December 2013 USPS 184720 Volume 52 Number 12 In This Issue: THE THREE STAGES OF SALVATION
In general Bible terms, salvation means forgiveness of sins and deliverance from the power of Satan. This deliverance includes freedom from evil, sin s power and unclean habits of the flesh, as well as healing of the mind and body. In fact, biblically, the terms salvation, deliverance, and healing are interchangeable. But there is a doctrine of salvation. Although the initial act of salvation commences with repentance and forgiveness of sins, this is just the beginning of the process of being saved. The NT writers referred to salvation as a three-fold experience in the life of the believer: As 2 already stated, initially, salvation is the act of repentance and conversion, which is a very specific event at a specific time (Rom.10:9-10). In his testimony, the believer refers to this as when I got saved. Having received salvation through Jesus Christ, he is actually then in a state of being saved, with final or full salvation occurring at the rapture-resurrection. At this time of final salvation, the human body will also be delivered, being clothed upon with the glorified body. Peter made this very clear in 1Peter. He pointed to the coming of Christ and of our being found in Him, and receiving our
inheritance which is incorruptible (This refers to the glorified body which is not subject to death.), and in 1Peter 1:9 he said, Receiving the end of your faith, even the salvation of your souls. Salvation s Three Stages There are three stages of our eternal salvation: 1. Initial Repentance: Confession of sins resulting in forgiveness of past sins and deliverance from sin s dominion (Rom.10:8-10 & 6:14). 2. Present Justification: Living by the faith of the teachings of Christ and being conformed to His image (Gal.2:20, Rom.8:29); walking in light (1Jn.1:7). 3. Final Glorification: The redemption of the physical body (Rom.8:23, Phil.3:21, 1John 3:2). At the rapture-resurrection, when God will raise the dead in Christ, and change the living, full salvation is achieved. The believer is now being saved, looking forward to final salvation, when his body will also be delivered (1Cor.15:51-54, 2Cor.5: 1-8). Salvation begins with repentance and is completed upon the rapture-resurrection and glorification of the body. Referring to the state between these two events, Paul warned the Philippians: Work out your own salvation with fear and trembling (2:12). First, let us understand that he was not establishing a salvation based upon works. For by grace are ye saved through faith; and that not of yourselves: it is the gift of God: Not of works, lest any man should boast (Eph.2:8-9). Rather, Paul s message to the Philippian believers was not to depend on him for their salvation and their obedience to the Gospel as they had always done while he was present with them, but now in his absence, they must work out, or do everything that they know to do to be obedient. This was to be done in a diligent and sober manner and with fear of omitting anything that might cause them to err. A natural analogy is that of working out a complex mathematical problem, in which it is necessary to correctly calculate and complete each stage of the equation unto the final solution. Understanding Justification It is the present standing of the believer in Christ that we are most concerned with, and in all his writings, Paul referred to this as a state of justification. The entire book of Romans is devoted to this doctrine of justification, and in 5:1, he wrote: Therefore being justified by faith, we have peace with God, through our Lord Jesus Christ. The Greek terms for justify and justification are some of the most difficult in the NT to convey into the English. The Greek 3
the three stages of salvation DIKAIOO basically means to be in a right standing with God, and therefore, God declares this person to be righteous. This is very different from the English interpretation which includes the idea of being placed on trial in a court of law and proven not guilty by the evidence presented. God did not prove you or me to be righteous We were guilty! We deserved the death penalty! Neither did He make us righteous I am not righteous in or of myself. But because of Jesus, God accepts me and declares me to be righteous: just-as-if-i d never sinned! He treats me like He treats Jesus! Because of the righteous death of the Lord Jesus Christ, and my faith in Him, I am found not guilty! And because I am found not guilty, I have peace with God. It was sin that alienated me from God, but the death of Jesus paid the penalty for those sins, and this allowed me to come back into God s favor, being declared righteous in Christ: And you, that were sometimes alienated in your mind by wicked works, yet now hath he reconciled. In the body of his flesh through death, to present you holy and unblameable and unreproveable in his sight: If you continue in the faith grounded and settled, and be not moved away from the hope of the gospel, which you have heard (Col.1:21-23). 4 Righteousness By Faith Righteousness is only obtained through faith: For therein is the righteousness of God revealed from faith to faith: as it is written, the just shall live by faith: (Rom.1:17). When God created Adam and Eve, He created them innocent not righteous. Righteousness is a result of right choices based on one s faith in God s Word. They chose not to believe God s commandment. The Bible never attributes righteousness to them. Their son Abel, was the first man to be called righteous in a direct statement of Jesus (Matt.23:35), and in the Hebrew Hall of Faith, Paul said: By faith Abel offered a more excellent sacrifice than Cain, by which he obtained witness that he was righteous (Heb.11:4). It was through his obedience to God s command to offer an animal sacrifice the type of the Lamb of God that revealed his faith, and by which he was counted righteous. Noah is another OT example that Paul cited in Hebrews 11 as being counted righteous by faith. Because he believed God s warning, By faith he prepared an ark to the saving of his house (vs.7). This also resulted in the condemning of the world, because they did not believe him, a preacher of righteousness (2Pet.2:5). He alone became heir of the righteousness that is by
faith (Heb.11:7). After the flood, Abraham is the one to whom God chose to reveal His plan of redemption, and by which he became the father of the faith of all who believe. His entire faith experience is summed up in Genesis 15:6: And he believed in the Lord; and he counted it to him for righteousness. Paul said, It was imputed to him for righteousness, and not for him only but also unto us shall it be imputed, if we believe that Jesus was raised again for our justification (Rom.4:22-25). We were not righteous, but God counted us righteous for Christ s sake! We were all unrighteous: All have sinned, and come short of the glory of God (Rom.3:23). The whole family of mankind was indicted as sinners. There is none that doeth good: No not one (Rom.3:12). But in Christ, we are declared not guilty of our sins. Although we were the perpetrators, all of our sins have been imputed to the Lord (in other words, have been put to His account), and all of His righteousness and goodness have been imputed to us (put to our account). God, for Christ s sake, has counted us righteous. He has forgiven us of past sins, and has set us free from the power of sin, and through the sacrifice of His Son, Who paid the penalty for God s broken laws which we trespassed, He has declared us to be righteous and not guilty. But of him (God) are ye in Christ Jesus, who of God is made unto us righteousness (1Cor.1:30). So then we are not only free from sin s power, but also sin s penalty. This is what it means to be justified in Christ. Not only to be forgiven of past sins, but being made free from the power of sin, We reckon ourselves to be dead unto sin, and alive unto God (Rom. 6:11). In other words, we say, No to sin! The word reckon means to count. When the devil tries to tempt me to sin, I say: Count me out! Practicing Righteousness According to the first Epistle of John, there were those who declared that once a person has been saved, it is no longer possible for him to commit sin, (and there are many today who make this claim). In 1John 1:8, John strongly replied: If we say that we have no sin, we deceive ourselves, and the truth is not in us. In the Greek text, there is no definite article before sin, which means that this does not refer to any particular sin or acts of sin, but to the sinful nature. Also, the present tense refers to a present state. Therefore, those who claim that at present the sinful nature has been eradicated from the believer so that it is no longer possible for him to commit 5
the three stages of salvation 6 sin, have deceived themselves. The danger of this deception is that it puts the believer off guard to the weakness of the old nature of sin, and allows sin to enter in again. John stated that those who deny the indwelling sinful nature only deceive themselves, and Paul also armed us with ample teaching as to the on-going warfare of the flesh vs. the Spirit in the daily walk of every child of God. In Rom.6:12-12, he commanded: Let not sin reign in your mortal bodies that you should obey it in the lusts thereof Neither yield ye your members as instruments of unrighteousness unto sin Clearly, if the sinful nature was removed, there would be no need for such teaching. As we have stressed, we have been freed from the power of sin, and are now justified in the sight of God, but it is up to us to continue to be free from sin by walking in the light, or practicing righteousness. John said that this is the core of the message of the Gospel that he and the other eyewitness apostles preached: This then is the message that we have heard of him, and declare unto you, that God is light and in him is no darkness at all (1Jn.1:5). God is righteousness! God is not an inanimate substance such as light! The Bible term light always refers to righteousness, and darkness refers to unrighteousness. In this case, John is speaking of God s character. God s character or nature is one of righteousness and truth, and in Him is not one atom of unrighteousness or sin or untruth! Furthermore, if someone says that he is a child of God and is in fellowship with God, he too is going to be righteous, and if he is not, than he is a liar: If we say that we have fellowship with him, and walk in darkness, we lie, and do not the truth (vs.6). The Greek term fellowship (KOINONIA) means to be in joint participation. John declared that if one claims to be in joint participation with God, that is to have His nature which is righteous, truthful, and holy, and yet he is walking in darkness or practicing sin, he is, in fact, a liar and does not practice the truth. To say that one is fellowshipping with God, and yet is living in sin, is a lie. The proof that one is in fellowship with God and possesses His nature of righteousness is, he practices righteousness: But if we walk in the light as he is in the light, we have fellowship one with another, and the blood of Jesus Christ his son cleanseth us from all sin (vs.7). Again John made it very clear: Who has fellowship with God? Those who are participating in His righteous, holy nature, who are reflecting His character, who
are walking as children of light, and who are practicing righteousness. As God sends His light through the revelation of His Word, which He manifested in Jesus Christ, then we walk in that truth and light, and we are in constant fellowship with Him, and the blood of Jesus cleanses us from every sin. We are cleansed from our past sins at the time of our confession, and as long as we walk in the light! When you are cleansed from all sin, you do not sin a little bit every day! In fact, John wrote: My little children, these things I write unto you, that ye sin not (1Jn.2:1). Whosoever abideth in him sinneth not Let no man deceive you: he that doeth righteousness is righteous, even as he is righteous, but he that committeth sin is of the devil (1Jn.3:6-8). If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just to forgive us our sins, and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness (1Jn.1:9). In the first part of the verse, John dealt with our past sins. If one will confess that he is a sinner and will repent of his sin, God is faithful and just to forgive him. This is reconciliation. Our past sins having been forgiven, we are no longer alienated from God. Then He cleanses us from all unrighteousness, which frees us from the power of sin and enables us to live clean and without sin. This is our present state of justification. We are not righteous of or in ourselves, but God has declared us to be righteous. There was a group of people in John s day, however, who declared that they were perfect, or in a state of sinlessness, because they had never sinned. John s reply in verse 10 was directed to this group. The Sinless Ones If we say that we have not sinned, we make him a liar, and his word is not in us (1Jn.1:10). It is important to point out that unlike in verses 6-9, where John used the present tense, here he used the perfect tense. The perfect tense signifies action that has taken place in the past with results continuing into the present. Therefore, what these people were saying was, they had never sinned, and so were in a perfect state of sinlessness. This may seem hard to believe, but I have met people who claimed that they have never sinned. Consequently, they are not sinners and do not see the need to be saved. As we have already stated from the Word of God: All have sinned! And John said that anyone who boasts otherwise, makes God a liar! What every individual must do is, confess his sins, and God is faithful and just to forgive his sins. Those who claimed to be in a 7
the three stages of salvation present state of sinlessness, because they had never sinned in the past, were not only liars themselves, but they made God a liar. They concluded that since they were sinless, eternal life belonged to them as a debt. They didn t need a savior, and they didn t owe God anything. They were the perfect ones, the Gnostics of that day, but John refuted them strongly. No! This is the message that we have heard from Him from the beginning: The only One Who is light, Who is righteousness is God! John said, I was right there in His presence! We heard Him We saw Him with our eyes We handled Him We touched Him: The Word of life! And we bear witness and show unto you that eternal life that was in the beginning with the Father, which we have seen, and heard and declare unto you (1Jn.1:1-3). John was saying that He was not just the subject of some Jewish fable. This was not just some bean dream, but with his very own eyeballs he saw, and with his hands he handled the Eternal Life! John said: I tell you the message that we received of Him: God is righteousness, and everyone who is in fellowship with Him is righteous. Those denominations that maintain that the child of God has to sin a little bit everyday, are not enjoying the effects of what Jesus 8 did: Jesus forgave me of all of my sins, and cleansed me from all of my unrighteousness, and apart from the fact of His forgiving me of all of my past sins, and cleansing me from all unrighteousness, I cannot walk in the light! You see, that s the problem of just having the name of Jesus applied to your faith. There is a song that says, Take the Name of Jesus With You. You better take Him with you, because John in Revelation spoke of those who have a name that they live and are dead! One has to have more than His name! It doesn t matter if you belong to the Church of God, Church of Christ, Church of God in Christ, Church of the Most Holy God, etc., etc. You ve got to be more than a professor You ve got to be a possessor! And the proof of your salvation and your possession of eternal life is in the living the practicing of righteousness. What Is Eternal Life? In John 17:3, Jesus gave the definition of what eternal life is: And this is life eternal, that they might know thee the only true God, and Jesus Christ whom thou hast sent. All who claim to possess eternal life and know God are in joint participation with the righteousness of God, and anyone who claims to possess eternal life but is not walking in light and righ-
teousness, but in darkness and sin, is self-deceived, and the truth is not in him. The Word of God is clear that there must be evidence of salvation and possession of eternal life in the life of every believer. Furthermore, it is clear that eternal life is forfeitable, and although the life is eternal, it does not mean that once someone has received it, he will always possess it. Peter warned: Wherefore, brethren, give diligence to make your calling and election sure: for if you do these things, you shall never fall (2 Peter1:10). Someone might contend, But Bro. Hardy, if eternal life is eternal, how can it be lost? The point is, the life is eternal, but do you possess it? Let me illustrate it: The most eternal, natural substance known to man is a diamond. The diamond is eternal, and you can possess a diamond, but should you lose it, you no longer possesses it. The diamond still exists, but you do not possess it. Walking in the Light The evidence that one possesses eternal life, which is to have fellowship with the Father and the Son, is that he is walking in the light and practicing righteousness. In this practice, he grows in grace and in the knowledge of the Lord. Paul said in Hebrews 6:1, Therefore, leaving the principles of the doctrine of Christ, let us go on unto perfection; not laying again the foundation of repentance from dead works (works of death) We are not to return to the works of death, so that we have to go back to repentance and lay the foundation again. But let us go on to perfection, or Christian maturity and full growth in Christ, until final salvation and glorification at the rapture-resurrection. We are on a journey, and as we walk in the light and receive the light as it is given, more light is shed. Let me say this: I do not believe anyone can be justified to walk in yesterday s light. I believe once you have received greater truth and greater light, you must walk in it to be justified and to continue to have the blood of Jesus cleanse you. Many today, including some in the pulpit, who have had a Holy-Ghost Baptism experienced and preached holiness and righteous standards, have eased them for convenience and popularity. But they will be judged by the light that they have not by the light of other denominations which never had such an experience. Someone in high school could easily go back to the first grade and excel and know all the answers, but they would not be justified there. There are those who had the full gospel truth, but who chose to go back into denominations that deny it, because they want to give their consciences a 9
the three stages of salvation 10 pain killer, so they can tell themselves that they are all right in living a less sanctified life. They think that just because they are still in church they are justified, but they have failed to meet the responsibility of the light they have received to walk in. When one is no longer walking in the light as He is in the light, the blood does not cleanse him from all sin, because the sin that he is committing falls upon that initial cleansing of blood, and it is convicting him. For every one that doeth evil hateth the light, neither cometh to the light, lest his deeds should be reproved. But he that doeth truth cometh to the light, that his deeds may be made manifest, that they are wrought in God, (John 3:20-21). Sin grows in the dark, but it is exposed in the light. I am striving to go on to perfection and to greater truth and light, not laying again and again the foundation of repentance. Some Christians remind me of the guy with a wooden peg leg who got it stuck in a knot hole and just went around and around, getting nowhere: They repent sin, repent sin, repent sin, until they don t know if they are repenting or sinning after a while. But Paul said, Let us go on to full maturity and full development in Christ, no longer a child, one who is unskillful in the word of righteousness, but by reason of use have their senses exercised to discern both good and evil (Heb.5:13-14). Once we have been called out of the darkness of sin, having been forgiven of our past sins and cleansed from all of our unrighteousness, we are in a present state of justification in the sight of God. We are progressively walking in the light of His fellowship and truth until the final stage of salvation, which is the redemption of the body. Then we will reside in a state of sinlessness: For this corruptible (subject to sin) must put on incorruption (not subject to sin), and this mortal must put on immortality (not subject to death) (1Cor.15:53). The Glorification of the Body Paul wrote to the Colossians: Set your affections on things above, not on things on the earth. For you are dead (to sin and the world), and your life is hid with Christ in God. When Christ, who is our life, shall appear, then shall you also appear with him in glory (Col.3:2-4). This will be our final salvation: glorification with Christ! For our citizenship is in heaven from whence we look for the Savior, the Lord Jesus Christ: Who shall change our vile body (humiliated by sin and weakness), that it may be fashioned like unto his glorious body (Phil.3:20-
21). John said, Beloved, now are we the sons of God (present state), and it doth not yet appear what we shall be; but we know that, when he shall appear, we shall be like him, for we shall see him as he is (future state). And everyone that has this hope purifies himself even as he is pure (present state) (1Jn.3:2-3). The key to our receiving this final future state of glorification is to practice righteousness by walking in the light, and to produce the fruits of true salvation: For ye were sometimes darkness, but now are ye light in the Lord: walk as children of light: (For the fruit of the Spirit is in all goodness and righteousness, and truth;) Proving what is acceptable unto the Lord. And have no fellowship with the unfruitful works of darkness, but rather reprove them (Eph.5:8-11). Anyone fellowshipping with the unfruitful works of darkness and practicing sin, does not possess eternal life. But if he is in fellowship with God, which is to possess eternal life, he is walking in the light of Christ, Who is cleansing him from all sin. He also has the evidence, the fruits of goodness, righteousness and truth. Awake to righteousness and sin not (1Cor.15:34). L 11