Losing Our Saltiness

"You are the salt of the earth. But if the salt loses its saltiness, how can it be made salty again? It is no longer good for anything, except to be thrown out and trampled underfoot."
                                                      Matthew 5:13




In the land of Judea, there is a place called the Valley of Salt (or Jebel Usdum). In this valley, there is a precipice on this mountain that is made up of salt that is about 12 feet in length that continually has some erosion. When you take a piece of salt from this area, you find that this salt has lost its saltiness because it is continually exposed to the elements of rain, sun, and air. Even though it looks like salt, it has no savor, and more identifies with nature than with the inner part of the rock that is solid and salty.

Interestingly, this is the place in the Bible where David killed 18,000 Ammonites (2 Samuel 8:13) on the south of the Dead Sea. Enemies from all sides had joined forces with the Ammonites, including the Syrians, and the Edomites. And yet, with God, these destructive forces were able to be obliterated. Their enemies from the north, south, east, and west were destroyed and David was able to complete what Saul had failed to do. In this, the Bible tells us that the victory was so outstanding that David even made a name for himself.

Because David believed the promises of God, he was a warrior for the things of God. This means that he fought against everything that opposed God and his precepts, and he fought for the things that were important to God. Not only did David defeat the enemies of Israel, but he also destroyed the idols of gold from the enemies. The vessels of gold, however, were dedicated to God for the temple that Solomon would one day build. In other words, David was able to discern what people and things stood against his God and which people and things were dedicated to Him.

In the Bible, there are many references of salt. It is used to season, and purify, and preserve. It is also used for payment and as an asset of wealth. To share salt with another meant to receive hospitality and sustenance from another. God also required that the Hebrews use salt in their religious ceremonies. It was to be added to every grain offering in every ceremony.Elisha healed the bitter waters of Jericho by adding salt to them. God even made a Salt Covenant with David, meaning that it was a covenant that could never be broken.

There are also negative implications when it comes to salt. Abimilech used salt to ruin the soil of his enemy so that the soil would remain barren. Lot's wife was turned into a pillar of salt when she disobeyed God's commands and turned around to see what was happening in Sodom and Gommarah.

Symbolically, salt is used in the Bible to signify usefulness, value, purification, fidelity, durability, loyalty, and permanence. As in Abimilech's case, salt is symbolic of retribution. And, in the case of Lot's wife, it is used as a symbol of God's judgment.

A salt that loses its saltiness is a salt that is contaminated with other minerals and therefore causes a blandness or an unpleasant taste. This occurs when we abandon the Gospel and more specifically when we adulterate it with things that are not from God. The apostle, Mark, uses salt to explain how terrible the judgment will be in eternity when we do this (Mark 9:49). And, in the passage above, Jesus tells us that this who contaminate the Gospel are not good for anything except to be trampled underfoot.

My greatest concern for our nation today is not all the ungodliness we see everywhere (although I do hate it). It is not in how divided we are as a people (although I hate that, too). It is not even in how lost we are as a society (really hate). Instead, my greatest concern today is in how the Gospel is being contaminated and down-played as being antiquated and no longer relevant.

Divisive directives are both being added and subtracted from what God has shown us is right in His Word.  We are subverting the purity of the Gospel with perversion and violence and we are now reeling in the wake of these decisions. We now have a whole generation (for the first time) who basically do not know God or even have an understanding of what genuine faith is. In fact, the number of non-believers in the millennial group has quadrupled in the last 30 years.

Many that are within the church do not really know or understand what God's Word says. In today's society especially, attending church once a week will never be enough to sustain us when the trajectory of paganism continues to escalate. We have to be in the Word and we must be equipped to give a defense of what we believe and in Whom we believe.

We must, like David did, believe the promises of God and become a warrior for the things of God. In doing so, it is imperative to know what things we are to fight for and what things we are to fight against. So many are confused and deceived in this area. And this confusion and deception will continue to increase if we are not solidly standing on God's Word alone.

If salt in the Bible symbolizes: usefulness, value, purification, fidelity, durability, loyalty, and permanence, we must ask ourselves if these truths apply to our own lives, as well. If close friends and family were to describe your best attributes, would these words be used to describe your life? If you are unsure, ask three people who are the closest to you. Then, ask God to reveal to you both your strengths and the areas of your life that need to become more salty.

More than ever today, the Church needs savor. Too many in it have become exposed to wind, sun, and rain and can no longer really identify with the inner Rock inside, which is found in the person of Jesus. My prayer is that these dry bones will once again hear the Word of the Lord, receive His breath, and live (Ezekiel 37:4-5). Instead of forever losing our saltiness, we will be revived and become a large, vast army of the Lord prepared and ready to do His bidding!


   *Only God Can Preserve Our Land, And Chances Are That He Will Do It With Salt.*