Be the Salt of the Earth | Matthew 5:13 Devotional

“You are the salt of the earth.” —MATTHEW 5:13

Jesus said to His disciples, “You are the salt of the earth.” As several were fishermen, they would have been extremely familiar with the use of salt as a preservative. Without packing the fish in salt, it would perish. When the Bible speaks of perishing it is not speaking of a future state, but a current condition. Perishing is a process, and there is only one alternative to the state of perishing, and that is to replace it with another process, which is that of ‘eternal life’.

In 1 Corinthians 1:18, Paul writes, “For the message of the cross is foolishness to those who are perishing.” In 2 Corinthians 4:3, he says, “And even if our gospel is veiled, it is veiled to those who are perishing.” Paul is writing in the present tense and speaks about a process taking place in those outside of Christ, but Christ gives us the alternative. “For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life” (John 3:16). He also says, “I give them eternal life, and they shall never perish; no one shall snatch them out of my hand” (John 10:28).

It is the inception of eternal life that halts and replaces the process of perishing. God’s strategy is that the presence of His people be His means of activating the process of ‘eternal life’ by introducing Christ to others. It is as ‘salt of the earth’ God portrays His purity through people. The purity of Jesus did not condemn the sinner, but made Him attractive to the sinner. One of the remarkable features of Jesus’ life is that those considered to be in the gutters of society; the tax collectors, prostitutes and outcasts felt attracted by His company. Genuine purity does not so much expose impurities, as it raises people’s sights and stimulates them to seek that which is righteous. 

Salt also adds to the taste and creates a thirst. It draws out distinctive flavour, and it is the Christian with a sense of joy and vitality, who brings flavour to life in benefit to others. It is not only what we say that points people to Christ, but the quality of life we have found and enjoy that creates in others a thirst for God. 

The essential quality of salt is the difference it brings to the environment in which it is placed. It brings purity into decay, flavour to life and creates a thirst in others to know God. It is to display the righteousness of God, with its source in the Holy Spirit that we are called to be ‘salt of the earth’.

Dear Precious Lord, thank you for halting the state of perishing in my life, and giving me eternal life with You. I pray that for everyone, Lord. 

How does my life reflect being ‘salt of the earth’ to those around me?