Matthew chapter 5. To begin, I want to put a context
to what we're about to read. The Lord Jesus has being wary
of the multitudes that was following, has moved or relocated himself
to the top of the mountain. His disciples went with him and
a multitude of those who felt like walking up a mountain to
hear his advice and his counsel and his teaching. I want you
to notice in verse one that our Lord's speaking to a whole multitude
of people that's following Him, including the 12 disciples. And
with that picture in our mind's eye, let's read verse 10, starting
in verse 10. Blessed, happy, that's what that
word means primarily. Happy are they which are persecuted
for righteousness' sake, for theirs is the kingdom of God. The persecution that is spoken
of in that verse of God's people doesn't occur as a result of
any crimes that they have committed. They've done nothing in terms
of crimes. They're persecuted for righteousness
sake. God's people are persecuted because
they deny their own righteousness. They're persecuted for righteousness
sake, but they do not claim to be persecuted for their righteousness. It's for the righteousness of
Christ. They have no righteousness of their own. but they cling
to the righteousness of Christ and puted to Him in the doing
and the dying of our Lord Jesus for His elect. In their persecution
for righteousness sake, they're blessed and they're happy. Happy
are ye. In this verse, our Lord changes
his manner of addressing those following him from the third
person to the second person. Blessed are you. If you'll notice
in verse nine, he says, blessed are the peacemakers for they.
And he's been speaking of they in those previous verses even
before that. But in this verse, in verse 10,
he said, blessed are you. Blessed are you when men shall
revile you, verse 11, and persecute you and say all manner of evil
against you falsely for my sake. I want you to notice the words
in verse 11, for my sake. That means because of me, you
persecuted. All manner of evil is spoken
against you because of me. Christ said that. God's elect
are persecuted for a righteous cause. They're persecuted for
the cause of Christ, his person, his doctrine, for making a profession
of Christ. for showing a concern and a desire
to worship Him, and for vindicating His person and the truths concerning
Him, who He is, what He came to do, and what He accomplished.
To believe those truths concerning Him, concerning Christ, exposes
His people to the rage and persecution of other men. In particular,
God's elect are persecuted for preaching, for maintaining, for
embracing the doctrine of justification by the righteousness of Christ
and not their own. Because the gospel is not of
man, to the natural unregenerate unborn spiritual man, it's illogical
and it can never be agreeable to the way which seems right
to them. That which seems right is what
they do. That which is illogical is the
righteousness of a substitute, the Lord Jesus. They'll deny
it and turn to their own works. It's contrary to the way of justification
which men naturally conceive or logically come up with because
it excludes boasting and is contrary to their own carnal and their
own selfish principles. You are the blessed ones for
my sake, for Christ's sake. So verse 12. Rejoice, and be
exceedingly glad, for great is your reward in heaven, for so
persecuted they the prophets which were before you. Ponder
that for just a second. You're just like the prophets.
Did you get that? Just like them. If you cheerfully
bear the reproach of this kind for Christ's sake, you prove
We prove that we have the stamp and the seal of those who are
in the service of God. Persecution comes for what we
say and what we believe, not what we do. That's the reason
they tried to kill Christ. He said, I'm God. They didn't
kill him for all the good works that he did. They wanted to kill
him. They wanted to kill him for what
he said, what he taught. Verse 13. You are the salt of the earth,
but if the salt of the earth, if the salt has lost his savor,
Wherewith shall it be salted? It is henceforth good for nothing
but to be cast out and to be trodden underfoot of men. You are the salt of the earth.
I want you. You know, you can read these
words too fast, and when you read and take time to think about
it, that's a wondrous thing. You are the salt of the earth.
Who was he talking to? A whole multitude. A whole multitude. You're the only reason, now listen
to me. You are the only reason this
planet exists. Have you ever thought about that? It exists to exhibit the only
attribute of God which had never, in all of eternity, been revealed
to a creature. Never. That attribute is the
love of God. We read of the angels. You're familiar with the story.
Who fell without mercy. In this very day in which we
live, they, to this day, marvel at the love and the mercy shown
the human race through the love of God in sending Christ to reveal
this attribute of his, his love. He took not on himself the nature
of angels. Remember that verse? When they
rebelled, there was no redemption. There was no redemption. But he took on him the seat of
Abraham. He took on our seat. He became what we are. And by doing that, we were restored
to the fellowship of God the Father. What he says, what he's saying
here, you help preserve this, you are
the preservative of this earth. And to subdue the corruption
that's in it, salt preserves things. You are the preserving, or you're
what preserves, who preserves this entire earth. But if the
salt has lost his savor, wherewith shall it be salted? A professing
Christian, a professing Christian, with no grace in him, being a
false professor, a religious man whose religion is dead, what
good is he? What good is he? What's he good
for? And he is in a hopeless condition and cannot be preserved, and
is no preservative of no use to God in this world. You can
salt meat to preserve it, but you can't salt salt. Look at
that verse again. If your salt has lost your favor,
wherewith shall it be salted? It is thenceforth, verse 13,
good for nothing but to be cast out and to be trodden underfoot
of men. I hope I can make this clear. Either the saints must persevere, or better said,
be preserved to the end or else the grace of God's done
nothing for them effectually. If the work of grace is really
wrought of God in our soul, it will last throughout our entire
life. Salt. And if it doesn't, that
proves that it wasn't the work of God. God doesn't put his hand
to this work a second time, and there is no regeneration twice
over. You can't be born twice. Not
spiritually. You can't be born again and again,
as some teach. There's not a word in scripture
that supports that notion. Regeneration once. wrought by
the Spirit of God is an incorruptible seed. Are those things familiar
to you? Incorruptible seed. That was
Christ, which liveth and abideth forever. That incorruptible seed
lives, never dies. Now verse 13 is where I want
to spend just a few minutes. As I've already said, we as believers,
in Christ may be compared to salt, but only in respect to
the grace of God given to us, because naturally we're not salt
and we're not savory any more than others. Without our standing
in Christ and the grace that he bestows to us, we live in
a state of rot, putrefaction, and we're a stench in his nostrils. That grace that's bestowed upon
us is compared to salt. In Mark chapter nine and verse
49, I'll read it to you. It says this, every sacrifice
shall be salted with salt. Now, how is that? How is that? Saints and true ministers of
the gospel being compared to salt in respect to their savory
doctrine. That's where their salt is. In respect to their doctrine,
the truths that they preach, the things that they say, and
of the gospel that is professed and preached by them. Those things
salt this world. False doctrine is called corrupt
doctrine. in the scripture. Salt preserves
the truth. Corrupt doctrine is unsalted.
Those things salt the world. False doctrine is called corrupt
doctrine. It's a stench in God's nostrils,
as I've said, and the truth of the gospel is sweet-smelling,
and that is a sweet savor. That's what that is. The truth
of the gospel is a savory, sweet-smelling, and pure doctrine to the souls
of men, like savory meat. All these things being pictures
and types. well and fitly seasoned for the
body, what becomes of the world were it not for the truths that
Christ's ministers preach? God's people are the salt of
the earth. Why? Because God has chosen to
save every one of his elect through the preaching of the gospel,
and this earth is going to be dissolved the very second that the last name written in the
Lamb's Book of Life is called and sealed by God the Father. As long as it remains, there's
at least one more for God to save. There's at least one more. It doesn't take much salt either
to preserve this world. We seem to be few. And we are
those that believe the gospel of Christ. It doesn't take much, doesn't
take many. And I'll give you, for an example,
a lot in Sodom and Gomorrah. Had there been but just a few
more, just a few more, God would have preserved Sodom and Gomorrah.
In fact, If there'd just been 10 more, remember that story?
If there'd just been 10 more, God would have preserved Sodom
and Gomorrah. But there wasn't. There wasn't.
Everyone he intended to save out of those places, that place,
was already sealed and awakened and given the new birth. The saints of God and preachers
of the gospel are a great blessing to this world, as I've tried
to say. The world's not worthy of them,
but I want you to consider the benefits of those who reject
God and openly mock Him. God's people are called, God's
true people are called the pillars of the earth. He says in 1 Samuel
2, 8, the pillars of the earth are the Lord's. That's us. That's us. That's who he's talking
about. This earth would sink if it weren't for God's elect.
No purpose for its existence. The Lord said to Lot, I can't
do anything until you get out of there. Remember that verse
in that story? The Lord said that I can't do
anything till you come out and also what about the benefit to
Pharaoh? Lot being there preserved Sodom. But what about Joseph and Pharaoh? Egypt would have starved to death
if it hadn't been for that one person elect of God in that country. That whole nation would have
been starved if it weren't for Joseph. And the story of Jacob
and Laban, if you'll recall that, Laban was blessed for Jacob's
sake. It seems to be right in reverse
of what it was, or should be. Jacob was that lying, deceiving,
conniving, salted sinner. And he preserved Laban. Remember that verse, the rain
falls on the just and the unjust? And the unjust only have their
thriving gardens Because God our Father sends the rain to
preserve the just and gives us their food and thereby supplies
them. The only reason cars and planes
were ever invented was to carry the gospel into all the world.
And you think about that, that's truth. That's true. And you think of who all that
benefits. We're the salt, we're the preservative
of this work. Name any object, name any event
in the history, in eternity, and its purpose can only be the
preservation and salvation of God's people, us. We're the salt. Now, I want to
be clear here. I know how all this sounds to
those who think that the preaching and belief of the gospel is foolishness,
and some may think that I'm making too much of believers and their
status in this world, or even being arrogant or presumptuous.
That's not the case. Please don't think that. Let
me show you something which brought all this together for me, and
maybe it'll It'll do the same for you. Turn, hold your place
here and turn to Leviticus chapter 2 and verse 13. Leviticus chapter
2 and verse 13. It reads this way, every oblation,
Leviticus 2 verse 13. Every oblation of thy meat offering
shalt thou season with salt. Neither shalt thou suffer the
salt of the covenant of thy God to be lacking from thy meat offering. With all thine offerings thou
shalt offer salt. You see that verse, when I read
that, it immediately brought a smile to my face. I guess that's
the way to term it. The covenant of our God. See
that phrase, the salt of the covenant of thy God? When I read
that, the covenant of our God, that can only mean that the covenant
of God has a preservative. He's the salt of the covenant,
so he's the preserver. He's the guarantor. He's the
surety. He's the redeemer. He's our daysman,
our brother, our prophet, our priest, our king. And He is the
salt of the covenant. That's Christ. Salt is Christ. That's the only reason this world
exists. Listen to this verse. Second Chronicles, the Lord God
of Israel gave the kingdom over Israel to David forever. Now that David spoken of there
is Christ. It's a picture of Christ. Even
to him and to his sons, and he gave it to him by covenant of
salt, a guarantee. I guarantee, because of the salt. Now, can this be speaking of
anybody except for the Lord Jesus Christ, the salt of the covenant? In the New Testament, the Lord
Jesus now has called his disciples, the salt of the earth, as if
to say that his grace in them Get this, His grace in them preserves
this earth from universal rot. And when you think about it,
if we are the preservative, we are the preservative in and by our union with Christ. Christ in you, the hope of glory. I'm not bragging about my status
as a believer. I'm bragging on Christ. The fact
that he indwells, we're the temple of God. That's what the New Testament
says. He doesn't live in buildings. This means nothing. He's not
here because there's a building here. He's here in you. In you. That's his temple. It can only be explained by that
union. This salt. And being the preservative of
the earth. And an explanation of that union with our Redeemer,
I can't make one other than what I've said, tried to express.
To my mind, there's only one thing that can be said. We are
made salt only because it's Christ in you. He was made sin that we might
be made the righteousness of God in Him. Where Christ is not, I'm trying, I had trouble expressing
some of this. Where Christ is not, there is
no sweet smelling savor. In studying this, I found that
Job asked an interesting question. He asked, Can that which is unsavory
be eaten without salt? Robert Hawker brilliantly paraphrased
Job's question by saying this. He said, can our poor nature
be accepted except in Christ? Can that meat be eat without
putting salt on it? Christ is a preservative. Can our poor nature be accepted
except in Christ? Can that which is unsavory be
eaten without salt? Can a sinner be cured? That's
what salt does, it cures hams. Can a sinner be cured and preserved
from everlasting corruption except by the Lord Jesus? Salt, as it's
used elsewhere in scripture, can also figuratively mean something
which is evil, bad. And I believe the best example
or picture given showing this is the story of Lot's wife. There
were men sent to warn Lot of the coming destruction of Sodom
and Gomorrah. He was told to hurry and to leave
and take his wife and his two daughters to safety. But the
scripture says he hesitated. He hesitated. It required the
messengers of God to take him and his family by their hands
and lead them out. They were told on the way out
of the city to escape for their life and, listen to this, look
not behind. Look not behind. Neither stay
thou in all the plain, escape to the mountains, lest thou be
consumed. But Lot's wife, as she walked
out and behind Lot, turned and looked back. That's all she did.
Now, after such a, and the Lord turned her into a pillar of salt.
That's my point. After being warned with such
a dire warning, why in the world would she do that? Do what she
had specifically been warned not to do. Now, in reading the
commentators, I think they have wisely said that it was because
Sodom was where her heart was. That's where she wanted to be. But look back at Matthew 5, 13. It was a heart of unbelief that
caused her to turn and look back. And I think her action is portrayed
and even explained in verse 13. In the phrase, but, in verse
13, if the salt have lost his savor, I find it interesting
that it says his savor, wherewith shall it be salted? By our union
with Christ, who's the salt of the covenant of God, as we've
read. His people are the salt of the earth. But if the salt,
Christ, if the salt, salt being Christ, has lost his savor, his
sweet smell, he's become commonplace, he's become foolishness, wherewith
shall it be salted? Lot's wife was a picture of apostasy. She turned back. She was a professor
of Christ in this world, but at some point, her salt, the
Christ she professed, became odorless, wasn't a sweet savor
anymore, commonplace, and it just became mere foolishness.
But I don't think she gave up her profession. She was just
religious. And Scripture says, the just
shall live by faith. But if any man draw back, my
soul shall have no pleasure in him. Do you know of anything or anyone
who can replace Christ? Look at verse 13 again. The salt,
the professed Christ, of Lot's wife had lost his savor, became
foolishness, and looking back in her apostasy, she thenceforth,
verse 13, thenceforth became good for nothing, but to be cast
out and to be trodden underfoot. That's exactly what happened
to her. And with that warning given for her not to turn back,
we should be careful to make our election sure. Are we lying to ourselves? Is
this just a habit or a practice, or do we truly desire to worship
a person the Christ, the Redeemer, that one which was provided for
us and to redeem us and care for us. I hope that God will
bless this feeble attempt to glorify Christ and comfort His
people.