Rescued from
destruction!
Have you ever been seriously ill and wondered if you would ever
get better? Even if you have good health, you know that your life
here on earth will not go on forever. There is more to the life God
has given you than having health and happiness; there is an
eternity you should be preparing for! 1*. According to Jesus that "eternity" will be
"destruction" for many people 2*. although God has made it possible to be
rescued from destruction.
Jesus was once met by ten men who had leprosy. Their incurable
disease was destroying their bodies and leading to a horrible
death. When they saw Jesus "they stood at a distance and called out
in a loud voice, ‘Jesus, Master, have pity on us!'" 3*.
They likely had heard of the love and power of Jesus and they
really believed that He could help them.
I'm sure you have heard much more about Jesus than these outcasts
had. Perhaps you know that He is the Christ; the true Son of God
who came to us as promised in order to die for our sins and rise
again to be the Saviour of the world. 4*. But I wonder have you had the
confidence to call out to Him in faith to deliver you
from your sin? 5*.
If you don't get Jesus Himself to save you, your otherwise
incurable SIN will certainly bring you to death and destruction, to
be separated from God forever! 6*.
In those days if a person thought they had recovered from any
serious skin disease they had to be inspected by the priests to get
the "all clear".
Jesus ordered these men with leprosy, "Go, show yourselves to the
priests." The diseased men set off in obedience to Jesus!
If you had been one of those men would you have set off at Jesus'
command, before you were healed, to show the priest what you
believed Jesus had the power to do? "As they went, they were
cleansed"! 7*.
Jesus didn't send them to the priest to be healed; He sent them to
show the priest that they had been healed and rescued from destruction! Those ten men wanted the
priest to see the change that Jesus had made it their lives.
Have you the faith in Jesus today to be able to stand before any
priest of any religion and claim that you have already been
forgiven by faith in Jesus? 8*. How annoyed the priest would be that you
believed that you did not need him because your faith was in Jesus
instead! That is the confidence of having real faith in Jesus as
your Saviour! You see, the true believer in Jesus "is a new
creation; the old has gone, the new has come!" 9*.
But only one of those men, "when he saw he was healed, came back,
praising God in a loud voice ... ‘Rise and go' Jesus said, ‘your
faith has made you well.'" 10*.
You can read about this in Luke chapter 17, verses 11-19. But all
those who put their faith in Jesus for SALVATION will not only be
changed from their sinful ways by Him but should be truly thankful
to Jesus for His forgiveness and grace.
Bye for now,
John Nixon, Ballincollig, Cork, Ireland. P31HD98. Contact: jnixonj@gmail.com
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Bible quotations from N.I.V.
1 Hebrews 9:27.
Revelation 20:11-15.
2 Matthew 7:13. 2nd
Thessalonians 1:8-9.
3 Luke 17:12-13.
4 1st John 4:14. John
3:16-19.
5 Romans 10:13.
6 Matthew 25:41. Luke
19:12-14, 27.
7 Luke 17:14.
8 Acts 4:12. 13:38-39.
Romans 3:21-26.
9 2nd Corinthians
5:17.
10Luke
17:15-19.
