I am a Jesus pusher!!! Salt was of extreme value in Jesus’ day. There was no lack of supply. The Jebel Usdum, to the south of the Dead Sea, is a mountain of rock salt about seven miles long and from two to three miles wide and some hundreds of feet high. The Dead Sea, also called Sea of Salt, is located at the southern end of the Jordan River. It is one thousand three hundred feet below sea level making it the lowest point on the earth. The deepest point of the sea is the northeast corner. The size of this sea varies but it averages fifty miles in length and nine to ten miles in width. Its water contains twenty-five percent salt; our oceans are six percent. Due to extreme heat there is a rapid evaporation of water. Thus, the marshes around the sea have an abundant supply of salt. Salt was used in man’s food (Job 6:6) and added to fodder for the animals (Isaiah 30:24). Newborn babies were rubbed with salt (Ezekiel 16:4). The grain and burnt offerings were sprinkled with salt (Leviticus 2:13; Ezra 16:4). This does not include the use in food for preservation in a hot climate and for flavor in cooking.
Jesus used the imagery of salt to highlight the spiritual reality of the Kingdom of Heaven (Matthew 5:13). The content of salt is the content of the Kingdom of Heaven; the content of the Kingdom is the content of the Beatitudes. It is not a location but a relationship of intimacy with Him. The relationship is called the Kingdom of Heaven. It includes comfort, inheritance, filling, mercy, purity, and peace. He places equal to these qualities the wonder of suffering for His sake. Salt affects and influences every aspect of life. Jesus influences the Kingdom person and through them to their world. I am a Jesus pusher!!!