“You are the salt of the earth. But if the salt loses its saltiness, how can it be made salty again? It is no longer good for anything, except to be thrown out and trampled underfoot.” (Matthew 5:13)
As part of our family’s efforts to know where are food comes from, we support several local farms. We have one farm for vegetables, another for milk and eggs, and yet another for meat. Every month, I make a run to pick up our order of steaks and ground beef, which is conveniently frozen. Not too long ago, however, I made a big mistake. I was distracted by an important phone call as I pulled into the garage, and I accidentally left our stash of meat in the car for two whole days. In the heat, everything spoiled.
In the ancient world, there were no freezers, so to keep meat and other perishables from spoiling, salt was key. Salt also makes bland food come alive. Needless to say, salt was a popular item in the world of long, long ago. Salt was so popular, in fact, that it was sometimes used as a currency. Have you ever heard the expression “He isn’t worth his salt”? That’s just another way of saying “He isn’t worth what he’s paid”—because salt was the way many people, including Roman soldiers, were paid. It’s actually where we get our English word salary.
I offer this little history lesson on the wonders of salt because, without knowing what salt meant to people in ancient Israel, it’s hard to know what Jesus was driving at when He said, “You are the salt of the earth” (Matthew 5:13). As His followers, we’re called to be a preservative, saving the culture around us from the worst of itself. We’re also called to bring flavor—the goodness of the joy of the kingdom—wherever we go. Finally, by calling us “the salt of the earth,” Jesus was saying that we are valuable to our Father in heaven, and we should be seen as valuable to the communities we’re a part of. Just as salt makes a person thirsty for a drink, we ought to make everyone we meet thirsty for more of Jesus.
My newest book, Rediscovering Christmas, is now available! If you enjoy my writing and/or you love Christmas, it might just be the thing for you. If you do decide to check it out, please leave a review on Amazon. You have no idea how much that helps!
Pages of Joy // John Greco 
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