Are You Salty?

^{Colossians 3:18-4:6}

¹⁸ Wives, be subject to your husbands, as is fitting in the Lord. ¹⁹ Husbands, love your wives and do not be embittered against them. ²⁰ Children, be obedient to your parents in all things, for this is well-pleasing to the Lord. ²¹ Fathers, do not exasperate your children, so that they will not lose heart.

²² Slaves, in all things obey those who are your masters on earth, not with ^[external service, as those who merely please men, but with sincerity of heart, fearing the Lord. ²³ Whatever you do, do your work heartily, as for the Lord rather than for men, ²⁴ knowing that from the Lord you will receive the reward of the inheritance. It is the Lord Christ whom you serve. ²⁵ For he who does wrong will receive the consequences of the wrong which he has done, and that without partiality.

 

4 Masters, grant to your slaves justice and fairness, knowing that you too have a Master in heaven.

² Devote yourselves to prayer, keeping alert in it with an attitude of thanksgiving; ³ praying at the same time for us as well, that God will open up to us a door for the word, so that we may speak forth the mystery of Christ, for which I have also been imprisoned; ⁴ that I may make it clear in the way I ought to speak.

⁵ Conduct yourselves with wisdom toward outsiders, making the most of the opportunity. ⁶ Let your speech always be with grace, as though seasoned with salt, so that you will know how you should respond to each person.

 

I thought I would give you a little glimpse of one of the ways I like to study the WORD.  One of the ways I like to look at God's Word is to read a small section of it and see what jumps out at me.  Then I take the section apart by highlighting in different colors.  As I reread the verse over and over, I look at them from different perspectives, and find knew meaning in them.

If you take a moment and read the verse above out loud, emphasizing the different highlighted colors each time, you will hear a different perspective each time.  Read it first emphasizing the yellow.  As I do that, I see the LORD's role in my life as primary, not mine, or even others.  Now try focusing on a different highlighted color, or if you have time print out the verse for yourself and highlight the words you see jumping out at you.  Read and reread the passage several times, and let the Holy Spirit speak to you.  Then if you have time, share with us what spoke to you.  It will be interesting to see the many different responses. 

 

So, one of the things that stood out to me was "seasoned with salt."  I love salt.  I love how it makes everything taste better, if you put just the right amount in.  I was pondering the mention of salt in the Bible this past week.  In Mark 9:50, we are told by Christ to have "salt in ourselves," so to be at peace with one another. 

So what is SALT?  That is my question.  Salt is not sugar.  It doesn't make food sweet.  Salt is not pepper, it does not make things spicy.  Salt is not garlic or onion or oregano.  But, if I add salt to any of these other things it brings out the flavor of what I added it to.  It enhances what is already there.  So salt is defined as being used especially to season or preserve food in Webster's dictionary.  So what is Jesus and Paul trying to say to use Christians if we are to be salt.    When I am salty I can enhance and help preserve others lives.  COOL!  The results of having salt in us creates peace with others according to Mark 9:50.  The evidence of salt in us is the knowledge of how to respond to others with gracious speech according to Colossians 4:6.  Wow, I want to be salty.  How about you?