Salt and Light

Salt and Light:

The Influence of Righteous People

Today, we are talking about the influence of righteous people.

Have you ever met someone who changes the room just by walking into it? We have several people right here at our church like that! At my last church, we had a lady named Joann who was a wonderful church member. Her granddaughter was in our college ministry, so Joann would pop in to hang out with the college kids from time to time.

Now, our college kids weren’t bad by any means, but they were college kids—they would get rowdy, pick on each other, push boundaries, and act immature... right up until Joann walked into the room. The moment she stepped in, the rowdiness would instantly stop, and everyone would settle down.

Keep in mind, she never got onto anyone. She never told anyone they needed to shape up or watch their mouth. She would just walk in, and her presence alone changed the room.

Why did this happen? It wasn't a personality trait, an age thing, or an authority thing. The reason she was able to change a room was that everyone knew what she was about. She lived a righteous life. When she stepped into the room, everyone lived up to her standard rather than trying to drag her down to theirs. Righteous people influence those around them.

If this is true, how can we begin to live righteous lives and influence those around us?

Why Do Righteous People Have Influence?

The world has a completely different idea of how people are influenced. Worldly influence is all about domination—demand respect, be the loudest in the room, and eliminate the competition.

How do righteous people have influence? It is not because they are loud, constantly lecturing people, or trying to control the room. The righteous have influence because of who they are. They are steady no matter what is happening around them. They change the atmosphere of any room—where the bad stops and the good begins—bringing out the best in everyone around them.

"Those who have insight will shine like the bright expanse of the heavens, and those who lead many to righteousness, like the stars forever and ever." — Daniel 12:3

"A righteous person is a guide to his neighbor..." — Proverbs 12:26

"The fruit of the righteous is a tree of life, and a wise person captures souls." — Proverbs 11:30

How Do People Become Righteous?

You might be reading this and thinking, "This sounds great, but that isn't me." You might feel like you are tossed around by life. You adapt to the people you are around, you get stressed out or angry when things don't go your way, and you feel way more influenced than influential. How can you become like the people we’ve been talking about?

Here is the truth: righteousness is influential because it does not come from you. You carry influence because you have been given righteousness.

"He made the one who did not know sin to be sin for us, so that in him we might become the righteousness of God." — 2 Corinthians 5:21

Ultimately, the influence is not you—it is Jesus working through you. Notice what that verse says: it doesn't say He made you work harder so you could earn righteousness; it says Jesus took your place. On the cross, Jesus took all of our instability, all of our anger, all of our chameleon-like compromise, and all of our sin—and He owned it as His own. In return, He took His flawless, steady, climate-changing, unshakable righteousness and credited it to your account.

You don't walk into a room relying on your own track record; you walk in wearing the righteousness of Jesus Christ. That is why you can change the room—not because of who you are, but because of who lives inside of you!

This is what the Beatitudes point to: God changes your heart, and then God changes your life. The poor in spirit recognize their need for God. Those who mourn grieve over their sin. The meek surrender themselves to God. Those who hunger and thirst for righteousness long to be changed by God. As a result, mercy flows toward others, purity shapes our motives, peace guides our relationships, and faithfulness continues even when it costs us something. These markers of a changed life inevitably lead to a collision with the world.

Righteousness Can Lead to Persecution

In the last Beatitude, Jesus tells us, "Blessed are those who are persecuted because of righteousness." Real righteousness is never quiet—when you bring health into a sick environment, the sickness pushes back.

Let’s be honest: no one wakes up on Monday morning, pours some coffee, and says, "Man, I hope someone mocks my faith today." Our natural instinct is to blend in, stay quiet, and hide our faith. We try to avoid the world or look enough like the world so no one bothers us. But when God changes your heart and life, you can no longer hide or blend in. Jesus doesn't call us to hide. He calls us to be what He redeemed us to be: the salt of the earth and the light of the world.

The Righteous Are the Salt of the Earth (v. 13)

Jesus begins by establishing your identity: You ARE the salt of the earth.

Jesus is not giving a checklist here. He doesn't say you might be salt if you try harder, or that you should be salt. By being a born-again Christian, you are salt. And when salt enters a situation, it changes things! Spiritually, salt does three distinct things:

Salt Prevents Decay

In ancient times, once meat had begun to rot, there was no way to make it good again. Salt was applied to fresh meat to keep it from rotting before decay set in. Bacteria need moisture to survive, and salt halts decay by drawing water out through osmosis. It goes deep into the meat, creating an environment where decay is held back and what is good stays good much longer.

Spiritually, Christians are called to be the salt that holds back cultural decay. For sin to take over, there must be an environment that allows it—Christians starve sin out of the room.

Salt Promotes Life

Salt isn't just defensive; it is offensive. Ancient people used salt to clean wounds and stop infections. Most people think Christianity is all about keeping the bad stuff out—avoiding sin, staying out of trouble, and stopping bad habits. But where righteous people are, good should not only survive; it should thrive.

Righteous people bring peace, break up difficult environments, and take people’s junk and turn it into fertilizer. They make people who are on fire for Jesus burn even hotter!

Salt Provides Flavor

Salt doesn’t overpower; it enhances. When you salt a good steak or fresh vegetables, you aren't trying to make them taste like a salt shaker. Salt chemically suppresses bitterness and amplifies the natural flavor profile of the food itself. It draws out the rich, hidden, natural taste that was already there.

Righteousness doesn't make people weird, fake, or uniform. It doesn't force everyone into the same rigid mold. When a righteous person enters a relationship, a family, or an organization, they don't crush people's personalities—they kill the bitterness, cynicism, and selfishness masking who God created them to be. Righteousness brings out the best version of who you were always meant to be in Christ.

When Ms. Joann stepped into a room, all the foolishness stopped. She didn't give in to the environment; she changed it. This is the entire idea behind discipleship: we walk with people to the point where they are changed. As Paul said in 1 Corinthians 11:1, "Imitate me, as I also imitate Christ."

The Danger of Losing Your Saltiness

"You are the salt of the earth. But if the salt should lose its taste, how can it be made salty? It’s no longer good for anything but to be thrown out and trampled under people’s feet." — Matthew 5:13

Natural salt in the ancient world was never pure; raw salt was mixed with sand, clay, and minerals. If raw salt was left out in the sun and rain, the actual salt dissolved away, leaving behind a residue that looked like salt but was completely worthless. Salt that has lost its saltiness is the exact opposite of salt—instead of preserving, it ruins; instead of promoting life, it kills vegetation (which is why it was thrown onto roads); instead of seasoning food, it makes everything bitter and disgusting. The danger lies in the fact that salt without saltiness still looks like salt.

Christians without righteousness still attend churches, still call themselves Christians, and still speak like Jesus on Sundays—but live in complete hypocrisy. Salt that loses its saltiness doesn't just fail to save; it poisons the well. Unrighteous Christians stand in the way of God’s blessings and church growth. As a pastor, I have heard people say, "A few more people need to die before this church can grow." The reality isn't that people need to physically pass away, but that the spiritual blockade of stubbornness, control, and unrighteousness needs to be removed. Those people don't need to physically die—they just need to die to themselves. When we die to ourselves and let God purify our hearts, we stop poisoning the well and start shedding light.

You Are the Light of the World

In the Beatitudes, God changes who you are internally first, and then the change is seen externally. Salt deals with how you live when no one is watching; Light deals with how you live when everyone is watching.

"You ARE the light of the world." — Matthew 5:14

How is that possible? Because Jesus said in John 8:12, "I am the light of the world. Anyone who follows me will never walk in the darkness but will have the light of life." You receive His light, and that light cannot be hidden.

Jesus gives the picture of a city situated on a hill. I remember driving up to Jerusalem at night. We were driving down in a valley, and suddenly I saw Jerusalem glowing in the distance. I thought, "Oh, we will be there soon!" But we kept driving and driving. Coming over the hills, Jerusalem seemed so close, but you can see its lights at night from up to 50 miles away! A city on a hill cannot be hidden.

"No one lights a lamp and puts it under a basket, but rather on a lampstand, and it gives light for all who are in the house. In the same way, let your light shine before others, so that they may see your good works and give glory to your Father in heaven." — Matthew 5:15–16

What does our light do?

Light exposes: It brings what was hidden in the shadows out into the open.

Light shows reality: In the dark, you can pretend things aren't broken. Light strips away illusions and cuts through self-deception.

Light demands a response: You can't remain neutral in a lit room; you either step into the light or retreat deeper into the dark.

"For you were once darkness, but now you are light in the Lord. Walk as children of light." — Ephesians 5:8

Main Application: Be Salt and Light

Jesus doesn't say "try to become salt" or "hope to be light." He says you ARE salt, and you ARE light.

Your presence in a room is never neutral. When you walk into your home, your workplace, or this church, you either starve sin and reflect Jesus, or you let compromise poison the well. We don't need a funeral to see a revival—we just need believers who will die to themselves today. Lay down your pride, step out of the shadows, and let the righteousness of Christ shine through you.

Challenge

Be the light to ONE person this week.

Offer intentional encouragement.

Don’t just say, "Let me know if you need anything," but take direct action to help.

Share how good Jesus has been to you.