The Angel declared the Job description for the promised
Baby. His mission, to save people (among other things). As we finish
celebrating Christmas it is a good time to ask ourselves “what does ‘save’ mean”.
To help understand this I’ve used four personal illustrations.
When I was
about 11 years old I was on a pontoon at a swimming beach and I was pushed into
the water. I couldn’t swim. The other Y.P. thought I was fooling around until
my mother screamed out ‘Save him’! Someone had to dive in and rescue me. I was
saved from drowning.
When the
Bible uses the term ‘saved’ it means someone had to ‘dive into that situation
and rescue the person who cannot save himself. This is what Jesus Christ came
to do at Christmas. That was part of His ‘Job Description’. But there is much
more to being saved than being ‘pulled out of the water’ – or whatever other
situation. When I accept Jesus as my
Saviour He saved me from my sin and judgement.
When I was
about 19 years I was going to church but I was only really play acting at being
a Christian. After the evening service I was standing on the street corner,
alone, and it was as though God said in my heart “Shape up or ship out”! The
Lord was offering me the opportunity to be saved from hypocrisy and a wasted
life. That wasn’t a fun time I can tell you. I chose to shape up. I was saved from being masquerading and a
useless life. The alternative was too terrible to contemplate. This
decision two years later led me into Bible College. At that moment my Saviour
became my Lord.
My first few
days in College were great, until one night. I sat at my desk and felt guilty
about being there. Memories of my past mistakes, failures and disobedience
flooded the mind. The devil whispered “you are no good. You should not be a
minister. You are unworthy”. He was right. He didn’t have to lie or make things
up. What was I to do? I opened the Bible and these verses from Colossians
2:13-15 leapt out at me. The Lord was saying to my heart “you are saved from your past. The Devil hasn’t any power to
blackmail you. You are forgiven! You are cleansed! You have been set free by
Christ’s victory at the cross”.
Over the
years I’ve been challenged by people who believe that all religions are leading
you to the same God. However when I looked at the Bible it said something
different. Acts 4:12, John 14:6 tells us that Jesus is the only way to know and
meet God and call Him ‘our Father’. The Bible means what it says. Therefore if
anyone wants to know what God is like, how to meet Him and be accepted in time
and eternity there is only one way. It is called ‘Salvation’ and it has been
made possible because Jesus Christ came into this World to ‘make it possible’.
To do this He had to live as a man and suffer an unjust death. More than that,
to be the Saviour, He had to rescue us from sin and judgement by taking it from
us and putting it upon Himself. However, if He was still in the tomb there is
no way He could be our Saviour, only a failure. However as Matthew 28:6 and
other passages tell us, Jesus conquered death and the tomb by rising again and by that became fulfilled His job
description, to save all who believe in Him. . No other religion or Faith has a message
such as this, or a Saviour such as Jesus.
How then can
you experience the salvation secured for you by Jesus? First, you must recognise that you are ‘drowning’ in sin, hopelessness, and the wrath of God.
Second, you must accept the fact that Jesus is the only One who is able to reach out to you and place you on salvation’s ground.
Third, you must invite Him into your life, by faith, and allow Him to be your Saviour and Lord.
Today make
it your day for claiming Jesus as your Lord and Saviour. 2 Corinthians 6:2
.jpg)
wonderful Ray
ReplyDeleteThanks Paula.
DeleteHave a great 2015 also.