An introduction to the fundamental doctrines of the Christian faith. Written for anyone and everyone who wants a better understanding of their beliefs, or a reference guide to check back when you have questions.
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Yes, you can access Fundamentals of Our Faith by Herschel H. Hobbs in PDF and/or ePUB format, as well as other popular books in Theology & Religion & Christian Theology. We have over one million books available in our catalogue for you to explore.
I have waited for thy salvation, O Lord. GENESIS 49:18
And thou, child, shalt be called the prophet of the Highest: for thou shalt go before the face of the Lord to prepare his ways; to give knowledge of salvation unto his people by the remission of their sins. LUKE 1:76–77
THE WORD “SALVATION” has many meanings in the Bible. It is a noun which comes from the Greek verb which in the Septuagint is used to translate Hebrew words meaning to save, to keep safe and sound, and to rescue from danger or destruction. It is the opposite of apollumi, meaning to destroy, from which we get the name Apollyon, one of the names of Satan (Rev. 9:11). In the New Testament it is sometimes used in the sense of saving or rescuing from danger or destruction (Matt. 8:25; 14:30; 24:22; Acts 27:20, 31; 2 Peter 4:18). It is also used to refer to healing (Matt. 9:22), both physical and spiritual (Luke 7:50). By far the greatest use of this verb is to mean deliverance from the messianic judgment (Joel 2:32); to save from evils which obstruct the messianic deliverance (Matt. 1:21; Rom. 5:9; James 5:20) ; to make one a partaker of the salvation offered by Christ (Matt. 19:25; John 3:17) (Thayer, p. 610).
The noun form in Hebrew carries the general idea of safety or ease (Ex. 14:13; 2 Sam. 22:51), while in the Greek form it denotes safety or soundness (Luke 1:69 ff.). Two different Greek words call for special notice. S
t
rios refers to the one bringing salvation (Titus 2:11; cf. Luke 2:30; 3:6; Acts 28:28). S
t
ria and s
t
rion, the more widely used forms, have a variable meaning in keeping with the uses of the root verb s
z
. It sometimes means deliverance or preservation from enemies (Acts 7:25), or preservation of physical life, safety (Acts 27:34), or health (Heb. 11:7). It is largely employed to express the idea of salvation in a spiritual sense (Luke 19:9; John 4:22; Rom. 10:10). It is in this sense that we shall deal with it.
I. The Threefold Nature of Salvation
Unfortunately we commonly regard salvation in one sense only, that of redemption from sin. But a careful examination of the use of the word and its equivalents will reveal that salvation in the spiritual sense is used to express three different ideas: instantaneous, continuing, and ultimate.
1. The instantaneous salvation.—This is the idea of redemption from sin (Acts 2:21; 16:31; Rom. 10:10). Carrying the concept of deliverance from the penalty of sin, this experience occurs immediately upon the individual's trusting in Jesus as Saviour. This is a fixed condition expressed in the idea of the perseverance of the saints, meaning that all who are truly saved will endure or persevere to the end. It is synonymous with being born again (John 3:3–7); enrolling in Jesus' school (Matt. 11:29); spiritual marriage (John 3:29); or adoption into the family of God (Rom. 8:15–23).
2. The continuing salvation.—This is the figure of growing in grace, knowledge, and service of and for Christ (2 Peter 3:18; Phil. 2:12; Heb.; 2 Cor. 1:6). It is at this point that many err in understanding the relation of works to salvation. While the immediate redemption of the soul from the penalty of sin is by grace through faith (Eph. 2:8–9), God has also ordained that believers should walk in good works for the salvation of their Christian lives (Eph. 2:10; Phil. 2:12–13). When the devil loses our souls to Christ, he seeks to insure that we shall lose our lives to him. Alas, how very often we find that he succeeds! This continuing salvation we call sanctification, whereby we grow into the likeness of Christ our Lord.
3. The ultimate salvation.—This reference is to the final culmination of the redemptive process, or the total of the benefits and blessings in heaven, which shall be for all the redeemed in proportion to their faithfulness in Christian service (Rom. 13:11; 1 Thess. 5:9; Heb. 9:28; Rev. 12:10). All Christians shall be saved, but there will be a difference in rewards. This final phase we refer to as glorification, or the full realization of the meaning of salvation. Now let us more closely examine each of these. For convenience we shall consider these three phases under two headings: salvation in time and salvation in eternity.
II. Salvation in Time
1. The instantaneous salvation.—In previous chapters we have noted the sinfulness of man, the initiative of God in the election of a plan of salvation, the atoning work of Christ, and the work of the Holy Spirit in conviction. Thus we are brought to a consideration of the elements involved in the immediate redemption of the soul.
Redemption is by grace apart from works (Eph. 2:8–10). Since man is totally sinful (Rom. 3:23), he could be saved only by grace (Rom. 3:24). Grace comes from a Greek word (charis), which basically means to make a gift (2 Cor. 8:1–9), to forgive a debt, to forgive a wrong, and finally, to forgive sin. It denotes kindness or favor shown by a master toward his servants, and so of God to man (Luke 1:30). It refers to the merciful act of God whereby he bestows forgiveness of sin upon those who accept it through Christ (John 1:12–14; Eph. 2:8). The idea of grace rules out good works, baptism, or any other man-performed act as the ground of redemption. Because man is a sinful and weak creature, a force greater than himself must provide the way.
Redemption is a progressive experience. While these progressive steps may occur in one fraction of a second, they are all necessary for a genuine spiritual experience. Following conviction there is the element of repentance. Two words for repentance occur in the New Testament. Metamelomai expresses the emotional element in repentance. It means regret. It may be of a godly sort leading to genuine repentance (2 Cor. 7:9–10); it may mean sorrow without genuine repentance (Luke 18:23); or it may mean merely regret that one got caught in his sinful deeds (Matt. 27:3). Metanoia, on the other hand, means a change of mind or attitude. The idea is more than a mere intellectual change; it involves the will as well as the heart (Mark 1:4, 14–15; Luke 17:3; Acts 2:38; Rom. 2:4). It is intellectual in that it produces a change in the individual's view of God and sin: from hating God he loves him; from loving sin he hates it. This idea involves a change of feeling, not simply with regard to what sin does to man but what it does to God (2 Cor. 7:9–10). It involves a change of will. One gets a new purpose in life as he forsakes sin and turns to God (Acts 9:1–6).
Repentance is followed by the exercise of faith. Repenting, one turns to God in faith as he trusts in Jesus for salvation. Faith involves intellect, for there must be something or someone in which to believe (2 Tim. 1:12). But intellectual belief is not enough. The devils believe and tremble (James 2:19). Faith also involves assent that Christ's death does suffice for sin (Acts 2:36–41). Faith furthermore includes the volitional act of trust. Being convinced of the saving efficacy of Christ, the individual surrenders his soul to him (Rom. 1:16) . The New Testament abounds in this truth. Paul, in Romans, declares salvation to be a matter of faith from beginning to end (1:17). The climax of Paul's argument is in chapters 4–5, where he proves that even Abraham was saved not by works but by faith.
Conviction, repentance, and faith result in the experience of conversion. This word, including both repentance and faith, refers to the outward evidence of an inner change. The inner change is repentance and faith; the outward evidence is turning from the old life of rebellion against God to one of service to God (Acts 9:1–22; James 2:14–26; cf. Matt. 3:8; 7:16,20). The word “convert” is also used in the New Testament in the sense of the reconsecration of a Christian (Luke 22:31–32).
The effect of conversion in the unbeliever's heart is the experience of regeneration. This is a change wrought by the Holy Spirit, sometimes called being born again (John 3). It changes men from sons of Satan (John 8:44) into sons of God (John 1:12). In Christ we are new creatures or creations (2 Cor. 5:17). We are said to be begotten of God (1 Peter 1:23). Another figure used to express this idea is that of adoption into the family of God (Rom. 8:14–17). The emphasis here is not on the legal aspect but upon the vital union with God in Christ.
The outcome is the state of justification. This is the judicial act of God whereby he declares the sinner righteous as though he had never sinned, removes the condemnation of sin, and restores him to divine favor (John 3:17–18; 5:24; Rom. 1:17; 8:1–2, 30). The word “justification” translates the Greek word dikaio
, which means, not that one is just or righteous, but that he is declared just or righteous. In Romans Paul develops this idea of how a man may be righteous before God. He concludes that justification is not by works but is a matter of faith from beginning to end (1:17; 3:28).
At this point we note a conflict in religious thought. Beginning in the first century some insisted that faith plus works produce justification (Gal. 2:3; cf. Acts 15). The tone of all New Testament teachings is to the effect that men are saved by grace through faith apart from works (Eph. 2:8–10; Gal. 5:1–7). “The just [those declared righteous] shall live by his faith” (Hab. 2:4) is the only verse from the Old Testament quoted three times in the New Testament (Rom. 1:17; Gal. 3:11; Heb. 10:38). One of Paul's favorite expressions is “in Christ.” There is no condemnation to those who are “in Christ” (Rom. 8:1). Believers are alive unto God “through [in] Christ” (Rom. 6:11). Those “in Christ” are new creatures or creations (2 Cor. 5:17). We are “created in Christ Jesus unto good works” (Eph. 2:10; see also John 14:20 and 1 John 2:6).
This suggests the idea of perseverance. Can the Christian, once saved, ever be lost again? The thundering answer of Scripture is no. The words eternal or everlasting life negate this idea (John 3:16–18). This life is not a future prospect but a present reality (cf. John 5:24). In Ephesians 2:8 we read, “For by grace have ye been saved” (author's translation). This is a perfect passive tense referring to an action in the past, done to one by another, which still continues and will continue in the future. The term “falling from grace” comes from expressions found in Galatians 5:4 and Hebrews 12:15. The true reading is “fall away from.” The idea is that God proposes salvation by grace. To seek salvation by works is to fall away from the way of salvation by grace. When we accept Christ, we become “sons of God” (John 1:12; Rom. 8:15 ff.; cf. Heb. 12:5–11). We may be disobedient sons whom God chastens, but we remain God's children.
2. The continuing salvation.—The purpose of God in redemption as far as time is concerned is the production of holy men and women as members of a holy society (Mullins). The first is accomplished in the instantaneous salvation. All the saved are called “saints” in the New Testament (Acts 9:13, 32, 41; 26:10; Rom. 1:7; 1 Cor. 1:2; 2 Cor. 1:1; Heb. 6:10; Jude 3; Rev. 5:8; and others). The second is brought about by the continuing salvation or sanctification.
The idea of sanctification comes from Hebrew (qadesh) and Greek (hagiaz
) words meaning to separate or to set apart for the service of God (Ex. 13:2; 29:43; Num. 7:1; 1 Chron. 23:13; John 10:36; 17:17, 19). Originally the word “holy” (Isa. 6:3) meant anything set apart for the service of a god. As the word came to be associated with God, it took on the moral content of purity.
It is well to note two wrong views of sanctification. First, it does not give ground for loose living. This thought was present in the first century and still persists today. This view takes on two aspects. “Shall we continue in sin, that grace may abound?” (Rom. 6:1). If grace much more abounds where sin abounds, why refrain from sin? In Romans 6–7 Paul clearly points out that such is impossible for the Christian: note the figures of death (6:2–11), slave and master (6:12–23), man and wife (7:1–25). Again, “Use not liberty for an occasion to the flesh” (Gal. 5:13). In short, do not use liberty as an excuse for license.
Second, sanctification does not refer to perfection. There are those who so take it. Some passages seem to teach this (Matt. 5:48; Eph. 1:4; Phil. 3:15; Heb. 6:1; James 1:4; 1 Peter 1:16), but a careful study reveals otherwise. The word “perfect” is the idea of a goal or an end in view. Anything which performed as it was intended is regarded as perfect, even though it might have imperfections in it, like a knife which cuts even though it has flaws. In that sense, then, we are exhorted to set as our goal perfection so that we shall strive to become as God intends us to be, both in character and service. The Bible quite clearly teaches that so long as we are in the flesh we shall have sin in our bodies (Rom. 7:14–25; James 3:2; 1 Joh...
