My theology of salvation

What is salvation? Must I know Jesus to be saved? Am I saved by grace alone or do I have to work towards my salvation? Who can be saved?

These questions often boggle the minds of many new believers and even those who will consider themselves seasoned Christians. Salvation is often defined very simply as a free gift that is available to all who accept it. Whoever accepts this free gift will then get the gift of salvation. But is accepting this free gift really all it takes to be saved? How about those who have not had the chance to even hear of this free gift? Will they be saved?

I will attempt to address the questions while putting forward my theology of the topic: Salvation. Though I have been brought up as and Adventist since young, I will attempt to make my answers as broad as possible and not just come from the Adventists’ point of view.

My definition of Salvation
My personal definition of the word or term, Salvation, is God saving man from the effects and the power of Sin. Now that we have a general idea of what Salvation is all about, we can move onto other issues regarding Salvation.

Must I be a Christian to be saved?
Born-again Christians who have lost brothers, sisters, parents, friends or relatives who never did know Jesus, people who are questioning if they can be saved and if they must join a Christian denomination to be saved as this question.

Often, John 14:6 is quoted and used to tell or sometimes even scare people into becoming a Christian.

Jn 14:6 Jesus said to him, I am the Way and the Truth and the Life; no one comes to the Father except by (through) Me. (NLT)

According to the text, the Bible says Jesus is the Way, the Truth and the Life and that “no one comes to the Father except through” Him. I have heard others say that if you do not become a Christian, you won’t be saved. Worse still are some who claim that only their own denomination will be saved! Is God’s love limited to only a handful of people?

My personal view on this matter might greatly shock some people but nonetheless, it is that we do not need to know Jesus (the name) to be saved. If knowing Jesus is in fact the only way to be saved, how about all the famous men in the Bible who lived before the time of Jesus? Elisha, Joshua, Caleb, Adam, David (who was the man after God’s own heart) and a whole list of many other people who lived and walked with God. Since Jesus came after their deaths, would they be lost?

In the Gospels, we read of Jesus and his death on the cross for us – the plan of salvation, the thief of the cross who asked Jesus to remember him. I believe that Christianity helps us to understand God’s redeeming grace and plan of salvation better than any other religion does, but being a Christian does not assure you of salvation. You are better equipped in making the decision to follow Christ and let God lead you life, but you are no better off in gaining salvation than others.

My understanding of knowing Jesus and being saved can be shown in a model that Dr. Fanwar has shown us in his lectures on the topic of Salvation. This is a slightly modified version of the model that was drawn out by Dr. Fanwar during the class lectures.



In this model, salvation comes to one when he has reached the Covenant Confrontation experience and moved on to a closer relationship with God. Once he has reached that point, he is saved. There is a chance that he might drop back down to the mundane area again – it all depends on his relationship with God. Using Adventist terminology, once probation closes, all who have been walking close to God no longer stand a chance to be lost. To sum up my point, a person does not have to know the name/man Jesus in order to be saved.

In the model above, I have listed in the mundane—world—religion section, religious societies or organizations such as Taoism, Christianity, Hinduism and if you have noticed, there are arrows that point up and down. Up, leading to salvation and down, leading to ultimate destruction.

I believe that as the sun shines down on the earth, heating it up and illuminating everything, so does the presence of God and His Holy Spirit work in our lives. The Sun is constant, it is there, but in different areas of the world, the effects of the sun differ by far – places near to the equator experience a lot more warmth from the sun as compared to places that are closer to the north and south poles of the earth.

It is my personal belief that the Holy Spirit works in each one of us, in our consciences, making us feel bad or guilty when we have done something wrong, prompting us to do something that is right rather than wrong. The very fact that every human on this earth, whether Christian, Hindu, Atheist or Buddhist have a conscience in them that prompts them on issues of right or wrong tells us that there is a part of God’s image in us that has been left in us despite the effects of sin in this world – that alone I consider to be a work of God in us.

God is working in every facet of our lives, regardless of what religion we are of! Religion is described by John Hick as man-made. Will something that is man-made save us from ultimate evil? No! Only God can save us from ultimate evil and ultimate destruction.

The question now comes - Can you know God without knowing Jesus? Particularist’s claim that you cannot be saved unless you are a Christian. Quoting Acts 4:12 - Ac 4:12 Salvation is found in no one else, for there is no other name under heaven given to men by which we must be saved.” (NIV) So, can anyone else other than a Christian (someone who professes faith in Jesus) be saved? In the book of Genesis 14:18-20, we read of a worshiper of the true God in the man named Melchizedek. He was a priest and worshiper of the one true God in a land full of heathen people! If this could happen in the times of Abraham, could it happen today too? Definitely! I am not taking sides with what I would call an extreme side (Pluralist View) where they say that all religions lead to God. No, I am not siding with pluralistic views, but I am saying that there is some light available to people regardless of religion, somewhere between the Pluralist view and the Particularist views where I believe, God’s saving grace operates even on the outside of the boundaries of the church.

I strongly believe that if someone is really earnest in searching for God, despite whatever religion (label) he is in, he will find God, and when he does, he will know Him and be saved. All who hear the voice of God and answer to Him will be saved. God is always with you in the form of the Holy Spirit, no matter where you are, you will never walk alone. It is your relationship with God, the creator of heaven and of earth that saves you, not doctrinal beliefs that you have from your religion or religious caste. God is waiting for you, he wants you to experience Him and be saved! What are you waiting for!