Luke 14.34-35 “Salt
is good, but if it loses its saltiness, how can it be made salty again?
35 It is fit neither for the soil nor for the manure pile; it is thrown
out. “Whoever has ears to hear, let them hear.” – Jesus
I recently was invited to preach at a local church. Now,
don’t get all excited, Turk gets rare invitations these days. And because the
Great Salt Lick contest happened here in Baker the night before, I shared the
word. I shared about salt. Specifically, this verse. What happens to salt which
loses its taste?
It may be the Jesus
version of “If a tree falls in the forest
and no one is around to hear, does it still make a sound?” Except, Jesus
wasn’t being cute, nor was He joking. He asked them, point blank: “…if salt loses its saltiness, how can it be
made salty again?” Good question.
I have never tasted un-salty salt; I wouldn’t even have known
it if I had; salt’s taste is why we call it salt. The reality is: there is no such thing as un-salty
salt. Salt only tastes salty because it is salt. And Jesus is right – if said salt
becomes un-salty, then it’s
worthless. An un-salty Christian is worthless. He cannot be the salt of the
earth one moment, and not be so the next. Un-salty salt is impossible. It is
not salt.
The point is: being the real deal because one claims to be the real deal. One cannot
claim to be a follower of Jesus Christ and not be salty. If he does and isn’t
(salty), then he’s a fraud. His motivation for saltiness is other than
allegiance and devotion to the Lord of lords and King of kings.
What, in Biblical, spiritual, salvation are we saved from? And what are we saved to? These are huge questions because
without the answer to them we might become tasteless salt. And if we become
salty, what makes us un-salty? Can salt be mixed with other compounds to be
made less salty?
The question is not what people think about our saltiness; the question is what does God think about our saltiness. People
can be fooled. People can be snookered and deceived. Not God. God knows the
heart. God knows the one who claims to be His but is tasteless as sand. If we
claim to be His, we better be His, because He knows whether or not we are His. If He doesn’t give us life,
then there ain’t no life.
Jesus shared His salty thoughts in the context of
explaining to His hearers that there is an actual cost to discipleship; and one
ought to carefully consider that cost before signing on the dotted line. That
means knowing what the expectations are going to be.
I don’t make myself salty. That might be a natural
reaction to my words: to think that one has control over his saltiness. Saltiness
is. Or isn’t. A less than salty salt is no salt at all. Do I flavor and
preserve people’s lives because of my saltiness? Or so people refer a
low-sodium diet when I’m around? If God has indeed made me salty, then do I
make a difference in my daily living for the benefit of others on God’s behalf?
Father, on that
Great Day, You alone with be the Judge of Salt. You will reveal to each one,
his measure of saltiness. That is something to remember, and something to often
consider. May that be said of me – that I considered the cost… Amen
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