Sodium Chloride

“You are the salt of the earth. But if the salt loses its saltiness, how can it be made salty again? It is no longer good for anything, except to be thrown out and trampled underfoot” (Matthew 5:13).

God is so smart. God made everything. God even made salt.

The chemical composition of salt is sodium chloride.

Sodium is an extremely active element found naturally only in combined form. In the natural world, sodium doesn’t exist on its own. It always attaches itself to another compound…like sodium chloride!

Chloride is a poisonous gas that gives beach its offensive odor.

But combine the two, and you have sodium chloride: salt.

Salt – the substance that we use to flavor foods, to preserve meats, to melt ice, to cause thirst, and to disinfect.

Sodium is like love. Love always attaches itself to another. You cannot just love for love’s sake. Love must have an object. Love must love someone or something. But that’s the problem with love. Love has no boundaries, no morals. Love, loves all things. Love attaches itself to all things. Love on its own is very problematic. Love combined with truth? Now, we’ve got something!

Chloride is like truth. Truth on its own, and without love, is poisonous. Truth, spoken without love, is offensive. It turns people away. It injures. It kills. But truth spoken with love, now you’ve got something! Truth spoken in love transforms.

But when love and truth are combined? You’ve got sodium chloride. You’ve got salt. Salt that flavors the world around it, preserves the truth, melts the hearts of men and women for the gospel, causing people to thirst after God, and bringing healing.

Salt of the earth.

Be salty, my friends.