God spares us because He loves us with unending love. To spare someone is allowing someone or something to escape harm, damage, or death, especially when others do not.[1] The Apostle Paul tells us that God spares us because His Son took our punishment on the cross. We could not pay the price for our sins, but God could.
Romans 8:31 What shall we say about such wonderful things as these? If God is for us, who can ever be against us? 32 Since he did not spare even his own Son but gave him up for us all, won’t he also give us everything else?[2]
When we place our faith in Jesus as our Savior, we accept His gift of salvation that He paid for by His death on the cross. The Lord wants all people to receive salvation, but those who reject Jesus’ gift of salvation will not be spared and will spend eternity separated from God.
The Israelites Spared Rahab
God gave the city of Jericho into the hands of the Israelites, but they spared one family. Joshua 6:25 So Joshua spared Rahab, the prostitute, and her relatives who were with her in the house, because she had hidden the spies Joshua sent to Jericho. And she lives among the Israelites to this day. [3]
Because of what Rahab did, she saved her relatives and herself from certain death. Think how Rahab’s life was different because she helped the spies and was spared. The remaining people outside her house perished under God’s judgment as Jericho fell. The Lord had a plan for Rahab, and through God’s mercy was rescued. The Lord also has a plan for you and saves us when we are led to faith by the work of the Holy Spirit.
The God of Rescue
Have you ever been rescued? I remember being lost at a local fair when I was six. When they announced my name to the crowd, my uncle ran and picked me up. I felt safe and rescued. Our heavenly Father loves to save and restore us so we can fulfill the plans He has for us. Paul says all were lost at one time until the Lord intervened.
Romans 3:23 For everyone has sinned; we all fall short of God’s glorious standard. 24 Yet God, in his grace, freely makes us right in his sight. He did this through Christ Jesus when he freed us from the penalty for our sins. 25 For God presented Jesus as the sacrifice for sin. People are made right with God when they believe that Jesus sacrificed his life, shedding his blood. [4] Meditating on the verses fills your heart with thankfulness and praise for what the Lord has done for us. He is truly a loving and merciful God!
To learn how God spares us, listen here:
https://podpoint.com/light-of-christ-church-podcast/journey-victory
[1] https://www.oxfordlearnersdictionaries.com/definition/american_english/spare_2
[2-4] Tyndale House Publishers. (2015). Holy Bible: New Living Translation. Tyndale House Publishers.