Daily Devotional
Are We Salty Disciples?
“You are the salt of the earth; but if the salt loses its flavor, how shall it be seasoned? It is then good for nothing but to be thrown out and trampled underfoot by men.”
Matthew 5:13
October 4, 2024
Ponder This
Salt penetrates. You take just a pinch of salt and put it in a jug of water, and the entire jug will be instantaneously salty. We need to be salty disciples. But the problem with many of us is that we’ve allowed our churches to become holy saltshakers while we sit inside and salt the salt. Jesus said we “are the salt of the earth.” He didn’t say we’re the salt of the Church. We need to be separate from sin, but not isolated from sinners.
However, salt can lose its saltiness. Most of the salt in Bible times came from the Dead Sea. They would take it from the Dead Sea, and the sun would shine on it. If it rained on that salt and stayed too long that way, the salt would leach out and leave noxious chemicals. It had no flavor, and it was actually dangerous. If you put it on the fields, it would kill the crops. If you put it down a well, it would poison the water. But they found one good use for that salt: they could put it on the roads, and it would absorb the moisture. That damaged salt was good for nothing but to be trampled underfoot. Jesus said if we lose our spiritual saltiness, we’re not effective disciples.
- What does it look like to live as the “salt of the earth”?
- Who are some friends or neighbors you are being salt to? Who are some people you could be salt to?
Practice This
Show your love for a neighbor or friend and be salt in his or her life today.
FOR YOUR GIFT TO THE MINISTRY
Front Porch Moments by Gayle Foster
WITH KEY INSIGHTS FROM HER FATHER, ADRIAN ROGERS
I try to unplug each morning with Jesus with just my rocking chair, my Bible, and a pen.
Having a secret place is very important because I know that Jesus is always there waiting for me. I know where I can find Him! His presence is everywhere, but there are places where it is so thick you can cut it with a knife. You may not even have a front porch, but there is a secret place for you as well. God’s invitations are for anyone who will respond. There is no more important request than the one found in Psalm 27:8: “My heart has heard You say, ‘Come and talk with Me.’ And my heart responds, ‘Lord, I am coming.’”
