•8:00 AM
Bro. Roy Beaty, Sugar Land Church of Christ
Now many of us have much to be concerned about and some are more concerned than others.
We are all concerned about the war. War takes our youth away from their careers, war mentally devastates some of our youth and some of our youth do not return at all.
It is a reason to be concerned.
But as terrible as war is, Jesus did not come to save us from wars, as a matter of fact, Jesus taught as He discussed the fall of Jerusalem, "And ye shall hear of wars and rumors of wars: see that ye be not troubled: for all these things must come to pass, but the end is not yet. For nation shall rise against nation, and kingdom against kingdom: and there shall be famines, and pestilences, and earthquakes, in divers places" - Matthew 24:5-7 KJV.
From the earliest existence of man there have been wars and knowing the nature of man, there shall continue to be wars until we bring them all to Christ.
We are also concerned about the poor and the homeless.
There are organizations that have set up shelters, some who collect funds and some who collect other necessities to assist the poor. Although there are times when we make all kinds of reasons to explain why we pass up the needy on the streets, there are times when we cannot help but feel something as we are passing them. That feeling hits us so deeply that we have to reach out and hand them something.
But strangely enough, Christ did not come to elevate needy people, even though He teaches all Christians to give to them.
When Judas complained that the cost of the precious ointment which was used could have been used for the poor, Jesus told His disciples "For ye have the poor always with you; but me ye have not always" - Matthew 26:11 KJV.
There were poor people during the time of Jesus and there are going to be poor people in this 21st Century.
Jesus does save, but from what does He save?
He did not come to save us from the harm of war or from the possibility that mankind can be reduced from the heights of the affluent to the low ebb of poverty?
Jesus told Zacchaeus, "This day is salvation come to this house, forasmuch as he also is a son of Abraham. For the Son of man is come to seek and to save that which is lost" - Luke 19:9-10 KJV.
What therefore has Jesus come to save?
The Angel said unto Joseph after informing him not to be afraid to take Mary as his wife, "for that which is conceived in her is of the Holy Ghost. And she shall bring forth a son, and thou shalt call his name JESUS: for he shall save his people from their sins" - Matthew 1:20-21 KJV.
Jesus came to save so that we may all have eternal life, "the Lord is not slack concerning his promise, as some men count slackness; but is longsuffering to us-ward, not willing that any should perish, but that all should come to repentance" - II Peter 3:9 KJV.
God wants all men to be saved, "For this is good and acceptable in the sight of God our Savior; Who will have all men to be saved, and to come unto the knowledge of the truth" - I Timothy 2:3-4 KJV.
The Father sent the Son because of His love for us, so that if we accept Christ, we will not perish. Christ came and gave His life on the cross to take away our sins due to His love for us (John 15:13).
Jesus came to save us, but salvation has to be accepted.
