Category Archives: Salvation

Salvation

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In the 9th sermon of John Piper’s epic series on the book of Romans he comes to Romans 1:16 (9 sermons and he’s only 16 verses in!), “What is salvation?” The text is one you know well, I’m sure: “For I am not ashamed of the gospel, for it is the power of God for salvation to everyone who believes, to the Jew first and also to the Greek.”

Piper argues that salvation is best understood here as,

the final triumph of the gospel in bringing believers to eternal safety and joy in the presence of a holy and glorious God.

This definition is helpful in the way it summarizes several crucial points about the Christian doctrine of salvation:

First, Salvation comes through believing the gospel. The Bible teaches us that anyone—absolutely anyone—is a prime candidate for salvation. The only requirement is that they believe the good news of who Jesus is and what he did on the cross. Paul says this news is “the power of God for salvation for everyone who believes” (Romans 1:16). Notice the present tense of the word “believes”—those who would be saved must not only be converted to faith in Christ but must also persevere in that faith (1 Corinthians 15:1-2).

Second, Salvation has come … and is coming. We who believe in Christ “have been saved” (Ephesians 2:8), and yet we are still awaiting the “salvation ready to be revealed in the last time” (1 Peter 1:5). Paul captures this reality when he says that believers have been “sealed for the day of redemption” (Ephesians 4:30) by the Holy Spirit: we are sealed for redemption (salvation), but the day of its fulfillment is still coming.

Third, Salvation is safety and joy before a holy God. The term salvation acknowledges that we have been saved from something. But what? The New Testament mentions a number of things that we are in bondage to apart from God’s salvation: demonic powers, the corruption of our bodies, sin, and so on. However, it is clear that the ultimate obstacle to our being saved is the holiness of God himself. “Since, therefore, we have now been justified by his blood, much more shall we be saved by him from the wrath of God” (Romans 5:9). Salvation is both from and to: the gospel grants us safety from God’s wrath, which then frees us to enjoy the wonders of a saving God for all eternity.

HT: TC

For not all have faith

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“Finally, brothers, pray for us, that the word of the Lord may speed ahead and be honored, as happened among you, and that we may be delivered from wicked and evil men. For not all have faith.” – 2 Thess 3: 1,2

There are wicked people out there who will oppose the spread of the Gospel. Therefore we are called upon to pray for the word to be given free course to reach many people and to be honored when it does.

There is going to be opposition. Evil people with wicked intentions seek to thwart the Gospel from being heard, from whom, we need deliverance.

Why is that?

“For not all have faith” (2 Thess. 3:2).

Notice the clear words. This does NOT say that all men have faith but some fail to use or exercise it. No, it says not all have it. It is not in theirs. It is not found in them. Those who do possess genuine saving faith in Christ have received this faith as a gift. Not only is salvation God’s gift from start to finish but so is the faith that causes a person to trust Him (Acts 3:16; Ephesians 2:8, 9; Phil. 1:29, Heb 12:2).

Faith comes by the hearing of the word of God (Romans 10:17). Hearing God’s word is the way faith comes. The hearing of the word of God is the mechanism or the means God uses when He gives faith to someone – but not all who hear the word of God receive this precious gift. Some hear the word and refuse to believe it. Yet, some hear it, believe it and are saved.

Who receives it then?

Acts 13:48 tells us, “..and all who were ordained to eternal life believed.”

Jesus said these words to one group, “I told you, and you do not believe. The works that I do in my Father’s name bear witness about me, but you do not believe because you are not among my sheep.”

Did you catch that? Look at the text again and ask yourself, “What was the reason these people did not believe (according to Jesus)”?

The answer is clear: They did not believe because they were not His sheep.

Jesus DID NOT SAY that they were not His sheep because they did not believe, making the unbelief the cause of them not being sheep. No, it was their not being His sheep that was the root cause of their unbelief. He said “you do not believe because you are not My sheep.”

In contrast to this picture, Jesus then says, “My sheep hear my voice, and I know them, and they follow me. I give them eternal life, and they will never perish, and no one will snatch them out of my hand. My Father, who has given them to me, is greater than all, and no one is able to snatch them out of the Father’s hand. I and the Father are one.” (John 10:25-30)

Child of God, rejoice in your Savior for salvation is truly of the Lord. This trust you have in Him – yes, this trust in His goodness and in His word, even through fierce trials and storms, even through “many dangers, toils and snares” – this faith you have, is not your own doing. It is God’s gift given to you as one of His precious sheep. His sheep hear His voice, know Him and follow Him. All praise to the Great Shepherd of the sheep.

“If the faith whereby I have laid hold on Christ to be my Savior be altogether wrought in me by the Holy Ghost through grace, then I defy the devil to take away that which he never gave me or to crush that which Jehovah Himself created in me. I defy my free will to fling what it never brought to me. What God has given, created, introduced, and established in the heart, He will maintain there.” – C. H. Spurgeon

“No man can give himself faith, neither can he take away his unbelief.” – D. Martyn Lloyd-Jones