More About Salvation
What does salvation really mean?
A person would think that since salvation is the foundation of Christianity it would be totally defined, understood, and without debate. Unfortunately that is not the case so we need to get that foundation established.
An unsaved person is likely to associate salvation with some situation where he was saved from death or injury or from some terrible situation but that is not the salvation that we are talking about.
Salvation actually has several phases but the first phase is the most important one for an unsaved person. It means a person is saved from the penalty of sin which is going to hell when a person dies and being there forever in agony, in fire, darkness, and separated from God. The alternative is as far from spending eternity in hell as you can get and means after you die physically, you immediately go to be with Jesus in heaven which is as wonderful a place as hell is a horrible place.
Who can be saved?
YOU CAN! Anybody can be saved. Salvation is not reserved for any particular people or groups or denominations. A Jew can be saved. A gentile (non-Jew) can be saved. A person can be saved no matter what sins they have committed, no matter what laws they have broken, no matter what life-style they have been living, no matter where they live, no matter who their parents or relatives or children are. The famous Bible verse, John 3:16 says,
For God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting life.
God loved the whole world and gave his only son, Jesus Christ, for the whole world without exception.
Why is there confusion over salvation?
Just because everyone without exceptions CAN be saved doesn't mean everyone WILL be saved. You have to believe in Jesus and accept him as your savior. You have to have faith in Jesus. That whole concept can be confusing and does cause confusion in many cults and denominations but the Bible is very clear in spite of the confusion and there is no good reason for that confusion. Really the confusion is more about either not knowing the Bible or about not accepting what the Bible says and wanting to have control over people. It is sad today that so many churches and pastors and religious leaders can't let go of that desire for power and control and that is a reason that a person needs to be very careful about what church they attend and what they listen to.
What the Bible says is required to be saved: believe the gospel.
The primary section of the Bible that is for us today is the letters written by Paul. Paul was selected by Jesus to be the apostle to the gentiles during this time we are living in today called the church age which began after Jesus was crucified. We are to study all the Bible but it was not all written to us and for us but for other times in the past and future. Paul says that to be saved, we must believe the gospel. The word gospel just means good news and there have been various "gospels" through the Bible so we need to look at how Paul defines the gospel.
Paul first says the gospel is how we are saved and then tells us what the gospel is:
1Co 15:1 Moreover, brethren, I declare unto you the gospel which I preached unto you, which also ye have received, and wherein ye stand;
1Co 15:2 By which also ye are saved, if ye keep in memory what I preached unto you, unless ye have believed in vain.
1Co 15:3 For I delivered unto you first of all that which I also received, how that Christ died for our sins according to the scriptures;
1Co 15:4 And that he was buried, and that he rose again the third day according to the scriptures:
So Paul is explaining that he taught the Corinthians what the gospel was (and is), that the gospel is how they were (and we are) saved, that the gospel must be received or accepted (believed) and that what that gospel (good news) is that they had to believe to be saved was:
- That Christ (Jesus) died for our sins
- that he was buried (that confirms that he was actually dead, that he died for us)
- and that he rose again (came back to life) according to what was prophesied (predicted) in the old testament long ago.
Only Faith, ZERO works!
Paul also tells us that we must accept that truth by faith and not by works.Eph 2:8 For by grace are ye saved through faith; and that not of yourselves: it is the gift of God:
Eph 2:9 Not of works, lest any man should boast.
"Works" is anything you do yourself trying to be good enough to earn salvation. There is nothing that you can do good enough to get you into heaven, so don't bother trying. Nothing you do will be good enough. What you do that is good will not erase what you have done that is sin. God provided a way to erase those sins you have committed and that is the only acceptable way. As long as you are trying to get to heaven by yourself you are rejecting God's way of getting to heaven which is accepting what God did for you. He gave his son to pay the penalty for your sin and that is the only way. You are slapping God in the face if you think something you do is better than what God did for you. God's way is purely a gift. If you do something for that gift, it is not a gift anymore, it is payment for it and you can't pay enough for the value of that gift. How could any person possibly think that they could pay enough for that unbelievable gift of a destination of eternity in hell traded for eternity with a new perfect body and being with that person that paid for their sins?
This is the biggest mistake made by churches, denominations, pastors, and others that have to put some kind of requirement that you DO to get saved. They just don't seem to be able to resist adding something to salvation by faith alone. They will say, you have to accept Christ but you also have to... and fill in the blank: go to church, get baptized, give money to the church, get active in the church, join the church, stop sinning, be willing to stop sinning, go on a mission, and so on. I would hate to be any person that tells you different--that you have to DO something to get saved or stay saved because Paul says that person is accursed, and just to make sure we get it, he says it again, it is that important!
Gal_1:8 But though we, or an angel from heaven, preach any other gospel unto you than that which we have preached unto you, let him be accursed.
Gal_1:9 As we said before, so say I now again, If any man preach any other gospel unto you than that ye have received, let him be accursed.
Why do I have to believe Jesus Died and was Resurrected?
Long ago back in the Old Testament, God promised the Jews a Messiah, a Savior that would deliver them from their enemies and become their leader. They did not understand that the Messiah would not only deliver them from their enemies but deliver them from their sins. They understood that only God could deal with their sins and did not expect a MAN to come that claimed (and was) God. Their greatest sin through history has been not believing God and turning from him to worshiping idols. When the Messiah finally came, it was Jesus. Jesus came and said he was God's Son and told them to repent (see explanation of repent below) and be saved. They did not expect that and it infuriated them for a man they knew from Childhood to claim he was God's Son and so they tortured and crucified him. All they had to do to be saved and for him to become their savior in every respect was to accept him as the promised messiah. Since they rejected him, they lost the opportunity for him to fulfill at that time the promise made long ago. Non Jews did not receive the promise of a political or military leader but he is the spiritual Savior who will save them from the penalty of their sins for anyone who accepts him for who he is. To reject Jesus is to reject God. Jesus IS God. Part of the mystery of the Bible that is difficult to understand is that God is a trinity--the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit--and yet God is one.John 10:30-33 I and my Father are one. 31Then the Jews took up stones again to stone him. 32Jesus answered them, Many good works have I shewed you from my Father; for which of those works do ye stone me? 33The Jews answered him, saying, For a good work we stone thee not; but for blasphemy; and because that thou, being a man, makest thyself God.
The Jews could have known that the messiah was also coming to save them from their sins because it was predicted in the Old testament in Isaiah (53:4-6) but they were not interested in that, only to be saved from the oppression of their enemies and to have a physical leader for their nation.
You have to believe that Jesus was who he said he was and that he died for your sins on the cross, was buried, and came back to life again on the third day. You have to believe what he said and that is that you cannot save yourself, no works you can do will pay for your sins, only what he did dying in your place can pay for your sins and pay for the penalty of sins so you don't have to. That is why the Bible says over and over again, "believe."
Repent
Repent means to turn around and go another direction. You need to turn from either your ignorance of needing a savior because you can't save yourself or from depending on being good or doing good things to get you to heaven and to believe that Jesus died on the cross, was buried, and rose again on the third day to pay for your sins. That is all.
If you have heard or have been told you have to be sorry for your sins or be willing to turn from your sins in order to get saved. That is wrong. If you want more explanation, read the section on "Repent" on the "Salvation Debate" web page. Of course you should be sorry for any sins you commit and of course God wants you to stop committing sins but that isn't a requirement to get saved. You will always commit sins and that is why you need a savior.
Can I lose my salvation once I am saved?
The answer is NO! But there is much confusion about this. The biggest problem is that those that are confused do not understand how to "Divide" the Bible.1 Tim 2:15 Study to shew thyself approved unto God, a workman that needeth not to be ashamed, rightly dividing the word of truth
As explained above, the letters written by Paul to the Church, Romans through Philemon, are the main books for the church today. That is a problem with newer translations--they change words so the passage doesn't mean what it says before they change it. Most of the newer translations change "dividing" to "rightly handling." That is not the same thing as dividing the Bible into those parts that are for the specific time they were written for. The passage that confuses people about losing their salvation is Hebrews 6:4-6. The name of the book is Hebrews because it was written to the Hebrews (Jews). Jews are saved today the same as anyone, by accepting Jesus as their savior but the Jews have not always been treated the same and in the future will not be treated the same. God promised them a land that would be their own forever, he didn't promise that to non-Jews. In the future that promise will be fulfilled but before that, there will come a terrible time of God's wrath and judgment--the tribulation. The church is removed before the tribulation (the rapture) and after that, things change. God reveals what is necessary for the time in question. The New Testament wasn't written until after Christ's time on earth because it wasn't necessary. After the church is removed, there needs to be further instruction for those left behind and so those books after Philemon are primarily for those left behind at that time because requirements change. Salvation has always been through believing what God says for that time and for this time, that is accepting Jesus as the Christ and your personal savior.
When Jesus was here on the earth, he came to offer the kingdom that was promised long ago to the Jews. He told his apostles to only go to the Jews.
Mat 10:5-7 These twelve Jesus sent forth, and commanded them, saying, Go not into the way of the Gentiles, and into any city of the Samaritans enter ye not: 6But go rather to the lost sheep of the house of Israel. 7And as ye go, preach, saying, The kingdom of heaven is at hand.
After Jesus was crucified, the kingdom continued to be offered to the Jews in different areas until the last of them had rejected Christ and that was When Stephen was stoned and killed. Acts 7:59-60. After that, the Gospel went out to the Gentiles and the church age began.
The requirements for Jesus to set up the kingdom promised to the Jews at that time will be the same as the requirements for salvation during the tribulation and are different than the requirements during the millennium which is the kingdom age. They are not the same as the church age during the tribulation because the church has been removed at the rapture and they can no longer be part of the church. During the millennium, the requirements are not the same because during the church age, faith is required and faith is believing when you can't see the evidence. Jesus will be visible and will be the king and ruler during the millennium so there is no faith involved. Works gets involved then. At least the first 6 or 7 chapters of Hebrews was written before the church age and so the requirements were different and a person could lose their salvation during that time and during the tribulation but not during the church age.
For this time, once you are saved, you cannot lose your salvation. When you are saved, you become a child of God, you belong to him, you belong to Jesus Christ, and nothing can change that. Just as your child may at times defy you and turn against you, that child is still your child. You are an adopted child of God with all the rights and promises of any child. Here are some of the verses that verify that you cannot lose your salvation.
John 3:16, John 5:24, John 6:37, John 10:27-29, Romans 8:38-39, Romans 11:29, 2 Corinthians 1:22, Ephesians 2:8, Philippians 1:6
I still don't understand everything.
Don't worry, no one does. That is why we need to continue to study the Bible all our life. You really only need to understand that you are a sinner, you can't save yourself, you believe Jesus died on the cross to take the penalty for your sins so you don't have to, believe he rose to life again, and accept his payment for your sins. That is all that is required to be saved. Just believe in Him and accept Him as your savior.
If you have just now accepted him, go back to the web page Saved Just Now and go through that.
If you have NOT accepted him, you need to right now. You know enough to be saved.
2 Cor 6:3 now is the accepted time; behold, now is the day of salvation.
You could die today in a traffic accident or even by tripping, falling down and hitting your head. Death can happen in a moment and at the least expected time. If you died suddenly and you had not accepted Jesus as your savior, you would go to hell and spend eternity there. Most people have heard the most common verse in the Bible, John 3:16 but few notice verse 18,
John 3:18 He that believeth on him is not condemned: but he that believeth not is condemned already, because he hath not believed in the name of the only begotten Son of God.
Accept Jesus right now. Just pray and tell him you believe in him and accept his death on the cross to pay for your sins and that you trust in him to take you to heaven when you die and nothing you have done. The exact words are not important. He knows your heart. It isn't praying a prayer that saves you, it is just believing what Paul taught about salvation and accepting Jesus as your savior. Once you have prayed and accepted Jesus as your savior, go back to the web page Saved Just Now and go through that.