Matthew 5:13
"You are the salt of the earth. But if the salt loses its saltiness, how can it be made salty again? It is no longer good for anything, except to be thrown out and trampled underfoot."
In today's society, salt is neither hard to come by nor regarded as more than a staple in cooking, food production, and seasoning. Not so in Jesus' day! Salt was a highly valued commodity for its usefulness in preserving foods which would otherwise spoil and decay if not consumed quickly. This was essential to civilization for whom refrigeration was not-existent. Even now, salt is used for food preservation in everything from canned soups to processed meats and cheeses. The next time you visit the grocery store, pause to read some of those nutrition labels and check for sodium content; if you have to watch your salt-intake as I do, I'm sure this is a familiar activity for you. As someone who has always preferred salty snacks to sweet ones, this has forced an unwanted, but necessary, adjustment upon my taste buds!
When Jesus told His disciples they were the "salt of the earth", they would have immediately recognized how much value He place upon them. They would be the ones to flavor the world with the good news of God's kingdom and preserve His word in the world, preventing the latter from declining into moral decay. They must have felt so honored and humbled in that moment. Yet, so much grander than that, in all the moments, days, weeks, and years after the resurrection, they never lost their saltiness. They continued with faith and perseverance to season the world with the gospel of salvation in Christ Jesus.
Today, think about how you, as a Christian, can be the "salt of the earth", preserving God's word and flavoring others with the taste of His great love.
Readings
Psalms 69:1-23 (24-30) 31-38 or 72
2 Kings 1:2-17
1 Corinthians 3:16-21
Matthew 5:11-16
As someone who has borderline blood pressure, I gave up adding salt in my food and do know what I'm missing! I think Jesus' 'salt of the earth' message is extremely relevant in our times..But the beauty of salt is that it merges and adds to the value of the dish. It does not stand apart and announce itself like an increasing number of Christians are prone to do these days. The 'salt of the earth' teaching is very far from an 'us and them' kind of way that some of us adopt - believers vs non-believers. Salt merges, salt enhances......
ReplyDeleteIn Gujarati language (Gujarat state in western India), salt is called as 'mittu' meaning 'Sweet'. I once asked, why is it called a sweet when it is salty? They (Gujaratis) believe that salt enhances the taste of the food and makes the food sweet(edible).
ReplyDeleteThanks, Corinne and Janu, for stopping by! I love the image of salt merging and enhancing - that's exactly what it does! How interesting that the word for sweet in Gujarati describes salt - just more evidence of its great value in the human diet!
ReplyDeleteBlessings to you both!
Martha!
ReplyDeleteExcellent read on Salt...just like all your comments and conversations - seasoned and respectful. The Lord Jesus is so real and loving. They will know we are christians by our love, by the way we season our demeanor, speech and actions....
Janu may be on to something....away from the Gospel, Marth. Have you ever sprinkled salt on Watermelon or Canterloupe? It makes it sweeter!! I also sprinkle salt when boiling up some sweet corn -= and it comes out sweeter!!
Back to Christ - that sweet saltiness is what Jesus is teaching...love it!
Thanks Peeps!!
God bless y'all
brother bernie