Today we kicked things off in a fairly humorous way. I showd our students the following image.
This is the cover of a 1985 Christian band called Twenty-Twenty. What makes this special for us as a group is that the students actually know the bass player, Gary McAnelly. Why? Because he’s one of our elders and plays on our worship team. The students thought this was hysterical, but what makes this so interesting is that in 1985, Gary and his friends said, “I am going to be a voice to our generation.” They stood in the gap for others their age to help them see Christ.
Over the last several months, we’ve seen a variety of tragedies arise. These tragedies have hurt people physically, emotionally, and spiritually. Not even just on the big world stage with major tragedies, but in a micro sense too. Man of us have loved ones who are going through very real heart breaking moments involving family members, living conditions, and other things. The world seems to be dark, and there are a lot of people crying out, wondering what and how the people of God should respond. They are looking at us to be a voice. The question is, how can our students be a voice in the darkness of today? Today we are going to examine this question.
In Matthew 5 we see Jesus presenting a famous sermon called “The Sermon on the Mount.” Amid the sermon he talks about the kind of people whom God blesses.
V3 – Poor in Spirit: Those who know they need God will be welcomed into His Kingdom.
V4 – Those Who Mourn: Those who grieve over sin, their own and others’, will be comforted by God.
V5 – The Meek: Those who respond with gentleness instead of revenge will inherit the new earth.
V6 – Hunger and Thirst for Righteousness: Those who deeply long for God’s righteousness and justice will be satisfied.
V7 – The Merciful: Those who forgive and show compassion will receive mercy from God.
V8 – Pure in Heart: Those who are sincere and pure in their devotion will see God.
V9 – Peacemakers: Those who bring people into peace with God will be called His children.
V10 – Persecuted for Righteousness: Those who are mistreated for doing what’s right will share in God’s Kingdom.
He talks about dark times that those who will follow Him will experience. He talks about people who are truly Christian will be insulted, targeted for bullying, and falsely accused of all kinds of evil things simply because we are doing and saying what Jesus has commanded us to do and say. He also says that even though those times are difficult, the reward on the back end will be great. He goes on to explain WHY we are treated this way.
READ Matthew 5:13-16
Jesus describes us as Salt and light. In the ancient world, salt was used as a preservative that kept things fresh and in small doses, was used to fertilize the ground to help things grow better. Jesus’s words warn us that in order for us to continue being the very thing we are created to be, we have to walk in the virtues of it. We have to continue to live the life and practices of being a follower of Jesus.
The portion about being light is a call for us to be outwardly expressive with our faith. When people encounter you, your actions and your deeds must tell people that you are, in fact, a follower of Jesus.
ASK: So what does it look like to be Salt and Light?
The great thing about Jesus is that He goes on to show us what it is we are supposed to do. We are going to do a multi-part survey of what it means to be Salt and Light. But my challenge to our students is this: as we go through this, write down what stands out to them as far as what they excel at, and what they think they need help growing in.
I didn’t want to make this a “let me sit here and tell you the truth” kind of event; I wanted them to discover the truth themselves in the scriptures. So I had them walk, split them up into four teams, and have them walk through the scriptures in those teams, then come together to share.
Matthew 5:17-20 > Some believed that Jesus was going to get rid of everything written in the Bible completely, and they would be free to do whatever they wanted. But the reality is that much of the Old Testament points back to Jesus, and much of what we see taught is an explanation or expansion of the Old Testament.
Principle 1 – People who are Salt and Light take the Word of God seriously, honestly seek THE truth in the scriptures, and apply it.
Matthew 5:21-26 > Here, Jesus teaches that anger in your heart towards another. We know that murder is bad, but He warns us that to have hate towards others is in danger of severe judgment. What’s interesting is he goes on to give two illustrations about what YOU should do if someone is angry with YOU. That being said, you need to go to them and try to make things right.
Principle 2 – People who are Salt and Light guard their hearts from holding on to anger and go out of their way to bring peace with those who are angry with them.
Matthew 5:27-30 > Jesus talks about the seriousness of Lust and explains that lust in our hearts is already on the same level as adultery. He then presents a few hyperbolic examples of how to avoid falling into a sinful situation.
Principle 3 – People who are Salt and Light take their personal relationship with God seriously and will go out of their way to protect that relationship. Some things may seem drastic, but they are worth it to preserve their relationship with God.
Matthew 5:31-32 > The discussion on divorce is pretty big and there’s a lot to unpack with it, especially when you look at the entirety of the scriptures. But culturally, it was not uncommon for men to divorce their wives simply for not doing something they liked. Jesus is pointing out that the selfishness of one person can cause others to walk in sin.
Principle 4 – People who are Salt and Light are intentional about honoring the Lord, not just because they love God, but they are concerned about making sure their own actions don’t cause others to sin.
Adventures in Student Ministry 