Matthew 5:13 - CHRISTIAN INFLUENCE #1 - You are the Salt of the Earth

Here is a question.  Do you believe that our lives can make or should make a difference in this world? 

We have previously  considered  Matthew  5:3 - 12 (The Beatitudes)  in which our Lord Jesus teaches  us   concerning the essential  (and very counter cultural) character  of  a  Christian. The salt and light metaphors which now follow in 5:13-16 indicate that our lives should be an influence for good in this world.

A word about our context is in order. The opening verses  of  this Sermon on the Mount (Chapters 5-7)known as the “Beatitudes“ (5:1-12) are  seminal, for here the Lord Jesus  teaches us concerning the essential marks of  Christian character. So, you say you are converted? You say that you have repented of your sin and turned to Christ?  So, how do I know, how does anyone else know that you and I are a Christian?  What are the essential marks? Who are those that are truly considered blessed by God? Jesus taught the following (5:2):

• A Christian knows  their own poverty before God and therefore their need of Him (5:3). 
• A true Christian mourns because of the sin that is in the world (5:4).
• Because of this  a Christian is a meek person (5:5). 
• A Christian hungers and thirsts after righteousness – the righteousness of God (5:6). 
• A Christian is merciful (5:7). 
• A Christian longs for purity in heart –for godly holiness (5:8). 
• A  Christian is not a troublemaker,  but a   peacemaker (5:9), 
• ...and yet paradoxically  because of their Christ-like attitude  they are often  persecuted for righteousness sake (5:10-11).

These are the typical actions and attitudes of the true Christian. They are not known primarily by their words, but by their fruit (Matt. 7:20).

And now, following the Beatitudes, Jesus proceeds to show us how a Christian life ought to affect or influence our surroundings. I am answering my question:  Do you believe that our lives can make a difference? ABOLUTELY YES!  In order to illustrate this influence Jesus  makes use of two metaphors: Salt and Light!

There is much to say about these two metaphors  and therefore I will divide this subject into two sermons.  Today  we shall simply consider the first metaphor, SALT  in 5:13 : “You are the salt of the earth, but if the salt loses its saltiness, how can it be made salty again?  It is no longer good for anything, except to be thrown out and trampled by men. “

3 Observations from this text…

 

1.                  The Christian life is meant to be lived out and expressed in this earth (world).

2.                  The effects of living the Christian life are comparable to the effect that salt has on its environment.

3.                  ‘Salt-less’ Christians are contradictions in terms and useless for God’s kingdom purposes.

1.         The Christian life is meant to be lived and expressed in the earth

The context of our Christian life, lived out in the spirit of the beatitudes (5:3-12), is this   earth, this world.  This is the world into which we are born into, and this is the world in which the Spirit of God causes a Christian to be born again. In this world a Christian is called to live out their   faith.  The Christian shares a common humanity with all the people of this  world, but through the new birth, and by the sanctifying power and work of the Holy Spirit the Christian has received power and desires to think and act  differently to the norms of this world. The contrary nature of their thinking and acting has already been explained in 5:2-12. In this world, Christians must be nurtured and raised to the glory of God. What a challenge! 

When you become a Christian, God does not transport you to another planet. Neither does He place you into a protected environment. Christians are not given separate cities to live in. They are not given a Christian country for themselves. Christians are called to live by God’s power and standards, and they must often  do this  living in the midst of ungodly, atheistic, agnostic  and idolatrous societies. 

It appears to be a strange paradox by which the Christian must live in this world. The Christian is told that he must live in this world, and yet he is not of this world. He is ultimately not a citizen of this world. Jesus, in His High priestly prayer (Jn. 17) prays to the Father concerning His disciples, says on the one hand, "They are not of the world, even as I am not of it" (Jn.17:16) and yet He prays: "...take them not out of the world, but protect them from the evil one." (Jn.17:15)

Biblical logic  is  very counter-cultural and very unusual.  What lasting influence can the poor, the mourning, the meek, the merciful, the pure, the peacemaker have in this world?  Will they not simply be trodden upon or persecuted, as indicated 5: 11-12? How will they survive in an aggressive, self- centred world, where things can seemingly only get done through  assertiveness, brutality and selfishness? 

It is evident, that Jesus does not share my scepticism. He tells His disciples that they are to be "salt and light" in this world despite the fact that it may not go well with them. So, how can Christians, with such, humanly speaking  weak influences exert a powerful influence in  this world? In this text we have an answer to this question.      

 2. Salt has an  Effect  on its Environment.

"You are the SALT of the earth".  Here Jesus says two things. Firstly, He describes  the effect that living a Christian life  has on this world. Secondly, He also tells us something by implication what the world is like.

Jesus uses  the salt metaphor  to  describe  Christian influence. When Christians live   in the spirit of  5:3-12 they  act  like salt.  We know that salt is a preservative. When used as a preservative it keeps food from rotting.   Christians are the preservatives of the earth. This implies that the earth without the presence and influence of Christians rots. 

Since the fall in Genesis 3 death and decay is  written into the DNA of this earth. Every living thing grows and dies.  We die. The wages of sin is death (Rom. 6:23).  Nothing lasts for ever.

The Bible teaches us that man is not naturally tended towards good. Leaving a child to grow up by itself will not make it better. Life needs a restorative power. That restorative  power  is provided by God through the gospel of  Jesus  Christ. But the gospel  of Jesus has been put into the hands  and mouths  of  Jesus’ redeemed people.  And so we can say that  Jesus’ people, the church of Jesus, has been given for the healing of the nations. The church stops the rot!  As the church  preaches the gospel, and  as people are saved  through the  life –giving Word of God,  and as  the Holy Spirit  opens ears, eyes and hearts so people  are plucked out of the fire and they  are now  justified  before God by grace through faith. They have eternal life. But that is not all. Now they must be discipled.  That is the process of sanctification.  They must grow out of their sin and out of the rot,  and  they must grow up into Christlikeness. Men and women   learn to put off the rot by  being  godly men and women , better husbands and wives, leaving their respective societies in a better shape than they find them. The church, that is the sum-total of all  Christians,  must  do the preaching that leads  sinful men  and women away  from  damnation  to justification, and the church  must also  do the preaching that leads to sanctification.  The great work of the church is to worship and to work.  Working  for Christians  means, acting like salt. 

From worship on Sunday we go into the week meeting, praying for, encouraging, helping  broken sinners -  broken by personal sin  and broken  by being sinned against.   Daily Christians go to work , working against  the strong satanic  tide of destruction, bringing  the salt of Christ’s gospel  into every situation.  We leave people in a better shape than we find them. In this way we see that  Christian people are the salt - the preserving agent of society.

The encouraging fact is that  a relatively small amount of salt makes a huge difference to the preservation  of meat.  A small church   filled with true disciples of Jesus, with the heart of a Christian described in  5:3-12,  can have an amazing influence  upon their society. Christians do not have to be a majority in order to control their ever decaying  society.

Christians that are truly salt  i.e. “that have salt in themselves” (Mk. 9:50)  can make a huge difference, even  though they are in the minority.  Simply think of the influence which a Christian has when they enter into a room in which people are blaspheming and   gossiping.  Their presence has an immediate effect. The Christian does not say a word, but   people begin to modify their language. He is acting like salt; she is controlling their decadent language.  In the same way, a honest God fearing Christian begets an ethical work environment. A holy pastor begets holy church members. 

From this perspective it would also be unimaginable to think what would happen if you took Christians out of this world. The world would bite and devour one another without the influences of the men and women of the statue found in 5:3-12.  Imagine there was no one mourning over sin, no one having mercy and no peacemakers. If you take Christians out of the world, it is just as good as saying that you take God out of the world, for Christians are the means through which God acts as salt.

The stress is also on the individual – on you to be salt. All too often we hide behind an organization, without having salt in ourselves. We can see  this  chronic ineffectiveness in these large humanitarian organizations managed by  people that do a job but they have no  motivation to be there,  except to get their salary at the end of the  month. And then  take an exceptional  man  like  George Mueller of Bristol  who in his life time  led an orphanage which  cared for, clothed,  fed and educated  over 10 000 orphans. Think of a man like  C.H. Spurgeon whose church had 66 societies (including an orphanage)  for the biblical upliftment of humanity

3. ‘Salt-less’ Christians are useless for  kingdom purposes

Finally, Jesus speaks about ‘salt-less salt’.  This is really a contradiction in terms. It is unimaginable for salt not to be salty. And that is precisely the point here. Salt-less salt is useless. Jesus uses this terminology to describe the paradox of a Christianity that has no effects upon its society. It is useless.  He uses  very strong language,  “ It is no longer good for anything, except to be thrown out and trampled by men …”  

This is  the same as  what Jesus  says in  Matt 25:30: “Throw that worthless servant outside into the darkness where there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth…”.  

Salt-less Christians are like fruitless trees. They are   a contradiction in terms. Therefore such will not be found in heaven. This is no idle threat. This is a warning!  Jesus is not interested in you being a mere member of your Church. Dead branches are also attached to a vine and they will be cut off.  The question is this.  Are you a productive, preserving agent working together  with the "Eastside   Baptist  Church Saltworks" for the  preservation of our  corrupt society ? Are you exercising a healing ministry in this rotten world?

Don’t hide  behind the church, and say: "I'm a member of such and such a church, and my pastor says...". NO! “Have salt in yourselves!”  (Mk. 9:50) Stop the rot!  All the acts of parliament will not stop the rot. Newspaper articles will not arrest the decay. Obedient Christians – Christians in keeping with  5:3-12 will! This and nothing less will preserve our society from decay, for this is God’s plan for the church.   Be salt!