Last summer a new Superman movie hit the theaters. It reminded me of my childhood Saturdays watching Superman on a black and white TV. Of course his mission, as we were reminded every week was more than just being Clark Kent a reporter for the Daily Planet. He was really Superman, whose real mission was to save the world from evil. That is a noble cause and many wars have been fought to accomplish a similar purpose, and yet evil seems beyond.
More prevalent today is the call to be responsible in attempting to save planet earth. Seeking an end to rampant pollution, recycling waste, electric cars, and wind turbines are all part of the effort that assumes we can effect climate change and make the world as we feel it should be. As people of faith, we certainly show our love for God by our love and care for all living things, which includes all that God has filled with his breath of life. And yet, do we really have it in our earthly power to save and control something as incredibly diverse and complicated as Planet Earth? What is in our hands and what is in God’s? Why assume we can control what might be beyond control?
Why get so worked up about attempting to control seasons, weather, or life itself but claim impotence when it comes to selfishness that tears apart families and communities and stunts the future of our children? We argue about whose rights must be protected by but ignore millions who die every year without knowing as Savior. More appropriate for people of faith is a healthy concern for stewardship and love of ALL creation (not just for water and animals, but people as well – even those we don’t like.)
We believe God created everything that exists, and so all of creation is his. We also believe that he has asked us to care for what he has created. In response to God’s love in creating such incredible gifts what response is there for faithful people other than to take care of what has been touched by God. And that should be the same whether it is the air we breathe, the water we drink, the plants we care for, or the lives we touch. We are to care for God’s gifts. But what does that mean and what role can we play?
One day Jesus told a crowd that they are the salt of the earth. In that day salt was so important for the changes it caused in whatever it touched. Salt preserved meat (in a day before refrigeration) so that it wouldn’t spoil and be wasted. It also seasoned and changed the taste of whatever it touched. So how does that fit in with his call to care for all creation?
Maybe a familiar parable will help. One day a hungry stranger came into a village and went door to door asking if he could buy some food. No one would help him. He sat by the edge of town and cried out, “why will no one help me with food when you have all these wonderful stones lying around. I will make enough stone soup to feed all of you!” There was confusion, until one woman ran home and brought her best soup kettle. Another said, “Carrots will help.” Others brought potatoes, onions, and all sorts of goodies. And in the end, everyone enjoyed a wonderful meal of “stone soup.”
That gets to the heart of what Jesus one day was seeking his audience to consider as he told them. Everyone has gifts that can be used to cange the world around them. Only God can create, but we can season and care for what he has given. In doing so, bland lives can be enriched and empty lives can be filled iwht the taste of God’s love. Only God can save the planet, and rescue peple from the power of sin and death, but we have it in our control to season and care for so much more than we selfishly are willing to embrace.
Maybe if we were less political and more faithful we would understand that the care of life around us is not about fear, guilt, or political movements but is simply the opportunity of faithful people to give God glory be caring for what he has created and blessed us with in this gift that we call life on earth.
Later on that same day when Jesus told a gathered crowd that they were the salt of the earth, he also challenged them to be the light of the world. We are called to be people of faith, not as a special blessing that we somehow deserve, but to reflect in how we live the love that has changed how we touch every life and moment of creation that we come into contact with. Again, this is not to try to control or change what we cannot, but to reflect the presence and grace of God who alone has created galaxies and flowing rivers, rainclouds and fields of wheat, and can offset the power of sin and death. As salt and light we are given the gift of helping the world around us to be touched by the glory of God.
Jesus saved the world in a lavishly, sacrificial way. Instead of holding back, he poured out his life, surrendered his power, by literally expending every ounce of love and life just for you and me! The miracle of Easter was like that finished pot of stone soup. Through the miracle of using every gift at his disposal, Jesus flavored the lives he touched as he washed feet, healed lepers, fed the hungry and gathered the lost. He lit up a dark planet with the light of his birth and the power of his resurrection. We are never alone, and his power fills our gifts!
What irony that Jesus’ loss is our gain and, in our mirror-like surrender, we not only show God’s glory, but multiply his gifts with those around us. Failure to take advantage of giftedness and opportunity is no different than a rejection of all God has done for you and me. Just as salt that never leaves the cupboard is wasted, so the gifts we have been given, which if kept in the dark, will never reach the potential for which they are created. FAITH means no worry no fear — that is the flavor of our living! FAITH means sacrifice and surrender, not so we can change the world, but to announce to the world the change Jesus makes in me!
That is why we collect food for the hungry and warm clothing for poor families. It is why we recycle what we can and don’t waste might be useful to another. It is why we use campus ministry or radio to share Jesus’ love with people outside of any specific congregation. How easy it really is to season and shine, or understand how a little love, touched by a touch of faith, goes such a long way! And in such a response the glory of God is not wasted and can change the world in ways greater than any of us could ever have planned.
One day, an old man was walking along a beach that was littered with thousands of starfish washed ashore by the high tide. As he walked he came upon a young boy who was eagerly throwing the starfish back into the ocean, one by one. Puzzled, he looked and asked what he was doing. Without looking up the boy replied, “I’m saving these starfish!” The old man chuckled aloud, “Son, there are thousands of starfish and only one of you. What difference can you make?” The boy picked up a starfish, gently tossed it into the water and turning to the man, said, “I made a difference to that one!”
Faith is our power from God. We can’t waste it unless we don’t use it! And if we use it, God’s power changes me and all whom I touch! Where will you serve? How will you love? Where will you shine? I knew a young mother who dealt with her dying by insisting that her husband and children embrace family counseling, together, before her death. She understood SALT and seasoned their lives with such love. She understood LIGHT and recorded baby book stories for each of her children and talked to her husband about his future.
Because of that faithful love, her children are now adults who season their own children’s lives with incredible support, love and faith. Many of you have similar experiences and similar role models in your lives. Just don’t forget to do the same for those around you, whether family, friends, or strangers. This is not so we can save the planet, but because God has saved the world.
God alone can save the world. But what a surprise that he allows us to be the seasoning and light that gives a taste of that change and an example of what the glory of God truly is. Jesus does the saving; we need only to serve.