In the last two meditations we began our journey through the New Testament by seeing how it depicts ‘divine salvation’. We started with the ‘salvation pictures’ in the Gospels. Today we will take a look into the book of Acts and the apostle Paul’s letter to the followers of Jesus in Rome. Of course we will not repeat the pictures which we have already mentioned before, although many of them are repeated:
‘Divine Salvation’ is pictured as:
• Receiving the gift of the Holy Spirit
“Peter replied, ‘Repent and be baptised, every one of you, in the name of Jesus Christ for the forgiveness of your sins. And you will receive the gift of the Holy Spirit.’” Acts 2:38
• Being filled with the Holy Spirit
(Luke writes:) “All of them were filled with the Holy Spirit...”
Acts 2:4
• Belonging to Jesus the Messiah
“You are among those who have been called to belong to Jesus Christ” Romans 1:6
“For we are not our own masters when we live or when we die. While we live, we live to please the Lord. And when we die, we go to be with the Lord. So in life and in death, we belong to the Lord.” Romans 14:-8
• Being saints
“To all in Rome who are loved by God and called to be saints...” Romans 1:7
• Having your heart ‘circumcised’ by God’s Spirit
“True circumcision is not a cutting of the body but a change of heart produced by God's Spirit.” Romans 2:29
• Being made right in God’s sight
“We are made right in God's sight when we trust in Jesus Christ to take away our sins. And we all can be saved in this same way, no matter who we are or what we have done.” Romans 3:22
• Being declared guiltless [blameless] by God
“Yet now God in his gracious kindness declares us not guilty. He has done this through Christ Jesus, who has freed us by taking away our sins.” Romans 3:24
• Having Abraham as our father
“So that's why faith is the key! God's promise is given to us as a free gift. And we are certain to receive it, whether or not we follow Jewish customs, if we have faith like Abraham's. For Abraham is the father of all who believe. That is what the Scriptures mean when God told him, "I have made you the father of many nations." This happened because Abraham believed in the God who brings the dead back to life and who brings into existence what didn't exist before.” Romans 4:16-17
• Having peace with God
“Therefore, since we have been made right in God's sight by faith, we have peace with God because of what Jesus Christ our Lord has done for us.” Romans 5:1
• Sharing God’s glory
“Because of our faith, Christ has brought us into this place of highest privilege where we now stand, and we confidently and joyfully look forward to sharing God's glory.” Romans 5:2
• Being reconciled to God
“For since we were restored to friendship with God [other translations: reconciled to God] by the death of his Son while we were still his enemies, we will certainly be delivered from eternal punishment by his life.” Romans 5:10
• Being united with Jesus the Messiah in his resurrection
“If we have been united with him like this in his death, we will certainly also be united with him in his resurrection.” Romans 6:5
• Being set free from the (Mosaic) Law
“Sin is no longer your master, for you are no longer subject to the Law, which enslaves you to sin. Instead, you are free by God's grace. So since God's grace has set us free from the Law, does this mean we can go on sinning? Of course not!”
Romans 6:14-15
• Living without God’s condemnation
“So now there is no condemnation for those who belong to Christ Jesus. For the power of the life-giving Spirit has freed you through Christ Jesus from the power of sin that leads to death.” Romans 8:1-2
• Being chosen by God to become like his Son, Jesus the Messiah
“For those God foreknew he also predestined to be conformed to the likeness of his Son, that he might be the firstborn among many brothers.” Romans 8:29
• Belonging to ‘the Body’ of Jesus the Messiah
“Just as our bodies have many parts and each part has a special function, so it is with Christ's body. We are all parts of his one body, and each of us has different work to do. And since we are all one body in Christ, we belong to each other, and each of us needs all the others.” Romans 12:4-5
• Being God’s servant
“Who are you to condemn God's servants? They are responsible to the Lord, so let him tell them whether they are right or wrong. The Lord's power will help them do as they should.” Romans 14:4
It is great to see how all these pictures accentuate a specific aspect of God’s present and future salvation. Please, let these ‘salvation pictures’ saturate your heart and mind. May they give you a clear understanding of what God’s offer of salvation is all about.
Next time we will search for ‘salvation pictures’ in Paul’s other letters. So, join me next time!
The Bible verses Acts 2:38, Acts 2:4, Romans 1:7, Romans 6:5 and Romans 8:29 are quotes of the New International Version. All other texts are quoted from the New Living Translation.
No comments:
Post a Comment