Save

We throw around the word "save" or "salvation" at lot in religious circles. I wonder if we really know what it means? Sozo is an oft-used word in Scripture. It is the verb of the bunch. It simply means "save." In our text (Mat.16:25; Mk.8:35; Lk.9:24) it is a main verb. (As I wrote this the "save" icon blinked to indicate that my writing was being saved. I hope it keeps doing that throughout my writing.) There are many contexts in which "save" is used. It has to do with salvation from the effects of sickness, demon-possession, peril such as war or storms, death, and of course things eternal. There is always present a corollary to "save" and that of some THREAT. What is being threatened is our well-being, either temporal or eternal, either external or internal, either material or spiritual. We fear loss of what we have, whether health, life, or peace. We normally want to be in control of these, and fight whoever wants to separate us from our health, life and peace. So sometimes we seek to be the one in the position of "saving" us. We mostly believe we are in the best position to save what is ours. We can function in this way, under this illusion for long periods of time until something happens to threaten our well-being, and we call on our powers to save us, and they fail. We might try over and over to save ourselves through various means until we reach a point of desperation, and almost instinctively cry out "Save Me." We may not know to whom we cry. We may not have rationally thought through this, but it is in us. In dire need we have a sense that there must be someone or something more powerful who is able to preserve my well-being when all else fails.

We use phrases like "there are no atheist in fox-holes." We mean that under pressure the most intellectually certain person that there is no "higher-power" will call out to this so-called, non-existent one for deliverance. You see when a bomb is bursting in air above MY head, it is pretty easy to feel vulnerable and in need. I don't have to program a cry for help. It just flows out of my inner being. HELP! So when it comes to threats to my health, and my life, or even my emotional well-being, I can feel the desperation strongly and will seek help instinctively. We speak sometimes of the silent killers that might lurk within our bodies, such as diabetes. There may not be any dramatic effects on us for a long time, but the disease is silently taking its toll on our physical system. Then, something changes and I recognize something is eating away at me, and I get desperate to fix it. I change my diet and my exercise pattern, and maybe start sticking needles in my fingers to check my blood, or such like. Why? Because the threat that has been there has become real.

But what of eternal matters? If matters of health, emotional peace, and financial well-being are more or less in tact, am I concerned about eternal salvation. Here is what we need to hear. Listen to Jesus on this. We must stop compartmentalizing salvation. We are an integrated being. When Jesus speaks of salvation in our text and talks of saving our lives or losing our lives He is using the word psuche which is the SOUL word (as opposed to the body or spirit words). It is the Soul part of man that connects body and spirit. The things that threaten the soul (life) of a person are also threatening in some way the whole person. So to say "I don't feel spiritually lost" because I don't have a sense of impeding eternal danger is to miss the way we were designed by God to operate. When we "feel" vulnerable in one part it is God's way of demonstrating to us our vulnerability in all parts of our being. Jesus came to seek and save the lost (not judge or condemn us). He wants to save all of our being, body, soul and spirit. So when you are sick or in peril, know that God is sending you a message that you cannot protect your own life, you need him, and the sooner you let go of your life, the sooner you can begin to experience the effects of real life, eternal life. Think about it.