Is there anything wrong with saying that Jesus offers the gift of salvation? What about saying that Jesus is the means by which we are saved? Or what about saying simply that Jesus saves?
No.
There’s nothing wrong with any of those previous statements; in fact, they’re all biblical.
Paul says that salvation is a gift when he writes, “For it is by grace you have been saved, through faith—and this is not from yourselves, it is the giftof God” (Eph. 2:8). Jesus says that he is the means of salvation when he says, “I am the way the truth and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me” (Jn. 14:6).And at the beginning of his gospel Matthew writes, “She will give birth to a son, and you are to give him the name Jesus, because he will savehis people from their sins” (Mt. 1:21).
And yet, even though all of those earlier statements are wonderful biblical truths, there’s still an aspect to the relationship of Jesus and salvation that isn’t mentioned in any of them—an aspect worth discovering and meditating on.
Luke, one of the four gospel writers, has an interesting and helpful emphasis—one that appears early in the story he tells. This Lukan emphasis is on the fact that Jesus is salvation.
Luke begins his gospel unlike any of the other four by explaining that many other people have gone about writing down the story of Jesus’ life (Lk. 1:1-2). He then begins his rendition of the story with two births: John the Baptist and Jesus. After Jesus is born he’s presented in the temple and Simeon, who was righteous and devout, was there. Luke says that as the Holy Spirit moved Simeon he went into the temple courts, took Jesus in his arms, praised God, and said, “My eyes have seen your salvation” (Lk. 2:30).
Simeon doesn’t say that he sees the salvation Jesus will bring. Instead, Simeon says that he has seen God’s salvation. Simeon is holding in his hands and looking at salvation. In Simeon’s mind, according to what Simeon says, Jesus is salvation.
Shortly thereafter we read of John the Baptist going into all the country around the Jordan and preaching a baptism of repentance for the forgiveness of sins (Lk. 3:3). As part of his preaching John says, “The crooked roads shall become straight, the rough ways smooth. And all people will see God’s salvation” (Lk. 3:5-6). In context, Jesus is the one being talked about. And, again, it’s striking what isn’t said. John the Baptist doesn’t say something like, “And all people will see the salvation God will bring through Jesus.” He’s clear in saying that Jesus is salvation; salvation that will be seen be all people.
It’s important to Luke for him to establish the fact that Jesus is salvation right from the beginning of his gospel story. Luke does this by personalizing salvation, which is done not by pointing to the people who will be saved but by pointing to the one in whom they will be saved.
Jesus is not merely the bringer of salvation—as wonderful and as biblical as that truth is. Jesus is not merely the vehicle by which salvation is executed—as wonderful and as biblical as that truth is. Jesus is not merely the one who does the saving—as wonderful and as biblical as that truth is.
Jesus is salvation.
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How should we then live?
How does seeing Jesus as salvation change the way you view your relationship with him?