Imagine yourself lost in a forest - what a terrifying experience that can be! You are on a hike in a beautiful national forest when you just wander off the trail to explore some rock formations. Suddenly, you realize that you are walking in circles, having lost your bearings. Many thoughts come to your mind: “I should have stayed on the trail,” or “I should have brought a trail map with me,” or “I should have followed the guide.”

In reality, we are all lost in this world of sin. How often we stray from the clear path marked out for us and lose sight of our experienced Master Guide. God in His great love and mercy toward the human family has untiringly been rescuing perishing souls for the last 6,000 years. He “sent not his Son into the world to condemn the world; but that the world through him might be saved” (John 3:17).

We must first realize our “lost” condition in order to appreciate the guide, the Saviour. Those who are self-confident and believe that they can find their way out of the forest will not receive help from the trail guide. So it is in the Christian life. Thankfully the Saviour has come “to seek and to save that which was lost” (Luke 19:10).

The Saviour was promised to Israel. He did not come the way many expected. The Scripture says that Mary in Bethlehem “brought forth her firstborn son, and wrapped him in swaddling clothes, and laid him in a manger; ... For unto you is born this day in the city of David a Saviour, which is Christ the Lord” (Luke 2:7, 11). No one expected the Saviour of Israel to be born in a manger.

The Lord often comes to us in ways we do not expect. Are we ready to accept Him, regardless of our expectations?

The first ones to hear the promise of a Saviour were Adam and Eve after their fall. The following promise was given them: “And I will put enmity between thee and the woman, and between thy seed and her seed; it shall bruise thy head, and thou shalt bruise his heel” (Genesis 3:15).

Prior to the coming of the Saviour, the Lord sent “types” of the Saviour. Moses, for instance, came to save the Israelites from their Egyptian bondage.

“And it shall be for a sign and for a witness unto the Lord of hosts in the land of Egypt: for they shall cry unto the Lord because of the oppressors, and he shall send them a saviour, and a great one, and he shall deliver them” (Isaiah 19:20).

Isaiah is the Old Testament prophet who spoke the most about the coming Saviour. The prophet had such a longing for Him, particularly since he lived during a time of national apostasy, when the need for a Saviour was greatest. The Holy One assured him: “I am the Lord thy God, the Holy One of Israel, thy Saviour”(Isaiah 43:3).

“I, even I, am the Lord; and beside me there is no saviour”(Verse 11).

“All flesh shall know that I the Lord am thy Saviour and thy Redeemer, the mighty One of Jacob” (Isaiah 49:26). “He was wounded for our transgressions, he was bruised for our iniquities” (Isaiah 53:5).

In all cases, the Lord wanted them to learn to depend on their eternal, divine Saviour.

The Israelites were in bondage for many years under different world powers. Their first bondage was in Egypt. After possessing the promised land, they fell again into sin and lost the protection of the Saviour and fell again into bondage.

They were often taken captive and suffered much. They did not realize what had led them into bondage in the first place. They always looked for deliverers from their oppressors. They looked for freedom from their enemies. The Lord sent deliverers such as Gideon.He is an example of a physical saviour. Israel had been in captivity under the Midianites for seven years, and then the Lord said to Gideon: “Go in this thy might, and thou shalt save Israel from the hand of the Midianites” (Judges 6:14).

The Israelites had to realize that physical bondage was consequent upon the bondage of sin. Before Gideoncould gain the victory over the Midianites, God told him to do two things:

1. First, he had to build an altar unto the Lord and offer a sacrifice. Gideon “called it Jehovah-shalom” (the Lord is peace) (Judges 6:24). He had to first make peace with God and renew his covenant with Him. This step was the spiritual renewal or revival that both he and the entire nation needed.

2. Second, he had to tear down all the altars of Baal. He did this at the risk of his own life. Gideon himself was not an idol worshipper, but he had to take certain steps to cleanse his father’s house and the nation from idolatry. This step was symbolic of the reformation that Israel needed in order to be under the full favor of God as a nation.

After these steps were taken, the Lord did the rest. He brought victory to Israel in a miraculous way. The wonderful story of Gideon and his army of 300 men is just an example of what the Saviour will do when we give ourselves to Him wholeheartedly.

On the other hand, God chose Elijah to save Israel from a worse bondage, the bondage of sin. Israel had been servants to the false god Baal, resulting in a national apostasy. Elijah said to the people, “How long halt ye between two opinions? if the Lord be God, follow him: but if Baal, then follow him” (I Kings 18:21).

“Living in the midst of idolatry and corruption, [the people of Israel] had no true conception of the holiness of God, of the exceeding sinfulness of their own hearts, their utter inability, in themselves, to render obedience to God’s law, and their need of a Saviour. All this they must be taught.”1

“Thou son of David, have mercy on me,” cried out Bartimaeus, a blind man, when Jesus came by Jericho (Mark 10:46, 47).

A great number of people had been following Christ, who felt no need of Him. They had been following the crowd because of His popularity, yet how strange that a blind man, who, had never seen Jesus, was nonetheless determined to get help from One he did not know.

“It is only when the sinner feels the need of a Saviour, that his heart goes after the One who can help him. When Jesus walked among men, it was the sick that wanted a physician. The poor, the afflicted and distressed, followed after Him to receive the help and comfort which they could not find elsewhere. Blind Bartimaeus is waiting by the wayside; he has waited long to meet Christ. Throngs of people who possess their sight are passing to and fro, but they have no desire to see Jesus. One look of faith would touch His heart of love and bring them the blessings of His grace; but they know not the sickness and poverty of their souls, and they feel no need of Christ. Not so with the poor blind man. His only hope is in Jesus. As he waits and watches, he hears the tread of many feet, and he eagerly inquires, What means this noise of travel? The by-standers answer that ‘Jesus of Nazareth passeth by.’ With the eagerness of intense desire, he cries, ‘Jesus, thou Son of David, have mercy on me!’ They try to silence him, but he cries the more vehemently, ‘Thou Son of David, have mercy on me!’ This appeal is heard. His persevering faith is rewarded. Not only is physical sight restored, but the eyes of his understanding are opened. In Christ he sees his Redeemer, and the Sun of righteousness shines into his soul. All who feel their need of Christ as did blind Bartimaeus, and who will be as earnest and determined as he was, will, like him, receive the blessing which they crave.” 2

“If we were not sinners, we would have no need of a Saviour. We are sick with sin from the crown of our head to the sole of our feet, and this is why we need a Physician.”3

We have just seen an example of a poor blind man who felt his need of the Saviour. Christ gave him both physical and spiritual sight. It is the scheme of Satan, the great deceiver, to keep people blind of their spiritual condition. We often point to the Jews for having rejected Christ because of their pride and self-sufficiency. The same pharisaical spirit exists today under a different color. It is called the Laodicean condition. See Revelation 3:14-21.

“Today there are thousands and tens of thousands who are making the same mistake as did Cain, and as did the Pharisees in the days of Christ. They are trusting in self and depending upon their own wisdom and do not realize their own spiritual poverty.”4

“It is self-exaltation that results in the rejection of Christ, and this proved the ruin of the Jews. They felt no need of a Saviour, they realized no weakness, they desired no plan of atonement.”5

Humanity’s deplorable, sinful condition does not even allow us to realize our need of a Saviour. God has sent the Holy Spirit to prompt us to repentance. “To the repentant sinner, hungering and thirsting for righteousness, the Holy Spirit reveals the Lamb of God that taketh away the sin of the world.”6God leads men and women to repentance step by step.

1. “By the law is the knowledge of sin” (Romans 3:20).

“It is through the law that men are convicted of sin; and they must feel themselves sinners, exposed to the wrath of God, before they will realize their need of a Saviour.” 7

The apostle Paul “saw his need of a Saviour. Looking into the great standard of righteousness, he saw himself a sinner in the light of the law.” 8

“As man sees the sinfulness of his nature in the light of the Law, he will realize his great need of a Saviour.

. . . Man must find the path that leads back to the Father’s house, and every step away from transgression is a step toward Paradise. Every step in repentance, contrition, obedience, and faith, is a step toward the Father.”9

2. “You must repent; you must fall helpless on the Rock, Christ Jesus. You must feel your need of a physician and of the one only remedy for sin, the blood of Christ.” 10

3. “The Lord would have His servants today preach the old gospel doctrine, sorrow for sin, repentance, and confession. . . . The sinner must be labored for, perseveringly, earnestly, wisely, until he shall see that he is a transgressor of God’s law and shall exercise repentance toward God and faith toward the Lord Jesus Christ. When the sinner is conscious of his helpless condition and feels his need of a Saviour, he may come with faith and hope to ‘the Lamb of God, which taketh away the sin of the world’ (John 1:29).”11

4. “[Christ] came not to save men in sin, but from sin. And all who feel their need of a Saviour, and come to Him believing in His power, will gain the victory over sin. ‘As many as received Him, to them gave He power to become the sons of God’ (John 1:12).”12

5. “As ambassadors for Christ, we are entrusted with the important work of presenting the truth before the people; and we are to do this, not merely by voice and pen, but by example also. This God requires of us; nothing short of this will He accept. We must abide in Christ as the branch abides in the vine, or we shall not be fitted to bear the warning message to the world. . . . We must come so close to God that we can understand His character and requirements, and thus measure our sinfulness and our need of a Saviour.”13

“Wake up, my brethren and sisters, before you sleep the sleep of death. God has shown you that He is willing to do great things for you. The salvation of the human soul is the one object of most intense interest to the heavenly host. The value of the soul is infinitely above silver and gold; and why is it that you who have a knowledge of the truth do not impart it to others? It is the highest duty of every Christian to let the light God has given shine forth in steady rays. Have you been converted from error to truth? Have you, through faith in Jesus Christ, been made partakers of His love? Then go to work to save souls that are ready to perish. Personal effort must be put forth, if men who are lost are to be convinced that they are in need of a Saviour. . . . Converted himself, the Christian is to present to others the truth as it is in Christ Jesus and win souls to Jesus.”14

Do we know the Lord Jesus Christ as our very own, my very own personal Saviour? Christ died for you, just for you. Do you feel the need of a Saviour? Do you crave to receive His blessing as did Jacob in the night of wrestling? Do you desire to drink of the Living Fountain as did the Samaritan woman? Then get to know your Saviour more by growing up into Christ.May you have a daily, personal experience with Him.