(Part
1)
“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 on by men.”
Matthew
5:13
You
are the salt of the earth. Unfortunately, the perception of salt in our culture
has substantially weakened the significance of Jesus’ statement. For us, salt
is cheap, plentiful, and easily accessible.
However,
in Christ’s day, salt was a necessity of life. It was vital in the preservation
of food. So much so that great value was placed on it. In fact, it was so
valuable that sometimes it was used as money.
One
commentator wrote: “The Roman soldiers
of Jesus day were at times paid with it. In fact our word salary comes from the
Latin word salarium which referred to
the payments made to soldiers with salt.”
The
value of salt begins to take on greater value and meaning when one must depend
on it to preserve food and provide for one’s family.
However,
Jesus, likely had more than salt’s value in mind when he declared “You are the
salt of the earth.” He also understood its usefulness.
Today,
when describing uses for salt, most people immediately describe its application
as a flavoring as its greatest benefit. In Christ’s day, however, salt’s
capacity to preserve was its greatest asset.
Salt
was important to survival. It was their only method to preserve meat. Salt
would be rubbed into meat prior to being stored and the salt would then hinder
the decaying process.
As
Christians we have the responsibility of “hindering the decaying process” that
prevails within our culture by opposing the immorality so prevalent in our
society and standing for righteousness.
We
certainly should not be joining in and facilitating the depravation. Paul wrote
in Colossians 2:20-21:
“Since you died with Christ to the basic
principles of this world, why, as though you still belong to it, do you submit
to its rules: “Do not handle! Do not taste! Do not touch!”
Our
function, as salt, is to be a preserving agent in our culture by living righteous
lives guided by the Word of God.
Pastor
Scott Burr
http://faithandworshipseries.blogspot.com/
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