WEBVTT - Stepping Up to a New You-Part 1 0:00:00.650 --> 0:00:03.710 Today on Bold Steps with Mark Jobe, we're discovering what 0:00:03.710 --> 0:00:06.529 it takes to be salt and light in this world. 0:00:06.920 --> 0:00:10.430 The way you live, it begins to create in the 0:00:10.430 --> 0:00:15.080 people around you a desire to say, hey, there's something 0:00:15.080 --> 0:00:18.380 that makes me want to know more about the God 0:00:18.380 --> 0:00:23.030 that they have. And so you become the agent that 0:00:23.030 --> 0:00:27.830 causes people to be thirsty to know more about the 0:00:27.830 --> 0:00:31.340 living God. You become salt and you become light. 0:00:43.400 --> 0:00:47.150 Welcome to Bold Steps with Mark Jobe. Mark is president 0:00:47.150 --> 0:00:49.970 of Moody Bible Institute and senior pastor of New Life 0:00:49.970 --> 0:00:53.420 Community Church in Chicago. Well, we're starting the last message 0:00:53.420 --> 0:00:55.160 in our series, Step Up, and it's going to be 0:00:55.160 --> 0:00:56.960 a good one. Most of us have been taught to 0:00:56.990 --> 0:01:00.080 accept low potential, but we really want to squash that 0:01:00.080 --> 0:01:01.500 notion today. here, Mark. 0:01:01.500 --> 0:01:04.740 We do, Wayne, because God calls us to a high calling. 0:01:05.010 --> 0:01:08.250 And when I say high calling, I don't necessarily mean 0:01:08.250 --> 0:01:13.080 a platform calling or a spotlight calling. 0:01:13.110 --> 0:01:13.709 Good point. 0:01:13.740 --> 0:01:17.880 It's the calling that fulfills you. It's a calling that 0:01:17.880 --> 0:01:21.330 energizes you. It's a calling that God has gifted and 0:01:21.330 --> 0:01:24.900 empowered you to fulfill. And one of those, Wayne that 0:01:24.900 --> 0:01:27.450 all of us have, all of us are called to, 0:01:27.480 --> 0:01:30.210 is to be salt and light. Yes. And sometimes we 0:01:30.209 --> 0:01:33.360 think that our calling is within the four walls of 0:01:33.360 --> 0:01:36.390 a church, that that's where we do ministry. 0:01:36.420 --> 0:01:36.720 Not at. 0:01:36.720 --> 0:01:39.690 All. But, you know, there's a calling that every believer 0:01:39.690 --> 0:01:44.580 has to be salt and light outside. And that's what's challenging. 0:01:44.580 --> 0:01:46.530 But it is so compelling. 0:01:46.560 --> 0:01:49.470 The gospel is not to be hid, and we have 0:01:49.470 --> 0:01:52.200 a role to play. Let's listen to Mark's message now 0:01:52.200 --> 0:01:53.490 on bold steps. 0:01:55.740 --> 0:02:00.480 As I look at Matthew chapter five, I see that 0:02:00.500 --> 0:02:08.300 Jesus is challenging his disciples to be who God has 0:02:08.300 --> 0:02:12.980 called them to be, and to function at a level 0:02:12.980 --> 0:02:17.120 that may make them uncomfortable, but their calling in life. 0:02:17.270 --> 0:02:21.980 And I'm going to read verses 13 through through 16 0:02:22.010 --> 0:02:24.230 of Matthew chapter five. I'm going to ask you to 0:02:24.260 --> 0:02:26.840 stand one last time for the reading of the word. 0:02:28.430 --> 0:02:33.110 Jesus tells his disciples in something called the sermon on 0:02:33.110 --> 0:02:36.200 the Mount. And I've actually been on this mount near 0:02:36.200 --> 0:02:41.570 the Sea of Galilee, where Jesus delivered his most famous sermon, 0:02:42.470 --> 0:02:46.910 the Beatitudes, where he begins to talk about turn the 0:02:46.910 --> 0:02:50.180 other cheek. He talks about you've learned eye for an eye, 0:02:50.210 --> 0:02:52.670 but I teach you a different way. He's introducing to 0:02:52.700 --> 0:02:56.240 them a whole different way of living. And sandwiched in 0:02:56.240 --> 0:02:59.179 the middle of this message are a couple verses about 0:02:59.180 --> 0:03:03.270 being salt and light. Jesus looks at his disciples and 0:03:03.270 --> 0:03:06.660 he doesn't tell them, you need to become salt. He says, 0:03:06.660 --> 0:03:11.520 you are salt. You are the salt of the earth. 0:03:11.520 --> 0:03:14.910 But if the salt loses its saltiness, how can it 0:03:14.910 --> 0:03:18.810 be made salty again? It's no longer good for anything 0:03:18.810 --> 0:03:22.950 except to be thrown out and trampled by men. You 0:03:22.950 --> 0:03:26.130 are the light of the world. A city on a 0:03:26.160 --> 0:03:31.169 hill cannot be hidden. Neither do people light a lamp 0:03:31.169 --> 0:03:33.330 and put it under a bowl. Instead they put it 0:03:33.330 --> 0:03:36.720 on its stand and it gives light to everyone in 0:03:36.720 --> 0:03:41.880 the house. In the same way Jesus said, let your 0:03:41.880 --> 0:03:45.150 light shine before men, that they may see your good 0:03:45.150 --> 0:03:50.190 deeds and praise your father in heaven. The Word of God. 0:03:50.190 --> 0:03:53.310 You may be seated. I want to talk to you 0:03:53.310 --> 0:03:55.830 about stepping up to your new influence, or letting your 0:03:55.830 --> 0:04:01.760 influence come out, based on these verses found In Matthew 0:04:01.760 --> 0:04:05.300 chapter five. If you're taking notes, Jesus begins by telling them, 0:04:05.300 --> 0:04:09.230 and I'm going to. There's two main illustrations that Jesus uses. 0:04:09.230 --> 0:04:13.130 He uses the imagery of salt and the imagery of light, 0:04:13.850 --> 0:04:16.730 and he basically tells them, hey, if you're really going 0:04:16.730 --> 0:04:20.810 to influence a society that you live in, then you 0:04:20.810 --> 0:04:23.810 need to let your salt come out and you need 0:04:23.810 --> 0:04:27.770 to let your light shine. Notice he doesn't tell them 0:04:27.770 --> 0:04:31.130 you need to become salt and you need to become light. 0:04:31.160 --> 0:04:35.570 He says you already are salt, but it has to 0:04:35.570 --> 0:04:39.470 get out and you already are light and it needs 0:04:39.470 --> 0:04:43.700 to shine. This is not something that you're not. This 0:04:43.700 --> 0:04:46.820 is something that you are. But you need to let 0:04:46.820 --> 0:04:50.750 it get out. How many of you know, oftentimes we 0:04:50.750 --> 0:04:55.520 have things that we are but never come out. And 0:04:55.520 --> 0:04:58.099 Jesus is trying to remind them that you are salt 0:04:58.100 --> 0:05:00.169 and that you are light. And so I'm going to 0:05:00.210 --> 0:05:03.779 tackle these two images and really look at what they mean. 0:05:03.810 --> 0:05:06.150 First of all, if you're taking notes write this down. 0:05:06.150 --> 0:05:10.770 You step up to your new influence when you need 0:05:10.770 --> 0:05:15.690 to be salt and others will taste the goodness of God. 0:05:16.589 --> 0:05:20.609 Be salt and others will taste the goodness of God. 0:05:21.720 --> 0:05:25.170 When I talk about salt today, I just grabbed a 0:05:25.170 --> 0:05:28.500 little salt from our cupboard as I was leaving the house. 0:05:28.589 --> 0:05:34.679 This happens to be Morton. Iodized salt. Pretty much. Table salt. 0:05:36.930 --> 0:05:40.650 Salt in today's society is not as valuable as it 0:05:40.650 --> 0:05:45.210 was in the society in which Jesus was speaking. When 0:05:45.210 --> 0:05:48.960 Jesus was speaking about salt, people understood what salt did 0:05:48.990 --> 0:05:52.680 and they understood the importance of salt. In fact, you 0:05:52.680 --> 0:05:55.140 may not be aware of this, but Roman soldiers in 0:05:55.140 --> 0:06:00.089 the days of Jesus were often paid salaries in salt. 0:06:01.220 --> 0:06:08.480 The word salary comes from the Latin word solarium, and 0:06:08.480 --> 0:06:11.810 it's just a carryover from those days. And so we 0:06:11.810 --> 0:06:15.770 have the word salary, but its root meaning is comes 0:06:15.770 --> 0:06:18.980 from salt because people were paid in salt. And so 0:06:18.980 --> 0:06:24.320 it shows you it testifies to how important salt was. 0:06:24.320 --> 0:06:29.180 You've ever heard that expression? They're worth in salt. Um, 0:06:29.330 --> 0:06:33.080 anybody heard that expression? Okay. All right. Uh, they're worth 0:06:33.080 --> 0:06:35.750 in salt. In essence, it's coming back to the days 0:06:35.750 --> 0:06:38.330 where people valued salt so much. And you wonder, well, 0:06:38.330 --> 0:06:42.440 why was salt so valuable in those days? Well, it 0:06:42.440 --> 0:06:48.530 was valuable because it functioned in two primary purposes. The 0:06:48.529 --> 0:06:53.600 number one purpose of salt had to do with salt 0:06:53.600 --> 0:06:58.520 was a preservative. And when Jesus was talking to his disciples, 0:06:58.520 --> 0:07:03.240 they well understood that salt functioned as a food preservative. 0:07:03.510 --> 0:07:07.830 The salt has the power to kill bacteria that stops 0:07:07.830 --> 0:07:12.210 spoil the spoiling process. If you've ever watched the old 0:07:12.210 --> 0:07:15.210 war movies in the Civil War, when someone had an 0:07:15.210 --> 0:07:17.489 injury and an open wound, what is it that they 0:07:17.490 --> 0:07:21.000 put into the open wound? They would put salt in 0:07:21.000 --> 0:07:23.370 the open wound because it was salt that would help 0:07:23.370 --> 0:07:29.430 kill the bacteria that would cause infection. Don't try it 0:07:29.460 --> 0:07:33.420 if you have an open wound, because you will squelch with. 0:07:33.510 --> 0:07:37.770 It's painful to put salt in your wound, but nonetheless 0:07:37.800 --> 0:07:41.520 it all. It kills the bacteria. It's like alcohol that 0:07:41.520 --> 0:07:45.060 also kills the bacteria, but is very painful. In the 0:07:45.060 --> 0:07:48.270 days in which Jesus lived, there was no refrigeration. Obviously 0:07:48.270 --> 0:07:51.120 there was no electricity. And so when people went to 0:07:51.150 --> 0:07:55.890 the market and they bought meat, that meat in the 0:07:55.890 --> 0:08:02.480 arid temperatures of the Middle East would quickly Spoil unless 0:08:02.480 --> 0:08:06.560 there was some way to preserve it. Nowadays we just 0:08:06.560 --> 0:08:11.480 go down to the local jewel-osco, we buy our pound 0:08:11.510 --> 0:08:14.960 of ground beef, and we put it in our car 0:08:14.960 --> 0:08:18.140 so that the trip home, hopefully it won't spoil. As 0:08:18.140 --> 0:08:19.580 soon as we get home, we put it in the 0:08:19.580 --> 0:08:23.510 refrigerator and it's the temperature that preserves our meat. But 0:08:23.510 --> 0:08:27.500 in those days they would take meat and they would 0:08:27.500 --> 0:08:32.089 take salt, and they would rub salt inside of the meat, 0:08:32.360 --> 0:08:35.270 both on both sides of the meat. And they would 0:08:35.270 --> 0:08:40.280 make sure that that salt penetrated the meat, because that 0:08:40.280 --> 0:08:46.040 salt would, would kill the bacteria that causes rotting and decay, 0:08:46.040 --> 0:08:49.340 and it would stop the rotting process of the meat 0:08:49.340 --> 0:08:51.050 so that they could have meat in their home for 0:08:51.050 --> 0:08:56.270 quite some time. When Jesus was talking to his disciples, 0:08:56.570 --> 0:08:59.450 in essence, what Jesus was saying is you are the 0:08:59.450 --> 0:09:06.210 salt Assault of the world. He was letting them know 0:09:06.540 --> 0:09:13.260 that as believers, they have the power and capacity to 0:09:13.290 --> 0:09:18.330 stop the decay and stop the rotting of the world 0:09:18.330 --> 0:09:22.680 and society and culture that we live in. Because as 0:09:22.679 --> 0:09:27.060 the salt penetrates society, it stops the corruption, so to speak, 0:09:27.059 --> 0:09:32.550 that lives in society. And it has this changing, sterilizing 0:09:32.550 --> 0:09:35.790 effect on society. If the salt really gets out into 0:09:35.790 --> 0:09:43.110 the soul, the social fabric of a culture. It's interesting 0:09:43.110 --> 0:09:49.260 to observe, however, that salt that stays within a container 0:09:49.559 --> 0:09:55.110 loses its purpose. A salt cannot affect meat unless the 0:09:55.110 --> 0:09:59.010 salt is poured on the meat, right? There are two 0:09:59.010 --> 0:10:02.150 extremes in Christianity. And if you've been a Christian for 0:10:02.150 --> 0:10:05.510 a while, you may have observed these extremes. There are 0:10:05.510 --> 0:10:09.020 some people that are very much aware that we live 0:10:09.020 --> 0:10:12.380 in a culture that's full of temptation. There's a lot 0:10:12.410 --> 0:10:18.559 of bad influences. Uh, there's violence and bigotry and jealousy 0:10:18.559 --> 0:10:23.030 and greed and materialism and, uh, just there's all kinds 0:10:23.030 --> 0:10:27.530 of sexual perversion and deviation that's out there. And so 0:10:27.530 --> 0:10:33.559 there is a tendency in some Christian circles to feel like, 0:10:33.559 --> 0:10:37.400 since this world has so many dangers and so much 0:10:37.400 --> 0:10:40.550 pollution out there and so many places that we could 0:10:40.550 --> 0:10:45.170 be affected in a bad way, we should separate ourselves 0:10:45.170 --> 0:10:48.830 from the world, and we should isolate ourselves from the 0:10:48.830 --> 0:10:54.830 world because we don't want to be contaminated. And so 0:10:54.830 --> 0:11:00.330 we have groups that sometimes become very insulated from the 0:11:00.330 --> 0:11:04.800 world around them. I mean, what parent hasn't thought of that? 0:11:06.179 --> 0:11:08.670 How many of you, after reading the news, after reading 0:11:08.670 --> 0:11:11.250 the newspaper or watching television, have thought, I just need 0:11:11.250 --> 0:11:13.199 to pick up my kids and we need to move 0:11:13.200 --> 0:11:21.360 to Montana. No television, no radio up in the mountains somewhere. 0:11:21.690 --> 0:11:24.809 Get away from all this craziness. Because my poor kids. 0:11:24.840 --> 0:11:26.490 What kind of society are they going to live in? 0:11:26.520 --> 0:11:28.950 Come on. How many parents have thought about that? Sometimes 0:11:28.950 --> 0:11:31.560 I need to. I need to go somewhere else. I mean, 0:11:31.559 --> 0:11:37.410 you think about that, right? In the sixth century, the 0:11:37.410 --> 0:11:40.410 fifth and the sixth century, there was a movement. It's 0:11:40.410 --> 0:11:42.960 not the first time we thought about it. And down 0:11:42.990 --> 0:11:46.500 through the centuries of Christianity, there have been movements and 0:11:46.530 --> 0:11:50.280 theological thoughts where people believed that if they could just 0:11:50.280 --> 0:11:54.089 separate themselves from the world and the contamination of the world, 0:11:54.090 --> 0:11:57.660 that they could be more holy. In the fifth and 0:11:57.660 --> 0:12:00.590 sixth century, when a lot of corruption started coming into 0:12:00.590 --> 0:12:03.800 the church. There was a movement called the Monastic Movement. 0:12:04.250 --> 0:12:08.360 The monastic movement was basically groups of people that would 0:12:08.360 --> 0:12:13.670 live in community, and they would travel out to the desert. 0:12:14.210 --> 0:12:18.320 And there was most of these monastic communities were birthed 0:12:18.320 --> 0:12:21.199 in Northern Africa, and they would go out into the 0:12:21.200 --> 0:12:24.080 middle of the desert, away from all population, and they 0:12:24.080 --> 0:12:27.770 would build their houses there, and they wouldn't allow anybody 0:12:27.770 --> 0:12:30.260 to associate with the community unless you were a part 0:12:30.260 --> 0:12:35.569 of the community. And they would be self-sustaining, self-contained communities 0:12:35.600 --> 0:12:39.170 that would pray a lot, worship a lot. They had 0:12:39.200 --> 0:12:42.920 their own order. And and nowadays we know them, as, 0:12:43.130 --> 0:12:47.390 you know, monasteries and convents. And there's different orders that 0:12:47.390 --> 0:12:50.990 started out. But the idea behind it is let's separate 0:12:50.990 --> 0:12:56.240 ourselves from the world, let's cloister ourselves together. Let's let's 0:12:56.240 --> 0:12:59.480 separate ourselves from all the pollution that's out there so 0:12:59.480 --> 0:13:04.560 that therefore maybe we could become more holy. The problem 0:13:04.559 --> 0:13:12.510 with that is that if the salt separates itself from 0:13:12.510 --> 0:13:16.500 that which needs to be salted, then the salt has 0:13:16.500 --> 0:13:18.360 lost its purpose. 0:13:24.030 --> 0:13:27.450 You're listening to Bold Steps with Mark Jobe. Today's message 0:13:27.450 --> 0:13:29.610 is titled step Up to a New You. Part of 0:13:29.610 --> 0:13:33.060 our series, Step Up Living Higher will continue in a moment. 0:13:33.090 --> 0:13:35.280 One of the ways you can continue to be salt 0:13:35.280 --> 0:13:37.770 and light to a lost and searching world is by 0:13:37.770 --> 0:13:41.100 partnering with us. When you become a bold partner, you'll 0:13:41.100 --> 0:13:42.990 be making a difference not only in the lives of 0:13:42.990 --> 0:13:45.300 those in your community, but in the lives of people 0:13:45.300 --> 0:13:47.910 all over the country. And we hear from listeners every 0:13:47.940 --> 0:13:49.890 day who let us know that this program makes a 0:13:49.890 --> 0:13:52.979 difference in their life. For instance, we recently heard from 0:13:52.980 --> 0:13:56.430 this listener who said, thank you for your encouraging words. 0:13:56.429 --> 0:13:58.650 We want to give more this year because of your 0:13:58.650 --> 0:14:02.780 sensitivity to the needs around us. Your faith increases our faith. 0:14:02.809 --> 0:14:07.010 God is good and faithful always. We agree. And if 0:14:07.040 --> 0:14:09.050 you'd like to join us in this mission this year, 0:14:09.050 --> 0:14:11.300 we'd love to partner with you. You can sign up 0:14:11.300 --> 0:14:14.720 online at Bold Steps. Org or give us a call 0:14:14.720 --> 0:14:21.800 at (800) 356-6639. That's 800. D.L. Moody. All right, let's dive 0:14:21.830 --> 0:14:24.230 back into the second half of Mark Jobe's message to 0:14:24.260 --> 0:14:27.650 discover what Jesus has to say about being salt. 0:14:32.420 --> 0:14:36.200 If the salt is no longer on the bacteria, if 0:14:36.200 --> 0:14:39.320 the salt is no longer rubbed into the meat, then 0:14:39.320 --> 0:14:43.370 the salt has absolutely lost its purpose. Because Jesus taught 0:14:43.370 --> 0:14:46.880 us we were to be in the world, but not 0:14:47.450 --> 0:14:51.290 of the world. Now, I think it would be a 0:14:51.290 --> 0:14:56.150 lot easier to keep your mind pure, to pray, and 0:14:56.150 --> 0:15:00.040 to live holy. If you were in some cloistered Monastery 0:15:00.070 --> 0:15:02.830 where everybody around you is Christian, and they chant all 0:15:02.830 --> 0:15:06.040 day and pray all day, and there's crucifixes all over. 0:15:06.040 --> 0:15:08.440 And so that seems like it's a lot easier to 0:15:08.470 --> 0:15:11.350 live spiritually there than it is to get up in 0:15:11.350 --> 0:15:16.960 the morning in Chicago, jump on the L, fight with 0:15:16.960 --> 0:15:20.830 people that are have nasty bad attitudes, get off the 0:15:20.830 --> 0:15:24.550 L people are pushing you swearing already. You see billboards 0:15:24.550 --> 0:15:29.110 of of of women that are almost naked. Get into 0:15:29.230 --> 0:15:33.370 your office downtown. People are crabbing about this and cranky 0:15:33.370 --> 0:15:36.730 about that and and and fussing about this and fussing 0:15:36.730 --> 0:15:39.280 about that and swearing about this and trying to lure 0:15:39.280 --> 0:15:42.700 you into this and talking about their weekend exploits. And 0:15:42.700 --> 0:15:46.060 your boss is down your throat and, and people are 0:15:46.060 --> 0:15:49.210 inviting you to celebrate and party on the weekends. I 0:15:49.210 --> 0:15:53.200 think it's a lot harder to live right for Jesus 0:15:53.200 --> 0:15:56.770 in the middle of a society that's luring us in, 0:15:56.770 --> 0:16:02.180 but that's exactly where Jesus wants us to live. See, 0:16:02.180 --> 0:16:05.960 your faith is tested. Not when you isolate and when 0:16:05.960 --> 0:16:10.400 you insulate. Your faith is tested when you're in the 0:16:10.400 --> 0:16:16.340 middle of it. But you're still salt and you're still light. 0:16:17.870 --> 0:16:22.490 Jesus never cloistered himself. In fact, you know what they 0:16:22.490 --> 0:16:28.670 said of Jesus. He's a friend of sinners. That's what 0:16:28.670 --> 0:16:33.770 they said of Jesus. He's a friend of sinners. Why? 0:16:33.800 --> 0:16:39.290 Because Jesus hung out with people that needed salt, and 0:16:39.290 --> 0:16:42.530 they needed light. And he was not afraid to be 0:16:42.530 --> 0:16:47.060 around them as he was influencing them. And so that's 0:16:47.060 --> 0:16:51.470 why we as a church have opted to embrace a 0:16:51.470 --> 0:16:57.350 salt and light mentality. I understand that people have a 0:16:57.350 --> 0:16:59.970 lot of different definitions of how to work and how 0:16:59.970 --> 0:17:02.940 to operate. But it's been part of our desire that 0:17:02.940 --> 0:17:05.460 this church would be a salt and light church. There 0:17:05.460 --> 0:17:07.650 are some churches that you walk into and you feel like, well, 0:17:07.650 --> 0:17:10.200 everybody there has been there for 40 years. They all 0:17:10.200 --> 0:17:12.510 know each other, dress the same, talk the same, look 0:17:12.540 --> 0:17:17.609 the same, and have the same hairstyles. I mean, you 0:17:17.609 --> 0:17:18.810 know what I'm talking about. Have you ever been in 0:17:18.810 --> 0:17:23.939 those cultures? I think a salt and light community is 0:17:23.940 --> 0:17:27.030 drawing people in from the outside all, all the time. 0:17:27.210 --> 0:17:29.430 I think a salt and light community is when people 0:17:29.430 --> 0:17:32.580 are mixing with the world out there, but maintaining their testimony, 0:17:32.580 --> 0:17:36.389 and people are visiting a salt and light community because 0:17:36.390 --> 0:17:39.659 they've been influenced and want to check things out. And 0:17:39.660 --> 0:17:43.080 so every Sunday at our gatherings, there are people and 0:17:43.080 --> 0:17:45.090 there are some here today. I'm sure this is your 0:17:45.090 --> 0:17:48.180 first time visiting here. Or maybe you're not a believer, 0:17:48.180 --> 0:17:52.020 or maybe you're just exploring Christianity, but you have contact 0:17:52.020 --> 0:17:54.780 with someone that salt and light, and because of them, 0:17:54.780 --> 0:17:58.440 you're here in a place of worship, listening to Bible 0:17:58.470 --> 0:18:02.960 teaching and just having endured some worship that maybe made 0:18:02.960 --> 0:18:06.230 you uncomfortable. I'm glad you're here. Praise God that you're 0:18:06.230 --> 0:18:18.379 here today. So not only does salt fight decay, but 0:18:18.380 --> 0:18:24.139 salt also is a flavoring agent. It brings out the 0:18:24.140 --> 0:18:27.379 best flavor. I'm one of the people I know. This 0:18:27.380 --> 0:18:29.450 is if we have any doctors in the house. Please 0:18:29.450 --> 0:18:32.240 forgive me. I'm not advocating this. I'm not encouraging you 0:18:32.270 --> 0:18:34.580 to do so at home and do so at your 0:18:34.580 --> 0:18:39.530 own risk. But for some reason, I like my suits. 0:18:39.680 --> 0:18:43.130 I like my food salty. So I'm one of those 0:18:43.130 --> 0:18:46.280 kind of guys. I go out to eat with my wife, 0:18:46.280 --> 0:18:48.530 and they'll put the plate in front of me and 0:18:48.530 --> 0:18:50.270 I'll salt it and she'll say, you didn't even taste 0:18:50.270 --> 0:18:52.250 it already. I said, I know it needs salt, though, 0:18:54.020 --> 0:18:56.030 just by looking at it. I know it needs salt. Well, 0:18:56.060 --> 0:18:58.670 I like salt. There's something about salt that just kind 0:18:58.700 --> 0:19:02.619 of brings it out, right? It's a flavoring agent. Have 0:19:02.619 --> 0:19:06.340 you ever tasted something that was just very bland and 0:19:06.340 --> 0:19:12.070 needed a little salt? What happens when something's bland? You 0:19:12.070 --> 0:19:15.550 lose your appetite. I don't want to eat this. It's nasty. 0:19:15.580 --> 0:19:17.320 If you're. If you're if you're eating at your mother 0:19:17.350 --> 0:19:19.960 in law's, you feel like you have to eat it. But, 0:19:19.990 --> 0:19:22.119 you know, if it's just a restaurant, you put it 0:19:22.119 --> 0:19:28.630 aside because something bland causes you to lose your appetite 0:19:28.630 --> 0:19:34.359 for it. But when something has flavor, when something has 0:19:34.600 --> 0:19:39.790 a compelling flavor, it makes you want to eat it more. 0:19:39.790 --> 0:19:43.240 And it's hard to stop eating it because it's so good. 0:19:43.540 --> 0:19:48.010 What Jesus is saying to his disciples is that you 0:19:48.010 --> 0:19:56.109 are the salt that flavors the message of the gospel 0:19:56.109 --> 0:20:00.560 in such a way that people taste it and they 0:20:00.560 --> 0:20:05.270 want more of it because they've tasted the salt that 0:20:05.270 --> 0:20:09.350 you are spreading out there. You are creating a spiritual 0:20:09.380 --> 0:20:13.369 hunger and appetite for God, for people that didn't even 0:20:13.369 --> 0:20:18.380 know they were spiritually hungry. In other words, what Jesus 0:20:18.410 --> 0:20:22.580 is saying is when you're out there, the way you live, 0:20:22.609 --> 0:20:26.240 the way you talk, the way you think, the way 0:20:26.240 --> 0:20:29.810 you move, the way you behave yourself, it begins to 0:20:29.840 --> 0:20:36.230 create in the people around you a curiosity, an appetite, 0:20:36.260 --> 0:20:41.210 a desire to say, hey, there's something about them that's different, 0:20:41.210 --> 0:20:45.140 something that's compelling, something that makes me want to know 0:20:45.140 --> 0:20:48.619 more about the God that they have and the peace 0:20:48.619 --> 0:20:53.330 that they have inside. And so you become the agent 0:20:53.330 --> 0:20:58.129 that causes people to be thirsty to know more about 0:20:58.130 --> 0:21:02.369 the living God. You become salt and you become light. 0:21:04.080 --> 0:21:07.469 Now I want to say that another part of Scripture, 0:21:07.470 --> 0:21:11.370 Paul says that all of our conversations need to be seasoned, 0:21:11.850 --> 0:21:16.800 seasoned with grace and salt. Have you ever had too 0:21:16.800 --> 0:21:21.390 much salt? I remember I went into a restaurant once, 0:21:21.390 --> 0:21:25.020 and I was about to do my regular salting of 0:21:25.020 --> 0:21:26.880 the food because I knew it needed to be salted, 0:21:26.880 --> 0:21:30.690 and I took the salt shaker and I poured and some. 0:21:30.720 --> 0:21:33.840 It had to be a teenager. Someone before me had 0:21:33.869 --> 0:21:36.150 unscrewed the cap of the salt, and so as soon 0:21:36.150 --> 0:21:37.950 as I went to pour the salt, the whole thing 0:21:37.950 --> 0:21:40.680 came out and it's just like, oh no. And then 0:21:40.680 --> 0:21:43.050 you try to wipe it off, but now it's just 0:21:43.080 --> 0:21:47.310 too much salt causes you to lose your appetite as well. 0:21:47.640 --> 0:21:49.650 If you're the person that did it to me, come 0:21:49.650 --> 0:21:51.780 and see me afterwards. You have to have a little confession, 0:21:51.780 --> 0:21:56.730 repentance time here because you really messed up my food. 0:21:59.480 --> 0:22:02.720 And I think some of us at times before we 0:22:02.720 --> 0:22:06.410 learn how to be real salt. Sometimes our approach is 0:22:06.410 --> 0:22:09.830 abrasive and actually turns people off to the gospel rather 0:22:09.830 --> 0:22:13.070 than creating a thirst for the gospel. Because how many 0:22:13.070 --> 0:22:15.620 of you remember when you first came to Christ and 0:22:15.619 --> 0:22:17.750 God had done something in your life, and you look 0:22:17.750 --> 0:22:19.820 around and you think, the whole world needs to be saved? 0:22:19.820 --> 0:22:23.000 How can they be so dark? And everybody needs to know, 0:22:23.000 --> 0:22:25.219 everybody needs to hear this. So you go to the 0:22:25.220 --> 0:22:28.399 birthday party, your family's birthday party, and you wear a 0:22:28.400 --> 0:22:30.800 t shirt that says, turn or burn, and you have 0:22:30.800 --> 0:22:34.940 a big cross with you and a big King James Bible, 0:22:34.940 --> 0:22:38.000 and people go to talk to you. You're slapping beers 0:22:38.000 --> 0:22:40.699 out of people's hand and saying, telling them what they 0:22:40.730 --> 0:22:43.220 need to do. And you have them cornered like this 0:22:43.220 --> 0:22:45.830 and they're looking, how do I escape? And you wonder 0:22:45.830 --> 0:22:49.250 why people scatter while you're after them, and they stop 0:22:49.250 --> 0:22:53.150 inviting you to things all over? Why you say, well, 0:22:53.180 --> 0:22:56.419 because they just are hard hearted and don't accept the gospel. No, no, no, 0:22:56.420 --> 0:23:01.619 you're putting too much salt on it If you're salting something, well, 0:23:01.650 --> 0:23:03.990 you know, you, you get a little salt and it's 0:23:03.990 --> 0:23:07.260 a little salt like that. But if next time you 0:23:07.260 --> 0:23:13.590 go to salt your corn and you go like this. 0:23:16.170 --> 0:23:20.400 You just spoil the corn. It's not that people don't 0:23:20.400 --> 0:23:23.130 want the salt. It's just you poured out too much 0:23:23.730 --> 0:23:25.169 at the same time. 0:23:31.980 --> 0:23:34.620 Mark Joe will pick up the message right there tomorrow. 0:23:34.619 --> 0:23:37.950 And you're listening to Bold Steps. Well, we ended today's 0:23:37.950 --> 0:23:39.690 message on a bit of a funny note, but our 0:23:39.690 --> 0:23:42.810 series is called Step Up Living Higher. And Mark is 0:23:42.810 --> 0:23:46.860 serious about you fulfilling your calling and reaching your highest potential. 0:23:46.890 --> 0:23:48.780 So if you joined us late, or if you'd like 0:23:48.780 --> 0:23:50.820 to hear the complete series, just head over to our 0:23:50.820 --> 0:23:54.690 website and explore our growing archive of messages. You'll find 0:23:54.690 --> 0:23:58.800 us at bold Steps. Org. Today's message is called Stepping 0:23:58.800 --> 0:24:02.209 up to a new you. And while you're online, be 0:24:02.210 --> 0:24:05.000 sure to sign up for our weekly email devotional. It's 0:24:05.000 --> 0:24:07.429 called The Bold Step or Weekly. 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The world 0:24:35.900 --> 0:24:38.000 we live in today looks much different than it did 0:24:38.000 --> 0:24:40.910 even just a few decades ago, and sometimes it feels 0:24:40.910 --> 0:24:44.960 like everything we knew about leadership and ministry no longer applies. 0:24:44.990 --> 0:24:48.530 That's why the book A Non-anxious presence, is such a 0:24:48.530 --> 0:24:52.760 timely resource. Author Mark Sayers helps us understand how to 0:24:52.790 --> 0:24:55.730 lead effectively in a world where the old rules no 0:24:55.730 --> 0:25:00.130 longer work. He explains how periods of disruption often prepare 0:25:00.130 --> 0:25:03.250 the way for spiritual breakthrough and shows us how to 0:25:03.280 --> 0:25:06.520 spot signs of renewal even in the midst of turmoil. 0:25:06.550 --> 0:25:09.670 Request this bold step gift today and discover a fresh 0:25:09.670 --> 0:25:13.090 approach to leadership in changing times. 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