Jesus Is Our Savior

The Bible gives many names to Jesus that describe His character and life. He is called Emmanuel, the Son of God, the Bread of Life, the Cornerstone, and the Good Shepherd, just to name a few. But there is one that may be more precious than all these- Jesus is our Savior.

What Does Savior Mean?

A savior is one who rescues, saves, or delivers others from any evil or danger, whether it is physical or spiritual.

We see many examples in the Old Testament where God saved His people from many dangerous situations. Here are just three of them:

“Moses said to the people, ‘Do not be afraid. Stand still, and see the salvation of the Lord, which He will accomplish for you today.’” Exodus 14:13 NKJV. God parted the Red Sea for the Israelites to save them from the approaching Egyptian army.

He saved Daniel from the lion’s den: “He rescues and delivers; He performs signs and wonders in the heavens and on the earth, for He has rescued Daniel for the power of the lions.” Daniel 6:27.

When the teenager David faced the 9-foot-tall Goliath; God gave David the unlikely victory. “It is not by sword or spear that the Lord saves; for the battle is the Lord’s.” 1 Samuel 17:47.

Our God is the God of the impossible. He can rescue and deliver people from problems no one else can. Each of these examples looks like an impossible situation. But that is where God excels.

“I am the Lord, the God of all mankind. Is anything too hard for me?” Jeremiah 32:27.

Why Do We Need a Savior? 

Fast forward to the New Testament. Jesus comes to bring a new covenant that rescues and saves His people.

Jesus tells a parable to explain in Luke’s Gospel, Chapter 18:9-14.

Two men went to the temple to pray- one a Pharisee and the other a tax collector.

The Pharisee believed God would accept him based on his tithing and good deeds. The tax collector, however, would not even look to heaven. He prayed, “God, have mercy on me, a sinner.” V13.

Both men were sinners, as we all are. We are guilty before our holy and just God. There is nothing “good” we can do to save ourselves from the penalty of sin- eternal death.

We all need God’s mercy; we can’t rely on our good deeds, church attendance, or our outward spiritual image as this Pharisee did.

Who Is the Saviour of the World? 

The only way to be saved from eternal punishment is to believe in Jesus and His atoning work for our sin on the cross. The apostle Paul states it clearly:

“Therefore, my brothers, I want you to know that through Jesus, the forgiveness of sins is proclaimed to you. Through Him, everyone who believes is justified from everything you could not be justified from by the law of Moses.” Acts 13:38-39.

Through Jesus I am “justified”- “just-as-if-I” never sinned. I am cleansed and holy by God’s love and grace, which comes by faith in our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. (Romans 5:1)

The Old Testament law and animal sacrifices for atonement of sin pointed us to a need for a permanent and perfect sin offering- Jesus Christ.

Jesus is Our Savior 

Here are the words of the angel to Joseph about Mary and Jesus: “She will give birth to a son, and you are to give him the name Jesus, because he will save his people from their sins.” Matthew 1:21.

The Hebrew name for Jesus is Jehoshua, meaning “the Lord saves.” Even the name of Jesus spells out His mission! 

Jesus left His heavenly Father to come to earth and become a human being to save us.

As mere human beings, we want exactly the opposite- to leave this earth and ascend into Heaven to live with Christ Jesus forever. But to do that, we need a Savior, and God provided.

John 3:16–

“For God so loved the world, that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life.” 

God set the bar high for showing true love. He had to pay a steep price- the life of His only Son. You were worth the cost. I was worth the cost. 

Jesus lived a sinless life here on earth, and could therefore be our spotless sacrifice. He rescued us from the punishment we deserved because of His remarkable love for us.

He not only suffered physical agony on the cross, but the anguish of taking on our sins which caused Him to be separated from His Father. 

This spiritual separation was horrible, but He endured it so that we would never have to experience eternal separation from God. 

3 days after His death, Jesus victoriously rose from the dead as He had promised-

“The Son of Man must suffer many things and be rejected by the elders, chief priests and teacher of the law, and he must be killed and on the third day be raised to life.” Luke 9:22.

He was not a false prophet, but exactly who He claimed to be. 

We are no longer sentenced to die eternally separated from God. Death is not the end for us; we can live eternally with Jesus in Heaven.

Savior of the World 

Not everyone understands the salvation Jesus brings because they don’t think they need it. But every member of the human race sins, and that cuts us off from God.

Jesus offers salvation to everyone. 

“I am the way and the truth and the life.” John 14:6. 
 It is the most inclusive statement- Jesus accepts and invites all to accept His precious gift.

Even the Samaritans (who hated the Jews) upon hearing Jesus speak, responded in this way-

“We have heard for ourselves, and we know that this man really is the Savior of the world.” John 4:42b.

And Paul wrote these words to Titus: “For the grace of God that brings salvation has appeared to all men.” Titus 2:11.

And this to the Christians in Rome and to believers everywhere-

“I am not ashamed of the gospel, because it is the power of God for the salvation of everyone who believes.” Romans 1:16a.

He won’t force us to accept the salvation He freely gives. He grants everyone free will to choose whatever we desire.

God does, however, love us enough to give up His Son for us and wants us to love Him in return.

He wants us to know the freedom of living a life unshackled from the chains of sin that hold us hostage. In Him, we are instead free to indulge and rest in His forgiveness, mercy, love, joy, and peace every day.

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What Must I Do to Be Saved? 

Luke tells an amazing story of a man who asked this very same question to Paul and Silas. They were in prison after the local magistrates brought false charges against them.

Their captors beat and put them in stocks. Despite this, they kept praying and singing hymns to God. Around midnight, a sudden earthquake shook the prison doors open and unshackled all the prisoners.

Fearing retribution for the prisoners who had escaped, the jailer drew his sword to kill himself.

Paul rushed to reassure him they were all still there, and the jailer fell trembling before them. 
Recognizing their kindness and ability to show such joy in the face of their pain and dire circumstances, the jailer asks,

“Sirs, what must I do to be saved?” Acts 16:29.

“They replied, ‘Believe in the Lord Jesus, and you will be saved.’” V31. They shared the Good News of the Gospel with him, and he came to believe in God.

This story inspires me for many reasons, but the actions of Paul and Silas remind me to be a shining light. Pointing others to Jesus as Savior take many forms!

Accept Jesus as Your Lord and Savior Bible Verse 

Paul wrote the book of Romans as a carefully crafted statement of his faith, presenting the Good News of salvation for all. Jewish converts filled the church in Rome, but with a few Gentiles as well.

He shares his heart to save the Israelites from their misunderstanding and lack of knowledge. They didn’t have to try for the unattainable- keeping the law- to be made right before God.

Instead, they could immediately receive forgiveness of sins and eternal life in heaven by having faith in the work of the Lord Jesus Christ.

So he tells them-

Romans 10:9–

“If you confess with your mouth, ‘Jesus is Lord,’ and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead, you will be saved.”

When we “confess” Jesus is Lord, it is more than just head knowledge that Jesus is God. It means we fully trust that He alone can save us from the power of sin in our lives.

Death came to us as a penalty of our sin. It would forever separate our souls from a life with God.

Jesus’ sacrifice and death on the cross guarantees we are free from the penalty we deserve. His resurrection is the proof that His sacrifice was sufficient.

When we accept His sacrifice on our behalf and believe this in our hearts, we are saved! Our lives are sealed with His at the moment we believe. 

We turn away from our sins and let Him be the Lord of our lives.

Accepting Christ As Your Savior

Being forgiven of our sins and knowing our eternal future is in Heaven is glorious news, but there is more.

You may not “feel” any different, but He doesn’t need you to. Jesus has done the work to transform your life when He rescued, redeemed, and saved you. 

Spiritual Rebirth 

When we believe and accept Jesus as our Savior, we become spiritually reborn. It’s not something we can ever do for ourselves; by simply deciding to be a better person, for example. 

God made each one of us with a human spirit, the deepest part of us, which can connect and love God personally.

The apostle Paul puts it this way:

“Having believed, you were marked in him with a seal, the promised Holy Spirit.” Ephesians 1:13b.

God puts His Holy Spirit into us to guide and lead us on this new spiritual journey. He lives in us forever and is with us throughout our entire life. 

This new spiritual life makes us brand new on the inside!

“Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation: the old has gone, the new has come!” 2 Corinthians 5:17.

He blesses us with a new understanding of His Word and gives us His power and strength to accomplish what He has planned for us to do.

Jesus, Our Redeemer

We are powerless to help ourselves, so Jesus paid the ultimate price to redeem us. He restores our relationship with God. He is our refuge and our strength, our Rock, and our Redeemer! 

“Salvation is found in no one else, for there is no other name under heaven given to men by which we must be saved.” Acts 4:12.

“To the only God our Savior be glory, majesty, power, and authority, through Jesus Christ our Lord, before all ages, now and forevermore! Amen.” Jude 1:25.

Blessings!

AnnMarie

All Scripture is taken from the NIV unless specified otherwise.

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