I heard on the radio today that there was another snowfall, snarling traffic and shutting down businesses and schools. Added to the snow problems was the cold. It was so cold that the salt wasn’t melting the ice on the roads. Salt, apparently, needs a certain temperature to actually be any good. If it goes below that level, then the chemical reaction that leads to ice melting just doesn’t work. This report indicated that the air was too cold, that the brine they were spraying on the road was freezing and that the salt just added to the grit but not the grip. And, wait for it, this was in Oklahoma and Arkansas!
Yikes. Of course we are now supposed to interject some apocalyptic scenario and invite everyone to hunker down for the duration. But I’m not going to do that. I’ve got other fish to fry. Or other vegetables to flash freeze, as the case may be. In fact, I brought all that up so that I could talk about salt.
I love salt. More than is healthy for me, I know that. And if I didn’t know that, I have a wife who is good at telling me. But still, I love it. Given a choice between a salty snack and a sweet one, I’ll go for the salty almost every time. So, naturally I was excited when Jesus called me salt. Well, ok, he called you salt too. But what was he really saying? What does it mean to be salty Christians?
Matthew 5:13-20 "You are the salt of the earth; but if salt has lost its taste, how can its saltiness be restored? It is no longer good for anything, but is thrown out and trampled under foot. 14 "You are the light of the world. A city built on a hill cannot be hid. 15 No one after lighting a lamp puts it under the bushel basket, but on the lampstand, and it gives light to all in the house. 16 In the same way, let your light shine before others, so that they may see your good works and give glory to your Father in heaven. 17 "Do not think that I have come to abolish the law or the prophets; I have come not to abolish but to fulfill. 18 For truly I tell you, until heaven and earth pass away, not one letter, not one stroke of a letter, will pass from the law until all is accomplished. 19 Therefore, whoever breaks one of the least of these commandments, and teaches others to do the same, will be called least in the kingdom of heaven; but whoever does them and teaches them will be called great in the kingdom of heaven. 20 For I tell you, unless your righteousness exceeds that of the scribes and Pharisees, you will never enter the kingdom of heaven.
You’re right, I could have gone with the light image and saved a potentially unhealthy situation. But, like I said, I’m a salt guy. Besides it is winter, and you can’t help but be salt minded in these cold and icy days. But then the first question is what does salt (or light, if you’re on a low sodium diet) have to do with the law?
The second half of our passage doesn’t seem to be about the same subject as the first half. It is like Jesus’ Sermon on the Mount is one of those stream of consciousness kind of sermons with a whole bunch of stuff that are only connected because they are presented by the same preacher. A sermon I wouldn’t give high marks to, by the way. (Yes, a part of the timing of this Bible Study is because I am heading off to teach my preaching class again this weekend. Let’s just say I’m steeling myself for a wide range in preaching ability.)
Some, in fact most, biblical scholars claim that this was indeed a collection of random sayings that Matthew constructed into the form we call the Sermon on the Mount. That the original sermon was mostly the beatitudes (some argue) or some of the other sayings, but that Matthew just piled on anything he remembered. Or, others argue, Matthew had an agenda and shaped the sayings of Jesus to meet that agenda whatever it was.
Well, could be. But I prefer to take the stance that says this is the sermon we have so lets listen to it. Which brings me back to my question, what does salt have to do with the law?
Matthew presents Jesus as pretty concerned with obedience. Salt and light seem kind of free form, just get out there and be, just influence, just mentor. Do as seems good to you. But then to follow that up with that bit about not changing even a pen stroke of the letter of the law, well, that doesn’t seem terribly Jesus-like, does it?
Maybe it was a mood swing, maybe it was a change in the wind. Maybe he didn’t mean it just like it sounded. Or maybe he did. Maybe he was trying to get us to understand the connection between law and spirit. Maybe he was trying to help us understand the urgency of living our faith in demonstrable ways. Maybe he was hoping that we might grab hold of the seriousness of salt.
Wait. What? Yes, the seriousness of salt. That’s what I said. What was the invitation here, or the call and challenge here? Normally, when I hear about the call to be the salt of the earth, it is presented in terms of preservative and flavor. Those are functions of salt. So, as followers of Jesus, we are called to bring flavor to the world around us. Our presence ought to enhance our surroundings, ought to flavor our communities. Our surroundings ought to be difference because we are in them, because we are a part of them. Salt adds to the taste. That’s what we ought to do.
Secondly, salt is a preservative. More so in earlier times, before refrigeration, salt was used to make sure that food would last into the winter months. So, Christians who are salty are those who preserve what is valuable, what is nourishing for our wider community. We are the storehouse of traditions, not simply for the sake of those traditions, but because those traditions feed God’s people. Those traditions sustain God’s people in difficult times, times of scarcity when we can no longer rely on our own resources, but need the resources that come from beyond us.
Like I said, that is what I usually hear and preach. And I like them, they make sense, but I want to add two more understandings of salt. Or perhaps two more uses of salt that might be a little beyond the traditional understandings.
Did you know that in Jesus’ day salt was used as fertilizer? It is true, says one historian. In our day we see an overly salted field as a bad thing. But in those days salt was often added to the mineral mix of the land in order to produce better crops. So, perhaps Jesus had in mind this use and was encouraging His followers to be fertilizer, to be that which enhances growth. We are in the seed planting business, in the crop tending business. We try to make things grow. Relationships, community, service, commitment, covenant, understanding, hope – all kind of things need to be tended to grow more fruitfully. Be the salt of the earth that together we might help peace grow.
And then, of course, February in Indiana, you can’t help but think of one more use of salt. Road salt. It is everywhere. We hate it on our cars. We don’t like the stains it makes on our carpets in the church. But we are awfully glad it is there on the roads and the sidewalks. Because we all need help getting a grip. You are the salt of the earth. You are the ones who help people get a grip. Who help our neighbors maintain their footing. Who enable the journey to continue. Without this salt, we might slide into all kinds of things. We might slip off the paths, we might crash into the ditches. We need help getting a grip. We need one another. We need salt. You are the salt of the earth. Get a grip.
Yikes. Of course we are now supposed to interject some apocalyptic scenario and invite everyone to hunker down for the duration. But I’m not going to do that. I’ve got other fish to fry. Or other vegetables to flash freeze, as the case may be. In fact, I brought all that up so that I could talk about salt.
I love salt. More than is healthy for me, I know that. And if I didn’t know that, I have a wife who is good at telling me. But still, I love it. Given a choice between a salty snack and a sweet one, I’ll go for the salty almost every time. So, naturally I was excited when Jesus called me salt. Well, ok, he called you salt too. But what was he really saying? What does it mean to be salty Christians?
Matthew 5:13-20 "You are the salt of the earth; but if salt has lost its taste, how can its saltiness be restored? It is no longer good for anything, but is thrown out and trampled under foot. 14 "You are the light of the world. A city built on a hill cannot be hid. 15 No one after lighting a lamp puts it under the bushel basket, but on the lampstand, and it gives light to all in the house. 16 In the same way, let your light shine before others, so that they may see your good works and give glory to your Father in heaven. 17 "Do not think that I have come to abolish the law or the prophets; I have come not to abolish but to fulfill. 18 For truly I tell you, until heaven and earth pass away, not one letter, not one stroke of a letter, will pass from the law until all is accomplished. 19 Therefore, whoever breaks one of the least of these commandments, and teaches others to do the same, will be called least in the kingdom of heaven; but whoever does them and teaches them will be called great in the kingdom of heaven. 20 For I tell you, unless your righteousness exceeds that of the scribes and Pharisees, you will never enter the kingdom of heaven.
You’re right, I could have gone with the light image and saved a potentially unhealthy situation. But, like I said, I’m a salt guy. Besides it is winter, and you can’t help but be salt minded in these cold and icy days. But then the first question is what does salt (or light, if you’re on a low sodium diet) have to do with the law?
The second half of our passage doesn’t seem to be about the same subject as the first half. It is like Jesus’ Sermon on the Mount is one of those stream of consciousness kind of sermons with a whole bunch of stuff that are only connected because they are presented by the same preacher. A sermon I wouldn’t give high marks to, by the way. (Yes, a part of the timing of this Bible Study is because I am heading off to teach my preaching class again this weekend. Let’s just say I’m steeling myself for a wide range in preaching ability.)
Some, in fact most, biblical scholars claim that this was indeed a collection of random sayings that Matthew constructed into the form we call the Sermon on the Mount. That the original sermon was mostly the beatitudes (some argue) or some of the other sayings, but that Matthew just piled on anything he remembered. Or, others argue, Matthew had an agenda and shaped the sayings of Jesus to meet that agenda whatever it was.
Well, could be. But I prefer to take the stance that says this is the sermon we have so lets listen to it. Which brings me back to my question, what does salt have to do with the law?
Matthew presents Jesus as pretty concerned with obedience. Salt and light seem kind of free form, just get out there and be, just influence, just mentor. Do as seems good to you. But then to follow that up with that bit about not changing even a pen stroke of the letter of the law, well, that doesn’t seem terribly Jesus-like, does it?
Maybe it was a mood swing, maybe it was a change in the wind. Maybe he didn’t mean it just like it sounded. Or maybe he did. Maybe he was trying to get us to understand the connection between law and spirit. Maybe he was trying to help us understand the urgency of living our faith in demonstrable ways. Maybe he was hoping that we might grab hold of the seriousness of salt.
Wait. What? Yes, the seriousness of salt. That’s what I said. What was the invitation here, or the call and challenge here? Normally, when I hear about the call to be the salt of the earth, it is presented in terms of preservative and flavor. Those are functions of salt. So, as followers of Jesus, we are called to bring flavor to the world around us. Our presence ought to enhance our surroundings, ought to flavor our communities. Our surroundings ought to be difference because we are in them, because we are a part of them. Salt adds to the taste. That’s what we ought to do.
Secondly, salt is a preservative. More so in earlier times, before refrigeration, salt was used to make sure that food would last into the winter months. So, Christians who are salty are those who preserve what is valuable, what is nourishing for our wider community. We are the storehouse of traditions, not simply for the sake of those traditions, but because those traditions feed God’s people. Those traditions sustain God’s people in difficult times, times of scarcity when we can no longer rely on our own resources, but need the resources that come from beyond us.
Like I said, that is what I usually hear and preach. And I like them, they make sense, but I want to add two more understandings of salt. Or perhaps two more uses of salt that might be a little beyond the traditional understandings.
Did you know that in Jesus’ day salt was used as fertilizer? It is true, says one historian. In our day we see an overly salted field as a bad thing. But in those days salt was often added to the mineral mix of the land in order to produce better crops. So, perhaps Jesus had in mind this use and was encouraging His followers to be fertilizer, to be that which enhances growth. We are in the seed planting business, in the crop tending business. We try to make things grow. Relationships, community, service, commitment, covenant, understanding, hope – all kind of things need to be tended to grow more fruitfully. Be the salt of the earth that together we might help peace grow.
And then, of course, February in Indiana, you can’t help but think of one more use of salt. Road salt. It is everywhere. We hate it on our cars. We don’t like the stains it makes on our carpets in the church. But we are awfully glad it is there on the roads and the sidewalks. Because we all need help getting a grip. You are the salt of the earth. You are the ones who help people get a grip. Who help our neighbors maintain their footing. Who enable the journey to continue. Without this salt, we might slide into all kinds of things. We might slip off the paths, we might crash into the ditches. We need help getting a grip. We need one another. We need salt. You are the salt of the earth. Get a grip.
Shalom,
Derek
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