H.B. Charles, Jr. :: Sermon Skeleton: Out of the Saltshaker (Matthew 5:13)

Out of the Saltshaker

Matthew 5:13

Outline:

1. Introduction: Sodium Chloride — salt — gets a lot of bad press these days. It is blamed for everything from hypertension to obesity to heart disease. The need for salt is questioned. Its use is discouraged. And its presence on many tables is often more decorative than anything else. However, this was not the case when Jesus declared in the Sermon on the Mount, "You are the salt of the earth." In the cultural world of the ancient Near East, salt was both essential and valuable. For example, the Roman government often paid their soldiers' wages in salt. And a good, faithful man was said to be "worth his salt." In fact, our word "salary" comes from the Latin, salarium, which means to trade or barter with salt. Salt served a wide array of purposes in the ancient world. And, interestingly, scholars have just as many interpretations of what Jesus meant by this statement about salt in Matthew 5:13. But of all the possible meanings, there are three primary interpretations that deserve our attention.
   1. Salt prevents decay.
   2. Salt produces thirst.
   3. Salt provides flavor.
2. Jesus describes his followers as the salt of the earth (Mat 5:13a).
   1. "You are…" — Character precedes performance; who you are is more important than what you do.
   2. Bad news/Good news.
      1. Good News: God can use ordinary people like you.
      2. Bad News: Sometimes God has to shake things in your life in order to get you out of the saltshaker.
3. Jesus warns about the danger of failing to be the salt of the earth (Mat 5:13b).
   1. The warning: "but if salt loses its taste, how shall its saltiness be restored."
   2. The consequence: "It is no longer good for anything except to be thrown out and trampled under people's feet."
   3. The hope: God specializing in transforming good-for-nothing people!