The 3 Things Jesus Did to Save Us-1
After putting their hand on the Bible, the bailiff pointedly presses courtroom witnesses to “Tell the whole truth and nothing but!” Should witnesses for Jesus do less? On the sidewalk, someone who only tells part of his story and leaves out essential details is probably lying. Isn’t the whole truth required of us who enter the pulpit as God’s spokespersons, especially when it comes to the core of
the gospel? Is sharing one-third or two-thirds of what Jesus does for us good enough? Or, does sharing only part of what Jesus did to save us “pervert the gospel of Christ?” (Galatians 1:7, KJV).
JESUS DIED FOR ME. If we leave this out, we’re not Biblical Christians! Scholarly Paul downplayed his scriptural brilliance when he visited the pagan hotbed of immorality in Corinth. “I deliberately kept it plain and simple: first Jesus and who he is; then Jesus and what he did—Jesus crucified.” (1Corinthians 2:2, MSG). The context indicates a humble messenger trying to relate in a culture with very different values. In a Barna/American Bible Society study (www.barna.org) of non-Christian millennials who see Bible verses posted on Twitter, FaceBook, and Instagram, “about…33% say they find it irritating and one-quarter assume the person posting it is judgmental (24%). About one-fifth (18%) believes…that the practice will push others away.” To avoid that kind of turn-off, Paul started slow with what’s most important. He started with the Cross. First, Jesus died to save us from the penalty of our sins. He died when we deserved to.
Gospel radio pioneer, H.M.S. Richards’ petulant boyhood
heart discovered the wonder of Jesus taking his penalty at a formative stage. His mother was at wit’s end, perpetually correcting, cajoling, and punishing her son for tormenting his little brother. But, Richards took an abrupt turn toward the prince of a man he became on the day his petite mother ordered him to cut a stout willow branch and return for a whipping. Then that saintly woman bared her own back and commanded her little Harold to lash her as hard as the lashes he deserved! The bad boy dissolved in that sudden downpour of grace and became an eminent evangelist of the airwaves proclaiming Christ’s immense love that paid the death penalty for our sins.
Accepting Christ’s death for my sins means I can have confidence in Whom I belong to and serve, now! “I tell you that whoever…trusts the One who sent me has eternal life — that is, he…has already crossed over from death to life!” (John 5:24, CJB). As essential as His dying for us is, Christ did more! Most Christians emphasize only one-third of what Jesus did to save us and deny that He had to do anything else! Paul does not leave out the TWO OTHER essential things Jesus did to save us!
What could be as essential to our salvation as Christ's death for us? See if Part Two surprises you. I'm betting Part three will!
Your friend,
Dave
