You are the Salt of the Earth - Rise up and Lead

“You are the salt of the earth. But what good is salt if it has lost its flavor? Can you make it salty again? It will be thrown out and trampled underfoot as worthless.” Matthew 5:13

Jesus is preaching the Sermon on the Mount and after sharing the Beatitudes, he says the phrases above. Who is He talking to when He says that “you are the salt of the earth”? Well, if we back up to verse 11, we see He is talking to His followers.

So, if we are followers of Jesus, He is saying that we are the salt of the earth. My Bible commentary says, and I quote, “If a seasoning has no flavor, it has no value. If Christians make no effort to affect the world around them, they are of little value in representing God’s presence in this world. If we are too much like the world, we won’t be able to help or change it; as seasoning, we will be worthless.” Ouch! Take a breath and let’s continue. It goes on to say, “Christians should not blend in with everyone else. If we isolate ourselves from non-Christians, however, we will lose the ability to reach them. Instead, we should influence others positively, just as seasoning brings out the best flavor in food.”

See! I have been talking about leadership and you didn’t think that applied to you. But right here we see if we are “salt” then we are to have influence in the world. After all, John Maxwell taught us many years ago that leadership is really just influence. So, for us to have value to the Kingdom of God, we must become intentional about influencing – aka leading -  others for the Kingdom.

We make lots of excuses – our personality, our comfort zone, our fears. But at the same time, my guess is that you do not want to be worthless to the Kingdom. Right? I mean, you love Jesus, you believe He died for your sins, you just don’t recognize that as His creation you are valuable to Him. If we are not committing to influence others and point them to Jesus, then we are choosing to live a life of disobedience to our King. Ouch again. I know. This is a hard truth to digest.

So, what are we to do?

1.        We are to choose obedience. Praying a one word prayer, “Yes!”.

2.        We are to lean into the truth of God’s word. Studying it. Journaling it. Living it out.

3.        We are to stop thinking of ourselves and start thinking of others. How can I influence them to love Jesus and surrender their life to Him? (The answer is not… lecture them, preach to them, judge them, criticize them, etc. It is to love them enough… to love Jesus enough… to step out of your comfort zone and be intentional in speaking truth and showing grace at work, in your community, and at home. But not just once - there has to be consistency.

May we live in such a way that if someone is following us, they find themselves chasing hard after Jesus.

Together - let’s add flavor to the world and intentionally influence others everywhere we go!

Love you!

Pam

p.s.

Ready to engage Jesus in the way you lead - check out my course and my coaching programs. ow is a great time to grow your leadership capacity and fulfill the purpose God has for you.

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Resources for you…

  • Listen to Pam on the Engage for More podcast.

  • Want someone to walk alongside you? Pam is a Life & Leadership Coach. Click here and schedule a complimentary call so you can find out more.

  • Need a Speaker at your event? Pam is a sought after speaker. Reach out to her.

  • Ready to Rise Up and become the Leader God is calling you to be? Learn more about our Leadership Program.

  • Subscribe to Pam’s Leadership Newsletter, LEAD, by clicking here.

  • Visit our websites - pampegram.com and engageformore.com

  • If you are looking for a resource to help you grow more intimate with Jesus, check out Pam’s book, Saved by Grace, Now What? It is available on the MWM Marketplace and also available on Amazon.

 

Pam PegramComment