Soteriology and the Christian Life
Soteriology is basically the study of salvation in the Bible. Soteriology is a major theme in the
Bible and a proper understanding of it makes clear the answer to man’s greatest need, salvation.
Salvation is deliverance from sin, death, and eternal punishment to spiritual blessings seen both
now and in an eternal life with God.
The verb “to save” is found over 100 times in the New Testament and is translated to “rescue,”
“deliver,” and “save.” The word “salvation” is used 49 times and “savior” 24 times. In the midst
of a storm on the Sea of Galilee, the disciples cried out, “Save us, Lord; we are perishing!” (Matt
8:25; also see 14:30). This use of the word is when the Lord saves someone from earthly peril.
But the doctrine of soteriology deals with spiritual salvation. John the Baptist was called the
“horn of salvation” at his birth (Luke 1:69, 77). Those who heard Jesus’ teaching asked, “Then
who can be saved?” (Luke 18:26). Peter preached, “there is salvation in no one else; for there is
no other name under heaven that has been given among men by which we must be saved” (Acts
4:12). The Philippian jailer asked Paul and Silas, “Sirs, what must I do to be saved?” (Acts
16:30). Paul said that “if you confess with your mouth Jesus is Lord, and believe in your heart
that God raised Him from the dead, you will be saved” (Rom 10:9). These are just a few
examples out of the almost 200 in the NT which speak of an eternal, theological meaning of
deliverance from sin and the wrath of God against that sin.
Knowing what the Bible has to say about salvation helps to answer key theological questions we
have as Christians. As we have seen with false teaching, the main question we want to answer is,
“how is one saved?” Another question we want to answer by studying the Scriptures is, “who are
the objects of salvation?” Are the angels, the creation, or humans the only ones who are saved?
Is justification a process like the Roman Catholicism teaches, or is it an event like evangelical
theology believes? Another important concept to study is the order of salvation. God is not a God
of disorder and has put specific statements in the Bible by which we can learn how certain events
occur in our salvation. This deals with how to line up election, divine calling, regeneration,
conversion (faith and repentance), union with Christ, justification, sanctification, and
glorification. Obviously different theological camps will arrange these differently, but we must
ask what the Bible teaches on these issues.
By studying what the Bible teaches on salvation, we are able to preach a true gospel to
