The Study Of “salvation” Series

The Study Of “Salvation”

John 3:16 For God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting life.

Long ago, King David asked God: “What is man that you are mindful of him, and the son of man that You visit him?” (Psalms 8:4). People have many things in common with animals. They breathe the same air. They eat similar food. They have many of the same needs. But people are different from animals.

Because people are different from animals, we want to know why we are here. What is our purpose on this earth? Since we know that we only live a few short years, how should we use our time? Should we live only to satisfy the needs of our bodies? Should we spend our time looking for the pleasure of this world?

Because we are different from animals, we want to know where we are going when we die. Life on earth is very short. Job said: “Man who is born of woman is of few days and full of trouble. He comes forth like a flower and fades away; he flees like a shadow and does not continue” (Job 14:1, 2). Are we the same as animals when we die? Do we just breathe our last breath and then there is nothing?

How can we find the answer to these questions? The only One who can give us the answers is God, Who created us. The answers are found in His book, the Bible. In the Bible, God has told us who we are, why we are here on earth, and where we will go when we die.

What Is Man?

What is man? What makes people different from animals? The Apostle Paul answered this question when he wrote to the Christians in Thessalonica: “Now may the God of peace Himself sanctify you completely; and may your whole spirit, soul, and body be preserved blameless at the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ” (1 Thessalonians 5:23). Animals have physical bodies only. But every person has a spirit within his body. Our bodies will die, decay, and return to the dust from which the first man, Adam, was made (Genesis 3:19; Genesis 35:18; James 2:26). But the spiritual part of man will continue to live. The Bible says: “Then the dust (our bodies) will return to the earth as it was, and the spirit (the thinking, conscious, eternal soul which lives within the body) will return to God who gave it” (Ecclesiastes 12:7).

Why Are We Here?

Life on earth is very short. Death will soon come to each one of us. Therefore, we are not wise if we live only to satisfy the needs of our bodies. We are also very foolish if we live only for the pleasures of this world.

The Apostles John warned: “Do not love the world or the things in the world. If anyone loves the world, the love of the Father is not in him. For all that is in the world - the lust of the flesh, the lust of the eyes, and the pride of life - is not of the Father but is of the world. And the World is passing away, and the lust of it; but he who does the will of God abides forever” (1 John 2:15-17). Jesus Christ, the Son of God, asked: “What is a man profited if he gains the whole world, and loses his own soul? Or what shall a man give in exchange for his soul” (Matthew 16:26)? Our purpose on this earth is to bring glory to God by doing what He has told us to do in the Bible. A wise man wrote: “Fear God and keep His commandments, for this is the whole duty of man” (Ecclesiastes 12:13).

Where Are We Going?

Where will our spirits go when we die? What happens when we leave this earth? After we die, we will go to be judged by God. “It is appointed unto men once to die, but after this the judgment” (Hebrews 9:27). Each person will be judged for his own life (Romans 14:12). Each will be judged according to the way he has lived on earth (2 Corinthians 5:10).

After the Judgment, there are only two possible places to go. One place is for those who have lived for God and served His son, Jesus Christ. It is a place of peace, happiness, and rest. It is called Heaven (John14:1-3; 2 Corinthians 4:16-5:6; Philippians 3:20; Revelation 21:3-5). The other place is for those who refuse to obey God, reject Jesus Christ, or spend their lives in the pleasures of this world. It is called “Hell,” “the second death,” and the “lake of fire” (Matthew 10:28; Matthew 25:41, 46; 2 Thessalonians 1:7-10).