What Does It Mean to Be Saved?: A Study in the Wonderfulness of Salvation

By Elden Daniel

To completely and thoroughly answer the question "what does it mean to be saved?" is impossible. Why is that? I can think of a least four reasons and maybe there are additional reasons.

1.     There is more yet to be revealed about what it means to be saved.

Dear friends

• Language: English
• Publisher: Elden Daniel
• Release date: Apr 15, 2022
• ISBN: 9781088031407

Elden Daniel

...the unsearchable riches of Christ (Ephesians 3:8 KJV). ...the endless treasures available to them in Christ (Ephesians 3:8 NLT). ...the boundless riches of Christ (Ephesians 3:8 NIV).

Book preview

What Does It Mean to Be Saved?

What Does It Mean to Be Saved?

What Does It Mean to Be Saved?

A Study in the Wonderfulness of Salvation

Dr. Elden Daniel

Elden Daniel

Copyright © 2022 by Dr. Elden Daniel

All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reproduced in any manner whatsoever without written permission except in the case of brief quotations embodied in critical articles and reviews.

First Printing, 2022

All Scripture quotations, unless otherwise indicated, are taken from the Holy Bible, New International Version®, NIV®. Copyright ©1973, 1978, 1984, 2011 by Biblica, Inc.™ Used by permission of Zondervan. All rights reserved worldwide. www.zondervan.com The NIV and New International Version are trademarks registered in the United States Patent and Trademark Office by Biblica, Inc.™

Contents

Preface

1 Being Saved

2 Who is Jesus?

3 Eternal Life

4 Two Adams

5 Two Covenants

6 Lost and Found

7 Saved From What?

8 Save to What?

9 Disciple-Jesus Follower

10 Equipped

11 Family/Flock/Body

12 Trials

13 Hated

14 Light

15 Serving

16 Struggles

17 Fellowship

18 Daily

19 Mystery

20 Rewards

References

Acknowledgments

About the Author

Other Books by Dr. Daniel

Notes

Preface

To completely and thoroughly answer the question what does it mean to be saved? is impossible. Why is that? I can think of a least four reasons and maybe there are additional reasons.

There is more yet to be revealed about what it means to be saved.

Dear friends, we are already God’s children, but he has not yet shown us what we will be like when Christ appears. But we do know that we will be like him, for we will see him as he really is (1 John 3:2 NLT).

2. Those who are saved cannot see clearly yet.

Now we see things imperfectly, like puzzling reflections in a mirror, but then we will see everything with perfect clarity. All that I know now is partial and incomplete, but then I will know everything completely, just as God now knows me completely (1 Corinthians 13:12 NLT).

3. The benefits and the extent of God’s salvation are beyond what those who are saved can understand.

That is what the Scriptures mean when they say, "No eye has seen, no ear has heard, and no mind has imagined what God has prepared for those who love him (1 Corinthians 2:9 NLT).

4. For those who are saved, there is a personal, private, and sometimes secret special relationship between them and the Lord Jesus.

Nothing in all creation is hidden from God. Everything is naked and exposed before his eyes, and he is the one to whom we are accountable (Hebrews 4:13 NLT).

Then why attempt to answer the question what does it mean to be saved? Because there is much that has been revealed about being saved. Because there is much that is being experienced by those who are saved. Besides, being saved is good news and there is no reason to keep good news a secret.

Readers will discover in this book descriptions and illustrations of many aspects and components for those who are saved. Although there are many components, it is important to remember that the components do not stand alone. They are parts of a whole. The components are complementary and supportive of each other. The components enhance and enrich each other. When all is considered, the clear conclusion is that it is wonderful to be a saved person.

Presentation Style

Some authors very effectively insert phrases from Scripture to support their text. Other authors will list references to support their text assuming the diligent listener will pause and look up the references. I have chosen to quote the entire Scripture passage. My reasoning has been based upon the truth that the Holy Spirit indwelling the reader will apply the Word of God in the personal life of the reader in an appropriate manner that only the Holy Spirit knows. Every believer is on a personal individual journey in which the Holy Spirit is renewing their mind and transforming them into the image of Christ. 

The truth that impacts and changes lives is found in the Word of God. It is important to remember when we read Scripture it is the Lord speaking to you and me. The words we read from Scripture are meant to be taken personally.

 My comments may or may not be helpful but the Scriptures will be helpful. Many times, I have grouped several Scriptural passages around a specific topic, this way, the message from the whole of Scripture somehow seems clearer.

My personal experience has been and this may be true for you as well, sometimes, usually during a time of solitude and quiet, the Scriptural concepts, principles or benefits move from my head to my heart. It is not unusual for the move from head to heart to also generate a few tears of thankfulness and blessing.

The Word of God is God speaking to mankind. Think of it, Almighty God the Creator of Heaven and Earth, and everything in it is speaking to you and me. Jesus, God's Son, came to earth as a man and died for the world's sin, was buried and rose again, is speaking to you and me. The Father and the Son sent the Holy Spirit to teach and guide believers in Jesus is speaking to you and me. This reality is both humbling and wonderful. It is good to listen to hear and obey.

You may wonder why so many Scriptural references are quoted including at times rather lengthy passages. Although I cite the reference of the passage, if there are multiple verses, I include them continuously without dividing them into individual verses. I believe this supports the continuity of the passage.

Each separate topic is part of a whole. My goal is to separate some content from Scripture, focus on it, and indicate or imply its importance to the whole of Scripture. I also want to provide insight into the application of the Word in the life of the Jesus follower.

When presenting passages, I deliberately left out the numbering of verses. When you read a passage that involves several verses, it will be one continuous passage. That is the way it originally appeared. Noting chapter and verse is a wonderful tool for referencing. We often see numbering in legal documents. However, it is my view that often breaking up a passage with the numbering of verses can be a distraction that hinders grasping the full meaning. Think about it. If you write a letter to a friend, you don't number the sentences or the lines. You want your thoughts to flow together.

1

Being Saved

What is being saved? Is being saved important? Who needs to be saved? Saved from what? Save to what? How can a person be saved? What is the process of saving? Who is doing the saving? Who can be saved? Is being saved hard? Once saved does a person need to be saved again? So many questions.

There is a derisive statement that says, Teachers make the simple complex and hard. Sadly, this is sometimes true. Salvation as taught in the New Testament is very clear and actually very easily understood. Over the last two centuries, people have been presenting salvation in non-biblical terms. Some teach that salvation is something that has to be earned. Some of these people are false teachers who we are warned about in the Scriptures. Some of these people create cults that follow them based on the cult leader's explanation of how to be saved. Some are people who present a way of salvation that invests them with the power to determine who can be saved. All of these distortions put some person or protocol in place that is a substitute for God.

We will be seeking to explore what the Scriptures tell us about the topic of being saved and salvation. The Scripture is very clear and actually very simple in its explanation about salvation. By the time we are through the exploration, I think most of the questions in the first paragraph will be answered.

Tozer in The Pursuit of God states:

We will start with a must. This is what Jesus told Nicodemus.

Jesus replied, Very truly I tell you, no one can see the kingdom of God unless they are born again. (John 3:3).

‘You must be born again.’ (John 3:7)

Oswald Chambers in My utmost for His Highest reflects:

The Apostle Peter declared:

For Jesus is the one referred to in the Scriptures, where it says, ‘The stone that you builders rejected has now become the cornerstone.’ There is salvation in no one else! God has given no other name under heaven by which we must be saved (Acts 4:11-12 NLT).

This gives a very clear start to our exploration. Born again must happen and salvation comes through Jesus.

Who needs to be saved? Probably the most recognized verse in the New Testament is John 3:16. This short verse addresses the who and the how of salvation. We also gain insight into the why of salvation.

For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life (John 3:16).

This verse shows that there are two categories of people. One category is those who are perishing and the other category is those who have eternal life.

Perishing

What does it take to qualify to be in the category of perishing? Actually, nothing because everyone who is born is in that category. The whole world is perishing. John 3:16 is an intervening and rescuing verse. God has intervened in a world that is perishing so that it is possible to not perish.

Think about the word perishing. In news stories about air disasters or disasters at sea the numbers of loss of life are reported as souls that perished. We often hear this term around other disasters, tornados, earthquakes, avalanches, and hurricanes. Perishing is a loss.

Fruit and vegetables are often labeled perishable. We say they have a shelf life and if not used at the proper time they will perish. If they perish, they are lost and have to be discarded. Periodically my wife cleans out the refrigerator and discards the fruit or vegetables that are going bad and beginning to perish. Perishing fruit and vegetables are beginning to rot and decay. Often these perishing items will smell bad, sometimes very bad. This is an unpleasant picture of perishing. 

It is important to understand that the perishing category includes everyone. Everyone is perishing. Everyone in the perishing category are sinners. Paul states this very clearly.

For everyone has sinned; we all fall short of God’s glorious standard (Romans 3:23 NLT).

Perishing speaks of death. Those that perished in disasters died. Those in the other category in John 3:16 do not die but have eternal life. There is a great contrast between the categories. Paul goes on to say:

For the wages of sin is death, but the free gift of God is eternal life through Christ Jesus our Lord (Romans 6:23 NLT).

How did those who were born into the perishing category become sinners? The simple answer is, by being born. How is this possible? The answer is found in the doctrine of original sin. Remember the Garden of Eden. Remember Adam and Eve. Remember the temptation from Satan. Remember the Tree of the Knowledge of Good and Evil. Think of all the famous artwork and paintings depicting the temptation of Eve.

Now, remember the reproduction principle that the Lord established in His Creation. The principle was: that each created living thing would reproduce after their kind. Horses have baby horses. Chickens have baby chickens. Fish have baby fish. Sunflowers have baby sunflowers. People have baby people. The babies grow up to have more babies. This is a wonderful plan.

When Adam and Eve disobey the Lord and sinned by partaking of the Tree of the Knowledge of Good and Evil, they were changed. And Adam and Eve experienced their change because they became aware that they were naked and they tried to hide from the Lord. The Lord is holy. The Lord is to be obeyed. After all the Lord is Supreme and Creator of all. The Lord graciously intervened and provided a covering for Adam and Eve’s nakedness with the skins of an animal. This animal’s death may have been the first death in Creation. We don’t know for sure but think about it. 

Adam and Eve followed the principle of procreating after their kind. However, their progeny were sinners. One of their sons murdered his brother. Already the first family had an understanding of substitutional sacrifice in atonement for sin because it was in a dispute over an acceptable sacrifice that Cain murdered Abel.

Everyone born since Adam and Eve have been born in the likeness of Adam and Eve and are sinners. It has been an unending progression. Again, this is how the perishing became sinners. Later we will explore this concept further as we explore the two Adams teaching from Scripture.

However, before we go on, it is important to point out that the after-its-kind principle did not apply to Jesus because Jesus was born of a virgin and was conceived by the Holy Spirit. Therefore, Jesus is not after the kind of Adam and Eve.

Eternal Life

Let's spend some time looking at the second category, those who have eternal life. Notice this category does not include everyone. In this category, we are introduced to the whoevers. The distinctive of the whoevers is they believed God. Specifically, they believed that Jesus was the Son of God and died as the substitute for the whoevers so that they would no longer be in the perishing category. The whoevers would not die and would not perish but instead would have life and that life would be eternal. This means the whoevers would not experience death.