“For I will surely save you, and you shall not fall by the sword. But you shall have your life as a prize of war because you have put your trust in Me declares the Lord.”
-Jeremiah 39:18
So Jeremiah 39 tells us about the fall of Jerusalem, just as God had promised, this city was overtaken by the Babylonians and God’s people were fully taken into exile at that point. But in the middle of this chapter in Jeremiah 39:18, God says to His people, “I will save you. Surely, I will save you. You will not ultimately fall by the sword because you’ve put your trust in Me.” It’s a pretty simple truth. Trust in God and be saved. Trust in God and be saved.
The essence of the Christian message is trust in God and be saved.
This is the essence of the Christian message, the message all throughout the Bible. Trust in God and be saved. This is what God is saying to His people over and over and over again all throughout the Old Testament. In fact sin came into the world when what happened? God’s people, His creation, Adam and Eve did not trust in Him. And yet, in Genesis 3, God gave this promise that He would send a savior who would crush the serpent and from the very beginning then, God is calling these people to trust in His promises, and that is what we see over, and over, and over again.
And so when we get to the New Testament and we hear Jesus proclaiming the good news of salvation that comes from God, what’s the message? Repent and believe. Turn from yourself and trust in God.
Turn to me and be saved, all the ends of the earth. This is the message that resounds throughout scripture. And so I want to ask you as you’re listening to this, first and foremost, most importantly, have you trusted in Jesus? For salvation from your sin. Do you know that you’ve trusted in Jesus for salvation from your sin? If your heart does not resound with a, “Yes, I’ve trusted in Him” then I implore you, I invite you, I urge you to trust in Him today. You are not guaranteed tomorrow, so trust in Him today.
Trust in Jesus as the savior of your sin and the Lord of your life.
This is how to be forgiven of your sin and reconciled, restored to a relationship with God through trust in Jesus. Not through what you do for God. Not by trying to do a bunch of things to earn your way to Him. It’s trust, trust, put your trust in Me, believe in Me. We’re saved by grace, through faith, not from ourselves, it’s not our own doing, it’s the gift of God. We trust in Him.
And then, once you do that, for all who have done that, listen to this, this is the Christian life. It’s a daily life of trusting in Him and experiencing His grace in your life more and more and more and more as you grow to trust in Him more. So we pray today, oh God, we put all our trust in You. We trust you for salvation from our sins, and we trust you for the leadership of our life. We trust in You for Your provision and Your protection and Your leadership and Your guidance and Your wisdom and Your peace and Your strength.
Jeremiah 39:18 Reminds Us To Trust In The God Who Saves
God, amidst all that we have going on in each of our lives right now, help us to trust in you. When it comes to details in our lives, marriage, your family with kids or parents and our work, God help us to trust in You. In Your church, help us to trust in You. Amidst suffering we’re walking through, help us to trust in You. God we know this life that You’ve called us to is a life of trust, and You promised, You will surely save those who trust in You.
So we bank our lives today on that promise. I just encourage you, as you’re praying, just specifically put before God all the ways you trust Him today. For this, for that going on in your life, for this person, this thing you’re praying for, whatever it is. Just put it before God and say, “I trust in You”. “For I will surely save you” God says to His people, “because you put your trust in me” declares the Lord. Praise you oh God for this promise in Jesus’ name. Amen.
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David Platt serves as a pastor in metro Washington, D.C. He is the founder of Radical.
David received his Ph.D. from New Orleans Baptist Theological Seminary and is the author of Don’t Hold Back, Radical, Follow Me, Counter Culture, Something Needs to Change, Before You Vote, as well as the multiple volumes of the Christ-Centered Exposition Commentary series.
Along with his wife and children, he lives in the Washington, D.C. metro area.
