How would you best describe what Salvation really is?
WHAT IS SALVATION?
“What saith the scripture?” Rom 4:3 KJV. To understand salvation, we must begin before Eden — before man fell — at the war between light and darkness. “In the beginning God created the heaven and the earth” Gen 1:1 KJV. Yet darkness was upon the face of the deep Gen 1:2 KJV. The Spirit of God moved against it. From the beginning, Scripture reveals conflict: God versus the god of this world 2 Cor 4:4 KJV. Spirit versus spirit Eph 2:2 KJV. Light versus darkness Gen 1:3 KJV. Creation versus the void Isa 45:18 KJV. God spoke light into darkness because darkness was never His purpose.
Then God made man.
“Let us make man in our image, after our likeness: and let them have dominion” Gen 1:26 KJV. Man was created in two dimensions: spirit and body. The body was formed from the dust of the ground Gen 2:7 KJV, but life came when God breathed into him the breath of life. Man became a living soul because the Spirit of God gave life to the body. Man was crowned with glory and honour Ps 8:5 KJV. Glory was the image and likeness of God within man — the life and Spirit of God dwelling in him. Honour was dominion over the works of God’s hands Gen 1:28 KJV. Adam was “the son of God” Luke 3:38 KJV — ruler under God in the earth. But though man possessed the life of God, he was not yet eternal in himself. God placed the tree of life in the garden Gen 2:9 KJV. Eternal life had to be maintained through faith in God. Had man eaten of the tree of life, he would have lived for ever Gen 3:22 KJV.
But before man could eat of that tree, the serpent came with a lie.
“Ye shall not surely die” Gen 3:4 KJV. That was the lie. God had said man would die Gen 2:17 KJV, and God cannot lie Titus 1:2 KJV. But Satan mixed the lie with truth: “Ye shall be as gods, knowing good and evil” Gen 3:5 KJV. Their eyes were opened Gen 3:7 KJV. God Himself said, “the man is become as one of us, to know good and evil” Gen 3:22 KJV. Satan did not lie about the result, that man would become a renegade god like him, only misled her to desire less than what she already was – part of the son of God. Adam was already god under God — son of God, ruling God’s creation for God. But Satan offered godhood that made man like him, of unbelief and disobedience to God. Through unbelief Rom 11:20 KJV and disobedience Gen 3:6 KJV, sin entered the world Rom 5:12 KJV. And sin did not come alone. Sin was the entrance of another kingdom into man: the lie, unbelief, disobedience, fear, bondage, death – extinction, to be no more. darkness, and the spirit of this world.
The moment man sinned; he hid himself from the presence of God Gen 3:8 KJV. Why? Because another spirit had entered him. “I was afraid” Gen 3:10 KJV. The spirit of fear had replaced the Spirit of God. The spirit of bondage entered Rom 8:15 KJV. The spirit of disobedience began working in man Eph 2:2 KJV. The spirit of error opposed truth 1 John 4:6 KJV. The spirit of the world replaced the Spirit which is of God 1 Cor 2:12 KJV. Man, who once walked openly with God now hid from God. What man lost was not merely innocence. Man lost the Spirit of God and the hope of eternal life. This is why God drove man from the garden. “And now, lest he put forth his hand, and take also of the tree of life, and eat, and live forever” Gen 3:22 KJV. God prevented fallen man from eternalizing himself in a fallen condition. Cherubims and a flaming sword guarded the way of the tree of life Gen 3:24 KJV. Man lost access to eternal life because he lost fellowship with the Spirit of God. And immediately everything changed. Fear entered Gen 3:10 KJV. Shame entered Gen 3:7 KJV. Death entered Gen 2:17 KJV. The glory departed Rom 3:23 KJV. Dominion was lost Heb 2:8 KJV. The god of this world gained dominion over fallen man Luke 4:6 KJV and blinded the minds of them which believe not 2 Cor 4:4 KJV. Even God’s name was maligned. The serpent portrayed God as withholding good, speaking falsely, and preventing man from reaching higher. The lie in Eden accused God Himself. Therefore, salvation is not only for man — salvation is also the vindication of the name of God. “I will sanctify my great name” Ezek 36:23 KJV.
Salvation restores what sin destroyed and proves that God was true from the beginning.
Christ came to undo what sin had done. “For this purpose, the Son of God was manifested, that he might destroy the works of the devil” 1 John 3:8 KJV. Jesus is the Word made flesh John 1:1,14 KJV. He is God manifested to bring man back to God. He is also the door of salvation. “I am the door: by me if any man enter in, he shall be saved” John 10:9 KJV.
But how does a man enter this door?
Jesus answered plainly: “Except a man be born of water and of the Spirit, he cannot enter into the kingdom of God” John 3:5 KJV. So the door into the kingdom is the new birth: water and Spirit.
Then Jesus gave Peter the keys.
“I will give unto thee the keys of the kingdom of heaven” Matt 16:19 KJV. Keys open doors. If Jesus is the door, and the kingdom must be entered by water and Spirit, then Peter’s keys reveal how man enters through that door. And Peter used those keys on the Day of Pentecost.
The Holy Ghost came first:
“And they were all filled with the Holy Ghost, and began to speak with other tongues, as the Spirit gave them utterance” Acts 2:4 KJV. Then the people asked, “Men and brethren, what shall we do?” Acts 2:37 KJV. Peter answered with the key: “Repent, and be baptized every one of you in the name of Jesus Christ for the remission of sins, and ye shall receive the gift of the Holy Ghost” Acts 2:38 KJV. This is the door opened.
Repentance. Believe who Jesus was, God made manifest in the flesh 1Tim 3:16, Emmanuel – God with us Mat 1:23 Baptism in the name of Jesus Christ to receive remission of sins; past, present and future sins. The only unforgivable sin is not to believe that the Holy Ghost is a gift God gives to fallen man – himself as He breathed his breath into man in Gen 2:7 where man became a living soul. The gift of the Holy Ghost. And the evidence of the Holy Ghost was and is in speaking with tongues as the Spirit gave utterance Acts 2:4 KJV. This same key continued throughout the book of Acts.
Pattern of Salvation
On the day of Pentecost believers received the gift of the Holy Ghost prophesied by Joel 2;28 In Samaria, believers received the Holy Ghost Acts 8:14-17 KJV. Saul was filled with the Holy Ghost Acts 9:17 KJV. At the house of Cornelius, the Gentiles received the Holy Ghost, “for they heard them speak with tongues, and magnify God” Acts 10:44-46 KJV. Then Peter commanded them to be baptized in the name of the Lord Acts 10:47-48 KJV. At Ephesus, disciples were baptized in the name of the Lord Jesus, and “the Holy Ghost came on them; and they spake with tongues, and prophesied” Acts 19:1-6 KJV.
The pattern is clear. The door is Christ. The entrance is water and Spirit. The keys were given to Peter.
Peter opened the door in Acts 2:38. And the Holy Ghost was accompanied by speaking with tongues. The Spirit of God gives power to be born of the Spirit as it did to Jesus in Mary Luke 1:35
God begets fallen man through the infilling of the Holy Spirit. . “Because ye are sons, God hath sent forth the Spirit of his Son into your hearts, crying, Abba, Father” Gal 4:6 KJV. “Abba” is an Aramaic word — the language of intimate sonship. It means Father, but not merely as a title. It is the cry of closeness, dependence, fellowship, and belonging. Before the fall, man was the son of God and he walked openly with God. After the fall, man hid from God Gen 3:8-10 KJV because the spirit of fear had entered him. But when the Holy Ghost returns, fear is replaced by sonship. “Ye have not received the spirit of bondage again to fear; but ye have received the Spirit of adoption, whereby we cry, Abba, Father” Rom 8:15 KJV. The cry “Abba, Father” is the evidence of a born again believer. Man no longer hides from God as a stranger, but approaches Him as a son. This is why salvation is more than religion. It is restoration into the family of God through regeneration Titus 3:5. Many can say “Lord” as a religious title. But only the Spirit- born truly know Him as Father. Jesus said:
“Not every one that saith unto me, Lord, Lord, shall enter into the kingdom of heaven”
Matt 7:21 KJV. A man may say “Lord” as a confession of religion, doctrine, or outward belief, and yet still not know Him as Father. “But when the Spirit of God enters a man, the only way the early church received him, and not through a Sinner’s prayer, but by baptism with the Holy Ghost. Acts 19:1-7 salvation becomes more than words spoken outwardly — it becomes the witness of God within.” Rom 8:16
This is why the Holy Ghost matters.
“That if thou shalt confess with thy mouth the Lord Jesus, and shalt believe in thine heart that God hath raised him from the dead, thou shalt be saved” Rom 10:9 KJV. But this confession is more than verbal agreement. It is the Spirit of God revealing Christ within the believer. 1John 3:24, 4:13 “Because ye are sons, God hath sent forth the Spirit of his Son into your hearts, crying, Abba, Father” Gal 4:6 KJV.
And again:
“No man can say that Jesus is the Lord, but by the Holy Ghost” 1 Cor 12:3 KJV. The same Spirit man lost in Eden is the Spirit restored through salvation. The same man who once hid among the trees now cries, “Abba, Father.” Isaiah 29:24, 30:1, Ezekiel 18:31-32, 36:24-28
SALVATION SUMMARIZED
Sonship Restored
Salvation restores man back into the family of God. “As many as received him, to them gave he power to become the sons of God” John 1:12 KJV. “Because ye are sons, God hath sent forth the Spirit of his Son into your hearts, crying, Abba, Father” Gal 4:6 KJV. “The Spirit itself beareth witness with our spirit, that we are the children of God” Rom 8:16 KJV.
Assurance of Salvation
Salvation is not built upon mental assent, religious profession, or self-assurance, but upon the baptism of the Holy Ghost with the evidence of speaking with other tongues as the Spirit gives the utterance. “And they were all filled with the Holy Ghost, and began to speak with other tongues, as the Spirit gave them utterance” Acts 2:4 KJV. “For they heard them speak with tongues, and magnify God” Acts 10:46 KJV. “And when Paul had laid his hands upon them, the Holy Ghost came on them; and they spake with tongues, and prophesied” Acts 19:6 KJV.
The Holy Ghost is not merely an idea believed in, but the Spirit of God received within man.
“Hereby know we that he abideth in us, by the Spirit which he hath given us” 1 John 3:24 KJV. The witness of salvation is not self-declaration alone, but the indwelling Spirit of God restoring sonship, fellowship, and life. “These things have I written unto you… that ye may know that ye have eternal life” 1 John 5:13 KJV. The same Spirit man lost in Eden is the Spirit restored through the new birth. And when the Spirit of God returns, He bears witness within the believer that he is once again a son of God.
Eternal Security
Jesus came to give eternal life. “And I give unto them eternal life; and they shall never perish” John 10:28 KJV. “My mercy shall not depart away from him” 2 Sam 7:15 KJV.Salvation is God restoring man back to the life he lost in Eden.
Fellowship with the Father
Sin separated man from God, but salvation restores fellowship. “Our fellowship is with the Father, and with his Son Jesus Christ” 1 John 1:3 KJV. “God… hath shined in our hearts” 2 Cor 4:6 KJV. The God who said “Let there be light” now shines again within man through His Spirit. Gen 1:3, 2 Cor 4:6.
Eternal Life restored
The fall brought death. Salvation restores life. “For the wages of sin is death; but the gift of God is eternal life through Jesus Christ our Lord” Rom 6:23 KJV. “Christ in you, the hope of glory” Col 1:27 KJV. “Whom he justified, them he also glorified” Rom 8:30 KJV. The tree of life lost in Eden is restored through Jesus Christ.
WHAT IT ALL MEANS
The lie in Eden separated man from God – The door in Christ brings man back to God. The god of this world brought darkness – Jesus Christ brings light. The serpent brought death – Jesus Christ brings eternal life. The spirit of bondage brought fear – The Holy Ghost restores sonship .Man lost glory and honor – Salvation restores glory and honor. The image of God was lost – The Spirit of God restores it. Dominion was forfeited – Christ restores man to reign in life Rom 5:17 KJV. The tree of life was closed in Eden – The door of life is opened in Christ. Once enemies – we are all one in the unity of the Spirit.” John 17:21 KJV. The war ends in reconciliation, The darkness is overcome by light. And through Jesus Christ, fallen man is born again, of water and Spirit into the family of God. ” But ye are not in the flesh … He that hath not the Spirit of Christ is none of his. Rom 8:9.
Thus, Saith The Scripture, Amen