The Sermon on the Mount: A 21-Day Guide to the Greatest Sermon Ever PreachedSample

Salt of the Land

“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. You are the light of the world. A town built on a hill cannot be hidden. Neither do people light a lamp and put it under a bowl. Instead they put it on its stand, and it gives light to everyone in the house. In the same way, let your light shine before others, that they may see your good deeds and glorify your Father in heaven.” Matthew 5:13-16 NIV

When we repent (turn away from our sins and chase after Jesus), we become more than we were before. The labels that had been placed on us—things others have said, things we’ve believed about ourselves—lose their power. Because Jesus makes us new. As His followers, we become the salt of the earth and the light of the world.

What does that mean? Great question. Tomorrow, we’ll talk about what it means to be “the light of the world.” Today, we’re going to focus on what Jesus meant when He said we are the “salt of the earth.”

Now, there are loads of different theories about exactly what Jesus meant by “salt of the earth.” Some intelligent and Bible-believing Christians have thought it refers to salt that is added to our food, enhancing the flavor and quality of what we’re eating. Some have interpreted Jesus’ words as an instruction for us to act as preservatives for the world, preventing further decay. Some have written about the purifying power of salt. And still, others have pointed back to the Old Testament references to salt as a symbol of God’s covenantal promises with His people and our responsibility to be faithful to that covenant.

So, which interpretation is the right one? Another great question. While we can’t know for sure which specific idea Jesus had in mind (because He didn’t tell us), we can acknowledge that all of those interpretations are at least helpful because they call us to be people who make the world around us better.

The interpretation we find most compelling is that Jesus was referring to agricultural salts. These salts were used as a type of fertilizer in the ancient world to prepare the ground for a larger harvest of crops.

We think this interpretation makes sense for several reasons:

1. The word that gets translated into “earth” is the same word that gets translated into “land” and “ground.” So, another translation for this verse could be that we are the “salt of the land,” which seems like a clue that the salt He’s referring to would be closely associated with the land.
2. Table salt (sodium chloride) is a very stable compound. Meaning, it rarely loses its saltiness. So, when Jesus says, “If the salt loses its saltiness, how can it be made salty again?” we are left with a few options. Either Jesus doesn’t know much about salt, or He was making a joke because salt can’t lose its saltiness, or He was talking about a kind of salt that can become “unsalty.” Which, once again, points to agricultural salts as the kind of salt Jesus was referring to. Because in the ancient world, the types of salt used for farming were of vastly different qualities. The higher the quality it was, the longer it lasted. The lower quality it was, the quicker it lost its saltiness. And once this fertilizer stopped fertilizing, it was no longer good for anything.
3. Jesus talked way more about farming in His teachings than He did about cooking because He was speaking to people of an agricultural society.
4. Finally, the implications of being the salt of the land carry much more weight and meaning for followers of Jesus than being the salt of the table.

Table salt has the power to purify, to flavor, and to preserve. All important things. But the salt of the land got mixed in with muck and manure to bring life and growth and change to lands that used to be barren. As followers of Jesus, we are called to be His agents, acting in the middle of our dead and dying world, bringing life, growth, and change everywhere we go. How? By preparing the people around us to receive the “seed of God’s word” through faithful living and sacrificial love.

What did Jesus say?

You are the salt of the earth and the light of the world. When we follow Him, we become something better and different from who we used to be. We become people who live and love like He does.

What did Jesus do?

He got knee-deep in the brokenness of our world to rescue us from the powers of darkness and bring us into the kingdom of God. While we were dead in our sins, Jesus planted the gospel in our hearts and breathed life into our souls. And Jesus never lost His saltiness. He is faithful—always.

How can I apply that to my life today?

Stay salty. Remain faithful to Jesus and do your best to be helpful to people. When you do, you will play a part in preparing the soil of their hearts to receive God’s good news and be transformed by His power.

Today, choose to avoid something that creates a temptation for you and commit to doing at least one act of kindness for someone else.