After walking with Jesus and seeing the miracles and healings firsthand, the disciples still had to deal with the same flesh issues you and I face every day. Pride and ego are enemies of saltiness. We can become more concerned about preserving our own reputation and place in the church over preserving the Gospel of Jesus Christ. But the Lord always teaches us the opposite of the worldly values. In order to become the greatest, we must become the least. It cannot be about us beloved. It always has to be about Him!
The second usage for salt is the one we all think of first, and that is for flavoring. We use salt on our food routinely to enhance the flavor. Well, as salt of the earth we are supposed to enhance the flavor of life on this planet. We are to be so flavorful that the unsaved should look at us and crave what it is that we have. That is how the lost are brought to the foot of the cross. Preach the Gospel with our lives and our words! How we behave must line up with what it is that we speak. The number one reason given by the un-churched for why they do not go to church is that they feel Christians are hypocrites. That we say one thing but act another way. That we are not flavorful at all to them. I think the root of this un-saltiness is found in our desire to no longer relate to the lost. The modern church has become quite adept at judging the lost but that is simply not scriptural:
What business is it of mine to judge those outside the church? Are you not to judge those inside? God will judge those outside. "Expel the wicked man from among you."-- 1Corinthains 5: 12-13 (NIV)
The truth is that we can sometimes prefer to concentrate on the lost and their sin so we can look away from our own. Instead of being flavorful to them we become rotten towards them. Let us take a look at a prime example from the disciples:
As Jesus was walking along, he saw a man who had been blind from birth. "Rabbi," his disciples asked him, "why was this man born blind? Was it because of his own sins or his parents' sins?" -- John 9: 1-2 (NLT)
Reflect on this for a moment and try to picture the scene. Imagine the pompous sound of the voices of the disciples here. Almost like the Pharisee in the parable of the Pharisee and the publican. Realize too that they did not walk away when they discussed the man and he was blind not deaf! They automatically assume sin as the reason for his sorry lot in life. The man was 38 years old and had been blind for all 38 years. He ceased to become a person in their eyes. He is now a point for a religious debate! Now, before we look too harshly upon the disciples here, how often do we do this as well?
"Look at that one. I struggled in my life but made it. They must be lazy."
"Those protestors should get a job!"
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