What if raising your hand or praying a prayer isnât enough? Louie Giglio kicks off a collection called Jesus Savesâclearly defining salvation and encouraging us to have testimonies of our Savior who brought us from death to life.
Key Takeaway
Salvation is not about what we do but about what Christ has doneâthrough His love, mercy, and atoning sacrifice, He rescues us from sin and makes us alive in Him.
In the presence of God and of Christ Jesus, who will judge the living and the dead, and in view of his appearing and his kingdom, I give you this charge: Preach the word; be prepared in season and out of season; correct, rebuke and encourageâwith great patience and careful instruction. For the time will come when people will not put up with sound doctrine. Instead, to suit their own desires, they will gather around them a great number of teachers to say what their itching ears want to hear. They will turn their ears away from the truth and turn aside to myths. But you, keep your head in all situations, endure hardship, do the work of an evangelist, discharge all the duties of your ministry.
2 Timothy 4:1-5
In a world that often chooses teachers who suit their own desires, sound doctrine is more important than ever. Today, we'll address the Doctrine of Salvation.
SOTERIOLOGY - Theology dealing with salvation, especially as affected by Jesus Christ. (Merriam-Webster)
Many people would consider themselves "saved," but we need to dig deeper. Maybe you raised your hand or prayed a prayer, but that's not good enough. What is your testimony?
SALVATION - The redemption plan of God received.
DEPRAVITY - All are sinners.
WRATH - The judgment of a Holy God against all sin.
LOVE - God has mercy on His people.
ATONEMENT - Jesus dies as a payment for all sin.
FORGIVENESS - Our debt is canceled by the sacrifice of Jesus.
JUSTIFICATION - Christâs righteousness is transferred to us.
SANCTIFICATION - Salvation is a process that transforms our lives.
Read Isaiah 53:6, Romans 3:10, and Romans 3:23.
As for you, you were dead in your transgressions and sins, in which you used to live when you followed the ways of this world and of the ruler of the kingdom of the air, the spirit who is now at work in those who are disobedient. All of us also lived among them at one time, gratifying the cravings of our flesh and following its desires and thoughts. Like the rest, we were by nature deserving of wrath.
Ephesians 2:1-3
God is a holy God coming against all sinâyours, mine, and everyone else's. There is a coming wrath of God that is going to banish all evil. A bowling ball is being dropped on a teacup.
Right now, without salvation, there is a bowling ball over your head. We all, by nature, are deserving of wrath. If we are a teacup, we are deadâwe cannot move out of the way of what is coming. That's why we must understand the Doctrine of Salvation.
But because of his great love for us, God, who is rich in mercy, made us alive with Christ even when we were dead in transgressionsâit is by grace you have been saved.
Ephesians 2:4-5
The operative agent in salvation is the love of God, who is rich in mercy, not the effort of man, who is rich in works.
Read John 3:16-18.
God did not invite you to church to condemn you but to tell you that He loves you and He has mercy toward you even though you went your own way. He has never stopped loving you. He made us alive with Christ. This is where we see atonement and forgiveness.
In the Old Testament, there was a sacrificial system, pointing to or foreshadowing God's salvation plan in Christ Jesus. All through the Old Testament, God showed people that He was holy and they were not. He needed an intermediary process.
On the day of atonement, a goat was killed. The high priest took its blood into the holy of holies and sprinkled it on the mercy seat on the ark of the covenant as a covering for the people's sins for that year, pointing to Jesus, who would finish this work. Then, another goat would be taken by the priest, and he would lay hands on that goat's head as a sign of transferring the sins of the people onto it. That's how we got the word "scapegoat." The scapegoat is then sent out into the wilderness to signify sin leaving the city (Leviticus 16). This was the system of atonementâa blood covering, and then sins transferred and sent out of the camp to point to Jesus.
Read Hebrews 10:4.
This was a year-by-year system until the Messiah came.
Read 2 Corinthians 5:21.
Salvation is not about going to heaven when you dieâit's about going from guilty to righteous in Christ. That's what it means to be justified. Justification means Christ's righteousness is being transferred to us. Atonement brings justification.
Knowing that you are righteous in Christ snuffs out shame and guilt. You may not be living this out fully yet, but it's your identity.
And God raised us up with Christ and seated us with him in the heavenly realms in Christ Jesus, in order that in the coming ages he might show the incomparable riches of his grace, expressed in his kindness to us in Christ Jesus. For it is by grace you have been saved, through faithâand this is not from yourselves, it is the gift of Godâ not by works, so that no one can boast. For we are Godâs handiwork, created in Christ Jesus to do good works, which God prepared in advance for us to do.
Ephesians 2:6-10
Every religion has a prophet, but no other story has a Savior other than ours.
Read Luke 2:11, Isaiah 43:10b-13, and Titus 3:3-7.
He's a moral teacher, divine prophet, culture-shifter, and miracle worker, but most of all, He is Savior.
Read Acts 4:8-12.
Salvation happens by grace through faith (Ephesians 2:8).
LuLu Gribbin was a 15-year-old girl who was bitten by a shark and was saved by a father of three who tore her from the mouth of the shark and brought her to safety as medical professionals ran to her aid, ultimately leading to her life being spared.
In a similar fashion, Jesus left glory, saw us torn apart by the sinful choices we made and weren't able to save ourselves, and ripped us out of the mouth of death and brought us safely to shore. He is the one able to save.
Our testimony is that we were brought from death to life, not by our own power, but through the mercy and grace of our Savior.
Wake up, O sleeper, rise from the dead, and Christ will shine on you.
Ephesians 5:14
Discussion Questions
- Why do people often seek teachers who tell them what they want to hear rather than sound doctrine? How can we guard against this in our own faith?
- Many claim to be âsaved.â What does true salvation look like, and how does it transform a personâs life?
- How does understanding our depravity (sinfulness) deepen our appreciation for Godâs grace?
- Why is it important to recognize that salvation is a gift of grace and not something we earn through works? (Ephesians 2:8-9)
- How does justification impact our identity and the way we live?
- Jesus is more than a teacherâHe is our Savior. Why is this distinction crucial in understanding the Christian faith?
- Ephesians 5:14 says, âWake up, O sleeper, rise from the dead, and Christ will shine on you.â What does it mean to spiritually âwake up,â and how can we encourage others to do the same?
Scripture References
