Sunday, February 9, 2014

He Can Save Anybody: What I Love About Jesus (Part Four of Four)

“I’m going to see if she’s conscious tomorrow. Then I’ll return to the ICU and tell her about Jesus.”


Yesterday my friend Mark told me about the young woman who had been rushed to the E.R., self-destructive and hopeless. And it reminded me of what I love about Jesus. It’s what He, and only He, can do, and what He does and has done over and over for thousands of years – save people from sin-dominated, hell-bound, despairing misery.

If you’re out of hope, sick of living, if you've tried everything and failed every time, Jesus can save you.

He is mighty to save. His blood is so precious and so valuable and His life is so infinitely worthy that He can save the worst sinner, the most hopeless mess of a human being. Jesus can and does, regularly. When He died on the cross, His perfect obedience and infinitely precious life paid the penalty for all God's chosen ones. And when He rose from the dead, He won the victory for all of us who believe in Him.

This truth comes back to me over and over whenever I hear someone’s story of grace and faith and forgiveness. This past week the elder board of our church met for a prayer and planning retreat. During our evening session the seven of us each shared his “testimony” – how we heard and believed the gospel, and how Jesus saved us.

One man has followed Christ for over 60 years; another came to faith in Jesus only seven years ago. We told our stories of our own sin and the sin of others, of hopelessness, broken families, near homelessness, and drug abuse. The stories were wildly different, but all of them had some common elements:
  • Reaching a point of deep conviction and remorse for sin;
  • Hearing and believing the Bible’s story that Jesus was God-in-flesh, and that He died for sinners;
  • Willingness (maybe eagerness is a better word) to give up our old life and cast all our hope on Christ.
Jesus saves, He really does. And He can save anybody. Nobody is too far gone, too bad or broken, that Christ cannot save them. And nobody is good enough not to need Him to do so.

I don’t know what will happen to the young woman I mentioned above. She’s in bad shape. My friend went back to the hospital today and told her about Jesus. And I know, beyond any doubt, that as confused and suicidal and miserable as she may be, Christ can forgive her and change her from the inside out. He can save anybody, and He has proven it over and over.

If you want to know more, here’s a simple summary of Christ’s message: (click here

This post is the last in a series I've been doing about what I love about Christ. Here are the other three: His words; His character; and His identity.