Romans 13:11 “Besides
this you know the time, that the hour has come for you to wake from sleep. For
salvation is nearer to us now than when we first believed.”
i just love a good Bible lesson. I was just talking to another Elder of our church about how much we learn about eternal truths from the godly greats of the past, who wrote down their insights into the Holy Scriptures and their application for all ages. Today was not exception as i came across a little study on the Romans verse above. It explained, per
Romans 13:8-10, we fulfill the law of God through our love of Him and our
neighbor, but Paul is clear that our own fulfillment of the law is not what
grants us salvation. Our fulfillment of the law remains imperfect in this life,
for we continue to struggle in the flesh against sin. The only reason why we
can even begin to fulfill the law lies in the fact that Christ was born under
the law and fulfilled it for us, succeeding where both Adam and Israel failed.
Through faith alone, this obedience is imputed to us and we are justified, or
declared righteous in the sight of God. Paul speaks elsewhere of salvation as a
past event, using the word salvation as a synonym for justification.
However,
the Apostle does not use the term salvation only for the past event of our
"once-for-all" justification. The lesson as us to just consider the passage above. Paul says our “salvation is
nearer to us now than when we first believed”. Clearly, then, he views
salvation as a future event in at least some sense. The 1828 Webster’s
dictionary defines the word “salvation” as: The act of saving;
preservation from destruction, danger or great calamity. Appropriately in
theology, the redemption of man from the bondage of sin and liability to
eternal death, and the conferring on him everlasting happiness. This is the
great salvation. Paul’s varied usage
of the term salvation reflects the Bible’s insistence that redemption is a
past, present, and future reality. We were saved; we are being saved; and we
will be saved. If we look at salvation as an overarching concept that encompasses
past, present, and future, it becomes clear that Scripture views salvation as a
work that begins with regeneration and justification, continues on in
sanctification, and then is finally brought to completion in our glorification,
or the point at which all remnants of sin are purged from us. In the ultimate
sense, we do not experience salvation the moment we are born again; that is
just one aspect of salvation. The fullness of our salvation will not take place
until our glorification when we enter into heaven.
Certainly,
the Lord guarantees the present and future aspects of salvation by what He has done in the past. If we have been
justified, we will certainly be glorified, and if someone falls away, it is
because he never had saving faith. In any case, the future aspect of our
salvation that we will enjoy in our glorification is nearer now than when we
first believed. Every day, we get closer to the appointed time at which our
Savior will return, remove all sin from creation, and bring us into glory. That
salvation draws near has ramifications for our lives in the present. God always
finishes the work that He starts, and if we are in Christ now, our future glorification
is assured. This helps us put our confidence in the right place. Because the
Lord has us in His hand, we can trust that He will work out all His purposes for
us. When we grow discouraged with the lack of holiness in our lives, we must remember
that God is working in us, that He will finish what He started, and that if we
seek His face, we will enjoy all the benefits of His redemption.
What a great blessing this lesson is as we live it out in our lives!
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