You are the salt of the earth. Matthew 5:13a
We are ending a month of sub-freezing temperatures today and the 6 inches of snow that fell in two storms last week will soon be a memory. We’ve had several mild winter storms during the last month, and the bag of ice-melt in my storage room has been my good friend through it all. It not only cleared my sidewalk of ice, it also taught me a lesson about the kingdom of God.
I like watching what happens when a large grain of salt (well, actually calcium chloride) falls on a patch of ice or snow in my driveway. At first, only a small melt-point appears around the grains of salt sown on the concrete. The melt water itself then absorbs some of the salt and melts a larger patch of adjacent ice. The ice field first appears as if it has been peppered with bird shot and then develops the appearance of an outbreak of some form of pox. Eventually, the hundreds of individual patches merge and a large area of wet pavement appears.
The salt’s effect, however, is limited in scope and temporary in effect. The individual grain of salt affects only the area in its immediate vicinity and may still leave the area wet or slushy. The salt is sown where its effects are most needed, and when the next storm appears, ice and snow will once again blanket the area.
I know that Jesus didn’t have ice and snow in mind when he said, “You are the salt of the earth.” Still, salt’s effect on frozen water does illustrate my understanding of Jesus’ intent. The church and its members are sown throughout the world. God is present in us and through us to give the world a foretaste of the coming kingdom. Sometimes in miraculous fashion, but usually in more mundane ways, God creates little, temporary, imperfect patches of the kingdom in the midst of a frozen world. We’re all waiting for spring, but as we wait, we are God’s salt, transforming the world around us in small ways that hint at the glory to come.
Mitchell Lewis 