Little Things Mean a Lot

Selah » Spiritual Life

A simple line at Mark 9:50 says so much. It's almost a throw-away and yet when taken in light of the surrounding passage (covered in Amazing Grace) it speaks volumes. "Have salt in yourselves, and be at peace with each other."

For most of chapter 9 and all of 10, the Lord has been summarizing God's standards for behavior, and believe me, they are impossible. So much so that the disciples were amazed and exclaimed, "Who then can be saved?" He replied," With man this is impossible, but not with God. All things are possible with God."

And right in the middle of all this is that simple little line, "have salt in yourselves and be at peace with each other." What big lessons spring from the little things in Scripture.

Worth His Salt

Salt was used in that era as a preservative to retard spoilage. Of course there were no refrigerators, and salt was a very valuable commodity. Roman soldiers were sometimes paid in salt. (This is where the saying, "worth his salt" originated.) They could easily trade the salt for their needs and even make a small profit in the bargain.

The Lord speaks of believers as being the "salt of the earth" in Matt 4:13. His followers are to act as a preservative in the world, retarding the spoiling effects of sin

When searching for "salt" in the Bible, you find 27 references in the Old Testament and 8 in the New. For example, salt was one of the ingredients in the sacred incense, for use at the golden altar (Ex 30:35).

Covenant of Salt

There is an odd reference in Numbers 18:19 to a "Covenant of Salt" in connection with that portion of the grain offering that went to the Levites. Salt was part of the grain offering for that reason (Lev 2:13). It shows up again in 2 Chron. 13:5 referring to the Lord's promise of an everlasting kingdom for David.

Although the Covenant of Salt is never explained, both these cases seem to involve the Lord preserving something He has ordained. The Levites were set apart for Him, given no land, and supported (preserved) through the offerings Israel made to the Lord, including the voluntary grain offering. The Davidic line was established to preserve the throne of Israel for the coming Messiah. So, whether symbolic or actual, the use of salt as a preservative is as old as the Bible itself.

New Treasures as Well as Old

You know how things that are external and physical in the Old Testament become internal and spiritual in the New. So if we're to have salt in ourselves, it must be a spiritual preservative. And please note that the admonition is not to salt ourselves, but to have salt in ourselves.

Is God Blind?

Salt didn't stop spoilage but retarded its effect. Is there a spiritual equivalent? Remember the example from Exodus 30:35. Salt was an ingredient in the incense which, when burned just outside the Holy of Holies, created a smoke that shielded the priest from God and preserved his life. God can't look upon sin (Hab 1:13), but due to the smoke from the incense could not "see" the sinful man standing in His presence, and therefore didn't have to destroy him.

What prevents God from seeing our sins? Romans 8:30 "...those He called He also justified." The Greek word is dikaioo. It means, "to regard as though innocent." God can't see our sins because when He looks upon us, the Blood of Jesus obscures His view and preserves our life just as the smoke from the incense obscured God's view of the priest and preserved his life.

Preserved for Later Use

Remember, salt didn't prevent spoiling, it just retarded it. So it is with our faith in the Power of His Blood. You see, one day soon we'll become in fact that which we now are by faith. "For the trumpet will sound, the dead will be raised imperishable, and we will be changed." On that day we will be sinless, but because of our faith God views us now as we will be then, not as we are. Our faith is preserving us for that day.

Act Justly, Love Mercy, Walk Humbly with Your God

And that's why the rest of Mark 9:50 is so important ... "and be at peace with each other." We have accepted the Lord as our Savior and promised Him our lives, but we still by thought, word, and deed refuse His counsel, stray from His path and violate His laws. In His grace, He caused His death to pay for ALL of our sins. He didn't just agree to save us when we ask, but to keep us when we stray.

We were all fellow convicts, rightly condemned to Death Row for crimes past present and future. But the dark prison night was ended by an act of incalculable love and we walked away free into the light of day. There is no place among us for bickering, or jockeying for position, or assessing degrees of guilt, for "there is no one righteous, not even one;" but only for love of God and peace with each other.