E96 - Hope’s Harbor Gritty Bible Devotions - Causes & Effects of Salvation - Part 1
Hope’s Harbor
Gritty Bible Devotions
Episode #96
Title: The Causes and Effects of Salvation – Part 1 of 4
Date: March 6, 2023
Contact: info@hopesharbor.net
Key verse: Luke 1:77 – ‘To give knowledge of salvation to His people By the remission of their sins…’
Salvation throughout the Bible means deliverance, rescue, and safety. Salvation is available to us by the remission of our sins. Remission is another word for forgiveness. It also means freedom, pardon, deliverance, and liberty, and by these, we escape the wrath of GOD. The word salvation is taken from a root word meaning to send forth. And so, GOD sent forth forgiveness based on the sacrifice of His Son’s life.
Intro: This subject, the effects of salvation, became difficult to develop due to so many differing opinions among theologians. Not only about the effects but also the order in which they occur.
For this episode, the effects are listed in the order of a logical progression. If anyone disagrees, it’s okay. This is a topic somewhat open to debate, just keep in mind that the order isn’t as crucial as understanding the effects.
This is because by understanding the causes and effects, we are blessed with the knowledge of what GOD did for us through His Son, Jesus’s, death on that cross.
Here is the order of cause and effect for this episode:
The causes: Redemption - Calling, Regeneration. The effects: faith and repentance, justification, adoption (new birth), sanctification, and glorification (when we get to Heaven).
Devotion focus:
Here is the order explained: Redemption is what GOD made available through Jesus’s death on the cross. And then, calling and regeneration are believed to lead to faith and repentance. (Repentance in the context of salvation is when we turn to GOD. Repentance from sin is a lifelong process that occurs during sanctification).
Justification is necessary for faith to allow us access to GOD. We are justified to stand before Him and ask to be saved from sin. Adoption (through the new birth upon calling on Jesus to save us) is what GOD does based on the atonement for sin. Again, we are justified to stand before GOD innocent, and this is only through Jesus’s death in our place. And by adoption, we become a child of GOD, and this by the new birth.
Then begins the process of sanctification, which is being set apart for GOD while being delivered from the practice of sin. This involves our part of repenting from sin. This is never-ending in during our life because although we are GOD’s child now, our old nature continues to struggle to dominate us, by ruling over our new spirit.
And finally, glorification. This occurs after death of the body when we are freed from the presence of sin. It is the final effect of salvation.
We’ll look at each of the causes and effects in the next few episodes.
Summary: The salvation of our souls involves causes that lead us to be saved if we choose to place faith in Jesus’s paying the debt for our sins, and then we live in the benefits of the effects. Knowing these and understanding their importance brings peace and confidence toward GOD. This series also is a good lead-in the following series on the Attributes of GOD.
Action to consider: Study the Wheel of Salvation on page 3. Even though Reconciliation is concomitant, or naturally associated, to Redemption, it is helpful to see it listed separately on the wheel. And actually, reconciliation comes after the new birth, that of being born again, as Jesus told Nicodemus one night, in John chapter three.
The visual aid of the salvation wheel may be printed and put up somewhere easily seen throughout the week, as a reinforcement to learning more about GOD’s great work of salvation for us.
The Wheel lists the causes and effects of Salvation circled around with Salvation in the center. It’s pretty neat.
Next week’s devotion: Three Causes of Salvation
Appendix: I could not get the Wheel of Salvation image to paste here- it is found at this link:
http://www.cbhastings.com/cbh/wheel/SALWHEEL.htm#_Toc534291236