What a wretched man I am! Who will rescue me from this body of death? Romans 7:24 (NIV)
Rescued is the word Paul uses when he describes the human struggle with sin. A rescue is something someone else does for you. If you’re trapped in a fire or you have a heart attack, you call 9-1-1 because you need someone else to do for you what you cannot do for yourself.
Calling 9-1-1 doesn’t save you. It is the fireman or the paramedic who saves you. Calling 9-1-1 puts you in touch with somebody who has the ability to save you. The one who answers your call is the one who actually saves you. That’s important. The Bible says, “Believe in the Lord Jesus, and you will be saved” (Acts 16:31). “Saved” is another way of saying rescued.
Some people have the idea that believing is something we do to save ourselves. But if you are able to save yourself then, by definition, you do not need to be rescued. Believing is like calling 9-1-1. It is the way that you call on the Lord Jesus Christ, and it is Christ who saves you.
Christ will do much more than rescue you. He will rescue the whole planet and bring you into the greatest joy a human being can ever know. And you can have complete confidence in the total success of his rescue operation.
What difference do you think it makes whether believing is something you do to save yourself or it is the way you call on Christ to save you?
