jesus told them to go and make disciples, and as Matthew wrote that was happening. And Jesus made the crucial promise that “I myself will be with you every day until the end of this present age” (verse 20). The Holy Spirit is not some spooky, ghostly vapor. The Holy Spirit is the personal spiritual presence of Jesus with each one of us every day, all the way to the end of the age—a beautiful, reassuring gift! • Scholar N. T. Wright said, “It is basic to the most elementary New Testament faith that Jesus is already ruling the whole world ... The claim is not that the world is already fully as Jesus intends it to be ... but that he is working to take it from where it was—under the rule not only of death but of corruption, greed and every kind of evil —and to bring it, by slow means and quick, under the rule of his life-giving love. And how is he doing this? Here is the shock: through us, his followers.” How are you answering Jesus' call to join his liberating force, to carry on the work of bringing the world under his rule? How does his promise to always be with you give you courage?>br>
Prayer: Lord Jesus Christ, you’ve called me into the most amazing work ever done in this world, and you’ve promised to be with me. Yes, Lord—count me in! Amen.

Gather your family in the darkest space of your home—a closet or a dark bathroom would be good options. Bring a Bible and a small reading light with you. When you are all together, ask someone to read Matthew 5:14-16. Describe how just this room is dark, so are our hearts, lives and the world without the light of Jesus. Discuss how as followers of Jesus, his light lives within us and he wants us to share it with the world with our words and actions. Open the door of the room and celebrate the light of Jesus together! Give thanks to God for Jesus and for the light he brings to our lives. Commit to sharing the light of Jesus with all people.