Opposing Views Of Salvation
What Are The Others?
For this next week on our study through soteriology, I want to look at salvation from the perspective of people outside of Christianity. Sure we believe that the Bible is the Word of God and that this would mean that the Christian God is the one true God, but what about those that don’t? How would their current view of salvation be changed if they were to compare their soteriology with ours? This is where the rubber meets the road with evangelism meeting soteriology. We’re going to look at some of the most popular religions in the world today and compare and contrast what the Bible has to say about what they believe and why they would be better off with believing the truth of God’s Word rather than the historical ideologies of their current religion. As John Piper says, “We shouldn’t give the impression of having more in common with another religion than we really do.” As we seek to reach the lost of this world, let’s not overlook other religions that are just as lost as those who claim to be atheist. Even though other religions have a view of salvation, it doesn’t mean it’s the correct view.
Islam
Let’s dive in. To kick things off, let’s take a look at Islam. According to Blue Letter Bible, Islam’s view of salvation is much different from ours for a plethora of reasons, but we are going to focus on the biggest ones here. BLB states, “It is important to realize that Islam does not believe it is necessary for a person to be saved from their sins. This is one of the main differences between it and Christianity. Since Muslims do not recognize original sin, they see no need for salvation in the Christian sense. There is nothing to be saved from. Consequently, if there was no original sin, there is no need for a Savior. Salvation, in Islam, is based upon the deeds of a person.” I hope I don’t need to spend too much time on this view of salvation in order to show you why it is such a mess. I could show you multiple passages from scripture that reveal the truth about the gospel and why we need the sacrifice of Christ in order to achieve salvation, but we all know this at this point. What I want to point out is the good works. If Islam really does believe that there is nothing that they need to be saved from and that all that is required of them is to have their good works outweigh their bad ones, then all of humanity is doomed. Here’s where I will insert a passage to prove this. Isaiah 64:6 says, “For all of us have become like one who is unclean, And all our righteous deeds are like a filthy garment; And all of us wither like a leaf, And our wrongdoings, like the wind, take us away.” Did you catch what Isaiah tells us here? He doesn’t say that all of our wrongdoings are like a filthy garment, he doesn't even say that all of our deeds in general are like a filthy garment. The compassion to the filthy garment is our righteous deeds! If all of our efforts to be righteous are like filthy rags before God, what can we offer Him in our good works that would be considered fair to achieve salvation? That answer of course, is nothing. No matter how good your works are and how many of them you have, they will never be enough to pay for the sins that you have committed on this earth. Your sins must be atoned for, and they must be atoned for by a completely righteous substitute. Not some filthy effort at being ‘good’.
Judaism
Let’s look at another top religion in the world today, Judaism. According to Chosen People Ministries, “Judaism believes that in the same way that the Lord saved the children of Israel in the past as a nation, He also promises to restore Israel as a nation, meaning collectively, not individually.” This essentially means that just as God said in the Old Testament that He would save His people Israel(Deut. 29:10-15), this same covenant is applicable for those in the Jewish faith today. CPM hits an even bigger point of their soteriology when they mention, “Judaism does place responsibility for the sins of the individual, but while in Messianic Judaism the believer puts his hope in what the Messiah does for him in atoning for his sins, Judaism places that responsibility on the sinner himself. A difference must be made, because in traditional Judaism the blessings for obedience and the consequences for disobedience have effect in the here and now, not in the world to come.” This means that while sin is something that affects the sinner in a negative way, the consequence of this sin is only paid for here on earth. Romans 2:5-6 might have something to say about that. “But because of your stubbornness and unrepentant heart you are storing up wrath for yourself on the day of wrath and revelation of the righteous judgment of God, who WILL REPAY EACH PERSON ACCORDING TO HIS DEEDS” God’s Word is unmistakably clear on this one. Your sins are storing up wrath, and not just wrath that you will experience on this side of heaven. This wrath can either be atoned for by the cross of Christ, or by your eternal separation from God, but it most certainly is not just atoned for in this life.
Catholicism
The final view I want to touch on might shock some of you but it is a view that I believe must be addressed because of its incorrect stance. That view would of course be that of Catholicism. ‘Catholics? Aren’t they just a different branch of Christianity?’ This is what the world today definitely thinks, but look at what G3 Ministries reveals to us about their doctrines, “According to official Catholic doctrine, in order for a person to be saved, it’s quite a tedious task. It involves steps such as actual grace, faith, good works, baptism, participation in the sacraments, penance, indulgences, and keeping the commandments. In short, the doctrine of soteriology taught by the Roman Catholic Church is a works based system where a person must work their way to God.” Sounds very similar to Islam from a works-based salvation doesn’t it? Now I don’t want to overlook the issue at all, but since works-based salvation was covered earlier, I want to look at another aspect of salvation from the Catholic Church that we haven’t seen yet. That would be the view of purgatory. The Britanica explains the view of purgatory as, “The condition, process, or place of purification or temporary punishment in which the souls of those who die in a state of grace are made ready for heaven.” Again, Romans 2 has a great case for this is not so. Verses 7-8 tell us, “to those who by perseverance in doing good seek glory, honor, and immortality, He will give eternal life; but to those who are self-serving and do not obey the truth, but obey unrighteousness, He will give wrath and indignation.” Doesn’t sound like there is a third option here. Make no mistake about it, either you are saved by the gospel and achieve salvation, or you are not. It’s that simple. I hope and pray that as we take a look at some of the most popular views of salvation in other religions, that we see why it is so vital to not just know what the Bible says, but why we believe what the Bible says. If you know anyone who is Muslim, Jewish, Catholic, or any religion that has a wrong view of salvation, I hope that this post would remind you to pray for these people that God would reveal His true self to them so that they may truly come to salvation.
Sources
[1] Blue Letter Bible. (n.d.). Blue Letter Bible. https://www.blueletterbible.org/
[2] Piper, J. (2024, April 25). How do we respect others while rejecting their false beliefs? Desiring God. https://www.desiringgod.org/interviews/how-do-we-respect-others-while-rejecting-their-false-beliefs
[3] Stewart, D. (2020, June 9). How does a person achieve salvation in Islam? Blue Letter Bible. https://www.blueletterbible.org/Comm/stewart_don/faq/islam/13-how-does-a-person-achieve-salvation-in-islam.cfm
[4] Chosen People Ministries. (2021, October 4). Salvation as interpreted by Judaism. https://www.chosenpeople.com/salvation-as-interpreted-by-judaism/
[5] Buice, J. (2021, November 28). The false salvation of the Roman Catholic Church. G3 Ministries. https://g3min.org/the-false-salvation-of-the-roman-catholic-church/
[6] Zaleski, C. (2024, April 12). Purgatory | Definition & History. Encyclopedia Britannica. https://www.britannica.com/topic/purgatory-Roman-Catholicism
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