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The Salt of the Earth

Scripture Passage: 
Matthew 5:13; Mark 9:50
  • Matthew 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.
  • Mark 9:50 Salt is good: but if the salt have lost his saltness, wherewith will ye season it? Have salt in yourselves, and have peace one with another.

INTRODUCTION: Salt is necessary for life, but too much salt kills. Jesus used salt as a picture of how a small minority in the world accomplishes a great deal of good and what happens when that salt loses its saltiness.

  1. THE IDENTITY OF THE SALT
    1. Initially the Nation of Israel
      1. Genesis 18:18 Seeing that Abraham shall surely become a great and mighty nation, and all the nations of the earth shall be blessed in him?
    2. By Application the People of God
      1. 2 Thessalonians 2:7 For the mystery of iniquity doth already work: only he who now letteth will let, until he be taken out of the way. –possibly a reference to the body of Christ.
  2. THE BENEFIT OF THE SALT
    1. To Preserve – to save from destruction
      1. Genesis 18:23 And Abraham drew near, and said, Wilt thou also destroy the righteous with the wicked?
    2. To Heal – to restore to health; God may bless a government or a business or institution for the sake of a few believers in it.
      1. Genesis 30:27 And Laban said unto him, I pray thee, if I have found favour in thine eyes, tarry: for I have learned by experience that the LORD hath blessed me for thy sake.
    3. To Please – to make pleasing to the taste
      1. God’s people, as the salt of the earth, enable God to be able to receive the world for now without destroying it.
      2. The meat offering was seasoned with salt; as a picture of the life lived for God, it still needed the salt to be fully acceptable to Him.
        1. Leviticus 2:13 And every oblation of thy meat offering shalt thou season with salt; neither shalt thou suffer the salt of the covenant of thy God to be lacking from thy meat offering: with all thine offerings thou shalt offer salt.
      3. Our speech needs to be seasoned as with salt in order to be pleasing to those who hear it.
        1. Colossians 4:6 Let your speech be alway with grace, seasoned with salt, that ye may know how ye ought to answer every man.
  3. THE CHARACTER OF THE SALT
    1. Losing its Savor – losing its pleasing taste
    2. Losing its Saltness – losing the very thing that makes it salt
      1. Consider Christians who no longer act like Christians
      2. The saltiness that makes them salt has disappeared
  4. THE VALUE OF THE BLAND SALT
    1. The Seasoning Needs to be Seasoned; now the salt needs to be salted
    2. Good for Nothing; now the salt is good for nothing
      1. To be cast out
      2. To be trodden under foot
  5. THE CHALLENGE TO THE SALT
    1. Have Salt in Yourselves – individually
    2. Have Peace One with Another – collectively

CONCLUSION: Your influence in this world may be greater than you think. However, make sure that you do not lose your saltiness.

David Reagan
Daily Proverb

Proverbs 25:9

Debate thy cause with thy neighbour himself; and discover not a secret to another:
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