Salvation

Text: Romans 2:1-11

 

I.         A classic comic skit is to have two people engaged in a conversation. He thinks he is talking about one topic. She thinks the conversation is about an entirely different matter. Yet, the statements said make perfectly good sense to both parties.

            A.        I realized I was having one of those moments the other day when a person stated “Repenting and asking for forgiveness of sins is not the same as being saved.”

                        1.         In one sense, the statement is true. Both repentance and the desire for forgiveness is not the same as obtaining salvation.

                        2.         But the person went on to claim that salvation was getting to heaven and that a person would remain a child of God even if he doesn’t repent of his sins. Once you are born into the family of God, you cannot be unborn.

            B.        By disconnecting salvation from the idea of forgiveness of sins, people justify a belief of permanent salvation – once you are saved, you are always saved. Sin is no longer a factor in salvation.

                        1.         I heard one man state on the radio that if in the middle of a bank robbery a man comes to believe on Jesus even though he completes the robbery and is gunned down by the police, he would still be saved.

                        2.         This is the position people must take to say that salvation is permanent.

                                    a.         Many prominent denominational leaders have been caught in flagrant sin.

                                    b.         If they claim they were never really saved, then it means many people have been following an unbeliever.

                                    c.         So they state that sin doesn’t effect salvation.

II.        Then from what have we been saved?

            A.        Saved from a wicked world - Acts 2:40

            B.        Ephesians 2:5

                        1.         We were dead in sins, but made alive through Christ

                        2.         By God’s grace we were saved.

                        3.         Jesus came to save sinners - I Timothy 1:15

                        4.         The name “Jesus” means savior - Matthew 1:21

            C.        The effect of sin on a person is death - Romans 6:23

                        1.         James 5:19-20 - Save a soul from death by turning a sinner away from sin

            D.        Those in sin are subject to God’s wrath - Colossians 3:6

                        1.         Romans 5:8-10 - Saved from God’s wrath by the blood of Christ

                        2.         Hence salvation is the opposite of experiencing God’s wrath - I Thessalonians 5:9

III.       Terms that are equivalent to salvation

            A.        Eternal life

                        1.         Perishing is then the opposite of being saved - I Corinthians 1:18

                        2.         Psalm 37:20 - The wicked will perish

                        3.         John 3:14-16 - Eternal life is the opposite of perishing; hence, having eternal life is the same as being saved.

            B.        Justified

                        1.         In Romans 5:9-10 we noted that we were saved from the wrath of God by the blood of Christ.

                                    a.         That blood also justifies us - Romans 3:24-26

            C.        Reconciled

                        1.         The blood of Jesus, while it saves us, reconciles us to God - Romans 5:9-11

                        2.         This makes sense since Jesus shed blood saved us from sin and it is sin that separates us from God - Isaiah 59:1-2

                        3.         We are reconciled through the body of Jesus - Colossians 1:19-23

            D.        Forgiveness of sins

                        1.         Jesus’s blood was shed to save us - Romans 5:9

                        2.         That save shed blood brings forgiveness of sins - Matthew 26:28

                        3.         It is a propitiation for our sins (an atonement sacrifice) - Romans 3:25

                        4.         Ephesians 1:7 - We have redemption through Jesus’ blood (see also Colossians 1:14; I Peter 1:18-19)

            E.        Sanctified

                        1.         Jesus sanctified people through his blood - Hebrews 13:12

                        2.         It is the idea of being made pure and holy – set apart for service to God.

                        3.         That is why we speak of being washed by his blood - Revelation 1:5, our sins have been washed away.

                        4.         Made white in the blood of the lamb - Revelation 7:14

                        5.         His blood cleanses us from all sin - I John 1:6-7

IV.      Salvation is not a separate issue from the removal of sin, but one that is deeply intertwined.

            A.        One cannot be saved and sin - Romans 6:1-2

            B.        We are freed from sin - Romans 6:3-7

            C.        We cannot seek justification while remaining in sin - Galatians 2:17

            D.        Sin creates a barrier between man and God so we cannot abide with God while in sin - I John 3:4-6 – We cannot be reconciled, we cannot be saved while we sin.

V.        Is salvation then permanent?

            A.        Only so long as we remain with God

            B.        Hebrews 3:6 - If we hold our confidence and hope to the end

            C.        Hebrews 3:14 - If we remain steadfast to the end

            D.        If we do not, our fate is worse - II Peter 2:20

            E.        We must take hold of the eternal life offered and not wonder away - I Timothy 6:9-12

            F.        Better things await us - Hebrews 6:9-12