Consider:

* Christ’s blood: “Much more then, having now been justified by His blood…” (Romans 5:9a; cf. Ephesians 1:7).

* Christ: “…We shall be saved from wrath through Him”
(Romans 5:9b)

* His perfect life: “…We shall be saved by His life”
(Romans 5:10b).

* The Holy Spirit: “…You were justified in the name of the Lord Jesus and by the Spirit of our God” (1 Corinthians 6:11).

* The Gospel: “…I am not ashamed of the gospel of Christ, for it is the power of God to salvation, for everyone who believes…” (Romans 1:16).

* Preaching: “…It pleased God through the foolishness of the message preached to save those who believe…”
(1 Corinthians 1:21b).

* Baptism: “Baptism, which corresponds to this, now saves you…” (1 Peter 3:21 ESV; cf. Ephesians 5:26; Titus 3:5).

* Grace: “Being justified freely by His grace through the redemption that is in Christ Jesus” (Romans 3:24; cf. Titus 3:7).

* Faith: “…Having been justified by faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ.” (Romans 5:1).

* Works: “…A man is justified by works, and not by faith only” (James 2:24).

* Obedience: “And with many other words did he testify and exhort, saying ‘Save yourselves from this untoward generation'” (Acts 2:40, KJV).

You may be thinking, “Well Mike, which is it? Which of these factors saves us?”

Think of it this way:

A man goes out for a morning’s swim in the ocean. No sooner does he make his way out into the turbulent water than he begins to be pulled down by a fierce undertow.

Despite his desperate struggle, he simply cannot make it back to shore. His situation seems hopeless. He cries out for help, hoping that someone will intervene before it’s too late.

Three onlookers on shore witness what is happening and spring into action. In unison, they rush across the beach and then push a small boat out into the surf in an effort to reach the drowning man. They row with all of their might and make it within twenty feet of poor soul.

One of the trio on board throws out a life preserver ring to the man. There’s a rope attached to the ring.
With what little strength is left in his body, the drowning man latches on. The group pulls the man to the boat, hauls him in, and brings him back to shore.

Now think about it.

Could we accurately say that the boat saved the man?
Well, in a sense, “yes,” because without it the three could have never reached him in time. Did the oars save the man? Without them the boat could have never been positioned close enough to reach him.

Did the life preserver ring save? What about the rope?
What about the man himself? Could we, in any sense, say that he saved himself?

Had he not reached out for the ring and rope and held on, he surely would have perished. Then too, had it not been for the compassion of the three men on shore, the man surely would have died.

So, which was it–was it the boat, the oars, the ring, the rope, the man himself, or the three onlookers who rushed to help? To ask the question is to answer it.
They ALL were involved; they ALL had a part in the man’s salvation.

This parable helps me to understand what is involved in salvation today. It’s not one thing; it’s several.
Salvation involves God’s part (e.g., grace) and man’s part (e.g., obedient faith.)

“For by grace you have been saved through faith…”
(Ephesians 2:8).

by Mike Benson

The Old Castle

Raymond Key reflects upon a meaningful childhood memory.

“When I was a child, about three miles from the house where I was born in North Alabama, sat an empty, pre-Civil War castle with huge white columns in front and in back. It was called “The Saunders Castle.” What excitement when my father would take us children to see it. It was deserted and unlocked, but in excellent condition with very ornate furniture, draperies, wall hangings, and all the accessories of stunning luxury. Chinaware was on the dining room table as though the occupants were just about to sit down to eat.

In the bedrooms the gold trimmed bedsteads still had all the bedding, including very luxurious spreads. Down in the labyrinth underneath the castle was a mysterious dungeon and many were the speculations about it.   There was also great mystery about what had happened to the owners and previous occupants. Even a booklet had been written about the “Saunders Castle,” but it did not settle the speculations about it, nor reveal what had happened to the last occupants.

In later years as I would pass by on return visits to my parents’ home, I remembered how beautiful it had been in times past, before vandals had wrecked it. And they had wrecked it – even to the tearing up of the stair treads. Long neglected, the furniture was gone, walls were broken, paint was fading and peeling. Even the stone wall had been wrecked as the vandals looked for gold which was reported to have been found inside the house hidden in some secret place.

I sometimes wondered, how much it would cost to restore this old castle. Could it even be saved? How I wished someone would move in and fix up the abandoned old place! Or perhaps the State could take it over! I knew it had the potential to be beautiful again.” *

That old “Saunders Castle” is a lot like many of us. We come into this world created by our Maker to be whole and perfect. But then, due to our wrong choices, we become marred by sin and destined for destruction.

But God sent Jesus to restore our lives to something beautiful. He gave His life to pay the price to restore us to what we were created to be: sons and daughters of the Lord God Almighty!

Jesus will wash away our sins and purify us as children of God when: we place our faith and trust in Him (Acts 16:30-31), turn from our sins in repentance (Acts 17:30-31), confess Jesus before men (Romans 10:9-10), and are baptized (immersed) into Christ for the forgiveness of our sins (Acts 2:38). Then, as Raymond Key states, Christians may “look forward to Christ’s coming again with the promise that, in a single moment, He will complete the work of restoration. Then each of us will become immortal, incorruptible and glorified for eternity!”

Won’t YOU allow Him to restore your life to what it was intended to be through your trusting obedience?

David A. Sargent