The Believers Influence In The World: Light - Part 1

These teachings on salt and light deal with the believer’s influence in the world in which he lives.
"You are the world's light - it is impossible to hide a town built on the top of a hill. Men do not light a lamp and put it under a bucket. They put it on a lamp-stand and it gives light for everybody in the house". (Matthew 5:14 Phillips)

Salt acts secretly. It’s effect not being noticed immediately while light is something that is seen right away and makes immediate changes. Salt is more of the indirect influence of the Gospel while light is the direct influence. You must live as salt to be effective as light. Life comes before lip. Many who talk the Gospel are not doing it when it comes to their lives. Jesus always emphasized what a man is before what he does. Salt is character but light is conduct. Conduct without character is hypocrisy, and character without conduct is disobedience.

Salt counteracts corruption in the earth, while Light shines truth into a darkened world of ignorance and lies. The purpose of Salt is to stop the rotting of the world, while Light's purpose is to reveal the falseness of the world. Darkness breeds confusion because nothing looks right in the dark. You can see shapes but not sizes and appearances. Everything is distorted. “He who walks in darkness does not know where he is going” (John 12:35).