Sermon Central
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"Pass The Salt, Please"
Contributed by Pastor Dre on Apr 19, 2014 (message contributor)
Summary: Here is a message encouraging us to be the Salt of the Earth...
"Pass the salt, Please"
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.
Ye are the light of the world. A city that is set on an hill cannot be hid.
YOU ARE THE SALT OF THE EARTH.
Jesus refers to the disciples as being the salt of the earth and in the next scripture after that, He refers to the disciples as the light of the world.
Why would Jesus refer to the disciples as being the salt of the earth.
Well salt can be used for many different things. So it is with light, light can also be used for many different things.
Tonight I would like to hit on a few ways that salt can be used and how it can be applied to our lives.
Tell your neighbor "Pass the salt, Please." Gee die sout asseblief
Why would Jesus tell His Disciples - You are the salt of the earth?
The word “salary” was derived from the word “salt.”
Salt was highly valued and its production was legally restricted in ancient times, so it was historically used as a method of trade and currency.
The word “salad” also originated from “salt,” and began with the early Romans salting their leafy greens and vegetables.
Undeniably, the history of salt is both broad ranging and unique, leaving its indelible mark in cultures across the globe.
In the days of Jesus salt was a very precious commodity.
There was a reason Jesus told His Disciples you are the salt of the earth.
It wasn't that Jesus just said the first thing that came to His mind.
Did you know that the word Salary is derived from the Latin word, sal, which means salt.
Back in the day some people were paid 'wages' in salt, as opposed to money.
Have you ever heard the saying " Worth his salt."
Roman soldiers were sometimes paid with salt, giving rise to the phrase "worth his salt."
Being that Roman soldiers were paid using salt, and they (unlike many other soldiers) were regularly paid, so salary is a term for a regular payment for services to an employer.
So with that in mind lets look at some ways that was used back in the day and lets take a look at how you and I can be salt of the earth.
1. The primary use was as a preservative.
Salt was very much prized within the Roman Empire, it could be used to preserve food, which was very important for an Empire which stretched almost halfway across the world.
In addition, the preservative quality of salt is in view here to show how the disciples were called to preserve the society and the world around them from moral decay
a. see back in those days they did not have refrigerators like you and I do. So salt was used as a preservative.
b. When meat is butchered it will soon begin to putrefy or rot because of the surface bacteria, but what Salt does is kills the bacteria and prevents a rapid putrification.
So when Jesus referred to disciples as being salt of the earth - He was probably thinking of the great opportunity that you and I have to be a blessing to a dying and hurting world.
To be a preservative in a world that is decaying and rotting.
An opportunity for you and I to live a life that brings hope to a world that is decaying and falling apart.
As salt of the earth, you and I have an opportunity to be living testimonies of the life changing power of Jesus Christ, in a world that is looking for answers.
And we are able to bring the good news and say if God did it for me he can surely do it for you, there is an answer for your situation.
There are many places and oppportunities that you and I can be the salt of the earth and be used as a preservative.
We can be used to prevent decay at our:
1) At our Jobs
2) In our schools
3) At our family gatherings
4) At the shopping mall
5) In whatever atmosphere we find ourself in.
You and I can be a perservative to a hurting world whereever we go.
2. The second use of salt was for flavoring. Bringing out or enhancing the flavor of food.
The second thing about salt is that it adds flavor to that which it comes into contact with.
a. Have you ever tried eating potatoes without salt? They taste completely different.
b. Have you ever eaten some hot chips without salt?
