What does reconnecting with Jesus mean as we go into the world? How do we see him, recognize him, and follow him? Does reconnecting with Jesus mean reclaiming a way of life or style of life that we can look for?

In the Sermon on the Mount, Jesus compares following his way to being the “salt” and light” that the world so desperately needs. He says that his followers will be like salt, a preserving and stabilizing force to preserve, protect, and deepen the values and behaviors that human cultures most need to keep and enhance. Jesus said to his followers, “You are the salt of the earth,” to preserve the important things that sustain and undergird human societies. This is a quality that conservatives often admire: keeping cohesion and positive communal values intact, like the glue that often holds things together — values such as honesty, integrity, compassion, fairness, faithfulness, fidelity, and dedication to raising our children in ways that are good and right and for the sake of service to others.

The followers of Jesus will also be like light, shining into the darkness, revealing what is wrong, untrue, and a danger to human life and dignity — revealing the things that need to be changed. Jesus said to his disciples, “you are the light of the world,” revealing the things we should not let darkness cover up or make us accept. This is what liberals or progressives are often drawn to. Exposing injustice, the light helps point to and promote social, racial, and economic justice where and when it is most needed, because those commitments and goals are integral to the gospel of Jesus Christ. Only when light shines will the darkness go away. The light also serves as a beacon that others can see and be drawn to, modeling loving God and neighbor in ways that show what true love and justice look like. I think many of us who learned about the Sermon on the Mount in Sunday school may have thought of “salt of the earth” and “light of the world” as basically the same thing — I know I did.

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