Good Morning Beloved
It is so good to have all of you here today.
All praise and glory to God for the assembling of His people!
Heavenly Father,All praise and glory to God for the assembling of His people!
We come today, praising Your faithfulness,
giving thanks for Your mercy, seeking Your peace and joy.
Today, we gather to make joyful noise.
To sing praises unto You Lord
We seek to follow You
lead us to those who are hurting
those who are hungry and thirsty
those needing Your help
Use us O Lord
Today we pray for those who face health challenges
those who are experiencing financial difficulties, homelessness
Open our hearts and hands to their needs
Help us to love them as they are, where they are
as You have demonstrated in Your love for us
Fill our hearts with Your compassion
Grant us Your peace, show us Your mercy
These things we ask and pray, In Jesus' name
Amen
Today's Message is: You Are The Salt Of The Earth
Our text today is found in Matthew chapter 5 verses 13-16
"You are the salt of the earth; but if the sale has become tasteless, how can it be made salty again? It is no longer good for anything, except to be thrown out and trampled under foot by men.
“You are the light of the world. A city set on a hill cannot be hidden; nor does anyone light a lamp and put it under a basket, but on the lampstand, and it gives light to all who are in the house. Let your light shine before men in such a way that they may see your good works, and glorify your Father who is in heaven."
Matthew 5:13-16
Most people think of salt as the substance in the white shaker next to the pepper.
When we think of salt, we think of adding flavor to our food.
French Fries would not be near as good as they are, without salt.
I can't eat some food without salt.
My veggies must have salt on them.
Soup has to have salt.
I don't know if you have ever tried eating food without any salt...it doesn't taste very good at all.
For most of us, salt is just a way of enhancing our food to please our taste buds.
But did you know that without salt we would die?
The human body cannot survive without sodium chloride.
Every cell in our body contains sodium, and our cells cannot survive without it.
Animals cannot survive without salt.
It is a necessary element in the diet of humans and animals!
But did you know that salt has other uses though....
According to the Salt Institute, salt was being used for many other things long before recorded history in 2700 BC.
It was used to heal.
To preserve.
To purify.
To enhance flavor.
Salt was used throughout biblical times.
In fact, we find it mentioned some 45 times in the bible.
It was a necessary part of Israel's sacrifices;
"Every grain offering of yours, moreover, you shall season with salt, so that the salt of the covenant of your God shall not be lacking from your grain offering; with all your offerings you shall offer salt."
Leviticus 2:13
Every meat offering had to be seasoned with salt.
In another Old Testament story, Elisha used salt during one of his miracles;
While Elisha dwelt at Jericho, the men of the city approached him about the city's impure water.
Because of the bad water, the city's soil was not good for growing crops.
Elisha responded by requesting a new cruse of salt, which he cast into the waters and declared;
"He went out to the spring of water and threw salt in it and said, “Thus says the Lord, ‘I have purified these waters; there shall not be from there death or unfruitfulness any longer.’” So the waters have been purified to this day, according to the word of Elisha which he spoke."
2 Kings 2:21-22
Notice it says, "the Lord healed the waters"...why then was the salt thrown in?
It may be that God performed this miracle to demonstrate the effectiveness of salt, knowing that centuries later He would use it as a description of His church.
In Scripture, it is clear that the people of biblical times understood the many purposes of salt.
Yet still, some people find it amazing that Jesus used salt to describe His Church.
But I believe Jesus knew which substance would best describe his people.
He chose a substance simple enough that everybody would understand.
Yet complex enough to describe the purpose of His Church!
Today, beloved, I want to focus on the significance of Jesus statement:
"You are the salt of the earth."
Most of us of know and understand that the moment you apply salt to a substance it begins to influence it.
Isn't that true?
When it comes into contact with food, it permeates the food.
It doesn't just stay on the surface, but it saturates the entire product.
When you apply salt to ice
It immediately begins to penetrate through the ice, melting it back into water.
Why is that?
Because salt is not content to just remain on the surface.
Since Jesus described us, His church, as the salt of the earth, He let us know that we have the ability to influence everything from the moment that we come into contact with.
It is through the power of the Holy Spirit working within us, that we can influence others;
"but you will receive power when the Holy Spirit has come upon you; and you shall be My witnesses both in Jerusalem, and in all Judea and Samaria, and even to the remotest part of the earth."
Acts 1:8
It is His Spirit in us that provides the saltiness.
Without His Spirit, we lose our influence.
God's power working in and through us allows us to become the salt of the earth.
By describing us as the salt of the earth, Jesus was also conveying to us our purpose on the earth!
Our purpose is to influence others and not be influenced by the world.
One of the most amazing qualities of salt is its ability to purify.
Salt kills germs.
It works silently below the surface cleaning out impurities.
That is what the Holy Spirit does for us.
It works in us cleaning out all of the impurities of our carnal nature.
How many of us realize that even we desperately need that help?
In Matthew 5, Jesus said that if we get angry at somebody without cause, we are in danger of judgment.
He stated that to even look upon a woman with lust, is equivalent to adultery.
These challenges are stricter than the laws of the Old Testament.
The only chance we have of meeting these challenges is through the power of the Holy Spirit.
His Spirit works in us to cause us to overcome our own carnality, our intrinsic sinful nature.
This is only one reason we need the Holy Spirit...and believe me, there are many more.
Believers, who are filled with the Holy Spirit, are like salt, in the sense that they help purify the areas of the lives they touch.
When the number of believers in a community increases
the more righteous that community becomes.
The problem with our world today, the more sinful that community becomes,
is when the number of believers in that community has decreased.
Proverbs 14:34 tells us,
"Righteousness exalts a nation,
But sin is a disgrace to any people."
You are the salt of the earth.
You are a purifying agent in your community and in your family.
They are looking to you!
That is why it is important to be involved in the community.
We need to get more salt out to where it is needed most...outside these walls.
Can I get a witness?
Salt is a preserving agent.
For centuries, mankind has used salt as a food preservative.
People learned long ago that by rubbing salt into meat, they could keep the meat indefinitely.
Before the invention of the refrigerator, this application was a necessity in the preservation of beef, poultry, and fish.
It was the only way of preserving and sealing meat for future use.
That is what the Holy Spirit does for us...
"In Him, you also, after listening to the message of truth, the gospel of your salvation—having also believed, you were sealed in Him with the Holy Spirit of promise, who is given as a pledge of our inheritance, with a view to the redemption of God’s own possession, to the praise of His glory."
Ephesians 1:13-14
This is what the Holy Spirit does for us:
The Holy Spirit seals us, it preserves us until the redemption of the purchased possession.
The Holy Spirit keeps us until we can redeem eternal life with Jesus Christ.
Long before we had modern medicine, salt was used to help heal injuries.
Armies always carried large quantities of salt with them.
They poured salt on open wounds to cleanse and heal.
History reveals that thousands of Napoleon's troops died during their retreat from Moscow because they had run out of salt to heal their soldiers wounds.
Salt heals.
How many of you have ever gargled with salt water?
It helps heal a sore throat.
Salt heals!
In the same way, God's people are the salt of the earth.
The Holy Spirit works in us and through us to heal those we pray for.
In Mark chapter 16, the Scripture refers to Holy Spirit filled believers laying hands on the sick and healing them.
Salt heals!
You have the power in you to heal the sick!
Jesus said you are the salt of the earth!
What else does salt do? Salt produces thirst and enhances flavor.
When you consume salty foods, you get very thirsty.
When I was growing up, one of the most popular flavors of potato chips was salt and vinegar.
Anyone ever try to eat a bag of salt and vinegar chips without a drink?
You get real thirsty.
Salt produces thirst.
As salt of the earth, we create thirst amongst those around us.
They see the joy in our lives.
They see the peace and happiness.
They see the change in our lives!
...and they want to experience it for themselves. Thirst!
That is what recently happened here....
Some of you heard the Word, you are filled.
You encounter others who see and hear your joy, peace and happiness.
Those people ask, "Hey, what's changed. You re different. How do I get what you've found?"
You invited them to attend service.
They show up, they join us!
They felt something occur in them, and come back for more..
Lives get transformed by the power of the Word of God!
Beloved, that is how it is supposed to work!
In and through us!
All by the transforming power of the Word Of God!
You are going to create a lot of hunger in your friends and family.
That is how God designed it!
Isn't that awesome?
Salt also enhances flavor.
God's Spirit in us enhances the quality of our lives.
We have love, joy, peace, hope, patience.... That's the fruit of the Spirit!
This all enhances the quality of our lives.
When our friends and family begin to see this it draws them to us.
In marriages where only one spouse is saved the unsaved spouse still benefits from the saved spouse because their salt enhances their union.
They don't respond in anger, they are more patient.
They aren't easily triggered by hateful comments.
They have inner peace, even amidst the chaos!
"For the unbelieving husband is sanctified through his wife, and the unbelieving wife is sanctified through her believing husband..."
1 Corinthians 7:14
In fact the Scripture states in 1 Peter 3:1-2, that the unbeliever can be won to the Lord in this way:
"In the same way, you wives, be submissive to your own husbands so that even if any of them are disobedient to the word, they may be won without a word by the behavior of their wives, as they observe your chaste and respectful behavior."
Your conversation and your life style causes hunger and thirst in them.
They can see God working in you and through you.
You become a living testimony....salt of the earth!
Jesus understood very well what He meant when He described you as the salt of the earth!
I want to share our text again;
"You are the salt of the earth; but if the salt has become tasteless, how can it be made salty again? It is no longer good for anything, except to be thrown out and trampled under foot by men."
Matthew 5:13
But take note:
It states here that salt can lose it savor, or influence.
Salt can lose its effectiveness.
Salt is preserved by being kept dry.
That is why we keep it in a container.
Salt that is left unprotected and out in the open loses its effectiveness.
It becomes diluted by the elements in its surrounding.
In the same way, if we allow ourselves to be exposed to the influences of this world, we dilute our effectiveness.
We are effective only to the extent that we remain pure.
If we allow our surroundings to compromise our morals, our values and behaviors...
we then dilute it's power in us.
Beloved, that is why God called us to be "set apart" and live a separated life;
"Therefore, come out from their midst and be separate,” says the Lord.
“And do not touch what is unclean;
And I will welcome you."
2 Corinthians 6:17
Let me just make this as plain as I can, there is absolutely nothing or no one in this world worth losing your power over.
There is nothing in this world worth losing your Holy Spirit over.
We are in the world but not of the world!
Can I get a witness?
There are some in Christianity who believe that once you have the effectiveness of salt in you, you can never lose it...
But that's NOT what Jesus teaches!
Jesus said, " but if the salt has lost its savor."
This lets us know that we can lose our effectiveness as the "salt of the earth."
We can lose the power of the Holy Spirit in our lives.
Remaining saved isn't the same thing, we can be saved but lose our power of the Holy Spirit.
"I testify to everyone who hears the words of the prophecy of this book: if anyone adds to them, God will add to him the plagues which are written in this book; and if anyone takes away from the words of the book of this prophecy, God will take away his part from the tree of life and from the holy city, which are written in this book."
Revelation 22:18-19
The Bible says, narrow is the way to eternal life, and few there be that find it.
We must remain effective as Christians!
Salt does not lose its effectiveness immediately, it happens over time.
When things begin to deteriorate, they do so over time.
Beloved, the same is true in our walk with God.
Nobody backslides overnight.
It is a process that takes place over time.
It begins by allowing yourself to be exposed to worldly influences.
Over time, when you don't feed your soul daily on His Word, you begin to grow accustomed to the things of the world and become less sensitive to the things of God.
You lose your savor.
You lose your influence.
You lose your power.
And eventually, You lose your Holy Spirit Power.
If all you do in you spare time is surf the web and watch TV, you will eventually lose your influence! You will lose your effectiveness and power!
That is why we must at all times guard our condition and examine our motives every day!
"Test yourselves to see if you are in the faith; examine yourselves! Or do you not recognize this about yourselves, that Jesus Christ is in you—unless indeed you fail the test?"
2 Corinthians 13:5
We have to continually test ourselves to make sure that Jesus is in us!
That is why we repent every day.
We pray every day.
We read our bibles every day so we know what the Lord expects of us.
If we do these things daily, Jesus remains in us.
We must examine ourselves to know if we are in the faith!
Nobody wakes up in the morning saying, "I think I will fail God today."
It happens because we don't examine ourselves in the light of God's word.
By examining what the Word of God says about our relationship with God we know if we are in the faith!
Beloved, this is critical!
Satan wants us to think that we are in the faith...when really they are not!
This is the doctrine called easy believism.
It states that all you have to do is believe in God and accept Him...and you are saved.
That is why Paul said examine yourself, whether you are in the faith!
We must examine our thoughts, our speech, our behaviors... Do they line up with God's standards?
Work out your salvation with fear and trembling!
Repent.
Get baptized in Jesus Name.
Be filled with the Holy Spirit.
Live a holy life.
God wants us to know when we are saved!
Let's give the Lord some praise!
"You are the salt of the earth; but if the salt has become tasteless, how can it be made salty again? It is no longer good for anything, except to be thrown out and trampled under foot by men."
Matthew 5:13
When we lose our savor, or our effectiveness, Jesus said we become good for nothing.
Since we are the salt of the earth, we are the only chance this world has for eternal salvation!
If the church loses its effectiveness then the world is doomed!
Jesus was very clear in His description of those who lose their effectiveness!
They will be cast out and trodden under by man.
Cast out is a phrase the Jesus used in reference to a person's lost soul.
The church is called to be effective salt! That is our mission.
That is our mandate.
And nothing less will do!
"but the sons of the kingdom will be cast out into the outer darkness; in that place there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth."
Matthew 8:12
Mark 9:50 teaches us, "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."
This scripture may sound kind of crazy, but it is true...if the salt loses its saltiness how will it season anything?
It is the saltiness of salt that makes it so valuable.
It is the ability to season or influence a substance that makes salt what it is.
If salt loses this ability to heal, to flavor, it is no longer salt.
If we are the salt of the earth, and we lose our saltiness, how will we change anybody?
If we cannot be effective as a Christian, are we really a Christian?
This is why the Holy Spirit is so important...
It is His Spirit working in us is what makes us effective!
We have no power aside from that which has been given unto us!
I don't care how good of a preacher or disciple you think you are!
The power within us is not our own!
It is not by might.
It is not by power.
But by My Spirit says the Lord.
Can I get a witness?
Salt is not effective until it is scattered.
Salt does not do anything by sitting in the salt shaker, or sitting in the box.
It is available to use, but it does no good until it is shaken or scattered over the food or intended substance.
The fact that we are filled with the Holy Spirit and sitting in a church pew does little for us.
We must allow our gifts to be used!
For us to be effective we must allow the Spirit to be scattered everywhere we go.
As long as we scatter It, It will work.
It will cleanse.
It will heal.
It will purify.
It will change people.
It will create hunger and thirst in people.
We must shake a little bit of the salt off at work.
Shake some off at home.
At school.
At the gas station.
At the grocery store.
In our neighborhoods.
There are far too many churches that are storing up salt in the pews and inside the walls of the church.
That is not how God planned it.
We must get outside the walls and into our communities.
One person can't do it all by themselves.
Every person must do their part.
My prayer today is that God would shake this church, each one of us out into our communities!
Let's come and pray that God would cause us to be effective in our world.
Pray that the Holy Spirit would reveal opportunities and open the right doors.
It's already happening!
But there are some here today, that are not allowing others to be affected by their salt.
God wants everybody to be the salt of the earth!
And now may the Lord bless you and keep you;
the Lord make His face shine upon you,
And be gracious to you;
The Lord lift up His countenance upon you,
And give you peace.
Now and forever, in Jesus' name
Amen
Brian Monzon Ministries