Salt and Grace
“Salt, when dissolved in water, may disappear, but it does not cease to exist.We can be sure of its presence by tasting the water. Likewise, the indwelling Christ, though unseen, will be made evident to others from the love which He imparts to us.”
~Sadhu Sundar Singh~
I came across a powerful quote while reading an article about different world religions, “One of the sneaky things about {world religions} is they use our vocabulary but not our dictionary.” I don’t know about you but that sends a shiver up my spine. We, as Christians, need to know the differences of the different world religions and be able to confront the differences with truth and compassion. How do we do this?
As Christians we need to be able to know and explain the basics of Christianity.
I believe it is important to be knowledgeable of the core of Christianity. We need to be able to present atonement, salvation, the Trinity, and the nature of God in general. And most important, the basic defense of the resurrection (without which, our faith is in vain!).
We need to know this in order to be able to recognize copy cat gods or copy cat religions. I define, these copy cats as anyone who adds or subtracts anything written in the bible. I believe there is no excuse for Christians not to be articulate in what they believe and why, and this means being informed about the foundation of your beliefs.
Now this is where some believers differ, some believe we need to “be fools for Christ and hit hard” and basically bop the lost sheep over the head with our words. Others believe we need to just be “examples” and not rock the boat. I believe we need to be somewhere in the middle.
Now Col 4:5 says:
“Be wise in the way you act toward outsiders; make the most of every opportunity. Let your conversation be always full of grace, seasoned with salt, so that you may know how to answer everyone.”
As Christians we need to let our answers always be filled with grace and seasoned with salt. “Salt is a symbol of lasting concord, its purpose is to protect food from corrosion and preserves it unchanged” (Strongs). When Christ walked the earth he not only talked about God’s judgment and justice but also about his forgiveness and hope. Also his message never changed no matter the circumstance (salt).
So how as Christians do we combine the salt and the grace? How would the disciples be if they were walking on earth right now? I believe we need to “know how to answer everyone” with love and grace, and do so with salt (unchanging truth). I believe our time of being Christians by example only is over. Instead the love that we impart on others (because of the love Christ gives to us) along with the salt of our words will make Christ evident to others.
Heavenly Father, help me to pepper my words with salt and grace. Help me to be able to give an account for what I believe and why. Thank you for sending your son to die on the cross for my sins. I love you. Amen.
- Joy in the Morning
- It’s the Little Things
As Christians we need to let our answers always be filled with grace and seasoned with salt. Amen…..
Amen my sweet friend.
I think that most believers would be shocked to know how many professing “Christian” denominations out there do not have the same definitions as we do, (i.e. whose definitions do not line up with the bible) especially in the subject of Jesus and God. Thanks for the awareness you brought up in this post. We each need to know the truth (the Bible) so well that when we see a counterfeit we will be able to spot it immediately.
That is beautiful….
just what our world is in critical need of…
thank you