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Study Section 19: Biblical Theology of Salvation

19.1 Connect

The term and verses relating to salvation are sometimes confusing. Sometimes, as we saw in the
last section, we assume the passage is talking about one kind of salvation when it really talking
about something else. There is another type of confusion that will arise if you read the text of
scripture carefully. Sometimes when discussing eternal salvation, it uses the past tense,
sometimes it uses the present tense, and sometimes it even uses the future sense. This has led
to some theologies that say that salvation is something we have to earn and is given in the
future. Others say it is something God did in the past and is already a reality in the believer’s life. There
are even Christians who believe that salvation is a lifelong process. Much of this confusion can be
avoided if we look at each tense and notice certain things about them. This lesson will focus on what
theologians call the Aspects of salvation. These aspects are known as justification, sanctification, and
glorification. As you will see, understanding these aspects and determining which one is being referred
to in the text is vital in avoiding confusion.

19.2 Objectives

1. The student should be able to identify the three aspects of salvation in Scripture.

2. The student should be able to quote Norman Geisler’s definition of justification, sanctification,
and glorification.

3. The student should be able to explain the importance of keeping the aspect of salvation clear in
biblical interpretation and theology.

19.3 Developing a Biblical View of Salvation.

Much of our salvation is already completed when we believe? What is God working on in our
current life? What will God do in the future and does that mean I am not yet fully saved? These
are the confusing questions that plague Christians as the begin to study salvation in the Bible. If
we understand each aspect of salvation this confusion quickly goes away.

There are still questions, there always will be, but we have far less if we understand how the Bible uses
these terms. Charles Ryrie is an excellent theologian. He explains the aspects of salvation this way:

“For the Christian, sanctification has three aspects. First, the believer has been set apart by his position
in the family of God. This is usually called positional sanctification. It means being set apart as a member
of the household of God. It is true of every believer regardless of his spiritual condition, for this concerns
his spiritual state. Read 1 Corinthians 6:11 and remember the carnal condition of these believers. That
this positional sanctification is based on the death of Christ is clear from Hebrews 10:10.

Of course, there is also the experiential aspect of sanctification. Because we have been set apart, we are
to be increasingly set apart in our daily lives (1 Peter 1:16). In the positional sense no one is more
sanctified than another, but in the experiential aspect it is quite correct to speak of one believer as being

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