In Need of a Savior

"For God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him should not perish but have everlasting life. For God did not send His Son into the world to condemn the world, but that the world through Him might be saved. He who believes in Him is not condemned; but he who does not believe is condemned already, because he has not believed in the name of the only begotten Son of God. And this is the condemnation, that the light has come into the world, and men loved darkness rather than light, because their deeds were evil." (John 3:16-19)

John 3:16 is possibly the most well known Bible passage but you really need to see it in context to get the full impact. God sent His son to rescue us -- that we might be saved. He who does not believe is condemned already. That's powerful. We are born in sin. We are born into darkness. That's a little unpalatable. We like to think that children are sweetness and light and little blank slates full of goodness. The truth is somewhat different. The Word of God places a heavy responsibility on parents to raise and train their children. Why? Because humans don't have to be taught to do wrong. They have to be taught to do right.

Folks love to whine about the transgressions of Christianity. They'll point to the inquisition, the Crusades, witch hunts or religious wars as proof. That's a game they don't want to play. Yes, some terrible things have been done in the name of Jesus by people who, for the most part, were probably not believers. And yet,the evil that so-called Christians have done is a pittance when compared to those who have rejected God. This last century witnessed the rise of some of history's biggest mass murderers at the head of atheist regimes. I know a few deluded souls who actually claim that Hitler was a Christian but he rejected Jesus Christ for a bizarre blend of mysticism and Norse-Germanic mythology. Hitler was no more a follower of Jesus Christ than was Mohammed.

Man apart from God is pretty nasty. We were created to know Him and outside of that fulfillment are angry, searching and selfish. The heart of man is rebellion. The heart of man is to rule and dominate his fellow man. Look at history. Look at the world today. Western intellectuals are scared to death of Christians while refusing to take a look at the rest of the world. It's not such a wonderful place is it? That's why we needed to be rescued. We need a savior because we are completely unable to save ourselves. But men love darkness, rather than light.