Living the Journey

"Ye are the salt of the earth…"

We’ve all heard Matthew 5:13 before. But what does it mean to be the salt of the earth? Take a minute and think about these four characteristics of salt:

1. Salt Adds Flavor

I never was much of a chef. One day I tried to make brownies for a group of over fifty people. Somehow I forgot the dry ingredients! That’s right, I missed the flour, the baking soda, and all that good stuff! I was about to put my batter in the oven when someone came along, noticed something was quite wrong, and rescued what would have otherwise been a catastrophe. Needless to say, I’m not much of a chef.

Way back when, however, I was pretty good at baking bread. Somehow it always seemed to turn out just right—soft, fluffy, and delicious. One day it turned out particular well, at least it looked particularly nice. But it only took a nibble to know that something was drastically wrong—I had forgotten to put in the salt. It amazes me how just a teaspoon of something can make such a huge difference!

A little salt goes a long way. Have you ever confused teaspoons of salt with tablespoons of salt? Oh, my. That capital "T" sure makes a big difference in the recipe! My brother made that mistake one time when making biscuits. They tasted awful! The only way my sister could rescue the poor biscuits was to triple everything else in the recipe to match the amount of salt. Needless to say, we were eating biscuits for quite a while!

As the salt of the earth, believers have a key roll to play. The Jesus warns, "if the salt have lost his savour, wherewith shall it be salted? it is thenceforth good for nothing, but to be cast out, and to be trodden under foot of men."

• Would others say that I leave a "savour" of Christ when I am around them? 

2. Salt Creates Thirst

Have you ever heard the saying, "You can lead a horse to water, but you can’t make him drink?" There’s a lot of truth to that. However, farmers found an easy way to make the horse drink. How did they do it? They simply salted the oats!

"Salting the oats" is one thing that makes the difference between a good communicator and an average communicator. Just about any "average Joe" can talk about a concept with somebody. But a good speaker will grab the attention of his audience with an illustration, a riddle, or a question that causes those who are listening to perk up and wonder what the answer is. And when they finally find out, it pricks the heart and sticks in the memory.

When Jesus spoke, people listened and marveled. He often used thought-provoking questions and vivid illustrations. We are told, "Let your word be always with grace, having been seasoned with salt, to know how you ought to answer each one." (Colossians 4:6). The Greek word for seasoned means "to prepare, that is, spice (with stimulating condiments)." So spice up your speach!

• The next time I am trying to communicate a truth that I know someone needs to hear, how can I "salt the oats" so that they are eager to listen and understand?

3. Salt Preserves

Salt is a preservative. It draws out the moisture in meat, which prevents the survival of bacteria. Back in the olden days, folks would pack their meat with salt in order to preserve it. With salt, one can theoretically preserve food for decades without it being consumed by bacteria.

In the same way that salt preserves meat, the morality that Jesus Christ commands from His disciples is what will preserve a nation from self-destruction. In their video Empty Cities, Moody Institute of Science traced the fall of many ancient civilizations to the collapse of morality within those civilizations. This certainly coincides with the admonition of Proverbs 14:34: "Righteousness exalteth a nation: but sin is a reproach to any people."

The dire need for morality in our nation was emphasized by John Adams in 1798: "We have no government armed with power capable of contending with human passions unbridled by morality and religion. Avarice, ambition, revenge, or gallantry, would break the strongest cords of our Constitution as a whale goes through a net. Our Constitution was made only for a moral and religious people. It is wholly inadequate to the government of any other."

• Which one of Jesus Christ’s commands of love am I meditating on today so that I can become salt and light as I live it out in a corrupt and immoral world?

4. Salt is Required for a Healthy Body

Sodium is one of the primary electrolytes in the body. There are many vital minerals in unrefined salt that are needed for optimal bodily function. Without salt, we will experience severe, even fatal, neurological problems.

Paul says in Romans 12:5, "We, being many, are one Body in Christ, and every one members one of another." When one member of the Body suffers, "all the members suffer with it" (I Corinthians 12:26). What one member does affects the entire Body. (See I Corinthians 6:15-20.)

• What can I do today that will contribute to the health of the Body of Christ? What things am I allowing in my life that may be causing the Body to suffer?

         

The above points were adapted from a message by Bill Gothard, Ph.D.

 Email This Post

This entry was posted on Wednesday, February 25th, 2009 at 11:16 pm and is filed under Inspirational Insights. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.