Many young in the Christian faith often fall into the trap of believing that Salvation is a concept that has 100% relevance with eternal life, an idea we understand after our bodies perish and enter into the heavenly realm. Yet Salvation in Jesus Christ is applicable here and now. If we invite Jesus Christ into our lives today, we will benefit from His saving power. But what does that look like? In numerous ways, our lives will be free inside. We are encouraged to forgive, let go of resentments, repent from our wayward ways, renounce evil and seek to give our time and talents to the service of others. We are called to love our neighbours as ourselves. All this is clear in Christian living. Jesus is the only avenue for us to travel in order to get through the door of salvation in this life and the next. Christ is the key. Isaiah 61 is an excellent teaching on the specific power offered by Christ: “the Lord has anointed me to bring good news to the poor; he has sent me to bind up the brokenhearted, to proclaim liberty to the captives, and the opening of the prison to those who are bound” (Isaiah 61:1) The decision to follow Jesus Christ leads directly to inner freedom and peace. Fear and darkness will no longer reign inside our souls. Continuing on this logic of contemplating the benefits of becoming a disciple of Christ is considering the practical outcome of a faithful and steadfast life in Jesus Christ. In the Old and New Testaments we find in passages that remind us that our lives will indeed flourish spiritually but also in material ways too. This latter concept is often seen in disgust by many Christians, casting it aside as “prosperity gospel,” reasoning that God has absolutely nothing to do with our material welfare. Well, God has everything to do with our material welfare. Look at God’s teaching in Matthew 7: 9-11, “Which of you, if your son asks for bread, will give him a stone? Or if he asks for a fish, will give him a snake? If you, then, though you are evil, know how to give good gifts to your children, how much more will your Father in heaven give good gifts to those who ask him!” God does care about our material welfare and wishes to pour his abundant gifts upon us. But do we ask for this? Do we seek His blessings in this area of our lives or are we saddled with the belief that our material conditions are determined by factors outside our control like luck? A closer look at Isaiah 61 will reveal that continued discipleship in Jesus Christ will open doors to material abundance. Yes, we need to invest time and energy to learning and understanding how money, investments and commerce works. We need to learn business skills. In the end, we will end up growing our wealth and having unbelieving nations staring right at our success: “Strangers shall stand and tend your flocks; foreigners shall be your plowmen and vinedressers; but you shall be called the priests of the Lord; they shall speak of you as the ministers of our God; you shall eat the wealth of the nations, and in their glory you shall boast. Instead of your shame there shall be a double portion; instead of dishonor they shall rejoice in their lot; therefore in their land they shall possess a double portion; they shall have everlasting joy.” (Isaiah 61: 5-7)
Salvation in this Life
