Feeling Our Need for a Savior

Feeling Our Need for a SaviorJohn Piper There are two reasons why during Advent we should remember our great need for a Savior. The Preciousness of the Savior's ComingThe first reason is that the more keenly we feel our need for a Savior, the more precious will be the coming of the Savior.Picture two people in a car out for a drive along the north shore. The rider knows that there is a time bomb in the trunk and that any second might blow the car to pieces. The driver doesn't believe there is one, and thinks that his rider is insane. The state patrol has been alerted that the car is indeed loaded with a bomb that will soon go off. They begin their search and pursuit.The rider suddenly sees the State Patrol far in the distance to the rear racing toward the car. His heart leaps with hope for possible rescue! If you are the rider who knows that there is a bomb in the trunk, the flashing red lights in the distance are very precious, and the closer they get, the more precious they become. But if you are the driver and you don't think that there is a bomb in the trunk, the flashing red lights are a threat.I think that the most loving thing I can do for you this Advent season is to help you remember and feel your need for a Savior, so that as he approaches, your heart will leap for joy.The Command of the Word of God The second reason for remembering our great need for a Savior is that the Word of God commands us to. Ephesians 2:1-10 describes how God saved us by grace through faith when there was a time bomb of sin ticking in our soul. Verse 11 commands, "Therefore remember!" Remember what? Verse 12 tells us: "Remember that you were at that time separated from Christ, alienated from the commonwealth of Israel, and strangers to the covenants of promise, having no hope and without God in the world." But the key word, practically speaking, is "Remember!"Paul really believes that even after the State Patrol has caught your car and saved you, you shouldn't forget that awful chase. You shouldn't forget what it would have been like if they had not pursued you. You should remember what you were and would have become without a Savior. Part of our ongoing devotional life should be the obedience of Ephesians 2:12--Remember! Remember! Remember that once we were cut off from Christ, without any citizen-rights to heaven; no promises applied to us; we had no hope and no part in God.We are commanded, "Remember this! Bring it to mind again and again" (v. 11, mnemoneuete: present tense, continuous action). And surely the reason is so that it will have a vigorous and lively role in causing us to love Jesus Christ, our Savior.It is a simple psychological fact: unless we feel a great need for a Savior, we do not feel that he is a great Savior.