Unity # 27: Their Savior
Dear Father,
We worship and exalt You, the Giver of the
Scriptures. We come to You for eternal Life and in our pursuit of You, we read
Your Word and struggle over ancient Doctrines. You are our Rock, Fortress, and
Deliverer, in whom we take refuge. You are our Shield, the Horn of our
salvation, our Savior who saved us from violence. We call upon You, who is
worthy to be praised and we are saved from our enemies. (2 Sam 22:2-4) To You
alone, our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ, be glory, majesty, dominion, and
authority, both now and to the day of eternity (Jude 1:25). Help us to grow in
the grace and knowledge of Yourself (2 Pet 3:18).
In Jesus Christ’s
Name,
Amen
Dear Beloved,
This letter is about Jesus Christ as our Savior.
The Hebrew word for Savior, yasha’, means One who gives
salvation, victory, and deliverance. The Greek word for Savior, sōtēr, means deliverer and
preserver. I feel that this letter is a transition letter into a future
focus on the outpouring of the Holy Spirit on the people of God. I am now
in the process of seeking God to reveal what His Word says about His outpouring
of the Holy Spirit and asking Him to do precisely this in our lives. For by
this we know that we abide in Him and He in us, because He has given us of His
Spirit (1 John 4:13). At the moment of conversion the Holy Spirit inhabits our
being fully and He can never be taken from us. When the unconverted onlookers
of Pentecost were pierced to the heart, they asked the apostles what they
should do. Peter told them that they should repent and be baptized for the
forgiveness of sins and they would receive the gift of the Holy Spirit. (Acts
2:37-28) All people of all time, even prior to the Day of Pentecost, if they
were regenerated had the Holy Spirit indwelling them. For as to our
salvation, the prophets who prophesied of the grace that would come to us made
careful searches and inquiries, seeking to know what person or time the Spirit
of Christ within them was
indicating as He predicted the sufferings of Christ and the glories to follow.
It was revealed to them that they were not serving themselves, but us, in these
things which now have been announced to us through those who preached the
Gospel to us by the Holy Spirit sent from heaven—things into which angels long
to look. (1 Peter 1:10-12) Anyone whose faith is credited to them as
righteousness has been born again of the Holy Spirit and the Water of the Word
of God. Yet, in these last days it is now possible for the Spirit of God to
be poured out on us, for us to be immersed in Him by Jesus Christ Himself. For
Christ, the One who was raised from the dead and exalted to the right Hand of
God, is the One who baptizes us in the Holy Spirit and in fire. (Matt 3:11)
There is much doctrine surrounding this outpouring of the Spirit that we have
neglected to uncover and I am praying for God to help us in the days ahead. Our
desire is not to fall into extreme ungodly charismaticism nor to quench the
Spirit, as we have done thus far to a significant degree. Our desire is to seek
and to experience the riches of the knowledge of God in all Truth and sincerity
just as He desires and proclaims in His Word, without erring in any way.
The apostle John tells us that they had
seen and testify that the Father has sent the Son to be the Savior of the world
(1 John 4:14). Our Savior wondrously shows His lovingkindness to those who take
refuge at His right Hand from the evil forces of the world that rise up against
them. When we cry to the Lord because of our oppressors, He will send us a
Savior and a Champion, and we will be delivered. He has sent us a Savior! We will know the Lord in that day. We will
even worship with the sacrifice and offerings of thanksgiving, praise, and our
bodies as living sacrifices. (Ps 17:18-21) Right now God, who formed us, tells
us not to fear for He has redeemed us through the blood of His Son. He has
called us by name, and He says, “you are Mine!” When we pass through the waters, He will be with
us and though the rivers, they will not overflow us. When we walk through the
fire, we will not be scorched, nor will the flame burn us. For He is the Lord
our God, the Holy One of Israel, our Savior. We are precious in His sight,
since we are honored and He loves us. He gave His own Son up for us that we may
live only to bring Him back from the dead on the third day. He tells us not to fear,
for He is with us. He will bring our Spiritual offspring from the east and
gather us from the west. (Is 43:1-5). There is no other God but Him. We have
been saved by the Lord with an everlasting salvation; we will not be put to
shame or humiliated to all eternity. Truly He is a God who hides Himself, but
He has not spoken to us in secret in a dark land or a waste place, but He, the
Lord, speaks righteousness, declaring things that are upright. There is no God
besides Him, a righteous God and a Savior, there is none except Him. He
tells us to turn to Him and be saved, all the ends of the earth, for He is God,
and there is no other. He has sworn by Himself, the Word has gone forth
from His mouth in righteousness and will not turn back, that to Him every knee
will bow, every tongue will swear allegiance. They will say “Only in the Lord are righteousness and
strength”. All who were
angry at Him will be put to shame. But in the Lord all the offspring of Israel,
that is, all the children of God through faith in Christ, will be justified and
will glory. (Is 45:4-25) He will feed our oppressors with their own flesh, and
they will become drunk with their own blood as with sweet wine; and all flesh
will know that He, the Lord, is our Savior and our Redeemer, the Mighty One of
Jacob (Is 49:26).
We will love the true nation of Israel,
and they will know that He, the Lord, is their Savior and Redeemer, the Mighty
One of Jacob (Is 60:16). For He has become their Savior and ours. In all our
affliction He was afflicted, and the Angel of His Presence saved us; in His
love and mercy He redeemed us, and lifted us and carried them all the days of
old. But for those who rebel and grieve the Holy Spirit continually because
they have not been born again into the New Covenant, He turned Himself to
become their enemy and fought against them. Then we, His people, remember the
days of old, of Moses, when He brought His people out of the sea with the
shepherds of His flock and put His Holy Spirit in the midst of them, who caused
His glorious arm to go at the right hand of Moses, who divided the waters
before them to make for Himself an everlasting Name, who led them through the
depths. Like the horse in the wilderness, they did not stumble; as the cattle
which go down into the valley, the Spirit of the Lord gave them rest. So He led
His people, to make for Himself a glorious Name. (Is 63:8-14) He is the Hope of
Israel, its Savior in time of distress (Jer 14:8). We are not to know any
god except Him, for there is no Savior besides Him (Hos 13:4).
The angel of the Lord told the shepherds
who were keeping watch over their flock by night that today in the city of
David there has been born for them a Savior, who is Christ the Lord (Luke
2:11). After the woman at the well witnessed her encounter with the Messiah
with her townspeople, they came are heard Jesus and proclaimed that it was no
longer because of what she said that they believe, for they had heard for
themselves and knew that this One is indeed the Savior of the world. (John 4:42).
Jesus Christ is the One whom God exalted to His right Hand as a Prince and a
Savior, to grant repentance to His people, and forgiveness of sins. Christ
is the husband and the head of His bride, the church. He Himself is the Savior
of His body. (Eph 5:23) Dear saints, our citizenship is in heaven, from which
also we eagerly wait for our Savior, the Lord Jesus Christ (Phil 3:20)
We must be good servants of Christ Jesus,
constantly nourished on the words of the faith and of the sound doctrine which
we have been following. We must have nothing to do with worldly fables fit only
for old women. On the other hand, we must discipline ourselves for the purpose
of Godliness; for bodily discipline is only of little profit, but Godliness is
profitable for all things, since it holds promise for the present life and also
for the life to come. It is a trustworthy statement deserving full acceptance.
For it is for this we labor and strive, because we have fixed our hope on the
living God, who is the Savior of all men in the sense that He gave them a
chance to repent and believe. He is especially the Savior of all believers,
because they have already believed and received the gift of eternal life. (1
Tim 4:6-10). For when the kindness of God our Savior and His love for mankind
appeared, He saved us, not on the basis of deeds which we have done in
righteousness, but according to His mercy, by the washing of regeneration and
renewing by the Holy Spirit, whom He poured out upon us richly through Jesus
Christ our Savior, so that being justified by grace we would be heirs according
to the hope of eternal Life. (Titus 3:4-7) Now this been revealed by the
appearing of our Savior Jesus Christ, who abolished death and brought life and
immortality to light through the Gospel (2 Tim 1:10).
We must do everything for the faith of
those chosen of God and the knowledge of the Truth which is according to
Godliness, in the hope of eternal Life, which God, who cannot lie, promised
long ages ago, but at the proper time manifested, even His Word, in the
proclamation with which we are entrusted according to the commandment of God
our Savior. (Titus 1:1-3) We must show all good faith so that we adorn the
Doctrine of God our Savior in every respect (Tit 2:10). For the grace of God
has appeared, bringing salvation to all men, instructing us to deny ungodliness
and worldly desires and to live sensibly, righteously, and Godly in the present
age, looking for the blessed hope and the appearing of the glory of our great
God and Savior, Jesus Christ, who gave Himself for us to redeem us from every
lawless deed, and to purify for Himself a people for His own possession,
zealous for good deeds. (Titus 2:11-14)
The faith we have all received is of the
same kind. It is a gift given by the righteousness of our God and Savior, Jesus
Christ. His grace and peace are multiplied to us in the knowledge of God and of
our Jesus our Lord. We see that His divine power has granted to us everything
pertaining to life and Godliness, through the true knowledge of Him who called
us by His own glory and excellence. (2 Pet 1:1-3). But those who claim Christ
as their Savior and Lord, and yet who are enslaved to corruption, are not truly
saved. For by what a man is overcome, by this he is enslaved. For if, after
they have escaped the defilements of the world by the knowledge of the Lord and
Savior Jesus Christ, they are again entangled in them and are overcome, the
last state has become worse for them than the first. For it would be better for
them not to have known the way of righteousness, than having known it, to turn
away from the holy commandment handed on to them. It has happened to them
according to the true proverb, “A dog returns to its own vomit,” and, “A sow, after washing, returns to
wallowing in the mire.” (2 Pet 2:19-22) If we feel that we are enslaved to
corruption, we must ask and trust out Good Shepherd to gently guide and
discipline us. For if we are children of God, we will not continue in slavery
to sin.
And working together with Him, we also urge you not to receive the grace of
God in vain— 2 for
He says,
“At the acceptable time I listened to you,
And on the day of salvation I helped you.”
And on the day of salvation I helped you.”
Behold, now is “the acceptable time,” behold, now is “the day of
salvation”—3 giving
no cause for offense in anything, so that the ministry will not be discredited, 4 but in everything commending
ourselves as servants of God, in much endurance, in afflictions, in
hardships, in distresses, 5 in
beatings, in imprisonments, in tumults, in labors, in sleeplessness, in hunger, 6 in purity, in knowledge,
in patience, in kindness, in the Holy Spirit, in genuine love, 7 in the Word of
truth, in the power of God; by the weapons of righteousness for the
right hand and the left, 8 by
glory and dishonor, by evil report and good report; regarded as deceivers and
yet true; 9 as
unknown yet
well-known, as dying yet behold, we live; as punished yet not put to
death, 10 as sorrowful
yet always rejoicing, as poor yet making many rich, as having
nothing yet possessing all things. 2 Cor 6
Love
in Christ,
Preethi
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