Daily Devotional for Sunday April 30, 2000

Being The Salt Of The Earth

(Matthew 5:13) Science by far was my worst subject is school. I am not sure why, but God didn't seem to bless me with many gifts in that area. I do remember though, that salt was used in the days of Jesus as a preservative to keep germs from destroying food. So when Jesus told us to be the "salt of the earth," in essence, He was saying that we were to act as a spiritual preservative. I have often thought about this command of our Lord as I look at our country in the year 2000. There is a paradox that really troubles me. On the one hand, we have more churches, more para-church ministries, incredible resources like Christian television, radio, magazines, books, commit billions of dollars annually to promote the Gospel . . . yet on the other hand abortions continue virtually unabated, legalized gambling is a part of our daily culture, the adult entertainment industry is growing by 25% annually, divorce rates are at an all-time high, personal bankruptcies continue to grow each year, the problems with our children are well documented, suicides have been up at an alarming rate over the past 5 years. Do you see my point? Common sense would dictate that the Christian influence would be affecting our society in a positive direction, yet that is not the case.

The comforting fact is that despite the negative trends of our society, can you imagine the chaos and utter rebellion we would live in without the increased Christian influence? As many negatives as we may be able to point out, I want to tell you today that it is ONLY the influence of God's people that has kept our society from total depravity. God's people HAVE been the "salt of the earth" and acted as a preservative, or we would be living in a much different world. There is no place in my Bible that tells me we will live in a world that is void of sin and rebellion, since "we have all fallen short of the glory of God." Jesus never promised that we would live in such a place on earth, and even prepared his disciples for that fact just hours before his death when he told them that in this world they WOULD have many trials and tribulations. Until our work here is finished, and we are called home to be with the Lord for eternity, we are expected to be His "salt," His "light," in this sin-filled, dark world.

My challenge to you this day is simple. Are you being the "salt of the earth" Jesus has called you to be? Are we acting as a spiritual preservative, or are we just watching the decay around us? God has given you gifts, talents, abilities to act as a spiritual preservative during this life. This is not an option, or something we choose to do if we feel like it. When you accepted Christ as your Savior, it became your responsibility as a child of God to act as a preserving agent in the world you live in. It is no accident you live where you live, work or go to school where you do, recreate and shop where you do, God has strategically placed you exactly where He wants you to be at this point in time in your life. He needs His "salt" in all places since sin has infested every corner of the world. I will be praying for you today that God quickens this word to your spirit and you get a complete understanding of how important your life is. That is why no matter how many people God may use an individual or ministry to reach, it is still just a drop in the ocean.

EACH ONE OF GOD'S CHILDREN HAVE A CRITICAL ROLE TO PLAY AS HIS SALT, SINCE GOD USES YOU TO TOUCH LIVES NOBODY ELSE MAY BE ABLE TO TOUCH.

Focus today on how important you are to the Lord, and the calling He has placed on your life each day to be the "salt of the earth" where He has placed you.

I love you, and I care about you so much. It is only in fulfilling our God-given purpose of serving Him and glorifying Him with our lives that we can know the true peace, joy and abundance of this life. Everything else is counterfeit and temporary. I pray that you will be richly blessed today as you take this challenge and focus on allowing God to use you each and every day to serve Him.