Salt of the earth

Sermon by Pr. Michelle Sevig on the Fifth Sunday after Epiphany + Sunday, February 8, 2026.

Have you ever described someone as “salt of the earth”? Maybe you’ve even been described this way. 

I grew up hearing that phrase to describe people who are good, trustworthy, hardworking people. Often when referring to the people from my first call congregation in South Dakota, I’ve used this as a descriptor, “They were just salt of the earth people”–the ones who show up when a neighbor needed help harvesting because the farmer was in the hospital or the ones who provided an overabundance of food to a grieving family.” You know these kinds of people, right?  The ones who represent the best qualities of ordinary people–honest, dependable, faithful. 

This saying has its roots in today’s reading from Matthew, part of the Sermon on the Mount. I wonder what Jesus meant when he said, “You are the salt of the earth”? I doubt it was the same as what this idiom has grown to mean to our contemporary American ears. 

A little history about salt might be helpful here. In the book, Salt: A World History, Mark Kurlansky writes,“from the beginning of civilization until about one hundred years ago, salt was one of the most sought after commodities in human history.”  Salt was used for medicinal purposes, to disinfect wounds, check bleeding, and treat skin diseases.  Roman soldiers were sometimes paid in salt — which is how we get our English word, “salary.”  Brides and grooms rubbed salt on their bodies to enhance fertility. And, in all the centuries before refrigeration, salt was essential for food preservation.   

These days we still use salt for all sorts of purposes. Salt accentuates flavors, softens water, and makes water boil faster. Salt melts ice, as we’ve seen on the sidewalks in Chicago this winter and in the saltiness of the Minnesota people . Salt soothes sore throats, rinses sinuses, eases swelling, and cleans wounds. But it also has an edge; it can sting a fresh wound, burn your throat if you have too much, it's abrasive and can irritate skin. 

Salt is plentiful and common to us today, and it's easy to take it for granted or not realize it's a precious commodity. When Jesus calls his listeners “the salt of the earth,” he is saying something profound, something we’ll miss in our 21st century context unless we press in and pay attention.

Jesus says to the crowds gathered around him, “You are the salt of the earth. You are the light of the world.”  It’s a promise, not a command. Jesus doesn't say you should be salt, or you have to be light, or even you better be or else. He’s saying you are. As in, already are. Even if you don’t know it. Even if you don’t feel it. Even if you have a hard time believing it. 

The language Jesus uses is descriptive; it’s a statement of our identity.  We are the salt of the earth.  We are that which will enhance or embitter, soothe or irritate, melt or sting, preserve or ruin.  For better or for worse, we are the salt of the earth, and what we do with our saltiness matters.  Whether we want to or not, whether we notice or not, whether we’re intentional about it or not, we spiritually impact the world we live in.   

Imagine what Jesus’ first followers would have heard when he called them salt. To us, salt is cheap and plentiful–for everyday use. But to those first hearers, salt was a precious commodity. When he says, you are the salt of the earth, he identifies them (and us) as precious, valuable, treasured.  

Remember what sorts of people Jesus addressed in his famous Sermon on the Mount–The poor, the mournful, the meek, the persecuted.  He spoke to the hungry, the sick, and those who were on the margins of society–the misfit and  disreputable. “You,” he told them all. “You are the salt of the earth.”  You who’ve been rejected, wounded, unloved, and forgotten–you are essential. You are worthwhile. You are treasured. And I am commissioning you to be light for the world.  

Jesus blesses and gives us an identity: You are the salt of the earth. You are the light of the world. 

“Be salty. Stay Lit.” That’s the meme that’s appeared in my social media feeds this week; quoting Matthew 5.  

• BE SALT–precious and treasured, providing healing to a wounded world, flavor to a rich diversity of peoples and cultures; agitating when necessary, melting all that divides and separates. 

• STAY LIT–illuminating the shadowed places of our human brokenness–racism, sexism, able-bodiedism, classism and anything that divides or separates us as human beings created in the image of God. Be the light that spotlights God’s love and acceptance for everyone.

I wonder if we get stuck sometimes; believing we have to do big things, change the world or leave a legacy in order to be salty or shine brightly. We get stuck thinking we can’t be or do enough to have an impact, so we don’t pay attention to or notice the ways we already are salt and light in the world. So let me offer some examples, though not exhaustive, of the ways the Holy One uses us to bring hope to a hurting world. 

• Looking another in the eyes, speaking a kind word, and acknowledging them as created in the image and likeness of God, especially if that person is someone we’ve previously thought of as “other” or “different”

• Generously giving compassion, time, and money to care for and make a difference in the lives of those who are poor, hungry, or homeless

• Being present with someone who is grieving, without having to fix anything, but simply sitting with them in the pain and sorrow. 

The prayers offered, the protests marched in, the phone calls to congress, the promises made and kept; all these and others of your own, are ways that a small bit of light makes the world a little brighter, so that the love of God is shown and known.  

“Let your light shine before others, so that they may see your good works and give glory to God in heaven.” These words from today's gospel are said to the newly baptized during the baptismal rite –A reminder that us salty, precious ones are named and claimed as God’s beloved. In baptism you are sent out to be Christ’s light in the world, pointing others to their calling as beloved ones of God.

Each of us will season and light up the world in our own ways. Salt that does not flavor and light that is hidden are worthless. So pass the salt. Light your lamp. Be Salty. Stay lit.