No One Else Saves

"This Jesus is the stone that was rejected by you, the builders, which has become the cornerstone. And there is salvation in no one else, for there is no other name under heaven given among men by which we must be saved.”

(Acts 4:11-12)

Meditation

There is no other name given by which we must be saved. That is the name of Jesus. Even though these words were spoken to the Jews shortly after Jesus ascended into heaven, they have implications for us today. I know of many churches and denominations preaching a social gospel. They’re more concerned with equal rights than the gospel of Christ. They have created a savior that bears no resemblance to the real Jesus. Because he loved everyone, they claim we must accept everyone without the requirement that they repent of their sins. In other words, they have no concern over their eternal souls, only that they get justice while they’re here on earth. It’s a far cry from the gospel preached by the Apostles after Christ ascended into heaven.

There is no other name given by which we must be saved. That is the name of Jesus. Not even a savior of our own creation who we call Jesus. Other passages warn us we will know them by their fruit. If they’re not leading souls to the real Jesus, they are false teachers. No other man-made savior or god can keep us from hell! No other gospel than the gospel of Christ will tell us the truth! The only way we'll stand unblemished before the Father in heaven is by accepting the gift of his Son, Jesus, and following him with every step we take. That’s what repentance means. We turn from our old way of thinking and living and decide to follow Jesus.

I attended a crusade on October 24, 1998 and gave my heart to Jesus, but I didn’t really understand what that meant. The religious Jews of Jesus day didn’t understand repentance, because they were so wrapped up in their own self-righteousness. I began searching for a church to teach me what I craved to know. If I hadn’t been nurtured by a Bible preaching church after I got saved, I might never have understood the significance of repentance. Of course, all who seek salvation should be accepted but they cannot be saved without their eventual repentance. They can be the nicest person in the world, but it they don’t turn from their sins, they cannot be followers of Jesus Christ.

Daily Prayer

Lord God, you have a plan for each and every one of us. Lord just as the Pharisee’s hearts were dead, before you saved us, our hearts were like stone. We spent too much of our lives rejecting the work done on the cross to save us. We probably didn’t realize it, but we were running from the truth of your love. Not because we didn’t want love, but because we didn’t understand why you would love us, as bad as we have been. Thank you for showing us how desperately wrong we were. We walked in the darkness of our sins not realizing how lost we were. Thank you, Father, for pulling us out of the darkness we were in. Our hearts were beating but we were dead inside. We have no other name to call on to save us. Thank you, Father, for the greatest gift of all, your Son, Jesus and it’s in his name, we pray. Amen!