Universal Grace: Deed
Preach the Gospel at All Times
Matthew 5:13-20
Rev. Tim Callow
Preached Sun. Feb. 8th, 2026
God’s grace is open to all. And God wishes to make use of this his Church to share the message of that grace to the world. Through the preaching of the gospel, through the celebration of the sacraments, through our prayers and fellowship, we make the love of God tangible and known to a world that needs to hear it. This is the adventure God has called us to in our baptisms, it is the mission we are honored to join. We not only grow in love with God, but we are called to grow in love with our neighbors. And the two are enjoined.
So far in this series I have focused on the universality of God’s grace as well as the importance of sharing the proclamation of his grace. That is to say, the gospel. But there is a famous, though falsely attributed, line you may have wanted to quote to me the past month. As St. Francis of Assisi is supposed to have said, “preach the gospel at all times, and when necessary use words.” Now, this is an odd line to put in the mouth of St. Francis. He is the one who famously preached to the birds after all. He didn’t do so mimicking bird songs or waving his arms. He did so using words. The story goes that he was traveling when the realization came upon him that he had restricted his preaching of the gospel to other humans and had neglected the creation. So he immediately went off the path and told the birds, “brother bird, Jesus loves you!”
But on the other hand, could the line be put in the mouth of anyone but St. Francis? He is the one who gave up everything to follow Jesus. Who cared for the lepers because in the Gospel Jesus cares for the lepers. Who begged for the poor because in the gospel Jesus served the poor. Who had no place to lay his head because Jesus said he had no place to lay his head. And, finally, had so united himself to Jesus in his life that he is said to have taken on the very wounds of Christ, the stigmata, at the end of his life. He certainly made his life a living proclamation of the gospel, word or no word.
And so it should be for us. Let us preach the gospel at all times not just in word but in deed. Let us make our lives a living proclamation. Make our lives such that who we are makes no sense unless we have hope in Christ. Let us, through our lives, show the difference Christ makes to the world.
Is this not what Jesus is commanding us to do this morning in our reading from the Sermon on the Mount? He says first, “You are the salt of the earth, but if salt has lost its taste, how can its saltiness be restored? It is no longer good for anything but is thrown out and trampled under foot.” Salt works both as a preservative and a source of flavor. It makes a difference where it is applied. But if the salt is gone and you have nothing more than rocks in your hands, what’s the use? Jesus tells his disciples that they are to be life-giving. And if we are not a source of life and joy to the world, why not throw us out?
He says as well, “You are the light of the world. A city built on a hill cannot be hid. People do not light a lamp put it under the bushel basket; rather they put it on the lampstand, and it gives light to all in the house. In the same way, let your light shine before others, so that they may see your good works and give glory to your Father in heaven.” We reveal to the world who they are and who God is. We reveal that there is a better life than the one of constant doomscrolling and consumption. But there is a way that leads to happiness and life. We show this not just in our words but in our deeds. In who we are. In the lives we choose to lead. It is our good works that shine, Jesus says, and leads others to give glory to God.
Jesus calls all of us to be salt and light. He calls all of us to be sources of life and illumination for the world. To give zest to the world. To show forth his love and mercy to the world. To proclaim the gospel by word and by deed.
Now, you might say, that all sounds well and good. Certainly we don’t want to turn people away by being miserable people. We don’t want to cause scandal to Christ by committing serious sin. But what does such a life look like? In what does it consist? What am I actually telling us to do?
I’ll give two answers.
The first is found in our Old Testament reading from Isaiah. Isaiah is taking the rulers of Judah to task for taking on fasts and publicly worshipping God while doing the things God hates. Oppressing the poor and the needy. So what is it that Isaiah calls them to do instead? “Is not this the fast that I choose: to loose the bonds of injustice, to undo the straps of the yoke, to let the oppressed go free, and to break every yoke? Is it not to share your bread with the hungry and bring the homeless poor into your house; when you see the naked, to cover them and not to hide yourself from your own kin? … if you offer your food to the hungry and satisfy the needs of the afflicted, then your light shall rise in the darkness and your gloom be like the noonday.” That is all to say, to care for those in need at a personal cost. To provide for ones necessities when they need it, to show hospitality to those who need hospitality, to be a human face in a world where you’re more likely to talk to a chatbot. It is far easier to pass the buck. But we are not called to do that. We are called to serve when we can, when opportunity arrises.
But secondly I’ll say you already know what I’m talking about. So often preaching is stating the obvious we would rather avoid. You know what I’m talking about because saints have walked among us. You have known your lives touched, and you know what it takes to touch a life. You have known the support you have received in hard times, and how to share that support to others. It is this costly love, this personal warmth, this sharing of ourselves that is the true salt and life. It is the way we imitate Christ for others. It is the way we preach not just by word, but by deed.