Salt and Peace
Seasoned With Salt, Marked by Peace
SCRIPTURE:
Mark 9:49-50 NKJV - "For everyone will be seasoned with fire, and every sacrifice will be seasoned with salt. "Salt is good, but if the salt loses its flavor, how will you season it? Have salt in yourselves, and have peace with one another."
OBSERVATION:
In the closing verses of Mark chapter 9, Jesus addresses the question of “who is the greatest?” We see that Peter, James, and John were feeling rather good about themselves. They had just caught a glimpse of Jesus in all His glory. You would think this would be a humbling experience, but it led to an argument about who was the greatest. I am sure this did not sit well with the remaining nine disciples.
We observe that after the disciples were unable to cast out the demon from the young boy, the argument intensified. So much so that, even though they tried to argue without Jesus knowing, He addressed it. I am sure, like you and me, they looked at each other and gave the look of “are you paying attention to this!”
Jesus then gives us the words to live by.
Mark 9:35 NKJV - And He sat down, called the twelve, and said to them, "If anyone desires to be first, he shall be last of all and servant of all."
We are to seek to be last, not first, and the greatest is the servant of all. Jesus answered the question once and for all. He is the Greatest, and He is the servant of all.
You would think, at this point, the disciples would get it. Do we? We find ourselves like the disciples when we see others successful in ministry, those who are not “with us.” The disciples became jealous when they saw someone “driving out demons” (something they had failed to do). Rather than rejoice, they became jealous. Jesus corrected them and us.
Mark 9:40-41 NKJV - "For he who is not against us is on our side. For whoever gives you a cup of water to drink in My name, because you belong to Christ, assuredly, I say to you, he will by no means lose his reward."
Jesus would bring the lesson home with a teaching on sacrifice. It was a continuation of servanthood. Many people today misapply this to mean that we should “self-mutilate.” If you sin with a member of your body, cut it off. Unfortunately, if you cut off one hand, the other is ready to sin. If you cut off all your members, you will still sin in your mind. NO amount of self-mutilation will deal with sin—only the blood of Jesus and the Holy Spirit.
APPLICATION:
The point Jesus was making was about living a life of self-sacrifice, not physical sacrifice, but putting others before oneself. That is the opposite of who is the greatest and should be our end goal. Other-centered!
Again, the last two verses of this chapter have been misapplied in many ways. The point Jesus was making was not physical but spiritual. We are to be a sacrifice, but we are to be a “living sacrifice.”
Just as the sacrifices in the Bible involved fire and salt, so too should our lives be salt that seasons, purifies, and preserves. It should add “flavor” to our lives as the Holy Spirit (the fire) gives us the ability to season, purify, preserve, and add flavor to those around us.
It’s not about who is the greatest. It’s about the servant of all, who, in the filling and leading of the Holy Spirit, purifies and preserves those around us, as the Holy Spirit adds more “flavor” to them. Don’t lose your “saltiness.”
PRAYER:
Jesus, help me by Your Spirit to be the salt, the servant, and the least. My flesh likes the idea of “who is the greatest,” and my attitude often reflects it. Season me so I may season others. Fill me with Your Spirit of fire once again and purify my life.
Mark 9:49-50 NKJV - "For everyone will be seasoned with fire, and every sacrifice will be seasoned with salt. "Salt is good, but if the salt loses its flavor, how will you season it? Have salt in yourselves, and have peace with one another."
OBSERVATION:
In the closing verses of Mark chapter 9, Jesus addresses the question of “who is the greatest?” We see that Peter, James, and John were feeling rather good about themselves. They had just caught a glimpse of Jesus in all His glory. You would think this would be a humbling experience, but it led to an argument about who was the greatest. I am sure this did not sit well with the remaining nine disciples.
We observe that after the disciples were unable to cast out the demon from the young boy, the argument intensified. So much so that, even though they tried to argue without Jesus knowing, He addressed it. I am sure, like you and me, they looked at each other and gave the look of “are you paying attention to this!”
Jesus then gives us the words to live by.
Mark 9:35 NKJV - And He sat down, called the twelve, and said to them, "If anyone desires to be first, he shall be last of all and servant of all."
We are to seek to be last, not first, and the greatest is the servant of all. Jesus answered the question once and for all. He is the Greatest, and He is the servant of all.
You would think, at this point, the disciples would get it. Do we? We find ourselves like the disciples when we see others successful in ministry, those who are not “with us.” The disciples became jealous when they saw someone “driving out demons” (something they had failed to do). Rather than rejoice, they became jealous. Jesus corrected them and us.
Mark 9:40-41 NKJV - "For he who is not against us is on our side. For whoever gives you a cup of water to drink in My name, because you belong to Christ, assuredly, I say to you, he will by no means lose his reward."
Jesus would bring the lesson home with a teaching on sacrifice. It was a continuation of servanthood. Many people today misapply this to mean that we should “self-mutilate.” If you sin with a member of your body, cut it off. Unfortunately, if you cut off one hand, the other is ready to sin. If you cut off all your members, you will still sin in your mind. NO amount of self-mutilation will deal with sin—only the blood of Jesus and the Holy Spirit.
APPLICATION:
The point Jesus was making was about living a life of self-sacrifice, not physical sacrifice, but putting others before oneself. That is the opposite of who is the greatest and should be our end goal. Other-centered!
Again, the last two verses of this chapter have been misapplied in many ways. The point Jesus was making was not physical but spiritual. We are to be a sacrifice, but we are to be a “living sacrifice.”
Just as the sacrifices in the Bible involved fire and salt, so too should our lives be salt that seasons, purifies, and preserves. It should add “flavor” to our lives as the Holy Spirit (the fire) gives us the ability to season, purify, preserve, and add flavor to those around us.
It’s not about who is the greatest. It’s about the servant of all, who, in the filling and leading of the Holy Spirit, purifies and preserves those around us, as the Holy Spirit adds more “flavor” to them. Don’t lose your “saltiness.”
PRAYER:
Jesus, help me by Your Spirit to be the salt, the servant, and the least. My flesh likes the idea of “who is the greatest,” and my attitude often reflects it. Season me so I may season others. Fill me with Your Spirit of fire once again and purify my life.
True greatness is found in humble servanthood—lives seasoned by the Spirit that bring flavor, purity, and peace to others.
Posted in Mark
Recent
Archive
2026
January
Words Spoken at the Right TimeHe Will SaveShining as the StarSOAPRepentance: It’s a Good ThingDawning of a New LifePerfect Not PerfectionThe Cure for AnxietyThe Way We Think About and Treat OthersRight AwayTax Collectors and SinnersChoosing Christ Above AllThe Yoke of LearningHope In His NameWhere Did He Learn ThisImmediatelyFrom the HeartOn This RockMustard Seed FaithTrue HumilityMission ImpossibleMoved with Compassion