The Hope of Salvation

“And because iniquity shall abound, the love of many shall wax cold. But he that shall endure unto the end, the same SHALL BE saved” (Mat. 24:12,13). “But we believe that through the grace of the Lord Jesus Christ we SHALL BE saved, even as they” (Acts 15:11). “And that, knowing the time, that now it is high time to awake out of sleep: for now is our salvation NEARER than when we believed” (Rom. 13:11). “Wherefore, my beloved, as ye have always obeyed , not as in my presence only, but now much more in my absence, WORK OUT your own salvation with fear and trembling” (Philip. 2:12). “But let us, who are of the day, be sober, putting on the breastplate of faith and love; and for an helmet, the HOPE of salvation. For God hath not appointed us to wrath, but to OBTAIN salvation by our Lord Jesus Christ” (I Thess. 5:8,9). “Therefore I endure all things for the elect’s sakes, that THEY may also OBTAIN the salvation which is in Christ Jesus with eternal glory” (II Tim. 2:10). “So Christ was once offered to bear the sins of many; and unto them that look for him shall he appear the second time without sin UNTO salvation” (Heb. 9:28). “To an inheritance incorruptible, and undefiled, and that fadeth not away, reserved in heaven for you, WHO ARE KEPT by the power of God through faith UNTO salvation ready to be revealed in the LAST time… Receiving the END of your faith, even the salvation of your souls” (I Pet. 1:4,5,9). Now friend, I ask you to read the above scripture passages slowly and closely, and note the words that I have capitalized for emphasis sake. Then tell me, where does the Christian tradition come from that says a believer receives salvation at the beginning of his faith? It is universally accepted and believed, but it is also obviously proven to be erroneous by consistent evidence of the scriptures.

As the above scriptural passages plainly confirm, salvation is the HOPE that we presently have, and will attain unto at the end of our earthly pilgrimage, IF we are faithful to the Lord in obedience of holiness till the end. Salvation CANNOT be a hope, as the scriptures state, and be something that we presently have at the same time, as the following passage clearly states: “For we are saved by HOPE: but hope that is seen is not hope: for what a man seeth, why doth he yet hope for? But if we hope for that we see not, then do we with patience wait for it” (Rom. 8:24,25). And the beloved apostle clarifies exactly what this hope is, as well as what it takes to obtain it: “Beloved, now are we the sons of God, and it doth not yet appear what we shall be: but we know that, when he shall appear, we shall be like him; for we shall see him as he is. And every man that hath this HOPE in him purifieth himself, even as he is pure” (I Jn. 3:2,3). That is correct my friend, the “one hope” of the Gospel is the first resurrection at the second coming of Jesus to this world, at which time the faithful and elect of God will be raised from the dead, or changed to immortality and eternal glory with the Lord (Eph. 4:4; I Cor. 15:51-53; Philip. 3:21; I Thess. 4:15-17). That my friend, is salvation. In conclusion I would just like to point out that the great apostle Paul declared plainly that he did NOT have this salvation while he was still in this life: “That I may know him, and the power of his resurrection, and the fellowship of his sufferings, being made conformable unto his death; If by any means I MIGHT ATTAIN UNTO the resurrection of the dead” (Philip. 3:10,11). I don’t know about you friend, but I am not on a spiritual level even with or above that man, nor am I able to critique his words. But I AM heartily in agreement with him. I think that’s a save place to be. God bless.