God's Solution

What does salvation mean?

Salvation means rescue (Psalms 71:2, 144:10). It is someone's intervention on the behalf of another to save them from a hopeless situation.

Why do we need to be saved?

Everyone is born a sinner and is therefore born spiritually dead (separated from God). Sin requires a perfect sacrifice as payment to restore man to God. Animal sacrifices are not capable of removing sin ( Hebrews 10:4), and because man is not perfect (morally or physically), man's death is insufficient to meet the demand. Because of this, left to himself, man is doomed to spend eternity in hell. Since man cannot become righteous in God's eyes, man's situation is hopeless without God's intervention.

Why can't we save ourselves?

We cannot pay the penalty for our sin because it requires a perfect sacrifice (Exodus 12:5, 1 Peter 1:19) and we are not perfect. We cannot keep the law, therefore works of the law cannot save us (Romans 8:3).

On what is our salvation based?

Salvation is based entirely on God's grace on those who trust Him for their salvation (Ephesians 2:8-9). Works have no part in salvation (justification). This trust is believing that Jesus died in our place and His death alone is sufficient to restore us to a right relationship with God. (Jesus died for all - Acts 17:30, 1 Timothy 2:6, 1 John 2:2) It is not faith itself that saves us but God's grace through faith. If God did not choose to show grace to us, then all the faith in the world would not save us.

There is no other basis for salvation, for if there was some other way, there would have been no need for Jesus to die.

More references on Faith

What are we saved from?

We are saved from the penalty of sin (Romans 8:1), are being saved from the power of sin (Philippians 1:6) and will be saved from the presence of sin ( Romans 13:11). The penalty of sin is death (separation from God) (Deuteronomy 24:16), and eternal conscious torment in hell ( 2 Thessalonians 1:8-9, Luke 16:24) Sin separates us from God.

What are we saved to?

We are saved to an eternal relationship (i.e. adoption as sons - John 1:12) with God that starts the moment we are saved (eternal life) and continues in heaven after our physical body dies. God adopts us as His children (Romans 8:15, Ephesians 1:5). The benefits of salvation include the indwelling of the Holy Spirit (Romans 8:9), peace with God (John 14:27, Romans 5:1), acceptance by God ( Ephesians 1:6), access to God ( Ephesians 2:18, 3:12), victory over sin / the world (1 John 4:4), and fellowship with God (1 John 1:3).

What part does each Person in the Trinity play in our salvation?

1 Peter 1:2 says God the Father choose us (election) to be saved, Jesus died for us in our place and intercedes for us, and the Holy Spirit sanctifies us (makes us holy).

It was the Father's will to save us. Before the world was created, God the Father chose to adopt us (Ephesians 1:3-5), and Jesus obeyed the Father's will ( Luke 22:41-42) to accomplish the Father's will.

Our salvation is secured by Jesus' birth, life, death, resurrection, ascension, and advocacy:

1. Because Jesus was conceived of the Holy Spirit ( Matthew 1:18-20), He did not inherit the sin nature common to man.

2. Jesus lived a perfect, sinless life; the life we could not live (2 Corinthians 5:21, 1 Peter 2:22). He fulfilled the law for us (Matthew 5:17).

3. Jesus died in our place, suffering our punishment for us on a cross (Isaiah 53:5, 2 Corinthians 5:21, 1 Peter 2:24, 3:18). Because He lived a perfect life, His sacrifice was perfect (Hebrews 10:14,18). We are justified (declared righteous) because of His death. Our sins are remitted because He shed His blood for them (Leviticus 17:11, Matthew 26:28).

4. Jesus' resurrection gives us hope. It is the assurance that Jesus is who He said He was, because God raised Him from the dead (Acts 3:15, Romans 1:4). If Jesus was only a man, He lied. God would not have honored His claims and He wouldn't have been able to raise Himself. Jesus' resurrection is essential to the truth of the gospel ( 1 Corinthians 15:12-19).

5. Jesus ascended to heaven, so that the Holy Spirit could be sent to us (John 16:7).

6. Jesus is now in heaven at the right hand of God the Father, acting as our advocate, our high priest (Romans 8:34, Hebrews 4:14, 7:25, 9:24, 1 John 2:1). He is preparing a place for us (John 14:3)

More references on Jesus' Death & Resurrection

The Holy Spirit also has a part in our salvation. He convicts us of sin (John 16:7-8), and regenerates us (John 3:5, Titus 3:5). The Holy Spirit sanctifies us (makes us holy) (Ezekiel 36:26-27, Romans 8:1-14, 15:16, Galatians 5:22-23). Sanctification is a process that continues until we die.

How can we be assured of our salvation? Can it be lost?

Salvation is a three-step process: justification, sanctification, and glorification, which happens after we die. Once we are justified, the process will carry on to completion, for it is God who accomplishes it ( Philippians 1:6).

Salvation cannot be lost. There are several reasons that we can't lose our salvation:

1. Because works have no part in gaining salvation, they have no part in keeping it (Ephesians 2:8-9).

2. If you are saved, you already have eternal life ( John 3:36, 1 John 5:11-13). If you could lose it, then it's not eternal.

3. You are saved because God chose you (Ephesians 1:4, 2 Thessalonians 2:13-14, John 6:44). God doesn't choose in error. He chose you, knowing every sin you would ever commit against Him. This choosing was to adopt you as His own child. There is no "unadoption" concept in the Bible (John 8:35-36).

4. You are saved by God's grace. God is keeping you saved (1 Peter 1:5, Jude 24). No one can snatch you from Jesus, including yourself (John 10:28-29).

5. The Holy Spirit is given as a guarantee of eternal life (Romans 8:16, 2 Corinthians 1:22, Ephesians 1:13, 1 John 2:27, 3:24, 1 John 4:13). The Holy Spirit is an internal witness and He also produces fruit in our lives.

6. Christ's work on the cross was finished - complete ( Hebrews 10:12-14, John 19:30).

7. We have been identified with Jesus in His death ( Romans 6:5-11). When He died, it is as if we died. Because He took our sin on himself, and took our condemnation by dying on the cross for our sin, our sin has already been paid for. We cannot be judged for the same sin because there is no double-jeopardy with God.

Doubts may arise, but if we are truly saved, doubts will not cause us to lose our salvation (2 Timothy 2:13, 1 John 3:19-20). Abraham is a good example of this. God made promises to Him, he was justified by faith (Genesis 15:6), had some lapses of faith later ( Genesis 16:1-2, 17:17-18), but God still kept His promises to Him. We are justified not by our faith, but by God's grace through faith. If you have doubts, address them so you can be sure (2 Peter 1:10). Even the greatest Christians have doubts at times. Doubts will not cause you to lose salvation, for your faith is not in your faith, but in Jesus Christ.

"I can't remember the date I accepted Christ..." - No problem. Just because you forget your own birthday doesn't mean you were never born.

While spiritual fruit is an assurance (evidence) of salvation, lack of fruit does not necessarily mean one is not saved. There are lots of mulberry trees in Beatty, but they don't produce fruit like they should. Does that mean they are not really mulberry trees? No. They are real mulberry trees because they have the nature of a mulberry tree.

Fruit takes time to grow. The Holy Spirit produces fruit in us, but it doesn't happen all at once.

Will everyone be saved?

Matthew 7:13-14 says that many go the wide way to destruction and few go the narrow way to life. Jesus made exclusive claims to being the only way to the Father ( John 14:6). Those who do not come to God through Him will not be saved (Mark 16:16).

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All content written by Andrew Bernhardt unless otherwise noted. Site hosted on lunarpages.com.
Topic viewed 514 times since 2009-07-02 02:50:14.
Last updated by System on 2004-06-08 12:00:00.