Understanding Salvation: Insights into Humanity's Most Pressing Questions

Explore salvation, delving into humanity's most pressing questions and gain profound insights 

in this thought-provoking analysis.

Salvation and Man's Questions 

Who will be saved? How many will be saved? Will all the Jews be saved? 

Luke 13:23 “Someone asked him, ‘Lord, are only a few people going to be saved?” It would appear that Jesus’ hearers were beginning to understand from His teaching that not all the Jews would be saved. Jesus doesn’t give them a “yes” or “no” answer just to satisfy their curiosity. Rather He challenges them to make every effort to enter through the narrow door. He then adds: “... because many, I tell you, will try to enter and will not be able to.” (verse 24)

 In this way, Jesus makes very clear that not everyone who wants to will be saved. In the end when people see for themselves the dreadful realities of hell, they will cry out to be saved but cannot. (Cf. the story about Lazarus and the rich man in torment -- Luke 16:23-24.) 

So Jesus challenges all who would be saved to “make every effort to enter through the narrow door”. This is obviously not a matter to take lightly or to give occasional effort to. Without a wholehearted, serious striving to enter in, man can be taken captive by the enemy and destroyed. Only those who so strive will be saved. 

Luke 18:26 “Those who heard this asked,Who then can be saved?” 

This verse comes at the end of the passage that tells about the encounter of Jesus with the rich young ruler. Jesus tells this man to sell all he owned and give to the poor, and then to come and follow Him. He went away disappointed with Jesus’ words. This also meant that he walked away (perhaps forever) from any hope of receiving the very eternal life he ‘was seeking after. 

This teaches us that we must reject an easy-believism, eg. “Just believe and you’ll be saved!” Jesus calls people not just to receive eternal life as a gift but also to follow Him, i.e. to submit their wills wholly to His will as Master. People can only be saved on God’s terms, not theirs.