February 5, Fifth Sunday after Epiphany

“You are the salt of the earth. . . . You are the light of the world.”

For a lifelong, saved-by-grace Lutheran, these simple declaratives are sweet indeed. There’s no works righteousness sneaking in here. God has done all the heavy lifting; it’s a done deal. It’s “you are,” not “you should be” or “you may become” or even “you must.” You are, period. That’s grace.

The trouble, of course, is that the fullness of grace is in the details.