BIBLE STUDY SERIESTopic: SalvationOctober 25, 2012

For the wages of sin is death, but the gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus

our Lord. Romans 6:23

What is Salvation?

• (Rom 6:23 NIV) For the wages of sin is death, but the gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord.

• (Rom 8:2 NIV) because through Christ Jesus the law of the Spirit of life set me free from the law of sin and death.

Salvation is redemption (being rescued) by God from the effects of sin. We know that every one who sins must pay the ultimate penalty that is death both physical and spiritual.

How do you get Salvation?

• By accepting God’s plan of redemption for you. God has sacrificed another innocent person on your behalf. By accepting this sacrifice, you are declared innocent of all guilt and fit to enter into the presence of God.

How do you get Salvation?• (Rom 10:9 NIV) That if you confess with your mouth, "Jesus is Lord,"

and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead, you will be saved.

• (Rom 10:10 NIV) For it is with your heart that you believe and are justified, and it is with your mouth that you confess and are saved.

• (Rom 10:11 NIV) As the Scripture says, "Anyone who trusts in him will never be put to shame."

• (John 1:29 NIV) The next day John saw Jesus coming toward him and said, "Look, the Lamb of God, who takes away the sin of the world!

• (Eph 2:5 NIV) made us alive with Christ even when we were dead in transgressions--it is by grace you have been saved.

• (Eph 2:8 NIV) For it is by grace you have been saved, through faith--and this not from yourselves, it is the gift of God--

How do you get Salvation?• (Eph 2:9 NIV) not by works, so that no one can boast.• (1 Peter 1:18 NIV) For you know that it was not with perishable

things such as silver or gold that you were redeemed from the empty way of life handed down to you from your forefathers,

• (1 Pet 1:19 NIV) but with the precious blood of Christ, a lamb without blemish or defect.

• (Acts 16:31 NIV) They replied, "Believe in the Lord Jesus, and you will be saved--you and your household."

• (John 10:9 NIV) I am the gate; whoever enters through me will be saved. He will come in and go out, and find pasture.

• (Acts 2:21 NIV) And everyone who calls on the name of the Lord will be saved.'

• (Acts 15:11 NIV) No! We believe it is through the grace of our Lord Jesus that we are saved, just as they are."

• (Luke 7:50 NIV) Jesus said to the woman, "Your faith has saved you; go in peace."

How do we know for sure that we are saved?

• (Rom 4:3 NIV) What does the Scripture say? "Abraham believed God, and it was credited to him as righteousness."

• (Rom 5:5 NIV) And hope does not disappoint us, because God has poured out his love into our hearts by the Holy Spirit, whom he has given us.

• (1 Cor 6:19 NIV) Do you not know that your body is a temple of the Holy Spirit, who is in you, whom you have received from God? You are not your own;

• (1 Cor 6:20 NIV) you were bought at a price. Therefore honor God with your body.

By believing in God and having faith in Him, we are counted righteous. We are in faith here and the only proof that we will have is the down payment that is promised to us…The Holy Spirit.

Can you lose Salvation?

• (Eph 2:8 NIV) For it is by grace you have been saved, through faith--and this not from yourselves, it is the gift of God--

• (Eph 2:9 NIV) not by works, so that no one can boast.

No! Because you did nothing to achieve salvation and because it is a gift of God, it is not possible to lose something that you never made but was gifted to you. Therefore we are told that none of us can boast about it.

Can you lose Salvation?

• (John 10:27 NIV) My sheep listen to my voice; I know them, and they follow me.

• (John 10:28 NIV) I give them eternal life, and they shall never perish; no one can snatch them out of my hand.

• (John 10:29 NIV) My Father, who has given them to me, is greater than all ; no one can snatch them out of my Father's hand.

• (John 17:24 NIV) "Father, I want those you have given me to be with me where I am, and to see my glory, the glory you have given me because you loved me before the creation of the world.

Jesus addresses this issue very clearly when He says that no one can snatch His sheep out of His hand because the Father has chosen them and given them to Him for eternal salvation. (AMEN)

Can you lose Salvation?

• (John 17:12 NIV) While I was with them, I protected them and kept them safe by that name you gave me. None has been lost except the one doomed to destruction so that Scripture would be fulfilled.

• (John 17:9 NIV) I pray for them. I am not praying for the world, but for those you have given me, for they are yours.

• (John 17:11 NIV) I will remain in the world no longer, but they are still in the world, and I am coming to you. Holy Father, protect them by the power of your name--the name you gave me--so that they may be one as we are one.

• (John 17:20 NIV) "My prayer is not for them alone. I pray also for those who will believe in me through their message,

Who are going to be Saved?

• (Rom 10:9 NIV) That if you confess with your mouth, "Jesus is Lord," and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead, you will be saved.

• (Rom 10:10 NIV) For it is with your heart that you believe and are justified, and it is with your mouth that you confess and are saved.

All those who call on the name of the Lord will be saved.

Do we have free will to choose or reject God?

• (John 8:24 NIV) I told you that you would die in your sins; if you do not believe that I (Jesus) am the one I claim to be, you will indeed die in your sins."

Yes! God has never forced anyone to obey Him. He wants us to come to Him of our own free will. Therefore we have a choice, we can accept Him and have eternal life or reject Him and face death and eternal separation from God.

Make sure you are Saved!

• Here is what God thinks of our good works• (Isaiah 64:6 NIV) All of us have become like one who is

unclean, and all our righteous acts are like filthy rags; we all shrivel up like a leaf, and like the wind our sins sweep us away.

• Works do not save us, faith does• (Romans 9:30 NIV) What then shall we say? That the

Gentiles, who did not pursue righteousness, have obtained it, a righteousness that is by faith;

• (Rom 9:31 NIV) but Israel, who pursued a law of righteousness, has not attained it.

• (Rom 9:32 NIV) Why not? Because they pursued it not by faith but as if it were by works. They stumbled over the "stumbling stone."

Once saved we will bear fruit!

• (James 2:14 NIV) What good is it, my brothers, if a man claims to have faith but has no deeds? Can such faith save him? (James 2:15 NIV) Suppose a brother or sister is without clothes and daily food. (James 2:16 NIV) If one of you says to him, "Go, I wish you well; keep warm and well fed," but does nothing about his physical needs, what good is it? (James 2:17 NIV) In the same way, faith by itself, if it is not accompanied by action, is dead.

• (James 2:18 NIV) But someone will say, "You have faith; I have deeds." Show me your faith without deeds, and I will show you my faith by what I do.

Faith will produce works. We cannot do good works to be saved, but once the Lord saves us by faith that He gives us, we will automatically produce fruit. We are like seeds that are sown and our seed will produce a tree that will give its fruit in season.

Blessings to all!

Priests and Levites• Under the Mosaical Law, the tribe of Levi was dedicated to

the service of God. "At that time the LORD separated the tribe of Levi to bear the ark of the covenant of the LORD, to stand before the LORD to minister to Him and to bless in His name, to this day. Therefore Levi has no portion nor inheritance with his brethren; the LORD is his inheritance, just as the LORD your God promised him" (Deuteronomy 10:8-9 ). One member of that tribe, Aaron, was selected by God to be the High Priest. His sons and their descendants were to be the priests for the nation. As each High Priest died, another High Priest was selected from among the priests.

• The priests served as the mediators between God and the people. They are the ones who took the people's sacrifices and offered them up to God (Leviticus 4:20 , 26 , 31 ; Hebrews 8:4 ). The High Priest, in particular, represented the whole nation of Israel before God (Exodus 28:12 ; Hebrews 5:1 ). When a priest sinned, he brought guilt not only upon himself, but also upon the whole people (Leviticus 4:3 ).

• The priests also interceded on behalf of the people before God (Leviticus 9:22-24 ; Numbers 6:22-27 ). And they would inquire of God for the nation (Exodus 28:30 ).

Priests and Levites• The Levites, members of the same tribe, but who were not

descendants of Aaron, served as aides to the priests, doing things like helping to prepare the sacrifices. They took care of the temple, making repairs when needed, and served as musicians, singers, doorkeepers. (Numbers 1:50-53 ; 3:6-9 ; 4:1-33 ; I Chronicles 23). Service began at the age of 25 (though later changed to 20 under King David) and continued until they reached the age of 50 (Numbers 8:24 ; I Chronicles 23:3 ,24-32 ). The Levites were also the teachers of Israel (Deuteronomy 24:8 ; 33:10 ; II Chronicles 35:3 ;Nehemiah 8:7 ) and the nation's scribes (II Chronicles 34:13 ). The Levites were also the nation's judges (Deuteronomy 17:8-9 ; 21:5 ; I Chronicles 23:4 ; II Chronicles 19:8 ; Ezekiel 44:15 , 24 ). They were also the nation's regulators. For instance, they were responsible for accurate weights and measures used in Israel (I Chronicles 23:29 ; Leviticus 19:35-36 ).

• Neither the priests or the Levites spent all their time of service at the temple. Most of the year they had their own homes, farms, and business of which to take care. According to a fixed schedule they took turns performing the duties assigned to them.

Elijah•  Elijah was one of the important Biblical prophets,

who lived in the 9th C BC during the times of King Ahab and his wicked queen Jezebel.   Elijah is regarded by many faiths  (Jews, Christians, Muslims) as  a healer, a miracle maker, and a great hero who stood against the might of Kings and false prophets. He is incorporated in many of the religious accounts (such as the transfiguration of Jesus) and traditions.

Elijah• The Jewish people of 2000 years ago were expecting to see the Old Testament

Prophet Elijah literally, physically descend from heaven. They had been promised that this was going to happen by the Old Testament Prophet Malachi. This prophecy reads:

• "For, behold, the day cometh, that shall burn as an oven; and... all that do wickedly, shall be stubble: and the day that cometh shall burn them up, saith the LORD of hosts, that it shall leave them neither root nor branch... And ye shall tread down the wicked; for they shall be ashes under the soles of your feet in the day that I shall do [this], saith the LORD of hosts.... Behold, I will send you Elijah the prophet before the coming of the great and dreadful day of the LORD" -Malachi 4:1-5

• According to the Old Testament book of II Kings, Elijah the Prophet had ascended "into heaven" in a "chariot of fire." (see: chapter 2) This spectacular event supposedly happened about 850 years before Christ. Later, in about 450 BC, Malachi prophesied that this same Elijah, who had ascended into heaven, was also going to return from heaven to herald the coming of the Messiah... the Christ.

• Elijah who had ascended "into heaven" in a "chariot of fire" was going to return from heaven to announce the coming of the Messiah... the Christ.

• The reason why the return of Elijah prophecy was so important is that it became one of the primary reasons why the Jewish people rejected Jesus' claim to be the Messiah. The Jewish religious leaders of two thousand years ago knew that Elijah was going to return before the Christ was going to come. So, they concluded, that Jesus or anyone else who claimed to be the Messiah before Elijah visibly returned from heaven had to be an impostor.

PhariseesAt the time Jesus Christ walked the earth, the Pharisees were the "conservative party" within Judaism. They held very strictly to the Torah and the Talmud and were very outwardly moral. They were the leaders of the majority of the Jews, mostly the "common people." They were revered by their followers for their religious zeal and dedication, and they were held up as models worthy of imitation. Their main opposition was the party of the Sadducees, who were the "liberal party" within Judaism. They did not believe that the damned will be punished eternally in hell and that the saved will dwell eternally in heaven. The Sadducees were popular among the high-class minority.

Sadducees• The Sadducees were elitists who wanted to maintain the priestly

caste, but they were also liberal in their willingness to incorporate Hellenism into their lives, something the Pharisees opposed. The Sadducees rejected the idea of the Oral Law and insisted on a literal interpretation of the Written Law; consequently, they did not believe in an afterlife, since it is not mentioned in the Torah. The main focus of Sadducee life was rituals associated with the Temple.

• The Sadducees disappeared around 70 A.D., after the destruction of the Second Temple (see below). None of the writings of the Sadducees survived, so the little we know about them comes from their Pharisaic opponents.

• These two "parties" served in the Great Sanhedrin, a kind of Jewish Supreme Court made up of 71 members whose responsibility was to interpret civil and religious laws.