Jennifer Rothnie Supporter Housewife, Artist, Perpetually Curious

Salvation is, in essence, deliverance. We are delivered from sin and death, we are delivered unto righteousness and eternal life.

It was God who planned this salvation, and God who accomplished this salvation through Christ. It is God who revealed this salvation to man through Christ, offered salvation through faith in Christ, and God who fulfills all the promises this salvation brings.

What then, of man? We can do no work to earn salvation, nor would we have recognized our need without God revealing it to us! 

We contribute nothing to our deliverance, however, to receive it we must have an abiding faith. Faith is no action or dead work of man, but our belief in response to the gospel. It is our acknowledgment of our sin, our belief that Jesus has come as Messiah to save us, our dying with Christ to self and rising with Christ to put on His righteousness.

God set the plan of salvation up in such a way that we do need to do 'the work that God requires' and believe in Jesus Christ. (John 6:28-29) Only those who believe in Jesus will receive eternal life (John 1:25, John 3:16)

All of fallen humanity needs saved, but we can't achieve this or even help with it ourselves. We can only have faith, recognizing the need for rescue by acknowledging our sin and crying out to Jesus, accepting His rescue rather than rejecting it. 

Again, it is Christ who 'accomplishes' salvation, without the aid of man, according to the plan of salvation which God put in place before time began. (I Pet 1:20, Eph 1:4) This is why Christ is the lamb slain 'from the foundation of the world'. (Rev 13:8) 

God offers mercy and pardon; forgiveness of our sins through Christ. God gives grace; drawing all men to Christ through His death that they could hear the word, have faith, be reconciled, and become a new Creation through faith in Christ. (John 12:32, II Cor 5:17-19, Rom 10:7, etc.)

Salvation, by grace and through faith, is a gift of God. [https://ebible.com/questions/15669-what-does-it-mean-that-it-is-by-grace-we-have-been-saved-through-faith-and-that-this-is-not-of-ourselves-but-is-the-gift-of-god]

Faith, itself, is the persuasion that something is true, based off secondary evidences and assurances; in this case, the persuasion that Jesus really is the Messiah, that He died for us, and that He will return and we will be resurrected. It is important to note that faith is not a dead work of man, nor does faith itself change the truth of something. For example, were one to have faith he could jump off a cliff and fly, gravity would show him wrong. Or, if one were to disbelieve the ocean existed, that would not make the ocean disappear. Faith contributes nothing to the truth of a matter. 

Faith, then, does not create salvation or contribute to our salvation. [https://ebible.com/questions/7882-is-salvation-created-by-faith-or-is-faith-created-by-salvation Jesus delivering us.]

However, we must have faith to receive salvation.
https://ebible.com/answers/22568 [Is human will capable of choosing or rejecting Jesus]

We also must have abiding faith to continue in the deliverance which Jesus gives us. [https://ebible.com/questions/678-what-does-it-mean-that-jesus-is-the-author-and-perfecter-of-our-faith#answer-20250]

For an analogy of how this works, imagine a stranger offers you an unexpected present or a check for $10,000. You did nothing to earn this gift or money, no work or act of character. They simply offered. While you must accept the gift or endorse the check to cash it, you in no way contribute to the gift either by earning it or paying for part of it. Now, imagine this analogy one step further. You actually have an unpayable debt that the stranger offers to cover. You didn't just not contribute anything to the gift, but had a huge penalty on your account!

In the same way, we must have faith in Christ, putting off our sinful nature and rising with Christ into new life as adopted children of God. (Col 2:11-13, etc.)

June 30 2016 • 2 responses • Vote Up • Share • Report

---

View All Answers