Question: What does it mean to be "saved?"

As we continue in our series of "Q&A: Answering the Questions of God, Life and Faith" we pose a rather serious and overlooked question. We are comfortable with the language of saying "I'm saved" or "When were you saved?" but do we ever stop to think about the meaning behind such a concept. With this week's question, we take a look at the importance of knowing what salvation means and how to fully understand being "saved."

Question #3: What does it mean to be saved? Jesus says,"I am the door. If anyone enters by me, he will be saved and will go in and out and find pasture" (John 10:9). Most of us are used to the language of 'saved' in the church. "Yes, I'm saved!" or "When did you get saved?" are things we hear often in our modern day church environment. So, what does it mean? Before we dive in, we must recognize that our object of faith must be the person of Jesus Christ. Jesus's "I am" statements in the gospel of John give us this affirmation. Likewise, the beloved apostle says, "By this you know the Spirit of God: every spirit that confesses that Jesus Christ has come in the flesh is from God" (1 John 4:2 ESV). We believe in a person, not an idea or concept or philosophy.  

Second, we must recognize that to be saved is more than just belief; its action that matches that belief. This is not works, but love. Jesus said, "Jesus answered him, "If anyone loves me, he will keep my word, and my Father will love him, and we will come to him and make our home with him. Whoever does not love me does not keep my words. And the word that you hear is not mine but the Father's who sent me" (John 14:23-24). Likewise in Matthew's gospel Jesus says, "And he said to him, "You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind.This is the great and first commandment. And a second is like it: You shall love your neighbor as yourself" (Matthew 27:37-39). So being 'saved' is a state of being that is manifested by love for God and love for others. Belief must be backed up by action! 

Third, we must consider what exactly we are "saved" from. Paul tells us, "But because of your hard and impenitent heart you are storing up wrath for yourself on the day of wrath when God's righteous judgment will be revealed...Since, therefore, we have now been justified by his blood, much more shall we be saved by him from the wrath of God" (Romans 2:5, 5:9 ESV). Apart form Christ, we have stored up wrath because of our hard hearts and rebellion but for those who are in Christ, the wrath has been removed. He has taken our punishment for us! This is the culmination of the biblical testimony and the heart of the Gospel! Through Christ we are SAVED from God's wrath. We are not saved from Satan, sin, temptation or injustice rather we are saved from God's ultimate wrath.

The third and fourth points go together in a certain sense. These points point to a present and future reality. Being 'saved' is a total reorientation of your affections from the things of this world to God AND an change in expectation in what this world has to offer. This is the heart of repentance and the expectation of those in Christ who await the return of their Savior. We are not complete in all things until the second coming of Christ (1 Cor. 15:21-26; 1 Peter 13-16). We wait eagerly for his return, exhibiting patience through the act of prayer and gathering together to break bread in the same manner as Christ did for he said, "I tell you I will not drink again of this fruit of the vine until that day when I drink it new with you in my Father's kingdom"
(Matthew 26:29 ESV).  

Those who are saved believe in the person of Jesus Christ and back up their belief with actions which reflect a love for the Savior. They have a reorientation of their affections away from the world and to the things of God. They wait patiently, expecting the coming of their savior like a "thief in the night." We are to cry out everyday because we wait expectantly for the return of our savior when we can say, "Now the salvation and the power and the kingdom of our God and the authority of his Christ have come" (Revelation 12:10 ESV). 

 
- Coleman  

New Series: Q&A - Answering the Questions of God, Life and Faith

We all have questions. How were we created? Who exactly is God? What is my purpose? What is this church thing all about? We all have questions, and our goal this semester is to help provide parents and students with answers. We should never be afraid to ask questions, but we should also know that not every question we have will have a clear answer. That's where faith comes in. This semester our goal is to provide answers but also point us to the object of our faith, Jesus Christ the risen Lord!

So far this semester, we have already posed a couple of questions to students. Question #1: What does it take to follow Christ? For many the answer may be plain as day, but for others we may not be sure exactly what Christ calls us to do. Luke 9:23 provides the answer: "The Son of Man must suffer many things and be rejected by the elders and chief priests and scribes, and be killed, and on the third day be raised." And he (Jesus) said to all, "If anyone would come after me, let him deny himself and take up his cross daily and follow me." (Luke 9:22-23 ESV)

If we desire to truly follow after Christ, the answer is sacrifice; a word our world does not wish to keep in their vocabulary. Christians throughout the ages have sacrificed their time, their possessions and their lives to follow after Christ and make his name known throughout the world. Tertullian, a third century Christian theologian said, "The blood of the martyrs is the seed of the church" meaning that the sacrifice of those who came before us makes up the foundation on which we stand. Together as one body we are called to sacrifice in order that others may know his name and that we together may grow in holiness and humility.  

Question #2: What do you need to do to receive more blessing from God? Answer: Nothing. There is not one thing you can do that will cause God to love you any more or any less. We do not worship a God who will bless or curse us according to what we do or don't do. Rather, we worship a God who has blessed us with every spiritual blessing in Christ and who has removed the curse of sin because of his son (Eph. 1:3-6; Rom. 5:15-17). We live in freedom because of faith in Christ. No amount of bible study, prayer or good works will cause God to look upon you with more favor and cause things to go better for you. Spiritual disciplines and worship come from a heart that is obedient to God and a love for our Savior (Rom. 6:9-14; 1 John 2:2-6). There is no more blessing needed.

As we journey through different questions this semester, I invite you do follow up and talk more about these questions and answers. What experiences do you have in denying yourself to follow Christ? What are you convicted about in regards to Jesus's call to believers? What about your thoughts on receiving blessing from God? Do you do things out of of love and adoration, or to receive a special "blessing" in order that things may go well for you? These are questions we should all consider and weigh through the impact of the answers. I invite you to ask your own questions and lets see if we can get some answers to the questions of God, life and faith together. Take care and have a great week! 

 
- Coleman