Transformative Calling: Being Salt and Light

1. "As Christ followers, we are to do everything that we can to share the good news of Jesus Christ with others, so that he can then do this life-changing work within them. We've got to realize that when we become a Christ follower, we are not the end of the story. We're not the end of the story. We are part of the story. And it will continue on as we die off in years to come. I mean, it will continue on. And that's a really, really, really good thing. It doesn't end with me. It continues with me." [03:13] (32 seconds) (Download raw clip | Download cropped clip)


2. "So when I read that passage of scripture, I realized that God has a plan for me and he has a plan for you. He has a plan for each one of us. Each one of you who's listening to this message today, you're going to have a plan for me. You're going to have a plan for you. He's got a plan for you. And his plan is for you to change your world, not to change necessarily the entire world. All right. So he's got a plan for you to change your world. But sometimes when we think of it as the entire world, it can be a little bit of a struggle for us." [06:07] (31 seconds) (Download raw clip | Download cropped clip)


3. "The challenge we have in changing the world, that we live in, is that we have to be such positive influences on the people in our lives that we attract them to want to have change in their lives or to see a transformation take place and really a moment of transformation that will be a defining moment for them. And that's why Jesus shares this in the Sermon on the Mount and says, you are the salt of the earth. You are the light of the world. He didn't say you are to be. Salt or you are to be light. He said, you are the salt. You are the light. Like you make things better. You make things brighter for people." [10:32] (43 seconds) (Download raw clip | Download cropped clip)


4. "We change when we heard enough that we have to, we change when we've seen enough that we're inspired to. We also change when we, when we learn enough that we want to, we learn enough that we want to. One, one thing that I have enjoyed so much about my time in ministry, is when people learn God's word and what he desires for Christ followers to do, and then people actually do it. I love it when that happens. It's like they get into the Bible and they spend time with other believers. And because of what they learn, they want to change. They want to change." [12:03] (36 seconds) (Download raw clip | Download cropped clip)


5. "If you want to be solid, if you want to be light, and you're asking yourselves, how can I be the salt and light in my world? Well, I've got four things for you. Number one is this. You must value people. You must value people. And it's in valuing people that you connect with them. And this is the connecting link. So as we change our world, as we serve, it all begins with valuing people. And by the way, if you want to be like Jesus, well, maybe, maybe I should ask you if you want to be like Jesus. I mean, how many of you want to be like Jesus? Anybody? Anybody? Well, that's great. Okay. Almost all of you, almost everyone wants to be like Jesus. And if you want to be Christ-like in the way that you live, and people ask me all the time, how do I start? Well, you start very simple. Do what Jesus did. Do what Jesus did. And Jesus valued people. That's what he did. He valued everyone." [14:47] (56 seconds) (Download raw clip | Download cropped clip)


6. "So salt and light means I value people. That's the first step. That's the connecting link. So here's the second part of salt and light, and that is that I add value to people. So it's one thing to just value and appreciate people, but it's another thing to say, now, here's what I'm going to do. I'm going to add value to them. I'm going to do something that I'm not going to do. I'm going to add value to that adds value to them. And just like valuing people brings connection, you begin to influence people when you add value to their lives. I mean, think about this for just a moment, okay? Just think about it. Think about the people in your life that have added value to you. Think about that. I can think of quite a few people who continually add value into my life. And when a person adds value to you, it gives them a proper influence within your life." [19:03] (55 seconds) (Download raw clip | Download cropped clip)


7. "My perspective toward you determines my attitude toward you. All right? My perspective toward you determines my attitude toward you. Okay? You see, how we view things is how we end up doing them. Perspective is everything. So don't miss this. So if I see you as weak, I'll help you. If I see you as broken, I'll fix you. But if I see you as valuable, I'm going to serve you. I'm going to serve you. You see, in the first two scenarios, I'm still on top. I got you out of the ditch. You know what I'm saying? Like, I pulled you out. It's like, okay, well, thank you so much. Oh my, it's so good. Thank you for being here for me, you know? And you see, even when I'm helping you, it can still be about me. But when I see you as valuable, as a person of value, I serve you. I serve you. Do you see what I've purposely done? I've now put myself beneath you. And that is the attitude and the posture that truly changes lives." [22:05] (70 seconds) (Download raw clip | Download cropped clip)


8. "If you want to live as salt and light, you must live out godly values. You've got to live out godly values. And it's one thing to value people. It's one thing to... Add value to people. But it's an entirely different thing when we begin to actually live out these godly values in our own lives. And this is what makes us attractive to people, when they see us living out these incredible values that God has given us in His Word. So I want us to look at a passage of Scripture in the book of Galatians in chapter five. So we'll look at the fruits of the Spirit, okay? We've looked at these before. We're going to look at them again. We're also going to look at them today. So Galatians chapter five, verse 22 through 23 says this, but the fruit of the Spirit is what? It says that we have love, joy, peace, forbearance, or patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, and self control. It says against such things, there is no law." [23:47] (57 seconds) (Download raw clip | Download cropped clip)


9. "So in everything, do to others what you would have them do to you. This can be absolutely life-changing if you allow it to infiltrate your life and actually live by it. It's in times like these that we begin to understand that salt and light transformation begins, it begins with godly values. And one of the things that is so important about godly values is that they create stability within us. Like they create this stability really within our lives and they begin to anchor our lives. And transformation begins on the inside. And what I've discovered, and this is so important, is that if you have godly values on the inside, you need less validation on the outside. But if you lack, if I lack godly values inside of me, I'm going to seek validation outside of me." [26:39] (54 seconds) (Download raw clip | Download cropped clip)


10. "Do you ever feel deep down in your heart that you want to make a difference in people's lives? Do you feel that? I believe with all my heart that you want to make a difference in people's lives. And I believe with all my heart that you want to make a difference in people's lives. I believe that you are going to do great things for God. I believe that with everything in me. You see, every one of us, we are created to be our brother's keeper. That's what we were created for. We were created to make a difference in people's lives. We were created to be the salt and to be the light. And every one of us, I believe we have deep down in our hearts a desire to really make a difference in the lives of the people that are around us." [28:12] (40 seconds) (Download raw clip | Download cropped clip)