DEVOTION – DAY 473

Acts 4:12 “Salvation Is Only Through Jesus”

Acts 4:12 “Salvation is found in no one else, for there is no other name under heaven given to mankind by which we must be saved.”

Acts 4 records an encounter between Peter and John, and the religious rulers, elders and teachers of the law in Jerusalem. Peter had healed a beggar who had been lame from birth. The beggar had been well-known because he had begged daily at one of the gates leading to the Temple. The religious rulers and elders wanted to know by what authority Peter and John healed this beggar. Peter and John testified that they had healed the lame man by the name of Jesus Christ of Nazareth, the one the religious leaders had crucified, and that God had raised Him from the dead (Acts 4:10). They went on to declare in v12, that salvation is found only in the Lord Jesus.

The Bible teaches us that God loves the world. He loves people. But people do not feel His love because sin separated sinful people from their Holy God. People may try hard to reconcile with God by trying to be good, to do good deeds or to make animal sacrifices. But their standards are too low and never measure up to God’s required standards of righteousness. God knows this. So, in His great mercy, God sent His Son, the Lord Jesus to die on the cross to atone for the sins of mankind. Thus, all who call upon the name of the Lord Jesus Christ as their Lord and Savior will be saved from God’s just wrath for their sins. Because Jesus Christ had already taken their place on the cross to die for their sins. Salvation is found in no one else, apart from Jesus Christ. 

Billy Graham was born in 1918 and when he was 16, he chose to open his heart to Jesus Christ as his Lord and Savior. He later studied Theology and graduated in 1938. By the mid 1940’s he was pastoring a church. From the 1950’s onwards for the next 60 years, he became the world’s most successful evangelist of the 20th century. Throughout his career of preaching and evangelizing, he is estimated to have preached to 210 million people in 185 countries and territories. It is estimated that 3.2 million people responded to his call to open their hearts to receive Jesus Christ as their Lord and Savior through his famous crusade gatherings. People were drawn to his effective message of salvation and the need for Jesus in their lives. He died at the age of 99 years. Billy Graham was just one of the long line of people who spoke about salvation that began with the Lord Jesus and His disciples.

Let us pray: Heavenly Father, we praise you for you are our Blessed Savior. Thank you for your grace, mercy and love. We pray for the salvation of our family and friends who have yet to open their hearts to receive Jesus as their Lord and Savior. May they all be saved. We humbly ask this in the precious name of the Lord Jesus Christ. Amen.

Questions

  1. What do you count on to save you from punishment for your sins? Is it doing good deeds, being a good person or believing in Jesus’s work on the cross for the atonement of your sins?
  2. What do you think are the stumbling blocks that prevent people from opening their hearts to accept Jesus as their Lord and Savior?
  3. Why is Jesus the only One who can save people from their sins? Discuss.
  4. Are you willing to tell someone who is not a Christian about Jesus and the gospel?