Zesty Christians
a sermon based on Matthew 5:13-20
by Rev. Frank Schaefer

"You are the salt of the earth.  If the salt has lost its flavor wherewith shall it be salted?  It is therefore good for nothing, but to be thrown out and trampled underfoot."

Those are potent words by Jesus.  What does he mean by "if the salt looses its flavor?  And what does he mean when he says that it is to be thrown out and trampled underfoot if it looses its flavor? Before we can understand Christ's message we need to look into the characteristics of salt.

What is salt?

Salt is a very important mineral necessary for our survival.  In other words Jesus is saying: you are the salvation of the people, they need you in order to survive in this life and the next life as well.  We are to the world like salt is to a living body.  You, who know the love of God, are able nourish the people who are starving for peace, joy, and a higher purpose.

How can salt become tasteless?

By just lying around and not being used.  If you let salt sit, especially in an unconditioned situation (like in the Middle East of Jesus' time), it will suck the moisture out of the air and with the moisture gases and other pollutants, making it bland after a while.

What's it look like to be a salty Christian-- a true spice girl/spice boy?

A)    Pure salt is crystal clear and transparent. 

B)    A salty Christian will speak for what is right and just, 

C)    he/she will not just stand idly by,

D)    but will speak out against those who oppress or discriminate others,

E)    Will be compassionate toward those who suffer,

F)    show kindness to all. 

G)    And share the good news of hope and salvation.

Bottom line: true salty Christians spread the love of God; they are the ones that will stand up for Jesus' teachings and God's values without being judgmental. And this is isn't easy to do.  There is a fine line Jesus walked between teaching and living according to the values of God, calling sin, sin and at the same time, being loving and accepting with a non-judgmental attitude.

Salty Christians have values, yet they use the love of God; they are those who define their neighbor as those near them. They would never ask the question: "and who is this neighbor, I'm supposed to help?" They instinctively know.

Impure, bland salt:

And here comes the real kicker about Jesus' message to us.  He is saying: if you don't use it, you loose it!  If you don't strive to be a vital Christian, you are in danger to be trampled underfoot by the people.  Sin can entangle us so quickly.  The sinful culture around us can suck us in so fast, and we get trampled underfoot before we realize it.

You can take this statement and turn it around, say it in a positive way:  Confessing to others that you are a Christian, living accordingly, and showing love and kindness toward others, is like an insurance against getting trampled underfoot.  It helps you to live out your faith, to keep your faith, and to grow in your faith.

But it's not just that the people will trample us underfoot if we become bland salt; God makes it really clear in other bible passages too that he can't stand lukewarm believers.

Revelation 3:15-17 (New International Version)
¹⁵I know your deeds, that you are neither cold nor hot. I wish you were either one or the other! ¹⁶So, because you are lukewarm--neither hot nor cold--I am about to spit you out of my mouth. ¹⁷You say, 'I am rich; I have acquired wealth and do not need a thing.' But you do not realize that you are wretched, pitiful, poor, blind and naked.

Truth is, Jesus is proud of us when we show our passion for him, when we live as upright people and as people who love our neighbors. That's what our role model Jesus was all about.  Whatever else Jesus was, he was certainly not a bland kind of guy. He showed his passion and compassion in a very open and loud way. He was a man full of zest and zeal.

Bishop Weaver, a few years ago mentioned in a sermon that his favorite metaphor of the church was:  one of those cars with a souped-up stereo.  You are probably familiar with such a car; as it drives up next to you at the stop light, you can not only hear the music emanating from it, but you can actually FEEL the vibrations of the bass speakers.

That's a metaphor of the church; that's how loud and passionate and zesty we should be as the church of Christ in this world.

To be honest, I was never very fond of this metaphor, so I am modifying it right here in this sermon, I think the church should be like an ice cream truck. Everybody likes an ice cream truck; as soon as you hear the melody of its happy chimes, it makes you feel good. Even if you're not interested in buying ice cream at that time, it still brings back fond memories of your childhood.

So, how do we prevent becoming bland, lukewarm Christians? 

For once, we can share our faith with others in nonjudgmental ways, by living out our faith, and being kind and helpful to others. 

Jesus certainly wants us to be spicy and to spice up our neighborhood. He wants us to be passionate about our beliefs and values. 

Perhaps you can tell someone (you have not told before) that you believe in God.  See what their reaction is!  

Some may say: "I knew it, I can tell by your lifestyle."  Others may say: "oh, you're a Christian too?  I'm a member of Faith Baptist. "  Still others may start talking to you about a problem.

Perhaps some of us don't want to fess up to our beliefs because this culture has become so private about matters of religion. Or we fear that people would think of us as odd or fanatic.

However, if you confess your faith publicly you might also be surprised to see the possibilities of how you can minister to others.

Jesus calls us to be salty Christians full of zest and flavor; he calls us to flavor up the lives of people around us with his love.

Now, let's be clear on this: if you decide to become a zestier Christian, you will turn some heads, but you'll also have some shake their head at you in disapproval or annoyance.  A zesty dish usually invokes strong reactions; a lot of people like the strong flavor; others don't.  Most people love garlic, some hate it, while a more bland spice such as pepper is usually liked by all.

Still, Jesus calls us to be spicy. Jesus calls us to spice up things around us for the kingdom of God.  Amen.