The Age of Salvation

The Good News announced by Jesus Christ offers salvation and life to men and women of every nation and people.

After his resurrection, Jesus declared: “All authority in heaven and on earth is given to me, therefore, go and make disciples of all nations!” He then dispatched his disciples to announce his Lordship and Salvation to the “ends of the Earth.” The Era of Salvation commenced with his Death and Resurrection; therefore, his life-giving message must be announced to all men. The Son of God has achieved salvation for his people!

God exalted Jesus to the Messianic Throne as promised in the Scriptures: “I will give you the nations for your inheritance, and the uttermost parts of the earth for your possession,” and therefore he sent his ambassadors to announce his sovereignty and salvation throughout the Earth – (Psalm 2:8).

[Photo by Philipp Waldhauer on Unsplash]

By bestowing the Gift of the Spirit on them, Jesus empowers his disciples to proclaim his Good News to the world, the one task he assigned to his Church before his departure and Ascension - “You will receive power when the Holy Spirit comes upon you, and you will be my witnesses in Jerusalem, in all Judaea and Samaria, and to the ends of the Earth” – (Acts 1:8).

This salvation is for men of every generation and nation without exception. Jesus died and God raised him from the dead so men and women no longer would live for themselves but for Him.

God loved humanity so much that He “gave his only born Son” so all men might believe and receive “everlasting life.” Moreover, Jesus bequeathed to each of us the ministry of reconciling men and women to His Father by proclaiming the Gospel of His Kingdom – (John 3:16, Acts 2:36-38, 2 Corinthians 5:17-20).

Because of his suffering “for our sins,” God raised Jesus from the dead and “highly exalted him, granting him the name that is above every name,” – JESUS - the name that means “Yahweh saves.”

Through this same Jesus, the salvation promised by the God of Israel is now offered to all humanity and every nation. His Son has become the “Ruler of the Kings of the Earth,” and he is “shepherding the nations” until the day when they will stand before him and his Father’s “Throne” in the New Creation – (Philippians 2:6-11, Revelation 1:4-6, 7:9-17, 12:5-11).

All peoples and nations belong to Jesus. He is the “Ruler of the Kings of the Earth.” His sacrificial death voided the legal claim of Satan over humanity, and his resurrection broke the iron grip of Death that held us all. This is a radical message of liberation from the tyranny of sin, Satan, and death that all men must hear – (1 Corinthians 15:1-6, Philippians 2:6-11, Hebrews 2:14-15, Revelation 1:6-8,3:21, 5:5-14).

HIS ONE PEOPLE

God has “spoken” definitively and with eloquent finality through His Son. He alone “achieved the purification of sin,” therefore, he sits “at the right hand of the Majesty on High places” as the Great High Priest who mediates salvation for his people. He alone has achieved victory over sin and conquered Death – (Hebrews 1:1-4).

Salvation is available to all men “through the faith of Jesus Christ for all who believe, for there is no distinction.” The offer of life is provided to all because of the faithful obedience of the Son of God, the one who “died for our sins” when we were still “enemies of God” and “dead in our trespasses” – (Romans 3:21-22).

Sin is the Equalizer that condemns every man, woman, and child to bondage, decay, hopelessness, and death. Neither ethnicity, political power, nor economic status makes any difference. Death awaits us all.

Because of his Death and Resurrection, anyone may receive the forgiveness of sin and justification before God, whether Jew or Gentile, male or female, poor or rich; namely, “from the faith of Jesus Christ.” For the disciples of Jesus, death will be reversed when he raises them from the dead on the last day – (1 Corinthians 15:20-28).

Considering his faithful act on our behalf when we deserved death, all that penitent men and women can do is respond to his generous offer by placing faith in Jesus and what God accomplished in him.

Since His Son “achieved the purification of sins,” God is creating a new community composed of men and women from every nation who have been redeemed by the blood of Jesus, the ‘Ekklésia’, the “Assembly.” Every person who places faith in Jesus becomes a member of this holy community – (Ephesians 2:15).

No nation, civilization, or political ideology can claim Jesus or his teachings as its property. His Gospel is a message for every man, woman, and child on the Earth; therefore, it transcends all national and cultural boundaries. His disciples proclaim one message for all men, whether “Jew or Gentile, bond or free, male and female, for all are one in Christ Jesus” – (Galatians 3:28).

In the truest sense, his “Good News” is a universal message and religion. All men have sinned. Everyone needs salvation and everlasting life. No one deserves it, “No, not one,” but God graciously offers it freely to one and all through His Son.

Finally, salvation is provided on the same basis to every man, woman, and child, namely, from the faith of Jesus Christ. All we can do is respond with repentance and faith to this offer and the self-sacrificial act of the Nazarene who “gave his life” as the ransom price to free us from sin, Satan, and death.

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SEE ALSO:

• The Absent Church? - (Revelation is a message to the Church concerned with its real-life situation as it bears witness in a hostile world – Revelation 4:1-3)

• Redeeming the Nations - (The nations and the Kings of the Earth are found in the City of New Jerusalem because of the redeeming work of the Slain Lamb)

• The Shepherd King - (The Lamb’s reign commenced with his death and resurrection, and since then, he has been shepherding the nations toward New Jerusalem)