Christian Salvation

8/13/2019 Christian Salvation

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Christian Salvation

Introduction

One of the most often repeated mistakes in Christianity is that of the

Galatians. They started out in faith, and fell back into works. It is so easily

done. Once we are saved we generally start to read the Bible, go to church

and so on. s we do these things we will inevitably receive a message that

tells us about all the effort we should be making, how much God e!pects

from us and so on. This comes, firstly, because most preachers"teachers do

not understand the Gospel and, secondly, because #as $esus% encounter in the

desert with the devil, in &atthew '(), illustrates* the devil is fully capable of

trying to use the +criptures against us.

The overall message of the Gospel is that we are saved by grace, through

faith and that the faith itself is a gift from God #-ph (/*.

God does lay down a standard by which we should live 0ust as 1e did forthe Israelites through the Old Covenant. But now, as with the Old Covenant,

1e knows that we will not live according to what 1e has laid down. That%s

why we, and the Israelites, need a +aviour even after we are Christians that

need never stops2

The following +criptures show that we are saved by faith, and faith alone.

+ome also illustrate why we do not live the way we want to, and thus

encourage us to press on despite the ups and downs we may encounter in our

day3to3day lives.

NB:Throughout this study you will read the term 4legalist.5 These are the

modern day 6harisees who, because they do not understand God%s grace,

emphasise the 4outside of the dish.5 These legalists will call themselves

Christians 3 0ust as the 6harisees called themselves 4children of Abraham.5

The reality is that many will not be saved, but claiming that they are and,

having all the outward appearances, this causes confusion within the

Christian Church. There are some genuine Christians who, through bad

teaching and the influence of legalists, peddle this false gospel of being

saved by grace, and then having to live a certain way in order not to lose oursalvation. These people, being genuine Christians, are saved7 and are

generally less dogmatic than the legalists they know they must rely on

God%s grace, but they don%t know what to do with all the +criptures that

appear to point to works.

The postle 6aul describes legalists as 4dogs5 a serious insult in those

days, when dogs were considered unclean7 but it illustrates e!actly what he

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thinks of anyone who tries to undermine, and preach against, the sufficiency

of the cross of Christ. I think 6aul%s approach is appropriate considering the

damage these people do, the torment they cause many a genuine Christian

and the insult they direct towards the sacrifice of Christ in suggesting it is

not all sufficient.

Defining Salvation

&any Christians have a very limited understanding of the meaning of

salvation. 9or too many it simply means staying out of hell, and going to

heaven, when we die. The Biblical teaching is that salvation means we are

brought into an immediate and eternal relationship with God, witnessed by

the indwelling of the 1oly +pirit and intended to be e!perienced every day.

The word salvation is used, throughout this study, in this conte!t in other

words, in the conte!t of a current, daily, uninterrupted and eternal

relationship with God7 and not the limited sense of 4+taying out of hell andgoing to heaven.5

The legalists understand this definition and use their teachings of the

necessity of good works in terms of maintaining the daily relationship

rather than directly teaching that good works will get us into heaven. Thus,

for too many Christians, their relationship with God #their salvation* is an

intermittent affair depending each moment upon their 4performance5 #and

their resultant emotions usually ones including sense of failure,

condemnation etc.* instead of being totally dependent upon the cleansing,

saving Blood of the :amb.

BIBLICAL SALVATION

Matthew :! Then, behold, they brought to Him a paralytic lying on a

bed. When Jesus saw their faith, He said to the paralytic, Son, be of good

cheer, your sins are forgiven you.#+ee also( &ark (;*


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+o forgiveness of sins comes through recognising that we have a problem

#our sins* that we can%t deal with, but we have faith that $esus can deal with

that problem and has dealt with it. nd that faith brings forgiveness.

Matthew "#:!$%!& 'Therefore the !ingdom of heaven is li!e a certain !ing

who wanted to settle accounts with his servants. And when he had begun to

settle accounts, one was brought to him who owed him ten thousand talents.

"ut as he was not able to pay his master commanded that he be sold, with

his wife and children and all that he had, and that payment be made. The

servant therefore fell down before him, saying, #aster, have patience with

me, and $ will pay you all. Then the master of that servant was moved with

compassion, released him and forgave him the debt.

The man did nothing to deserve the forgiveness of the debt, he simply cried

out for mercy. nd that%s how it is for us. elying on God%s mercy brings forgiveness.

&atthew )(?3/ 4Then He too! the cup, and gave than!s, and gave it to

them, saying, %rin! from it, all of you. &or this is #y blood of the new

covenant, which is shed for many for the forgiveness of sins.5

9orgiveness of our sins was achieved for us by $esus, through the shedding

of 1is blood.


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may want, we have first to receive what 1e has done for us, the way 1e has

served us. -ven then we will struggle with the flesh, but as our love for God

grows, so will our service.

:uke ?('/3;A Then He said to her, )our sins are forgiven. And those

who sat at the table with Him began to say to themselves, Who is this who

even forgives sins( Then He said to the woman, )our faith has saved you.

*o in peace.

The woman served $esus #by washing 1is feet etc* because she was saved.

+he wasn%t saved by what she did. +he was saved by faith. It works for her,

the paralytic, the debtor it works for us. 9aith, and faith alone.

:uke 8;(8/3A 4$ will arise and go to my father and will say to him,

&ather, $ have sinned against heaven and before you and $ am no longer

worthy to be called your son. #a!e me li!e one of your hired servants. Andhe arose and came to his father. "ut when he was still a great way off, his

father saw him and had compassion on him, and ran and fell on his nec!

and !issed him.

The well3known story of the 6rodigal +on. The son returns, the author of his

own salvation. 1e is going to live separated from his father and work to

repay the debt he owes. 1e is not repentant. But the father showers him with

love, and it is that which brings the son to repentance that is, back into a

relationship with #and therefore under the authority of* his father. This is

confirmed in >omans (', where it says that it is God%s kindness that leads

us to repentance. Too many Christians are seeking to be repentant #that is, in

a relationship with and under the authority of God* in order to receive God%s

kindness and love through the forgiveness of their sins. That%s 4putting the

cart before the horse.5 It is only after we receive God%s kindness and love

#like the prodigal* that we truly become repentant. s we place our faith in

the fact that through Christ our sins are forgiven, so we enter into a

relationship with God and, through a process of time and e!perience, come

under 1is authority. +o we, like the prodigal, are saved #rescued* by an

acceptance of God%s love and kindness, not by what we do for that has

nothing at all to do with our salvation.

:uke 8)(83/ 4He also said to His disciples, There was a certain rich man

who had a steward, and an accusation was brought to him that this man was

wasting his goods. So he called him and said to him, What is this $ hear

about you( *ive an account of your stewardship, for you can no longer be

steward. Then the steward said within himself, What shall $ do( &or my

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master is ta!ing the stewardship away from me. $ cannot dig+ $ am ashamed

to beg. $ have resolved what to do, that when $ am put out of the

stewardship, they may receive me into their houses. So he called every one

of his masters debtors to him, and said to the first, How much do you owe

my master( And he said, A hundred measures of oil. So he said to him,

Ta!e your bill, and sit down -uic!ly and write fifty. Then he said to

another, And how much do you owe( So he said, A hundred measure of

wheat. And he said to him, Ta!e your bill, and write eighty. So the

master commended the unust steward because he had dealt shrewdly.

The first thing to note is that this is a parable told by $esus to the disciples

so it is a message for Believers, not for unbelievers. nd the message is

uite simple.


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adultery etc.7 he did do all the right religious e!ercises. But he went home

not 0ustified in other words, unsaved. The ta! collector relied totally on

God%s mercy, and went home 0ustified, saved. It%s a fairly clear message. It%s

not what we do, or don%t do it%s what we believe, that counts.

:uke @(@' Then Jesus said, &ather, forgive them, for they do not !now

what they do.

The :aw was still in force because $esus had not died and risen again.

These people who were murdering $esus had done nothing to allow

forgiveness under the :aw. +o by what right does $esus ask God to forgive

them= It is an important uestion because it is on the same basis that we are

forgiven and our forgiveness occurred at the same time. $esus can make

the reuest for their forgiveness #and ours* because 1e knows that 1e is

about to bear the full conseuences for their sins #and everyone else%s 8

$ohn (*. 9orgiveness comes only on the basis of $esus death andresurrection. +o all our sins, past, present and future were forgiven ,AAA

years ago. 9aith simply allows us to enter into that forgiveness a

forgiveness that has been available to everyone for ,AAA years. It is modern,

incorrect teaching that says our sins are forgiven on an ongoing basis and

that therefore God may not be pleased with us today because of the way we

have lived the day. There is only one thing that pleases or displeases God

and that is whether or not we have faith in 1is +on and what 1e achieved

for us all on the cross. 1ebrews 88() "ut without faith it is impossible to

please Him, for he who comes to *od must believe that He is, and that He is

a rewarder of those who diligently see! Him. 9aith, not lifestyle, is what

God is looking for #and 1e gives us that faith #-phesians (/*.

:uke @('3'@ Then he said to Jesus, 4ord, remember me when )ou

come into )our !ingdom. And Jesus said to him, Assuredly, $ say to you,

today you will be with #e in 0aradise.

This is the thief on the cross. It is possibly the clearest demonstration in

+cripture that faith, and faith alone, is what is reuired for salvation. ll the

other things that can be stressed through bad teaching are absent. There is no

reuest for forgiveness. There is no declaration that with a second chance thethief would live such a different life. There are no works. 6eople will say,

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and each one turned to the One they trusted could do something about their

respective problems which they could not do for themselves.

nd if it is that simple for this thief, it is that simple for us. Eo works, no

promises to do better, no pledges about changing our lives, not even a clear

reuest for forgiveness. $ust simple faith in Christ%s love. 9or the paralytic

that brought healing and forgiveness, for the un0ust steward it brought

ongoing salvation and for this thief it brought salvation.

This incident is the perfect illustration of the >omans 8A(8@ which is a

uote from $oel (@* that'Whoever calls on the name of the 4ord shall be

saved.5 That%s what the Bible says, and that%s what the Bible means. It%s as

simple as that2

$ohn 8( The ne1t day John saw Jesus coming towards him, and said,

"ehold3 The 4amb of *od who ta!es away the sin of the world.

This is the simple truth. $esus took away our sins all of them. +o there isno longer any reason for God to be displeased with people e!cept that

given in $ohn @(8/ #see below*. nd the postle $ohn confirms that

completeness of Christ%s achievement when he writes, in 8 $ohn (, And

He Himself is the sacrifice for our sins, and not for ours only but also for the

whole world. +in as in the way we live is no longer an issue for God.

9aith is all that counts, faith in Christ%s sacrifice on our behalf.

$ohn @(8) 4&or *od so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son,

that whoever believes in Him should not perish but have eternal life.

+alvation is a work of God for man. God initiated it. God carried it through.

nd God completes and guarantees it #-ph 8(8@38'*. nd all that is reuired

for a man to benefit from this great work of God, is faith in 1is +on $esus.

$ohn @(8? &or *od did not send His Son into the world to condemn the

world, but that the world through Him might be saved.


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the package of salvation. +atan does it to render us ineffective for the Gospel

# 6et 8(*, and preachers and teachers do it simply because they have not

understood the Gospel themselves the blind leading the blind.

$ohn ;(' 4#ost assuredly, $ say to you, he who hears #y word and believes

in Him who sent #e has everlasting life, and shall not come into udgement,

but has passed from death into life.

9aith alone is the reuirement to receive everlasting life. nd note that is

says 4HASpassed from death to life.It is something that has already

occurred for the Believer it%s not something that we are waiting for, so

how we live today or tomorrow cannot affect the fact that we have already

passed from death to life everlasting life.

$ohn )(/3 Then they said to Him, What shall we do, that we may wor!

the wor!s of *od( Jesus answered and said to them, This is the wor! of*od, that you believe in Him whom He sent.

Eo call from $esus to feed the poor, clothe the naked, evangelise the world

because these things will come after we are saved, they are not the means by

which we are saved. ll God reuires is that we believe in $esus. Of course,

1e wants us to then reflect $esus by feed the poor etc, but these things are

the witness of salvation and not the means of, or contribution towards, our

salvation.

$ohn )(@? All that the &ather gives #e will come to #e, and the one who

comes to #e $ will by no means cast out.

The thief on the cross came to $esus, and he is the pattern for all of us.


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$ohn )(); And He said, Therefore $ have said to you that no6one can

come to #e unless it has been granted to him by #y &ather.

The fact that a person turns to Christ, and recognises 1im as :ord and

+aviour is an indication that the person has been predestined by the 9ather

for salvation. gain, 1is work for us and totally unrelated to anything

other than God%s sovereign choice.

cts ;(@8 Him *od has e1alted to His right hand to be 0rince and Saviour,

to give repentance to $srael and forgiveness of sins.

>epentance and forgiveness of sins are both gifts from $esus.


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>omans 8(8) 4&or $ am not ashamed of the gospel of 7hrist, for it is the

power of *od to salvation for everyone who believes, for the Jew first and

also for the *ree!.

+alvation for all who B-:I-F-. 1ow on earth did the idea of works

contributing to our salvation ever take hold in the church= The answer, of

course, is that people do not know the +criptures and, in part for that

reason, they have ignored the bit about not everyone wanting to be a teacher.

+o today every man and his dog thinks they are ualified to teach the omans @(A3 Therefore by the deeds of the law no flesh will be ustified

in His sight, for by the law is the !nowledge of sin. "ut now the

righteousness of *od apart from the law is revealed, being witnessed by the

law and the prophets, even the righteousness of *od, through faith in Jesus7hrist, to all and on all who believe.

>eally straightforward +cripture( righteousness comes from God, not from

our lifestyle, and it comes to all who have faith and believe in $esus 0ust as

the prophets had been saying all along.

>omans @(@3' 4all have sinned and fall short of the glory of *od, being

ustified freely by His grace through the redemption that is in 7hrist Jesus.5

The important, and simple, point of this +cripture is that we have been

9>--:H 0ustified. 9ree means 0ust that, no strings, no cost to us, no 4paying

back5 0ustification is free to us. nd it is free because of $esus, as it says in

this verse. >edemption comes through the blood of $esus. It is only bad

teaching that would seek to add something such as our own lifestyle.

>omans @(;3) 4in His forebearance *od had passed over the sins that

were previously committed, that He might be ust and the ustified of the one

who has faith in Jesus.

+o God is perfectly 0ust and will not set aside the punishment due to us in

as we read in all those scary +criptures that the legalists like to point

Christians to, but 1e is also the 4ustifier5 in other words, the One who

provides 0ustification for 4the one who has faith in Jesus.5 +o our0ustification is a work of God for man. nd it was Christ%s death on the cross

,AAA years ago.

>omans @(/ Therefore we conclude that a man is ustified by faith apart

from the deeds of the law.

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+o that%s 6aul%s conclusion that we are 0ustified by our faith. 9or deeds of

the law5 read lifestyle, the way we live because that%s what the devil and

the legalists will always point a Christian to. It%s the same thing, and the

message is uite simple( the way we live provided we have faith in $esus

has no bearing on our salvation whatsoever. If we truly have faith in Christ

then there will be changes in our lives #see the letter of $ames*, but these in

no way contribute to our salvation. nd those changes will vary from person

to person depending upon a whole host of circumstances.

>omans '(; "ut to him who does not wor! but believes on Him who

ustifies the ungodly, his faith is accounted for righteousness.

God is our 0ustified, but 1e 0ustifies the ungodly, not the godly. +o 1e

0ustifies all us struggling Christians who want to be so different to what we

are, but who fail to live up to that desire. s $esus said, #in &atthew (8*,

Those who are well have no need of a physician, but those who are sic!.+o our inability to be who we want to be, who we read in the Bible we

should be, becomes a stepping stone to praising God because we know in

such a situation #and every situation* 1e 0ustifies us. 1e is the Great

6hysician sorting out all us sick Christians2

>omans '(8@ 4&or the promise that he would be heir of the world was not to

Abraham or to his seed through the law, but through the righteousness of

faith.

n illustration from the life of braham that God%s plan was always

righteousness through faith, and separate from any works that we may or

may not do. nd that promise of righteousness by faith was for braham

and his seed. nd that means D+2 s 6aul e!plains in Galatians @(( 4And

if you are 7hrists#in other words, a Christian a Believer in Christ8 then

)'9 are Abrahams seed, and heirs according to the promise.

>omans '(A3; 4He #braham* did not waver at the promise of *od

through unbelief, but was strengthened in faith, giving glory to *od, and

being fully convinced that what He had promised He was also able to

perform. And therefore, $t was accounted to him for righteousness. 5ow itwas not written for his sa!e alone that it#righteousness* was imputed to

him, but also for us. $t shall be imputed to us who believe in Him who raised

up Jesus our 4ord from the dead, who was delivered up because of our

offences, and was raised because of our ustification.

1ere is the linking of the Old and Eew Testaments in revealing God%s plan

of salvation through faith. It happened for braham, and also for all who

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believe in God through $esus. nd these verses again make the point that

$esus died for our sins, and was raised for our 0ustification. +o again it is

clearly laid out that salvation is a work of God for man.

>omans ;(83 4Therefore, having been ustified by faith, we have peace with

*od through our 4ord Jesus 7hrist, through whom we have access by faith

into this grace in which we now stand, and reoice in hope of the glory of

*od.


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>omans ;(8? &or if by the one mans offence death reigned through the

one, much more those who receive abundance of grace and the gift of

righteousness will reign in life through the 'ne, Jesus 7hrist.

It is by receiving, not by 4doing,5 that the Christian reigns in life. nd by

reigning we can stand against the devil, and recognise bad teaching, as well

as cope with whatever life has in store for us, and we can be forever secure

in our salvation with all the 0oy and peace of that. nd, of course, this

verse is yet one more that describes 4righteousness5 as a 4gift.5

>omans )(8A 4&or the death that He died, He died to sin once for all+ but

the life that He lives, He lives to *od.

+in is a done deal. $esus died for sin, 1e died once, and 1e died for

everyone. Eo3one will go to hell because of the way they live, because of

their 4sins.5 6eople will go to hell only because they have not believed in

$esus. #$ohn @(8/*

>omans )(@ &or the wages of sin in death, but the gift of *od is eternal

life in 7hrist Jesus our 4ord.

-ternal life is a 4gift.5 omans ?(8?38/ "ut now, it is no longer $ who do it, but sin that dwells in

me. &or $ !now that in me ;that is, in my flesh8 nothing good dwells+ for to

will is present with me, but how to perform what is good $ do not find.

These verses illustrate the battle the 6aul, and every Christian, has with sin.

6aul makes a difference between the acts of the flesh, and the desires of the

spirit. nd it is this difference that shows the individual is born again, made

alive in the spirit, even whilst being dead in the flesh. It is the unredeemed

flesh that sins7 whereas the redeemed spirit within a man does not and as it

says in 8 $ohn @( 4cannot5 sin. The legalists do not make this difference

between the acts of the flesh and the desires of the spirit, and therefore

falsely teach that the acts of the flesh can affect our salvation. The Biblical

truth is simple( a Christian 4cannot5 sin. 9ear of licence, and fear of ivine

punishment, will because they do not know the omans ?(3; 4&or $ delight in the law of *od according to the inner

man. "ut $ see another law in my members, warring against the law of my

mind, and bringing me into captivity to the law of sin which is in my

members. ' wretched man that $ am3 Who will deliver me from this body of

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death( $ than! *od 2 through Jesus 7hrist our 4ord. So then, with the mind

$ myself serve the law of *od, but with the flesh the law of sin.

In this well known passage, and the verses before, 6aul has been writing

about his struggle with sin. 1e says here that in his spirit he desires to serve

God, but in his flesh he desires to serve sinful desires. nd there is a war

between the two desires, and the desire to serve the sinful desires often wins

the day. But this does not cause 6aul to despair #although he is a bit hacked

off that he can%t be the person he wants to be 4' wretched man that $

am5*, it causes him instead to give thanks to God as 6aul looks to and relies

upon $esus, and 1is sacrifice. The message for us is clear, and simple.


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for man. ny changes we make through our own effort are simply the result

of striving, and a recipe for a sense of failure and condemnation. It is a case

of, as 6aul writes in 8 Corinthians 8;(8A, 4&or by the grace of *od $ am

what $ am.God saves us, God conforms us into the image of 1is +on. s it

is God%s 0ob to bring the changes in us, we can never let 1im down, and 1e

can never get disappointed or annoyed with us.

>omans /(@/3@ &or $ am persuaded that neither death nor life, nor angels

nor principalities nor powers, nor things present nor things to come, nor

height nor depth, nor any other created thing, shall be able to separate us

from the love of *od which is in 7hrist Jesus our 4ord.

6aul writes, 4nor things present nor things to come.5 The things present and

to come must include our lifestyle, because we live in the present and the

rest of our lives is yet to come. +o God is saying, through 6aul, that there is

nothing in today, tomorrow or the rest of our lives that can separate us fromthe love of God. Interestingly, when people talk about these verse they tend

to concentrate on the death and life, and the angels and principalities, bits I

don%t know that many Christians grasp the wonderfully reassuring power

contained in the phrase, 4nor things present nor things to come.5 omans (@A3@@ What shall we say then( That *entiles, who did not

pursue righteousness, have attained to righteousness, even the righteousness

of faith+ but $srael, pursuing the law of righteousness, has not attained to the

law of righteousness. Why not( "ecause they did not see! it by faith, but as

it were, by the wor!s of the law.

+o those who pursue righteousness through works and lifestyle will never

achieve it7 however, those who do not pursue their own righteousness, but

receive the righteousness that comes from God through faith, these are the

ones who are righteous in God%s sight.

>omans 8A(' &or 7hrist is the end of the law for righteousness to everyone

who believes.

>ighteousness #and therefore, salvation* for all who believe. It is repeated ahundred times or more throughout the Eew Testament. Those who would

have us believe that we must in some way contribute towards the getting or

keeping of our salvation are preaching against a mass of +cripture.

>omans 8A( :that if you confess with your mouth the 4ord Jesus and

believe in your heart that *od has raised Him from the dead, you will be

saved.

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Hou Christian 3 do both, ergo, you 3 Christian 3 are saved222 It%s

wonderfully simple. Eothing at all in there about lifestyle.

>omans 8A(88 4&or the Scripture says, Whoever believes on Him will not

be put to shame.

+imple faith, once again and this time from the prophet Isaiah. It is one

illustration of cts 8A('@ that, All the prophets witness:..+alvation

through faith alone was always God%s plan and is testified to as far back as

Genesis 8;().

>omans 8A(8@ 4&or whoever calls on the name of the 4ord shall be

saved.

It worked for the ta! collector in :uke 8/, it worked for the thief on the cross

in :uke @, it worked for many others in +cripture and it works for us. ll

it takes is faith in $esus, nothing else, in order to be saved. nd this isanother e!ample of 4All the prophets:because 6aul is uoting from the

prophet $oel so another illustration that God%s message to mankind has

never changed, it was always going to be salvation through faith.

>omans 88(;3)


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>omans 8(8 4$ beseech you therefore, brethren, by the mercies of *od, that

you present your bodies a living sacrifice, holy, acceptable to *od, which is

your reasonable service.

ny acts of service that we do come only after we are saved and are our

response to being saved, and they are empowered by the 1oly +pirit #>om

/(88, 6hp(8@*. This is not a call to a life of striving there is no such call

anywhere in the Bible #although the legalists will twist the meaning of verse

to try and make out that we are called to strive2*

>omans 8() 41aving then gifts differing according to the grace that is

given to us, let us use them.5

omans 8'(' Who are you to udge anothers servant( To his own master

he stands or falls. $ndeed, he will be made to stand, for *od is able to ma!e

him stand.

nother verse making the point that our salvation, and our ongoing

salvation, is God%s responsibility. 1e will make us stand because 1e chose

us in the first place. Of course 1e will make us stand that is, ensure our

salvation 1e chose us, and 1e is God2


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someone who is not born again the concept of $esus being God, dying for

our sins, and the fact that the Bible is the


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It%s worth saying again( God does not count our sins against us. The only

issue between God and man is faith in $esus Christ #$ohn @(8/*.

Galatians 8(@3' *race and peace from *od the &ather and our 4ord Jesus

7hrist, who gave Himself for our sins, that He might deliver us from this

present evil age, according to the will of our *od and &ather.

9irstly, $esus gave 1imself #died* for our sins7 so our sins are dealt with.


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Christian Salvation

Galatians @(3@ This only $ want to learn from you/ %id you receive the

Spirit by the wor!s of the law, or by the hearing of faith( Are you so foolish(

Having begun in the Spirit, are you now being made prefect by the flesh(

This is the pivotal uestion that needs to be asked of so many Christians,

They have made the mistake of the Galatians. They have started out in

simple faith, and known the 0oy of their salvation, only to fall back into

thinking that they must work to keep their salvation. Hou, Christian, became

a Christian and received the +pirit through faith and, Biblically, you must

have received the +pirit in order to confess Christ. Hou did nothing to try

and impress God, and you knew the 0oy of your salvation. on%t fall back

into works, on%t make the mistake of the Galatians. nd don%t listen to the

legalists2

Galatians @(8@38' 7hrist redeemed us from the curse of the law, having

become a curse for us ;for it is written, 7ursed is everyone who hangs on atree8 that the blessing of Abraham might come upon the *entiles in 7hrist

Jesus, and that we might receive the promise of the Spirit through faith.

The 4curse of the law5 is not the law itself which is how many may read

this verse it is the curses God announced for those who broke the law. In

other words, the curse is the punishment due for not living the way God

commands. $esus took away that curse, 1e took away that punishment that

was due to us for not living the way God commands. +o the way we live has

no bearing on our salvation. nd we receive the +pirit, that is, we are saved,

through faith because works no longer play any role in our relationship

with God in terms of salvation.

Galatians ;(8 4Stand fast therefore in the liberty by which 7hrist has made

us free, and do not be entangled again with a yo!e of bondage.

6aul knew that there will be those who will try to rob Christians of the

freedom they have in Christ. +o his instruction is that we, 4Stand fast..5 The

verse definitely suggests that there will be attacks upon the Christian%s

freedom and that is certainly the case today, as it was in the time of the

Galatians. It becomes confusing because most of those attacks come from

other Christians, mostly sincere people who see that freedom as licence. The

reality is that such people do not know the +criptures.


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the good measure of His will, to the praise of the glory of His grace, by

which He made us accepted in the "eloved.


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sealed with the Holy Spirit of promise, who is the guarantee of our

inheritance until the redemption of the purchased possession, to the praise

of His glory.


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allocated to people who are already saved, so their completion adds nothing

to our salvation.*

6hilippians 8( 4&or to you it has been granted on behalf of 7hrist, not

only to believe in Him, but also to suffer for His sa!e:

repeat of the point in -phesians (/3, that faith to believe is something

that is 4granted5 by God. +o salvation is a work of God for man.

6hilippians (8@ :for it is *od who wor!s in you both to will and to do for

His good pleasure.

This verse lays upon God the responsibility for bringing our will to point of

wanting to do something for the Gospel, and then empowering the actual

doing as well. +o our willingness and our actual doing, both are a work of

God within us.

6hilippians @(@3' "eware of dogs, beware of evil doers, beware of the

mutilation3 &or we are the circumcision, who worship *od in the Spirit,

reoice in 7hrist Jesus, and have no confidence in the flesh.

The battle with those who have not received God%s grace through faith and

with their attempts to drag Believers back under law, and into a legalistic

relationship with God based on works, is one that has been raging since the

very beginnings of the Eew Covenant. 6aul has some very strong things to

say about such people, and this is one e!ample. ogs were considered

unclean in the time of 6aul, so to call these legalists 4dogs5 is a very strong

statement, revealing e!actly how 6aul feels about them. nd rightly so, for

they oppose the Gospel of Christ they may think it is for right reason, but

that doesn%t alter the fact that any re3direction of a Christian to a works

based relationship with God is an insult to the +pirit of Grace #1ebrews

8A(*.

Eot only does 6aul reveal what he thinks of those who oppose Christ, but he

specifically says that we should place EO confidence in the acts of the flesh,

the works that the legalists would have us do.

6hilippians @(38A 4)et indeed $ also count all things loss for the e1cellenceof the !nowledge of 7hrist Jesus my 4ord, for whom $ have suffered the loss

of all things, and count them as rubbish, that $ may gain 7hrist, and may be

found in Him, not having my own righteousness, which is from the law, but

that which is faith in 7hrist, the righteousness which is from *od by faith..

6aul has spent the previous few verses e!plaining why he, if anyone at all,

could have confidence in the flesh #6hp @('3)*. But having e!plained how

@


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Jealously he kept the law, he then says that righteousness is only through

faith in Christ and, furthermore, our righteousness comes&='#God, and is

not something that we give to God, or work to produce in our own strength.

It is a gift #>om ;(8?*. +o 4working5 to impress God is a total waste of time

and actual harmful to our relationship with God.

Colossians 8(;3) 4the word of the truth of the gospel, which has come to

you, as it has also in all the world, and is bringing forth fruit, as it is also

among you since the day you heard and !new the grace of *od in truth.

Those dogswho would have us striving to produce for the Kingdom

allegedly safeguarding our salvation in the process do not understand this

verse at all. It is only after we understand God%s grace that we can start to

produce fruit for the Kingdom. nything else is 0ust striving, and counts for

nothing, and won%t last anyway. +o the way to be more effective for the

Gospel, Biblically, is not to make lots of effort, but to receive more grace.#>om ;(8?, 8 Cor 8;(8A*.

Colossians 8(8A38 :that you may wal! worthy of the 4ord, fully pleasing

Him, being fruitful in every good wor! and increasing in the !nowledge of

*od+ strengthened with all might, according to His glorious power, for all

patience and longsuffering with oy+ giving than!s to the &ather who has

-ualified us to be parta!ers of the inheritance of the saints in the light.

Eow this is a verse the legalists will love2 4Wal! worthy, being fruitful5

0ust the sort of thing to get a chap striving2 But the key element in

understanding this verse, and understanding the whole of our relationship

with God, is that we do these things, 4according to His glorious power.5 s

6hilippians (8@ puts it( :for it is *od who wor!s in you both to will and

to do for His good pleasure.There is no denying that we as Christians are

called into a certain way of living, and the legalists will find plenty of verses

to support that truth, but what the Bible clearly teaches, and what the

legalists overlook, or simply don%t know, is that it is God%s responsibility to

see that we live out that lifestyle, not ours. It%s even 1is responsibility to put

within us the will, the desire, to live the life. That%s what the Bible says. nd

the verses from Colossians go on to make the point that it is God who hasualified us to be saved, not us.

Colossians 8(8@38' 4He has delivered us from the power of dar!ness and

conveyed us into the !ingdom of the Son of His love, in whom we have

redemption through His blood, the forgiveness of sins.

'


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God has delivered us, God has conveyed us, we have redemption through

1is blood. The Eew Covenant is all about what God has done, is doing and

will do for us as Christians. nd these verses illustrate that point. It is also

worth noting the past tense that is used 4has delivered, conveyed5 our

salvation is a done deal. It is finished.

Colossians 8(83A &or it pleased the &ather that in Him all the fullness

should dwell, and by Him to reconcile all things to Himself, by Him,

whether things on earth or things in heaven, having made peace through the

blood of His cross.

There is no mention of man in these verses2 It was God%s pleasure #to

reconcile*, we are reconciled to God, and by God, through $esus% blood. It%s

all a work of God for man. That%s the glory of the Eew Covenant.

Colossians 8(83 And you, who were once alienated and enemies in your

mind by wic!ed wor!s, yet now He has reconciled in the body of His fleshthrough death, to present you holy, and blameless, and above reproach in

His sight:

These verses make the point that God has done the reconciling, and that it

was done ,AAA years ago through the death #and resurrection* of $esus. nd

as a result of that event we are now seen by God as holy, blameless and

beyond reproach #free from accusation*. nd that all occurred ,AAA years

ago, faith #which is God3given* simply allows us to enter into Christ%s

achievement. Eo matter how hard we worked, could we ever become holy

by those works= Of course not2 That%s why holiness is yet another gift from

a loving God. nd we can%t add to God3given holiness so what on earth is

the point of the striving that the legalists love to point us to and demand

from us=2=

Colossians 8( To this end $ also labour, striving according to His

wor!ing, which wor!s in me mightily.

This is how God intends us to live. Hes, there may be effort, even striving

for the Gospel, but only in the strength that God supplies as he works

through us. Dltimately it is God doing the work, not us yet, amaJingly, we

still get the credit for whatever we do2 8 Cor 8;(8A, 6hp (8@, 8 6eter '(88

and others all say the same thing we serve only in the strength and abilitywhich God supplies. nything else is worthless.

Colossians (8@ And you, being dead in your trespasses and the

uncircumcision of your flesh, He has made alive together with Him, having

forgiven you all trespasses:.

;


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gain the point is made that it is what God has done for us that counts, not

what we do for 1im. 1e has forgiven :: our trespasses so that must

include the ones we commit after we become a Christian. They are ::

dealt with.


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to do with how good we are or how bad we are, how much we strive or how

little we strive. nd that%s Good Eews2

Timothy (/3 4Therefore do not be ashamed of the testimony of our 4ord,

nor of me His prisoner, but share with me in the sufferings for the gospel

according to the power of *od, who has saved us and called us with a holy

calling, not according to our wor!s, but according to His own purpose and

grace which was given to us in 7hrist Jesus before time began.

+ome good stuff here to defeat the legalists arguments2 Hes, we are called to

suffer for the Gospel, but only according to the power of God, not in our

own strength. nd the point is made that it is God who has saved us and

God who has called us, and 6aul then specifically states that that salvation

and calling are nothing to do with 4our wor!s.5 It is hard to state it any more

clearly2 Our salvation is nothing to do with 4our wor!s,5 but is a result of

God%s works on our behalf. nd 1e has saved and called us for 1is ownpurpose #+ee -ph (? for e!ample*.


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they emphasise works, to allegedly secure our salvation so we don%t lose it.

It%s a case, for them, that, 4Hes, God%s done this for us, but now we need to

do that for 1im.5 They need to 4work5 less, and read the Bible more and

look for grace and mercy when they do read it, instead of searching for

verses to undermine the achievement of the cross.


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-gypt, unable to enter the 6romised :and because of their rebellion against

the :ord. nd then we get to these verses. nd they are important because

they make an absolutely crucial point in relationship to the Eew Covenant

and our relationship with God. The Israelites were unable to enter the

6romised :and because they 4disobeyed,5 and the ne!t verse says they

couldn%t enter because of 4unbelief.5 It links disobedience and unbelief. $ust

as >omans 8(; links the two when it speaks of, :obedience to the faith..5

nd this link between having faith and being obedient being one and the

same thing is further confirmed in 1ebrews '(@ which says, 4&or we who

have believed do enter that rest:5 Dnbelief kept Israel out, faith gets the

Christian in the 6romised :and, a relationship with God, heaven, all

through faith. ll God ever wants is faith in 1is +on, and 1e counts that as

obedience all the day3to3day commands that we break or ignore all the

time, they are the sins that Christ died for. The only sin that 1e didn%t die for

is the sin of unbelief #$ohn @(8/*, but every Christian believes and istherefore welcomed into a relationship with God and by God. +o no

Christian should worry that their 4disobedience5 affects their relationship

with God or their salvation because, according to God, no Christian

because they believe in $esus is ever disobedient. That%s why we stay in a

relationship with God, and remain saved, despite the way we live.

1ebrews '(8A 4&or he who has entered His rest has himself also ceased

from his wor!s as *od did from His.5

+o, once we are saved, we cease to work. There is nothing to work for2 It has

all been done for us by God. nd 0ust as God rested on the seventh day of

creation, so we rest from our labours. Eo more striving.


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God has been describing the nature of the Eew Covenant, and as part of that

description 1e says this. 1ow good is that2 nd because 1e has chosen not

to remember our sins we are, as it says in -phesians 8(', :holy and

without blame in His sight.5 It all ties together uite nicely when we bring

all the different +criptures together. The legalists simply take occasional

verses, use them out of conte!t, and seek to divert a Christian%s gaJe way

from the cross of Christ and re3focus it, wrongly, onto their own individual

effort.

1ebrews 8A(8 4"ut this #an, after He had offered one sacrifice for sins

forever, sat down at the right hand of *od.

One sacrifice for sin, for all time. -very sin dealt with at one go. That%s why

$ohn the Baptist said, in $ohn 8(, "ehold3 The 4amb of *od who ta!es

away the sin of the world3nd the postle $ohn, writing in 8 $ohn ( says

of $esus, 4And He Himself is the propitiation for our sins, and not for oursonly but also for the whole world.5 +in is dealt with. It is tragic that so many

Christian preaching and teaching still focuses on the 4sins5 of the Christian

on their lifestyle. +uch messages are completely unBiblical, and should be

totally ignored. Christ died for our sins, for everyone%s sins once for all. It

is faith in Christ #or lack of it* that is the only issue outstanding between

God and man.

1ebrews 8A(8' 4&or by one offering He has perfected forever those who are

being sanctified.


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Christian Salvation

in rendering us ineffective for the Gospel. In God%s eyes, Christians are not

sinners, -F->2 It is as simple, and as Biblical as that. #+ee -ph 8(', and

many other such verses*.

1ebrews 8A(?3/ 4&or if we sin willfully after we have received the

!nowledge of the truth, there no longer remains a sacrifice for sins, but a

certain fearful e1pectation of udgement, and fiery indignation which will

devour the adversaries.

These two verses are often used to frighten Christians. But in reality they

don%t apply to Christians at all. They are written about the 4adversaries5 of

God, 1is enemies, yet $esus calls the Christian 4friend5 and 4brother.5 lso,

if these verses are applied to the Christian, it would mean that absolutely no3

one is saved. If applied to Christians these verses would completely wipe out

the achievement of the cross, and render it a totally pointless act. -very sin

is wilful, because the Bible says that with every temptation God 1imselfprovides a way out. +o we don%t ever need give in to any sin. But we chose

to it%s 0ust that many of us prefer to make e!cuses, rather than accept the

truth that our sin is a wilful choice. This is talking about sin in the conte!t of

unbelief which is why it talks about people who have 4received the

!nowledge of the truth.5 +in, in the Eew Covenant is unbelief, not 4lawless

deeds,5 as it e!plains in 1ebrews @ and '. It is their re0ection of that

knowledge, despite the fact that they know it is true, that makes the sin

unforgivable in that there is no further sacrifice available. These verses are

simply about blasphemy of the 1oly +pirit not about the day3to3day living

of the Christian who is saved to the uttermost through his or her faith in

Christ.

8 6eter 8(@3; "lessed by the *od and &ather of our 4ord Jesus 7hrist, who

according to His abundant mercy, has begotten us again to a living hope

through the resurrection of Jesus 7hrist from the dead, to an inheritance

incorruptible and undefiled and that does not fade away, reserved in heaven

for you, who are !ept by the power of *od through faith for salvation ready

to be revealed in the last time.

These verses are all about what God has done, and continues to do, for us.1e has 4begotten us again,5 meaning that we are born again by 1is work,

and we are born again into a hope that is for today 3 a living hope through

the resurrection. It is by the resurrection, according to the Bible, that we are

0ustified that is, made sinless in the eyes of God. nd because we have

faith in salvation by grace, we receive the inheritance of eternal life. nd

this inheritance cannot thereafter be affected by anything that%s what these

@8


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Christian Salvation

8 6eter @(8/ &or 7hrist also suffered once for sins, the ust for the unust,

that He might bring us to *od, being put to death in the flesh but made alive

by the Spirit.

nother verse making it clear that our salvation is entirely a work of God for

man. nd also making clear that sin is a dead issue, a done deal Christ

died for our sins. nd it is $esus who brings us to the 9ather, it is nothing to

do with any effort that we may make, or not make.

6eter 8( &or he who lac!s these things is shortsighted, even to

blindness, and has forgotten that he was cleansed from his old sins.

6eter has been talking about the process of maturing as a Christian, and he is

saying that if we are not maturing it is because we have forgotten that our

sins are forgiven. Eow we can see why the devil puts so much time and

effort into reminding Christians of their sins it renders them ineffective for

the Gospel. That%s what this mis3teaching is all about. It is a ploy by satan tostop the Church becoming the ma0or threat to him that we should be. nd

that%s why any mention of self3effort, works, sins etc should be utterly

disregarded and totally resisted.


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means 4to agree5 3 it doesn%t mean, as many people think, telling God

everything we have done wrong. +o this verse is saying that as long as we

agree that we are sinners, and therefore need a +aviour, then we are saved.

-very Christians accepts that he"she is a sinner, that%s why we turn to Christ

and trust 1im for our salvation we have realised we can%t do it by

ourselves.

On the other hand, the legalists, and many unbelievers, think that their

4good5 lifestyle contributes towards them getting into heaven and they

remain dead in the sins. The story of the 6harisee and the ta! collector in

:uke 8/(38' also e!presses what $ohn is writing here.


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1e is the very simple condition for salvation acknowledgement of $esus

Christ as the +on of God. +omething which every Christian, by definition,

does do.

8 $ohn @( 4Whoever has been born of *od does not sin, for His seed

remains in him+ and he cannot sin, because he has been born of *od,5

This verse can only mean one of two things(

8. bsolutely no3one is saved, because everyone goes on 4sinning5 in

which case Calvary was a waste of time, or

. God defines sin differently from the way most of us do.

It is, of course, the second meaning. +in in the Eew Covenant is 4unbelief.5

&ost Christians have still to grasp this truth. If sin still meant the day3to3day

things that we do wrong, then according to this verse 3 no3one is saved,

and no3one ever could be saved, and it would all be about salvation by

works. +o it obviously can%t mean the day3to3day stuff that we do and don%tdo. ll that has been dealt with by $esus at Calvary. The only remaining

issue, the only remaining sin, in God%s eyes is lack of faith #$ohn @(8/*. +o

when we are born again, when we receive the gift of faith #-ph (/*, we no

longer go on sinning as far as God is concerned #-ph 8(' and others*.

+o Christians need to start defining sin the way God does, and that will

remove a ma0or weapon that satan uses against us to de3stabilise us in our

Christian walk, and to rob us of our peace with God.

8 $ohn '(8; 4Whoever confesses that Jesus is the Son of *od, *od abides in

him, and he in *od.5

The simple reuirement for salvation confession of Christ as the +on of

God. That is all that is necessary to enter into a relationship with God, a

relationship that is eternal and, therefore, can never be interrupted or

terminated.


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$ude ' 45ow to Him who is able to !eep you from stumbling, and to

present you faultless before the presence of His glory:

It is $esus who keeps us safe and, having done so, 1e presents us as faultless

to the 9ather. That%s how secure we are2

>evelation 8(;3) 4To Him who loved us and washed us from our sins in His

own blood, and has made us !ings and priests to His *od and &ather, to

Him be glory and dominion forever and ever. Amen.

These verse state what Christ has done for us, and how 1e did it. 1e has

made us #and note that it is present tense, and not future tense meaning that

in God%s eyes it is already accomplished* kings and priests in heaven7 and

1e has done that by washing away our sins by 1is own blood. It%s an

e!tremely simple e!planation of the Good Eews and, once again, we only

feature in these verses in the role of recipients. It has all been done for us,and we contribute nothing.

>evelation ;(38A 4And they sang a new song, saying, )ou are worthy to

ta!e the scroll, and to open its seals+ for )ou were slain, and have redeemed

us to *od by )our blood out of every tribe and tongue and people and

nation, and have made us !ings and priests to our *od+ and we shall reign

on the earth.

The same thing what $esus has done for us, and how 1e did it. 1e

redeemed us, 1e did it be shedding 1is own blood, and we are raised up to

be kings and priests in the Kingdom of God the 9ather.

(oints on this stud)

It was done with the aid of a very poor concordance, and also done uickly.

9urther reading of the +criptures will undoubtedly bring to light even more

+criptures that reinforce the message of salvation by grace, through faith7

and destroy the legalists% false message of a combination of grace andworks.

These verses have highlighted the fact that the :aw and the 6rophets also

testified to this salvation by grace. useful study, at some point, would be

to go through the Old Testament and discover the +criptures there that relate

@)


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to the Gospel. This would give a complete picture of God%s message to

mankind.

*urther reading

Two particular chapters from 4ighteousness.5 It e!plains how there are two

types of righteousness in the Bible applied to man. It is lack of this

knowledge, and what the types are, that has allowed this false gospel of

salvation by a mi!ture of grace and works to take hold.

The second chapter worth reading is, 4The Believer in Christ.5 This

highlights some of the +criptures that e!plain what Christ has done for us,

and how God sees us once we become a Christian.

Date post:	04-Jun-2018
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Christian Salvation

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