Prayer: God of light, God of love, please help us to be aware of your life in us, just as your life was in Jesus. Amen.

Last weekend we went through quite an American phenomenon. The Super Bowl. And, in the last decade or so, and equally American phenomenon which dovetails with the Super Bowl is the revealing of the Super Bowl ads. Honestly, I watch the ads with just as much anticipation as I do the game. One of the ads I liked was the one advertising Bridgestone Tires. Remember the one with the squirrel? This squirrel sees an acorn out in the middle of the road and goes out to get it. As he gnaws on the acorn, a car comes up very fast. The squirrel sees his doom and lets out a scream of terror. Ahhhh!!!! In fact, several animals let out their screams of terror—a raccoon, a deer, an owl, a turtle, a rabbit, a grasshopper, a mouse, groundhogs, and a chipmunk. Then the woman in the front seat of the car lets out her scream of terror as the car is about ready to run over the squirrel. The driver simply swerves and avoids the squirrel and offers a friendly “beep-beep” on the horn as he passes by. The idea, of course, is that the very essence of the Bridgestone tire is that it is a high quality tire. It hugs the road, it keeps the driver in control, even when sudden serves are needed. If a tire doesn’t do those things, or ceases to do those things, it is no good as a tire anymore. It might as well be thrown away onto the used tire heaps of America.

Jesus is teaching something similar in our texts tonight. When he says to his listeners, “You are the salt of the earth,” he doesn’t mean it literally, obviously. He means that they are to be the very essence of who they are as people of God, and who they are is of the highest quality. They are people with gifts and abilities. They have the light of God in them as part of the essence of who they are. They are people who are listening to God’s word and are following God’s ways and have God in their hearts. If any of that goes away, if someone ceases to be who they are as a child of God, if the light of God in that person is covered up by a bushel basket, then what’s the point of being a child of God? Jesus is calling on us to be the essence of who we are. The highest of our traits and qualities are intended to shine before others.

I would like your help with tonight’s message. I want you to think for a few seconds about the highest qualities you have as a person. [pause] Now, inside your bulletin, you should have an index card. I invite you to take a pen or pencil, and I want you to number 1, 2, 3, and 4 on the left side of the card. What I invite you to do is to please write down on the first card next to number 1 what you think is the highest quality or highest trait about yourself, whatever that may be. You may say your highest quality is that you are skilled as a listener, or you work well with your hands, or you have a deep faith, or you are compassionate, or good looking… whatever it is, write it down.

Next I want you to think of that trait or quality about yourself that isn’t the highest, but you sure would like to improve,. Write it down in the number two spot. Now don’t worry—I’m not going to collect these or read these cards, so you can be honest.

Next, would you please write down in the number three spot what you think is the highest trait or quality we have as a church… whatever that may be. It could be that you think our highest quality is that we are open to all, or we are friendly, or deeply rooted in faith, responsive to needs, or whatever you think our highest trait is.

Last, would you please write down on your card what quality or trait about our church that isn’t the highest, but you would sure like to see improved upon.

In John, we read Jesus saying that he is the Light of the world, but he also said you are the light of the world. He is the light, and so are we? Yes!!! And so are WE! Something of Jesus is growing in us perhaps? Something of his Spirit is regenerated in us? I believe so. When once you accept Christ into your life as your Savior, then you become aware of a marvelous spiritual change happening within you. You identify God’s Holy Spirit alive in you, which is the same Holy Spirit that lived in Christ—indeed, it IS Christ’s spirit. It can be said that Christ’s spirit is “regenerated” or “re-born” in you. That’s one reason why Paul says, “It is no longer I who live, but it is Christ who lives in me.”

So, if Christ’s spirit is regenerated in us, then it makes sense that if he is the light of the world, and so are we. It also makes because I think Jesus was stressing the importance of being who we are as people of God, as people worth our salt, as people who are bearers of God’s light.

He was being the essence of who he is—God’s Son, God’s Light, God’s Love. If he doesn’t live up to who he is, then what’s the point? Likewise, we are called to be the essence of who we are—God’s light shining through us, God’s love mirroring Christ’s love. If we don’t live up to who we are, then what’s the point?

Let’s look at our cards. Take a few moments to think about those four traits and qualities, but let’s put them in the context of Christ’s light shining upon them. By themselves, they may be well and good, but add the light of Christ upon them, and those traits and qualities get enhanced and enriched. With Christ’s regenerated spirit within us, our work magnifies Christ’s love, our love reflects Christ’s love, and all our works glorifies God. We start to form Christ-like traits and qualities in our living.

You may put your cards away for now, but I invite you to keep them during this season of Lent. Put them among your devotional items for the next six weeks, or we are on a journey exploring the idea that some of Christ’s greatest qualities actually can become our own because the Spirit of Christ lives within us.

Tonight our texts invite us to learn this lesson from Jesus, our Teacher: be the essence of who we are—just like salt has its saltiness, and light has it’s ability to shine, so we are to have Christ’s trait of being God’s light in our world. Next Wednesday, we learn from Christ on having the high trait of being a prayerful worshiper of God. Come journey with me, wont’ you? Amen.