“ARE YOU A SALTY OR A SALTLESS SAINT?

”
MATTHEW 5:13
INTRO: The word salty means “Of, containing, or tasting like salt. Sharp,
pungent.” (Funk & Wagnalls Standard Desk Dictionary. Volume 2, N-Z. p. 590). God told
Israel, under the law, in Leviticus 2:13--”And every oblation of thy
meat offering shalt thou season with salt; neither shalt thou suffer the
salt of the covenant of thy God to be lacking from thy meat offering:
with all thine offerings thou shalt offer salt.” This is referred to as THE
SALT COVENANT. Salt was the opposite to leaven, for it preserved from
putrefaction and corruption, and signified the purity and persevering
fidelity that were necessary in the worship of God. Every thing was
seasoned with it, to signify the purity and perfection that should be
extended through every part of the Divine service, and through the
hearts and lives of God’s worshippers. It was called the salt of the
covenant of God, because as salt is incorruptible, so was the covenant
made with Abram, Isaac, Jacob, and the patriarchs, relative to the
redemption of the world by the incarnation and death of Jesus Christ.
(Adam Clarke. Adam Clarke's Commentary on The Bible. e-Sword. Version 10.0.5. Copyright 2000-2012.
Rick Meyers. All Rights Reserved Worldwide).

In the Bible, Salt speaks of life—the saving, purifying, sanctifying life of

our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ. The Bible tells us that we are to
“Have salt in yourselves, and have peace one with another.” (Mark
9:50). The ancients declared that there was nothing in the world purer
than salt because it came from the two purest things, the sun and the
sea. The very glistening whiteness of salt was a picture of purity. So
this
will mean, "Have within yourselves the purifying influence of the Spirit
of Christ. Be purified from selfishness and self-seeking, from bitterness
and anger and grudge-bearing. Be cleansed from irritation and
moodiness and self-centredness, and then, and then only, you will be
able to live in peace with your fellow men." In other words, Jesus is
saying that it is only the life that is cleansed of self and filled with Christ
which can live in real fellowship with men. (William Barclay. Daily Study Bible. e-
Sword. Version 10.0.5. Copyright 2000-2012. Rick Meyers. All Rights Reserved Worldwide).

In our text, Jesus speaks of our role in this world--”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.” Here Jesus speaks of two kinds of saints:
salty saints--”ye are the salt of the earth” and saltless saints--”...if the
salt have lost his savour.” Friend, the question tonight is, “ARE YOU A
SALTY OR SALTLESS SAINT?” Note with me...
(1) THE POWER OF SALT
MATTHEW 5:13a--”Ye are the salt of the earth...”
A. SALT DECONTAMINATES. Salt contains an element that purifies. The word
decontaminate means “to make safe by destroying or neutralizing poisonous
 chemicals, radioactivity, etc.” (Funk & Wagnalls Standard Desk Dictionary. Volume 1, A-M. p. 165).
If the salt were taken out of our oceans, things would begin to putrefy and be
poisoned. The salt in the our oceans bathes our shores, keeping our earth
from decaying and putrefying. Friends, the Lord has called on us to be THE
SALT OF THE EARTH. We are here to alleviate the decay and putrefaction. We
need the decontamination of the salty gospel in this world today.
 In 1963, prayer was removed from our public schools.
 In 1973, nine black-robed justices declared pre-born babies to be non-
beings. Since that time, America has been stained with the blood of 40
million little babies. In all of America’s wars, from our nation’s beginning
to the present, 1.4 million have died. But since 1973, 40 million little
preborn Americans have been sacrificed on the altar of convenience.
Friends, It’s time for the salt to work.
 The suicide rate among teenagers has increased by 150% in the last 50
years. It’s time for the salt to work.
 Two-thirds of all of our high school graduating seniors have reported that
they have experimented in illegal drugs. It’s time for the salt to work.
 One million of America’s high school girls will get pregnant this year. It's
time for the salt to work.
 We live in a society that’s seen sodomy go from a sin to a sickness to a
socially accepted practice. It’s time for the salt to work.
Friends, the problem in our world today is not Communism, pornography,
Hollywood, the liquor crowd, the drug dealers, or the media. The problem is
saltless saints sitting in church pews refusing to doing their part to SALT our
world! Jesus said, “...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.” Our CALL, our CHALLENGE, according to Jesus is--”Ye are the salt
of the earth...”. SALT DECONTAMINATES but also...
B. SALT ACTIVATES. Salt causes flavors to come alive in your mouth. Friends,
the Christian’s life should be zestful. There should be a zest in our lives that
brings flavor to life. The word zest means “Invigorating excitement; keen
enjoyment; gusto.” (Funk & Wagnalls Standard Desk Dictionary. Volume 2, N-Z. pp. 798-799). Why do
so many people stay away from worship services? Because they are bored.
They are getting nothing out of the services. Why do preachers preach boring
sermons? Because they are bored themselves. Instead of being activated by
the Spirit many today are animated by the flesh. Many times the bland are
leading the bland. Friends, our love for the Lord needs to be blazing,
passionate, and emotional! Many times the reason we are saltless saints is
because we don't love the Lord as much as we claim to love the Lord!
C. SALT IRRITATES. We read in Mark 9:49--”For every one shall be salted
with fire, and every sacrifice shall be salted with salt.” Friends, when we
preach and proclaim the salty gospel of Jesus Christ, it will sting. It will
irritate. When the gospel is rubbed into the open and bleeding wounds of
society, it will burn. There are people who do not like the clear, unadulterated
 teaching of the Gospel. But we must not compromise nor corrupt its message
to make it more palatable for a sick society to swallow. We cannot make
ourselves sick and make them well! Friends, we need to stop trying to be
popular and stay true to the Gospel's power. SALT DECONTAMINATES, SALT
ACTIVATES, SALT IRRITATES and...
D. SALT PENETRATES. Just a small pinch of salt put into a container of water
will permeate the entire container. The problem with the Church today is that
we have practiced too much isolation and not enough penetration. Too often
we come to church and sit in the salt cellar and salt the salt. The salt needs to
penetrate society. Jesus said--”Ye are the salt of the earth,” NOT “Ye are the
salt of the church.”

We have considered THE POWER OF SALT but let us also see...

(2) THE PROBLEM WITH SALT
MATTHEW 5:13b--”....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.”
A. LOSING ITS SAVOR. When salt loses its vitality, its pungency, it is good for
nothing. Friends, if the salt has lost its savor, if it's no longer doing its job
then it's good for nothing. If the church is not being a purifying influence
within the community, then it's good for nothing. Those churches that seek to
exist as social centers are good for nothing. The church needs to be a dynamic
spiritual influence within the community and seeking to bring a spiritual godly
influence within the community. (Chuck Smith. Chuck Smith Commentary. e-Sword. Version 10.0.5.
Rick Meyers. Copyright 2000-2012. All Rights Reserved Worldwide).

B. LOSING ITS SALTNESS. This means when it loses the very thing that
makes it salt. Think of all those you know who call themselves Christians but
no longer live like Christians. The saltiness that makes them salt has
disappeared. The quality of saltiness is what makes salt valuable. Pure salt in
Bible times was extremely valuable, in some societies more than gold. Men
were paid with salt. Have you ever heard the expression, “that man’s not
worth his salt”? Our word “salary” literally means “salt money.”
When Christians lose their saltiness they are “thenceforth good for nothing,
but to be cast out, and to be trodden under foot of men.” When the salt
became unusable, old unusable, they would, threw it out on the pathways so
that the rain would dissolve it and the sodium chloride would kill the
vegetation. And so they used it to kill the vegetation, to keep the pathways
clear from weeds and grass, and thus the salt was "trodden under the foot of
man". And Jesus is saying, look, the church is to be the salt of the earth. If it
is not the salt of the earth, it's good for nothing and it will be trampled under
the foot of fallen man. And so when Jesus said, "Ye are the salt of the earth"
is not just a challenge, it is an ultimatum to the church. You either be what
God intends you to be or you're not going to be, you'll be "trodden under the
foot of man". (Chuck Smith. Chuck Smith Commentary. e-Sword. Version 10.0.5. Rick Meyers. Copyright
2000-2012. All Rights Reserved Worldwide).
CLOSING: As never before we see Christians openly ridiculed in the day in which
we live. Bashing Christians seems to occur more and more frequently
especially in the media and academic institutions. The question is,
why? Often the blame lies with a society of saltless saints who have
lost their savor and are now being trampled under foot because we
have failed to present the Lord Jesus Christ in His purity, in His
integrity, and with His vitality.
May the Lord help us to be salty saints who present a salty gospel of
a vibrant, living Saviour to this world that is in desperate need of His
preserving, glorious, redeeming power!

PREACHED AT UNIONTOWN BAPTIST CHURCH, UNIONTOWN, KY ON SUNDAY EVENING, MARCH 25, 2012.