Salt: Walking as an Unashamed Disciple

February 12, 2023 – Matthew 5:13 – Salt: Walking as an Unashamed Disciple

Back in the days of Jesus, the primary use of salt was to preserve food. They didn’t have refrigerators and freezers. They didn’t know about canning. So in order to keep their meat and other perishables from spoiling, they used salt.

So salt was a precious commodity. You’ve probably heard that Roman soldiers were sometimes paid with salt instead of money. Their monthly allowance was called "salarium." Salarium eventually made it into the English language as “salary.”

Today, salt doesn’t seem to have as much value as it did back then. That’s largely because we discovered that food can be preserved by canning it. Moreover, most people in America have a refrigerator and freezer in their home. So we preserve our perishable foods without the use of salt.

For us, the primary use for salt is as a condiment. All those tiny little rocks comprised of sodium and chloride adds flavor to our French fries. It’s an inexpensive seasoning agent that’s available at grocery stores and is given away for free at restaurants.

So the primary use of salt has change since Jesus’ day. This does not mean, however, that the ancients were unaware that salt is a good seasoning agent for food. Our English word “salad” comes to us from the ancient practice of salting vegetable leaves. And the apostle Paul was referring to the flavor of salt when he told the Colossians “to let your speech always be with grace, seasoned with salt.”

But when Jesus said that Christians are the salt of the earth, He was not saying that we add flavor to life. He was not saying that Christians are the people who spice things up; that we make things more interesting.

Instead, Jesus was appealing to salt’s properties of preservation. He was saying that Christians have a preserving effect upon the world. We’re the “salt” that are sent into the world to keep it from decay, preserving it from further corruption or moral decline.

Now, some of you are probably looking at your Bibles and saying, “I get what you mean about salt being a preservative, but I think Jesus was speaking about salt as a seasoning agent because He warns about salt losing it’s ‘flavor.’”

If this is what you’re thinking, then kudos for being an attentive Berean. It’s noble that you’re following along in your Bible. It’s noble that you’re comparing what you’re hearing from the pulpit with what you’re reading in the Scriptures. Keep it up! That’s a very responsible way to listen to sermons.

[Slide] Indeed, our modern English translations do steer us in the direction of Jesus speaking of salt as a flavoring agent. The NKJV reads, “but if the salt loses its flavor.” The ESV reads, “but if salt has lost its taste.” And the NASB reads, “but if the salt has become tasteless.”

It’s unfortunate that the translators chose to use these English words because the Greek word that’s in our text does not mean taste or flavor. In fact, it has absolutely nothing to do with flavor and taste.

The first clue that our English translations are misleading is seen when we identify the parts of speech in this sentence fragment.

Where’s the noun in this sentence fragment? A noun is a person, place, or thing, [slide] so the noun is “salt,” right?

Where’s the verb in this sentence fragment? A verb describes the action. [Slide] So the verb is “loses,” right? Or it’s “has lost,” or “has become,” depending on which Bible version you’re using.

[Slide] So what do we do with the words, “flavor,” taste,” and “tasteless”? What part of speech are these?

From reading our English translations, you would probably conclude that they’re adjectives. An adjective is a word that modifies or describes a noun or pronoun. Since “flavor” and “taste” and “tasteless” describe “salt” in this sentence fragment, it’s a no-brainer that these words function as an adjective, right?

Well, yes, if this sentence fragment was written in English, then that would be accurate. But in the Greek, there’s no adjective. Those words that we think are adjectives are actually part of the verb.

[Slide] Here’s how the sentence is constructed in Greek. There’s a conjunction at the beginning, there’s an article before the noun (which the ESV translators completely dropped from the text), there’s a noun, and there’s a verb. But there’s no adjective.

Why is this important to know? Because there’s nothing in this sentence fragment that modifies the noun. There’s nothing in this sentence fragment that modifies the salt. There’s only a verb, which describes the action of the noun.

[Slide] The verb is the Greek word moraino. Moraino literally means “to be foolish,” or “to play the fool.” This is where we get the English word “moron.” A “moron” is somebody who plays the fool. That’s not very far from what Jesus is describing here in our sermon text. He’s basically saying, “but if the salt becomes a moron.”

Let me show you what I mean. There are only three other places in the New Testament where the word moraino is used.

One of them is in Romans 1:22...

22 Professing to be wise, they became fools, 23 and changed the glory of the incorruptible God into an image made like corruptible man…

Another occurrence of moraino is in 1 Corinthians 1:20…

20 Where is the wise? Where is the scribe? Where is the disputer of this age? Has not God made foolish the wisdom of this world?

In both of these verses, it’s easy to see how the verb moraino describes the activity of becoming foolish. Somebody or something is becoming foolish. In Romans 1:22, it’s people who are made foolish. In 1 Corinthians 1:20, it’s worldly wisdom that’s made foolish. And in our sermon text, Jesus is warning about what happens if the salt is made foolish.

That’s exactly how we would be reading this if we were reading the Greek text just as Matthew had written it.

“You are the salt of the earth, but if salt [becomes foolish], how shall its saltiness be restored? It is no longer good for anything except to be thrown out and trampled under people’s feet.

The foolishness that Jesus is speaking about is the foolishness of those Christians who do not walk according to the wisdom of God. When we walk according to the wisdom of God, then we function as agents of preservation in this world. This is precisely what Jesus was affirming when He said, “You are the salt of the earth.” The rest of the verse is His warning that when we behave foolishly, we become ineffective agents of preservation. We learn from this, therefore, that we have a responsibility to walk in the wisdom of God, because when we play the fool, we lose our influence in the world and we’re no longer able to preserve society from moral and spiritual degradation.

So what does it mean to play the fool?

If we pay attention to the context of our sermon text, we’ll see that Jesus was describing what it means to walk as a Christian. And you’ll notice that it has a lot to do with enduring hardship and persecution for walking in obedience to the Lord.

Our sermon text immediately follows that portion of the Sermon on the Mount that we call “the Beatitudes.”

Blessed are the poor in spirit, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.

Blessed are the meek, for they shall inherit the earth.

Blessed are the peacemakers, for they shall be called sons of God.

And as Jesus progresses through these beatitudes, He tells how being a disciple of Christ is going to come at a cost.

10 “Blessed are those who are persecuted for righteousness’ sake, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.

11 “Blessed are you when they revile and persecute you, and say all kinds of evil against you falsely for My sake. 12 Rejoice and be exceedingly glad, for great is your reward in heaven, for so they persecuted the prophets who were before you.

These beatitudes are as much a warning to those who follow Christ as they are an encouragement. They encourage us with the blessings that are ours for following Christ, but they also warn us that there are hardships that come with following Christ.

For example, when you read, “blessed as the peacemakers,” you have to realize that in order to be a peacemaker, you first need to be in situations where there is no peace; you have to be in situations where there’s strife and hostility.

And when you read, “blessed are those who mourn,” you have to realize that you’re going to experience some grievous experiences as a disciple of Jesus.

And when you read, “blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness,” you have you realize that you’re going to be in situations where unrighteousness prevails.

In all these Beatitudes, Jesus is communicating to His followers what they should expect as His disciple.

You must be meek.

You must hunger and thirst for righteousness.

You must be merciful.

You must be pure in heart.

Jesus gives nine descriptions of what the character of His disciples should look like.

And realize, these nine character traits are a package deal. Some of us may read, “blessed are the meek,” and think to ourselves, “Oh, that’s a beatitude for so-and-so, because so-and-so is meek. Meekness isn’t really my thing, though. I think I’m more of a hunger and thirst for righteousness kind of guy. That’s my beatitude.”

The truth is, all nine of these beatitudes apply to every Christian. It’s like the nine fruit of the Spirit listed in Galatians 5. You don’t pick and choose which of the fruit of the Spirit you want in your life; it’s a package deal. And so are the beatitudes. They’re an expression of what Christian character ought to look like.

Every Christian needs to be poor in spirit.

Every Christian needs to mourn righteously.

Every Christian needs to be meek.

Every Christian needs to hunger and thirst for righteousness.

Every Christian needs to be merciful.

Every Christian needs to be pure in heart.

Every Christian needs to be a peacemaker.

And every Christian needs to be willing to be persecuted for righteousness’ sake.

And every Christian needs to be willing to be reviled, having all kinds of false accusations brought them for Jesus’ sake.

After declaring these nine characteristics of a Christian disciple, Jesus sums up the beatitude portion of His sermon by saying…

12 Rejoice and be exceedingly glad, for great is your reward in heaven, for so they persecuted the prophets who were before you.

And then, without skipping a beat, Jesus says…

13 “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.

That’s the context in which we need to understand our sermon text. We can deduce from this, therefore, that to “play the fool” is to fail to persevere in the beatitudes. Or to put it slightly differently, to the degree that a Christian’s character fails to line up with these nine beatitudes, then to that degree, the Christian fails to be an agent of preservation in this world.

Please turn in your Bibles to Luke 14:34.

I said that there are a total of four passages in the New Testament where the verb moraino appears. One of those four is our sermon text from Matthew 5:13. We already look at two others in Romans 1:22 and 1 Corinthians 1:20. Now let’s look at the fourth one which is in Luke 14:34.

34 “Salt is good; but if the salt has lost its flavor (moraino), how shall it be seasoned? 35 It is neither fit for the land nor for the dunghill, but men throw it out. He who has ears to hear, let him hear!”

This is essentially the same thing Jesus said in our sermon text, but the context is slightly different. If we back up to verse 26, we’ll see that Jesus is talking about the cost of discipleship, but He focuses on different challenges we experience when following Him. Rather than talking about the nine beatitudes, He talks about our willingness to forsake the relationships that prevent us from walking in obedience with Christ. Luke 14, beginning at verse 26…

26 “If anyone comes to Me and does not hate his father and mother, wife and children, brothers and sisters, yes, and his own life also, he cannot be My disciple. 27 And whoever does not bear his cross and come after Me cannot be My disciple. 28 For which of you, intending to build a tower, does not sit down first and count the cost, whether he has enough to finish it—29 lest, after he has laid the foundation, and is not able to finish, all who see it begin to mock him, 30 saying, ‘This man began to build and was not able to finish.’ 31 Or what king, going to make war against another king, does not sit down first and consider whether he is able with ten thousand to meet him who comes against him with twenty thousand? 32 Or else, while the other is still a great way off, he sends a delegation and asks conditions of peace. 33 So likewise, whoever of you does not forsake all that he has cannot be My disciple.

And then Jesus goes on to say…

34 “Salt is good; but if the salt has [moraino, become foolish], how shall it be seasoned? 35 It is neither fit for the land nor for the dunghill, but men throw it out. He who has ears to hear, let him hear!”

From the context, we learn that the foolish behavior that can prevent us from being effective agents of preservation in this world is not prioritizing Jesus Christ.

It’s wanting to take the easy road, rather than bearing your cross.

It’s wanting the approval of your family, rather than the approval of Christ.

It’s wanting to fulfill the expectations of your father and mother, or your brothers and sisters, rather than the expectations of Jesus.

It’s the person who blends in with the world and is not distinguishable from the pagans and heathens.

It’s the person who is too timid to stand up for righteousness when the world around him is advocating for doing something sinful.

It’s the person who goes along with the crowd, laughing at the dirty jokes, involved in the gossip, not defending the innocent, silently standing by as the Lord’s name is blasphemed, all because he doesn’t want to stand out. All because he doesn’t want to be called a Jesus freak.

That’s the person who has lost his saltiness. That’s the person who is playing the fool.

What Jesus expects of you and me is that we consider the cost before we begin. He says, “You’re going to experience difficult trials when you follow Me, so consider what you’re getting into. Choose wisely. Because if you’re one of those people who say you’re going to follow me and then bail out when things get tough, then you’re playing the fool.”

So brothers and sisters, where do you stand in this matter? If you’re not willing to suffering for Jesus’ sake, then you’re going to be ineffective as an agent of preservation. On the other hand, if you are willing to suffering for being Jesus’ disciple, then you’ll have the satisfaction of being used by God as an instrument for restraining evil.

It comes down to your character.

By not laughing at the dirty joke, you set a standard of righteousness that’s pleasing to God. But not only will your actions be pleasing to God, you’ll also have the effect of suppressing those types of jokes in the future. The next time your co-workers want to chuckle about something obscene, they’ll think twice about sharing that joke in your presence. They may ridicule you behind your back, but Jesus says that this will result in a blessing for you. He said, “blessed are those who are persecuted for righteousness’ sake, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.”

By not becoming involved in the gossip, you’ll earn a reputation of trust. People will be more open with you. They’ll be more willing to confide in you. They’ll be more willing to share their private struggles with you because they know you’ll safeguard the secrets they share with you, and this will make you an agent of preservation. This will give you opportunities to speak the good news of Jesus Christ into the hearts of desperate and hurting people.

When you come to the defense of innocent people who are being oppressed, you become an agent of preservation. As you stand for biblical righteousness and justice, you show love and mercy to the oppressed while resisting the oppressor.

And when you voice your disapproval when the Lord’s name is blasphemed, people will curtail their speech. They may continue to blaspheme God when you’re not around, but when you’re present, you’ll be an agent of preservation. [p]

Have you ever had the experience where you were talking with strangers and as soon as you identified yourself as a Christian, the dialogue suddenly improved? That was you being the salt of the earth.

Have you ever told somebody that you’re a Christian and they responded with something like, “I figured you were. I could tell just by being around you.” If you’ve had that type of experience, that’s because you were being the salt of the earth. [p]

And have you ever had the experience where somebody says, “I don’t know quite how to say this, but I see something going on inside of you that’s appealing. You seem to always be at peace. You seem to always be content. I know you have the same challenges I have, but they don’t seem to take the toll on you as they do me.” If you’ve ever had somebody say something like this to you, that’s because you were being the salt of the earth.

In our sermon text, Jesus says, “You are the salt of the earth.”

He does not say, “You are becoming the salt of the earth.” Or, “You need to go out and look for opportunities to be the salt of the earth.” He says, “You are the salt of the earth.”

Being the salt of the earth is a calling that God has placed on every single Christian. By virtue of being a disciple of Christ, you are the salt of the earth.

In principle, it’s no different that when the Bible says that a husband is the head of his home. Every husband is the head of his home, period! It’s the necessary consequence of being married. The husband doesn’t need to do anything to earn or secure the position of being the head of his home; he is the head of his home.

Now, you’ll hear some men say something like, “I don’t really think I’m the head of my home. My wife doesn’t respect my opinion. My kids don’t listen to me. I really can’t say that I’m the head of my home.”

The man who says this is a man who doesn’t understand the position that God has placed him in. His status as the head of his home is not dependent upon his performance, his wife’s approval, or his children’s obedience. He’s the head of his home because God has assigned him to that position.

Now, it might be true that he’s doing a lousy job as the head of his home.

It might be true that he hasn’t earned the respect of his wife and children. But he’s still the head of his home. And God will hold that man accountable for how he functions as the head of his home.

Well, the same is true for all Christians being the salt of the earth. You are the salt of the earth. If you’re a disciple of Christ, then you are the salt of the earth. So the question is not, “Am I the salt of the earth,” but, “How salty am I?”

Are you walking in obedience to the Lord?

Are you displaying the type of character that’s worthy of the gospel?

Have you counted the cost of following Jesus and are you willing to pay it?

Have you been crucified with Christ, so it’s no longer you who live, but Christ living in you? And the life which you now live in the flesh, do you live it by faith in the Son of God, who loved you and gave Himself for you?

Or do you live for yourself?

Or do you live to please other people?

Do you follow the crowd?

Do you like to fit in?

Do people know they can push you around?

Do people know that if they put enough pressure on you, you’ll cane in? You’ll give up your religious ideals and conform to the pressure?

Do people feel comfortable behaving sinfully in your presence? That’s a very telling question. That’s a very strong indicator of how effective you are at being God’s agent of preservation.

If people feel comfortable behaving sinfully in your presence, then you have probably lost your saltiness.

If your co-workers think it’s okay to include you in their schemes to cheat your employer, then you may have lost your saltiness.

If the people you’ve lived next door to for the past five years just found out you’re a Christian, and they respond by saying, “Really?”, then you’ve probably lost your saltiness.

Brothers and sisters, if you think you may have lost your saltiness, you might be troubled by Jesus’ description of the salt that lost its saltiness. He said it’s good for nothing but to be thrown out and trampled underfoot by men.

Realize, Jesus is not talking about losing your salvation here. Not only does the Bible teach us that you cannot lose your salvation, but that’s not even what Jesus is referring to when he speaks about being thrown out and trampled underfoot. Rather, He’s referring to the world’s response to Christians who have lost their saltiness.

It's not all that different from what Jesus said later on in the Sermon on the Mount. In Matthew 6:6, He cautioned…

“Do not give what is holy to the dogs; nor cast your pearls before swine, lest they trample them under their feet, and turn and tear you in pieces.

In the case of throwing pearls before swine, Jesus is warning against provoking people who have made it clear that they don’t want to hear any more about the good news of Jesus Christ. Their rejection of the good news is described as them trampling it under their feet.

Well, so it is with the response of the unbelievers in our sermon text, only Jesus is not saying that they trample God’s truth under their feet because they don’t want to hear it any more, He’s saying they trample it under their feet because the Christian speaking God’s truth to them has been playing the fool. The life and character of the Christian are so inconsistent from the words that are coming out of his mouth that the unbeliever just completely dismisses it all.

Many years ago, when I was working in the security industry, I was asked to submit a proposal for installing cameras in a building complex. As I was assessing the building complex, a security guard came rushing over and immediately began cursing at me. He thought I didn’t belong there, so he was reprimanding me with caustic words. After I told him who I was and that the owner had given me permission to be there, he settled down.

I noticed this man’s name on his badge. He was the brother of a friend I went to church with. So when I related this story to my friend, I didn’t tell him how rudely his brother had treated me. I simply told him that his brother approached me while I was assessing a property. But my friend suspected that his brother may have acted inappropriately, so he asked me, “Did my brother lose his testimony?”

You see, the security guard was a Christian, but when he was on the job, he didn’t act like a Christian. My friend knew this about his brother. And my friend also knew that when a Christian acts like a pagan, he loses credibility in the sight of all. In other words, nobody pays any attention to his testimony. He can tell about the goodness of Jesus Christ and how God’s free grace transforms sinners into saints, but the manner of his life discredits everything he says. And if he tries to take a moral stand on an issue, everybody will be thinking in their mind, “Yeah, look who’s talking. Why don’t you try showing us rather than telling us.”

The phrase my friend used when asking about his brother is a perfect description of this reality: it’s losing one’s testimony.

That’s what Jesus is describing in our sermon text when He says “unsalty salt” is good for nothing but to be thrown out and trampled underfoot by men. When we lose our testimony, brothers and sisters, we stop being agent of preservation and transformation. Why? Because nobody listens to a hypocrite. Nobody values the opinions of a person who says one thing with their mouth and another thing with their behavior.

So if you find yourself in this situation—if you’ve played the fool and you’ve lost your testimony—is it possible to have your testimony restored? Can the “unsalty salt” be made salty again?

Jesus asks this very question at the end of our sermon text, and He seems to imply that it cannot. But understand that He’s talking about hypocrisy. He’s talking about the professing Christian who continues to discredit his testimony through sinful behavior. So long as the professing Christian continues in hypocrisy, no, he will never regain his testimony.

But realize that Jesus is not finished preaching the sermon on the mount. He’s going to go on to tell how we should pray to our heavenly Father for the forgiveness of our sins. And He’s going to tell us that everyone who asks of the Father, will receive. For…

what man is there among you who, if his son asks for bread, will give him a stone? 10 Or if he asks for a fish, will he give him a serpent? 11 If you then, being evil, know how to give good gifts to your children, how much more will your Father who is in heaven give good things to those who ask Him! (Matthew 7:9-11)

Brothers and sisters, the way to restore your testimony is through repentance! When you confess your sins and your life bears fruit worthy of repentance, then you will have a credible testimony. You will be an effective agent of preservation and transformation in this lost and sinful world.

You are the salt, brothers and sisters. Through the Spirit who empowers you, you are the agents that God has ordained to proclaim the words of life to this corrupt and decaying world. But to be effective in this calling:

you can’t be conformed to this world.

You can’t be hearer and not a doer.

You can’t put your hand to the plow and then look back.

You can’t prioritize your relationships with your family members above your relationship with Jesus.

Rather:

you must count the cost.

You must suffer persecution for righteousness’ sake.

You must hunger and thirst for righteousness.

You must be a peacemaker.

You must be merciful and meek.

And you must be willing to be falsely accused for Jesus’ sake, rejoicing and being exceedingly glad that your reward is in heaven.

To say it all in one sentence, you will fulfill your calling as salt to this world when you live as unashamed disciples of Jesus Christ. That’s the sum total of it all. You will fulfill your calling as salt to this world when you live as unashamed disciples of Jesus Christ.

May the Lord’s goodness and mercy follow you all the days of your life.