4 Minute Devotions: Being Saved - Acts 16 v 30

Acts 16: 30 He then brought them out and asked, "Sirs, what must I do to be saved?"

I am both humbled and proud of the fact that I believe I was saved in June of 1977. Some Christians are uncomfortable with that term and others look down upon anyone who claims to be saved. I get the impression that they feel as though it’s beneath them to be saved and that anyone who claims this is really spiritually immature and dumb.

I feel sorry for them because they don’t understand what being saved really means, nor have they experienced the spiritual strength that comes with this wonderful event. For me, it occurred when I was struggling with the meaning of my personal life and felt really isolated from the world. For the Philippian jailer, it was both a salvation from death and a spiritual liberation for his whole family.

I believe that being saved by Jesus means being freed from our doubts and fears through becoming reconnected to God’s everlasting love and infinite grace. It also means that I understand that I cannot do anything to earn God’s mercy or pardon for all of my mistakes. I am saved from the eternal consequences of my sins by Jesus, who has died for me and taken my place. Death may come one day, but it will not swallow me up forever. Because I am saved, I belong to Christ for all of eternity.

One of the important membership questions that people are asked before they join our church is this: Do You accept Jesus Christ as Your Savior and Lord? In other words, they are recognizing Christ’s ministry of saving them too. After all, we wouldn’t call Christ ‘Savior’ in our Presbyterian vows if we didn’t acknowledge that we needed Him to save us, now would we?

Prayer:                        Lord Jesus, You are our Savior and we are all in need of being saved by You. Without Your sacrifice, we would not receive God’s mercy. Without Your Salvation, we would have no everlasting hope. Thank You for saving us and restoring us to the eternal love and grace of God. In Your Holy Name we pray. Amen.

John Stuart is the pastor of Erin Presbyterian Church in Knoxville, Tennessee. If you would like to comment on today’s message, please send him an email to pastor@erinpresbyterian.org.

Saving

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Titus 3:4, 5a But when the kindness and love of God our Savior appeared, he saved us, not because of righteous things we had done, but because of his mercy.

The most enduring moment in the movie, “Saving Private Ryan” comes at the very end. Ryan, now an old man, is visiting the graves of American troops in France. As he stands before the crosses of his rescuers, he bursts into tears and asks his family, “Have I been a good man?” He wants to know if he has lived a life worthy of being rescued; he needs to know that those who died to save him did not die in vain.

I guess the same question could be asked of ourselves, for we also have been rescued and we owe our faithful lives to the death of one man. Jesus died for our sins and we know that none of us are worthy of this grace. We may accomplish great things in our lives, we may do good things and fulfill lofty ambitions, but none of it counts against Christ’s sacrifice. We cannot do anything to make things even with Jesus. We cannot work our way out of needing His salvation. In the end, we will always owe more to Christ than we can ever possibly give. At the final moment of our lives, it will not be our goodness that will rescue us from oblivion; it will be Christ’s mercy and grace that will pull us through death to eternal life.

This is what being saved means. This is why we hope. This is why we have faith in Jesus.

Prayer: Lord Jesus, our lives are made eternal in the precious moment that we give them to You. Our souls are saved forever when we acknowledge You as the Savior of the World and the Lord of our lives. Help us to share this Good News, so that others may not worry about death, but instead they may also glorify Your goodness and experience Your mercy. In Your Holy Name, we pray. Amen.