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Delivered said:
What is Salvation?

Salvation is deliverance from the condemnation of the Law, the wrath of God which should fall on us for our sinfulness:

"Therefore there is now no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus. For the law of the Spirit of life in Christ Jesus has set you free from the law of sin and death. For what the Law could not do, weak at it was through the flesh, God [did]: sending His own Son in the likeness of sinful flesh and [as an offering] for sin, He condemned sin in the flesh, so that the requirement of the Law might be fulfilled in us, who do not walk according to the flesh but according to the Spirit" (Rom. 8:1–4).

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How is it accomplished?

It is accomplished through the shed blood of Christ, who took upon Himself the sins of the elect, so that they will believe in Him and confess Him, resulting in their salvation:

"For while we were still helpless, at the right time Christ died for the ungodly. For one will hardly die for a righteous man; though perhaps for the good man someone would dare even to die. But God demonstrates His own love toward us, in that while we were yet sinners, Christ died for us. Much more then, having now been justified by His blood, we shall be saved from the wrath [of God] trough Him. For if while we were enemies we were reconciled through the death of His Son, much more, having been reconciled, we shall be saved by His life" (Rom. 5:6–10).

"For Moses writes that the man who pactices the righteousness that it based on the law shall live by that righteousness. But the righteousness based on faith speaks as follows: 'Do not say in your heart, "Who will ascend into heaven?" (that is, to bring Christ down), or "'Who will descend into the abyss?" (that is, to bring Christ up from the dead).' But what does it say? 'The word is near you, in your mouth and in your heart'—that is, the word of faith which we are preaching, that if you confess with your mouth Jesus [as] Lord, and believe in your heart that God raised Him from the dead, you will be saved; for with the heart a person believes, resulting in righteousness, and with the mouth he confesses, resulting in salvation. For the Scripture says, 'Whoever believes in Him will not be disappointed.' For there it no distinction between Jew and Greek; for the same [Lord] is Lord of all, abounding in riches for all who call on Him; for 'Whoever will call on the name of the Lord will be saved'" (Rom. 10:5–13).

"And you were dead in your trespasses and sins, in which you formerly walked according to the course of this world, according to the prince of the power of the air, of the spirit that is now working in the sons of disobedience. Among them we too all formerly lived in the lusts of our flesh, indulging in the desires of the flesh and of the mind, and were by nature children of wrath, even as the rest. But God, being rich in mercy, because of the His great love with which He loved us, even when we were dead in our transgressions, made us alive together with Christ (by grace you have been saved), and raised us up with Him, and seated us with Him in the heavenly [places] in Christ Jesus, so that in the ages to come He might show the surpassing riches of His grace in kindness toward us in Christ Jesus. For by grace you have been saved through faith; and that not of yourselves, [it is] the gift of God; not as a result of works, so that no one may boast. For we are His workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared beforehand so that we would walk in them" (Eph. 2:1–10).

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Does God need us to defend Him?

God works through us to defend His doctrine:

". . . but sanctify Christ as Lord in your hearts, always [being] ready to make a defense to everyone who asks you to give an account of the hope that is in you, yet with gentleness and reverence" (I Pet. 3:15).

"[We are] destroying speculations and every lofty thing raised up again the knowledge of God, and [we are] taking every thought captive to the obedience of Christ, and we are ready to punish all disobedience, whenever your obedience is complete" (II Cor. 10:5–6).

"But even if we, or an angel from heaven, should preach to you a gospel contrary to what we have preached to you, he is to be accursed!" (Gal. 1:8).

"I solemnly charge you in the presence of God and of Christ Jesus, who is to judge the living and the dead, and by His appearing and His kingdom: preach the word; be ready in season and out of season; reprove, rebuke, exhort, with great patience and instruction. For the time will come when they will not endure sound doctrine; but [wanting] to have their ears tickled, they will accumulate for themselves teaches in accordance to their own desires, and will turn away their ears from the truth and will turn aside to myths" (II Tim. 4:1–4).

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Does the written Word of God to the Jews first and then to us supercede His direct intervention and contact with us? Does the written Word of God ensure that God will never communicate any other way? The answer to the latter question provides for me many other questions, however one main one is how would these other contact from God be confirmed? and my logical conclusion would be that it would be confirmed within the established Word of God.

"All Scripture is inspired by God and profitable for teaching, for reproof, for correction, for training in righteousness; so that the man of God may be adequate, equipped for every good work" (II Tim. 3:16–17).

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What is the fate of all those living in lands where the Bible is not available in the native language of those lands?

They are all alike under the wrath of God, for they have all alike turned aside:

"For the wrath of God is revealed from heaven against all ungodliness and unrighteousness of men who suppress the truth in unrighteousness, because that which is known about God is evident within them; for God made it evident to them. For since the creation of the world His invisible attributes, His eternal power and divine nature, have been clearly seen, being understood through what has been made, so that they are without excuse" (Rom. 1:18–20).

"What then? Are we better than they? Not at all; for we have already charged that both Jews and Greeks are all under sin; as it is written,
'There is none righteous, not even one;
'There is none who understands,
'There is none who seeks for God;
'All have turned aside, together they have become useless;
'There is none who does good,
'There is not even one.
'Their throat is an open grave,
'With their tongues they keep deceiving,
'The poison of asps is under their lips;
'Whose mouth is full of cursing and bitterness;
'Their feet are swift to shed blood,
'Destruction and misery are in their paths,
'And the path of peace the have not known.
'There is no fear of God before their eyes.'
"Now we know that whatever the Law says, it speaks to those who are under the Law, so that every mouth may be closed and all the world may become accountable to God; because by the works of the Law no flesh will be justified in His sight; for through the Law [comes] the knowledge of sin" (Rom. 3:9–20).

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Did God contact these persons and make known to them His plan of Salvation or have every one in these regions been lost to the enemy of our souls and only through modern day steps will they now be able to be saved?

God saves men through the preaching of the Gospel:

"How then will they call on Him in whom they have not believed? How will they believe in Him whom they have not heard? And how will they hear without a preacher? How will they preach unless they are sent? Just as it is written, 'How beautiful are the feet of those who bring good news of good things!'
"However, they did not all heed the good news; for Isaiah says, 'Lord, who has believed our report?' So faith [comes] from hearing, and hearing by the word of Christ" (Rom. 10:14–17).

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Is this plausible? that God who Loved the world so much with an Everlasting Love, would hinge the salvation of a large percentage of these same inhabitants of the world on the will and Intellect of a fewer number of persons just as imperfect as the rest? Was not Christ' death, burial and subsequent resurrection enough to give Salvation to all men? Was it not Christ speaking in John 6:41-51 who quoted from Jeremiah 31:34 explaining how knowledge of God will come to us?

Christ did not come to die for every man, but only for the sheep of God, the world of the elect apart from the world of the reprobate, whom God has chosen from before the foundation of the world:

"I am the good shepherd; the good shepherd lays down His life for the sheep. . . . I am the good shepherd; I know My own and My own know Me, even as the Father knows Me and I know the Father; and I lay down My life for the sheep. I have other sheep, which are not of this fold [i.e., the Gentiles who are outside the fold of the Jews]; I must bring them also, and they will hear My voice; and they will become one flock [with] one shepherd. . . . But you do not believe because you are not of My sheep. My sheep hear my voice, and I know them, and they follow Me; and I give eternal life to them, and they will never perish; and no one will snatch them out of My hand. My Father, who has given [them] to Me, is greater than all; and no one is able to snatch [them] out of the Father's hand. I and the Father are One" (John 10:11, 14–16, 26–30).

"Blessed [be] the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who has blessed us with every spiritual blessing in the heavenly [places] in Christ, just as He chose us in Him before the foundation of the world, that we would be holy and blameless before Him. In love He predestined us to adoption as sons through Jesus Christ to Himself, according to the kind intention of His will, to the praise of the glory of His grace, which He freely bestowed on us in the Beloved" (Eph. 1:3–6).

"And not only this, but there was Rebekah also, when she had conceived [twins] by one man, our father Isaac; for though [the twins] were not yet born and had not done anything good or bad, so that God's purpose according to [His] choice would stand, not because of works but because of Him who calls, it was said to her, 'The older will serve the younger.' Just as it is written, 'Jacob I loved, but Esau I hated.'
"What shall we say then? There is no injustice with God, is there? May it never be! For He says to Moses, 'I will have mercy on whom I have mercy, and I will have compassion on whom I have compassion.' So then it [does] not [depend] on the man who wills or the man who runs, but on God who has mercy. For the Scripture says to Pharaoh, 'For this very purpose I raised you up, to demonstrate My power in you, and that My name might be proclaimed throughout the whole earth.' So then He has mercy on whom He desires, and He hardens whom He desires.
"You will say to me then, 'Why does He still find fault? For who resists His will?' On the contrary, who are you, O man, who answers back to God? The thing molded will not say to the molder, 'Why did you make me like this,' will it? Or does not the potter have a right over the clay, to make from the same lump one vessel for honorable use and another for common use? What if [literally, "But" or "However"] God, although willing to demonstrate His wrath and to make His power known, endured with much patience vessels of wrath prepared for destruction? And [He did so] to make known the riches of His glory upon vessels of mercy, which He prepared beforehand for glory, [even] us, whom He also called, not from among the Jews only, but also from among the Gentiles" (Rom. 9:10–24).

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There are many who believe about the ceasing of direct relating to God by the Living Holy Spirit of God, in this belief the premise is that the Direct contact of the Holy Spirit was only for the time of the Apostles, that once the written Word was complete God will never again speak to mankind, until judgement.

We do not deny the direct relation of God to His children by the Holy Spirit. What we deny is that there is anything more to be revealed until Judgement Day. All we have need of until then is the word of God in Scripture, which is whole and complete, and is the only means by which the Spirit communicates with us today. Prophecy and tongues and special knowledge have ceased; they were only necessary until the foundation had been laid:

"Love never fails; but if [there are gifts of] prophecy, they will be done away; if [there are] tongues, they will cease; if [there is revelatory] knowledge, it will be done away. For we know in part and we prophesy in part but when the perfect comes, the partial will be done away. When I was a child, I used to speak like a child, think like a child, reason like a child; when I became a man, I did away with childish things. For now we see in a mirror dimly, but then face to face; now I know in par, but then I will know fully just as I also have been fully knonw. But now faith, hope, ove, abide these three; but the greatest of these is love" (I Cor. 13:8–13).

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I do not subscribe to this especially noting the fact that language as the primary mean of disceminating inforamtion is fundamentally flawed especially considering the limits of one language in translation to another. I speak English as English language is the accepted spoken and written language of my country and our English is derived from the UK. Almost every one else on this forum speak and write US English and the comparison can be further broken down to use of words and the differing meanings and context from social group to social group. Without the direct intervention of the Holy SPirit of God (as promised by God through Peter on the day of Pentecost) to "all who a far off", understanding of these scriptures translated from Hebrew, Chaldean and Greek would be impossible. As I say I am not a theologist but I am one who has received the Grace of God.

The direct intervention of the Spirit is indeed required, not to translate words, but to renew our hearts so that the Word spoken may be received:

"But as many as received Him, to them He gave the power to become children of God, [even] to those who believe in His name, who were [i.e., had already been] born, not of blood nor of the will of the flesh nor of the will of man, but of God" (John 1:12–13).

"Jesus answered and said to him, 'Truly, truly, I say to you, unless one is born again [literally, "from above"] he cannont see the kingdom of God.'
"Nicodemus said to Him, 'How can a man be born when he is old? He cannot enter a second time into his mother's womb and be born, can he?' Jesus answered, 'Truly, truly, I say to you, unless one is born of water and the Spirit he cannot enter into the kingdom of God. That which is born of the flesh is flesh, and that which is born of the Spirit is spirit. Do not be amazed that I said to you, "You must be born again." The wind blows where it wishes and you hear the sound of it, but do not know where it comes from and where it is going; so it everyone who is born of the Spirit'" (John 1:3–8).

"For those who are according to the flesh set their minds on the things of the flesh, but those who are according to the Spirit, the things of the Spirit. For the mind set on the flesh is death, but the mind set on the Spirit is life and peace, because the mind set on the flesh is hostile to toward God; for it does not subject itself to the law of God, for it is not even able [to do so], and those who are in the flesh cannot please God.
"However, you are not in the flesh but in the Spirit, if indeed the Spirit of God dwells in you. But if anyone does not have the Spirit of Christ, he does not belong to Him. If Christ is in you, though the body is dead because of sin, yet the spirit is alive because of righteousness. Bu if the Spirit of Him who raised Jesus from the dead dwells in tyou, He who raised Christ Jesus from the dead will also give life to your mortal bodies through His Spirit who dwells in you" (Rom. 8:5–11).

"For to us God revealed [them] through the Spirit; for the Spirit searches all things, even the depths of God. For who among men knows the [thoughts] of a man except the spirit of the man which is in him? Even so the [thoughts] of God no one knows except the Spirit of God. Now we have received, not the spirit of the world, but the Spirit who is from God, so that we may know the things freely given to us by God, which things we also speak, not in words taught by human wisdom, but in those taught by the Spirit, combining spiritual [thoughts] with spiritual [words].
"But a natural man does not accept the things of the Spirit of God, for they are foolishness to him; and he cannot understand them, because they are spiritually appraised. But he who is spiritual appraises all things, yet he himself is appraised by no one. For who has known the mind of the Lord, that he will instruct Him? But we have the mind of Christ" (I Cor. 2:10–16).

Kyle

I tell you, this man went down to his house justified.