I am a Jesus pusher!!! Salt and Light are images of a state of being. The formation of the Kingdom is found in the Beatitudes. I am helpless; He is my resource. In this unity, the Kingdom is formed. I do not do the Kingdom or eventually become the Kingdom. We are the Kingdom, Jesus and me! The imagery of salt and light presents a state of being.
After this clarification, Jesus launches into the conclusion of the Epilogue. It is in this section that Matthew highlights the continuity of the Old and New Testaments. The Old Covenant is not destroyed but is fulfilled in Jesus (Matthew 5:17-20). This is the great message of the Sermon on the Mount. In the following verses, Jesus defines the “fulfillment” of the Law. He highlights the application of the Law as proposed by the scribes and Pharisees in contrast to the fulfillment of the Law in Him. Jesus says, “You have heard that it was said to those of old,” (Matthew 5:21, 27, 31, 33, 38, and 43). He then continues saying, “But I say to you” (Matthew 5:22, 28, 32, 34, 39, and 44). Every time Jesus takes the literal interpretation of the Law and internalizes it, He also intensifies it. The application of the Law moved from a duty to the flow of His nature in us; it is the Kingdom of Heaven, salt and light. In other words, the Law becomes who we are rather than what we do. It is not an obligation to keep or duty to maintain, but a nature that we have. We do not act because we have to; we act because we are! Even if we discipline ourselves to do the right thing, we will still not be Kingdom people. We experience Jesus in intimacy; our lives flow with His nature. I am a naturalized Jesus pusher!!!