Soteriology
Along with the study of the doctrine of salvation arose several common questions. Expectedly, however, the Holy Bible has all the answers to these questions primarily because of the accepted principle that God has a gracious plan to deliver an answer to every persons problem.
Soteriology The Doctrine of Salvation
Soteriology or the doctrine of salvation is the theology that deals with salvation affected by Jesus Christ. In Christian theology, soteriology denotes the saving work of God, notably the atonement and compassion. It is the most imposing subject in the Scriptures and is the theme of both the Old and New Testaments. Soteriology is important in Christian theology because the purpose of the Church and the goal of Christianity is salvation. This salvation in soteriology covers the entire work of God by which He attempts to save humanity from doom, ruin, and power of sin and confers upon them the abundance of His blessing, including the provision of bountiful life, eternal glory, and eternal life. Soteriology embraces past, present, future and eternity all together. It is cosmic, national, and personal and thus relates, without exception, to all mankind as well as the angels (Keathley, 2009). However, soteriology, as illustrated in the Bible, primarily focuses on the supreme Person, the Lord Jesus Christ.
Salvation
The word salvation comes from the Greek word soteria, which means soter or savior (Keathley, 2009). In laymans term, salvation basically conveys the thought of healing, restoration, soundness, preservation, safety, and deliverance from an undesirable condition or state. However, in theology, the word salvation is described as the works of God in favor of men. In the Bible, salvation is illustrated through the work of God in saving people from their confused state as well as from their current state by renewing their spirit. As believers, Christians regard salvation as a concept that includes initial, progressive, and final sense.
Therefore, men were initially saved when God gave to humanity Jesus Christ men are continually being saved as the Holy Spirit sanctifies them and men will finally be saved someday when they meet Christ in heaven in glory. To further illustrate
Romans 1013 tells that the initial salvation of men takes place upon their conversion. From the moment of mens repentance and acceptance that Christ is the Lord and Savior, their future in Christ is secured forever.
According to scriptures of Hebrews 1214, 1 John 19, and Hebrews 416, the progressive salvation symbolizes the pilgrimage of the believers from the moment of conversion to their death. Their journey involves striving for holiness and peace, a fight of faith, and a reoccurring approach of the throne of grace.
The final salvation refers to the ultimate judgment where God saves His people. Accordingly, God will save those people who lived by faith and in steadfastness in the Lord Jesus Christ.
Without a doubt, salvation is considered as the most important doctrine of the Bible because it includes glorification, preservation, sanctification, justification, forgiveness, regeneration, faith, repentance, conviction, propitiation, reconciliation, and redemption (Keathley, 2009). Because of the great interest captured by the doctrine of salvation, it has raised several common questions, including Is salvation perpetual Is salvation by faith and works, or by faith alone Is baptism indispensable for salvation Is repentance required for salvation What is the meaning of born again in the Bible
Salvation is Perpetual
When a person acknowledges Jesus Christ as his or her Savior, that person is given a holy connection with God that ensures his or her salvation as forever secured. This fact has been declared in several passages from the Bible, like in Romans 830 Romans 833-34 John 33 Titus 35 John 1417 Romans 89 1 Corinthians 1213 John 315 and Romans 838-39. These verses strongly tell that people who believe in God will have their salvation eternally secured. To mention a few Romans 830 enlightens people that from the time God chose men, it is as if men are exalted in His presence in heaven And those God fated, God also called those God called, God also justified those God justified, God also glorified.
The verses John 33 and Titus 35 further explain that believers are regenerated or born again when they believe in God. Therefore, in order to forfeit salvation, men would have to be un-regenerated however, the Bible provides no verification that new birth can be forfeited.
Moreover, John 315 tells that whoever believes in Christ will receive eternal life. Therefore, if salvation can be taken away from a person, then the promise of eternal life would be nugatory.
Salvation is by Faith Alone
Many experts concur that the question Is salvation by faith and works, or by faith alone is the most noteworthy question in all of Christian theology (Got Questions Ministries, 2010). The answer to this question is very multifaceted because of few hard-to-reconcile passages in the Bible. Some of these contradicting passages include James 224 Galatians 324 Romans 328 Ephesians 28-9 James 217-18 James 220-26 James 214, 17, 20, 26 Galatians 522-23 Ephesians 28-9 Ephesians 210 and 2 Corinthians 517. Unfortunately, these conflicting teachings have in part caused the division of the Catholic Church and Protestant Churches.
The aforesaid verses generally speak about the differences in the teaching of James who tells that salvation is by faith plus works, and Paul who tells salvation is by faith alone. However, this problem can be reconciled by carefully examining what James is exactly talking about in some of his teachings. In James 220-26, James points that true passion in Christ will change the life of the believer, thus eventually encouraging him or her to do praiseworthy works. James is therefore not emphasizing that salvation is by faith plus works, but instead he explains that a person will expectedly do good works in his or her life if he or she genuinely believes in Christ. Accordingly, salvation is clearly by faith alone, and James only emphasizes that legitimate faith in Christ generates worthy works.
Baptism is not a Requirement for Salvation
Although baptism is a vital step of conformity for salvation, it cannot be strictly viewed as a condition for salvation. According to Ephesians 28-9 Acts 1631 and John 316, the death of Jesus paid the sins of humanity, and this payment is apportioned to men through faith alone. There are a number of verses that would suggest that baptism is an indispensable requisite for salvation, particularly Romans 63-4. However, because the Bible evidently states that salvation is obtained by faith alone, then there must be a particular explanation to the contradicting verses. In Bible times, baptism is a process of identifying conversion, and those people who changed from one religion to another were normally baptized in public to openly express their decision. So apparently, it has become the idea of early disciples that baptism is an indispensable requirement for salvation. However, by reading carefully the Bible, one can see that the presentation of gospel does not mention baptism (Got Questions Ministries, 2010). Therefore, requiring anything other than faith in Christ for salvation is to say that His death on the cross was not enough to give salvation to humanity.
Repentance is Required for Salvation
The word repentance is generally understood as turning from sin however, the Bible gives a more profound explanation to the word, which is to change ones mind that results in change of action (Got Questions Ministries, 2010). To repentin order to have eternal lifeis to change ones mind regarding Jesus Christ. The repentance, whether from disinterest, ignorance, or rejection, must necessarily be a change of mind as the Bible states that salvation is acquired by faith. Acts 238 319 1118 1730 2021 and 2620 emphasize repentance in relation to salvation. These verses on the whole state how Peter called the nonbelievers to change their mind about Jesus Christ, and to acknowledge that He is indeed the Messiah and Savior. Peter called for repentance because repentance generates change in behavior and more importantly faith in Christ, which are necessary for salvation.
Born Again
Another subject that is frequently discussed in the study of the doctrine of salvation is the meaning of born again Christian. John 31-21 provides a marvelous explanation to the real meaning of the phrase. In this passage, the Lord Jesus Christ tells Nicodemus, a well-known Pharisee, that people must be born again to see the kingdom of God, and consequently discusses to the latter the meaning of the teaching. Basically, the phrase born again suggests that people must be born from above or to become children of God through faith (Got Questions Ministries, 2010). According to John 229 39 47 51-4, 28 1 Peter 13 Titus 35 and 2 Corinthians 517, born again, or accepting new birth, is an act of God by which eternal life is offered to the person who has faith.
So why is it indispensably important for people to be born again In Romans 323, Apostle Paul explains that all people have fallen short of Gods glory and sinned. Thus, people need to be born again in order to have a genuine relationship with God and have their sins forgiven. For that reason, if a person is in Christ, the person is basically a new creation, as he or she has new estate and his or her old estate is gone. Having done so, person will receive immeasurable blessings from the Father and ultimately see the kingdom of God.
Catholic Soteriology vs. Protestant Soteriology
As discussed in the preceding paragraphs, soteriology in Catholic emphasizes that salvation is appropriated to the people through the death of Jesus Christ. For the Classical Protestant, however, salvation is emphasized through the personal act of persons faith in return of Gods divine favor. In Catholic theology, sanctification and justification are considered distinct from each other, but in the process of salvation, they are closely bound together. In Classical Protestant theology, sanctification and justification are detached, where justification is a matter of interest with God, while sanctification is the succeeding internal act of the Holy Spirit. Moreover, Protestantism acknowledges the primacy of faith and emphasizes the need for good works done by grace in the working out of salvation. On the other hand, Catholicism stresses faith alone, and that praiseworthy works have directly nothing to do with salvation.
Conclusion
In theology, the term soteriology is the examination of doctrine of salvation. Therefore, soteriology covers the entire work of God by which He attempts to save humanity from doom, ruin, and power of sin and confers upon them the abundance of His compassion, including the provision of bountiful life, eternal glory, and eternal life. Soteriology is a very important concept in theology because it talks about salvation, which is the deliverance of people from condemnation and from the bondage of sin, and results in eternal life with God. Soteriology in many religions is a significant theme because they regard salvation as their primary goal and purpose. Without a doubt, soteriology is highly important important because it provides enlightenment to humanity of the fact that God gave men the gift of salvation through the blessing of faith, and that the salvation is so complete that those who believe is declared glorified with every spiritual blessing and is considered whole in Christ.
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