Salvation

Salvation. Most of us have heard of John 3:16 which says, "For God so loved the world that He gave His one and only son so that whoever believes in Him shale not parish but have everlasting life". But some may be asking, what is salvation? How do I accept this message? How should I respond? All excellent questions. Here is a scenario to help break this down:

Three people flying on a plane are approached by a man who tells them this: "This plane is about to crash and everyone still on board will die. If you want to live, take this parachute and jump off the plane now."

The first person tells the man he is crazy and rejects the parachute. The second person takes the parachute but remains in their seat. The third person takes the parachute and immediately straps it on and jumps off the plane. Not long after this, all three of the plane's engines burn out. The plane crashes and everyone on board, including the first and second person, dies. The third person, however, lives. 

What can we learn from this scenario? Three things. First:

1) Salvation is a free gift.

The parachute represents salvation. Notice none of the three people were required to pay for the parachute; it was simply offered to them. Salvation is a free gift offered to us by God. We do not have to earn it or some how deserve it. It is a free gift of everlasting life offered to all. With this gift we are pardoned from our sin and rebellion against God and are given a new life in Jesus Christ. But like with all gifts, we are now faced with the following: a choice.

2) Salvation is a choice.

Those three people on that plane had a choice: to take the parachute or reject it. God offers this free gift of everlasting life to all. All are now faced with a choice: to accept or reject salvation. This is a very important choice; one that cannot be taken lightly. Acceptance leads to eternal life; but rejection leads to eternal death. Heaven and Hell are real destinations and where we will spend our eternity all starts with making a choice. The question is, will you accept or reject this free gift of salvation?

Someone may point out that although the second parson accepted the parachute, they still died. An excellent observation. This leads me to my third point.

3) Salvation requires a response.

While both the second and third parson accepted the parachute, only one responded the man's warning and jumped off the plane. The third person realized that they could not stay on the plane if they wanted to live. When we truly embrace salvation, we realize that we can no longer continue living the way we were: in sin and rebellion against God. For if we continue to live in sin after claiming to have accepted salvation, salvation has had no real impact on our life and we are still on the path to destruction. Salvation calls us to live a new life: a life in Jesus Christ. Second Corinthians 5:17 states "if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation; old things have passed away; behold, all things have become new." 

Salvation. It is a free gift. It is a free gift offered to all without us having to earn or deserve it. It is a choice. Will you accept or reject this free gift? It requires a response. When we truly embrace salvation, we will leave behind our old ways, for behold! We are a new creation!