Salvation in the Hands of God
Salvation comes from the mighty hand of God.
After David’s sin with Bathsheba he was approached by the prophet Nathan and told the story of a poor man and his beloved lamb. A rich neighbor sent and killed the poor man’s lamb to feed a traveler who had stopped to visit. David’s anger was kindled and declared that the rich man would die for his actions. To this Nathan replied, “You are the man!” (2 Samuel 12:1–7).
Soon after these events David sits down and penned Psalm 51 and acknowledged his sin before God. What made David such a great man was his humility and trust in the Lord. His love for God trumped everything else that he could have put his trust in. Whether it was sin, an enemy, or the betrayal of a friend David put his hope and trust in God. He knew that this is where salvation came from!
The truth is that we too need to come to the same humble conclusion and place our trust and hope in the Lord. So many put their hope in financial independence, luxuries of life, governments, armies, sinful pleasures, and even fleeting inanimate things such as time. Common sense and God’s word tells us that such things are not lasting (James 4:14) and that what is really important are the treasures we lay up in heaven (Matthew 6:19–20).
There is no hope without Christ for without him we are strangers to God and lost in our sins, separated from Him (Isaiah 59:1–2; Ephesians 2:12). There is no salvation (1 Timothy 1:1; Hebrews 6:18–19) and only sorrow (1 Thessalonians 4:13). Hope cam by the grace of God (2 Thessalonians 2:16; 1 Peter 1:21), is available through the Gospel of Jesus Christ (Colossians 1:23), and will be realized in eternal life at the resurrection and the return of Jesus (Titus 1:2; 2:13; Titus 3:7).
We must humble ourselves and acknowledge our utter dependence on Him. Peace, joy, and hope will follow! Let us be faithful to the One in whose hands is our eternal salvation. And let each of us hold fast to this hope (Hebrews 10:23).