"You are the salt of the earth. But if salt loses its taste, with what can it be seasoned? It is no longer good for anything but to be thrown out and trampled underfoot. You are the light of the world. A city set on a mountain cannot be hidden. Nor do they light a lamp and then put it under a bushel basket; it is set on a lampstand, where it gives light to all in the house. Just so, your light must shine before others, that they may see your good deeds and glorify your heavenly Father."
- Matthew 5:13-16
Are you living up to your purpose? This is the central question in this week’s Gospel. On the surface, it seems to be any easy one to answer. It’s a yes or no question. You either are living up to your purpose or not. But this seemingly easy question leads us to other, more difficult, questions. What is your purpose? How do you know what your purpose is? What does it mean if you’re not living up to your purpose? These are questions that people wrestle with for their entire lives.
Yet for Christians, the answers are clear. Our purpose is to love God and love each other. We know this because Jesus tells us in the Great Commandment: “You should love the Lord, your God, with all your heart, with all your soul, and with all your mind … [and] you shall love your neighbor as yourself” (Matthew 26:37-39). Everything we do, therefore, needs to focus back on these two things: loving God and loving each other. If we fail to do these things, we fail at the purpose and mission we have been given.
But our purpose goes beyond simply loving God and each other. In doing this, we are also to be spreading the Good News. This is the light which must shine before others. We must not be afraid to proclaim that Jesus is Lord and Savior. This does not mean we must be overbearing and constantly put our beliefs in front of everyone we meet. It does mean that we should not hide our beliefs from others. We should be willing to discuss what we believe with those around us. If we do these two things, loving those around us and sharing the Good News, we can be assured that our purpose has been fulfilled.