September 23

the Living One. I was dead, and behold, now I am alive forever and ever! And I hold the keys of Death and of Hades. — Rev 1:18 BSB

What a mercy that the one who was dead now lives at God’s right hand! He lives as our risen head, not as a dead Savior but one who lives forever. He is a Savior who blesses, who comforts, and who brings the soul safely through every trial. He is not a Savior who stands on the edge of the river, waiting for us to swim halfway across to pull us out. He is not a Savior who takes us halfway to heaven and then leaves us to fend for ourselves. No, he must carry us all the way to heaven. Without him, we are nothing and have nothing. He must be, and is, our “all in all.” We value his death, for nothing but his death could reconcile us to God. We value his life, for nothing but his life can save us.

We need salvation now—salvation in the heart—a spiritual salvation revealed in and to the soul. A salvation worthy of the name, that is whole, complete, and everlasting, to the praise of super-abounding grace. It is an indestructible salvation, never to be lost, worthy of God and the God-man. It meets every need of the soul, touches every trial of the heart, and is able to save even the vilest sinner, “without money and without price.”