Topic: Christians: The Salt of the Earth
Scripture text: Matthew 5: 9-13
Our topic for sharing today says; Christians are the salt of the earth, who made that declaration and why? Salt is described in the Webstar Decenary as sodium chloride, a white crystallike substance with a characteristic taste, found in natural beds in sea water: it is used for seasoning and preserving food.
(Tell of seeing salt being made)
Why did Jesus refer to Christians as salt of the earth? What is salt?
Almost 2,000 years ago, the Roman naturalist and philosopher Pliny the Elder said, Heaven knows, a civilized life is impossible without salt, and it’s safe to say nothing has changed. Across the world, salt is prized for the way it makes food of every kind taste better, no matter if it’s simple buttered noodles, a slab of watermelon, or expensive beef tartare.
Salt is a flavor potentiator, it doesn’t add flavor of its own so much as bringing out the desirable flavors in other foods, it makes rich foods taste richer, and meaty foods meatier, and it also has the ability to ameliorate bitter flavors.
Of course, human crave salt in part because we need an element contained within it to survive. Salt is, chemically speaking, an ionic compound made up of sodium and chlorine. Our bodies need sodium in order to regulate and balance fluid levels in our blood and around our cells, and it plays a key role in nerve and muscle functions.
How is salt processed? Salt is everywhere, and is one of the world’s oldest commodities. It can come from seashores, where ocean water is harvested and allowed to evaporate, leaving salt behind. It can also come from inland saltwater springs; from ancient caves that were once part of, or connected to the ocean; and even in rarer instances, from the shores of landlock lakes and are all that remains of ancient oceans that once covered the land around them.
You may be asking yourself, why is he paying so much attention to salt? Is there anything special about salt? The answer is yes. We could also ask the question, why did Jesus refer to Christians as the salt of the earth?
The salt of the earth is a common phrase that means that someone or something is fundamentally good and valuable. The phrase comes from Matthew 5: 13, which says, you are the salt of the earth. But if the salt loses its flavor, how shall it be seasoned? It is then good for nothing but to be thrown out and trampled underfoot by men.
This passage in Matthew’s gospel is part of a long section concerned with Jesus teachings about how his followers should live their lives. He tells them to be humble: avoid lusting after wealth and power, pray for their enemies, forgive those who hurt them, love one another as he loves them, act as peacemakers who bring justice and mercy to all situations they encounter (matt. 5: 9-10) and serve others without expecting anything in return.
So why does Jesus use the phrase “ the salt of the Earth?
He uses it to refer to people who are humble, gracious toward others, and willing to sacrifice themselves for others’ benefit. Jesus says these people are like salt, they improve the world by bringing out its best qualities. Without them, life would be bland and tasteless. In other words, they’re indispensable.
Jesus says that Christians are like salt because each of us influences others around us. We are called by God to bring healing, hope and salvation to those who do not know Christ. We should seek to impact our culture with love and compassion, just as salt preserves flavor to blend food.
As Christians, we are called to be light in a dark and fallen world where sin has corrupted everything (Matt; 5: 13-16) when we live for Christ, we become powerful witnesses for Him and His truth that can change lives for eternity.
Jesus during His memorable sermon on the mount, declared that believers were the salt of the earth, and advised that it was possible for them to pose their flavor. If believers lost their flavor, they would be of no benefit to others. They would then be deserving of being thrown out and trampled upon by men.
Recognize that for many years salt was used as an instrument to reduce the corruption of meat and other foods so that they could be edible for a longer period, Christians who obey God and do His will serve as a preservative of the human race and the earth by slowing down the moral and spiritual decay of the world around them.
Christians, as the salt of the earth Jesus spoke about, need to live as pure a life as possible so that they can maximize their ability to flavor or to bless others through their good works. When true believers mix into themselves things like false doctrines, they lose their purity and their originally intended goal. This will eventually lead them to becoming worthless and hollow.
We the followers of Christ Jesus should always let our speech be always with grace, seasoned with salt, that you may know how you ought to answer every man. When Jesus came on the seen, He did not bring anything, He just came to show mankind how to enjoy all that a loving heavenly father have provided for mankind and how we could enjoy it all.
Jesus is saying that, when we actually follow him, we are the salt of the earth. In fact this passage needs to be connected to the famous beatitudes that precede it. These statements of blessedness, these characteristics and qualities that God is producing in us.
When we are poor in spirit, pure in heart, when we hunger and thirst for righteousness and seek to be peacemakers and show mercy, when we, in other words, follow the way of Jesus we are both blessed and the salt of the earth.
Sadly, it seems that Christians have been more willing to point out areas of cultural decay, but at times, less willing to take responsibility for our lack of salt.
When meat goes bad left to itself, you don’t just blame the meat. When milk goes bad unrefrigerated you don’t just blame the milk. When the world goes bad left to itself, you don’t just blame the world, instead you ask, where was the salt?
You are salt in the science and in education, you are the salt in the business world, you are the salt in the medical system, you are the salt in the trades, in the teach and computer industry, you are the salt in the court system, you are the salt in the home, you are the salt of the world.
In the midst of the erosion of hope and peace, in the midst of a divided and combative culture, we are called to be salt, to act as a preservative, to slow down the erosion, to fly a flag for Gospel truth and to consistently plant acts of kindness, love, and sacrifice for the good of others, day after day, week after week year after year, slowing down the erosion.
Salt helps our muscles contract and relax. It assists our nervous system in sending impulses, and it balances our water and mineral intake. Today, American medical associations vary in the amount of salt an average adult needs, ranging from1,500 to2,300 milligrams daily.
Going back to the importance of salt in the Old Testament. We find God’s salt covenant with the Levite priests. In Leviticus 2: 13, God gave this instruction to Moses concerning salt, season all your grain offering with salt. Do not leave the salt of the covenant with our God out of your grain offerings; add salt to all your offerings.
How salty are you and I as Christians?