“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: 13 KJV).
Unlike light that is in this world but not of this world, salt is in this world but taken out of the world. Christians, because they are in this world but not of this world because of their new birth, are the light of the world (Mat. 5:14; John 17:14, 16). Because Christians, before they were saved, were of the world system and were then taken out of the world system when they were saved, they are the salt of the earth—“If you were of the world, the world would love its own: but because you are not of this world, but I have chosen you out of the world, therefore the world hates you” (John 15:19). And they were then sent back into the world to preach the gospel (John 20:21).
Men and most animals need salt to maintain good health. Salt is used in the chemical industry, in the medical field, in steel manufacturing, in tanning hides, in paints, in ink, in baking powders, in insecticides, in antiseptics, for preserving foods, and for flavoring food.
When salt loses its “savor” or becomes flat and tasteless because it’s lost its strength and flavor, it is “good for nothing.” God told Jeremiah that Israel was “good for nothing”— “This evil people, who refuse to hear my words, who walk in the imagination of their heart, and walk after other gods, to serve them, and to worship them, shall even be as this girdle, which is good for nothing” (Jeremiah 13:10).
A Christian loses their savor and becomes good for nothing or not good for anything God can use when they turn from the Word and go back into the world and live in rebellion against God. They then become ineffective for God as a witness to the world.
Years ago (my generation), parents named their children after some virtue such as Faith, Hope, Patience, Grace, and Charity in hopes that they would grow to possess and exemplify the virtue they were named after. Elder Brewster (1567-1644) named his two sons Love and Wrestling.
God named His children “Light” and “Salt” in hopes that they would grow up and exemplify the characteristics of light and salt and be an effective witness in a dark and corrupt world. Truth is “true light” and preserving salt and an irritant to those who are raw against God.
Christian success is being the light of the world and the salt of the earth.
