Christians, Where Is Our Salt? Part 3

In the first two parts (part one, part two), I shared about how our unity as believers is related to our saltiness. How the world sees Christians treating each other impacts how they see Jesus. How salty we are, and are becoming, is also directly related to how close we are to God, the Source of our salt. How close we are to God is related to how obedient we are to His commands.

To grow in saltiness, or regain saltiness we may have lost, we need to read the Bible to know God better and gain greater understanding of what God loves and what He hates.

We need to be transformed from the inside out.

Do not conform to the pattern of this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind. Then you will be able to test and approve what God’s will is—his good, pleasing and perfect will. (Romans 12:2, NIV)

We lose our salt when we conform to the pattern of this world instead of renewing our minds with the truth so that we can know God’s will (and then do it!).

When we pick and choose verses from the Bible to justify why a behavior may or may not be wrong instead of reading and sharing God’s word to know God better and help others seek Him for themselves.

When we focus on alleviating someone’s human suffering instead of sharing God’s truth and love with them, leading them toward God’s peace that passes all human understanding.

We’ve changed our focus, Church, from obedience to what God says and His ways – His will – to concern over how people feel and what they want. In doing so we’re rapidly losing our saltiness. That’s why there are so many arguments, so many judgments, so much anger among believers. We don’t have enough of God in us to know what is right from what is sin.

How can we expect anyone who is seeking God to listen to us when we talk about the great and awesome God we follow, then act like we do toward each other and support values God clearly does not agree with?

For example, God’s word clearly says that marriage is between a man and a woman, and that sex outside marriage is a sin. God’s word also says that our identity starts in the womb, and we are created male or female on purpose. If we say anything else for any reason, we are disagreeing with God.

Maybe like I did with not believing in hell, you don't believe or understand how sex outside marriage can be wrong when you love someone. Keep reading the Bible, obeying what you already know to be true, asking God questions, and allowing Him to transform your thinking. If you are honestly seeking truth, He promises to reveal it to you.

Unity with God – knowing and doing His will, not our own – is the only way to have true unity with other Christians. We need to be like-minded and one in Spirit: salt and light to a world that is desperately seeking meaning, purpose, and truth. Without that we are not only in sin ourselves, but in danger of leading others astray. I don’t know about you, but that’s not someplace I want to be.