ON SALVATION — Reading for my sermon, I found an excellent summary of the biblical understanding of salvation by Justo L. González. Here it is:

The meaning of the word “salvation,” both in the New Testament and in the common usage of the time, is much fuller than we often imagine. Salvation means healing, liberation, freedom from the bondage of sin, promise of eternal life, and several nuances of each of these themes. Thus to say that Jesus is “Savior” means that he frees the people from all evil, including sin, eternal death, disease, oppression, and exploitation. If we do not see all of this as yet, it is because the work of Jesus has not been completed—the reign of God has not yet come to its full fruition. [1]

That last sentence is important. It names where we are in the story.

[1] Justo L. González, Luke (Louisville, KY: Westminster John Knox Press, 2010), 36.