Salvation: Sola Fide, Sola Gratia, and Solus Christus
“For God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him shall not perish, but have eternal life.” Most Christians are familiar with John 3:16, a verse often called the “mini-Gospel.” It’s oft-quoted and often one of the first Bible verses a child learns. It seems to be a beautiful picture of God’s love and Jesus’ sacrifice, but there is much more to the verse. The salvation of humanity is the central concept to this verse and requires an action on our part. What is this action and what, really, is salvation?
Salvation can be summed up by saying that we, as fallen humanity, are in need of a Savior, and we cannot be saved by our own efforts, but by placing our faith in the actions of Christ, who died and rose again on our behalf. Essentially, salvation is through three things: sola fide, sola gratia, and solus Christus – translated from Latin, by faith alone, through grace alone, in Christ alone. We know salvation is a beautiful gift from God, but while it is offered to everyone, it does not apply to everyone. So how does one become saved?
“I am The Way, The Truth, and The Life, no one comes to the Father except through me.” Jesus’ words in John 14:6 may be a struggle for many people, hearing that Jesus Christ is the Way. In the secular Western society, nearly half of Americans believe they will go to heaven by being an overall good person. This should be a startling statistic given that nearly 70% of Americans claim to be Christian. Jesus, in the aforementioned verse, did not say he was a Way, but the Way. Scripture makes it astoundingly clear that heaven is not attained in the afterlife through works. In fact, Paul tells us in Ephesians 2:8-9 that, “For by grace you have been saved through faith; and that not of yourselves, it is the gift of God; not as a result of works, so that no one may boast.”
One of the struggles people deal with is that some people in the world are unreached and have never heard the Gospel. The argument they pose is that, if God is so loving, how could he let the person who never had the chance to know Him die and go to Hell? That seems cruel and callous. Unfortunately, all of mankind has inherited a sinful nature and, as Romans 6:23 says, “For the wages of sin is death, but the free gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord.” Romans also makes it clear that God reveals himself through Creation, and if you’d like to learn more about this, see “What’s So Important About Creation?” But you do have the Gospel and you have been exposed to it, so you cannot use the lost person in an unreached nation as your excuse to not make a decision.
This sad truth is that many people will die never knowing God and will never experience a relationship with Him. While this is an unfortunate fact of a fallen world, it is not what God wants. 1 Timothy 2:4 says that God desires all to come to a saving knowledge of Christ. Jesus has paid the price and God does the saving work in an individual, but if God has everything prepared for the whole world to be saved, why isn’t everyone automatically saved? Again, it comes back to sin, which is a destroyer and separator (read “Sin: A Topic That Must Be Discussed”). Salvation, as aforementioned, requires you to make the choice to follow God. This ‘free gift,’ from God does nothing if you do not accept it.
It goes further than that. Becoming a follower of Christ means that you are born again, or re-generated if you will. You have been justified through Christ’s blood and you are being sanctified as a new creation in Christ. Your life should reflect Christ more and more until you reach the perfect, which will come at Christ’s return. Once you are saved, works become a part of your saved life. James 2:26 says that “For just as the body without the spirit is dead, so also faith without works is dead.” As a regenerated creature, you should be living out the ideals shown in Scripture, thus, as an outworking of your faith, you have actions that back it up. It goes even further with that. The concept of salvation can be a difficult and heavy topic to understand. Those who pass away without knowing God will not go to heaven. It is a very bitter truth, but it is the reality of this fallen world.
As a believer, you are called to share the Gospel and understanding the gravity of death without salvation should create urgency and compassion in the hearts of believers. You bear the burden of knowing what happens to those without salvation. What do you do with that knowledge? Do you sit idly by, separating your “Christian life” from your friends and coworkers, or do you talk to them? Living a life that glorifies God and sets you apart is certainly one way people can recognize that you are different and ask why, but Jesus does not call you to merely live a good Christian life. Jesus says explicitly in Mark 16:15 to, “Go into all the world and proclaim the gospel to the whole creation.” You aren’t just called to act or to speak, you are called to do both. While God does 100% of the saving work, you are called to share the Gospel through your life and your words. So the question is this: are you obeying this calling?