In today's world it is not hard to look around and see very clearly that something is wrong. You can just open up the news or social media and the corruption of the world is on display. It is hard to deny that the world we live in has serious problems. In looking at the world one needs to ask "why is it so messed up" and "is there a solution to it"? If we don't understand why it is so corrupt we will often look for the wrong solution.
Why is the world so corrupt?
Unless someone cuts themselves off from all civilization it is easy to see that the world is corrupt. But the real question is why? Why is it so corrupt? Where does this corruption come from? In short, humanity is the problem. We are corrupted, selfish, and not inherently good. It is not some outside force of corruption trying to make its way into our life but rather we ourselves are corrupted. You might think that is harsh to say but it is the truth. If we ignore the reality of that truth we will never see the right solution. The Bible clearly states "all have sinned". Meaning every human is corrupted by sin to our very core. A simple example of this is a toddler. I have two kids, one being three years old. I did not need to teach my son how to do wrong, disobey, and be mean it came very natural to him. If he was inherently good why do I always have to teach him to "do good" and not "be mean". Wouldn't it come naturally to be good if we are just "good people". Instead what we find in ourselves and all humanity is that we are not inherently good but rather corrupted by sin.
What is the solution?
Now that we see humanity is corrupted. We are the ones that start wars, murder, genocide...etc. That is humanity. Is there a solution to this corruption? Is there anyway we could "fix" our problem? Where do we look for salvation?
Salvation through Education.
Education is great and should and needs to be encouraged for all people. Many believe that if we just had the right education then humanity would be fixed. However, one can have as much education in the world and still be corrupt in our heart. For example, one can be educated to think logically and reasonably yet still choose to do things that we know would have negative consequences for us and others (adultery, theft, murder, etc). Education can help us tremendously but it cannot "fix" or "save" us from our corruption. If it could, why do educated people still do horrible and illegal things? Education doesn't fix the deeper issue of humanity sinful corrupt heart.
Salvation through Science.
Science has done and still does many great things to aid humanity but can it really solve the deeper issue of the corruption of humanity? Can it really fix our selfish drive? Since Science itself is neutral whenever we do see it misused it is because of human corruption. There is no vaccine for sin.
Salvation through Government.
Many people believe if I only have this person/party/group in power then everything will be fixed. Don't get me wrong, right laws or government in power can help but can it fix humanity? They might be able to physically stop people from breaking laws but can they change their heart. The reality is that government can do a lot of good things but it cannot fix the corruption of the human heart.
Salvation through Money.
If we just had enough money then everything would be fixed. Money does and has helped many people but obtaining more money will not suddenly fix our selfishness, greed, lust, etc. If money can fix us why do those who have more money still have lots of problem and in some cases we see that the pursuit of money leaves more casualties on the way (trafficking, embezzlement, etc).
Salvation through Escape.
The last one I will mention is less of a salvation attempt to our problems but rather trying to escape and ignore our problem. We try to escape through T.V., vacation, food etc. but escaping does not deal with the issue but rather ignores it.
True Salvation: God's Solution
The biggest problem with all of these "salvation" solutions is that they only deal with symptoms rather than treating the real issue. There is a lot of good they can do but they can never fix the real issue; our broken and corrupt heart. This is where we turn to the Bible. What does God say or do about our corruption and sin. I'll note two things:
Jesus comes to pay for our sin and give us new life.
Jesus came to earth to deal with the problem of our corrupted and sinful hearts. His mission what to "save us from our sin". In other words to deal with the heart corruption of humanity. Jesus did what education, money, government and any other "false" savior could never do; offer us forgiveness and new life. 2 Corinthians 5:17, "Therefore, if anyone is in Christ he is a new creation, the old has passed away; behold the new has come." Ephesians 1:7, "In him we have redemption through his blood, the forgiveness of our trespasses, according to the riches of his grace." Colossians 1:14, "In whom we have redemption, forgiveness of sin." Through Jesus sacrifice on the cross we can be forgiven of our sin and corruption (something no other "savior" can offer) and given new life in Him.
God will completely defeat evil.
God first offers the true solution in our corruption by Jesus sacrifice upon the cross. He also promises that one day he will completely defeat all evil (Revelation 20:10) but right now he is patient, calling all people to repent and turn to him. 2 Peter 3:9, "The Lord is not slow in keeping his promise, as some understand slowness. Instead he is patient with you, not wanting anyone to perish, but everyone to come to repentance." God is offering the true solution and is calling all people to accept the true solution. The only question is: will we?
I want to leave us with this challenge today. To whom or what are you looking to be your savior? Are you looking to education, money or the government, when in reality they can only deal with the symptoms but never our true issue of corruption and sin. God offers the only true solution through Jesus. Will we give up our attempts to fix ourselves and turn to the only one that can? It is like we are drowning and we can choose to either grab hold of the life raft or not. You can grab onto a lot of things but only the life raft will save you.