There was a survey stating the most memorized verse in the Bible was “God helps those who help themselves.” Well… That is not in the Bible! As a matter of theology, God’s word tells us the exact opposite. The most quoted and recognizable scripture is John 3:16 (NLT) where it tells us, “For God loved the world so much that he gave his one and only Son, so that everyone who believes in him will not perish but have eternal life.” The Bible tells us that we are in need of a Savior, and that Savior is found in the Good News of Jesus (his life, death, resurrection, and ascension into heaven). Often time’s people say they will go to church or give their lives to God “after” they get everything straightened out. However, that time never seems to come.
One
of the major issues of trying to help ourselves is that we ultimately want to
maintain control of our lives and be the boss.
We will go to church, but when we get things together. We want to go to heaven, but under our own
strength. We want to be the master of
our domain. Control is fleeting, strength is depleting, and being our own master is
defeating. The Bible not only
describes our need of a Savior, but also our need to follow a Lord. The idea is that we are not in control of our
life, no matter how much we try to fool ourselves into thinking that we
are. We need a master that is worthy of
following and powerful enough to transform our lives. Jesus tells the crowd in Luke 9:23 (NLT), “If
any of you wants to be my follower, you
must turn from your selfish ways, take up your cross daily, and follow
me.” 
The crowd was looking for a
Savior. They were looking for someone to
provide food, miracles, and fun.
However, not everyone in the crowd was looking to give control of their
life to the Lord. They wanted the
benefits, without the commitment. It is
vital for us to see that Jesus is the Savior of the world; to all who ‘believe’
in him. We cannot help ourselves enough to
get in a right relationship with him no matter how hard we try. Romans 10:9-10 reads, “9 If
you confess with your mouth that Jesus is Lord and believe in your heart that
God raised him from the dead, you will be saved. 10 For it is
by believing in your heart that you are made right with God, and it is by
confessing with your mouth that you are saved.”There is only one true Savior and one true Lord; He is Jesus. Jesus accepts “everyone” who “believes.” He accepts you. He loves you no matter what you have done. He does not save you though, just to let you stay where you are. He wants you to follow him completely. He wants you to rely upon him. There is no other that is worthy of our total commitment. The question is, “Are you in the crowd looking only for a Savior; or are you among those fully committed to following Jesus as Lord.”
Try listening to these two songs on your journey through this blog/devotion/day:
You Love Me Anyway and You Can Have Me
In
Christ Alone and continuing in prayer,
Chad
(Senior Pastor, Henderson General Baptist Church)
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