[This sermon is one of a series entitled "Sermon on the Mount, Concentrating on the Beatitudes," which is being preached on Sunday mornings by Pastor Tim Senter.]
Last week we opened to Matthew 5:11-12 and discussed persecution of a very personal nature. We talked about persecution that we feel as Christians more commonly than any other prosecutorial activity precipitated by the world at large. This is the verbal assault on the life, behaviors, ethics, principles, or activities of the believer. This is not the true inquisitive questioning of one believer’s life from an unbeliever, but the actual and intended disparagement, misrepresentation, and active discrimination against a believer. We noted that this activity is developed in a number of ways, most of which appear in the form of a passive and very sly discrediting or questioning. The tactics of Satan have not changed since the beginning, as he said to Eve, “you will not surely die.” This is akin to the believer being challenged with the implication that they are somehow ignorant of the complex issues of true life. Satan was partially right. Eve did not immediately die bodily; but her spiritual death, or separation from God was much more tragic and had much greater impact upon her and others. Eventually, her body would die (now with sin in it), but certainly not immediately after taking and eating the fruit. Once again, a little truth mixed with error presents slimy, tar-black, deeply-staining sin in a positive light. Christian, you are no fool. The fool is one who does not take the first step in wisdom – to fear and revere God. That is a fool’s game, and you in your testimony, I pray, regularly shine the light of Christ on the fool’s dim thoughts.
This brings us to our subject of today, which is that very salt and light that the Christian should be. Read with me Matthew 5:13. I should warn you, this is a very negative verse. There is not much positive to be seen here. Truly, this is a pinnacle passage concerning the testimony of a believer in Christ. How do we affect others in their view of Christ and Christianity? What Christian would want to be seen as some unsalty, unsavory, ineffectual believer? Truly, this is what the world desires for us, that we keep our faith private – they say faith is a personal issue. This is an old satanic ploy to keep others from hearing the gospel of Jesus. Is this how we are supposed to be in our faith – quiet, secluded, or unrecognizable? Let us together explore the Salt of the Earth in our passage today.
One of the first things we should look at concerning this passage is the very words chosen by the Holy Spirit. The first word “you” makes this a very personal, very close, very individualized thing. This is in the second person again– pointing specifically to you, Christian. Second, we find that the word translated “earth” is the actual word for earth, or land in the Greek. Among the wide-ranging types of minerals in the actual earth which grow plants and sustain life, salt is brought out as something unique and specific. Third, we should consider the words “lost his savour” in our King James. The Greek term associated with this indicates someone being foolish or acting foolishly. This act of foolishness has rendered the individual (in this case the one with distinctive difference to those around them) as flat, indifferent, and indistinguishable from those in their company. They are then contemporaries, akin to the contemporary Christian movements of today. Next, we look at the phrase “good for nothing,” which is actually derived from the words literally translated “he is not strong” or “he is not able.” This posits the concept that if you are not strong and capable, you are weak and ineffectual; there is no in-between. The last phrase tells of our worth to the Savior. If we are foolish and have no distinctive seasoning compared to all the others around us – you might as well be stamped back into the very ground from which you came.
On the shores of Lake Michigan there is an abundance of sand; but the things that are noticed are the wondrous finds such as beautiful shells, and shiny polished stones. These things of beauty, these rich finds among the billions upon billions of grains of sand are how the Christian should appear to the world. Like the deeply polished stone, gently cultivated by the lapping of waves of water, the Christian is to be something that is striking, different, unique. Through the gentle guidance of Christ and His Word, the Christian develops into a heavenly being wholly out of place in appearance and function from that which is around it. As the light reflects off the stone and catches the eye, so too the Christian is to reflect the light of Christ and capture the attention of all those around them.
As noted last week, this very attraction brings about persecution for the Christian. It is the Christian testimony, this salty savour, this difference, this seasoning that prepares the unsaved souls palate to receive the gospel provision that is forthcoming. The fact is that, “the strength that is Christian salt prepares the way for the gospel.” “Many consider this verse a continuation of verse 11 solely, and it is certainly tied to it, however this is a call to testify Christ.”
We will look at three things today. First, we will consider the salt itself. Many great orators have preached on this and I have no visions of being able to improve on their teaching. However, a review is certainly in order. Next, we will consider the actual strength or weakness of the salt itself. What is it that we should be wary of in losing our distinctiveness? Third, we will consider what being trampled under foot by men may entail. How does man trample the ineffectual Christian? Salt, weakness, and indifference are the three focuses of today. First, Salt.
I. Salt
You are the salt of the earth. This salt is presented when you offer to pray for others, when you act through pure selflessness and are truly helpful and kind. These actions season the world around you. Salt does not necessarily make things taste better. The function of salt as a mineral additive, as opposed to an herb seasoning, is wholly different. Salt, when introduced to our mouth helps the saliva glands excrete – it prepares our mouth to receive food. In this same way, the saltiness of the believer, prepares the unbeliever – gets their juices going so to speak. The unbeliever has two choices once they are put on alert to the presence of Christ. They either decide it is acceptable or unacceptable. When the decision concerning unacceptability is taken, we should default to verses 10 or 11, because it is coming. When the decision to accept the witness is taken, we are commanded to be ready with an answer for our faith. This is what happened to John Wesley on the trip over to America when the storm raged around them at sea, and everyone was fearful for their lives. Yet, the Moravians were quietly huddled together seeking their refuge in Christ, regardless of the outcome. Their calm and untroubled testimony in their ability to rest in the decisions and will of God struck Wesley deeply. He had no such comfort. His soul was deeply troubled because he did not know the Savior. This prepared Wesley’s heart for further testimony, and when he returned to England, he sought Moravians and their faith, found Christ, and became a great minister of God.
Salt itself is rather interesting. If you take pure hydrochloride and place it on your hand it will burn through in minutes. If you drink it, it will cause a very excruciatingly painful death in a few minutes. Add sodium to it, though, and it becomes table salt. This is much the same situation we have with the Lord and our lives. Without the Lord we are very volatile and acidic to anyone and everything around us. We hurt people, we damage ourselves such that we die in long and agonizing ways. We do this by taking drugs, smoking, drinking, or participating in any other unhealthy vices such as promiscuous sex, or thievery. Add the sodium of Christ to our hydrochloric life and you have a formula for the Christian that seasons the earth with the Spirit of God.
Another thing salt does is preserve. Spiritually we find this as a comparison in the testimony and effect of the Holy Spirit here on this earth. Let me explain by talking about salt pork, or beef, or any other meat that is preserved in salt for long periods. This used to be the way man preserved things on board ship for long journeys, or for extensive traveling over land, even over the summer months when natural cold weather would not keep the meat. Salt kept things from completely rotting. Salt was used when packing meat as a means of drawing out the blood from the meat in order to rid it of most of the bacteria (it is in the blood where the bacterium lies). Life is in the blood, this is true; however within our blood are the elements that make things decay. Just as salt stops meat from rotting, so too the Christian’s salty testimony keeps society somewhat in check.
Going back to some of our discussion last week we have to ask, why does conversation cease, or take a completely different tone when a Christian enters a room? Simply because that Christian has a salty flavor to their testimony. Their presence preserves purity. The Christian yearns for purity in the relationships and conversations in life. The testimony of the strong Christian then is such that the goodness of God is presented and relished in society, not the rotting death of evil. The strong flavor of Christianity keeps evil in check as long as it is here. Gradually our world falls deeper into chaos, but the reason it is not fully collapsed into satanic disorder is strong Christians around the globe. First Peter, chapter 2 tells us we are selected in our service as priests in our generation, to serve a holy nation and a peculiar people, and that we should show the praises of Him who has called us out of the darkness into His light.
We have talked much about evolution in the past months, and today we should mention it again. Martyn Lloyd-Jones noted in his sermon on this very verse that:
“It is indeed pathetic to read the prognostications of thinkers (so-called), the philosophers and poets and leaders, towards the end of the last century. How sad to note that easy, confident optimism of theirs, the things they expected from the twentieth century, the golden era that was to come, it was all based upon the theory of evolution not only in a biological sense, but also still more in a philosophical sense. The controlling idea was that the whole of life was advancing, developing and going upwards….Most of the problems were going to be solved, for man had at last really begun to think.”[1]
How equally true this statement is today. As we wrapped up the 21st century, we were told repeatedly that things of the past were not done in a way that they could succeed. We are told that real equality in society can be achieved now because we can negotiate our way to understanding. The so-called intellects of the day said that if we only reach out to the countries that are experiencing strife, give them equal footing economically and militarily, with equal weaponry, everyone will be prosperous, and safety will reign paramount for all because of a mutual interest in existence. These greatly intelligent sociologists know that we are all on this wonderful ship called earth, and we have learned now and are smart enough to implement the grand ideas of socialism and communism and utopianism in our world. People with doctorates that have studied many civilizations. Although they have never implemented or witnessed the success of what they believe and espouse, they know that we are much smarter and more learned and advanced now. They will tell you that the world is ready for utopia, and we are smart enough and capable of delivering it. We should note that this idea has been touted by many over the years, and immediately after the dreaming, intellectually-endowed are brave enough to speak in public, disaster strikes and the masses are foolish enough to follow. First there was WWI, then WWII to show man’s deep depravity. More recently, we have the terrorist attack on 9/11 to bring us back to reality. The fact is that man is evil to the core and most men are so set upon their own devices they will murder anyone to get what they want, and especially if they have power.
The Christian with their nose to the grindstone of truth and scripture knows the danger of such foolish thoughts. The Christian remains the steadfast reality check to these lost souls who seek some engineered utopia. The life of a Christian shines the light of truth on the false beliefs of societal utopia every day as they are treated with disdain, they are downplayed in their understanding when they tell the truth of man’s depravity, and they are proven right when they are attacked for Jesus and His truth. The Christian knows that man will fight to keep his pornographic fetishes, man will fight to have the right to watch the X-rated distortions of reality and degradation, man will fight to keep his sodomite mate. The Christian with salt shows this great depravity for what it is – evil and satanic sin.
There is much more to say concerning salt. In these last few lines, we have rather likened this salt to what it does to an open wound. The open wound is man’s depravity and when a Christian seasons the truth of this depravity, when they admittedly recognize theirs, and reveal it in others, the Christian pours salt on the open wound that is our dysfunctional society and sin. We should discuss the strength of this salt, or the weakness thereof.
II. Weakness
“But if the salt have lost his savour” is the statement in my scriptures. We should understand that this cannot be a reference to salt actually losing it’s function because scientifically that is not technically possible. The difference mentioned either develops from use where salt gathers the things to itself that cause decay (ie the blood from the meat when preserving it) or that it becomes so tainted with other contaminants and impurities that it is useless.
How many have quoted this verse, “but if the salt has lost its flavor”? This is a wholly misquoted phrase in many translations. The opening statement is, “You are the salt.” Christian, the salt is you, every one of you. The next statement cannot be so impersonal then; it must be you that is the focus of this discussion. This is just as it was addressed to all those present during this sermon in first century Palestine from the Mount. Jesus was ministering to the multitude (5:1). You, Christian, are who Jesus was addressing in that sermon that day, not some figurative bunch of salt. The literal translation of the phrase would be “he has power to no one…” or “he is strong to no one.” All translators place the ability in terms related to the referent – salt, therefore flavor. This makes sense; however making the salt impersonal is a mistake as it is a very personal issue. What about it Christian, have you lost your flavor, have you lost your saltiness? Are you seen as one who has no power, no strength? The point is, you are tasteless, flavorless, bland, weak, unpalatable, and unappetizing to the Lord when you have lost your testimony, when you are no longer salty, when your life does not speak of Christ to others. How can one restore this distinctiveness, this ability to pour over the rotting flesh that is humanity in this world and preserve it until the Lord returns? That is answered in the next statement – it cannot. This salt is then “good for nothing.” You must see that you are important in God’s plans. Your lives are of great value to Him and His will in His kingdom.
Yet, the people of the world have dull lives folks. They lose themselves in the bowels of entertainment and the excrement that comes from much of that community is not something the Christian should enjoy. Chris and I watch our share of movies, but we find so often we have to fast forward to get past places that just have no business in the movie. Man seeks this entertainment to an unusual and unnatural extent today. In an attempt to display how true this is I will give you some numbers. The Gross National Product of the United States ran about 14 trillion dollars last year. Of that about .04% was entertainment and Arts. Folks, that is about 60 billion dollars each year spent on entertainment alone. Videos, music CD’s, DVD movies, games, movies, and TV shows. By my estimate, which certainly has room for error, people are spending on average $16,000 a year on entertainment per person. All of these numbers are probably somewhat inaccurate, but they are not far off. Man is continually searching for something exciting in his life and he is not finding it here on earth. The extreme games and extreme sports movements are also examples of this. People regularly endanger themselves and their lives, pushing to the edge of death for a thrill. Man has to look other places for excitement, or live it through fictitious characters in movies or television shows. Life can be very boring and banal. Where the Christian falls into this type of a rut, it is a form of tastelessness that the salt of the earth has lost its flavor. The Christian who falls into this pattern of seeking all things of the world is just as the unbeliever; looking to the world of fantasy for excitement instead of the real world and God’s great works within it.
If we took Christianity out of this life, the world would be lukewarm everywhere. It is Christianity that is attacked regularly in public, not Islam, or Mormonism, or Catholicism. Christians are seen as the dangerous people who see right and wrong, can identify right and wrong, and are brave enough to live a life of right while shunning wrong. The Christian testimony in the real world makes the world an exciting place in which to exist – if the Christian maintains a testimony that sets at stark contrast the things of the world. There is an old saying that goes something like, if it walks like a duck, quacks like a duck, looks like a duck, has feathers like a duck, then it is probably a duck. For the Christian, if they walk like the world, sound like the world, look like the world, act like the world, and then they are worldly and have lost this saltiness.
Christian, is your appearance indistinguishable from the world? There are times when this is understandable. We are not going to dress in suit and tie to do wood work. Nevertheless, in public where there is opportunity to honor the Lord do you make it a point to do so with your dress? Do you ladies consider how you will appear to others – Christlike or just another person? My wife is always concerned about where we go whether or not she should put a skirt on, or just wear jeans or capris. There are times when those things are appropriate. Do you dress to fit in, or do you dress to honor the Lord – that is the question. It is a method of testimony and your testimony can be weakened when you do not consider these things priority.
Some would say that our testimony should never invade our politics, or that politics are not necessarily part of our testimony. Some believe that because of the falsely touted “separation of church and state,” which does not mean establishing an atheistic society, but that your religious beliefs should not affect your politics. I say if a person does not live their belief in all facets of their lives, they do not truly believe. Folks, we are never going to amass a group with enough influence to have our own political party. Even the party we most closely identify with is quite unstable, and has some very duplicitous individuals in leadership positions. Some of these politicians have principles as stable as nitroglycerin in the passenger seat of a dune buggy in an off road race in August. However, to say that we should not make known our disapproval of policies and beliefs that are unbiblical or destructive is another form of persecution in an attempt to quiet the Christian testimony. One connotation of the word we find translated “trodden” is “oppressed.” The world attempts to trample you into the ground because your testimony is salty. This is the oppression, the persecution discussed in the previous verses. No – this is an individual issue based in every Christian’s life. It is essential that we be known, that we be heard, that we be understood for who we are – testifiers of the standards of God for the life of man.
For this reason, and for many more, I greatly encourage you to communicate with your city, county, state, and federal representatives in government. When you do write, you should write to them to encourage them in the scriptures and the things of Christ. You should contact them both on good and bad occasions. Your communications should encourage them when they do things well, and you should admonish them when they make poor decisions that are antithetical to God’s precepts in scripture. Most of our time is spent denouncing political and social woes and calling down politicians. However, we must realize and understand that each one of them has a soul and can be saved. It may be the salt in your testimony that the Lord uses to get through to someone. The saved life of a Christian in politics makes for tremendous testimony and change in society. We need only to look at the lives that were changed during the Great Awakenings and the Reformation periods in our history where Christ called many to Him in a short period. This resulted in great changes in societal behavior, policy, politics, and attitude. These tremendous testimonial changes in life resulted in the Abolitionist movements, the war and eventual elimination of slavery, and were quite instrumental in guiding this country through the Great Depression and WWII.
Looking at the effect of a testimony in politics, one only needs to study the history of Calvin and Geneva. Originally, Calvin was sought by William Farel, a representative of Geneva, to implement religious reformation in Geneva. Less than two years after they had begun in 1536, they were “banished for refusing compliance with what they regarded as improper interference of civil authorities in the Church’s sphere.“[2] Once political powers shifted to the believers in the city, he was asked to return, and did so in 1541. For the next 25 years, without holding any office, or any specific legal position in government, he exerted great sway in the moral, ethical, and religious conduct of the city. Calvin was involved with society, commerce, and the lending practices of local banks. The society and economy thrived under this tutelage, as Calvin would say, under these biblical precepts. He held biblical scholarship and instruction in the highest regard in both the schools and universities. Many Reformation exiles came to Geneva from other countries. They trained, and returned to preach the gospel in their native land. This is the Christian effect in politics. John Wilberforce was just such a Christian fellow who, through tenacity and consistent testimony, was able to abolish slavery in England.
If your testimony has no savour to it, it is worthless. If your faith is as weak and as pliable as Silly Putty, you will have no effect on those around you. If you are inconsistent in your testimony, others will ignore you. Being weak is giving into the world on precepts that you have been convicted to uphold. Calvin did not give in. At first, his stern faith caused rejection, but it was recognized for Christ. Eventually, those who knew Christ knew the need for more– not less– of His influence. Wilberforce did not give in. With every obstacle that was presented to him, he sought the Lord and knew he was destined to win the day. When someone stands for Christ, they are known. When you want to be seen as standing for Christ, but in your heart you do not–you are also known. You are known as weak.
When we are seen as weak, we are not counted. The inhabitants certainly did not count Lot’s testimony as credible. They had no fear calling for their pleasures from his home and its inhabitants and guests. Lot himself attempted to appease their appetites instead of pointing to their depraved mindset. As with Lot, if there is no salt in our testimony nothing of God will come of it. What happens to weak Christians is that they are ignored. Some bring these false Christians up on stage and give them the spotlight specifically to show that they have no real convictions. In this way Satan uses these false Christians in an attempt to show the world that you do not have to obey God accept where you want really want to. Custer makes the point that although salt may have lost its flavor, it is still very dangerous to living things.[3] You would not, for instance, throw bad salt into a garden, because it would kill the live plants. This salt must be disposed of in an innocuous place – the street (where foot traffic is of no consequence) is just the place. Let it be trampled under foot into the cobblestones. This type of false testimony, a testimony that says you can be of and in the world and still be a Christian, has lost more people to Satan than any other satanic ploy. Are you one of those false Christians? If you are, instead of leading people to Christ, you lead them into the jaws of the Dragon. Do you enjoy feeding him?
III. Indifference
The last part of our verse where we read “it is thenceforth good for nothing but to be cast out and to be trodden under the foot of man” is a unique phrase. The actual words “it is good for nothing” do not exist in the text. Neither is the phrase “underfoot” in the text. The Greek actually reads, “yet if not, throwing it out and trample (or oppress) by man.” The implication is (as this is properly and dynamically translated in many texts) that this action is “in order” or “indeed the only solution.” If you Christian have lost your saltiness, the only solution is that men should trample you, and oppress you.
We somewhat hinted at this in a few paragraphs above. The fact is, if you are not a disciple of Christ, that Christ should send those who are to make sure you are ineffectual. Your lack of character and steadfast faith in Him will be known. You do not become more important and credible through this process where your true unbelief is revealed. Instead, you are marginalized and rendered ineffective. Saltiness is testified to individually, and because of an individual, Christ Jesus.
I know, you are now trying to balance this discussion of being bold with the meekness we find in verse five. We should remember that the Christian characteristic of meekness has everything to do with a bold testimony for Christ. Those who would use meekness as an argument for inactivity or to support feigned compliance with ungodly activities are using God’s word as a cop out. It is not, folks, about being meek in the face of trials. It is about being meek in relation to God and the things of God and people around you in a way that honors God and brings attention to His Son. People that mix these two issues do so at the detriment of their testimony, and therefore show their indifference toward Christ and their faith in Him.
Folks, indifference comes from the world as well. The worldly, those who are steeped in the world and its things, pleasures, and promises could care less about the Christian who has no real salt in them. This is because they know that inside this person who claims Christianity and faith in Christ Jesus is really a secret desire and enjoyment of the same things; therefore they talk smack but have no substance. The worldly person would demand that the so-called Christian put their money where their mouth is. If you claim we should live that way – why don’t you? I have told many people who have attempted to live Christian lives while not endeavoring to actually learn about Christ Jesus by reading and studying His word that they have to first live it before they can tell others about it. I have had people stomp off away from me, but they know what the truth is. They do, after all, have to live what they try to preach. I pray, Christian, that you are in fact living Christianity, living a life that is salty for the Lord, yearning for the learning that is in the scriptures. Then folks, people do not treat you with indifference, you tell people you care less and less for the things of the world, for the things that speak of and represent sin in the world.”You become indifferent to the things of the world, and interested in the things of Christ and His desires. You become indifferent to the latest fashions, the latest movies, the latest television shows, or the latest hairstyles. These things are simply distractions. What you do not become indifferent about are things that honor God – that is living in the world, but not being of the world.
A word of caution is needed here. You may consider that your salt needs to be so visible that you isolate yourself for God. This is a great failure in thought that will cause others to treat you with indifference. Monasticism was a horrid practice where individuals would isolate themselves from all civilization and claim total dedication to God. Nowhere in scripture does it describe that we should do this. Short periods of isolation (Moses wandered 40 days in the desert, Jesus was tempted for 40 days, and others) are preceded by normal socialization, and followed by normal socialization. The difference is the testimony of the individual afterwards. Isolationists such as those who would practice monasticism become spectacles, not testimonies for a Christlike life.
Folks, has your testimony lost its punch? Are you just wading through life riding the Christian wave? Do others see you as “just one of the guys or gals.” If someone asked your supervisor at work, or even the individual you most disliked, and that most disliked you, if you were a Christian, if you were honest, if you had a testimony for ethics, for scripture, for Jesus–if those questions were asked, what would the response be? Would they have reasons to disbelieve your claim to faith? On the other hand, would they have to stretch the truth in order to do so?
Once again, are you walking the walk? Do you have salt or are you weak? If you are a weakling in Christ, the world is indifferent to you, and most importantly so is the Lord. If you have no savour you will be trampled, and the Lord will provide the foot.
[1] Lloyd-Jones, D Martyn, Studies in the Sermon on the Mount, One-volume edition (Grand Rapids: Eerdmans, 1976), 130-131.
[2] Latourette, Kenneth S., A History of Christianity, Reformation to the Present, Volume 2 (Peabody: Prince Press, 2003), 757.
[3] Stewart Custer, The Gospel of the King: A Commentary on Matthew (Greenville: BJU Press, 2005), 71.
