Matthew 5.13 Ye are the salt of the earth: but if the salt have lost his savour, wherewith shall it be salted? it is thenceforth good for nothing, but to be cast out, and to be trodden under foot of men.
The word “you” in “you are the salt of the earth” is emphatic: ‘you, and you alone are the salt of the earth.’ When Jesus asserted, “You are the salt of the earth,” He was signifying that Christians alone – not the government, not the educational institutions, not secular organizations – Christians alone can have the effect of purifying and preserving societies from the downward spiral of depravity. Jesus was not stating an opinion, but He was stating a reality.
Genuine Christians are the salt of the earth. This means that the only hope of our own society being preserved from the degeneracy into which it is heading is for Christians to live like Christians in the workplace, in the home, in the school, on the college campus, in the political arena, on the sports teams, in the community. According to Jesus, we bear responsibility for influencing society by living like Christians, talking like Christians, using our money like Christians, using our time like Christians, conducting our family lives like Christians, using leisure time like Christians.
Jesus does not give us an option at this point; it is a central responsibility for each and every one of us, no exceptions, to be salt to the world about us.
One of the unquestionable characteristics of the world in which we live is the progressive lowering of standards. Standards of honesty, standards of diligence in the workplace, standards of conscientiousness, moral standards, are being lowered day by day. The salty presence of the disciple of Jesus Christ will have a purifying effect wherever he or she is.
What is your salt content, reader? When the church individually or as a whole loses its flavor, it is good for nothing. If we as Christians lose the qualities of Christlikeness that make us distinct and as a result become like the society around us, we have lost the purpose for our very existence and are no longer good for anything.
