GET TOGETHER- MAKE IT TASTE GOODCol 4:6 Let your speech always be with grace, seasoned with salt, that you may know how you ought to answer each one. (NKJV)
A few weeks ago J.J. surprised me. We were eating something and she said that I needed to put some salt on it. She normally cooks with salt in the food. We don’t normally, put salt on our food, but that day we did. When we put it on there it gave it a good taste. I like salty foods like fish and ham. They have a good taste to them.
Sometimes our conversations may be seasoned more with bitter weed than they are with a good seasoning. The scriptures have much to say about what comes out of our mouths. We are told in the Scriptures that in our tongues there is either life or death: Pr 18:21 “Death and life are in the power of the tongue, And those who love it will eat its fruit.” (NKJV)
We need to model our conversations after Jesus. He had this to say about the words that He spoke “Joh 6:63 “It is the Spirit who gives life; the flesh profits nothing. The words that I speak to you are spirit, and they are life.” When we find ourselves disagreeing with someone politically, or in any other way we can either voice our opinion in a way that brings glory to God, or we can succumb to the temptation of the devil and respond in a way that dishonors the Name of Jesus Christ. We must remember that we are not called to shout people down, call them names, or belittle them. We are called to be salt and light. People who disagree with us should see that there is something different about the way that we talk.
When we say things about others, or to others we want to be sure that these words are not wounding words, or damaging words. I know that I am going to Heaven by faith in the blood of Jesus Christ. On the other hand when I come to the Lord I don’t want to have a lot of idle words to give account to Him for when I get there : Mt 12:36 “But I say to you that for every idle word men may speak, they will give account of it in the day of judgment.(NKJV)
Sometimes we really cheer people on who use idle words. We like to say things like “he tells you what he thinks, or she tells it like it is.” When many times it may not be exactly like it is, or what he is thinking may not be right.
When the Holy Spirit points out to me that my conversation is not seasoned with salt here are a few things that I do. First, I repent and asked the Lord’s forgiveness. Then I like to pray this passage for myself: Eph 4:29 “Let no corrupt word proceed out of your mouth, but what is good for necessary edification, that it may impart grace to the hearers.”
The Greek term for corrupt in that last passage is sapros, sap-ros’. It means worthless, harmful, and it also means rotten! That leads me back to something J.J. and I watched on T.V. the other night. It was a show about all the top steak houses in the United States. Almost all of them seasoned those steaks with salt no matter what other, or if any other seasoning that they used. Those steaks sure did look good when they were cooking them. I wanted to go cook one right then. On the other hand, have you ever seen road kill on the side of the road, or smelled It as you passed by? There is a big difference in something being rotten and something being seasoned good. In this culture that we live in we all need the Holy Spirit’s help to speak the truth in love. We want to speak in such a way that our conversation is seasoned with salt. When we do, rather than attempting to beat them in an argument, we might just be used to win some people to Christ!
Let Us Pray
Lord Jesus we live in a tumultuous time. There are so many ways that we can be tempted to engage in talk that is not seasoned with salt. Please help us today to not let road kill come out of our mouths, but be a people that a wonderful spiritual flavor emanates from when we open our mouths. Let our conversation and communication be seasoned with salt.
In Jesus Name
Amen
Thanks to all of you who read this and encourage us!
Your Friend/Kinfolk
Preston
