Worship Sounds Music

Many people wonder

(when they allow themselves to think about it),

“Why do I need a Savior?”

This is actually a very good question.

*  Asking the “why” question shows that you are a thinking person who tries to do the right things, as you understand them.

*  Asking why a Savior is needed shows your openness to hear an answer.

*  Asking why means that you have enough curiosity to wonder what all of the Jesus talk is really about.

Asking “why?” means you are really close to understanging why…

if  you are brave enough to hear the answer.

Are you brave enough to learn the truth about why we all need a Savior?

If the answer is “YES,” there are three very short statements (4 words or less) to tell the reasons why we need a Savior.

THREE  SIMPLE  REASONS
FOR  UNDERSTANDING  THE  ANSWER  TO  THE  “WHY”  QUESTION

So, why do you
(and I, and everyone else in the world)
need a Savior?

  Reason #1

  GOD  IS  HOLY.

  We really already know this.  Something deep inside tells us that there is a Someone who is somehow more loving, who is perfect and right.  When we think about the opposite scenario, it just makes sense that if  there was a God who was not holy, He would delight in constantly tormenting us and would force us to fear and respect and worship Him.  We would be living in constant fear, and we would not be able to choose how we want to live our lives.  We would not have any enjoyment in life if  God were evil.  The very fact that beauty and goodness exist at all is proof of the goodness and holiness of God.  A god who was evil and all powerful would not want us to have anything good.  Unfortunately, we allow the good things that do exist in life (and the evils that we choose) to substitute for knowing our holy, righteous, just, and loving God.

How we say it:

We say things that reveal what our hearts know (voicing the truth that God has placed inside each of us about His holiness) when we feel inadequate, when we mess up, when we have hurt someone, when we have done something foolish, or when we have been selfish.
And, this is what we say, “I’m not God.”  or  “I’m only human.” 

This is how the Bible says it:

“But the LORD Almighty will be exalted by His justice, and the holy God will be proved holy by His righteous acts.”  ~  Isaiah 5:16

“I am the LORD your God; consecrate yourselves and be holy, because I am holy.”  ~  Leviticus 11:44a

“I will show my greatness and my holiness. I will reveal myself to many nations. Then they will know that I am the LORD.”  ~  Ezekiel 38:23

“The Lord is righteous in all his ways and faithful in all he does.”  ~  Psalm 145:17

“This is the message we heard from Jesus and now declare to you: God is light, and there is no darkness in him at all.”  ~  I John 1:5

  Reason #2

  PEOPLE  ARE  NOT  HOLY.

  It certainly is not difficult to recognize the truth of this statement.  All we have to do is to watch the evening news to see that people often deliberately choose to do terrible things.  In addition, as we look into our own hearts and consider the lives of people we know (even those whom we love), it becomes obvious that our motivations are not always pure.  Sometimes we are nice to someone because we want a favor.  Sometimes we are impatient or hateful, even with friends and loved ones.  Even people who are really trying to live a good life make mistakes, and we are all aware that our “goodness” is never 100%.

This is how we voice the truth that people are not holy:
“Well, nobody’s perfect!”

When we make the statement that “nobody’s perfect”, we are actually in agreement with what the Bible says on this subject.

Here is what the Bible says about us:

“All of us, like sheep, have strayed away. We have left God’s paths to follow our own. Yet the LORD laid on Him (Jesus) the sins of us all.”  ~ Isaiah 53:6

“For ALL have sinned and come short of the glory of God.”  ~  Romans 3:23

10 “As it is written: ‘There is no one righteous, not even one; 11 there is no one who understands; there is no one who seeks God.'”  ~ Romans 3, verses 10 and 11

“This is the verdict: Light has come into the world, but people loved darkness instead of light because their deeds were evil.”  ~  John 3:19

“Indeed, there is not a righteous man on earth who continually does good and who never sins.”  ~  Ecclesiastes 7:20

  Reason #3

  WE  CANNOT  SAVE  OURSELVES!

  We have a problem that we can’t solve on our own.

There   is   a    h u g e                                         G A P_______________   between

God’s perfect holiness  __________and__________ our sinful unholiness.

This gap prevents us from being in close relationship with God.  This huge gap, or separation between us and God exists because we cannot begin to understand who He is with such a big barrier to relationship, and He cannot relate Himself to us while we are in our unholy state.  When the gap (or separation) is present, it’s more than just a divide.

You see, having a Savior is not just a ticket to Heaven.  Having a Savior is for this earthly life, too.  Because God wants us to know Him.  He wants us to know how much He loves us and how He is always working for our good.  He is not a distant Creator.  Rather, He is constantly sustaining life and hope, constantly giving and forgiving, and constantly working for the good of those who love Him.  He wants us to begin to know Him as He is… the loving Father and Lord of all Creation.

God already knows everything about us.  The Bible says that He even knows the number of hairs on our heads.  He wants the barrier of unholiness to be removed from our lives so that we can know Him.

Only then will we begin to:

Understand spiritual truth,
Receive spiritual life (even right now, while the Earth is still our home),
and finally
Be given the free gift of eternal life in Heaven through God’s provision of a way for our unholiness to become pure holiness.

All of this… the truth and life that we need and the way to become holy so that we can someday live in a holy place (Heaven) without our presence making it unholy…

ALL  of this can come to us only through Jesus, when we accept God’s free gift of salvation and pray to ask Jesus to become our own Savior and Lord.  Jesus is already THE Savior and THE Lord, but He will not become your Savior and Lord until you see your need for Him and ask Him.

HERE’S WHAT JESUS SAID about why we need Him:

Jesus answered, “I am the way and the truth and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me.”  ~ John 14:6

Our separation from God means that we have no spiritual understanding because we have no spiritual life.

Here’s what the Bible says about that:

“Their minds are full of darkness; they wander far from the life God gives because they have closed their minds and hardened their hearts against Him.”  ~  Ephesians 4:18
(Notice the phrase, “the life God gives”.  This refers to spiritual life (being alive in spirit) as well as to eternal life.  Without spiritual life there is no spiritual understanding.)

4 “But God, being rich in mercy, because of His great love with which He loved us, 5 even when we were dead in our transgressions, made us alive together with Christ (by grace you have been saved), 6 and raised us up with Him, and seated us with Him in the heavenly places in Christ Jesus.”  ~  Ephesian 2:4 – 6

(Note:  In the second scripture above, the phrase,  “dead in our transgressions” refers to the natural state of mankind… spiritual death, or the absence of spiritual life that results from being separated from God, who is the Source of life.
Notice also that verses 4 and 5 refer to the great love God has for us, even when we are in this state.

“Whoever has the Son has life; whoever does not have the Son of God does not have life.”  ~  I John 5:1

WE  NEED  TO  KNOW  THE TRUTH!

 WE  NEED  DIRECTION!   

WE  NEED  TO  KNOW  THE  WAY.

Being separated from God also means we are on the wrong road and that He cannot “deliver us from temptation” (save us from the attractive power of sin) because we have chosen the way of sin and spiritual death over choosing God and His way.  So, when we do not have a Savior, we don’t have God’s power within us to enable us to overcome the power of sin, which, as the Bible says, “may seem pleasureable for a while,” but is always ultimately destructive to lives, health, stability, and relationships.

In other words, we are heading in the wrong direction because we don’t yet know that God’s way is the right way and the best way for us.   Being separated from God means that we are on that path of seeking pleasure.  There is an emptiness inside us, and we are continually trying to fill it with things, experiences, pleasures, relationships, and prestige.  However, all we continue to find is emptiness; because what our soul really needs is spiritual life, plus direction and power for living that come from God (through His Holy Spirit within us) after we have been spiritually re-born.

In order for spiritual rebirth to happen, we must first realize that we are on  the wrong road and decide that we want to live in relationship with God through Jesus Christ as our Savior and Lord

Here’s what the Bible says about that:

We are lost and on the wrong road, confused and in danger; but God does not want this to be our fate.
“When he saw the crowds, He (Jesus) had compassion on them because they were confused and helpless, like sheep without a shepherd.”  ~  Matthew 9:36

We can only be saved through spiritual re-birth, which is possible because Jesus was willling to die to pay the penalty for our sins.  It’s as though a judge pronounces you guilty because he is a just judge, but then he steps out from behind his podium and pays the penalty for you becuase he is also a merciful judge.
“He saved us, not because of righteous things we had done, but because of his mercy. He saved us through the washing of rebirth and renewal by the Holy Spirit.”  ~  Titus 3:5

We can only be free from the power of sin during our earthly lives through God’s Holy Spirit, living within us after we are spiritually reborn.
“And because you belong to Him, the power of the life-giving Spirit has freed you from the power of sin that leads to death.”  ~  Romans 8:2

“For sin shall no longer be your master, because you are not under the law, but under grace.”  ~  Romans 6:14

When we are trying to find our way, all we have to do is look to Jesus.  He alone can provide salvation, which is the only way of escape from the power of sin and the eventual penalty for sin.

“Jesus answered, “I am the way and the truth and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me.” ~ John 14:6

 Remember that in our state of being without Jesus, we are separated from God, which means that we cannot discern truth about God and about spiritual matters without help.  That is why God sends His Holy Spirit to speak to our hearts about the truth of God’s plan of salvation.  It is also why God’s Holy Spirit comes to live within us when we have trusted Christ for our salvation.  We need divine help in our process of becoming more like Jesus.

We have looked at the ways that Jesus will make a difference in this life.  As the scriptures above reveal, a person who has trusted Jesus as their personal Lord and Savior has received God’s mercy and been washed and reborn through the Holy Spirit.  In addition, he or she has been freed from the power of sin.  This does not mean that we will have a future of complete sinless perfection on Earth.  Rather, it means that when we trust God and turn to Him for strength in our everyday lives, He will help us to gain victory over temptation.  No Christian does this perfectly because we are all in a process of growing in our faith and in our relationship with the Lord.  However, God’s power is available to us if we will only seek HIM.  It’s when we try to handle things on our own that we mess up.

Help in this earthly life is certainly one of the reasons that we need Jesus.  The other reason is that without Him, we cannot enter Heaven.

  HEAVEN  IS  A  HOLY  PLACE  WHERE  NO  SIN  CAN  BE  FOUND
  … but on Earth, we are living with the consequences of our own sinfulness (both individually and collectively).

The Bible says that Heaven is unimaginable to us because we have never experienced anything like it.  We would not even have the words to describe it, because it is unlike anything we have every seen or heard or known.

“But as it is written, “No eye has seen, no ear has heard, and no mind has imagined the things that God has prepared for those who love him.”  ~  I Corinthians 2:9

“Instead, they were longing for a better country–a heavenly one. Therefore God is not ashamed to be called their God, for he has prepared a city for them.”  ~  Hebrews 11:6

Obviously, Heaven would not be Heaven if it were to become unholy.  If there were still sorrow and pain and jealousy and hatred, along with crimes committed and people being victimized, it would certainly not be heaven.  People would have to be changed in some way to make it possible for them to become holy so that they can live in relationship with God while on the earth and then live with Him forever in Heaven.

So, if people are going to overcome the sin barrier to relationship with God and eventually be there, how do they become fit for Heaven?

Here are a couple of ideas that many people have about heaven.

Idea #1:  If you do more good than bad during your lifetime, you will go to Heaven.

Many, many people believe this idea, but it is false.

Remember that Heaven is a holy place.  Holy means totally free of sin.

Idea #2:  Heaven will be what I want it to be.

Often, people say, “This is Heaven!” when tasting something delicious or experiencing something delightful.  However, anything good that we have experienced on earth will pale in comparison to what Heaven is really like.  Even if God were to describe Heaven for us, we wouldn’t understand it until we get there.  We have no frame of reference, nothing even approaching an equal, for comparison.  Imagine trying to describe Disney World to a young child who has lived all his life in a primitive village.  The only way he would really understand how amazing the place is would be to actually go there.  It is the same way with Heaven.  Imagine all of the best and most beautiful parts of life and of God’s creation, without any of the bad things that we experience here on Earth.  It’s all of that and more… multiplied by infinity.

Did you know that God wants YOU to experience Heaven?

He does not want you to miss out on relationship with Him now, and He doesn’t want you to miss all that He has prepared in Heaven for those who love Him.  

Here’s what the Bible says about that:

The Lord isn’t slow to do what he promised, as some people think. Rather, he is patient for your sake. He doesn’t want to destroy anyone but wants all people to have an opportunity to turn to him and change the way they think and act.  ~ 2nd Peter 3:9

In other words, God is patient with this crazy, mixed up world and with all of the people in it, even though we are now experiencing sin and hurt and pain, because what He has to give us (everlasting life, abundant life on Earth, and living forever with Him in Heaven, fully experiencing His great love for us and the wonder that He has created) is so much greater than anything that  we could imagine.  It will more than make up for any temporary pain in this life.  It will be infinitely beyond the best we could imagine… forever.  He loves us and wants us to know and experience all of this.  He is waiting to finally make everything right (He is a God of justice after all) because God loves you more than you can imagine and because He is a God of mercy.  Even though He is absolutely Holy and could demand anything from us, He loves mercy (and showing mercy to everyone who will accept this free gift) much more than He loves having everything on Earth be perfectly right.

Think about it for a moment.

If God had allowed us to experience Heaven without living on Earth first or a Heaven-like experience on Earth, something would have had to be fundamentally different.

Either we  would have to be created without the capacity to sin, which would have meant that we would have no free will.

or

God would have to render immediate judgement for every wrong that we did, making us fear Him so much that we would behave rightly to avoid punishment.

For a God who loves us and wants us to experience His love, harsh and immediate judgement was not His way.  Neither was it His desire to rob mankind of choice.  So, he lets us choose, delays His judgement, and yet provides us with a way to overcome evil and temptation on Earth through His power when we accept His provision of a Savior… His own Son’s death substituting for any judgement we would have faced….

All we have to do is to admit that we need Him… that we have sinned against God by choosing our own way.  Then, we need to accept this free gift of salvation, believing that Jesus is God’s Son, who lived a perfect life, died on the cross for our sins, was buried and then raised from the dead, so that He could be the Savior whose death paid the penalty for the sins of all mankind and the Lord of life and giver of eternal life for all who trust Him with their hearts and souls and lives.

Here are some more verses from the Bible about how much God loves us and what He wants to do in our lives.

Romans 5:8
But God demonstrates His own love for us in this: While we were still sinners, Christ died for us.

Romans 5:10
For if, while we were God’s enemies, we were reconciled to Him through the death of His Son, how much more, having been reconciled, shall we be saved through His life!

Romans 8:32
He who did not spare His own Son, but gave Him up for us all–how will He not also, along with Him, graciously give us all things?

Romans 8:34
Who then is the one who condemns? No one. Christ Jesus who died–more than that, who was raised to life–is at the right hand of God and is also interceding (praying) for us.

Galatians 2:20
I have been crucified with Christ and I no longer live, but Christ lives in me. The life I now live in the body, I live by faith in the Son of God, who loved me and gave Himself for me.

Dear friend, we all need a Savior.

We need a Savior because God is Holy.
We need a Savior because we are not holy.
We need a Savior because we cannot save ourselves.

Only Jesus is the way, the truth, and the life.

*  He will show you the way (and indeed has provided the way of salvation for you through His own death, burial, and resurrection, exchanging His life for yours as the payment for your sins).
*  He will reveal the truth to you.  Through the sending of God’s Holy Spirit after salvation, through relationship with Him, and through the teaching of God’s word, you will be led into all truth.
*  He will provide spiritual life and eternal life for you.

Would you like to know more?  Here’s a link to our page that has many resources for you.  There are links to answer all of the questions that you may have.  Blessings to you as you seek the truth and the answers to your questions.  Every person ultimately has to decide:  what will I do about Jesus?

Do You Know Jesus?

Do you know Jesus? 

The decision to ask Jesus to come into your heart and life as your Lord and Savior is the best decision you could ever make!  The one true God is ready to give you forgiveness and eternal life as soon as you understand your need for Him and believe on the name of His only Son, Jesus, for your salvation.  The blog page found at the link above will help you find the answers to your questions about Jesus.

Thank you for taking the time to read the above blog post. May God bless you with understanding and faith.