The Bible tells that salvation, also referred to as deliverance or redemption is the act of saving people from sin and its consequences. It has been written that there are seven deadly sins…listed as follows, lust, gluttony, greed, laziness, wrath, envy, and pride. There are many more as counted in just the Old Testament alone… Consider that the entire books of Leviticus and Deuteronomy are devoted to revealing to the Israelites God’s laws. Jewish rabbis say that there are 613 laws in the Torah (Books of Moses). Of those, 365 are in the “thou shalt not…” category. It is not my intention to do a numerical count of sins but when considering salvation delivers us from it, it would be most helpful to recognize it for what it is. I have been reading both secular and religious writings about sin and I thought there might be a simple way to put it. I have shared with you in the past that I am a simple layman, there are no letters of distinction that follow my name…here I am just a few words into this blog and I find myself buried under an avalanche of words within the written and digital world, both secular and theological. The Pew has for years had a tagline …  “A Layman’s Look At The Gospel”. So here is my view. 

It is my belief that anything that separates us from God is a sin. That covers a lot of ground. Sin is due to personal behavior and sometimes can be the result of attitudes that foster defiance and it hurts to write but also are the result of one who has a hatred of God. Yes, there are those in this world that hate God. We as Christians accept the Judaic concept of sin but look to the New Testament thought that the sinful nature of humanity is a condition that Jesus came into the world to heal. There is no way that any rational person could ever deny that sin is not destructive to those who do so and to those around them. Where there are the attributes of sin the Holy Spirit cannot abide.

Why is salvation important?

Salvation means being saved from sin, living a life here on earth that allows for a strong relationship with God, which in turn allows our relationship with Jesus Christ to strengthen our resolve and to live a good Christian life. How do we receive Salvation? Many writers and many ways have attempted to give us the answer for this question. … one source says salvation can be achieved in the following manner: “Live a holy and righteous life dedicated to Yahweh, the God of Creation. Fast, worship, and celebrate during the appropriate holidays.”  Simple OT reasoning and then there is the Theological term “atonement”. It centers on cleansing of impurity from the Temple, mind and bodies. Then there is the  New Testament notions  “Christ died for our sins” 1 Corinthians 15:3  “we were reconciled to God through his sacrifice. 

1 Corinthians 15:3

3 For I handed on to you as of first importance what I in turn had received: that Christ died for our sins in accordance with the scriptures,

My one thought here is to keep this simple. Salvation is freely given to those who seek it…but… there is that caveat. The gift is free but requires a true repentance and the spiritual maintenance of mind, body and soul, that we might be acceptable in His sight. I thought that in keeping it simple Wikipedia did it best……

“Repentance is reviewing one’s actions and feeling contrition or regret for past wrongs, which is accompanied by commitment to and actual actions that show and prove a change for the better.”

Now sins are divided by some to be judged by their severity, and state of intent. There are those of an intentional nature, knowingly done and those of omission and lack of vigilance. Love is the balm of Christian thought and action. How do we live to serve God and Christ?

1 Corinthians 13: 4-8, 13

4 Love is patient; love is kind; love is not envious or boastful or arrogant 5 or rude. It does not insist on its own way; it is not irritable or resentful; 6 it does not rejoice in wrongdoing, but rejoices in the truth. 7 It bears all things, believes all things, hopes all things, endures all things. 8 Love never ends….   13 And now faith, hope, and love abide, these three; and the greatest of these is love.

Fill life with Love.

Life is Good

jk