If you heard on the radio of a family being rescued by a fire-fighter, or of a ship’s crew being saved by a lifeboat, you would know more or less how the rescue was made and also what would have happened to the unfortunate people if nothing had been done. But when you learn that Our Lord Jesus Christ has saved us from our sins, you may not find it easy to understand.  You know that he died on the Cross to save us, but that was a long time ago and you may wonder what difference it can make to us today.

In a moment we’re going to consider a story which hopefully will help to make this clearer. But first of all there are some things we need to understand.  When people sin, that is, think or say or do what is wrong, then they rebel against God and go over to the side of the Devil. And if they are not sorry for their sins and remain on the Devil’s side and in his power when they die, then he will have them in his power always.So God sent his Son, Jesus Christ, into this world to master the Devil, to free us from the Devil’s control, and to bring us back home to God.

That is what Jesus came to do, and the price he paid in order to do it was the Crucifixion when the Devil tried, and failed, to overcome Our Lord’s resistance to evil. Three days later God raised Jesus from the dead and he is now alive for evermore.

A story

Now for the story.· In this story the:

• King stands for God the Father;
• King’s Son stands for Jesus Christ;
• Rebel Nobleman stands for the Devil;
• Repentant Rebel stands for you and me.

Rebellion and enslavement

There was a certain good and just King whose aim was that all his subjects should be law-abiding and happy. But one of his noblemen, who was an evil man, hated the King and wanted to overthrow him and make himself king instead. So he raised the standard of revolt and called on the King’s subjects to join him in fighting against their King.  In spite of the King’s great goodness to them, all of his subjects went over to the Rebel Nobleman’s side, little knowing what would be in store for them once they were in his power.  Some of them soon regretted what they had done and would have liked to return to the King, but the Rebel Nobleman was ready for them and locked them up in his castle and made them his slaves.

Rescue by the King’s only Son

Faced with this rebellion the King sent his only Son with instructions to defeat the Rebel Nobleman and rescue his prisoners.  The King’s Son gladly and willingly set out.  When he arrived and the Rebel Nobleman realised who he was, there followed a terrible hand-to-hand combat in front of the great gates of the castle.  The King’s Son was severely wounded, but he succeeded in overcoming the Rebel Nobleman and taking from him the keys to the castle gates, which he unlocked so that the prisoners inside could go free if they wished.

The Repentant Rebel

So the King’s Son returned to his Father and reported on the success of his mission.· One of the prisoners was very sorry that he had rebelled against the King, especially now he knew that the King had sent his only Son to rescue him and that in so doing his Son had willingly endured great suffering.· Therefore he made up his mind to go back and ask the King to take him back as his subject once again.

It was dark when the Repentant Rebel arrived at the King’s palace and, feeling very miserable at the way he had behaved, he slunk into the great outer courtyard.· The windows of the palace were all bright with lights, but as the rebel stood out there in the dark, alone and cold and ill-clad, he knew that, after what he had done, he was not fit to be admitted to the King’s presence, let alone be welcomed back.

It was then that the palace door opened, and he saw coming out to him the King’s Son himself.· The King’s Son understood at once what the Rebel wanted and, putting his arm round his shoulder, brought him into the palace until they reached the great throne-room.· Together they walked its full length until the Repentant Rebel found himself before the King himself.· And there the King’s Son reminded his Father what he himself had suffered in order to rescue the Repentant Rebel from the Rebel Nobleman.· And so the King received the Repentant Rebel back as his loyal subject, for the sake of his Son who had loyally carried out his mission by defeating the Rebel Nobleman and who now had brought home one of the rebels he had saved.

The story applied to us

So, when we sin, we rebel against God, and go over to the Devil’s side and are unfit to approach God again.· But if we are sorry for what we have done, then Jesus himself brings us to his Father, and God can receive us back as his loyal subjects.· He does this for the sake of Our Lord Jesus Christ, his Son and our Saviour, who suffered on the Cross to rescue us from the Devil and from our sins, and to restore us safely to his Father.· So too, if we hate our sins and love Jesus, then he will bring us to Heaven to be safe and happy there for ever.