Salt of the earth
Mat 5:2 And he opened his mouth, and taught
them, saying…
Mat 5:13 Ye are the salt of the earth: but 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 you USE
salt if it had no flavor to it?
What would be the
point in using salt in our food if it added nothing to the food. In and of
itself the salt isn't something we can eat very much of, but add it to our food
and it gives it amazing new flavors. It can take a very bland meal and make it
any thing but bland. Salt has amazing powers to transform the taste of the
foods we eat. A lot of chefs will tell you that people make the mistake of
using too little salt but that robs the food of it's potential flavor. Go to
restaurants where they have no trouble adding a lot of salt to their food and
people enjoy eating their immensely. They don't have to overly concern
themselves with the amount of salt they are getting, it's a special treat.
They're indulging themselves. Without the salt in most of our processed food,
we would not eat much of it. Time and again I've tried low salt soups and
inevitably there are complaints about it just not tasting good. Yes, it's
probably healthier not to eat so much salt, but even recently there was an
article in some magazine about how maybe, just maybe salt has been given a
really bad rap-undeservedly and it's not quite as bad for you as it's been made
to seem. Of course that's neither
here nor there, the fact remains that leave the salt out of your food and you
will know right away that something is missing.
So back to the
question- would you use salt if it had not flavor to it, if it added nothing to
your food?
No.
There would be no point. It would be like adding tasteless grit for
absolutely no reason. You would not
bother to add something to your food that brought no value to it. Every single
ingredient put into the various recipes you make has it's purpose.
Even if that purpose is to add color to a colorless meal, it has a
purpose.
Salt without it's ability to be salty would be useless just as
the dirt of the ground, you wouldn't eat the dirt.
WE ARE THE SALT OF
THE EARTH.
As the salt of
the earth we have something to give to others, something of great benefit. If we do NOT have anything to give, if
we've lost our ability to reveal Christ to others as we LIVE for HIM, SUFFER for
HIM, MOURN for HIM, are POOR in SPIRIT for HIM, as we are REVILED and PERSECUTED
for HIM, then we are as pointless as salt that adds NOTHING to the things being
salted.
Our lives are to
be revelations of CHRIST to the world.
Not just an hour
a week part of us, not just a daily blog, not just a single day set aside, not
just being good in many ways, not just about giving to the poor, helping the
needy, or even reading God's word. Our ENTIRE lives are to be revelations of
CHRIST.
If we are
revealing Christ in our lives to others we are not Christ's. We can pretend to
be Christ's, we can imagine ourselves as being His as we willfully sin over and
over without any true repentance, but that's all it is- pretend.
Salt of the
earth.
If you heard that
saying in a movie, one person telling another they're the salt of the earth,
what would you imagine it meant? That they were a good person, a worthy person,
down to earth, reliable.
Our Savior wants
us to learn that being the salt of the earth with great savor, with something to
offer to those around us is a great thing. To be someone who has nothing to
offer others is not to be such a great thing at all.
The following
verses go hand in hand with the lesson being taught-
Mat 5:2 And he opened his mouth, and taught
them, saying…
Mat 5:14 Ye are the light of the world. A city
that is set on an hill cannot be hid.
Mat 5:15 Neither do men light a candle, and put
it under a bushel, but on a candlestick; and it giveth light unto all that are
in the house.
Mat 5:16 Let your light so shine before men,
that they may see your good works, and glorify your Father which is in heaven.
The light of the
world.
A city on a hill-
unable to be hidden.
A candle on a
candlestick- not hidden under a bush but lighting up all around it.
WE are these
things!
How are we these
things?!
We have to let
those around us SEE OUR GOOD WORKS-and know they are of GOD and glorify GOD.
Our lives are to
be spent as living witnesses of CHRIST, not as self-absorbed, self obsessed,
egotistical people.
If all our lives
do is reflect ourselves- there is NO GLORIFYING God in that, none.
He is to be GLORIFIED in us!
Others are to
KNOW that any good that comes from us in reality comes from our GOD, we are not
to take any glory for ourselves. We won't want to as we realize without our GOD
we have nothing, we are nothing!
God is all
things!
Those suffering
can glorify God because they KNOW their suffering is for a purpose most likely
far beyond their ability to comprehend, yet they TRUST in GOD, knowing HE is in
CONTROL of ALL THINGS! The ETERNITY offered with HIM is the prize, the working
towards that prize is all the pain and suffering, all the abuse we suffer here
and now. Only comprehending this do we find a reason for life being what it is.
Only in this comprehension can we find real HOPE.
This existence is
NOT all there is for us and this is the message our Savior came to bring to the
world. There is HOPE of existing with HIM in heaven, in a new earth!
Our HOPE is
CHRIST and this is the HOPE we must share with the world!
Our good works
are the works that come from HIS lessons! Our good works are works that point to
HIM!
By HIS grace and love, by HIS mercy and forgiveness, by HIS amazing
existence we can have HOPE!
There is SO MUCH
MORE THAN LIFE AS WE KNOW IT TO BE!
We are living the
life of a caterpillar, slinking about on our bellies on short little legs right
now but we have the HOPE of becoming butterflies, God's butterflies! He will
transform us. We live untransformed here and now and we enter the cocoon of
death's sleep and by GOD'S GRACE we will be awakened by HIM when He returns and
transformed into new beings we will fly to meet Him in the air and EVER BE WITH
HIM!
Right now our
lives might be great big messes in the worldly sense, but by faith in our God
they can still be revelations for others of GOD'S LOVE, our lives can glorify
GOD.
them, saying…
Mat 5:13 Ye are the salt of the earth: but 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 you USE
salt if it had no flavor to it?
What would be the
point in using salt in our food if it added nothing to the food. In and of
itself the salt isn't something we can eat very much of, but add it to our food
and it gives it amazing new flavors. It can take a very bland meal and make it
any thing but bland. Salt has amazing powers to transform the taste of the
foods we eat. A lot of chefs will tell you that people make the mistake of
using too little salt but that robs the food of it's potential flavor. Go to
restaurants where they have no trouble adding a lot of salt to their food and
people enjoy eating their immensely. They don't have to overly concern
themselves with the amount of salt they are getting, it's a special treat.
They're indulging themselves. Without the salt in most of our processed food,
we would not eat much of it. Time and again I've tried low salt soups and
inevitably there are complaints about it just not tasting good. Yes, it's
probably healthier not to eat so much salt, but even recently there was an
article in some magazine about how maybe, just maybe salt has been given a
really bad rap-undeservedly and it's not quite as bad for you as it's been made
to seem. Of course that's neither
here nor there, the fact remains that leave the salt out of your food and you
will know right away that something is missing.
So back to the
question- would you use salt if it had not flavor to it, if it added nothing to
your food?
No.
There would be no point. It would be like adding tasteless grit for
absolutely no reason. You would not
bother to add something to your food that brought no value to it. Every single
ingredient put into the various recipes you make has it's purpose.
Even if that purpose is to add color to a colorless meal, it has a
purpose.
Salt without it's ability to be salty would be useless just as
the dirt of the ground, you wouldn't eat the dirt.
WE ARE THE SALT OF
THE EARTH.
As the salt of
the earth we have something to give to others, something of great benefit. If we do NOT have anything to give, if
we've lost our ability to reveal Christ to others as we LIVE for HIM, SUFFER for
HIM, MOURN for HIM, are POOR in SPIRIT for HIM, as we are REVILED and PERSECUTED
for HIM, then we are as pointless as salt that adds NOTHING to the things being
salted.
Our lives are to
be revelations of CHRIST to the world.
Not just an hour
a week part of us, not just a daily blog, not just a single day set aside, not
just being good in many ways, not just about giving to the poor, helping the
needy, or even reading God's word. Our ENTIRE lives are to be revelations of
CHRIST.
If we are
revealing Christ in our lives to others we are not Christ's. We can pretend to
be Christ's, we can imagine ourselves as being His as we willfully sin over and
over without any true repentance, but that's all it is- pretend.
Salt of the
earth.
If you heard that
saying in a movie, one person telling another they're the salt of the earth,
what would you imagine it meant? That they were a good person, a worthy person,
down to earth, reliable.
Our Savior wants
us to learn that being the salt of the earth with great savor, with something to
offer to those around us is a great thing. To be someone who has nothing to
offer others is not to be such a great thing at all.
The following
verses go hand in hand with the lesson being taught-
Mat 5:2 And he opened his mouth, and taught
them, saying…
Mat 5:14 Ye are the light of the world. A city
that is set on an hill cannot be hid.
Mat 5:15 Neither do men light a candle, and put
it under a bushel, but on a candlestick; and it giveth light unto all that are
in the house.
Mat 5:16 Let your light so shine before men,
that they may see your good works, and glorify your Father which is in heaven.
The light of the
world.
A city on a hill-
unable to be hidden.
A candle on a
candlestick- not hidden under a bush but lighting up all around it.
WE are these
things!
How are we these
things?!
We have to let
those around us SEE OUR GOOD WORKS-and know they are of GOD and glorify GOD.
Our lives are to
be spent as living witnesses of CHRIST, not as self-absorbed, self obsessed,
egotistical people.
If all our lives
do is reflect ourselves- there is NO GLORIFYING God in that, none.
He is to be GLORIFIED in us!
Others are to
KNOW that any good that comes from us in reality comes from our GOD, we are not
to take any glory for ourselves. We won't want to as we realize without our GOD
we have nothing, we are nothing!
God is all
things!
Those suffering
can glorify God because they KNOW their suffering is for a purpose most likely
far beyond their ability to comprehend, yet they TRUST in GOD, knowing HE is in
CONTROL of ALL THINGS! The ETERNITY offered with HIM is the prize, the working
towards that prize is all the pain and suffering, all the abuse we suffer here
and now. Only comprehending this do we find a reason for life being what it is.
Only in this comprehension can we find real HOPE.
This existence is
NOT all there is for us and this is the message our Savior came to bring to the
world. There is HOPE of existing with HIM in heaven, in a new earth!
Our HOPE is
CHRIST and this is the HOPE we must share with the world!
Our good works
are the works that come from HIS lessons! Our good works are works that point to
HIM!
By HIS grace and love, by HIS mercy and forgiveness, by HIS amazing
existence we can have HOPE!
There is SO MUCH
MORE THAN LIFE AS WE KNOW IT TO BE!
We are living the
life of a caterpillar, slinking about on our bellies on short little legs right
now but we have the HOPE of becoming butterflies, God's butterflies! He will
transform us. We live untransformed here and now and we enter the cocoon of
death's sleep and by GOD'S GRACE we will be awakened by HIM when He returns and
transformed into new beings we will fly to meet Him in the air and EVER BE WITH
HIM!
Right now our
lives might be great big messes in the worldly sense, but by faith in our God
they can still be revelations for others of GOD'S LOVE, our lives can glorify
GOD.