Saved? From what?

DAILY BIBLE READING:

Jeremiah 12:1–14:10 
1 Thessalonians 1:1–2:8 
Psalm 79:1-13 
Proverbs 24:30-34

TODAY'S BIBLE VERSE(S):

1 Thessalonians 1:9-10 (ESV) "For they themselves report concerning us the kind of reception we had among you, and how you turned to God from idols to serve the living and true God, and to wait for his Son from heaven, whom he raised from the dead, Jesus who delivers us from the wrath to come."

REFLECTIONS ON TODAY'S BIBLE VERSE(S):

In our Verses for Today, the Apostle Paul is bragging on the church at Thessalonica. They received the Gospel even though they were being persecuted for it. As a result, their example was being talked about in areas well beyond their city.

But, I want us to focus on the last phrase of today's verses...

"Jesus who delivers us from the wrath to come."

If you want to ask someone if they are a Jesus-follower, you might ask the question: "Are you saved?"

As Christians, we have come to use that biblical word a lot. When we say "saved," we understand that it refers to the person who has trusted in Jesus Christ and what He did on the cross on their behalf to forgive them, cleanse them, and make them God's child.

But, "saved" is one of those words that is used so often that we may not realize what it is actually talking about.

What does it mean to be "saved?"

If I told you that someone was drowning in a lake but I saved them, what would that mean? Simply that they were going to die but I took action and spared them of that tragic end.

If I told you that I came upon a car wreck and saved someone whose vehicle was engulfed in flames, what would that mean? Simply that they were going to die but I took action and spared them of that tragic end.

So, when Christians say that we are "saved," what does that mean? It simply means that we were headed for something utterly horrific but God took action and spared us of that tragic end.

What did God save us from?

"Jesus who delivers us from the wrath to come."

Friend, God is a loving God (1 John 4:8,16) but He is also a just God (Exodus 34:6-7; Numbers 14:18). He has set a day upon which He will judge the world in righteousness (Acts 17:30-31). And as a good, righteous Judge, He has no choice but to send sinful lawbreakers to a fiery Hell (Revelation 20:11-15). 

This is the "wrath to come," friend. This is where we are all headed unless God steps in to save us from this tragic end.

But God did step in to save us. He took drastic measures that enabled Him to maintain His holiness (our sin had to be paid for) and reveal His love (Jesus willingly offered His life as the payment for our sins - Romans 5:8).

So, all that is left is for us to receive that free gift. We do so by repenting (turning from sin and self-rule) and trusting in Jesus (resting in what He did to make us right in God's eyes). And when we do this, we are once and for all time "saved from the wrath to come."

John 3:16-17 "For God so loved the world, that he gave his only Son, that whoever believes in him should not perish but have eternal life. For God did not send his Son into the world to condemn the world, but in order that the world might be saved through him."

Forgiven and righteous

DAILY BIBLE READING:

Job 40:1–42:17 
2 Corinthians 5:11-21 
Psalm 45:1-17 
Proverbs 22:14

TODAY'S BIBLE VERSE(S):

2 Corinthians 5:21 (ESV) "For our sake he made him to be sin who knew no sin, so that in him we might become the righteousness of God."

REFLECTIONS ON TODAY'S BIBLE VERSE(S):

Being forgiven isn't enough to go to Heaven. We must be completely perfect. We must obey every single applicable law in Scripture.

"But I warn you—unless your righteousness is better than the righteousness of the teachers of religious law and the Pharisees, you will never enter the Kingdom of Heaven!" (Matthew 5:20 - NLT)

"But you are to be perfect, even as your Father in heaven is perfect." (Matthew 5:48 - NLT)

It's not enough to be forgiven. We must also be thoroughly righteous.

As we look to the cross of Jesus in faith, we are saved by being forgiven of all our sins against God and His holy law. His death was the payment for the sin debt of everyone who would put their trust in Him.

Yet, forgiveness isn't enough. We also need to be righteous, a status that can only be obtained by having obeyed every single applicable law in Scripture.

That is how we are saved through Jesus' life. If the cross was all that was necessary, then why would Jesus wait some 33 years to get there? Why wouldn't he have died as a young child if forgiveness of sin is all we needed.

As we read the Bible, we come to realize that His life was absolutely essential because it was in His life that He obeyed every single applicable law of God. He gained a righteousness for Himself that He can credit to our account when we trust in Him.

His cross offers forgiveness. His life offers the righteousness that we need.

That's what our Verse for Today is all about. It refers to the Divine Swap. At the moment we are saved, Jesus takes our sins and lets his death on the cross pay for them while He also credits us with His own righteousness. 

So, we get forgiven and then credited with His righteousness.

It's not just forgiven people that get to Heaven. Only righteous people can get there. And if you are saved, both of these things are true of you.

"For our sake he made him to be sin who knew no sin, so that in him we might become the righteousness of God." (2 Corinthians 5:21 - ESV)

Friend, if you are saved, God doesn't just see a forgiven sinner when He looks at you. Instead, He sees someone who has perfectly lived according to every law He has commanded us to live by. That's because Jesus has forgiven us and then credited us with His righteousness.

So, live that way! Don't live in defeat! Don't feel as if you are a disappointment to God! When God looks at you, He sees Jesus, and He smiles!

We are God's kids!

DAILY BIBLE READING:

Judges 11:1–12:15 
John 1:1-28 
Psalm 101:1-8 
Proverbs 14:13-14

BIBLE VERSE(S) FOR TODAY:

John 1:12-13 "But to all who did receive him, he gave them the right to be children of God, to those who believe in his name, who were born, not of natural descent, or of the will of the flesh, or of the will of man, but of God."

REFLECTIONS ON TODAY'S BIBLE VERSE(S):

If you watch television, you may periodically see advertisements for a service that allows you to explore your genealogy. In some of those commercials, an individual will speak of their amazement that an ancestor of theirs was a war hero or royalty. It's almost as if the person talking got an added injection of self-worth because of their new-found knowledge of who they came from.

Well, Christian, let me ask you a question. Who is your Father? Of course, you have a biological dad and mom. But, when you were saved from the penalty of your sins by trusting in Jesus, you were born again. At that moment, you gained a new relationship with God where you are encouraged to call Him "Father" (see Matthew 6:9, Romans 8:15, & Galatians 4:6).

Our Verse for Today doesn't simply say that when we believe and receive Jesus that we can start calling God our Father. It says that we have "the right" (lit. "authority") to call Him that. It isn't a trivial thing. It's legally binding. If we are saved, the God of all Creation is legally our Father and we are His child.

Just reflect on that last sentence and the Verses for Today for awhile. If it doesn't put a pep in your step, you haven't properly understood it.

When God looks at me, He sees Jesus!

Have you ever been reading through the Bible when a verse "jumps off the page"? I mean, it causes you to stop immediately, reflect and say, "WHOA! That's amazing!!!"

I just happened to me again!

As I read through John 20, I came to the part where Mary Magdalene was at the tomb and saw Jesus. (By the way, God goes out of His way to show the value He places upon women in the Bible. One of the many ways He does so was by making it clear that a woman was the first one to see the resurrected Jesus and tell others about it [John 20:11-18].)

Well, as Mary Magdalene recognizes the resurrected Jesus for the first time at the tomb, she apparently gave Him a big hug or fell at His feet and embraced his feet in worship. This was a worshiper who was overwhelmed that her revered Teacher ("Rabonni!") was alive!

So, Jesus told her to let go and then He said something else. He said that He was heading back to Heaven soon to be with His Father and His God.

Yet, He didn't say it quite like that. He said it in a way that made it clear that followers of Jesus have no less access to God than Jesus does. When God looks at us, who have submitted to the authority of Jesus over our lives, He smiles just as much as when He looks at His Son.

I LOVE the following phrase: "and your"!

John 20:17 (New Living Translation)

"'Don't cling to me,' Jesus said, 'for I haven't yet ascended to the Father. But go find my brothers and tell them, "I am ascending to my Father and your Father, to my God and your God." ' "

The mystery of our incredible relationship with God (that we cannot possibly fathom in this life) is tied up in the words "in Christ" that is found so often in Ephesians chapters 1 and 2. Because we are saved and "in Christ," we have more privileges and worth than we could ever possibly imagine.

Hey, are you a follower of Jesus? If so, you've got some amazing things that are true of you! Live up to it! Act like who you are!