Light of the World, Salt of the Earth

By: Alex Wang, former YG member (Class of 2010)

Read: Matthew 25:31-46

So Ben’s leaving. Obviously this is hard to grasp. What Ben has done for this Youth Group can’t really be summed up in one devotional. And I have to be honest here. By not being a full-time member of WCAC and not being able to go to YG on I have not been able to hear a lot of his messages. But despite that there is one thing about Ben that I have seen, and that his simply his love and willingness to serve one another. And that is what Christ has called us to do. He has called us to reach out to the broken, the lost, the lonely in this world. What comes to mind is the song “God of Justice” by Tim Hughes. The chorus goes along something like this:

We must go live to feed the hungry, stand beside the broken!
We must go!
Stepping forward, keep us from just singing. Move us into action!
We must go!

God has called us to be salt of this earth. This doesn’t mean that we live entirely within our own cliques and bubbles; when someone is in need, God calls us to help. It goes along with the passage from Matthew 25:31-46. This passage ultimately sums it up. In verse 40 it says, “Truly, I say to you, as you did it to one of the least of these my brothers, you did it to me” (ESV). We glorify God by reaching out to those who might not have been as fortunate as us in Naperthrill, Wheaton or wherever we live. We can also bring up James 2:17, which states that “…faith by itself, if it does not have works, is dead” (ESV). Despite not being able to really talk with Ben that much or hear his speak many times, but what I have seen in him is just a loving heart and such a willingness to help others who are in need. I pray that we would follow in his footsteps.

Some people may say to themselves, “Man, this is tough! It’s tough to reach out to the newcomers. I’d much rather just hang out with people that I already know.” But this compassion and helping out that we talk about isn’t directed only at those who we don’t know. Christ showed unconditional love for EVERYONE, not just those who are strangers. When we think about it, sometimes the hardest people to love are those who we take for granted, like our parents. Personally, there are times where people close to me are not feeling their best, yet I choose to ignore them. I encourage you guys to truly love those who are close to you, who care about you through all times. Be an example, be a witness. Let your life speak out how much Christ has loved us, to those that we know and those that we have never met.

Heal my heart and make me clean, open up my eyes to the things unseen!
Show me how to love like You have loved me!
Break my heart for what breaks Yours; everything I am for Your kingdom’s cause
As I go from earth into eternity!
- “Hosanna”, Hillsong United