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 | Salvation by good deeds, and |
| Salvation by lifestyle changes |
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The synoptic gospels: Salvation by doing good deeds:
In the early Church, there were 40 or 50 gospels in circulation which were regarded as accurate portrayals of the life of Jesus. Of the four of these which were accepted into the official canon of the Christian Scriptures (New Testament), most Biblical theologians regard Mark as the oldest. Most theologians agree from an analysis of Matthew and Luke that those two authors copied major portions of Mark into their own gospels. Thus, Mark, Matthew and Luke, the Synoptic Gospels, show a great internal consistency.
Jesus talked extensively about individuals being saved and inheriting the Kingdom of Heaven. The main path to salvation that he described is based on good works and attitudes. Salvation is dependent on what people do and how they behave towards others - particularly the poor. Repentance, belief in Jesus or the act of baptism are irrelevant. Actions and attitudes only matter. This path is described very clearly in two passages:
| Matthew 25:31-46: This is an important passage, because it describes the exact criteria which Matthew believed will be used at the Final Judgment when Jesus separates all the people of the world into two groups: those who will enter heaven and those who will spend eternity in hell. Addressing those on his right, Jesus says that they will "inherit the kingdom prepared for you from the foundation of the world." He orders those on his left hand to "depart from me, you cursed, into the eternal fire prepared for the devil and his [fallen] angels." where they will go away into eternal punishment." The sole criteria for routing individuals to heaven or hell is whether the person gave food, drink or clothing to the destitute, and welcomed strangers and visited the sick or persons in prison. That is, salvation is totally dependent upon one's treatment of one's fellow humans while on earth. The ancient creeds of the Christian church appear to agree with this concept. | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Luke 10:25-27: This is another important passage, because it gives Mark's
recollection of Jesus' precise response to a lawyer who asked what one must do to inherit
eternal life; i.e. to attain salvation and spend eternity in heaven. Jesus had him
recite "The Law" from the Hebrew Scriptures (Old Testament) which requires a
person to:
The lawyer then asked the obvious question: who is my neighbor? The Leviticus passage implied that one's neighbors are restricted to one's own nation or tribe. Jesus disagreed with the passage in Deuteronomy, and responded with the well-known Parable of the Good Samaritan, which indicates that all humans are one's neighbors. The parable describes a man who had been attacked by robbers and left half dead. Two Jewish religious leaders come upon the man: a priest and a Levite. The Jewish law forbids holy men from touching a dead person; it would be an act of ritual impurity, a serious defilement. They walk on the other side of the road to avoid any contact with the victim. A Samaritan comes by, bandages the man's wounds and helps him to a place where he can recover. The Jews of the day despised the Samaritans, regarding them as semi-pagan, inferior and persons of little worth. Jesus told the lawyer to be more like the Samaritan than like the Levite and Priest. That is, to make compassion for others the highest priority in life, and to downgrade religious rules and regulations to a lower level of importance. Jesus makes clear in this passage that one attains eternal life in heaven by loving God and loving all humans, particularly the poor, needy and broken. | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Other supporting passages are:
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Jesus seems to have recognized that his strict instructions for living a life of justice and caring for others is very difficult for most people; few will attain salvation:
| Matthew 7:14 "...small is the gate and narrow the road that leads to life, and only a few find it." |
| Matthew 19:24 "...it is easier for a camel to go through the eye of a needle than for a rich man to enter the kingdom of God" |
| Luke 13:23-30 "Lord, are only a few people going to be saved?...many I tell you will try to enter and will not be able to." |
The disciples were distressed at Jesus' statement in Matthew 19:24. They asked who can be saved. He replied that an individual trying on their own to do good and attain salvation will always fail. But with God's help, they will be able to achieve salvation through this route.
The synoptic gospels: Salvation by changing one's lifestyle:
The second, minor, path to salvation in the synoptic Gospels involves poverty and following Jesus. This requires one to abandon their family, give away their possessions, accept a life of poverty, and follow Jesus. There are major anti-family aspects involved. This path is mentioned in the following passages:
| Matthew 19:27-30: Peter had said that he and the rest of the disciples had left everything to follow Jesus. He asked what would happen to them. Jesus replied that his followers would sit on twelve thrones, judging the twelve tribes of Israel. Verse 29 continues: "And everyone who has left houses or brothers or sisters or father or mother or children or fields for my sake will receive a hundred times as much and will inherit eternal life." (Some ancient manuscripts of Luke said "everyone who has left...mother or wife") |
| Mark 10:28-30: This is similar to Matthew 19:27-30 |
| Luke 9:59-62: "Then He said to another, 'Follow Me.' But he said, 'Lord, let me first go and bury my father.' Jesus said to him, 'Let the dead bury their own dead, but you go and preach the kingdom of God.' And another also said, 'Lord, I will follow You, but let me first go and bid them farewell who are at my house.' But Jesus said to him, 'No one, having put his hand to the plow, and looking back, is fit for the kingdom of God.'" (NKJ) Jesus seems to be implying that to attain the kingdom of God, one is expected to drop everything and follow Jesus. This was so important that a person should violate a Jewish laws by not giving priority to burying their father. |
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Home page > Christianity > Christian themes... > Salvation > Bible > here |
Copyright © 1997 to 2002 incl. by
Ontario Consultants on Religious Tolerance
Latest update: 2002-DEC-29
Author: B.A. Robinson
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