Tuesday, August 20, 2013
A Modern Jewish View on Salvation
I came across an interesting article at BeingJewish.com, entitled "How Does a Jew Attain Salvation?" It presents a Jewish response to the Christian assertion that salvation comes only through Jesus. I would encourage every Messianic to read this and consider how you might respond to the points raised in the article:
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It is against christian doctrine - but not new testament doctrine. For the later only a bit chalenging.
ReplyDeleteAgreed, the conflict with Christianity is claiming who is going to heaven and hell, no one has the right to claim these things, only God. Paul saw salvation as faithfulness to God, something that had to be maintained all your life as you live for God, that means salvation is not a one time deal, we have to walk it out, and this would mean that no one can determine who will and will not be saved.
DeleteI believe for those who trust in the Messiah we have assurance of salvation, but we must maintain that trust/faithfulness till the end. But just because someone has assurance of salvation, does not mean everyone else is not going to be saved, there is peace in assurance though and maintaining that relationship with God.
I would start with pointing out the fact that man started in the Garden of Eden, and due to sin we were kicked out. If we do not inherit the sinful nature of Adam, as now part of the fallen man, then how come we are not given a chance to be born in the Garden, instead we face the consequences of Adam. This is the most obvious problem and I don't see this person deal with this at all, they skip the whole conflict, yet this at the heart of needing redemption (salvation) and the promise of the Messiah in Genesis 3:15, that one day would reverse this whole conflict.
ReplyDeleteThe other argument is over terminology, righteousness... There are clearly different understandings of righteousness. Anyone can commit an act of righteousness, but this does not mean they stand before God as a righteous person in God's eyes.
According to scritpure, Habakkuk 2:4, "Behold, as for the proud one, His soul is not right within him; But the righteous will live by his faith."
Righteousness before God is lived by faith, of course faith without works is dead, however faith is the key.
Isaiah 26, which that person posted, also says the same thing, describes the righteous nation as the one who keeps the faith, this would mean, people in the world just doing right and wrong does not cut it, and obviously for Israel, it revolves around keeping the faith, not just doing good.
Deut 18, specifically describes God sending a prophet like unto Moses, but that unlike Moses, those who do not listen to this prophet, God will directly require it of the people... a much greater judgement, obviously signaling one greater than Moses would come.
Hebrews 11, a chapter dealing with the righteous patriarchs and how it was because of their great faith in God.
I won't go over the other verses, but this person takes many of them out of context. However this person also has a conflict with a remnant, giving the impression that not all will be saved.
Great points, guys. Hey, just found a great book for further reading on this topic:
ReplyDelete"Jewish Views of the Afterlife" by Simcha Raphael