What a word. If you’ve been to church or not, I’m sure you’ve heard it.

I’m ‘saved’. But it’s a term I fear has lost its true potency.

Many of our generation don’t know that they have received something far better than just forgiveness of sins or past mistakes. Christ saves the individual, and he saves US.

But we have been saved from ourselves, not for ourselves.

So what happened?

Why doesn’t a hand raise or even a walk forward, plus a prayer, seem to produce the fruit in and out of a person that looks like the fruit Christ produced? What I mean by fruit is, a life so saturated with Christ that his actions and his words fill our every-day life; this than carrying on to others that you lead. Everyone is called and commanded to make disciples, or apprentices to Jesus in everyday life. This means your “fruit” would be evident not just in your own actions, but the actions of others you guide to Jesus.

Why are we Christians still mad (at the wrong things), why are we passive when we should be violently loving, violent in prayer, violently opposed to those that would teach us to earn salvation? Why, when push comes to shove, do we become cowards about sharing who He is? We have all been there but I’d prefer to leave. Hell, I’d prefer we all leave.

MAYBE WE CAN.

I am not suggesting a perfect you or a perfect church. But I would at least like to extend the definition of ‘Saved’.

Most of my life I just pictured being saved out of the water by a life preserver, or plucked from the flame, or surrounded by enemies and lifted out of the chaos of battle into the loving arms of God.

Here’s the main image problem we run into with this mentality. When someone saves you from drowning, or from a fire, or even a puppy from a fire, or even a horrible cat from a fire, it’s just the right thing to do. You kind of owe that person something, but not really. If they didn’t save you, or at least call those with the ability to do so, that person has some serious issues. Like Game of Thrones level issues.

The thing is with Jesus saving us, is that you went into the house, tied up your dogs and cats, heck, maybe even a family member or two, covered the place in gasoline, and lit the match yourself while standing in the center of it all justified. Then Jesus, hoses down the house, saves you from the heat of the flame and the choking smoke, then builds you a new, bigger, and better house in a far superior neighborhood. All the while, fixing the problems that would lead you to make such self-destructive decisions in the first place. OH YEAH AND YOU’LL NEVER REALLY DIE.

The original Greek word used in the New Testament for salvation or saved (sometimes) is sótéria. This is a way better word than salvation. Way better. We have to remember that English is still kind of a baby language compared to Greek. It means “welfare, prosperity, deliverance, preservation, salvation, safety.”

What Jesus offers us is not a near escape from the flames but a new personhood.  But I don’t say this to devalue any human being, every person is inherently valuable. Regardless of their position before him regarding sin; after all, they were made in his image. What I am saying is that it is possible for you to be like Jesus. To LIVE saved, not just be saved.

In the next few posts, we are going to talk about how to start doing that. There are no barely Christians, nominal Christians, kind of Christians. There are followers of Jesus and there are not. There are those that accept the salvation of Jesus and those that do not. I am not saying you earn it by any means, god, don’t try it, you will fail at a gospel that is no gospel at all.

But as much as grace is opposed to earning, it is not opposed to effort.

As our brother Peter says,

5 For this very reason, make every effort to add to your faith goodness; and to goodness, knowledge; 6 and to knowledge, self-control; and to self-control, perseverance; and to perseverance, godliness; 7 and to godliness, mutual affection; and to mutual affection, love. 8 For if you possess these qualities in increasing measure, they will keep you from being ineffective and unproductive in your knowledge of our Lord Jesus Christ. 9 But whoever does not have them is nearsighted and blind, forgetting that they have been cleansed from their past sins.

10 Therefore, my brothers and sisters,[a] make every effort to confirm your calling and election. For if you do these things, you will never stumble, 11 and you will receive a rich welcome into the eternal kingdom of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ.

2 Peter 1:5-10 NIV

“Many people say “try Jesus”; you don’t “try” Jesus. He’s not there to be experimented with. Jesus is not on trial. You are”. ― A.W. Tozer