What Does It Mean To Be The Salt of The Earth?

"Let your speech always be gracious, seasoned with salt, so that you may know how you ought to answer each person." Colossians 4:6

This morning, my devotional pulled from Colossians in a week-long study on grace. The topic today was grace in relationships. The English teacher in me went on a deep-dive of context clues. Graceful speech is seasoned with salt. But what is the salt the scripture is referring to?

In Matthew 5:13, Jesus says, "You are the salt of the earth," when referring to His followers. This was part of His Sermon On The Mount.

He said:

³ “Blessed are the poor in spirit, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.⁴ Blessed are those who mourn, for they will be comforted.⁵ Blessed are the meek, for they will inherit the earth.⁶ Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness, for they will be filled.⁷ Blessed are the merciful, for they will be shown mercy.⁸ Blessed are the pure in heart, for they will see God.⁹ Blessed are the peacemakers, for they will be called children of God.¹⁰ Blessed are those who are persecuted because of righteousness, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven. ¹¹ “Blessed are you when people insult you, persecute you and falsely say all kinds of evil against you because of me. ¹² Rejoice and be glad, because great is your reward in heaven, for in the same way they persecuted the prophets who were before you.

Salt and Light

¹³ “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. ¹⁴ “You are the light of the world. A town built on a hill cannot be hidden. ¹⁵ 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. ¹⁶ In the same way, let your light shine before others, that they may see your good deeds and glorify your Father in heaven.

Salt is godly wisdom and understanding that comes from seeking the Lord and His truth.

We see certain phrases and descriptions used in Matthew 5 before Jesus ever says, "YOU are the salt of the earth."

• those who hunger and thirst for righteousness

• those who are merciful

• those who are pure in heart

• those who are the peacemakers

Believers know we are incapable of being any of these things without Jesus and His Holy Spirit. When we seek His Word, hungering and thirsting for righteousness and truth, His Word becomes the soil our heart is planted in. And what is planted, grows. We are indwelled with His Holy Spirit and we begin to demonstrate the fruit of the spirit. We become more gracious, merciful, pure, and choose peace over chaos. We become the salt of the earth.

When you understand the usefulness of salt, the metaphor becomes even more revealing. Salt is used in flavoring, preservation, baking and curing, first aid, cleaning, gardening, and even in chemical production, de-icing, and water softening. There are many ways salt can be used that all lead to the preservation of the body and of the home. We are most familiar with the use of salt in the kitchen.

Salt preserves, inhibits spoilage.

Salt preserves what would otherwise decay. Godly wisdom likewise preserves mankind in a corrupted world. Referring back to Colossians: When we understand the Word of God, we preserve our saltiness, and our ability to preserve mankind by answering every person with truth. When we know the truth, we are able to spread the truth. When we lose sight of the truth or no longer seek the truth--we lose our saltiness or effectiveness. And Jesus says, once salt has lost its flavor, it is no longer good for anything.

Obviously, we know we can return to the source of the salt. We can return to Jesus and He will renew us. He will make us effective again, because He was the One who did it in the first place. But the metaphor still rings true, that without Jesus, we lose our effectiveness to spread the gospel, to speak truth, to be the salt of the earth.

There are many references of salt in the Bible, but I want to close with one from 2 Kings 2:19-22. Elisha throws salt into a bad spring, and God heals the water so that it no longer causes death or bareness. "Thus says the Lord, I have healed the water."

We still use salt today to kill bacteria and soothe a sore throat. Gargling salt water is often recommended to prevent illness and is an effective, budget-friendly way to thin or clear mucus, prevent infection, reduce inflammation, etc.

Salt is healing, just like the Word of God is.

When Jesus calls His followers the salt of the earth, He is essentially saying you now--through Me--have the wisdom and understanding to heal the world. Sometimes, like salt in an open wound, healing speech stings. Proverbs 27:6 reveals, "Faithful are the wounds of a friend." Proverbs 12:18 says, "There is one whose rash words are like sword thrusts, but the tongue of the wise brings healing."

Being the salt of the earth isn't just about having godly wisdom and understanding. It's about being gracious in your delivery of wisdom that your words may heal rather than condemn.

And that is where I leave you. Go be the salt of the earth. Go speak healing truth with grace. Go be the light in the world that draws others to the Father. 🤍