Mike on Elements, Compounds, and Our Stories

For the message, Mike read Matthew 5:13, and reflected on the difference between elements and compounds. The distinction between elements (which are made entirely of themselves) and compounds (which are made of distinct elements bound together) is important to science and to the stories we tell. What is the story we tell about ourselves as the people of God? Are we an element, needing to preserve our purity? Or are we a compound, defined by the bond that holds us together without erasing our distinctions?