THE Bible tells the story of a prophet who visited a city that had bitter water and when the inhabitants of the city told him of the problem, he asked for a cruse of salt.
After sprinkling the salt into the water, the bitterness went away. In the eyes of the others, sprinkling salt into bitter water to make it sweet was foolish.
Many assume that the church does not have clear solutions for the world's problems and Africans are mocked for their religious prayers.
Historians have argued over the impact that Christianity has made on the world systems, questioning its relevance in today’s society. Who is a Christian and what is his role in present- day society? Do we as a church have contributing roles in society and do prayers and our services really contribute to our nations and societies?
The church throughout history was part of the educational system to the point where most schools were established because of the church or through the church.
The church crowned kings and was a major player in the politics and governance of early societies.
Jesus described Christians as the salt of the earth and we are the reason why the world is still functional. What role is the church playing in today’s society? When the prophet asked for salt, was it foolishness? Or was it wisdom when the prophet took the salt and added it to the water of the city and immediately the water was healed and the land became fruitful?
The church’s purpose is not to gather alone but to impact the world and those in the world.
I believe the church in our generation is being positioned to impact not only the world, but to demonstrate the character of Christ in each person’s individual space of impact. Just like the prophet, the little contributions we make contribute to our nations in a major way.
Could the world systems be fully functional without the church?
The Bible says the church has been planted by God as an agent of change and if the church would take its place, we could see transformation for the better in our nations.
The world and its people are going through difficult moments and we can say the waters are bitter. The responsibility to heal the economies of the nations and its infrastructure cannot be of a few individuals, but each believer is an agent of change.
Whose role is it to preserve the nations and heal the systems of the world and how can a believer use the power he has through God’s Spirit to institute this change? Let me pose a question to you: can the waters of your nation be healed? And what role are you taking if you say you are a believer? The waters, when they were healed, the land became fruitful.
What causes nations to prosper is spiritual and as the church we are not only masters of spiritual things, but we should translate those spiritual principles into our circles of influence.
The nations need to look to the church, but could it be that the church is looking to the nations?
The very foundation of the world was established by God and He has representatives who have been given tools and knowledge to unlock the vast wealth within each region.
We are the ones with the keys to our nation's growth and development. It's time to act and be the salt that the Bible describes us as.
God Bless You
Humphrey Mtandwa is an anointed minister of the gospel and teacher of the Word based in South Africa. He has written several books including The Enoch Generation, Truthfulness and Theophany. He blogs at mtandwa.blogspot.com and can be contacted via e-mail or WhatsApp on +27 610286350.