It seems that society around us is falling apart. Things the Bible calls sin are now openly accepted. I live in the United States and have read that some state governments have even made moves to label whole passages from the Bible as hate speech. Christians are confronted with situations on an almost daily basis but are afraid to speak up for fear of being criticized.
We should do an inventory of our heart. Jesus said that we are the salt of the earth (Matthew 5:13). The only vessel God has chosen to convey the Gospel message is the Church. There is no other source of salt if we are not releasing it. The ungodly will not stand up for what is right. The ungodly will not stand up for the unborn and say that if is wrong to terminate their lives. The ungodly will only promote what is convenient for them. It is time for Christians to take a stand. Every single child of God should be willing to stand for truth regardless of the cost.
Many therefore of his disciples, when they had heard this, said, This is an hard saying; who can hear it? When Jesus knew in himself that his disciples murmured at it, he said unto them, Doth this offend you? What and if ye shall see the Son of man ascend up where he was before? It is the spirit that quickeneth; the flesh profiteth nothing: the words that I speak unto you, they are spirit, and they are life. But there are some of you that believe not. For Jesus knew from the beginning who they were that believed not, and who should betray him. And he said, Therefore said I unto you, that no man can come unto me, except it were given unto him of my Father. From that time many of his disciples went back, and walked no more with him. (John 6:60-66)
When the disciples came to Jesus asking for an explanation He just asked them if what He was teaching offended them. I am not sure if Jesus would make it for three years of ministry in todays society. He was not concerned with offending people and did not try to make His sermons ‘seeker friendly’.
Making the word of God of none effect through your tradition, which ye have delivered: and many such like things do ye. (Mark 7:13)
Religious tradition has robbed the Church. We will not be able to convey the truth without first being willing to confront wrong. One of the effects of salt is to kill infection and bacteria. We have too hesitant to stand for truth because of what it could potentially cost us.
Salt will also preserve. It was used before refrigeration to store beef. Studies have shown that this was beneficial because the salt would kill airborne bacteria and preserve the beef to prevent spoilage. A key part of our being salt is that while we are killing the wrong things we will also be preserving truth. I live in the United States and believe that one reason our nation has not been preserved is that the Church is not being salt. We are not preserving truth because of a lack of willingness to pay the price required to stand against ungodliness.
Politics will always reflect the morality of a nation. The reason that the United States government has gotten so bad is a direct result of the erosion of morality in the country as a whole. Our national morality is a direct reflection on the lack of effect that the body of Christ is having today.
I believe that a large reason for the Church not having an impact is our desire to conform and blend in. There is a whole generation of youth today who have grown up in children’s ministries that have basically conformed in their efforts to reach young people. We play the same music and dress in the same clothes. Church leadership will often wear jeans with holes and t-shirts in service to avoid offending anyone. Overall it seems that the concept of honor is missing in our churches today. I believe this is one of the major contributing factors to the condition of our society today.
We are not being salt. Salt must be willing to come against things that are infectious and wrong. Satan’s goal is to kill, steal, and destroy (John 10:10). He doesn’t play fair. Jesus said that we would have tribulations (John 16:33). The vast majority of people today are not godly and Christianity has become more a subculture. America is becoming a pagan nation because the Church has not been salt. It is not too late for us to change this!
If we were to start standing up for godliness we would make a change. This will require us to take our eyes of our needs long enough to see the condition of the world around us. I believe that God desires to prosper us but also believe that we have swung too far with the prosperity message. In many cases it seems we are more focused on being blessed than on a being a blessing and this has got to change. The only purpose of prosperity is to enable us to become salt.
Blessed are they which are persecuted for righteousness’ sake: for theirs is the kingdom of heaven. Blessed are ye, when men shall revile you, and persecute you, and shall say all manner of evil against you falsely, for my sake. Rejoice, and be exceeding glad: for great is your reward in heaven: for so persecuted they the prophets which were before you. Ye are the salt of the earth: but if the salt have lost his savour, wherewith shall it be salted? it is thenceforth good for nothing, but to be cast out, and to be trodden under foot of men. (Matthew 5:10-13)
We must not forget Jesus’ instructions. We are called to be the “salt of the earth” but are losing our “savour”. God does not have a plan B which is why Jesus asked how the earth would be salted if we did not salt it. He said that the end result of our not being salt is being good for nothing.
This message is not something that a lot of people want to think about in our age of ‘comfortable’ and ‘nonconfrontational’ Christianity. It is one that we need to be thinking about. In our next post we will begin talking about being light in this world.
Thank you for stopping by today. We pray daily for each of our readers and would love for you to share testimonies in the comments about what God is doing in you life. God bless!
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