What is the Meaning of Salvation According to the Bible?
Part II
And when he was alone, they that were about him with the twelve asked of him the parable.
And he said unto them,
Unto you it is given to know the mystery of the kingdom of God: but unto them that are without, all these things are done in parables: That seeing they may see, and not perceive; and hearing they may hear, and not understand; lest at any time they should be converted, and their sins should be forgiven them.
Mark 4:10-17
"In the New Testament a mystery is not a decipherable puzzle but a profound spiritual truth..."1
God is our Salvation, Jesus is our Lord and Savior and through Him is our Salvation brought to us by His revelation to us. this mystery that Jesus told us about is called that because it cannot be known except by the revelation of God to us. Those who do not believe are those without. Jesus chose His disciples, many followed Him around and some believed Him. Even His disciples were not able to apprehend the fact of His coming crucifixion, death, burial, resurrection, and ascension. The disciples with Jesus when He was transfigured did not comprehend all that was revealed to their eyes at the time, overwhelming as it had to be to them. The disciples watched Jesus ascend into Heaven and as they were watching, God's Holy Angels revealed to them that He would return to earth at the exact spot He ascended from. All these things were the fulfillment of scripture. Jesus has not returned, but it was revealed where He would return and the disciples were told by the Angels that He would return which conforms to prophecy by Zechariah.
Then shall the LORD go forth, and fight against those nations, as when he fought in the day of battle. And his feet shall stand in that day upon the mount of Olives, which is before Jerusalem on the east, and the mount of Olives shall cleave in the midst thereof toward the east and toward the west, and there shall be a very great valley; and half of the mountain shall remove toward the north, and half of it toward the south.
Zechariah 14:3-4
The mystery of the Kingdom of God is unveiled for us by the First Advent of Jesus Christ, the Messiah. Since Jesus came to earth as a man the things of God which were not perceived by people have been opened to us to understand plainly. However, not everyone is able to perceive the revelation of the Kingdom of Heaven. Many things can be understood by those who do not believe, but the revelation of God to people is not understood by those who will not believe on Jesus. Our work is to believe. None of our efforts in then flesh, in the natural capacity of people, are of any effect. At best all we are capable of is to be obedient to God and if we do not believe on Him Who was sent to us, even that escapes our grasp.
Who hath ears to hear, let him hear.
And the disciples came, and said unto him, Why speakest thou unto them in parables? He answered and said unto them, Because it is given unto you to know the mysteries of the kingdom of heaven, but to them it is not given. For whosoever hath, to him shall be given, and he shall have more abundance: but whosoever hath not, from him shall be taken away even that he hath. Therefore speak I to them in parables: because they seeing see not; and hearing they hear not, neither do they understand. And in them is fulfilled the prophecy of Esaias, which saith, By hearing ye shall hear, and shall not understand; and seeing ye shall see, and shall not perceive: For this people’s heart is waxed gross, and their ears are dull of hearing, and their eyes they have closed; lest at any time they should see with their eyes, and hear with their ears, and should understand with their heart, and should be converted, and I should heal them. But blessed are your eyes, for they see: and your ears, for they hear. For verily I say unto you, That many prophets and righteous men have desired to see those things which ye see, and have not seen them; and to hear those things which ye hear, and have not heard them.
Matthew 13:9-17
The person who believes the revelation of Jesus Christ, believing that in Him is salvation, receives the gift of Faith. As soon as we believe we receive the Holy Spirit Who teaches us all things about God as our hearts are opened by Him. Those who do not know Jesus do not believe the words that He spoke to us and do not have the Holy Spirit and cannot know the things of God as they are. People have heard of Jesus and know that we have proclaimed Him as Lord and Savior, knowing that we believe Him. However, to them it is a lie and nonsense. In refusing to believe and in refusing to receive Him, the revelation of God, the things of God, and His Kingdom remain a mystery even though it is open to anyone with eyes to see and ears to hear. Even in the believers life, as we learn of the things of God we balk at knowing the revelation as it is made manifest in our lives because it comes into conflict with that part of us that clings to the things of this world. We have a natural resistance to the revelation of God in the part of us that Paul describes as fleshly, the natural man as opposed to the spiritual man. The part of the cosmos that seems to be spiritual but is just another part of creation and is hidden from us is like the natural or fleshly part of mankind. Confusing the revelation of God, that which is truly spirit, with the natural and created part of the universe hinders people. Beings that we call gods, goddesses, spirits, demons, and devils are created beings and reside in another realm. They seem to be "spiritual" because they are from a realm that is not part of our everyday reality. Sometimes we notice them due to circumstances that we are unaware of that allow the veil between them and us to be parted. This causes confusion between the real Kingdom and the false spiritual kingdom in some of us. Before I believed I understood that all things are from God, but the a priori fact of His creation was confused with the division that came about as a result of death. The false spiritual realm is separate from the real that is of God as part of His Kingdom. That is one reason why God says that we should have nothing to do with the false realm, it confuses us as to which is real and blinds us to the Kingdom of God.
Jesus said that "whosoever hath not, from him shall be taken away even that he hath". Those who have not believed and have not the Kingdom of God hidden in their hearts find themselves to be blinded more as their lives progress with the false becoming more real to them by being imbued with the falseness of that which they have to know from the realm that seems spiritual but is not. It is not understood that the creation which is worshipped is not God, nor can it be. The false spiritual realm is unknown to us by ordinary means and people pursue it because it is of a different order than that which we know or are capable of on our own. Hardening our hearts to the real, people are left with only the false by which to judge and the Kingdom of God and the possibility of knowing and recognizing it becomes more distant and therefore out of reach. The, even that which we have shall be taken away. Each rejection of the truth, the revelation of Jesus Christ puts people closer to not having the Kingdom of God, to having even that which a person has of the Kingdom of God. In common understanding that we have in this natural world things that transcend this existence all seem of a higher order of reality. Mankind has learned things which have allowed us to know the makeup of an element, the existence of subatomic particles, and see into the past by means of scientific endeavor. Science has been able to show us what the universe actually looked like before we were born. We know that because the speed of light it takes a certain time for the light from a star to reach us that some stars we see in the sky no longer exist. That kind of knowing is based on the principles of science that are not available to everyone to operate in practice. Some people are able to perceive things others are not, being given information about the future because of a certain predisposition that we are born with or by certain rituals that call upon created beings in the false spiritual realm. While that realm is seen as being of a different or higher order that ordinary experience, it is not the Kingdom of God that is given to know by revelation from God that Jesus spoke of and revealed to us. If we have the Kingdom of God hidden in our hearts the Holy Spirit reveals more of it to us as we are able to receive it.
For I would not, brethren, that ye should be ignorant of this mystery, lest ye should be wise in your own conceits; that blindness in part is happened to Israel, until the fulness of the Gentiles be come in.
Romans 11:25
The revelation of the mystery, that spiritually profound truth that is Jesus opened revelation of the Kingdom of God to those who believe. Paul is speaking to those who have believed on Jesus. It is essential to keep in mind that it was not of our ability or of any ability apart from that given by the revelation of God that the mystery could be known. Before God was revealed through the earthly ministry of Jesus Christ people could not have known some of the things of the Old Testament. Even if we who believe in Him do not understand and choose to remain blind to the revelation of Jesus to us will begin to think that it is our reason and ability is the cause of our understanding and forget God, becoming wise in our own pet ideas and conceits.
In this verse the mystery of the salvation reserved for the Gentiles is known because of the coming of Jesus Messiah the first time. It is obvious in the Old Testament that God had a plan for the salvation of the whole world, not just the Jews, but it is obvious only now, since Jesus revealed that which is of the Kingdom of God. Paul speaks of the fulness of the Gentiles and the fact that Israel will no longer be blind after the fulness of the Gentiles.
"The fullness of the Gentiles refers to the time when the last Gentile will have been saved and the church will be removed from the earth by the Rapture. It is distinct from the Time of the Gentiles (Luke 21:24), which refers to the period of time from the Babylonian captivity (587 B. C.) to the rapture of the church."2
Now to him that is of power to stablish you according to my gospel, and the preaching of Jesus Christ, according to the revelation of the mystery, which was kept secret since the world began, But now is made manifest, and by the scriptures of the prophets, according to the commandment of the everlasting God, made known to all nations for the obedience of faith: To God only wise, be glory through Jesus Christ for ever. Amen.
Romans 16:25-27
If we cannot grow in our knowledge of the revelation of Jesus of the Kingdom of God by our own ability, then how is it that we can? Paul explained it to the Romans in the above verses.
Howbeit we speak wisdom among them that are perfect: yet not the wisdom of this world, nor of the princes of this world, that come to nought: But we speak the wisdom of God in a mystery, even the hidden wisdom, which God ordained before the world unto our glory: Which none of the princes of this world knew: for had they known it, they would not have crucified the Lord of glory. But as it is written, Eye hath not seen, nor ear heard, neither have entered into the heart of man, the things which God hath prepared for them that love him. But God hath revealed them unto us by his Spirit: for the Spirit searcheth all things, yea, the deep things of God.
I Corinthians 2:6-10
The purpose of God concerning our salvation was designed by God from eternity and is directed toward the everlasting glory that believers will enjoy in His presence...Revealed … unto us: Unto us is in the emphatic position in Greek, emphasizing the enormous privilege granted the recipients of divine revelation. The magnificent treasure of God’s revealed truth is accessible to the mature believer.3
For what man knoweth the things of a man, save the spirit of man which is in him? even so the things of God knoweth no man, but the Spirit of God. Now we have received, not the spirit of the world, but the spirit which is of God; that we might know the things that are freely given to us of God. Which things also we speak, not in the words which man’s wisdom teacheth, but which the Holy Ghost teacheth; comparing spiritual things with spiritual. But the natural man receiveth not the things of the Spirit of God: for they are foolishness unto him: neither can he know them, because they are spiritually discerned. But he that is spiritual judgeth all things, yet he himself is judged of no man. For who hath known the mind of the Lord, that he may instruct him? But we have the mind of Christ.
I Corinthians 2:11-16
1, 2, 3 Thomas Nelson, Inc., King James Version Study Bible [computer file], electronic ed., Logos Library System, (Nashville: Thomas Nelson) 1997, ©1988 by Liberty University.
to be continued