“You are the salt of the earth; but if the salt have become insipid, with what will it be salted? It is no longer fit for anything but to be cast out and to be trodden under foot by men.” (cf. Mark 9:50; Luke 14:34).
These words are part of the Sermon on the Mount, in which the Lord Jesus, as the promised King of Israel, sets forth the principles of His Kingdom. His words also contain messages that are important for us, but we must not ignore the context in which they are set. In Matthew 5:13 the Lord Jesus calls His disciples “the salt of the earth”. Salt here is an image of the preserving and sanctifying influence that is to proceed from those who profess Him as their Lord in the Kingdom of God. The Lord Jesus continues: “But if the salt have become insipid, with what will it be salted? It is no longer fit for anything but to be cast out and to be trodden under foot by men.” In ancient times, salt was not as pure as it is today. If stored inappropriately for a long time, the salt could be leached out, leaving only the worthless components that were thrown out and carelessly trampled on. So Jerusalem, the city that rejected its own king, was trampled underfoot by the nations (Luke 21:24), and also Christianity, which has possessed the message of the gospel for centuries, will fall away from God and be judged (2 Thess. 2:3; Rev. 18:4–8).
As the context shows, the question here is not whether a person who has been born again can be lost or not. It is a matter of the responsibility of those who call themselves disciples of Jesus. When Peter denied His Lord, he was not a witness for Him. But was he lost because of this? However, it is said of the nominal Christians of the last days that they “have a form of piety, but denying the power of it” (2 Tim. 3:5). Such people are meant here.
But if the salt has lost its taste (Matt. 5:13)
“You are the salt of the earth; but if the salt have become insipid, with what will it be salted? It is no longer fit for anything but to be cast out and to be trodden under foot by men.” (cf. Mark 9:50; Luke 14:34).
These words are part of the Sermon on the Mount, in which the Lord Jesus, as the promised King of Israel, sets forth the principles of His Kingdom. His words also contain messages that are important for us, but we must not ignore the context in which they are set. In Matthew 5:13 the Lord Jesus calls His disciples “the salt of the earth”. Salt here is an image of the preserving and sanctifying influence that is to proceed from those who profess Him as their Lord in the Kingdom of God. The Lord Jesus continues: “But if the salt have become insipid, with what will it be salted? It is no longer fit for anything but to be cast out and to be trodden under foot by men.” In ancient times, salt was not as pure as it is today. If stored inappropriately for a long time, the salt could be leached out, leaving only the worthless components that were thrown out and carelessly trampled on. So Jerusalem, the city that rejected its own king, was trampled underfoot by the nations (Luke 21:24), and also Christianity, which has possessed the message of the gospel for centuries, will fall away from God and be judged (2 Thess. 2:3; Rev. 18:4–8).
As the context shows, the question here is not whether a person who has been born again can be lost or not. It is a matter of the responsibility of those who call themselves disciples of Jesus. When Peter denied His Lord, he was not a witness for Him. But was he lost because of this? However, it is said of the nominal Christians of the last days that they “have a form of piety, but denying the power of it” (2 Tim. 3:5). Such people are meant here.
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