You are the salt of the earth; but if the salt loses its flavor, how shall it be seasoned? It is then good for nothing but to be thrown out and trampled underfoot by men.
— Matthew 5:13

This verse is often preached to call believers to be “salty”, and there are countless interpretations on the subject. I once even watched a video of a preacher who, holding an over-salted dried fish, said that if something is over-salted it is unfit to eat. Strange, I thought — Jesus seems to have spoken of salt that had lost its saltiness, not the other way round. So what did Jesus mean when He called His disciples the salt of the earth?

I want to point out straight away that being a disciple before the cross and after it are two completely different things. Not one of the disciples who followed Jesus was born again. For some this will come as a surprise, but how could they be born again if they did not have the Holy Spirit, since the Holy Spirit had not yet been given, because Jesus was not yet glorified? [Jhn.7:39] They were born again only when Jesus breathed on them and said: “Receive the Holy Spirit“. [Jhn.20:22] So the only way to be Jesus’ disciple before the cross was to forsake everything, take up your cross and follow the Lord. [Luk.14:33] This is exactly what Jesus told the rich young man. [Luk.18:22] That is why, as Jesus said, there are few who can be saved or become His disciples. [Mat.7:14]

Jesus called His followers salt. Why? What is salt for? “To salt potatoes or soup.” A good answer, but is that what Jesus was talking about? He said: “It is neither fit for the land nor for the dunghill…” [Luk.14:35] We don’t intend to eat soil with manure, do we? Jesus meant another property of salt — its power to preserve from decay. And why of the earth? Because the Lord cares about preserving the earth, and only righteousness can save the earth from destruction. That is why the Lord said to Abraham: “I will not destroy it for the sake of ten.” [Gen.18:32] For the sake of one righteous man [Lot], Zoar, which had been destined for destruction along with the other cities, was spared. [Gen.19:21-22; Gen.14:2] And for the sake of One Righteous Man the Earth, which had been destined for destruction [that is why John wept much], has been preserved. [Rev.5:4-5] Scripture says: “There is none righteous, no, not one.” [Rom.3:10] But hallelujah, glory to God, the Son of David has prevailed! He sold all that He had and bought the whole earth for the sake of His treasures, which He hid there. [Mat.13:44]

And how can salt lose its power, or its saltiness? Lot’s wife is a good example. As long as she was with righteous Lot and followed him, she was safe, but when she turned and looked back past him, she looked at God’s judgment — the fire coming down from heaven. In the same way unbelieving Israel, of which Lot’s wife was a type, instead of following its Messiah, who was going to Mount Zion, turned back to Mount Sinai, of which it is written: “the mountain that may be touched and that burned with fire, and to blackness and darkness and tempest… And so terrifying was the sight that Moses said, ‘I am exceedingly afraid and trembling’” [Heb.12:18-21] Very much like the picture of Sodom and Gomorrah, isn’t it? And what happened to Lot’s wife? She became salt thrown out, because she lost her righteousness. Just as the guest who came to the wedding feast without wedding garments was thrown out [Mat.22:11-13] — the garments that are the righteousness of saints [Rev.19:8 KJV] — but with a righteousness of the law, or of works, which has lost its power. [Heb.8:13]

“So can I lose my righteousness?” a frightened Christian will ask. First: “For God has not given us a spirit of fear [to live in fear], but of power and of love and of a sound mind.” [2 Tim.1:7] And second, as I wrote above, being Jesus’ disciple before the cross and after it are two radically different things. Jesus’ disciples after the cross receive salvation and righteousness not because they sell everything and follow Jesus, but because they have received into their hearts the One who sold everything on the cross. And our righteousness is not of the law but of faith, that is, of Christ, who is our righteousness. [Rom.3:21-22] And how can we lose Christ, who lives in us by His Spirit, when He Himself said: “And I will pray the Father, and He will give you another Helper, that He may abide with you forever“? [Jhn.14:16]