Could You Please Pass the Salt?

"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." (Matthew 5:13)

This is not a new scripture to many of us.  It is often quoted, reminding us that, as Christians, we have a responsibility to the rest of the world.  Let's take a look at the properties of salt.

*Salt is a mineral used as a flavoring in our foods.  It is a primary ingredient for many dishes. It enhances the taste and texture.  It is a staple to most dining tables and a common element of daily life.

*Salt is an asset in preservation.  In the days before refrigeration, meats had to be coated and rubbed with salt in order to keep the meat from spoiling.  This layer of salt prevented the growth of bacteria and slowed the oxidation process, allowing the meat to stay fresh for a much longer period of time.

*Salt is also a stimulant.  Salty foods cause an increase in our already salty blood.  The body's natural response is to send the signal for more water intake (we call this thirst), thereby diluting the extra salt in our bloodstream.

I can't help drawing the parallels this scripture is making.  I know we all get the basic understanding that "I'm supposed to spice things up among non-believers the way salt spices up my baked potato."  But there is so much more!  Yes, we are the flavor of the fallen world.  We add something special to the mix.  We are meant for a purpose and valued among the norms of life.  However, Matthew 5:13 not only tells us that we are to add flavor (or value) to our world, but that we can run the risk of losing our "savor...thenceforth good for nothing."  (My study Bible indicates that the Dead Sea - where much of the salt originated during Biblical times - is full of impurities, resulting in the salt of that day being less flavorful.)  That is to say that, as a Christian, with a responsibility of being Jesus to those around us, we can become tasteless, without value, unnecessary and having a wasted effort in our attempts of living a life of testimony.  We could become useless and be "trodden under foot."  I'd say there is a warning in here against becoming stale.

The preservative aspects of salt are intriguing.  Just as salt is meant to keep meat from turning rancid, so are we to stave off negativity, unholiness, and evil around us.  This is not just for ourselves and our loved ones, but for the non-believer or the stranger we encounter as well.  Salt was not disbursed among only the filet mignon - it preserved the sirloin, the roast, the chuck and the ground beef as well.  Salt keeps the bacteria from all the meat; so are we to preserve all that with which we have contact.

My most favorite principle of salt intake is that of stimulation.  There are those who have salty cravings and can attest to the thirst that quickly follows.  As mentioned above, this is designed so that the body can return the body's salt count to balance.  But in the spiritual realm, this attribute is amazing:  As we, the salt of the earth, enter into relationships with those around us, they see Christ in us.  They are drawn to us, by the power of the Holy Spirit, seeking what they do not yet have.  They are thirsty!  As they are exposed to more 'salt,' they crave the Living Water that Jesus fulfills:  "If anyone thirsts, let him come to Me and drink" (John 7:37).  "Whoever drinks of this water will thirst again, but whoever drinks of the water that I shall give him will never thirst...will be in him a fountain of water springing up into everlasting life" (John 4:13-14).  We stimulate people to long for Jesus, to cry out to God in humbleness and seek forgiveness!  What an awesome blessing we have been given.

Christ's choice to compare us to salt is by no means coincidental.  Remember, salt is a mineral found largely in rocks (think Rock of Ages from Isaiah 26:4) and the Dead Sea (another water reference for the stimulation property).  He carefully chose salt for it's properties and His desire to see those properties emulated in us.  I would also like to point out that salt is a solute mineral.  This means that it dissolves in liquid.  This principle is also found in scripture:  that we are in the world, while still not being of the world (made new in Christ).  As the salt of the earth, we co-mingle, we stand beside, we live with and among non-believers in our homes, our jobs, our communities.  We are dissolved into the environment in which we live - looking the same and participating in the same things.  But just as you drink from a glass of salt water and immediately know that it is not plain water, so are we to be distinguished among the plain.  We are to behave differently, speak differently, respond differently, even while maintaining many similarities with the non-believer.  It is the Christian value that we add to our relationships that will make the difference in the lives of those around us.

In the time of low-sodium and high blood pressure, we often forget the benefits of this little white granule. Salt is necessary for life - and in the eyes of the Father - salt is beneficial to the preservation of the lost.  I want to be stimulating and flavorful to those around me, not stale and worthless, to be thrown out with the leftovers. 

Today I encourage you to remember that you are salt!  Add it to the lives of those around you!  Don't conform to the world and lose your flavor; maintain your uniqueness and enhance the experience of life as you've been intended.  There are people in your circle who are needing the spice of Life, who are parched and thirsty for the Living Waters of Christ.  You may be the only seasoning they are exposed to.  Use your time with them wisely.  And by all means, don't become stale or you've lost your entire purpose.