Salt and Light

Appearance of Salt

(NRSV)

Salt and Light

(; )

13 “You are the salt of the earth; but if salt has lost its taste, how can its saltiness be restored? It is no longer good for anything, but is thrown out and trampled under foot.

14 “You are the light of the world. A city built on a hill cannot be hid. 15 No one after lighting a lamp puts it under the bushel basket, but on the lampstand, and it gives light to all in the house. 16 In the same way, let your light shine before others, so that they may see your good works and give glory to your Father in heaven.

Salt, in the days of Jesus walking the Earth, and before, was one of the greatest finds of the time. It was used to preserve food. In that time, when refrigeration was not used food, especially meats, were spoiled quite quickly. As they discovered the usefulness of salt they also discovered that salt gave a desirable flavor to food when applied to the food. So when Jesus states that you are the salt of the earth, is stating that you have great value. Salt, in these days, was so valuable that often times Roman soldiers were payed their wages in salt. Thus the word Salary stems from Salt.

Perhaps, the thought that salt adds flavor, when thought of in Christian life. This quote by Henrik Ibsen might shed some light on the subject, “Have you looked at these Christians closely? Hollow-eyed, pale-cheeked, flat-breasted all; they brood their lives away, unspurred by ambition: the sun shines for them, but they do not see it: the earth offers them its fulness, but they desire it not; all their desire is to renounce and to suffer that they may come to die.”

Barclay, W. (2001). The Gospel of Matthew (Third Ed., p. 139). Edinburgh: Saint Andrew Press.

Christianity can, at times, steal the joy that we have. Just yesterday I read a post on facebook from a pastor of a small church. In his post he stated that he had lost his joy, could someone pray for his joy. American Judge Oliver Wendell Holmes once stated, “I might have entered the ministry if certain clergymen I knew had not looked and acted so much like undertakers.” Think for just a moment about the face of Christ. How do you envision the face of Christ? I see him with a smile on his face. Always encouraging, always uplifting. May pictures show him with light shining all around him.

So, how does salt become useless? How does salt lose its value? How can salt lose its taste? Researchers will tell you that some salt that has been exposed to the elements of water, air, and sunlight, can actually lose its saltiness. “E. F. F. Bishop in his book Jesus of Palestine cites a very likely explanation given by Miss F. E. Newton. In Palestine, the ordinary oven is out of doors and is built of stone on a base of tiles. In such ovens, ‘in order to retain the heat, a thick bed of salt is laid under the tiled floor. After a certain length of time the salt perishes. The tiles are taken up, the salt removed and thrown on the road outside the door of the oven … It has lost its power to heat the tiles and it is thrown out.’ That may well be the picture here.”

Barclay, W. (2001). The Gospel of Matthew (Third Ed., p. 140). Edinburgh: Saint Andrew Press.

If you look at the characteristics of salt when it has lost it’s value it can be used for nothing. If you put it on good soil, it will kill most vegetation. “It is no longer good for anything except to be thrown out and trampled under people’s feet. “

The Holy Bible: English Standard Version. (2016). (). Wheaton, IL: Crossway Bibles.

During this early time, as they discovered the usefulness of salt they also discovered that when it had lost its usefulness it also became a killer. Jesus states here that when it has lost it’s taste, it cannot be restored and its only use was to throw it onto the road. You see they didn’t want weeds and grass growing on the pathway so when salt had lost it’s flavor, it was thrown on the road.

English Standard Version Chapter 5

14 “You are the light of the world. A city set on a hill cannot be hidden. 15 Nor do people light a lamp and put it under a basket, but on a stand, and it gives light to all in the house. 16 In the same way, let your light shine before others, so that they may see your good works and give glory to your Father who is in heaven.

The disciples were called by Jesus to be the light of the world. Jesus wants us to be filled with his light so that we can share that with the world. As I quoted earlier from Henrik Ibsen, the Christians can become hollow. They have lost their joy. Why would anyone want to be like them? We need to listen to this message with great intention to hear what the message is. This message is all about usefulness. Even salt that has lost it’s greatest value, God finds value in it. Not that He wants us to lose our usefulness, or that we should stop striving to be useful, but that the only way that we could lose our usefulness is if we do not give great importance to that which has great value.

As I stated earlier, salt had such great worth that soldiers, and others received salt as payment; in other words they worked for salt. Today we hold little value in salt, really we struggle to find anything of great value. We have lost our great desire to serve, to be in His presence, or to love our neighbors by letting our light shine.