Salty Saints - Part 2

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"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)

Last week we identified two ways salt loses its savor - by contamination or separation. Once a Christian has contaminated the gospel by mixing it with anything else or separated their life from the principles of the gospel, they have lost all effectiveness to influence the world for Christ.

Jesus said in Matthew 5:13-14 that once the salt loses its savor it is good for nothing. Once a saint loses their salt, their witness, influence, and effectiveness for the Kingdom is worth nothing. That sounds strong, but I didn’t write it, Jesus did. Though I have watched this principle proven time and time again in the lives of the saints.

There is a man mentioned briefly in the Bible who has always perplexed me. Look at this verse:

2 Timothy 4:10 (KJV) For Demas hath forsaken me, having loved this present world, and is departed unto Thessalonica; Crescens to Galatia, Titus unto Dalmatia.

How can you be a disciple of the Apostle Paul and yet lose your saltiness, only to eventually backslide into the world? Demas did ministry with Paul, he heard him preach holiness, he watched him do miracles, and still the lure of the world rendered his life useless for the gospel.

I am confident that Demas started out strong and very salty, or he would not have been a disciple of Paul. I’m unsure of the tactic Satan used against him, but could it be that little by little Demas slipped back into the life that God had brought him out of? Here is what we do know - Demas’ heart left long before he had the courage to physically leave. He lost his first love for God and the things of God. The memories of ministry and the man that mentored Demas surely must have haunted him for the rest of his life. 

Let us allow this saltless saint to give us a sobering reminder of how we can attend church, hear the Word, read the Word, love others, yet nonetheless lose our saltiness. We must allow the Word to penetrate our hearts and continue to make us strong, and salty, disciples. 

Give yourself the salt test:

Am I still in love with God? 

Do I still love the Word of God? 

Do I still love to worship God? 

Do I still love the work of God?

Pastor Dallas