"And when he was gone forth in the way, there came one running, and kneeled to him, and asked him, Good Master, what shall I do, that I may inherit eternal life? And he [Jesus] said unto him, If thou wilt enter into life, keep the commandments. (Mk.10:17; Mt.19:17)
Our language, being a "living language", is constantly changing. Some words are becoming obsolete, while new words are continually being added. This is a normal process, but there are some unfortunate victims. For example, gay once meant "light hearted and joyous"; now, however, "gay" is used as synonym for "homosexual". This is a real loss to our language, for there is no single word which can adequately replace gay as it was once used.
A biblical word whose meaning has been recently changed is the word saved. In the twentieth century, Christians have altered its meaning, so that saved is understood to mean "converted". But it is not so used in the Scriptures.
When Jesus said, "He who endures to the end shall be saved", was he saying that he who endures to the end shall be "converted"? Or when Paul wrote, "Now is our salvation nearer than when we first believed", was he saying that our conversion is nearer than when we believed? Of course not. The clear meaning of both these statements is that salvation is a future reward for faithful saints and that we should strive to be found worthy to receive it (Luke 13:24). Who, then, first altered the definition of salvation to mean "conversion"? I do not know. But I do know that it is a definition foreign to the Scriptures and that it is non-biblical to claim that we are "saved" merely because we are converted to Christ.
So often, we tend to accept life as it is handed to us, and sometimes we are not harmed in doing so. But to receive without question the religious doctrines handed to us is extremely dangerous to our spiritual health. Isn't it revealing, concerning our priorities, that none of us would tolerate a dirty dish in a restaurant, yet so few have diligently searched the Scriptures to ascertain the cleanliness of the doctrines we are asked to receive?
Eating from a dirty spiritual dish is what happens when we blindly receive Christianity's new definition of salvation, a definition which would have us to confess that we are already "saved" merely because we have been converted. It is astounding that so few seem to have noticed that this modern usage of the word saved differs significantly from biblical usage. Biblically speaking, conversion is the blessing of God available now in Christ for all who repent of their sins; salvation, however, is the reward which is promised to converts if they are faithful to Christ after their conversion (Heb.5:8-9). Conversion and salvation are not the same experience!
Salvation is most frequently mentioned in the New Testament as a future hope, not as a past - nor even a present experience. Sometimes saved is used in the present tense with the meaning of "healed" or "protected", but the notion among many modern Christians that a believer is already saved and his future secure regardless of his works in this life is absolutely foreign to the Bible.
When the rich young ruler asked Jesus what he must do to inherit eternal life, Jesus responded, "If you would enter into life, keep the commandments" (Mat.19:17). Please note that according to Jesus the way to salvation is the way of obedience to the commandments of God. Why else would Jesus point the wealthy young man to the commandments of God as the answer to his question? My dear friends, as much as our carnal nature would love to have it so, there simply is no formula, no ceremony, no single event or confession which can save anyone. Salvation is glorification - God's future reward for his obedient children. None of us has received that yet.
Jesus warned us not to believe that a mere confession of faith in him will save us. He said, "Not every one that saith unto me, 'Lord, Lord', shall enter into the kingdom of heaven, but he that doeth the will of my Father which is in heaven." Nor is merely knowing what is right sufficient, for "not the hearers of the law are just before God, but the doers of the law shall be justified" (Rom.2:13). Nor should we believe that the presence of spiritual gifts and power will suffice, for the Lord said, "Many shall say in that day, 'Lord, Lord, have we not prophesied in thy name? and in thy name have cast out devils? and in thy name done many wonderful works?' And then I will profess unto them, 'I never knew you. Depart from me, ye that work iniquity.'" There is no way around it - we must obey God's will if we hope to be saved in the end. "Without holiness, no man shall see the Lord", says Hebrews 12:14. The truth is never more complicated than that.
When Paul wrote salvation is "not of works", he was referring only to the ceremonial works of the Law of Moses (Gal.2:16). Many Jewish believers felt that Gentile believers should be required, as Jews were, to keep the ceremonial works of the Law. But Paul refused to hold the Gentiles to that, saying that only those who were circumcised were required to observe the Law's ceremonial works (Gal.5:3; Rom.3:19). But Paul's message of the Gentiles' liberty from the works of the Law is misinterpreted by many teachers in Christianity to mean that the gospel sets men free from God's commandment to work! Talk about a dirty dish! Friend, do not eat from that plate! Think about it carefully. Examine it prayerfully. Paul was not ambivalent in his doctrine concerning good works, consistently teaching that salvation will be given only to those in Christ who do good works (Rom.2:5-10). In fact, whenever the final judgment is mentioned in the Scriptures, we are warned that our deeds will determine our eternal judgment.
The word salvation has been used by Christians for so many years now as a synonym for conversion that it sounds unorthodox to teach that we are not saved yet, and that we will not be saved in the end if we are disobedient to Christ. But listen to what Peter says will happen to the man who is set free from sin by Christ Jesus, but then turns again to it: If after they have escaped the pollutions of the world through the knowledge of the Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ, they are again entangled therein, and overcome, the latter end is worse with them than the beginning. For it had been better for them not to have known the way of righteousness, than, after they have known it, to turn from the holy commandment delivered unto them" (2Pet.2:20-21).
Contrary to a popular Christian maxim, there is no such person as a "sinner saved by grace". If you are a sinner, then you are not being saved; instead, you are being lost because you are sinning. When Paul wrote that "Christ Jesus came into the world to save sinners:, and that he (Paul) was the :chief" example of that truth (1Tim.1:15), we must agree. But the issue is not whether or not Jesus came to do that. The issue is, how does he do it? And the answer is clearly laid out for us in the Scriptures.
In order for a sinner to be saved, he must first hear the gospel preached (Rom.10:17). Then, the Spirit must convict him of sin so that he can repent (Lk.13:1-5). Next, the Spirit must work the wonder of conversion in his heart, baptizing him into the church (1Cor.12:13). Finally, the newly converted person (no longer a sinner) must be led by the Spirit throughout his life (Rom.8:14). This is how sinners are saved, and this is what Jesus came to do. Paul is indeed the "chief" example of this process. Hearing about Jesus, convicted of his sin, converted into God's kingdom when Ananias laid hands upon him and he received the Spirit, and then, led by the Spirit into all truth, Paul as an old man said without fear, "I have fought the good fight. I have finished my course, I have kept the faith. Henceforth there is laid up for me a crown of righteousness, which the Lord, the righteous judge, shall give me in that day - and not to me only, but unto all them that love his appearing". Paul possessed this great confidence that he would be saved only because he had obediently followed Christ. And those who "walk after the Spirit" as Paul did will also eagerly look for their salvation to be brought to them at the return of Jesus Christ. Obedience alone begets such faith.
The Lord is still calling, "Come ye, buy, and eat." The food Jesus gives is pure, and will nurture you in the right ways of the Lord. Please do not settle for religious dogma and ceremony. God will satisfy your hungry soul, and He serves His manna from a sparkling, clean dish, unsullied by the vain imaginations and traditions of men.
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