Sermon Central
-
We're The Salt Of The Earth
Contributed by John Daniel Johnson on Sep 30, 2018 (message contributor)
Summary: Christ declared that we are the salt of the earth. Not that we might be or could be, but are the salt of the earth. It is time for true disciples to finally become it!
Online Recorded Message Can Be Found at www.mountzionfamily.com
“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.
“Salt is good; but if the salt has lost its flavor, how shall it be seasoned? 35It is neither fit for the land nor for the dunghill, but men throw it out. He who has ears to hear, let him hear!”
Walk in wisdom toward those who are outside, redeeming the time. 6Let your speech always be with grace, seasoned with salt, that you may know how you ought to answer each one.
Out of the same mouth proceed blessing and cursing. My brethren, these things ought not to be so. 11Does a spring send forth fresh water and bitter from the same opening? 12Can a fig tree, my brethren, bear olives, or a grapevine bear figs? Thus no spring yields both salt water and fresh.
Ideah Illustrations
— You have had the experience, I’m sure, your dinner is set before you and you take that first delicious bite, only to discover that the cook left out the salt.
—Perhaps you’ve been a patient in the hospital and the Dr. ordered a salt-free diet.
—“Can flavorless food be eaten without salt? Or is there any taste in the white of an egg? My soul refuses to touch them; They are as loathsome food to me.” (Job 6:6-7)
A) Salt is such a little thing, such a common thing, that we take it for granted.
* When’s its left out, you can really tell the difference.
B) Salt has always been a valuable commodity.
1. Wars have been fought over salt. Even as recent as the Civil War (the Battle of Saltville, in Smyth County, VA – The Union destroys the salt mine
productions to cripple the supply provisions for the Confederate troops)
2. During Roman times, salt was paid to the soldiers. That is where our English word “salary comes from. We’ve often heard the term, “Not worth his
salt.”
C) Jesus looked at His disciples one day and said, "Ye are the salt of the earth."
* What did Jesus mean when He made that statement? *
Truth
Being salt is not optional. Jesus did not say you can be...or you have the potential to be...He said you are. Everyone who has trusted Christ for salvation and is born again is the salt of the earth.
The Savors of Salt
1. SALT STOPS THE DECAY
a. In other words, Christians are to the world what salt is to food!
b. People in Bible times didn’t have refrigeration as we do today,
c. So they seasoned their meat with salt to keep it from decaying!
d. When Jesus said, "You are the salt of the earth", He meant that all of His disciples were to serve as preservatives, stopping the moral decay in our
sin infected world.
2. SALT ADDS A LITTLE FLAVOR TO THE PLAIN
3. SALT DESTROYS THAT WHICH ATTACKS US
a. Speaking of God's love for Jerusalem, Ezekiel 16:4 states, “As for your nativity, on the day you were born your navel cord was not cut, nor were you
washed in water to cleanse you; you were not rubbed with salt nor wrapped in swaddling cloths.”
b. Newborns were rubbed with salt because:
1) It strengthened the baby’s skin
2) Jews believed that salt kept off demons, so babies were rubbed with it.
4. SALT GIVES THE BODY BALANCE
a. Improves sleep, balances electrolytes, prevents cramping, supports nervous system.
5. SALT HELPS YOU BREATH BETTER
a. Salt therapy helps with with COPD and asthma. It opens up the lungs causing one to breath better.
b. We as the salt are to create at atmosphere where people can be in the presence of the Holy Spirit (Breath of God).
6. SALT EXCRETES EXCESS ACIDITY FROM US
7. SALT PROVIDES TRACTION
8. SALT MELTS THE ICE AWAY
9. SALT CREATES A THIRST INSIDE
10. SALT PROMOTES GROWTH
a. This verse could just as well read, “You are the fertilizer of the soil,” which feels different and earthier than the more familiar translation about salt.
b. Many plant woes can be helped along with some Epsom salt, and many fertilizers you can purchase contain salts that promote plant growth.
c. We are the salt of the earth – the fertilizer of the soil – called to invest ourselves in this world and in the people around us so that others can grow
and flourish.
