The Faith Walk

Jonathan Evans: I am the oldest of the millennials. I was born in '81, so I'm the grandpa millennial. 1980 or 1981 is when millennials started. Below me, you have a generation of young millennials and Gen Z that have a question about the church. The question is, church for what? What's the point of going to the church? What do they do?

They are just like me. My friend who was going to church, on Saturday we were at the strip club, and then he tells me we're going to church on Sunday because he can't mess with God. What are you talking about? You're just like me. You were just smoking weed with me. You get drunk in the club just like I do. You're just like me. So church for what? What do you do that I can't do?

Guest (Male): You're listening to The Faith Walk with Jonathan Evans. In a moment, Jonathan will continue today's message. But first, I want to briefly let you know that this week we have two gifts for you to thank you for your support of this ministry.

The first is the audio series called Discipleship for Everyday, equipping you to live out your faith with authenticity and impact every day. The second gift is the book Your Time Is Now. In this book, you'll understand that God has a purpose for you even if you think you're not ready to make a difference. Later in today's program, I'll give you more details about these special gifts. Or you can visit tonyevans.org or call 1-800-800-3222. Right now, let's get started with Jonathan's message.

Jonathan Evans: Salt is not pure and then does not purify. Salt actually purifies that which it touches. If you had an ulcer growing up, your mama would tell you to pour some hot water in a cup and put some salt in it. Then she'd tell you to gargle it. I told my mama that wasn't going to work and to give me some medicine because my mouth hurt. She said to just trust her.

Put some salt in the hot water and just gargle. Within 14 hours, I was like, "This feels great," because the salt reduces inflammation. The salt cleanses. The salt reduces the pain. Salt does all of that because it's fundamentally different than the infection. Because it's pure, when it hits impurity, it actually purifies.

Now, the situation in my mouth is totally different because something different has hit the problem that I was facing. Many of us are complaining about the inflammation in the culture and in our families. We're complaining about the pain. We're complaining about the struggle, and we don't realize that we're supposed to be the salt that sanctifies that which it touches.

He's calling you to responsibility and he's saying that you're it. We are the salt. We're supposed to be purifying that which we touch. That's why 1 Peter 2:12 says, "Live with good deeds among the pagans that by that, they may glorify God when He visits us." We should be purifying it. Salt also has antimicrobial properties in it.

Salt makes the environment less hospitable for pathogens and bacteria. This is why God made the ocean salt water. If you don't believe in God, the very nature speaks of who He is. All those fish in there in that sea, all that bacteria, everyone's using the bathroom all over the place. He said to just put some salt in there.

That's why some people have salt water pools because they don't want to use chlorine, and the salt water will clean the pool. It makes the environment less hospitable for pathogens and bacteria. So if things are decaying at a fast rate, it's because there is not something applied to it that makes the environment less hospitable for pathogens and bacteria.

Thus, if evil pathogens and bacteria are able to infect the culture at a fast rate where it continues to devolve and devolve, there must not be something that is an antimicrobial property to it that can actually attach itself to it to make sure that it's less hospitable for evil, therefore being preserved much longer.

The nature of salt means that something that's supposed to decay will decay, but doesn't decay fast. It decays slow. In the Bible days, they would take salt and coat the meat with the salt. They didn't have refrigerators, so they understood the nature of the salt and used the salt for what it was for, not just re-flavoring the food, but actually preserving the food that it was on because it just made the environment less hospitable for things that promote decay.

They coated the meat. If they didn't coat the meat, they didn't get mad when the meat decayed. They already knew the meat was going to decay because that's what meat does. It's going to decay. In order for it not to decay at the rate at that it would if there's no salt, you know what we've got to do? Salt it.

When Jesus says, "You are the salt of the earth," that "you" there is emphatic. It means it's your responsibility as a disciple to preserve the earth, not to be shocked it's decaying. Romans 8:21 says this world will be freed from its slavery to decay, which means it's enslaved to decay by nature of sin.

Because of sin, it's going to decay, and many Christians are shocked at the decay. Kids don't respect their parents no more. When I was growing up, it was like this, and they've got this going on. This world is crazy. You are the salt of the earth. Sometimes I'll be looking at this like, "Jesus, you already said it. What do you want me to say?" He said, "Say what I said."

You're complaining about something that you're supposed to restore. What He did not say is, "You are the salt of the shaker." That implies that you're supposed to leave the shaker and attack the meat. Currently, we're in a shaker. It's just a bunch of pure people hanging out with one another.

Jesus is like, "But that's not what's going to change the earth. This is what changes the earth: people who leave the shaker and attack the meat." So if you're complaining at work, you're supposed to be the salt there. In this political division, we're supposed to be the unity. In all the craziness going on in the world, we should be fundamentally different and making it less hospitable for pathogens to continue to live in our neighborhoods.

The responsibility is on the church. But because the church would rather be in the shaker, the meat continues to decay. He puts the responsibility on us. He says, "It's on you. I mean, I'm here. I do what I do. You've seen me work, and I still work. But if you're going to come into this kitchen, I need you to cook."

The problem is He makes the statement. He says, "But what is it good for if salt loses its saltiness? It's good for nothing other than to be trodden underfoot by men." How in the world does salt, being a pure solid compound that doesn't break down, lose its saltiness? Well, back in the Bible days, they would also pull salt from salt marshes.

If you get the evaporated water from the ocean, that's the pure salt. But if you get it from a salt marsh, a salt marsh is fundamentally impure and bitter. So the salt that was inculcated or immersed in a salt marsh would actually come out with so many impurities on it that it would actually dull the effectiveness of the salt.

We live in a generation today where Christians are so inculcated in the culture. They're actually so immersed into the salt marsh called this world. In other words, there's no fundamental difference. They're in it. They're not just on the world or being applied to it; they're in it. So they're literally good for nothing because they have so many impurities on them that they can't even be used to actually be a property that is less hospitable for the things that they complain about.

I am the oldest of the millennials. I was born in '81, so I'm the grandpa millennial. 1981 and 1980 is when millennials started. Below me, you have a generation of young millennials and Gen Z that have a question about the church. The question is, church for what? What's the point of going to the church? What do they do?

They are just like me. My friend who was going to church, on Saturday we were at the strip club, and then he telling me we're going to church on Sunday because he can't mess with God. What are you talking about? You're just like me. You were just smoking weed with me. You get drunk in the club just like I do. You're just like me.

So church for what? What do you do that I can't do? You roll like I roll. You talk like I talk. You're in the marsh with me. So if there's purity that comes from Jesus, it don't make no change. It didn't change you. You're just like me. So if that's the way it's going to be, then don't get surprised when the culture walks on our faith.

Because if you don't take it seriously, why would they take it seriously? If you don't respect your faith, why would they respect your faith? That's why these rappers, after doing a whole album that is about the devil, get on the stage, grab their award, and say, "Thank you, Jesus!"

"Thank you, Jesus!" You just preached a dissertation on your album about the devil and his plan. And then you're going to say that because they're walking on our faith. They don't take it seriously. And they think that that's valid and good enough because we let them think that it's valid and good enough.

If I can be at the club, if I can be living a sinful lifestyle, if I can be drunk in the club with you at the strip club, smoking weed, doing whatever I want to do and then come to church, then why wouldn't they produce an album that's talking about drugs and alcohol and degrading women and then get up there and say, "Thank you, Jesus"?

Because the same Jesus that lets you live foul is the same Jesus that lets me live foul and make money. So they're walking on our faith.

Guest (Male): More of The Faith Walk with Jonathan Evans in a moment. Did you know that God has a purpose for you right now? You may think you're not ready to make a difference in God's kingdom or that you're too young for others to take seriously. But that's not what God thinks.

We want to give you a book by Jonathan called Your Time Is Now. This book is our gift to you as a thanks for your donation to help support the ministry of The Urban Alternative. And along with the book is Jonathan's six-part audio series, Discipleship for Everyday.

This six-part collection goes beyond routine religion, equipping you to live out your faith with authenticity and impact every day. It's designed to help you grow as a disciple and inspire others to do the same, leading to stronger families, more vibrant churches, and communities transformed by the gospel.

Both the book and six-part series are our way of showing appreciation for the continued support of listeners like you who make this program possible. Get all the details online at tonyevans.org. Again, that's tonyevans.org. Or you can call our 24-hour resource request line at 1-800-800-3222 and let one of our team members help you. That's 1-800-800-3222. Find your way out of distractions and into God's purpose for your life. Now, let's get back to Jonathan with the rest of today's message.

Jonathan Evans: The same Jesus that lets you live foul is the same Jesus that lets me live foul and make money. So they're walking on our faith. They're just treading on our faith. Because salt that isn't salty is good for nothing. In the Bible days, they would use gypsum, throw the salt from the salt marsh that was good for nothing in there because it would help harden the gypsum.

They would lay the roofs out that way so that they could party on it. They would even create their pathways that they could walk on and they would throw the unusable salt in there because it would actually help create an environment that they can walk. So they party on our faith. They don't even take it seriously.

If we were actually salt, then the government would have to deal with us in their decision-making. He said, "You're the salt." A salt that ain't salty, we're walking on that stuff. And then He doubles down on what He's saying because He says, "Well, you're the light of the world." As a disciple, you're responsible. Don't just come in here looking for a blessing.

It's not a problem to pray for a blessing. But some of us are only looking for a blessing. And He's calling you to responsibility in the Sermon on the Mount. He's saying, "No, no, no. If you want to change your atmosphere, change your circumstance, change your situation, change your family dynamic, change how it is on your job, change all the stuff that you disagree with, you're the light of the world," which means He's telling you the world is dark.

And that we are responsible in it. John 1:5 says where the light is, the darkness cannot overcome it. I've heard it said that if there's light, you can't have darkness and light at the same time. Light eradicates the darkness. Well, not quite. I caught you when you were agreeing with me. If you don't believe me, then just wait until about 9:00 p.m. tonight.

You'll see that it's dark outside. There's a moon, there are streetlights. They actually coexist. The light helps you navigate in the darkness. It doesn't always eradicate it. When He says you are the light of the world, He's speaking more from Philippians 2:15 that says the world is corrupt and perverse, and you should appear as a light in it.

Let me help you understand this a little bit more practically. Let's do it. Turn the lights off. Now, everybody pull out your cell phone and turn on your flashlight. Now just look around. This is in fact what He's saying. Your individual light is not going to eradicate all darkness, but it should make you very evident in it.

That when someone who's in the dark sees your light, they can navigate to you because of how you're living amongst the pagans. And they come to you and they walk next to you because they can see, because you're walking by the word. The word says that the word is a lamp unto my feet and a light unto my path.

So I'm going to walk next to you until I get a light of my own. Rolling with you should mean I can see because I'm with you until you teach me Christ and the gospel, then I get my righteous light and I can do it with the next person. This is what the world is supposed to look like. I remember the first service when the choir was here, they looked out and they said, "Wow."

And that's exactly what the world should say. They should look out and say, "Wow. There's a bunch of stars out there. I want to be one myself." But then He adds this statement and He says, "But some have a light and put it under a basket." So I want you to keep your lights on, but cover it up by your finger or put it under your shirt or hide it against your pants.

This is the reality that we live in today. A bunch of Christians who have a light and hide it. They hide it under the basket of cultural relevance. They hide it under the basket of, "I don't want to come on too strong. I don't want to offend nobody. I want to make sure everybody's okay and I want to make sure I don't stick out like a sore thumb. I want to make sure everybody feels good about my presentation."

So we hide our light under a basket, making it dark for everyone and then we complain about the darkness. Shine them again. You are the light of the world. We don't put baskets on our lamps that are illegitimate. We put it on a lampstand, a city set on a hill. That means, "Hey guys, over here!"

Now, the house lights, when they come on, it eradicates all darkness. Let's turn the house lights back on. You and I are not the house light. That's why we can't eradicate all darkness. We are a light. We're not the light. In Revelation 22:5, it says the Lord God shines His light and there is no more night.

Because when He comes and returns and shines His light, that's the house lights. Everybody's going to be in the light then. But until that time, you're it. You're it for your family, those that are in your family living in darkness and they're unsaved. He's saying, "I gave you that light to shine it for them."

In your community, you're it. If 12 disciples can change the world, how can we not do it with 3,000 people sitting in a room just in our community? Until we get out of the mindset that I'm coming to receive something, that I need Jesus to do this for me like He hasn't already done it. Every blessing in heavenly places has already been applied.

He's already—it is finished. Now, do your work and do what God has called you to do. It's time for us to stop complaining about the things we're the solutions for. A few years later, I went back to Jerry's house. I caught him sitting at the table, leaning back like this. I said, "Jerry, what you doing?" He said, "I just finished eating." I said, "Who cooked?"

He said, "Your sister." I said, "How was it?" He said, "Well, little brother, it was a totally different experience. She's cooking in the light now." I'm hopeful that at least in our community and in yours, they'll say, "Man, it's been a totally different experience because those believers are cooking in the light." God bless.

Guest (Male): That was Jonathan Evans. Before you go today, I want to remind you that we have a couple of gifts for you: Jonathan's book called Your Time Is Now and his six-part audio series, Discipleship for Everyday. You may think you're not ready to make a difference in God's kingdom or that you're too young for others to take seriously.

But that's not what God thinks. The book Your Time Is Now by Jonathan is our gift to you as a thanks for your donation to help support the ministry of The Urban Alternative. And along with the book is Jonathan's six-part audio series, Discipleship for Everyday.

This six-part collection goes beyond routine religion, equipping you to live out your faith with authenticity and impact every day. It's designed to help you grow as a disciple and inspire others to do the same, leading to stronger families, more vibrant churches, and communities transformed by the gospel.

Both are a gift to you to thank you for your donation to help support the ministry of The Urban Alternative. It's our way of showing appreciation for the continued support of listeners like you who make this program possible. Get all the details online at tonyevans.org. Again, that's tonyevans.org. Or you can call our 24-hour resource request line at 1-800-800-3222 and let one of our team members help you.

That's 1-800-800-3222. Thank you for listening to The Faith Walk with Jonathan Evans. The Faith Walk is produced as a part of The Urban Alternative, a ministry of Dr. Tony Evans.