Jesus Saves

"For God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting life. - (John 3:16). 

"Jesus saves" is a popular slogan on bumper stickers, signs at athletic events, and even banners being pulled across the sky by small airplanes. Sadly, few who see the phrase "Jesus saves" truly and fully understand what it means. There is a tremendous amount of power and truth packed into those two words.

Jesus saves, but who is Jesus?

Most people understand that Jesus was a man who lived in Israel approximately 2000 years ago. Virtually every religion in the world views Jesus as a good teacher and/or a prophet. And while those things are most definitely true of Jesus, they do not capture who Jesus truly is, nor do they explain how or why Jesus saves. Jesus is God in human form (John 1:1, 14). Jesus is God, come to Earth, as a true human being (1 John 4:2). God became a human being in the person of Jesus in order to save us. That brings up the next question: why do we need to be saved?

Jesus saves, but why do we need to be saved?

The Bible declares that every human being who has ever lived has sinned (Ecclesiastes 7:20; Romans 3:23). To sin is to do something, whether in thought, word, or deed, that contradicts God's perfect and holy character. Because of our sin, we all deserve judgment from God (John 3:18, 36). God is perfectly just, so He cannot allow sin and evil to go unpunished. Since God is infinite and eternal, and since all sin is ultimately against God (Psalm 51:4), only an infinite and eternal punishment is sufficient. Eternal death is the only just punishment for sin. That is why we need to be saved.

Jesus saves, but how does He save?

Because we have sinned against an infinite God, either a finite person (us) must pay for our sins for an infinite amount of time, or an infinite Person (Jesus) must pay for our sins one time. There is no other option. Jesus saves us by dying in our place. In the person of Jesus Christ, God sacrificed Himself on our behalf, paying the infinite and eternal penalty only He could pay (2 Corinthians 5:21; 1 John 2:2). Jesus took the punishment that we deserve in order to save us from a horrible eternal destiny, the just consequence of our sin. Because of His great love for us, Jesus laid down His life (John 15:13), paying the penalty that we had earned, but could not pay. Jesus was then resurrected, demonstrating that His death was indeed sufficient to pay the penalty for our sins (1 Corinthians 15).

Jesus saves, but who does He save?

Jesus saves all who will receive His gift of salvation. Jesus saves all those who fully trust in His sacrifice alone as the payment for sin (John 3:16; Acts 16:31). While Jesus' sacrifice was perfectly sufficient to pay for the sins of all humanity, Jesus only saves those who personally receive His most precious of gifts (John 1:12).

If you now understand what it means that Jesus saves, and you want to trust in Him as your personal Savior, make sure you understand and believe the following, and as an act of faith, communicate the following to God.

Prayer :"Our Loving Heavenly Father God, I know that I am a sinner, and I know that because of my sin I deserve to be eternally separated from you. Even though I do not deserve it, thank you for loving me and providing the sacrifice for my sins through the death and resurrection of Jesus Christ. I believe that Jesus died for my sins and I trust in Him alone to save me. From this point forward, help me to live my life for you instead of for sin. Help me to live the rest of my life in gratitude for the wonderful salvation you have provided. Thank you for saving me!" Thank you for hearing and answering my prayer. Gratefully, In Jesus Loving Name I Pray, Amen." 

Know It and Show It

Bible Reading: Micah 6:1-8

He has showed you, O man, what is good. And what does the Lord require of you? To act justly and to love mercy and to walk humbly with your God. - Micah 6:8, NIV.

Imagine getting your driver's license the day after your sixteenth birthday-and choosing not to drive.

Imagine learning your ABCs but never reading a single word in your life.

Imagine discovering a cure for the common cold but choosing not to take it when you're sniffing and sneezing like a banshee.

Why would anyone do something like that? We do it all the time, especially when it comes to choosing between right and wrong.

For example, we know that justice is right and injustice is wrong. Yet we don't always choose to act justly, do we? We may know it, but we don't always show it. We butt in ahead of people in cafeteria lines. We treat some people better than others. We "play favorites." We take advantage of people. We accuse people or dislike people without really knowing the whole story.

But if we know it's wrong to act unfairly, why do we do it anyway?

Well, part of the answer to that question is that we're all sinners. We tend to do the wrong thing more than we tend to do the right thing.

Another part of the answer to that question is that we act unjustly because sometimes it seems more beneficial to us than acting justly. (Who wants to wait longer than necessary in a cafeteria line, right?)

A third reason we act unjustly is that we don't make a conscious decision to do otherwise. Since acting unjustly seems to come more naturally (because of our sinful nature), we tend to do that unless we've made a commitment to follow God's way of justice instead of doing what comes naturally.

You can make such a commitment by determining in your heart that when you're faced with a choice between a right action and a wrong action, you will choose what's right-even when it's inconvenient. But that's not all; you then need to ask God for the strength to choose justice over injustice and trust the Holy Spirit to enable you to keep your commitment.

That won't guarantee that you'll always act justly, but it will help you the next time you're tempted.

REFLECT: Knowing what's right and doing what's right are two different things. Sometimes we do wrong when we're not sure what's right. Other times we know what's right, but we do what's wrong anyway. Which is a bigger problem for you: knowing what's right or doing what's right?

PRAYER: "Our Loving Father in Heaven, I commit to your way. I commit to acting fairly when I'm faced with the chance to do something unfair. Help me especially to_______. Thank you for hearing and answering my prayer. Gratefully, In Jesus Loving Name I Pray, Amen."