Scripture
And Jesus said to his disciples, “Truly, I say to you, only with difficulty will a rich person enter the kingdom of heaven. Again I tell you, it is easier for a camel to go through the eye of a needle than for a rich person to enter the kingdom of God.” When the disciples heard this, they were greatly astonished, saying, “Who then can be saved?” But Jesus looked at them and said, “With man this is impossible, but with God all things are possible.” (Matthew 19:23-26, ESV)
Thoughts
Jesus told his astounded disciples that salvation is so difficult that it’s only possible with God. With God. Many people live without God—even believers sometimes live as if God isn’t present in their lives. All of us slip into thinking we can pull off Kingdom living on our own strength.
Jesus uses a graphic image to press home his point: salvation is only possible for humankind because of God. Because of the gospel, our eternal destiny has changed. The Lord Jesus exposes the false hope in wealth and reveals a true hope in Jesus. That’s powerful! Jesus has become our true hope.
Remember that the God who dramatically saved the Israelites from the hands of the oppressive Egyptians is your Savior. The one who was in the fire with Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego is the same God who is with you in your fire. The one who walked on water and calmed the storms is the same Lord who calms your storm. Do not lose heart.
Application
You may be thinking about your relationship with God right now. You may be asking, “Can God truly save me?” Yes! God has always known that it’s not possible for us to save ourselves. You and I cannot be good enough to earn our own salvation. The Lord planned from the beginning to provide salvation as a gift to all who will accept it. He is the one who makes salvation possible. Only God can save you.
Prayer
Lord, please keep teaching me about trusting you and about where my trust actually is. Thank you for the great gift of salvation. Thank you for taking my impossible situation and saving me. Lord, I know that you are with me…. (Continue praying.)
