In Matthew 513, Jesus tells his disciples, with the crowd listening in,

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.

Did you catch what Jesus said?

You are the salt. It's a statement declaring their

identity, not only who they are, but also their purpose. And because I'm a follower of Christ,

it's my identity and purpose too. Jesus created me to be salty and to stay salty, and not just

the way the urban dictionary defines it. Salt does three things. Adds flavor, makes you thirsty, and preserves.

How does this relate to what Jesus said in Matthew 5? As believers, we must add Christ's flavor

to whatever environment he places us in. We are to preserve a Christ-life culture in a morally

decaying world, and we can cause others to thirst after God that we have inside of us. I love the way the

message translation puts Matthew 513. Let me tell you why you are here. You are here to be salt

seasoning that brings out the God flavors of the earth. If you lose your saltiness, how will people

taste godliness? You've lost your usefulness and will end up in the garbage. I've experienced

times when I was on a spiritual high after attending a church conference

or I was ready to dive in and dissect more of God's word after attending a spiritually

rich Bible study, only to lose my cool with my family within the first five minutes of being

home.

The truth is I can surround myself with Bibles, Bible apps, and Bible studies.

I can listen to the sermon podcast, read daily devotionals, and attend all the church services

I want to, and those are all great things.

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