“Are you saved, brother?” two guys asked me for several days about 40 years ago.
I initially replied, “Yep.”
Finally, I responded, “I was saved the first time you asked me, and I’m still saved.”
What does salvation mean, and how do we attain it? We’ll explore this in a two-part series.
Salvation defined In biblical Greek, salvation means to rescue, protect or restore. The specific meaning varies based on the context, and the Bible often describes salvation as a future rescue from God’s end-of-the-world wrath: “... For a salvation ready to be revealed in the last time” (1 Peter 1:3-5).
Meanwhile, we are “being” saved— being made whole (1 Corinthians 1:18). Salvation relies on choosing, engaging in and maintaining a healthy relationship with God. Therefore, rescue from God’s wrath requires free-will decision and action, as the Bible teaches and the earliest church affirmed.
The parts of salvation
Ancient church fathers (and the Bible) taught salvation has two parts: Entering a relationship with God and staying in that relationship.
Entry requires a decision and dedication (John 1:7 and 20:31; Romans 10:9-10). Staying requires obeying God’s commands to honor him and to love others charitably doing good works (James 2:1426; Ephesians 2:10; 1 Timothy 6:18; Hebrews 10:24; Revelation 20:13).
As a result, apostles and early church fathers emphasized that belief and action go hand in hand: “Even so faith, if it has no works, is dead, being by itself. … You see that a man is justified by works and not by faith alone” (James 2:17 & 24).
Staying also requires perseverance: “But the one who endures to the end, he will be saved. … If anyone does not abide in me, he is thrown away as a branch and dries up; and they gather them and cast them into the fire and they are burned” (Matthew 24:13; John 15:6). So, who is called by God to believe, devote and persevere?
Who
God wants everyone to have a relationship with him (1 Timothy 2:4). So, Jesus died to pay the penalty for humanity’s rebellion (2 Corinthians 5:14-15; 1 Peter 3:18; 1 John 2:2). The reality is, though, that not everyone will follow the narrow path to salvation.
The path to salvation
Contrary to popular beliefs, faith alone, silent prayers or fruitless faith will not save you. Instead, the Bible teaches the way to eternal life follows this basic approach: Experience and decide, devote yourself to God, honor him, be charitable to people and stay in the relationship.
Dissecting and explaining these steps will be the focus of Part Two.
Summary
Salvation involves being rescued from God’s wrath and experiencing a present transformation. Building and maintaining a relationship with God is essential to navigating these life-changing events. Next time, I will discuss the elements of the pathway that lead to new life and rescue from God’s wrath.
Blessings and peace.
Braley, a Taylorbased minister, Air Force veteran, husband and father, earned a Master of Divinity degree from Regent University in 2018 and a Doctor of Ministry from the same school in 2021.
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