The Power of Influence, and Salt

The Power of Influence, and Salt.  Matthew 5.13

Can’t really say why for sure, but my mom and dad were really big on salt …. and pepper! No kidding, they put both on watermelon, cantaloupe, and just about everything else. Now we all know that salt is a flavor enhancer, but when Jesus made his emphatic statement to the disciples that afternoon as part of the Sermon on the Mount, I think he had far more than that in mind - You are the salt of the earth.

First of all, we note that this verse followed the Beatitudes, or as some have called them, the Beautiful Attitudes, which seem to set up Jesus’ emphatic statement to his disciples: You are the salt of the earth.

Jesus made this declaratory statement, along with several other ‘You are___’ statements in his ministry. Who better to tell us who we are than Jesus! [Did you read the last briefing--‘You’re Somebody!’? www.pastorwoman.com?] Following his last ‘Blessed are you when…’ Jesus says, You are the salt of the earth. Jesus was likening the value of salt to that of his true followers. So, in first century Palestine when Jesus spoke—what was the value of salt, and what was its utility?

Salt was used
~as a preservative
~as flavoring
~to tan leather hides
~to produce parchments, especially for important documents
~as a fertilizer
~and also as a soil fertility inhibitor1

Note to self: Salt never comes out as a single grain; it is only valuable when it comes out of the shaker in combination with many other grains of salt. Hmmm.

In essence, our Lord is saying that the Christian who lives according to the Beatitudes is going to INFLUENCE the world. Our character and conduct—whether we are conscious of it or not--influences other people.2 “No human being can come into this world without increasing or diminishing the sum total of human happiness … There is no sequestered spot in the universe, no dark niche along the disc of nonexistence to which he can retreat from his relations to others, where he can withdraw the influence of his existence upon the moral destiny of the world. He will have companions who will be better or worse because of him…we are forming characters for eternity.”3 Wow.

So, what is the power of your influence?
If you were plucked from the earth today, what kind of a space would you vacate? Would you leave a hole? When you have been with a group of people, what do they think and say once you have departed?

Jesus’ statement was a declaration, You are the salt of the earth, and the question remains, ‘what kind of salt are we?’ I mean, people know you are a Christian, or you attend Bible study, or church, how do they read you? Do they see you as a loving person? Do they find you to be kind and compassionate? Do they find your life a compelling reason to look into Jesus, and his story? Do you make the conversation more interesting by being part of it? Oh, I pray so!

Jesus finishes the thought with, ‘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 underfoot.’ When we lose our saltiness—that for which we are meant—we lack much, if any, value.

But the reality is, Christian, we have much to add; as followers of Jesus, we have a story to tell… we have the keys to the kingdom, the emancipation proclamation, and the way to the abundant life4!

Christine Todd DiGiacomo

PastorWoman.com

1 – “The Sermon on the Mount Site: Notes for Matthew 5.13, www.sermononthemount.org.uk.
2 – “You are the Salt of the Earth,” gty.org
3 – Elihu Burritt, American diplomat, social activist, diplomat
4 – John 10.10