Because We Sin, We Need a Savior

Article for November 1, 2026 All Saints Day

1 John 3:2–3 2Beloved, we are God’s children now, and what we will be, has not yet appeared; but we know that when he appears we shall be like him, because we shall see him as he is. 3And everyone who thus hopes in him purifies himself as, he is pure.

We are the children of God once removed and separated from God through sin.  But for the suffering, death, and resurrection of our Savior, Jesus Christ we are adopted back as true children of God.  This is our hope and this is true hope as it has already happened to each and every one of us.  This adoption had to happen before anyone could be saved to eternal life with our God.

We put our hope in God’s salvation for us.  Not that we actually purify ourselves but that we are purified through faith that comes from the Holy Spirit working in us through the word of God.  The Word of God is Jesus Christ and He opened His mouth and taught!

Matthew 5:1–2 1Seeing the crowds, [Jesus] went up on the mountain, and when he sat down, his disciples came to him. 2And he opened his mouth and taught them, saying:

If you are a disciple of Jesus then you will listen to His word, and His word you will hear, and hearing His word you will learn.  The beatitudes are not a list of things we should aspire to live up to but are actually who and what we are as being children of God.  Jesus is talking to us and telling us the good news, and now we fit in.  So, listen to the Word of God.

Matthew 5:3 3“Blessed are the poor in spirit, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.

We are all poor in spirit, and we know this as we continue to fight against our sin.  Because of our sin we realize we need a Savior.  We look for a savior and have found our savior who is Jesus Christ. 

But we forget sometimes what Jesus has done to show us He is our Savior.  Jesus paid the penalty for our sins and suffered death for us.  Our sins keep us poor in spirit as we wonder if we are good enough to be saved.  The truth is, left on our own merit, we are not good enough.  God knows this about us and so do we, we cannot be good enough to save ourselves.  This curse of a sinful nature that we cannot escape on our own keeps us poor in spirit.  But thanks be to God He has planned ahead to save us.  His name is Jesus Christ.

Matthew 5:4 4“Blessed are those who mourn, for they shall be comforted.

Most mourn over the loss of a loved one and should, as this is our action of love for those who have gone before us.  However, this is not the mourning Jesus is speaking about.  Rather, Jesus is speaking about those who mourn in sorrow of their sins.  And we do mourn over our sins when we are honest with ourselves and with God.

Mourning over our sins are a sign of repentance and also a sign of fearing God.  We should fear God and repent of our sins as Jesus Christ has suffered and died for our sins.  If we don’t feel sorrowful then we have made the suffering and death of our savior a vain act and salvation means nothing.  Jesus did this act of love for us, we should at least fight the good fight through mourning, repentance and fearing God.

Matthew 5:5 5“Blessed are the meek, for they shall inherit the earth.

The meek are not the weak, in fact it takes more strength to be meek than it does to be a bully.  Who are the meek.  Those with gentle hearts, patient in all things, and an inner strength to endure all things. 

This meekness is the strength that protects our lives on this earth for their thinking is not on themselves but constantly on others.  The meek are the ones who quietly and peacefully help keep our world alive and thriving.

Matthew 5:6 6“Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness, for they shall be satisfied.

This is not thirst or hunger to have something to boast about but thirst for true righteousness.  Many people become self-righteous.  Self-righteous people become bullies and try to lord it over others.  But a true righteousness comes from being clothed in Christ’s righteousness and imitating Christ’s love for all. 

To be clothed in Christ’s righteousness is not to boast in what you have but to admit the righteousness one has is to be humble and help others see that Christ clothes them in His righteousness too.  One who is truly righteous knows of their baptism that has cleansed them of original sin.  A righteous person also knows that they can continually be nourished with the righteousness of Christ through His body and blood.  Righteousness is not a boast for oneself, but a humble means to live.

Matthew 5:7 7“Blessed are the merciful, for they shall receive mercy.

Everyone needs forgiveness, and everyone needs mercy, even you.  Jesus says in Matthew 6:14 & 6:15 that if you forgive you will be forgiven, if you do not forgive you will not be forgiven.  God expects His children to put mercy and grace in action not just words.

Likewise, though Jesus does not put this in the same wording, but that if you show mercy and grace then you will receive mercy and grace and if you do not show mercy and grace then you will not receive mercy or grace.  God wants us to be like Christ in all things especially when it comes to forgiving and being merciful and showing grace. 

Matthew 5:8 8“Blessed are the pure in heart, for they shall see God.

As one in pure in heart then you will be a person that shows love and care in action and not just words.  This is who we are at times and at times this is who we are not.  We live in a mostly selfish world, and we let this world taint our thoughts to serving ourself and to be uncaring to others.  In fact, our world does not know how to care as we know, it cares for no one. 

God tells us to love one another and even love our enemy.  God also tells us to overwhelm our enemies in such a way that they will stop being our enemy or bring heaping hot coals upon themselves.  Love is not an act of condoning sin but an act of leading one another away from sin.

Matthew 5:9 9“Blessed are the peacemakers, for they shall be called sons of God.

Many despise conflict and many try to either run away from conflict or try to ignore it.  But for another many, conflicts are a way of life.  Some have come from a culture that breeds conflict and that is their only vocation, as conflict has prevented them from learning any other way of life. 

It is a hard job to bring peace into this world and those who try usually get attacked by those who thrive on conflict.  Peacemaking is a dangerous and laborious job.  Peace is not made by giving up or giving in to corruption as do those who fear troublemakers.  Peace again is accomplished through the imitation of Christ, strength that comes from Christ.

Matthew 5:10–12 10“Blessed are those who are persecuted for righteousness’ sake, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven. 11“Blessed are you when others revile you and persecute you and utter all kinds of evil against you falsely on my account. 12Rejoice and be glad, for your reward is great in heaven, for so they persecuted the prophets who were before you.”

It is not your own righteousness that Jesus is talking about but the righteousness that Jesus clothes you in, which is His.  There are those who are self-righteous, those who do righteous actions to be seen, and those who have to put others down to make themselves look righteous.  Though these kinds of people may do acts of righteousness their actions are erased because of their self-righteousness.

Jesus is the righteousness that we are clothed in and if you are persecuted for Jesus’ righteousness then theirs is the kingdom of heaven.  We are all clothed in the righteousness of our Lord Jesus Christ.  This clothing was made ready for us as Jesus died for our sins.  This clothing is the forgiveness, grace, and mercy given to us by the Father, through the Son, and sealed through the Holy Spirit.

1 John 3:1 1See what kind of love the Father has given to us, that we should be called children of God; and so, we are. The reason why the world does not know us is that it did not know him.

These are not the Ten Commandments of the New Testament, but the gifts of God given and distributed through His will to those He loves.  The love of God should be felt by everyone as we should always realize we have a God of forgiveness, grace, and mercy.  The proof of God’s love is the willingness of our Lord Jesus Christ to suffer pain, humility, and death for each and every person past present, and future.  And Jesus sealed God’s love with His resurrection that has already been witnessed, and our resurrection yet to come.

  Amen.