| |
...rescued from drowning
|
The Salvation Series
To Be Saved
by haRold Smith
a citizen of the Commonwealth (Ephesians 2:19)
"...be it known to you all, and to all the people of Yisra'el, that
in the name of Yeshua the Messiah of Natzeret,
whom you crucified, whom YaHoVeH raised from the dead,
in Him
does this man stand here before you whole. He is 'the stone which was regarded as worthless by you, the builders, which has become the head of the corner.'
There is salvation in none other, for neither is there
any other name
under heaven, that is given among men, by which we must be saved!" Acts 4:10-12
Kristin wrote, "After reading your recent article
Scriptural Salvation,
I looked into the word "salvation" in the New Testament, using the
John 4:22
verse as my basis since that's the verse you quote. And I know Peter would have known how to make it clear to the people around him as to Whom he is referring every time. So why in Acts 4:10-12 (quoted above), if salvation is found in Yehovah's name alone, then why would Peter say this? I know that Yehovah is the One True God. I'm not looking at the trinity because I don't believe it. But what does he mean - because he clearly states "by the name of Yeshua the Messiah?"
In order to understand what these Hebrew authors were actually trying to convey, we must first understand the context they were speaking from - we must always consider the context the words are presented in, the context of the Hebrew perspective they are presented from and, most importantly, the audience they are presented to. In the exchange taking place in
Acts 4 (click on highlighted words to view content),
the context begins with verse 1 which says that the Sadducee became incensed because Peter and John were proclaiming that in Yeshua is found "the resurrection of the dead" - which the Sadducee looked upon as meaning having an afterlife. But this is not what the apostles were proclaiming. The Sadducee were elitists who wanted to maintain the priestly caste, but they were also liberal in their willingness to incorporate
Hellenism
into their lives, something the Pharisees opposed. The Sadducee rejected the idea of the Oral Law (the Talmud) and insisted on a literal interpretation of the Written Law (the Torah); consequently, they did not believe in an afterlife
(Acts 23:8),
since it is
not mentioned
in the Tanakh (renamed the OT). Thus, they were insistent that the apostles be dealt with according to Torah and were taking them before the elders and rulers of the Temple for that purpose. It was in this setting before the council that Peter quotes
Psalm 118:22
and Isaiah 28.16
as the validation of their claim that Yeshua, having been raised from the dead
by YaHoVeH,
is the proper authority through which the Source of Life passes.
We have to ask ourselves, what does it mean to be "saved" - in a real world context. In order to understand the Hebrew perspective these words were spoken from, we have to first distance ourselves from the Christian theology of salvation which means to obtain an afterlife in a place called
"heaven"
- the Sadducee were right that an afterlife is not mentioned in Tanakh. Christianity has assumed such a position under the influence of the same Hellenistic thought as the Pharisee but by divorcing itself from the Tanakh has produced an opposite effect. So, understanding how these Hebrew authors perceived "being saved" is essential in keeping us from falling into the same error. Without understanding what that word "saved" actually meant to the Hebrew, the question, "Are you saved?" doesn't make much sense. Saved from what? To "be saved" or "to save" in Hebrew from
Deuteronomy 20:4
is yasa'
which mirrors the Greek word
sozo
in its meaning to rescue, to save one suffering from disease, to make well, heal, restore to health. There is nothing in this definition concerning a place called "heaven". It is translated in
John 12:47
as "save" and Romans 10:9
as "saved". We could all answer the question if it was, "Did someone rescue you from death?" That is a yes or no question. If you were drowning and someone pulled you out of the water, you would know right away that you had been saved - right now, in the here and now. Yeshua Himself said the Kingdom of heaven is among us
right now.
The context of what is being presented in Acts 4 is preceded by Acts 3:16 of the lame man being healed in the presence of many witnesses.
The expression "in the name of" was coined from the Hebrew purification ritual surrounding the
mikveh
(co-opted by Christianity under the guise of "water baptism"). Usually, a minimum of three witnesses were to observe the purifying ritual of self-immersion to be certain that the worshiper had been completely submerged in the water. This witnessing factor was based on the Hebraic idea that every matter is established in the presence of two or three witnesses
(Deuteronomy 17:6,
Matthew 18:16).
Witnesses were so important that those who immersed themselves were often said to have been immersed "in the name of" or "under the authority of" the witness(es). Thus, those being immersed along the Jordan were said to have been "immersed unto John"
(Acts 19:3)
just as the Israelites had been "immersed unto Moses" at the Red Sea
(1Corinthians 10:2).
| |
...the mikveh
|
In Acts 4 above, the apostles were letting it be known to the scribes and elders they were brought before who understood what this phrasing meant that "...in the name of Yeshua haMashiach has this man been made strong." The English word translated as "salvation" in this verse comes from the Greek word
soteria
which is a derivative of this same Greek root word sozo. Soteria means "preservation, safety, salvation, deliverance from the molestation of enemies" - so that it can be said, "...is there any other name by which we are saved (sozo)". It is only through the name of Yeshua that "...this man has been given perfect health in the presence of you all". The lame man was "saved" by being restored to health, was healed in the here and now. This Greek word "sozo" is also translated in
Acts 2:40
as the English "save yourselves". Notice that it is the faith in YaHoVeH "through Yeshua" that gave this man his health. Yeshua was the conduit through which the Source of Life Who Is YaHoVeH (salvation) passed; expressly stated in
Acts 4:10
that it was YaHoVeH, the Source of Life, who raised Yeshua from the dead - Yeshua did not have the power to raise Himself. The context of the day was not whether any of these men believed in YaHoVeH or not, but if these events were convincing enough to support the assertion that Yeshua was the promised Messiah - the
Kinsman Redeemer,
sent to restore YaHoVeH's Kingdom to His Family.
It is in the authority of Yeshua
given to His disciples
(or "in the name of") that they are able to manifest Life and engage others with it. Anything that
separates
us from the Source of Life is death. It is from this Hebraic understanding that Sha'ul (the Hebrew apostle Paul) is able to say in
Romans 8:2
that, "…the law of the Spirit of Life (demonstrated) through Yeshua haMashiach (the Messiah) has set you free from
the law of sin and death"
- and Yeshua says it is
His Father's Words
that allow us to remain in the Presence of YaHoVeH where we find rest and are saved (healed). Salvation is not an admission ticket to a place called "heaven". If Yeshua is going to save His people from their sins, He will have to rescue them out of the
death of separation
from their rightful inheritance
and the misery that was bound to follow. Salvation has nothing to do with heaven. It is all about staying alive. If you thought you were saved in order to get a heavenly gate pass, you missed the point. To "be saved" means a rescue of people who are in deep, deep trouble. They are not just drowning but are already dead from their separation from
the Source of Life.
Unless YaHoVeH shows up with Life, they will remain dead. They need salvation because they need to live again. The purpose of Yeshua was to restore the relationship of YaHoVeH's family as it was in
the beginning.
These Hebrews believed
Malachi 4:1
that says if ever there is a time when Torah is not being manifested, "the earth will melt away with a fervent heat" (scripturally, evildoers are those who
do not keep the Words of YaHoVeH).
That saying should ring familiar to those who study the Messianic Writings as there is a similar statement in
2Peter 3:10-13
that there will be a time when "the earth melts away with a fervent heat!" From a scriptural point of view that simply means that "there will be no Torah on the earth, and that it is Torah
(the word of YaHoVeH)
that is keeping all things together!" This brings to mind
Colossians 1:17
where it says that Yeshua is "before" all (from the Greek
pro,
"a primary preposition meaning, 'fore', i.e. in front of") and that through Yeshua all things hold together or "has cohesion" ("through" as in a conduit - not initiated by His own hand). In Yeshua abides the Word of YaHoVeH, manifest in His Life and it is through the Word of YaHoVeH that all things hold together or "have cohesion".
Does this mean we must convert to the man-made religion of Judaism in order to receive salvation? No. Sha'ul makes this point clear in his letter to the faithful in Galatia - but he is only repeating what was written in the Tanakh (renamed OT) concerning any who would come to this Elohim of Israel
(Isaiah 56:6-8).
Whoever comes to Him, however, must receive Him for Who He says He Is, the Elohim of Israel - not the god of mankind. Notice that verse pointedly states that those wishing to join themselves to YaHoVeH must keep
His Sabbath
- to not profane it. In the same regard, Yeshua was saying to the Samaritan woman at the well that those seeking the Source of Salvation will find that it comes from a relationship, an intimacy and a connection with this particular Hebrew Elohim of Israel - the Source of LIFE
(Romans 8:14-17,
Ephesians 2:18-22).
The Hebrew word for "life" comes from the root word
chayah
which means to live, have life, sustain life, live prosperously, be quickened, be alive, be restored to life or health (from where the Greek sozo explored earlier takes its meaning). But as far back as
Numbers 31:15
that same Hebrew word, chayah, is also translated as "saved'. To "be saved" is to have life. Yeshua said to
have Life
is to keep the Words of the Father. As seen earlier, the Greek word for "Salvation" in
John 4:22
is soteria,
meaning deliverance from molestation. "Deliverance" also is used in the Hebrew primarily as
teshuw'ah
which means salvation, deliverance. It is used in
1Chronicles 11:14
as "deliverance", and in 2Chronicles 6:41
and Psalm 37:39
as "salvation". Thus, we see that the definitions for both "salvation" and "deliverance" are interchangeable - in either language. To be delivered IS salvation. To "be saved" IS real deliverance that truly sets us free from the physical ruin of bondages. When we are "saved" we can expect the robust Nature of Life to be evident within our
physical bodies
and the demons of darkness that have "bitten" us will be dispelled because of
the Power
found in the Presence of His Spirit. This is the Life Yeshua spoke of.
| |
...the Words of Life
|
So, why is it that real healing and deliverance are not evidently seen among the westernized religion of Christianity when a person is supposedly "saved"? Could it be that by separating themselves from the Words found in the Original Writings, they have become separated from the instructions contained in those Words that allow us to remain in the Presence of the Source of Life? Something tangibly manifested itself to those Hebrews assembled on
Yom Shavu'ot
(renamed Pentecost) that caused 3,000 to immediately embrace what they were witnessing and a few days later, another 5000 (there were no
Gentiles
present during this occurence). It wasn't solely because of Peter's preaching. Before their eyes, they witnessed an extraordinary manifestation of restoration in the physical lives of those 120 who had waited on Yeshua as He had instructed. As these few were being filled with the Breath of Life, so extraordinary was this occurrence in the physical that it created a desire in those watching to want some of that. If this salvation were to be manifest in our bodies as true healing, why would we find it necessary to embrace the "other" medical pole of snakes instead of the one Moshe (Moses) lifted up and Yeshua likened Himself to in
John 3?
Could it be that we have somehow separated ourselves from the Source of that Life by not
knowing YaHoVeH
just for Who He says He Is in His Words and, thus, by the theological tradition men would have us adhere to, have negated, made void, brought to
none effect
the Power found in the Holy One of Israel? This is not theology being spoken of here - this is LIFE. And the Source of that Life, scripture tells us, is only found in One Place - YaHoVeH, with Yeshua as the conduit for that Life
(Genesis 2:7-8,
1John 5:6-12 -
see what it means to be Born Again).
|
|
To Be Saved - a discussion
| |
"Teacher, what good deed must I do to have eternal life?" And Yeshua said to him,
if you would enter life, keep the commandments.
The young man said to Him, "Which ones?" And Yeshua said, "You shall not murder, You shall not commit adultery, You shall not steal, You shall not bear false witness, Honor your father and mother,and love your neighbor as yourself." Matthew 19:16-19
|
The Salvation Series
Part One: Scriptural Salvation
Part Two: To Be Saved
Part Three: To Be Born Again
Part Four: To Be Grafted In
Part Five: the Book Of Life
|
???Questions???
Please feel free to email me at harold@hethathasanear.com.
While not claiming to have all
the answers, it would be an honor to partake with you of what Spirit is uncovering.
CLICK HERE TO RETURN TO HOME PAGE
|