Savior (12 Nov)
Posted by RhondaAs a child I remember my mother rescuing me from myself on several occasions. I was sometimes to outspoken, talking instead of listening, tardy for class, getting gum in my hair or doing some type of innocent mischief at home or at school. Sometimes I had no idea how I was going to get out of some of the messes I got in. Therefore, I was forced to go to my Mother for help. My Mother was always there and always willing to get me back in my class, get the gum out of my hair or put me back on the right path. The reason I went to my Mother was because I grew to know at an early age that she could make anything right and restore me back to a right standing. When I went to her I went to her humbly, ready to admit the error of my ways and fully accepting her chastisement and her punishment if she saw fit. I am glad that she saved me but required that I be accountable for my actions. I understood as a young child that I needed a savior. Even more as an adult I understand I need a savior today.
A Savior is someone who redeems or rescues us from harm, danger or loss. We are all in need of a Savior because the Bible tells us that we all have sinned and come short of the glory of God (Romans 3:23). We were born into sin because of one man’s discretion (Adam), but because of Jesus’ death, burial and resurrection we can be forgiven of our sins and reconciled back to God. Our sin separates us from God. As sinners we did not have any hope of being reconciled with our maker. God provided us with the gift of deliverance through His Son, Jesus Christ. It does not matter how well we recite scripture, how often we attend church or how often or eloquently we pray we cannot earn salvation. We can be as good as humanly possible and still not realize that we need a savior. We can be deceived into thinking that we are doing everything right and that we are free from sin by our actions. Because the bible says that we all have sinned and the bible is truth, we must face that truth. All our sin (known and unknown) must be cleansed from us and we must be confronted about our sin and willing to ask for forgiveness of sin before we can be in a right relationship with God. Without the forgiveness of sin we are separated from God.
There is so much devastation around us, people are hurting, without hope, seeking satisfaction in consumerism, alcoholism, drug abuse, entertainment, immorality, adultery, fornication, etc. There are wars, natural disasters, global warming issues, economic issues on top of all the personal issues we are facing. Hearts are cold and the lack of a relationship with Jesus is obvious in many lives. It is unacceptable in our society to talk about our need of a Savior. Yet there is immorality, selfishness, pride, unacceptable behavior, inappropriate television and explicit lyrics in music that is more acceptable than the principles of God. Christians can not get caught up in the things of this world or we will ultimately feel hopeless. We must look beyond what we see and realize that we have the precious gift of salvation. God’s plan is to rescue us from sin and/or disobedience that is running rapid in our world today.
The bible says that if we confess with our mouth that Jesus is our Lord and believe in our heart that He was raised from the dead, we will be saved; for with the heart man believes, resulting in righteousness, and with the mouth he confesses, resulting in salvation (Romans 10:9-10.) Jesus Christ is our saving grace.
Blessings,
Rhonda
This entry was posted on Thursday, November 12th, 2009 at 5:52 pm and is filed under EC Chatter. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.
You write that “We can be as good as humanly possible and still not realize that we need a savior.” Some people offer good deeds to God because they do not want to acknowledge that they are sinners; and they want to dictate to God the terms of a relationship with Him. I once had a man say to me that he thought that he was right with God because he does good deeds. He cited the example of riding bicycle races to raise money to fight AIDS. Yet Proverbs 14:12 (Amplified Bible) says, “There is a way which seems right to a man and appears straight before him, but at the end of it is the way of death.” According to John 14:6, John 6:44, Romans 6:23, and Revelation 20:12-15 a person has no relationship with God unless God first calls the person into relationship with Himself through God the Son and Savior Jesus Christ who gives the person eternal life and an escape from the wrath and judgment of God the Father which is the second death (the lake of fire or hell). God is the one who did all the good deeds necessary for fellowship between Himself and people; and He offers the benefits of fellowship with Him for free. This man thinks he is good, but God says in Psalm 14:2-3 neither he nor any mere human being does good. I pray that God will give this man ears to hear and eyes to see that he must come to God on God’s terms; the man is just not good enough to fellowship with God.
November 18th, 2009 at 6:48 pmThanks Michele, I appreciate your comment.
Proverbs 12:15 (KJV) says: The way of a fool is right in his own eyes: But he that hearkeneth unto counsel is wise. Therefore, those who think that their good deeds are good enough are deceived. Some people need to know the Word and then they will see the error of their ways. Less a man knows He is wrong in his ways he is blinded to the fact that his ways are in error. I think that in some cases people are just decieved to think that their good deeds are enough and yes it is good to raise money to fight AIDs etc. but it could be that this man just needs Godly counsel. A lot of the time it is a lack of knowledge. Although I am sure there are cases where people do not want to admit that they are sinners and think they can compromise with God.
Rhonda
November 30th, 2009 at 7:54 pmThanks for selecting Proverbs 12:15 KJV. This verse grabbed my attention. Foolishness is in the heart of mankind. Foolishness is bound up in the heart with other sins like pride. James 2:10 indicates that a person cannot just commit one sin; one sin always accompanies other sins. Some say that Isaiah 14 shows that God kicked Satan out of heaven because of pride, or God kicked the King of Babylon out of leadership because of pride. Satan or the King of Babylon said, “I will exalt my throne above the stars of God” (Isaiah 14:13), and “I will make myself like the Most High” (Isaiah 14:14). Basically this person was saying my will and ways are better than God’s will and ways. How foolish to think that you know more than the all-knowing God who created every person and heaven and earth! Some say that they would never think or behave like they know more than God, but even Christians sometimes foolishly and operating in conscious or unconscious pride choose their own will and way instead of God’s. I am a Christian. I think of the time in 1997 when I was driving down I-95 South toward Richmond, Virginia. I ran across a patch of ice. I lost control of the car. The car hit one guard rail. Then it spun across the highway to hit the other guard rail. The front end of the car was crushed in. I thanked God that I did not have any injuries nor did anyone else. However, I did not ask God what was His will and way for me to get another car. Have you ever made decisions without praying? I obtained a car loan for a new Honda Civic. It seemed reasonable because a Honda Civic is considered a good car at a good value, but it wasn’t reasonable for me. The expense of the car compelled me to get into debt in other areas. Even as Christians we need a Savior to save us from our sins daily. All people need God the Father, the Wonderful Counselor and the Holy Spirit to guide us into that which is God’s will and ways for our lives which is always the best thing for us. God is able to get me and anyone else a car without financial bondage, but God asks that we operate in wisdom and humility by consulting Him first. Salvation is not only a starting point where God compels His children to ask for forgiveness of sins; it is a way of life that includes a now and eternal relationship with God who leads Christians through every aspect of life daily. Not only does God want to hear from those first entering a relationship with God, God also wants Christians to talk to Him about everything daily.
December 7th, 2009 at 10:36 amHi Michele, you bring an excellent point in our need for a savior. Our need is daily. The Bible tells us to walk in the spirit so that we shall not fulfill the lust of the flesh. As we learn to walk in the spirit we are cultivating the attributes that we should all possess as children of God. A few verses down from Galatians 5:16 the Bible tells us: But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, longsuffering, gentleness, goodness, faith, meekness, temperance: against such there is no law. And they that are Christ’s have crucified the flesh with the affections and lusts (Galatians 5:22-24, KJV). Crucifying the flesh is not easy and we can not do it in our own strength. That is another reason we needed a risen Savior!
December 8th, 2009 at 7:21 pm