Unsalty Salt

March 8

Numbers 1

Psalm 31:19-24

Proverbs 7:13-17

Mark 9:42-10:12

Unsalty Salt

“For everyone will be salted with fire.  Salt is good; but if the salt becomes unsalty, with what will you make it salty again?  Have salt in yourselves and be at peace with one another." Mark 9:49-50 LSB

Salt has gotten a bad reputation in the past few decades.  Most of us have grown up with the idea that salt is bad for you and you need to limit your intake of it.  It has been linked to conditions like high blood pressure, heart disease and even some cancers.  In Biblical times, salt was a necessity.  It was a preservative and it was a purifying agent, not to mention that it made things taste better.  Sodium chloride is a stable compound and does not lose its saltiness.  Unlike most spices it cannot degrade over time and has no expiration date.  So what was Jesus talking about when He asked what good salt would be if it lost its saltiness?  After all, He made salt so He knows its chemical properties.  Apparently, most salt in Israel during Jesus’ day was dredged from the Dead Sea.  In the process of dredging it, as the water evaporated the pure salt leeched out as well, leaving a residue of other minerals and so it was not unusual for the saltiness of the salt to diminish.  The only way for salt to lose its saltiness is for it to become diluted due to impurities.  When this happened it was not as effective in preserving and purifying and it did not add as much flavor to food.   

            If we examine Mark 9:42-48 we get the context for Jesus’ reference to salt.  He is explaining to His disciples that discipleship is costly.  If we choose to follow Jesus we will be purified with fire.  He warned His listeners about causing others to stumble and then he gave a very clear warning about toying with sin in their own lives.  He makes it clear that there is no room for negotiation with sin, there is no middle ground.  It must be completely eradicated from our lives.  He is calling for the amputation of anything that causes us to sin.  As disciples of Christ, we are to have an impact on society, preserving it, having a purifying influence and adding a pleasant flavor.   We are to preserve the good in humanity providing love and truth in the darkness.  We are to provide purification as we fight against corruption and evil and we are called to make the world a better place by bringing out the best in the world around us. 

            If, however, we compromise and choose to allow sin to corrupt our lives, we will be like the salt in the Dea Sea and our influence will be leeched out and diminished.  If we fail to take seriously Jesus’ call to purity and holiness and allow impurities to invade our hearts we will lose our saltiness.  Matthew 5:13 gives a stark warning, “You are the salt of the earth; but if the salt has become tasteless, how will it be made salty again?  It is no longer good for anything, except to be thrown out to be trampled underfoot by men.”  (LSB)