1. Salvation

John (J L) Han

Jesus said only those who are sick need a doctor.  Are we sick?  The Bible tells us that every one of us is a sinner, thus needs salvation.  In Romans 3:10 As it is written:

 “There is no one righteous, not even one;

11  there is no one who seeks God.

Some cultures (for example Chinese) have no concept of sin.  The word used for crime in Chinese 罪 is now used for both sin and crime in Chinese Bible and Christian literature.  Crime is measured against laws set by human societies.  On the other hand, sin is measured against God’s commandments or God’s laws.  God’s criteria are much higher than humans.  To see that, we only need to look at the Sermon of the Mount (Matthew 5 - 7).  Some of its verses are well known, even for non-believers.  (On adultery) Matthew 5:27 “You have heard that it was said, ‘You shall not commit adultery.’ 28 But I tell you that anyone who looks at a woman lustfully has already committed adultery with her in his heart. 29 If your right eye causes you to stumble, gouge it out and throw it away. It is better for you to lose one part of your body than for your whole body to be thrown into hell. 30 And if your right hand causes you to stumble, cut it off and throw it away. It is better for you to lose one part of your body than for your whole body to go into hell. (Below is famous in the Old Testament and it also exists in many other cultures: An eye for an eye) 5:38 “You have heard that it was said, ‘Eye for eye, and tooth for tooth.’ 39 But I tell you, do not resist an evil person. If anyone slaps you on the right cheek, turn to them the other cheek also.40 And if anyone wants to sue you and take your shirt, hand over your coat as well. 41 If anyone forces you to go one mile, go with them two miles. (Love your enemy) 5:44 But I tell you, love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you, 45 that you may be children of your Father in heaven. …....48 Be perfect, therefore, as your heavenly Father is perfect.Throughout history all men are sinners, all men except one: Jesus of Nazareth.  Thus, we all need a doctor.  That doctor is Jesus because he is the Son of God and provides salvation to every sinner when he or she confesses his/her sins.  

Baptist John came before Jesus.  The New Testament authors saw it clearly (we will use NIV for Bible verses unless noted otherwise): Matthew 3 In those days John the Baptist came, preaching in the wilderness of Judea 2 and saying, “Repent, for the kingdom of heaven has come near.” 

“A voice of one calling in the wilderness,

‘Prepare the way for the Lord,

    make straight paths for him.’” 3:3 (from Isaiah 40:3).  

The Lord here refers to Jesus.  What does it mean “prepare the way”?  The world was and is full of sins.  Israelis must recognize the sinful nature of the world and repent in order to be saved.  Repentance prepared them for the coming of Jesus and the Kingdom of God.   Just like God told Moses that a man could not face God or he would die.  Repentance is necessary for our salvation.   

Watchman Nee wrote that it is important to recognise that the whole world is corrupt and a saved person does not belong to this world anymore.  Even though we still live in this world we are different from others because we are new men.  II Corinthians 5:17 Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, the new creation has come: The old has gone, the new is here! Even though you still live in this world, if you read the Word of God, pray, and follow Jesus, you belong to God.  

Jesus taught several stories which are not long but each has profound meanings.  Each involves teaching that shows great wisdom.  The rich and the Kingdom of God (Matthew 19:16-26, Mark 10:17-27) is such an example.  Matthew 19:16 Just then a man came up to Jesus and asked, “Teacher, what good thing must I do to get eternal life?” 17 “Why do you ask me about what is good?” Jesus replied. “There is only One who is good. If you want to enter life, keep the commandments.” 18 “Which ones?” he inquired. Jesus replied, “‘You shall not murder, you shall not commit adultery,you shall not steal, you shall not give false testimony, 19 honor your father and mother,’ and ‘love your neighbor as yourself.’” 20 “All these I have kept,” the young man said. “What do I still lack?” 21 Jesus answered, “If you want to be perfect, go, sell your possessions and give to the poor, and you will have treasure in heaven. Then come, follow me.” 22 When the young man heard this, he went away sad, because he had great wealth. 23 Then Jesus said to his disciples, “Truly I tell you, it is hard for someone who is rich to enter the kingdom of heaven. 24 Again I tell you, it is easier for a camel to go through the eye of a needle than for someone who is rich to enter the kingdom of God.” 25 When the disciples heard this, they were greatly astonished and asked, “Who then can be saved?” 26 Jesus looked at them and said, “With man this is impossible, but with God all things are possible.” 

Let us examine this passage carefully.  The man wanted to get eternal life and asked Jesus what he should do in order to get it.  From Martin Luther’s teaching, and the earlier discussion, we know that no matter what we do or how hard we try we cannot get eternal life.  He should have asked Jesus how to get eternal life not what to do to get eternal life.  Jesus emphasized the word good: Only one is good, that is God.  As we saw earlier, every one is a sinner.  Notice that the man asked getting eternal life while Jesus told to him how to enter life, which is to keep Ten Commandments.  When he asked which one, Jesus mentioned the second part of Ten Commandments (cf. Matthew 22:34-40).  Why Jesus did not mention the first part, i.e. love your Lord with all your heart?  Because Jesus knew he would not be able to keep it.  Verse 21 revealed this.  When Jesus asked him to sell his possessions and gave them to the poor, he left because he was very rich.  After this, Jesus told his disciples that “it is easier for a camel to go through the eye of a needle than for someone who is rich to enter the kingdom of God.” The disciples were astonished.  Many Jews are good at money, thinking that wealth can do many things.  They probably thought if a rich man cannot enter Kingdom of God what about our chances?  Jesus’ answer was right to the point: “With man this is impossible, but with God all things are possible.” The first part is just what we said earlier.  The second part shows that God would make this possible.  So we enter the Kingdom of God not by some earthly miracles but by faith in Jesus Christ.  

For simplicity, we regard the Kingdom of Heaven and the Kingdom of God as synonyms.  This term will be explained further in the Chapter about the Church.  Here we only need to know that it can be the paradise after Jesus comes back or foretaste of that paradise, i.e., the Church on the earth.  

Questions:

1) Can you tell the differences between crime and sin?  Give some examples.  

2) Do you have examples acceptable in your culture yet are sins from God’s viewpoint?

3) Explain how to deal with sins in the Old Testament and the New Testament (cf. Hebrews 7-10).  

4) How to deal with crimes or sins is different in different cultures.  Describe this in your culture.  

5) What have you learned from the story of the rich young men and Jesus?  

6) Explain your understanding of “With man this is impossible, but with God all things are possible.”