SALVATION

Text:

“For GOD so loved the world, that He gave His only begotten son, that whosoever believeth in Him should not perish, but have everlasting life.”   John 3: 16 (KJV)

Aim

1. To express that Salvation is the main thrust of Christendom, and Christ Jesus is the Centre of the scripture and the Christian faith. 

2. To give an introduction to Christ-likeness as it concerns the receipt of the ticket to righteousness.

Introduction

Salvation is God’s righteous way of redeeming Man totally – saving our soul from eternal death and separation from the Almighty God – through Jesus Christ.

Acts 4: 12 emphasizes that Salvation is through only one divine way.  Salvation is also God’s way of showing His love to mankind (John 15: 13, Romans 5: 8).  It has been observed that normal people ask obvious questions before or during their Salvation experience:

What about Jesus?

“The life and character of Jesus Christ,” says Dr. Schaff, “is the holy of holies in the history of the world.” 

I. NAME – The name ‘Jesus’ is the Greek form of JEHOSHUA (See Jehoshua in 1Chronicles 16:22) or Joshua, meaning ‘Saviour’ or God saves. The name ‘Christ’ connotes ‘anointed’, and is interpreted as Messiah (Matt.11: 3, 16: 16; Luke 2: 11, 26; John 1: 41, 4: 26; Acts.9: 22; 1John 5: 1). Jesus Christ, according to the Hebrew belief, should be a powerful Saviour and King. When He came, he was both a high priest (Heb.7: 16-17; Psalm 110: 4) and a non-political, non-materialistic king. Among the Jews, priests were anointed at their inauguration to their office. The Jews did not broadly accept him as priest because he did not come in the order of Moses or Aaron, and as King because he would not accept the mantle to politically emancipate the Jews from their Roman overlords.

In the New Testament, the name Christ is used as equivalent to the Hebrew Messiah (anointed), John 1:41… the name given to the long-promised Prophet and King whom the Jews had been taught by their prophets to expect. (Matt.11: 3; Ac 19:4).  The use of this name, as applied to the LORD, always has a reference to the promises of the prophets. ‘Jesus’ is the proper name of our Lord, and that of Christ is added to identify him with the promised Messiah. Other names are sometimes added to the names Jesus Christ, thus, “Lord,” “a king,” “King of Israel,” “Emmanuel,” “Son of David,” “chosen of God.” 

II. BIRTH. – Jesus Christ was born of the Virgin Mary, God being his father, at Bethlehem of Judea, six miles south of Jerusalem. The date of his birth was most probably in December, B.C. 4, thirty-three years before the era from which we count our years (i.e. after the death of Christ). That ‘anon domini’ dating was not used till several hundred years after Christ. A learned monk, Dionysius Exiguus, who made the ‘anon domini’ calculations in the sixth century, was said – by a school of thought – to have made an error of four years; so that to get the exact date from the death of Christ we must add four years to our usual dates; i.e. A.D. 1882 is really 1886 years since the death of Christ. However, a more reliable canon account has it that Dionysius Exiguus was right, putting it properly that Christ was born four years before the actual date known and prophesied by the prophets: God’s way of confusing the thoughts of the powerful (especially Herod who would have murdered Him!) Though scholars have propounded many theories to negate the sanctity of the present date we celebrate his birth, it is more than likely that our usual date for Christmas, December 25, is not far from the real date of Christ’s birth. Since the 25th of December comes when the longest night gives way to the returning sun on his triumphant march, it makes an appropriate anniversary to make the birth of Him who appeared in the darkest night of error and sin as the true Light of the world. At the time of Christ’s birth Augustus Caesar was Emperor of Rome, and Herod the Great King of Judea, but subject of Rome. God’s providence had prepared the world for the coming of Christ, and this was the fittest time in all its history. 

1. All the world was subject to one government, so that the apostles could travel everywhere: the door of every land was open for the gospel. 

2. The world was at peace, so that the gospel could have free course. 

3. The Greek language was spoken everywhere, as lingua franca, with other indigenous languages. 

4. The Jews were scattered everywhere with synagogues and Bibles.

III. EARLY LIFE. – Jesus, having a manger at Bethlehem for his cradle, received a visit of adoration from the three wise men of the East. At forty days old he was taken to the temple at Jerusalem; and returning to Bethlehem, was soon taken to Egypt to escape Herod’s massacre of the infants in Jesus’ prophesied place of birth. After a few months’ stay there (Herod, having died in April, B.C. 3) the family returned to their Nazareth home, where Jesus lived till he was about thirty years old, subject to his parent, and increasing “in wisdom and stature, and in favor with God and man” (Luke 2: 52). The only incident recorded of his early life was his going up to Jerusalem to attend the Passover at twelve years old, with emphasis on his conversation with the learned men in the temple. But, we can understand the childhood and youth of Jesus better when we remember the surrounding influences amidst which he grew. 

1. The natural scenery was rugged and mountainous, but full of beauty. He breathed the pure air. He lived in a village, not in a city. 

2. The Roman dominion was irksome and galling. The people of God were subject to a foreign yoke. The taxes were heavy. Roman soldiers, laws, money, every thing reminded them of their subjection, when they ought to be free and themselves the rulers of the world. When Jesus was ten years old, there was a great insurrection, Acts. 5:37, in Galilee. He, who was to be King of the Jews, heard and felt all these. 

3. The Jewish hopes of a Redeemer, of throwing off their bondage, of becoming the glorious nation promised in the message of prophets, were in the very air he breathed. The conversation at home and in the streets was full of them. 

4. Within his view and his boyish excursions, were many remarkable historic places: rivers, hills, cities, plains, that would keep in mind the history of his people and God’s dealings with them. 

5. “His school training,” Mr. Deutsch, in the Quarterly Review, says, “Eighty years before Christ, schools flourished throughout the length and the breadth of the land: education had been made compulsory. While there is not a single term for ‘school’ to be found before the captivity, there were by that time about a dozen in common usage. Here are a few of the innumerable popular sayings of the period: ‘Jerusalem was destroyed because the instruction of the young was neglected.’ ‘The world is only saved by the breath of the school-children.’ ‘Even for the rebuilding of the temple, the schools must not be interrupted.’” 

6. His home training. According to Ellicott, the stages of Jewish childhood were marked as follows: “At three the boy was weaned, and word for the first time the fringed or tasseled garment prescribed by Num. 15:38-41 and Deut. 22:12. His education began at first under the mother’s care. At five, he was to learn the law – at first by extracts written on scrolls of the more important passages – the Shema or creed of Deut. 2:4, the Hallel or festival psalms, Psalm 114, 118, 136, and by catechetical teaching in school. At twelve, he became more directly responsible for his obedience of the law; and on the day when he attained the age of thirteen, put on for the first time the phylacteries which were worn at the recital of his daily prayer.” In addition to this, Jesus no doubt learned the carpenter’s trade of his reputed father Joseph, and, as Joseph probably died before Jesus began his public ministry, he may have contributed to the support of his mother. 

IV. PUBLIC MINISTRY. —All the leading events recorded of Jesus’ life are given at the end of this volume in the Chronological Chart and in the Chronological Table of the life of Christ; so that here will be given only a general survey. Jesus began to enter upon his ministry when he was “about thirty years old;” that is, he was not very far from thirty, older or younger. ANDREWS regarded him as nearly thirty-one (in the tables of chronology referred to above) and so are most others. Having been baptized by John early in the winter of age 29-30, he spent the larger portion of his year in Judea and about the lower Jordan, till in December he went northward to Galilee through Samaria. The next year and a half, from December, age 30, to October or November, age 32, was spent in Galilee and northern Palestine, chiefly in the vicinity of the Sea of Galilee. In November, age 32, Jesus made his final departure from Galilee, and the rest of his ministry was in Judea and Perea, beyond Jordan, till his crucifixion, April 7, age 33. 

After three days he proved his divinity by rising from the dead; and after appearing on eleven different occasions to his disciples during forty days, he finally ascended to heaven, where he is the living, ever present, all-powerful Saviour of his people. Jesus Christ, being both human and divine is fitted to be the true Saviour of men. In this, as in every action and character, he is shown to be “the wisdom and power of God unto salvation.” As human, he reaches down to our natures, sympathizes with us, shows us that God knows all our feelings and weaknesses and sorrows and sins, brings God near to us, who otherwise could not realize the Infinite and Eternal as a father and friend. He is divine, in order that he may be an all-powerful, all-loving Saviour, able and willing to defend us from every enemy, to subdue all temptations, to deliver from all sin, and to bring each of his people, and the whole Church, into complete and final victory. Jesus Christ is the centre of the world’s history, as he is the centre of the Bible. –Smiths Bible Dictionary, ED.

Jesus Christ is God’s only begotten son.  The following scriptures attest to His divine sonship: Matt. 2: 15, 3: 17; Mark 1: 1; Luke 1: 35; John 1:34; Heb.10: 29).  Jesus Christ is the King Of Kings (1Tim.6: 15, Rev.1: 5, 17: 4, 19: 16).  He had existed before the world’s creation, from everlasting (John 1: 1, 8: 58, 17: 5,24; Col. 1: 17).  He is the Good Shepherd of God’s Church (John 10: 10-17).  He is our true vine (John 15).

Jesus Christ has all authority and Power (Matthew 7: 29, 28: 18; Mark 1: 27; John 5: 27).  He is the ancient of days: He knows the future (John 6:  64, Luke 22: 37).  He is the Word Of God (John 1: 1,14; 1John 1:1, 5: 7;n Rev.19: 3).  

He is the Morning Star (Num.24: 17; 2Peter 1: 19; Rev.2: 28, 22: 16).  

He is the Creator (John 1: 3, 1Cor.8: 6, Eph. 3: 9, Heb.1: 1,2).  He is the Author and finisher of believers’ faith (Heb. 12: 2).

Questions for Discourse

1. What is Salvation?

2. Quote John 3: 16. State the simple requirement of God for our everlasting life. 

3. Why did Jesus have to come?  

4. What can you say about Jesus, in the Hebrew Prophecy?

5. To you, personally, who is Jesus Christ?  

6. Are you already a born-again Christian? What is the process of being born of God?

7. If you are you are a true regenerated Christian, who is not ashamed of the gospel of Jesus Christ, then, you must have a Salvation Experience! Briefly recount your New Life Experience.

Conclusion

Jesus Christ Is LORD!  He came to show the World the way to eternal life with God.  He also came to reconcile Man to God.  He came to take our sins away, so that His grace might be sufficient for us on earth.  He came to free you and me from all our troubles…  Beloved, have you given your life to Jesus?  This Study on Salvation cannot end unless Heaven rejoices because of YOU:  Are YOU ready?  Jesus is coming again, soon. (Matt.16: 27).  Wait, Will you be ready when the LORD shall come?

Coming Up NEXT, in the next two weeks…

SALVATION – OBVIOUS QUESTIONS!

Could you please make salient comments, or let us discuss on what we studied on Salvation? Thank You!