Lord, Save Me

This week I am going to talk about what I believe is the shortest prayer recorded in the Bible. It is also the title of this week’s study, and the title is this: “Lord, Save Me.”

We find it recorded in this setting: Mat 14:22-32

We also find a similar incident recorded here: Mat 8:24-26

Now there are some very important things I want you to gather from those two very similar events, and one of the most important is this: A miracle occurred immediately, and the prayer was answered.

We find also that in both cases, not only was the individual or group calling out for help saved, but also even the dangerous circumstances were removed. Consider that when Peter was brought into the boat, it was not necessary for the waves to cease. It was the same for the disciplines in the boat a few chapters earlier; the storm could have continued, and they would have been just as safe, yet it so happened – and the Gospel writer saw fit to record – that there was thereafter a “great calm.”

We read: Heb 7:25

Yahweh, through Yahshua, saves “to the uttermost.” Anything that the Father and Son do is done perfectly, yet it is emphasized here that salvation is to the very highest degree, to the absolute limit of what can be done. Even for those who do not respond to this great mercy, we read that all that is within the Almighty’s power to do (except for force) has been done. Isa 5:4

And what does it mean that after the heart has seen its need, and cried out for help, and after the salvation is received, that the storms cease? What this points out is that the mighty waves, and the roaring wind, those things that seem bent on destroying us, these are merely those things that are allowed for a definite purpose. And after that purpose is fulfilled, and these things are no longer needed, they are no longer allowed to trouble us.

The problem with “fear” for a converted Christian is that it is entirely illogical. If we truly believe that Yahweh is all powerful, and we truly believe that His will toward us is good, and that as long as we have chosen Him as protector He will be faithful to this task… what possible function can fear serve?

Now in the world, and to the natural man, yes… fear serves a very definite purpose. It keeps us away from dangerous situations, and unknown circumstances that could indeed pose a threat to life and health. But like every evil thing, worldly fear is based on a good principle, and then twisted beyond recognition.

We read: Luke 10:19

These are the things a Christian is taught, but who truly believes this? Who, naming the name of Christ, can do such things without fear? Creation Seventh Day Adventists are committed to demonstrating this kind of bravery to the world.

But as I said, it is based on a good principle. We read of the second temptation of Christ: Mat 4:5-7

Why did Christ not jump down? It was not because He was afraid He would be harmed. Had He been pushed, for example, the angels would have done what they were commissioned by the Father to do. And yet, it would have been presumptuous of Him to do that. The promise in Luke’s Gospel is not an invitation to go out and handle snakes, or find scorpions to stand on. There are some snake handling groups that call themselves Christian Churches, and they prove their faith to themselves, and one another by handling dangerous and poisonous animals. Yet what is the purpose of this? If they have the faith to do this, but there are people who die around them and go off into eternity never having heard the Gospel, what is the use of that kind of faith?

On the Internet I have seen a number of public debates between Christians and Muslims. You can learn a lot of interesting things about both Islam AND Christianity by watching these. For example, I’ve learned that the points the Muslims make against the Christians, the genuine points, are invariably on those points that Christianity teaches differently from the Bible.

For example, even the most learned Christian scholar can do little but say, “It is a mystery” when the educated Muslim asks pressing questions about the supposed tri-une nature of God. Even the most experienced evangelist has a hard time with questions relating to sin and salvation, because they have never truly renounced one and embraced the other. When asked why we do not “follow the Bible” in every detail, the nominal Christian who does not understand what was truly nailed to the cross will throw away the Sabbath, but keep an almost magical respect for Jerusalem, and the Jews whom they believe will one day become the 144,000.

But in several of these debates, when it is time for the Question and Answer session, I have seen one of the Islamic members of the audience stand up with a bag or a bottle and quote this passage: Mark 16:17, 18

I have seen that happen two or three times, and in none of these cases did the Christian do what must surely be obvious to us… quote the Christ whom he claims to follow, and say, “It is written, ‘Thou shalt not tempt the Lord thy God.’” Muslims, for the most part, respect people who follow a holy book. Instead of looking fearful and flustered, we should do as Christ did when face with temptations: Quote the spirit-inspired words at our disposal.

But if a Christian, one truly converted, is brought into a dangerous situation, and Yahweh has further work for this individual to do on the earth, no thing in all creation can cause him or her any harm. If we act from faith, and not presumption, there is nothing at all we cannot accomplish.

But this brings us back to the immediacy with which Peter and the disciples’ prayer was answered. Obviously, the prayer was from faith; obviously, they knew Christ could save them, or they would have not been shouting for His aid. But there was something else, too, that is missing from a lot of even our most sincere prayers, and it is this: a sense of urgency.

Sometimes, the best prayers are the short ones. In fact, Mat 6:5, 6; Mark 12:38-40

Now of course, sometimes we have a lot to pray for, and our prayers may go long. It is the same with sermons and testimonies. We have received good counsel from our Adventist pioneers that our sermons and testimonies should be to the point, and powerful. Prayers that follow these principles will likewise be pointed and powerful.

When surrounded by a storm that threatens to drown us, it is easy to feel the sense of urgency. But what about now? What about when you are sitting at home, or walking to the store, or reading a book? Which of us is truly aware of – I do not mean fearful of, but aware of – the spiritual dangers, the accusers of the brethren, the violent demons, that would destroy us and the testimony we bear? How many feel the urgency as destruction creeps closer to those with whom we associate daily, as probation draws to a close and men dash forward into sins unwarned?

We know the work we have been given to do to preach the Gospel to every creature. We know that if we do not speak a word of warning to the sinner, as it says in the books of the prophets, and they die in their sins, their blood will be required at our hands. We may not have committed those sins, or encouraged others to sin… but if we had the love of Christ, that love which justifies us and accounts us innocent, how could we stop from warning those who are being destroyed?

And isn’t this the problem that worldly Christians have with the with the victory message? If they knew the sinfulness of sin, and how completely it destroys a soul, how could they believe that Yahweh would not love them enough to save them FROM their sins, rather than letting them continue to play in death? Sinners are sinking into the ocean just as Peter was, and they are praying for salvation just as Peter was; but Peter was saved, and many, many who ask for salvation from sin will not be saved. Why?

It is because Peter truly understood his need. He saw that death was coming for him, and he was desperate, would have given anything at all, to escape his fate. He was ready to “surrender all” as the song that we sing goes. And it is only then, only then when we are willing to surrender all, because we hate our state of dying so completely that we would give everything we have to escape, that we see the immediate miracles. And when the miracle is given, we look back and we see… the trials of this life were allowed, so that we could see how powerless we truly are without our Father’s protection.

Peter prayed, “Lord, save me,” and the Lord saved him, because he truly saw his need, and genuinely, earnestly, wanted salvation. Yahweh does not turn away such a prayer.

But now, what about those who have loved ones that have fallen ill, and pray for their restoration? I had a cousin die of cancer very recently in Canada. I do not remember much of him, but most of my family is very close, and I can tell you that they prayed earnestly and desperately for his life.

Now, he had given his care into the hands of worldly doctors, and perhaps a certain kind of knowledge would have helped his case. The Scriptures tell us that some are destroyed for lack of such a thing. But the fact of the matter is that people DO die. Peter may have been pulled into the boat by Christ that day, but I am certain that he was not the only fisherman to have almost drowned in that water; and I am certain that many did die, feeling just as earnestly that they would have given anything they had to be saved.

So what do we say to people who have lost loved ones? The most common responses given by well meaning Christians are, “The Lord works in mysterious ways,” and “God called him home.” These answers do not satisfy, and just like the fable of an eternally burning hell, can actually do more harm to the faith of one who hears them than help.

The Lord works in mysterious ways… this makes God Himself the taker of the ill one’s life. And yes, Yahweh can and has ended the lives of those who have passed beyond the boundaries of mercy, and are trying to stop the Gospel work from going forward. But the average terminally ill patient is not one who actively opposes the activities of the Church of Christ.

God called him home… are we sure of this? First of all, almost without exception, those saints and virgins praised and prayed-to by the misguided are awaiting the resurrection, and so much more those whose lives have been spiritually unremarkable. Second, this also makes Yahweh the originator of death, and in the Bible, death is described as the last “enemy!”

Both of these make Yahweh the enemy of the ill or injured, if not directly, then certainly indirectly. Those who know Him, truly know Him, have better answers than these.

Yahweh hates death more than anything else. Yahweh hates death more than anyone else hates it, because death is the result of sin, the rebellion against everything He is. Those grieving for a lost loved one need to know that Yahweh is the God of life, and that there is a resurrection, not some faraway spirit-world where their loved ones will at best ignore them and at worst forget them altogether.

When someone dies, it is because of sin. Now, very quickly, I want to make it clear that I am not saying everyone who dies dies as a sinner, or as a direct result of sin. Christ, who knew no sin within Himself, nevertheless died because of sin. I hope that is very clear. Peter, had he not been taken by Christ into the boat, would have died because of sin. He would have died because of drowning, not because of some evil thing he personally had just done… but death exists because of sin.

Our work is not to spend our lives mourning the departed, but laboring for those that remain, because those who departed we may see again in the resurrection, but those who remain, even now as time draws to a close, we know will NOT be able to survive the ever-more-deceptive temptations without the full armor of Yahweh.

When those of us who have accepted this message were converted, each of us had to ask, in one way or the other, “Lord, save me.” I remember very clearly that I did, and it was because I heard the victory message. I thought, “If this is what a Christian must be, I am not at all where I need to be!” Now, some Christians will admit this, but they flatter and comfort themselves by saying, “But we are getting there.” Salvation is the one thing for which impatience is a virtue. Peter was not praised for calmly asking Yahshua to save him; he was preserved alive because he quickly, earnestly, cried out for help.

That was where I found myself, and what I did. And since then, I have come into the boat and seen that all the fears I had about not being good enough, or ever reaching that “level of holiness” were really just illusions. There is no difference in ability between the sinner and the saint; but Christ works in one with infinite power to accomplish His will in our lives. This is what we who are of the faith have experienced. If one hearing this message has not yet experienced it, ask for the experience.

Sit down somewhere quiet, pray. Think about your life, and how it has come short of the lives of those whom the Scriptures call perfect: Abraham, Noah, Job, and the very life of Christ. And if you see the shortcomings, and know, as surely as Peter knew, that sin will claim every spiritually imperfect life, then pray that Yahweh will reveal to you by His Spirit the true condition of your soul. Having done so, ask, earnestly, quickly, “Lord, save me.”

You will see, as Peter saw, and the disciples saw, and I saw, and many others have seen, the immediate salvation of the Son of Man… and that to the uttermost. And when you have it, will you not be filled with sympathy for those who have not yet gone through the Shadow of the Valley of Death and come out in the meadow of life? Will you not be driven to teach others what you have learned, not by books, not by the testimony of others, but by your own experiences, how eager to save, and how powerful to save, our Heavenly Father is?