Pastor's Power Points

 Rescued!

The pictures are vivid – traumatic stories, riveting documentaries of people in despair being rescued from burning buildings, sinking ships, wild beasts, an oncoming train… or the rescue of a young child from the abusive treatment of his mother’s boyfriend.  The man became annoyed at the five-year-old’s constant whining for a cup of water. Not wanting his indulgence in TV and beer to be interrupted, the brute tied the boy’s feet to a tall bed post and left him dangling with only his shoulders touching floor. The child’s brother found his limp body the next morning. Such news engenders an overwhelming sense of rage toward the senseless abuse, and the compulsion to run to the child and take him in your arms.

There was a well educated man in history who came to the understanding that he had been rescued from such despair that could never have been solved by a philosopher, educator, scientist, statesman, or physician. He needed a savior. These are his words:

 He rescued us from the domain of darkness,
and transferred us to the kingdom of His beloved Son.
Col. 1:13

 Rescue is necessary when one cannot set himself free from despair.  The despair in this case is a kingdom of tyranny where the misery of self-preeminence, error and death reign with uncontrollable power.

The NT scriptures use several words synonymous of rescue with the sense of being set free, released or taken out, (see Heb. 2:15, Rom. 8:21, Gal. 1:4). But the most common word – the one used in the above statement – is one that paints the picture of rescuing by drawing to oneself.  This is the surpassing worth of the knowledge of Christ Jesus my Lord – He came to rescue me, and He did so by drawing me to Himself.  How appropriate the image of Christ carrying a lamb in His arms.  Even though my predicament of despair was my own sinfulness, Jesus made it clear that He came to seek and to save.  Hear his words to another well-educated religious leader:

God did not send the Son into the world to judge the world,
but that the world might be saved through Him.
John 3:17