Commissioned: Timeless Truth: The Gospel Made SimpleSample

Jesus Saves

We have all heard the words, “Jesus saves,” but do we understand them clearly enough to share this Good News with someone else? Paul made the message very clear in his letter to the Romans.

Jesus reconciled us to God. Jesus saved us by reconciling us to God by His sacrificial death. Three times in our Bible passage, Paul uses the word reconcile/reconciliation. Reconciliation is a relationship word. We were created to enjoy a love relationship with God. Sin separated us from God. We can picture this separation as a deep chasm with God on one side and us on the other. We have no way to get across. Jesus is the bridge that enables us to cross the deep chasm. He gave us back our relationship with God! This is the key to understanding what it means to be saved. Jesus saved us because he restored our relationship with God.

Jesus justified us by his blood. Paul also says that Jesus’s death “justified” us before God. To be justified means to be made right before God, to be fit for a relationship with a Holy God. It means that God has forgiven our sins, but it means much more than that. It means he has washed us clean and made us into new creations. Jesus spoke of this as being “born again.” Through faith and baptism, we are regenerated and made new. We are saved by grace, which means that God enables us by His grace to live the way He wants us to live. God doesn’t just declare us righteous, he enables us to live a righteous life. Having reconciled us to God by His death, He saves us by His life at work within us. And, He even makes provision for us when we fail to cooperate with his grace, through the sacrament of reconciliation. Again, salvation is all about God restoring and preserving His relationship with us.

Jesus restored us to eternal life. Jesus resurrection also played a role in saving us. Because He was raised from the dead, we will also be raised on the last day to enjoy our relationship with God forever. The Bible uses many images to describe the eternal relationship we will enjoy, including enjoying a wedding feast and living in the Father’s house. In Revelation, John writes of it as a New Jerusalem where we will live with God in eternal joy.

Not only this, but we have been given an “first installment” through the power of the Holy Spirit—we enjoy right now a personal relationship with the living God. We’ll explore our present relationship with God more deeply in our later studies.

Stop, think and pray:

Let’s spend some time worshiping our Savior and thanking Him for all has done for us!

The Eucharist is a memorial commemorating Christ's sacrifice on the cross and making it present in a sacramental way; as Jesus said, "Do this in memory of me." The words of every mass cry out, “Jesus saves!” Let’s listen carefully to the eucharistic prayers each time we are in mass and make them our own so that we can receive Jesus with joy.