Jesus said, "You must have the qualities of salt among yourselves..." (Mk 9:50 NLT). What are they?
Mark 9:50 New Living Translation (NLT) 50 Salt is good for seasoning. But if it loses its flavor, how do you make it salty again? You must have the qualities of salt among yourselves and live in peace with each other.”
Mark 9:50
ESV - 50 Salt is good, but if the salt has lost its saltiness, how will you make it salty again? Have salt in yourselves, and be at peace with one another.
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Asked December 05 2019
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Jack Gutknecht
Supporter
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Tim Maas
Supporter
I would say that the qualities of salt to which Jesus was referring were three functions: seasoning (as Jesus Himself said in the cited verse), preserving, and purifying. Christians perform these functions by living and exhibiting their faith in their day-to-day actions (which "seasons" the world with a beneficial influence that would not be present if Christians neglected to do so); by bringing others to faith in Christ (which "preserves" those people through the granting of eternal life, and perhaps also forestalls God's judgment against the world as a whole until the full complement of the redeemed has been achieved); and by purifying the world as a result of actively working to combat evil through the type of spiritual warfare discussed in passages such as Ephesians 6:10-17; 2 Timothy 2:1-4; and Philemon 1:2.
Thomas Riccardi
Supporter
Jesus said that we are to have the qualities of salt among ourselves. We are to be a preservative for our society, preventing decay and corruption, but in this context, we are to be so salty—so tasty—that anyone who tastes our flavor will keep coming back for more. And one way this saltiness will be expressed is in the quality—the peace—of our relationships with each other. We should be a seasoning for unbelievers and believers alike to glorify God and reap souls for his Kingdom by either sowing or reaping!
Jack Gutknecht
Supporter
Mark 9:50 says, “Salt is good for seasoning. But if it loses its flavor, how do you make it salty again? You must have the qualities of salt among yourselves and live in peace with each other.” Salt represents purity, preservation, loyalty, and peace. One interesting thing that I learned at Arizona Bible College was that, at least in Old Testament times, about old time customs, when two parties wanted to make a covenant of peace with each other, one would take a pinch of salt out of his salt bag and put it into the other person's salt bag, and he would do the same. The idea there was that those same salt granules would be mixed in and never be able to be exactly retrieved. Jesus was calling his followers to live pure, faithful lives that preserve what is good and maintain peace with one another. (even if it involved compromise). That was called a Covenant of Salt. I have been to the Dead Sea, and I even swam and floated on my back. The water is so salty you cannot sink. And I am a sinker in every other body of water! (heavy bones, I guess). Much of the salt there is mixed with minerals and can lose its flavor. That image makes Jesus’ words real. Believers must keep their distinctiveness and purity, or they lose their spiritual influence. The qualities of salt are purity, preserving influence, loyalty, and peace, which every Christian should carry into daily life.
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