Gracious Father, we want to thank you for your word.
We want to thank you for what it reveals about you and your purposes,
the view that you have of this world and your intention for it.
I pray that as we've been learning through this series,
that you might shape us, continue to shape us,
in order that we might shape your world.
And particularly tonight, as we think about the cultures,
the place that you put us in,
how we might work for your purposes in that place
so that people might flourish.
And we ask it for your glory. Amen.
I've been a regular patient of a local physiotherapist
over the past couple of years.
Feet problems, shoulder problems, all sorts of stuff like that.
And I discovered late last year that he was, in fact, a Christian.
He was telling me very recently
that he'd hit a bit of a crossroad in his life
and particularly in his vocation,
wondering if he was doing what God intended for him to do,
what God wanted him to do with his life.
He knew of plenty of Christian physiotherapists
who were working in third world countries,
working amongst great need in those places.
And here he was, a physio in Chatswood.
And, you know, should he be a missionary physio?
That was kind of his question with his life.
Does that, you know, be more purposeful for God?
Is that really what God wants to do for his life?
And so for him, it was a question of purpose.
What does God intend for him?
Was he pursuing God's purpose in his life
where he was in Chatswood as a physio?
He felt that his job had less purpose
than those in third world countries.
And what compounded it for him
was that he hadn't had much, if any,
opportunity to speak about Jesus in his workplace.
There was no workplace Bible study group.
There was no workplace prayer group.
And what's more, when he'd been working on people,
broken people, he hadn't shared about Jesus,
the great healer of all people.
And that is, he didn't see
that he had any opportunity to shine for Jesus
where he was in that place.
Or that he was working out God's purposes
at all in God's world in that place.
And so it was a great opportunity for me
just to very briefly,
having my mind in the Frontline series,
just to connect with him
and encourage him about his Frontline.
I said to him a number of things.
Number one, I said to him that he worked
as the only Christian in an organization of 60 people.
Don't tell me that God hasn't placed you there
for some good purpose,
even if you can't see it at the moment.
That's the first thing.
Secondly, that I thought he did his work really well.
He'd fixed my plantar fasciitis.
He fixed one frozen shoulder
and he's working on another frozen shoulder.
And I'm kind of hoping it's going to end there
because it is sort of expensive after a bit of time.
But he did his work well.
And in fact, so well that I'd recommended
at least four other people
specifically to go and see him
to help them in their particular issues as well.
Thirdly, one of those people
who had actually went and saw him
came back to me and said
how much they thought this guy's character stood out.
There was something different about him.
And they asked me, do you think he's Christian?
I said, I don't know.
But there was something about him that stood out.
And I said, I think fourthly,
the work that he was doing all day
to fix broken bodies,
I think that somehow connects with God's purposes
to redeem and to restore his world.
Just as a rough guess.
Towards the end of that chat,
very quickly, just a few minutes,
tears started to well up in his eyes
because of the sense of purpose that he had
in that moment, just very quickly,
that what he was doing actually mattered to God.
He was deeply thankful.
I didn't get a discount,
but he was deeply thankful.
My hope is that as we've been going through this series,
that likewise, it's an encouragement for you
into where the place that God has put you.
Encouragement to see how God might be using you
to work, to redeem,
and restore his world
through what might be,
quite simply, your ordinary life.
The ordinary things that you do in life.
And so far in this series,
we've looked at the Christian worldview
of both the dignity and the difficulty of work.
We looked at how we might impact God's world
and pursue his purposes
through modelling godly character,
through working well,
working with all our might,
as if working for the Lord
and not for other people,
and ministering grace and love.
And today we're looking at the issue
of how we might mould culture
on our front lines.
How we might mould culture.
Now, culture is one of those big words
that rolls off our tongues,
but very rarely do we know what it actually means.
What does culture mean?
Culture exists everywhere.
Most of the time, culture is hidden.
It's an assumed thing
rather than a stated thing.
So if you said,
what's the culture of your workplace?
Don't we got one,
but I'm not exactly sure necessarily what it is.
Culture,
and this is a very simplistic view
of understanding culture,
culture is quite simply
how we do things around here.
So every family unit has a culture.
Every gathering of people has a culture.
Every church has a culture.
Every workplace has a culture.
Every school and university has a culture.
And you can be right next door to one another
but have very different cultures.
Every team has a culture.
Culture is the way that people interact.
It's the food that they eat,
the way that they speak to one another,
the way that in a church they would pray,
the clothes that you would wear,
the way that you would handle conflict,
the way you spend money,
the way the decisions are made,
the way that leadership is respected
or disrespected
or the group is led,
and a multitude of other things
form a culture within a group.
Or to put it another way,
this might be another way to think about it,
what would an outsider need to know
to learn to understand
about this particular group
and how it functions
in order for them to fit within the group
and to work within the group?
What would they need to know?
That's culture.
And culture is everywhere.
As I said, in every organization.
There was an article in the Sydney Morning Herald
yesterday about Thermomix.
And if you don't know what a Thermomix is,
then you are out of touch
with the culture of North Shore of Sydney
and particularly the housewife culture
of North Shore in Sydney.
Secondly, to answer the question,
what is a Thermomix?
A Thermomix is a kitchen appliance
that does everything.
It not only dices, ways, mixes and cooks,
it orders the ingredients,
it will get them delivered to your home,
and it will stack them into your pantry.
It will run your bath and give you a massage.
And apparently, it also gives you second degree burns
if you're not careful,
which was the issue in the article
of the Sydney Morning Herald.
Danica Jones complained online
that she had a faulty Thermomix
that went crazy, did whatever it did
and caused her second...
I don't think it has a mind of its own.
Something went faulty with it
and it just went nuts
and burnt her with second degree burns.
So she complained online
and what she got,
she received from Thermomix owners
was incessant bullying
about Thermomix being the greatest thing
since sliced bread.
And she got bullying on social media
and she got intimidation
from Thermomix staff.
And so the lawyer defending the woman
said that the culture of the company
was horrific.
There we go.
That's a...
In other words,
what the lawyer is saying there is
that within that organisation,
the way you handle complaints or criticism
is to go on the attack.
That's a cultural thing.
That is,
culture is the way we do things around here.
And some of us experience in workplace,
in social clubs,
in retail outlets,
families,
family cultures
where manipulation
is the way you get people to do things.
That's all culture.
And often we are,
many of us confront unhealthy cultural groups,
whatever we're part of.
So how might we,
as Christian people,
contribute to cultural change
on our front lines
so that they become places
where people flourish,
pursuing God's purposes
for the good order of society?
That's what Jesus calls his disciples to
in Matthew chapters 5 to 7.
It's the famous Sermon on the Mount.
And Jesus calls his disciples
first of all to himself
and then he shares with them
what the characteristics are
of those who live according to the kingdom.
So get your Bibles
and turn to Matthew chapter 5.
I'm going to focus primarily on 11 to 16.
The Beatitudes
describe the sensual character of Christians.
Blessed is he,
his poor and spirit.
Blessed is he,
seek after,
you know,
blah, blah, blah,
that sort of stuff.
All the way down there
in the early bits of Matthew chapter 5.
And what it's saying there is
that Christians are people
who've got a radically new relationship
with God
through trust in the work,
the finished work
of the Lord Jesus Christ
on the cross
to deal with our sin,
to deal with death
and give us eternal life.
That's what the Beatitudes about.
This radical new relationship with God.
And then,
in verses 13 to 16,
the focus shifts
from the Christian's relationship with God
to the Christian's relationship with the world.
And so,
if we have the relationship with God
that the first section speaks about,
then you will have the relationship with the world
that the second bit speaks about.
What Jesus is saying here is that
if you are at all living a consistent Christian life,
then in this world,
you will be salt
and you will be light.
Verse 13 and 14,
both start emphatically with you.
It is like Jesus saying,
you,
that is speaking to his disciples,
you and only you
are the salt of the earth
and the light of the world.
And therefore,
you simply must not fail
what you have been called to do.
and who you've been called to serve.
You must be who you are.
You must not lose your saltiness.
You must not be contaminated or compromised.
You are light.
And so,
you must let your light shine.
And it must not be concealed by sin
or compromise
or laziness
or fear.
In other words,
this is your Christian vocation.
This is your calling
in the world.
So let's start with salt.
Verse 13,
you are the salt of the earth.
But if the salt loses its saltiness,
how can it be made salty again?
It is no longer good for anything
except to be thrown out
and trampled by men.
In ancient times,
salt was used as a preservative
to stop food from rotting.
It was used as a seasoning
to enhance its flavor
and it was also used as a fertilizer
to enable fruitfulness.
It was, however,
most valuable as a preservative.
This is before refrigerators were made.
And you would rub in salt
into whatever would normally decay.
And that salt rubbed into it,
penetrating it,
would stem the decay
and stem its breakdown.
The function of salt here
is largely negative.
It prevents decay.
It's about stopping the spread of evil.
It's an intriguing image
that Jesus uses, I think.
For most of us,
if you see someone's life falling apart,
we tend to move away from it.
When you see brokenness,
we tend to move away.
We're always cautious
about being sucked in
and being connected too deep
and having too much expected of us.
And Jesus says,
if you're a Christian,
you go in.
You penetrate is what you do.
You go in rather than pull away.
You go in to stem the decay
because you're salt.
And this is also true
if you see a society
or a city
or a neighborhood
or a workplace
or a family
falling apart with social problems.
Christians don't run away.
They find ways of being there
to help and to shape for good.
Because Christians have experienced
in their own lives,
Colossians 1.17,
in Christ,
all things hold together.
We know what it is
to have life falling apart
and Jesus to come in
and to bring it together.
The Christian goes in
because they want to be of help,
simply responding
and being for other people
what Christ has been for them.
It's a wonderfully rich metaphor.
To be salt
is to be involved.
Salt penetrates.
Salt stops decay
unless it loses its saltiness.
Now,
sodium chloride
is a very,
very
strong compound
that doesn't often break down.
That is,
you can't normally blow apart
sodium chloride.
Salt doesn't lose its saltiness
as such.
But it will lose its purity.
It will lose its purity.
Salt can be contaminated
and once it's contaminated,
you cannot purify it.
And the contamination here
that Jesus has in mind
is the idea
where we are not distinct
from the world.
salt.
And so,
that's the connection
with the second part
in us being light.
Now,
traditionally,
Christians are more known
for being salt
than being light.
That is,
we
are seen
by
our wider society
as being fundamentally
negative
rather than positive.
negative.
That is,
we are more known
for what we're against
than what we are for.
That is,
that's why I say
we are more known
for being negative,
more known for being salt.
We are more known
for being against things
than for things.
And so,
this is really important
for us
because Jesus'
disciples
exert a double influence
on the secular world.
A negative influence
of arresting decay
and a positive influence
of bringing light
into darkness.
You see,
it's one thing
to stop the spread
of evil.
It's another
to promote
the spread of truth
and hope
and goodness.
Verse 14,
you are the light
of the world.
A city on a hill
cannot be hidden.
Neither do people
light a lamp
and put it under a bowl.
Instead,
they put it on its stand
and it gives light
to everyone in the house.
In the same way,
let your light shine
before men
so that they may see
your good deeds
and praise your Father
in heaven.
So,
the light metaphor here
is a bit different.
As I said,
it's positive
as opposed to negative.
When Jesus talks
about salt,
he's saying something
significant
about human society
that is
that human society
left by itself
will decay.
It will go rotten.
And when he says
something about
Christians of light,
he's saying
something significant
also about
human society.
It's dark.
In the Bible,
light symbolizes
truth
because light
exposes falsehood.
But it also
symbolizes hope
hope
and even joy
because light
is brilliant
and beautiful.
And so,
when this passage
says that Christians
are the light
of the world,
what it means
is that we bring
hope and joy
through truth
into darkness.
as the positive
influence
that we have
on society.
How and how much
our society needs it.
A society that we exist
that is
a society that says
that we don't need God,
that he has no place
amongst us at all.
We are secular.
We are godless.
For example,
Somerset Morham
was a British playwright
and a novelist
and a short story writer.
He was among
the most popular
writers of his era
and,
reputedly,
the highest paid
author in the 1930s.
That's a long time ago.
And like many people,
he thought
that the existence
of God
and survival
beyond death
of any sort
at all
was doubtful.
He wasn't an atheist.
But he thought
about the consequences
of his belief system
more than most atheists.
He understood
the consequences of it.
And he wrote this
in his autobiography.
He said,
If death ends all
and I neither have
to hope for God
after death
nor to fear evil
after death,
then I must
ask myself,
what am I here for?
And how in these circumstances
I must conduct myself?
And the answer
is plain
but so unpalatable
that most
will not face it.
And here's his answer.
There is
no meaning
for life
and therefore
life has
no meaning.
That's his conclusion
to his belief system.
And what he's saying
is
not that he would
put it in these words
is that society today
will tell you
that there is
probably no God
that there's no reason
really
for why you're here
that there is
no right or wrong
and that after you die
there is nothingness.
That is
after you die
there is darkness.
And so
if Somerset
was here right now
he would say
if darkness
is beyond death
if that's all
that exists then
then that means
that darkness
is now.
That's society.
It's dark.
And so
what's the answer
of our society
to that philosophical
position?
Go and enjoy life.
Really?
Have a good time?
Really?
See what he was saying
without realizing
is that
without the light
of salvation
this world
is dark
and we don't want
to admit
the world is dark
but he was right.
Christians
are light
because of the good news
of the Lord Jesus
gives us light.
A light that we do not have.
The good news
of the Christian faith
tells us
that every single
one of our deepest
desires in our hearts
will be met by Jesus
in the end.
It tells us
the good news
tells us
that because we are
saved by his grace
and his mercy
we are always his.
It tells us
that there is no
condemnation
for those who trust Jesus.
It tells us
that we might have
good days
and bad days
and good years
and bad years
but you are guaranteed
to be part
of his glorious
bright future.
And Christians
because of that
live in the light
of that future now.
And friends
when you look out there
and you see this metaphor
that we are the light
of the world
and you see
the darkness
of our secular society
and wonder
and Christians
are being pushed back
pushed back
and you wonder
what on earth
can we possibly do?
Let me give you
one encouragement.
It does not take
much light
to push back
darkness.
This
half a watt
bulb
in the darkness
of my daughter's room
is enough
to give me
perspective
in her room
it's enough
for me
to be able
to walk
around in her room
and not tread
on the cat
or toys
or whatever it is
and it's enough
to push back
fear for her.
Half a watt
because
darkness
cannot
resist light.
Darkness
cannot push
light back.
That's the job
of light
pushes
darkness back
and it does
not take
much
to push
back.
And so
friends
even if we
are a minority
even if we
do not have
a voice
light
pushes
back
darkness.
But that's
not all
Jesus is saying
here.
He isn't
just saying
that you
have
the truth
and so
therefore
your job
in society
is to
preach
the truth
and give
people this
hope.
because
he's saying
something a
little bit
different.
It looks
like Jesus
is actually
mixing his
metaphors
in these
verses.
He talks
about light
and then he
talks about
light at the
end and then
he talks about
a city in
the middle
and so it
looks like
he's mixing
his metaphors
and if you
know anything
about English
or you probably
heard your
English teacher
tell you at
some point
that you
should not
mix your
metaphors
but the
good thing
is Jesus
didn't speak
English and
so this is
okay.
Right in
the middle
it says
here a
city on
a hill
cannot be
hidden.
I think
it's exactly
the same
idea.
Light,
light,
light all
the way
through.
Most cities
were not
built on
hills.
Most cities
were put in
the bases
of the hills
or in the
bottom of
the valleys
where there
was a
water source
and where
the trade
routes and
the roads
were.
But if
you put a
city on
a hill
just with
candles and
lamps it
would be
enough
from the
light from
that city
would illuminate
a great
distance.
You could
see the
city from
a great
distance.
And he's
saying that
Christians and
the church
he's saying
here you
need to be
a counter
culture.
You need
to be a
light in
the darkness.
You need
to be visible.
People need
to see that
you are
different.
see Christians
are to be
light of
the world
not just
by what
they say
but how
they live
their lives.
The words
good deeds
is right in
there.
People might
see your
good deeds.
And so
being light
in the
world
I think
what this
picture is
we are
an alternative
Chatswood
in Chatswood.
We are a
city within a
city.
And how
this city
within a
city lives
and how
it works
out its
life is
what the
rest of
the Sermon
on the
Mount is
about.
The
teaching of
the Sermon
on the
Mount is
radically
different than
the views
of the
rest of
the Chatswood
when it
comes to
things like
money and
sex and
relationships and
power and a
bunch of
other things.
The views,
the culture
is different.
You see,
it's not
just good
enough,
I don't
think,
just to
hold up
the truth,
to preach
it,
or to go
onto Facebook
and just
have fights
with atheists.
If
Christians are
not seen
to be living
differently than
the rest of
Chatswood,
we have no
impact.
If they
don't see
the difference,
then we
are not
light.
Then we
are not a
city on a
hill.
God
intends for
his people
to be
rubbed into
society, to
penetrate for
good in this
world.
Christian salt
and light
has therefore
no business
remaining
snugly in a
elegant,
newly
renovated,
ecclesiastical
salt and
light cellar.
I'll say it
again, it's not
my main point,
but I'll say it
again in case
you wonder what
I'm talking
about there.
Christian salt
and light has
no business
remaining
snugly in an
elegant, newly
renovated,
ecclesiastical
salt and light
cellar.
That is, our
job is to be
rubbed into
secular society,
into a secular
community.
Our business
is to shine
light and bring
hope and joy
and truth to
this world, to
shape for good
the cultures
of families
and organisations
and whatever
it is, people
groups that have
a tendency to
use people and
manipulate people
where there might
be a tendency
to waste resources
or a tendency
where there's
fearful for change
or a tendency
to have ruthlessness
in leadership
and to treat people.
We want to have
an influence for
good in there,
to shape the
culture of those
places,
to speak up
and to
demonstrate
good.
And so if
you're a
Christian,
if you are at
all living out
the Christian
life, a
consistent Christian
life, you are
salt and you
are light.
You may feel like
a half a watt
bowl, but you
are light.
And because you
are salt and
because you are
light and you
are working to
shape the way
things should be
done for the
good of others
and for the
glory of God,
you are not
just salt and
light, but you
are also going to
be hurt.
You're going to
be hurt.
This life that
we've received in
Jesus is lived
out in the
midst of a
culture that has
decided it wants
to live,
in a different
way, largely
without reference
to God.
We live in a
post-Christian
secular society
where Christianity
has got no
social credibility.
Christianity has
got no social
credibility.
And so the
verses right
before, verses
13 and 16,
are very
important for us
to grapple with
in terms of what
our expectations
might be as
salt and light.
And I think
this is particularly
pertinent for us
right now.
Matthew 5,
verses 11 to
12,
blessed are you
when people
insult you,
persecute you,
and falsely say
all kinds of
evil against you
because of me.
Rejoice and be
glad because great
is your reward in
heaven for in the
same way they
persecuted the
prophets who were
before you.
So there are five
things.
This is a pretty
sobering passage.
If you're going to
be salt and light,
you're going to be
hurt.
And there are five
things that I want
to just say very
quickly about those
two verses that
will help us with
our expectations
of what things
might be like
from Monday to
Saturday.
Firstly,
this is a
beatitude.
Blessed are you
when people
insult you.
Not if people
insult you,
but when people
insult you.
Every beatitude
is a characteristic
of the Christian.
So help
understand this.
Every Christian
must be poor
in spirit.
That's one of the
beatitudes.
Every Christian
must hunger and
thirst after
righteousness.
Or you're not a
Christian.
Verse 11 is the
last of the
beatitudes.
Jesus is
assuming that if
you are a
Christian, you
will be
persecuted.
Or, put it
more strongly, a
Christian must be
persecuted.
If you are
living in any
way consistent
with Christianity,
you will be
persecuted.
That's the first
thing.
Secondly, let me
just nuance that
just a little bit.
Just a little bit.
Notice it says,
blessed are you
when people
insult you,
persecute you,
and falsely say
all kinds of evil
against you because
of me.
It's not
because of
you.
That's the
nuance in the
persecution.
In other words,
if you're talking
about the
Christian faith in
a tackless way,
an abrasive way,
an insensitive
way, a
loveless way, a
culturally
inappropriate way,
and people are
giving you
flack because of
that, then you
are being
persecuted for
your sake, not
for Christ's
sake.
It doesn't
say, blessed
are you when
people persecute
you for being
obnoxious.
if you're
being obnoxious,
then the
blessedness
promise doesn't
hold, doesn't
carry here.
And so what you
need to understand
and think about
that in this
nuance is you
need to put the
beginning of the
passage with the
end of the
passage together.
The beginning
says that you
will be
persecuted.
The end
says that some
people will look
at your life and
praise your
father in
heaven.
Two different
responses.
Some will
hate your guts
because of
Jesus and
some will be
attracted to
you because of
your life and
your testimony
about Jesus.
If both of
those things are
happening for
you, then you
are in the
zone.
you're in the
sweet spot.
If you
speak the
truth in an
unloving way,
there will be
persecution for
sure, but there
will not be
attraction.
If you
love people,
you will be
attractive,
but there will
be no persecution
for truth and
no one might
ever come
to faith,
to Jesus
because of
you.
If you're
always being
persecuted, but
no one comes
to faith, you're
probably being
persecuted because
of character
flaws.
If you are
never being
persecuted, if
you never get
any pushback, if
no one is ever
hostile towards
you for being a
Christian, then
you're probably
being a coward
with the
truth.
You're probably
not speaking
up.
So the
question is,
point number
two, are
you living in
the zone?
Point number
three, as a
Christian, and
I don't think we
can ever escape
this, that is,
we can never
escape the
persecution.
It's not unique
to a secular
age.
Christians are
persecuted because,
as Jesus says in
verse 11,
because of me.
Jesus has been
uniquely hated
in history.
There are
secular scholars
who acknowledge
that.
There are secular
scholars who
acknowledge that
there are New
Testament scholars
whose main goal
in being a New
Testament scholar
is to
discredit Jesus.
He has been
uniquely hated.
Why?
Because if
Jesus is
right, then
he is the
Son of God,
he is the
Lord of the
universe, he
is the judge
and saver of
all humanity,
and if he's
correct on those
things, then
you lose
control of
your life.
He is
king.
You lose
control of
your life.
We have no
alternative but
to surrender and
give ourselves
over to him, if
he's correct.
Jesus says in
John 15, if the
world hates him,
it will hate
those who follow
him, because a
servant is not
greater than his
master.
And so if
you're a
Christian, that
lot will fall
on you.
Fourthly, if
you find
yourself insulted
and persecuted
and people saying
all kinds of
false things about
you, don't
whinge about
it.
I don't think
there's any
room for self-pity
here.
It comes with
the territory
of being his
representatives.
He says here,
in the same
way, they
persecuted the
prophets before
you.
It's nothing
new.
It ought
to be
expected.
Fifthly, how
do we handle
the inevitable
difficulty of
moulding culture
in a secular
post-Christian
culture?
How do we
cope with that
flack?
How do we
cope with,
because it
will cost you,
it will cost you
your reputation,
it will cost you
a bunch of
things.
How do we
handle that?
You handle it
by looking to
Jesus and
what he has
promised.
In Philippians
2, we are
told that
Jesus made
himself as
someone with
no reputation.
He had
glory, he
had honour,
and he became
rejected.
He was
shamed, he
was humiliated.
The cross was
the way that
you killed
someone who
you truly
despised.
It was a
dishonourable
death, and
he lost
his reputation,
and we
are saved
through his
persecution,
and his
loss of
reputation.
We are
saved through
Jesus'
shame, so
that we
will not
die in
shame.
Our names
are written
in heaven,
we will
live with
honour and
glory forever,
because Jesus
chose to
reject those
things.
I think
it means,
frankly, that
we can take
the shame
of persecution,
we can take
people thinking
that we're a
bunch of
losers and
idiots, we
can take it
when you
stick your
head up too
high, someone's
going to
want to
punch it,
we can
take it
so that we
might have
the ultimate
honour.
He took
the ultimate
shame so
that we
might have
the ultimate
honour.
societies
come and
go, and
some are
very hostile
to Christianity,
but Christians
are not
powerless, I
think that's
the point
here, it's
a sobering
message, it's
a difficult
message, but
we are not
powerless, even
when we don't
appear to have
a voice.
We have
Jesus Christ,
we have
his gospel,
his ideals
and his
power, and
Jesus is all
the salt,
all the
light that
this decaying
and dark
world needs.
And so
friends, take
courage, you
are the
salt of
the earth
if you are
living a
consistent
Christian
life.
Take
courage, you
are the
light of
the world
if you are
living a
consistent
Christian
life.
It is, I
believe, a
hopeful
message, but
a sobering
message, but
it ends
with great
joy.
Rejoice
and be
glad, because
great is your
reward in
heaven.
Amen.