Outdoor Object Lesson 114 - Salty Salt

Hear this episode on my new podcast Gleams of the Morning. 

Key Text

“You are the salt of the earth, but if salt has lost its taste, how shall its saltiness be restored? It is no longer good for anything except to be thrown out and trampled under people's feet.” Matthew 5:13 ESV

Lesson

“Salt of the earth” is a popular complement most people in our culture are familiar with. It is one of the most well known sayings of Jesus. However, most people are unaware that Jesus was not the first to use salt for spiritual symbolism. 

Most all sacrifices in the Levitical law required salt to be added. (See Leviticus 2:13). In ancient times salt was used as a preservative and to add savoriness to food. According to Ellicott’s Bible Commentary, adding salt to a sacrifice symbolized the perpetuity of the Covenant God had with his people. Serving guests the best and most savory food you could offer was a sign of hospitality, friendliness and fidelity in the ancient Middle East. The saying, “To eat bread and salt together” is still a common expression in the Middle East used to mean an alliance or covenant between people. Salt was a popular metaphor for wisdom in Rabbinic literature of Jesus’ time also. Salt held great symbolism in that culture. 

But salt cannot lose its saltiness can it? What did Jesus mean by this odd phrase? Sodium chloride, the most common mineral used for table salt, is very stable. Left in a dry place it can remained unchanged for thousands of years and will still taste salty. Jesus’ message was intended as metaphor and not as a chemistry lesson, so factual accuracy was not his goal. 

The most common explanation given for Jesus’ metaphor is that the Dead Sea salt commonly used in the Levant, was not pure sodium chloride but a white powdery mix of several minerals. It was not unlike common salty seasoning mixtures of today, like all purpose seasoning. In the Dead Sea salt mix, the sodium chloride was the most soluble mineral. If left exposed to moisture, the sodium chloride could leach out of the seasoning powder leaving it bland. Thus Jesus’ question, “how can it be made salty again?” 

This metaphor comes just after the beatitudes and seems out of place at first blush. In the beatitudes, Jesus spends 12 verses up-ending his listeners world-view with statements like “blessed are the meek” and “blessed are those who are persecuted”. In verse 12 Jesus lays out his point, “Be glad…your reward is in heaven.”

In verse 13 he then uses the salt metaphor. “You are the salt of the earth.” He is telling his hearers, You are here to bring savoriness to the world, you are here to preserve people’s life by sharing the gospel. This is your purpose as a believer. But, if you lose your saltiness, your purpose, what are you here for? Jesus wanted to remind his followers we are not here to live for ourselves. We have a reason to live for and a job to do. Don’t let the world dilute your purpose. Remember, it only takes a little salt to season a whole recipe. 

Here is a question to ponder.

What are two ways you can be the salt of the earth in someone life this week?

Written by David F. Garner

Christian Outdoor Object Lesson 11: Shine Your Flashlight

Key Verse

"Neither do you light a lamp, and put it under a measuring basket, but on a stand; and it shines to all who are in the house." Matthew 5:15 (WEB)

Lesson

We don’t use candles much anymore today. When traveling outdoors they are not very useful. Instead, we use battery-powered lights such as flashlights and headlamps. Headlamps are very useful tools. They leave the hands free to complete tasks while still providing light exactly where it is needed.

In Matthew 5 we find the familiar Beatitudes Jesus preached during the Sermon on the Mount. In verse 15 Jesus is discussing the Light of the World. Jesus says that we are the light of the world in the previous verse. In His sermon, he makes a very valid point, when you turn a light on, you don’t cover it up. The same would go for a headlamp. You don’t turn it on and then stuff it back in your backpack; that would not do you any good. You could have left it at home and saved weight.

In this example the physical light represents the spiritual light of truth we as Christians have. The spiritual light is exactly what Jesus mentions earlier in this chapter in the Beatitudes—humility, kindness, mercy, peace making. What is funny, is that often, as Christians, we keep the light to ourselves. We read our bibles and go to church, but we keep what we learn to ourselves. We don’t display the light of truth at school or work through our actions. Sometimes our desire to fit in overcomes our desire to share the light we have received.

Its like we have a really nice, expensive headlamp, but instead of bringing it out at night to use around camp, we take it out under cover of our sleeping bags and just stare into it. That’s pretty stupid! We need to use our light and share the light with others.

Of course it is easy to know when you are using your headlamp, you can see the light. But sometimes it is hard to know if we are using our spiritual light. I mean we know when we are living a “good” life because we are not doing anything wrong. But how can we tell if we are sharing our light with other people? How do you know when you have been using your headlamp or flashlight? Of course, the battery starts to run low. You know you have been using it a lot when its time to recharge or change the batteries.

It is the same in our spiritual life. We can know if we have really been sharing our spiritual light when we feel the need to be close to God, to recharge. Jesus spent a lot of time alone in prayer to his Heavenly Father. Why was this? Because he spent a lot of time sharing light through his actions. When we openly practice humility, show kindness to the person others make fun of, have mercy on those who hurt us, and make peace with others, it will cause us to desire more time with God and in his Word.

Questions

What are some other ways to share the spiritual light we have?

Is it wrong to keep the light of truth we have to ourselves?

What are good ways to recharge our spiritual batteries?

Written by David F. Garner
Photo credit: David F. Garner