Follow The Rabbiናሙና

Have you ever noticed that Jesus often said things that seem confusing? 

Like when he said that unsalty salt should not be put on a manure pile. Ever wondered what that means? When he said this, Jesus was referring to his followers being like salt in the world, and that if we lose our “saltiness”, we’re not fit “for the manure pile” (Luke 14:34), which only makes sense if you know why salty salt is good on a manure pile and unsalty salt is bad for a manure pile. 

Well, let me explain.

See, in Jesus day, people cooked over fires that used dried animal manure as fuel because there wasn’t much wood at the edge of the desert where they lived. Over the years, the people of Israel learned that when they mixed salt with the manure, the salt caused a chemical reaction that made the fire burn brighter and hotter for longer. After a while, this process broke down the salt causing it to become unsalty, and so the chemical reaction with the manure stopped.  

So Jesus was saying that like salt, when his followers mix with the manure in the world, we are able to cause God’s word to burn brighter and hotter! 

And here’s the question of the day: How will you be salt at work, or school, or in your family, or neighborhood today? 

For reflection:

"Salt is good, but if it loses its saltiness, how can it be made salty again? - Luke 14:34