The Gentiles were faster than Christ's own disciples in recognizing who He really is. At the village of Sychar, after listening to Him, the Samaritans openly confessed, "We ... know that this is indeed the Christ, the Savior of the world" (John 4:42). The idea was not that He merely wants to be "the Savior of the world," or that he would be their Savior if people accepted and believed Him; no; He is already "the Savior of the world."
Paul had the idea: "We trust in the living God, who is the Savior of all men, especially of those who believe" (1 Tim. 4:10).
Thus there are two ways that Christ is "the Savior of all men": (a) To everyone He has in a legal sense given the gift of salvation, and the proof of that is the fact that everyone lives. Otherwise, everyone would be held in a hopeless, endless death. He intends that this life shall be just the beginning of that wonderful eternal life, for "God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son," and "our Savior … desires all men to be saved, and to come to the knowledge of the truth" (1Tim. 2:3, 4). But He has given "all men" the power of choice, He cannot force anyone to be saved against his will, and sad to say, many repeat the sin of Esau who "despised" and "sold" his birthright, which he already had (Heb. 12:16, 17; Gen. 25:34). (b) For those who believe, whose heart responds to His love, He is in a special sense their Savior unto eternal life.
God is infinite; therefore His love for the whole world is given also to each one of the "all men" for whom Christ died their "second death": "We see Jesus, who was made a little lower than the angels for the suffering of death, ... that He, by the grace of God, might taste death for everyone" in an obviously personal sense (Heb. 2:9).
You are actually loved by Him! You are invited to address Him in prayer as "Father." That's even something the angels cannot do!
From the "Dial Daily Bread" Archive: May 3, 2006.
Copyright © 2010 by Robert J. Wieland.
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