Saved

I'm sure you've heard of the concept of "Christianese." It refers to the language we Christians speak. Our own jargon. We use words like "Trinity" as if they're real although they are unique to Christianity and we use more common words like "justification" and "salvation" with particular ideas in mind rather than the ones normally used by the general public. It's our own shorthand, our own mode of communication. Unfortunately, I think sometimes our own shorthand shortchanges us. We lose sight of the actual intent of some of our jargon and then miss out on some of its wonder.

Take "salvation," for instance. What do we mean by that? Well, we're saved from sin. Yeah!! Good!! But ... is that all? "Isn't that enough?" some might ask. Maybe, but I think there is more.

In the Bible the word has multiple uses. There is, indeed, our common concept -- sasved from the penalties of sin. But it goes beyond that. In Numbers God told Israel when they entered Canaan "you shall be saved from your enemies" (Num 10:9). That's standard "saved" there, not "saved from sin." In fact, that concept is very common in Scripture (e.g., Deut 33:29; 2 Sam 19:9; 2 Sam 22:4; Neh 9:27; Psa 18:3; Psa 44:7; Luke 1:71). In Acts 27 Paul, on the ship in the storm, warned the centurion, "Unless these men stay in the ship, you cannot be saved" (Acts 27:31). Clearly not "saved from the penalty of sin." In Acts 2 Peter urged his listeners to "Save yourselves from this crooked generation" (Acts 2:40). That is, repenting and being baptized -- becoming one "whom the Lord our God calls to Himself" (Acts 2:39) -- helps protect us from the world of sin.

Christianity is predicated on the concept of Salvation. So we throw out that word as if it means one thing. And then we forget just what it is. Biblically it means "saved from wrath" (Rom 5:9). Biblically it is not, in that sense, something we can do. It is only accomplished by Christ's death and resurrection on our behalf. We are "saved by grace through faith" (Eph 2:8-9) and not by anything we do. And it is ongoing (Rom 13:11). But beyond that it is so much more. We are sustained by God (1 Cor 1:8-9). We are continually kept by God from stumbling (Jude 1:24-25; 1 Peter 1:5; Php 1:6). We are saved from calamity by a Sovereign, loving Father, saved from evil in a world that intends it, saved from a sinful world that would mislead and destroy us. We are radically saved, and the best part -- saved from God's just wrath -- is just that ... only part. If you trust in Christ, you are saved ... in more ways than one. Let's not let jargon rob us of great blessings.