2 Kings 2:19 And the men of the city said to Elisha, Behold, inhabiting of this city is pleasant, as my lord sees, but the water is bad and the locality causes miscarriage and barrenness [in all animals].20 He said, Bring me a new bowl and put salt [the symbol of God’s purifying power] in it. And they brought it to him.21 Then Elisha went to the spring of the waters and cast the salt in it and said, Thus says the Lord: I [not the salt] have healed these waters; there shall not be any more death, miscarriage or barrenness [and bereavement] because of it.22 So the waters were healed to this day, as Elisha had said.
What does the water represent? In the bible, the water can represent the Word of God. Many churches, ministries, families, or individual Christians can represent the land. Their lives can be full of spiritual miscarriages and barreness. Other translations have it as the crops are unproductive. It is a land where crops cannot grow due to the water. The water is bad and or polluted. In verse 19, the men of the city said to Elisha that the city is pleasant but the water is bad. Many Christians believe they are saved. Many western churches, ministries, families, or individuals can have the perception that their lives are pleasant. After all, they are still alive. They are able to go to church. They may have good jobs or businesses. They may have good families. Many are on Facebook thinking they are spiritually contributing. They occassionally read, pray, and worship. They have health care if they get sick. They believe they are good with the Lord. But yet, many Christians are stuck. Their spouses may be religious or their relationship may not be very intimate with each other. There are miscarriages and barrenness in the land. Even though, the lives of most Christians are relatively easy, many are but only professing the joy of the Lord. However, they are not living the joy of the Lord. Many profess to love God and one another. But many are not walking and living in HIS Love. Many speak of God's love and peace yet if you see their faces, so many Christians have tired faces. Many are spiritually tired and wornout.
Miscarriages bring sorrow and saddness. Birth of new borns bring joy and happiness. Many Christians are still going to church and many are no longer attending. Many know a lot of the Word in respect to knowledge and many know very little of the Word. But in today's religious atmosphere, the land may look pleasant. Many churches and ministries have large building and people. Many are finanically prosperous. But there are no spiritual birth of the new life. The water is bad. The water which represents the Word of God is polluted and tainted. As it is given to God's people, rather than bringing life as it was intended, it is bringing spiritual miscarriages and barreness.
What was the solution? Elisha told them to bring him a bowl of salt. What does salt represent? Salt represents the power of God. Without the Spirit in the Word, the Word will only be a letter that brings death. Those who feed God's people must be seasoned with salt and must have salt within the Word.
Colossians 4:6 (AMP) Let your speech at all times be gracious (pleasant and winsome), seasoned [as it were] with salt, [so that you may never be at a loss] to know how you ought to answer anyone [who puts a question to you].
Mark 9:50 Salt is good (beneficial), but if salt has lost its saltness, how will you restore [the saltness to] it? Have salt within yourselves, and be at peace and live in harmony with one another.
Salt in us can only be achived by the power of God as we die to ourselves and apply the principal of the Cross which is self denial. As we follow the new commandment in loving one another, when we feed God's people HIS Word, we will be speaking with salt in our spirit and conduct as we are pleasant, winsome, peace, and living in harmony one another.
Luke 14:34 Salt is good [an excellent thing], but if salt has lost its strength and has become saltless (insipid, flat), how shall its saltness be restored?
Those who know God's Word in knowledge can still preach but without salt, it will be dried and dull. Without the presence of the Holy Spirit and HIS anointing, the service is but in vain. Without salt, the Word which is to bring life and revival will actually be used to kill rather than bring life. It will bring miscarriages rather than the new birth or new creation. You can be in a service where there is no joy nor life of God. The land may look pleasant but the water may be bad.
Psalm 51:11 Cast me not away from Your presence and take not Your Holy Spirit from me.
12 Restore to me the joy of Your salvation and uphold me with a willing spirit.
Without the Presence of the Holy Spirit, there is no joy. We must desire to know HIM more. We must seek HIS Face and HIS Presence rather than what HE can give us. No matter how big your storms are, we must lay down our selfish interest and desires at the foot of the cross and just desire to know HIM. Too many of us only know about HIM. We must humble ourselves and repent for going after other idols. We must repent for using HIM for going after spiritual and physical things for our own selfish glory. We must ask for a heart that only desires HIM for HE is our reward. We must be seasonsed with salt. We are called to be the salt and light of the world.
May HE grant us a pure heart so that our lives would honor HIM. May we come to the fullness of our King so that HE completely reigns in us. May we continue to die to ourselves becoming nothing so that HE may become everything in us.
Pastor Steve Yong Kim
Fire of God Church
Fremont, CA USA
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