Although it’s an obvious statement, it’s still a relief to say, because we are naturally bent towards trying to be our own or others' "saviors”.
So as a wonderful reminder:
I am not the Savior.
You are not the Savior.
We are not the Savior.
It’s always been this way. Jesus told His disciples that they were meant to be salt and light. To have His light in them and to let that light be shown for all to see:
“You are the salt of the earth, but if salt has lost its taste, how shall its saltiness be restored? It is no longer good for anything except to be thrown out and trampled under people's feet. You are the light of the world. A city set on a hill cannot be hidden. Nor do people light a lamp and put it under a basket, but on a stand, and it gives light to all in the house. In the same way, let your light shine before others, so that they may see your good works and give glory to your Father who is in heaven." Matthew 5:13-16
We are salt, that make people thirsty for Jesus.
We are light, that illuminates the path to Jesus.
We are an example, that people would see our good works and see how Jesus can change a person.
If only the people in our lives knew of the goodness of God, they would come to us as these men came to Philip in John 12:21 and would have only one request: “Sir, we wish to see Jesus.” For He is all we need.
And I confirm:
I wish to see Jesus, for He is all I need.
Although Jesus is truly all we need, we all still have a messiah complex: a desire to be that thing, or that person, that someone else needs. But this isn’t what we were meant to be. We need the power of God in our lives, and as do others. So rather than trying to be a functional savior in the lives of others, we need to point them towards the same source of power that we ourselves need. Nothing else will do. Nothing else can replace that.
So remember, next time you see someone reaching out and looking to you to be their functional “savior”:
The next time you find yourself enjoying being someone’s crutch, when they actually need Jesus’ healing:
Point them to Jesus.
Because we are not the Savior.
