Feb. 20, 2022

Let’s be Salt!  BTS, 20 Feb 22

Intro - Our country desperately needs us!  It seems that many of the people I talk to today are very concerned about the state of our country.  It really gets our attention when the economy goes downhill.  Right after that come changes to our standard of living (neighborhood decline, increase in crime, decrease in local services, etc.).  The problem is a moral one which will not be solved by a simple increase in the availability of well-paying jobs or even by electing the right politicians.  The problem is in the immoral values of many of the people in our country who ultimately elect our leaders. The solution is not in a new program, but in a total transformation of their hearts.  WE are the people who have been given authority to affect this change, not politicians.  WE are likened to the preserving properties of salt, which prevents bacterial decay and preserves the food we eat, as well as making our food desirable to eat.   

Luke 14:34 - 34 “Salt is good for seasoning. But if it loses its flavor, how do you make it salty again? 35 Flavorless salt is good neither for the soil nor for the manure pile. It is thrown away. Anyone with ears to hear should listen and understand!”     NLT 

Matthew 5:13  13 “You are the salt of the earth. But what good is salt if it has lost its flavor? Can you make it salty again? It will be thrown out and trampled underfoot as worthless. NLT

How, practically, can we do this?  Block an abortion clinic? Organize a Freedom Convoy?  Have a March For Life ?  These are all noble efforts, but did Jesus do any of these?  We live in a democracy where people can voice their opinions and assemble peacefully, but is that what Jesus did?  Does it really work?  We may change a lawmaker’s vote and get a new law passed, but it’s like trying to kill a tree by picking all of its leaves off, one at a time.  No democracy can change fast enough at that pace.  We can’t legislate morality, anyway.

The “how” of this is really simple: Love people!  As Jesus described it, invite them to your kitchen, eat with them, bless them, and heal them if needed.  What is needed is many people to do this!  If we truly love people, this simple process is how Jesus said to do it (Luke 10).  The many “kitchens” involved are what makes this method of reaching people more powerful than any political campaign, army, police force, or drug cartel.  People were designed by God to respond to love very strongly.  In doing so, we will eventually affect all the moral things that person does, including how he votes. We succeed at doing what salt does: we prevent the decay of our country.