Trusting in God is our salvation!

Scripture:
…this is what the Lord of Heaven’s Armies, the God of Israel, says: I will do to this city everything I have threatened. I will send disaster, not prosperity. You will see its destruction, but I will rescue you from those you fear so much. Because you trusted me, I will give you your life as a reward. I will rescue you and keep you safe. I, the Lord, have spoken!– Jeremiah 39:16-18

Observation:
Nebuchadnezzar sent his army into Judah to capture and destroy the capital city of Jerusalem just as God has ordered. He captured the city, took the officials and nobles captive and burned the city to the ground. In the royal entourage was a man of another nation, who feared the LORD and did what he said. He tried to save the life of Jeremiah when he had been imprisoned in the cistern. When the attacking forces captured the city, God had Jeremiah tell this man that he would be spared from the certain destruction of the city because he trusted in the LORD and was obedient to him.

Application:
There is such a beautiful promise in the words of the LORD to this man. God promised to save him and rescue him despite the coming destruction of Judah, and this man was not even a Jew! He was outside the promise of the Mosaic Law, but he observed it and trusted in the LORD. His rescue and salvation foreshadowed the salvation of all people of all kindreds, tribes, tongues and nations that Jesus provided for in his death, burial and resurrection.

The secret to our salvation lies within the actions of this man. He did nothing of his own that merited his rescue and salvation, but he did the one thing that brought it about. He trusted in the LORD. It wasn’t his actions that saved him but his faith. It is no different for us today. Paul wrote to the Ephesians that it isn’t our works that save us but our faith (or trust) in the One, Jesus, loved us and gave himself for us. Our salvation is the gift of God that rescues us from certain spiritual death (eternal separation from God) by His grace through our faith in him. It is not anything we do, but all that He has done! Jesus came down to earth from heaven, became human just like us, and lived among us. He died a criminal’s death and suffered all you and I should have had to endure in order to pay the price for our salvation.

However, like this man in the passage, we escape the coming judgment of God because we trusted in him to save and rescue us, even though we are unable to save ourselves. Trust in the LORD today and receive his gift of eternal life through Jesus Christ the LORD. WE, all, have done wrong and come short of God’s standards. WE, all, have been guilty of this charge and require One to intervene and pay the price for our wrongs. Jesus did just that! He lived a perfect life in order that we may be restored in our relationship with God. If you don’t have that relationship or know the peace that comes from trusting in God, now is the appointed time and today is the day of salvation.

If you confess with your mouth that Jesus is Lord and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead, you will be saved. For it is by believing in your heart that you are made right with God, and it is by confessing with your mouth that you are saved. As the Scriptures tell us, “Anyone who trusts in him will never be disgraced.”Jew and Gentile are the same in this respect. They have the same Lord, who gives generously to all who call on him. For “Everyone who calls on the name of the Lord will be saved.” – Romans 10:9-13

Do you notice that the Bible tells us that ANYONE who trusts in the LORD will never be disgraced? Do you read that EVERYONE who calls on the LORD’s name will be SAVED? The man in our story was saved from the death coming to Judah because he trusted God. You, too, can escape the coming judgment upon mankind for his sins IF you trust in the LORD and confess that Jesus is LORD!

Prayer:
Father, thank you for giving us grace through Jesus. We don’t deserve to be rescued from eternal death anymore that the man in the story should have been saved from the advancing army. You chose to save him because of his faith in you, and you chose to save us because we trust in you. It truly is by your Spirit’s power and not by our might or power that we are saved. I love you simply because you love me. Thanks for the message of hope that is contained so often in your written word, the Bible. It points us to the One, Jesus, who is our blessed hope and Savior. In Him do I trust and confess that He is LORD! Hosanna, hosanna to the King! In Jesus’ name, Amen.