Devotion for Monday through Friday

1. This Week’s Quiet Times: November 7-11, 2011
You Are the Salt of the Earth
MONDAY
Jesus compares us to two things that are very influential: light and salt. Whatever these
two things touch cannot ignore their presence! You can always count on them too; they
will never fail to do what they’re supposed to do, unless of course, they are not the real
thing. This week you will learn how to be the salt Jesus says you are, if indeed the Spirit
lives in you. Read Matthew 5:13. What are some characteristics of salt? What is salt
good for? How is it
influential? “Mankind, lying
in ignorance and
wickedness, were as a vast
heap, ready to putrefy; but
Christ sent forth his
disciples, by their lives and
doctrines to season it with
knowledge and grace. If they
are not such as they should
be, they are as salt that has
lost its savor.” Matthew
Henry. Since salt was
associated with permanence, the expression "covenant of salt" was used to emphasize
the binding or permanent nature of God’s laws (Numbers 18:19). Write Psalm 19:8 on
an index card and memorize it.
TUESDAY
Salt is a preservative. It prevents corruption from taking place. Read Romans 12:1-2.
Are you to conform to (be like) the world in what you do? How are you to transform?
Just like salt transforms everything that it touches, so are you to transform (influence)
yourself and others. What is the purpose of transformation? Can this purpose be
accomplished without transformation? Read 2 Peter 1:4. Notice how you escape
corruption by partaking of God’s divine nature. Your saltiness is a reflection of this
nature in all you do: When you speak to your brethren, and to other people; what you
read, what you watch on TV, the music you listen to, etc... Write James 1:27 on an
index card and memorize it. Are you striving to keep yourself from being corrupted by
the world?

2. WEDNESDAY
Since salt prevents corruption from taking place, it has a purifying effect. Read 2 Kings
2:20-21. What effect did the salt have on the water? Why symbolism did the salt have in
this miracle that the Lord did through Elisha? Think about the purifying effect of God’s
command, its influence and its permanence. In the same way the Lord purifies you:
Titus 2:14. List the adjectives of God’s people from this passage. What the salt did to
Elisha’s water God does to you: purifies and makes you fruitful; zealous for good
deeds! How will the zeal for your good deeds be like salt? Write 2 Cor. 7:1 on an index
card and memorize it. Does your personality reflect reverence toward God? Is it a salty
personality? Are you striving to perfect your holiness?
THURSDAY
Being salt not only involves keeping yourself pure from the corruption of the world but
also keeping God’s doctrine pure in your heart, mind and soul. Read 2 Timothy 2:15.
Being salty means being able to use God’s Word adequately. You want to be salty
enough so that people see something different in you. Think of potato chips. You can’t
just have one! Now imagine if the potato chips were incredibly salty would you keep
eating? Read 2 Timothy 2:2. Being salty means being reliable in the Word; ably
qualified to teach others God’s Word, not your own word. Salt preserves. That means it
keeps things pure by making sure nothing gets into it and corrupts it. Write 1 Timothy
4:16 on an index card and memorize it. Are you a zingy, salty potato chip, or a greasy
flavorless one?
FRIDAY
Salt’s influence is very powerful; just like light’s influence on darkness. No matter how
little there is of it in something, its presence is felt and noted. Its effects are not
overcome or diminished even though there might only be a small quantity. Read again
Mark 9:50. Is it possible for salt to loose its saltines? Can salt be robbed of its saltiness?
Is it authentic salt if it indeed loses its saltiness? Notice that being salt involves
preserving peace. Write Colossians 4:6 on an index card and memorize it. Knowing
how to speak to someone involves being able and willing to preserve peace and grace.
Insipid, corrupt, or obscene speech does not edify. It insults, creates discord and opposes
peace. Is your speech salty or bitter? Does your lifestyle reflect the saltiness Jesus
speaks of, or does it reflect the corruption of the world? Do people see something
different in you than what they see in others?