Salvation

But God demonstrates his own love for us in this; while we were still sinners Christ died for us. Romans 5:8

On Sunday I took part in a class on authentic faith. The object of the class is to make people comfortable with sharing their faith journey. There are various levels of comfort in sharing something that personal. This was my third time participating in this class and I've seen everything from total comfort, an eagerness to share, to the “okay but this is uncomfortable” all the way to the not there yet, maybe someday but not today response. The latter I understand completely while the former is maybe somewhere in my future, I sit in that midrange, mostly dependent on who is listening.

The group I was with on Sunday is easily my favorite so far. It was comprised of lovely, open, absolutely delightful people. One in particular is a young woman named Olivia. I met her shortly after I joined this church and immediately loved her. She is a beautiful girl, inside and out. She also has a great sense of humor.

While we were talking about the various questions people ask once they know you're a Christian, the “when were you saved?” question came up. Olivia said that she would like to tell people she was saved two thousandish years ago when Jesus came to the world for just that purpose. Great answer, right? Olivia's mom seemed to think people might not take it well, especially coming from such a young person.

In truth, Olivia did deliver the answer a bit tongue in cheek. We laughed and moved on with the class but her answer stayed with me. When were you saved? I can't definitively answer that question. I've been aware of God's presence in my life for all of my life. When did I fall in love with Jesus? Again, for me, that's a gradual process or as my husband says, “a long and winding road.” I know some people encounter Jesus in a huge and dramatic way and can say, “April 10, 1999” or whatever. I cannot and most of the people I know can't either.

I think the better question is, “when did you decide to live in response to Jesus' sacrifice?” We've done nothing, not one thing to become “saved.” We accept the gift, the very much free and beautiful gift of salvation but the act of salvation is not ours.

When were you saved? Olivia is right. We were all saved when Jesus Christ came and lived and died to save us, to take on all our junk and lead us home. If we are wise enough to accept that gift then we will share it, at some point in some way and always with God's help.

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Applause, Applause and Protection

Therefore, since we are surrounded by such a great cloud of witnesses, let us throw off everything that hinders and the sin that so easily entangles. And let us run with perseverance the race marked out for us, Hebrews 12:1 Reading some Scripture this morning I was reminded of a message that I watched from Louie Giglio. In it Louie described a child of God leaving her home for the day. He goes on about how the heavenly beings see it. With great excitement, he tells of the joy and applause going on in heaven as the woman gets in the elevator, gets to the parking lot and gets in her car. It’s hilarious and over the top, (remember I did say it was Louie Giglio!) but there’s a great lesson in it. My husband and I were watching a TV show about a fictional former president. At one point the poor man is just over the Secret Service detail. He’s tired of them following him around so he fires them. It takes less than five minutes for him to start to see all that they’ve been doing for...
Read more

My Father Saw That

She gave this name to the Lord who spoke to her: “You are the God who sees me, “for she said, “I have now seen the One who sees me.” Genesis 16:13 There’s a movie from several years ago that I absolutely love! It’s called “The American President.” The premise is that the president, who is a widower, has begun to date. He’s dating a lovely woman while running for reelection. His opponent is awful. He knows he doesn’t have much of a chance against the popular incumbent so he tries to make a mountain out of the molehill of the standing president’s romance. At one point there is a news clip that shows the woman in a protest during her college days. After the clip plays the opponent refers to the president’s lady friend as “the president’s whore.” She groans and says to the president “My father saw that!” She is devastated, not because what is being said is true but because her father, who she loves and respects, saw the clip and heard those words spoken about her. I thought of ...
Read more

Not Really god, where are you?

Then they called on the name of Baal from morning to noon.”Baal answer us!” they shouted. But there was no response; no one answered. And they danced around the altar they had made. At noon Elijah began to taunt them. “Shout louder!” he said, “Surely he is a god! Perhaps his is deep in thought, or busy or traveling. Maybe he is sleeping and must be awakened.” 1 Kings 18:26b-27 Those who know me would be quick to tell you that I am a bit sarcastic. It’s a quality that I have passed on to my children and even some of my grandchildren. Some days I feel a little guilty. Is that really a quality that God wants to see in me? Certainly that cannot be my go to attitude but there are times that it comes in quite nicely. This morning, reading a totally unrelated verse, I was reminded of this account in the first book of Kings. (It begins at verse 16 and continues to the end of the chapter. I highly recommend reading it if you haven’t and it if you have reread it. It’s great!) In this p...
Read more