Twin Ditches of Salvation

Salvation.  Every Christian claims it in some sense, yet it is one of the least understood doctrines in the Church.  I want to tackle just one little aspect of it: the need to stay out of the twin ditches of ticket-punching and earned salvation.  What in the world am I talking about? 

Well, ticket-punching is my term for those who believe that when someone says a prayer (typically a sinner’s prayer), they have a one-way ticket to heaven.  Nothing left to do, really.  Now, if you want to be a really good Christian, then you can pray, tithe, and try to show up for church on Sundays.  But if you don’t do any of those, it’s okay, because you’re golden.  That’s one extreme view of salvation.

The other extreme view is that of earned salvation.  Here, the newly-minted Christian is told that transformation is key and transformation comes from obedience to God.  Being at church every time the doors are open is the minimum standard.  Get involved in ministries, go on missions, volunteer at the church, give, give, give, and then give some more.  You can never do enough.  Literally.

Why do so many fall into one of these ditches?  One reason is because we are seldom taught the different aspects of salvation.  Salvation isn’t a one-time event in the past and it isn’t something we achieve by merit.  Instead, think of it as having different parts that occur at different times.

I like the analogy of a swimmer who is drowning in a raging, stormy sea.  He’s going down for the last time.  But a lady on shore can see the swimmer drowning and gets in a boat to save him.  She rows out, reaches, and grabs the swimmer’s hand.  She pulls him into the boat.  She rows against the mighty waves to get him near the shore.  They land and quickly run for shelter from the storm.   Now, was the swimmer saved when she grabbed his hand, or when she pulled him into the boat, or on the way back to shore, or when they were on land and in shelter?  The simple answer is: Yes.

And that’s how we look at salvation.  If you are a Christian, it is something that happened to you in the past (election, conversion, justification, regeneration).  It is happening to you now (sanctification, preservation).  It will happen to you in the future (death and glorification).  It’s almost a process: you were saved, you are being saved, you will be saved.  Knowing how that process works will help keep you out of those ditches!