Questions tagged [soteriology]
The study of the mechanisms by which an individual is saved.
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Are the Five Solas considered "Axioms" or "Theorems" in the logic of salvation in Protestant theology?
It might be utterly reprehensible to apply reason to faith in this way and feel free to VTC this question if it's just not a question. I believe reason can't contradict faith and vice versa, but I'm ...
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Do those who are saved still face judgement? [closed]
Do those who are saved still face judgement?
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Question about Hebrews 10:26
Hebrews 10:26 says:
26 For if we go on sinning deliberately after receiving the knowledge of the truth, there no longer remains a sacrifice for sins, 27 but a fearful expectation of judgment, and a ...
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How do proponents of an intermediate state interpret Matthew 7:21-23?
Matthew 7:21-23 (ESV):
21 “Not everyone who says to me, ‘Lord, Lord,’ will enter the kingdom of heaven, but the one who does the will of my Father who is in heaven. 22 On that day many will say to me,...
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Do Mormons agree with the Apostle Paul when he said at Acts 16:31 to the Philippian Jailer, "Believe on the Lord Jesus Christ and you shall be saved."
At verse 32 Paul spoke the word of the Lord to him "together" with all who were in his house. Vs33, "And he took them that very hour of the night and washed their wounds, and ...
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How do people who believe in the act of confession understand 1 John 1:9?
1 John 1:9:
9 If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just and will forgive us our sins and purify us from all unrighteousness. (NIV)
In places like Eastern Orthodox and Catholic Church, there is ...
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According to Biblical Unitarians, what is the essential belief about Jesus in order to be saved?
The bible teaches many things about Jesus.
Where he came from
Who he came from
When he originated
What he was
How do we know what the most important aspect of Jesus is from the bible with reference ...
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How do people who hold salvation as a one time event respond to passages of "being saved"?
Philippians 2:12 Says:
12 Therefore, my dear friends, as you have always obeyed—not only in my presence, but now much more in my absence—continue to work out your salvation with fear and trembling,
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What kind of 'faith' justifies or imputes righteousness to a sinner as per the teachings of the Bible? [closed]
Protestant Christians in general believe that 'faith' makes a person righteous. The Letter to Hebrews chapter 11 in the N.T. talks about faith at length with specific examples. But what kind of 'faith'...
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Is it possible for a person to know now if he/she is saved and would be inheriting eternal life in the hereafter as per the Biblical teachings? [closed]
In general those who are pious in following any religion look forward to a better place hereafter. Even in Islam pious people without exception hope for a place in Janna.
My question is to the Bible ...
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Why can't God forgive a sinner without having to kill Jesus the righteous one?
Non-Christians raise many objections to the atoning death of Jesus Christ, who is the Lamb of God. One of the most important objections is that God being the Almighty and Sovereign should be able to ...
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What is the biblical basis for monergism?
Monergism is the concept that salvation is not a cooperative effort between God and Man that leads to Man’s salvation. What is the biblical basis for this claim?
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According to Evangelical Christians, what does a person need to believe about Jesus in order to be saved?
The Bible teaches about Jesus of Nazareth many things. It teaches that Jesus was born to a virgin. It teaches that he was without sin yet suffered, died, and rose again for us. It also teaches that ...
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Why did God create people who would reject him? [closed]
God created people with free will, and some of these people will freely choose salvation, while some others will freely choose to reject salvation.
God could have chosen to create only the subset of ...
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What is the biblical support for the idea that people in the Old Testament went to heaven?
There is, among many groups, a basic idea that people in the Old Testament, namely Israelites, went to heaven.
To further explain the scope of this question, I want to ignore the specific individuals ...
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What is the earliest example of the concept of Total Depravity?
Total Depravity is the Calvinist doctrine that human nature is thoroughly corrupt and sinful as a result of the Fall. Thus we can only do good works through God's grace.
What is the earliest document ...
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Is believing in God for salvation the same as believing in Jesus as Christ?
I'm interested in answers particularly from Evangelicals who might disagree with this idea, as well as those who agree with it. I'm especially interested in theological considerations — i.e. does this ...
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Did anyone before Jesus go to Heaven and Will They Be Raised Up On the Last Day? (John 6)
I am deeply troubled in this matter of Soteriology and Eschatology.
John 6:52-59
52 The Jews then disputed among themselves, saying, “How can this man give us his flesh to eat?” 53 So Jesus said to ...
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Are there any Trinitarian denominations that do not view belief in the Trinity as a "salvation issue"?
Trinitarians that subscribe to the Athanasian Creed believe, by definition, that rejection of the doctrine of the Trinity disqualifies one from salvation. Are there any Trinitarian denominations that ...
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What is the Biblical basis for the belief that Trinitarian belief is “not” required for salvation?
What is the Biblical basis for the belief that Trinitarian belief is not required for salvation?
The Athanasian Creed states
"And in this Trinity, no one is before or after, greater or less than
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What Bible Verses are Considered Contrary to Eternal Security? [duplicate]
Upon questioning, eternal security advocates (those who say a Christian cannot lose their salvation), will point to a variety of Bible verses to support their position. So, this begs the question of ...
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predestination beliefs
Reformed Protestants believe that God selected individuals at the time of the beginning of the world and predestined those individuals for salvation.
Orthodox believe that God knew at the time of the ...
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Is it possible for a person who has faith in Jesus to only receive “a measure of salvation” as opposed to “full salvation”?
I was prompted to ask due to this Q about measuring our salvation - Scriptural support - Measuring our salvation, God's love and blessings
But I want to confine my Q to views about measuring God’s ...
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Scriptural support - Measuring our salvation, God's love and blessings
Please help me with scriptural support for the following:
“Be careful not to measure your holiness "salvation" by other people's
sins.” - Martin Luther
In the same way, if we measure God's ...
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Do any Christian groups or denominations not see having a definite doctrinal position on God's nature as essential for salvation?
Every time I revisit questions about God's nature on Biblical Hermeneutics Stack Exchange I can't help but come out with more doubts than convictions. For example, take a look at the following ...
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According to believers in libertarian free will, do all human beings have a genuine chance to freely choose to live a perfect sinless life?
Premise of this question: first of all, I'm basing this question on my common sense understanding that moral responsibility and judgement presuppose that human beings have the capacity to make free ...
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According to Catholics & Protestants, do good people from other religions go to heaven as well? If they do, what's the point in being a Christian?
(I'm going to assume that you're a protestant and don't believe in Purgatory. If you aren't one, please change mentions of heaven in this following para to purgatory)
Jack is a good human being. He is ...
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How do non-universalists account for these passages talking about the salvation of all?
I hold to universalism, but am perfectly willing to change my mind on the subject. I just have never received good defeaters to the universalist passages that I present.
First Corinthians 15:22 "...
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According to believers in the inexorable damnation of the unreached, why should they be punished in Hell and not be given more merciful alternatives?
Inspired by a thought-provoking comment section discussion about an answer to my previous question According to believers in the inexorable damnation of the unreached, how is God not unfair for ...
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According to believers in the inexorable damnation of the unreached, how is God not unfair for letting someone be born in unreachable conditions?
It is a fact of history that many unfortunate people have been born in conditions where it has been pretty much impossible for them to even dream of having a chance to hear the message of salvation -- ...
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What did the Early Church Fathers believe about the fate of the unreached?
Many individuals have died and continue to die without ever having heard the message of salvation. Illustrative examples of this are everyone who was born before Jesus, individuals contemporary to ...
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Why did Jesus raise people from the dead, when they would have been in heaven?
The way I understand it from the bible is that you can live well you entire life, but if you lose your faith and then you die you won't go to heaven. So I'm sure that Satan would love the ability to ...
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Would salvation have been possible if Jesus had died without shedding His blood?
Would salvation have been possible if Jesus died without shedding His blood?
As far as I understand, the Bible says that the believers are saved through joining together with Christ in His death and ...
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Did Adam need to have faith for his salvation?
As ridiculous as this question may sound, I believe it has some point. Did Adam need to have faith for his salvation? If yes, what kind of faith? Definitely, he didn't need to have faith in the ...
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According to proponents of Believer's Baptism, can an infant be saved?
Proponents of Believer's Baptism argue that Baptism requires an existing faith on the part of the person being baptized, and for this reason a) reject the practice of infant baptism and b) teach that ...
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How do those who deny baptism as a means of grace reconcile this bible verses apparently saying otherwise?
This article has a number of things to say about baptism, but particularly this:
Baptism does not save a person.
The Bible, however, says that "baptism, which corresponds to [the waters of the ...
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According to Latter-day Saints, what are the essential features of a true follower of Christ, and can such be found in other denominations? [duplicate]
Not much to add to the title. I would like to know the Latter-day Saints' definition of a true follower of Christ, that is to say, what features are considered by them to be essential for a person to ...
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According to Jehovah's Witnesses, what are the essential features of a true follower of Christ, and can such be found in other denominations?
Not much to add to the title. I would like to know the Jehovah's Witnesses' definition of a true follower of Christ, that is to say, what features are considered by them to be essential for a person ...
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What is the most dangerous heresy that exists in the church today? [closed]
There are many heresies referenced in the New Testament and even more that have surfaced in the centuries since it was written. One is alluded to in the account of Simon Magus.
9Now there was a man ...
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Does the term 'lost' define a group eternally damned?
Nicely characterised by Xeno's comment; "I'm referring to those who have never accepted Christ, have not obeyed the Gospel, and are eternally lost." (my emphasis)
The term 'lost' often ...
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What is the biblical basis for the term 'the lost'?
Is there a passage that denotes some group of God's creation as 'lost'? Or is it a made up term that has little foundation in the text?
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For those who believe there was no historical Adam and Eve, how does Christianity make sense?
How can Christianity make sense without a literal Adam and Eve? I have heard many Christians (particularly Catholics) try and be conciliatory with modern science by claiming that Adam and Eve were not ...
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Do any Christian denominations or groups teach about Satan's common tactics to pierce through the spiritual armor of a Christian?
In Ephesians 6:10-20, the apostle Paul teaches an important mystery: all Christians are in spiritual warfare against invisible evil forces from the kingdom of Satan. And just like soldiers have to ...
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How is one saved? [closed]
Therefore we conclude that a man is justified by faith without the deeds of the law. (Romans 3:28 KJV) According Paul is one justified by faith alone both in Rom 3:28 and also mentioned in Gal 2:16.
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How do Christians who believe in libertarian free will explain the large imbalance in the ratio of people saved vs. condemned?
In principle, the decisions made by an agent endowed with freedom of the will (in the libertarian sense) are not determined. That is, a free agent's decisions cannot be the result of a sequence of ...
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Within Anglicanism, what is the Biblical Basis for certainty that baptised infants who die will be saved?
In the Church of England Book of Common Prayer the following statement is made:
It is certain by God's Word, that children which are baptized, dying before they commit actual sin, are undoubtedly ...
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Is repentance of sins possible outside the Gospel?
Does every human being, at least once in their lifetime, have a genuine chance to repent of their sins, turn away from them and start living a righteous life? If so, does this also include people who ...
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The Christian Duck Test? [closed]
If it looks like a duck, swims like a duck, and quacks like a duck, then it probably is a duck.
There is arguably little difference between the lifestyle of the Stoic and the lifestyle of the ...
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How do Christians discern whether they are on the narrow path that leads to life or the broad path that leads to destruction?
Matthew 7:13-14 (ESV):
13 “Enter by the narrow gate. For the gate is wide and the way is easy that leads to destruction, and those who enter by it are many. 14 For the gate is narrow and the way is ...
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What is the most authentic Reformed 'ordo salutis'?
This question follows on from a comment made in the previous closed question.
The Wikipedia article on the subject of ordo salutis quotes and lists the following, in the following order, as '...
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