AS CHRISTIANS, WE ALL LOOK FORWARD TO ANOTHER LIFE: the doctrine of resurrection is fundamental in Christianity. But this is not the final answer to our questions: it is only the starting point for many questions. What sort of life will this be? Are there different grades or levels in that life? How can you know what your own place in that life will be?
The only “gospel” preached in our churches today is the Gospel of Personal Salvation. Is this the all inclusive answer? No: for some churches regard if salvation” as a temporary, changing thing: they say that you can be “saved” today and lose your salvation tomorrow and, I presume, regain it on the day after-tomorrow. (If that be true, you d better be very careful as to just which day you die). Other churches teach that once you have salvation r, you have it forever. Which churches are right? Let’s find out just what “salvation” is, and what benefits it implies.
In the Old Testament, three Hebrew words are commonly translated “Salvation : these are YESHUAH (yesh-oo-aw), YESHAH (yeh-shah), and rarely–TESHUAH (tesh-oo-aw). The root meaning of all three is basically “safety”, varying through “rescue” to “health”. In short deliverance from danger. In the New Testament, two Greek words are trpslated “salvation” these are SOTERIA (so-tay-ree-ah) and SOTERION (so-tay-ree-on)—and their meaning is identical with the three Hebrew words I mentioned.