You Have Been Saved

 Salvation

Even though we were dead because of our sins,
he gave us life when he raised Jesus from the dead.
It is only by God’s grace that you have been saved.
Ephesians 2, 5

St. Paul understood salvation as encompassing three aspects of time: past, present, and future. In the original Greek, the phrase “By grace you have been saved” is translated as χάριτί ἐστε σεσῳσμένοι (chariti este sesōsmenoi). The term χάριτί, meaning “grace,” derives from the word chairo, which conveys the sense of “graciousness, of manner or act.” The phrase ἐστε, which translates to “have been,” is a present indicative active verb in the second person plural form. This indicates an ongoing existence resulting from a past event. In this context, being “saved” is expressed by the term σεσῳσμένοι. The present indicative active verb implies not just existence but more specifically, “You are saved.” The perfect participle σεσῳσμένοι literally means “saved, delivered, or shielded.” Therefore, those who are saved or delivered through God’s act of grace continue to exist in this state as a consequence of a past event, ensuring that their salvation cannot be undone.

Paul discusses the ongoing significance of past events in the context of our salvation, highlighting the importance of being freed from guilt and having our sins forgiven. Christ's act of redemption for the world is not a one-time event but continues to have relevance today. The grace of justification and forgiveness, which only our Lord has earned for humanity, is a lasting result of his passion, death, and resurrection. Through our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ, God has reconciled the world to Himself (Rom 5:10-11).

Baptism is the moment when we actively receive the grace of justification and forgiveness, leading to our inner renewal. This grace is solely earned for us by Christ, based on strict justice, and not by any merits of our own (2 Tim 1:9; Titus 3:5). Our journey of faith begins with this ongoing and dynamic process of justification and sanctification. Through the redeeming merits of Jesus Christ, we are transformed from being children of Adam to being reborn in the Spirit. This transformation is not a one-time event that guarantees our salvation for all time; rather, it marks the start of a continuous process of growing in holiness and striving for spiritual perfection, even as we may experience occasional falls from grace and engage in acts of contrition after our baptism (2 Cor 7:1).

For we are the aroma of Christ to God
among those who are being saved
and among those who are perishing.
2 Corinthians 2, 15

By reading the phrase "those who are being saved" in English, one might get the impression that St. Paul is referring to a community of believers who are currently in the process of being saved but have not yet achieved salvation. This interpretation suggests that salvation is a sequence of ongoing actions over time rather than a state that is acquired and continually developed through a singular event. It’s important not to confuse the ancient Greek present tense with the modern English present continuous tense. The present tense verb in New Testament Greek does not necessarily imply a continuous or ongoing action (like saving someone from drowning) that is momentarily unfolding within a limited time frame until it concludes (known as Aktionsart). As previously mentioned, the grace of justification and forgiveness that our Lord has uniquely earned for humanity is the permanent outcome of His passion, death, and resurrection. Christ paid the ransom for sin once and for all, reconciling humanity to God in a definitive moment in the past, which has a complete and lasting effect.

Therefore, the verb that Paul uses (“being saved”) is in the present tense. In koine Greek, we have σωζομένοις (sōzomenois). The apostle is addressing those who are “saved or rescued and safeguarded.” Still, when reading the NT in the original Greek, we must consider the author’s vantage point on the action or on “being saved” (aspect). Greek verb tenses indicate the subjective portrayal of that action or state by the writer, which is called aspect. The aspectual tense mark of a Greek verb helps us see what the subjective portrayal of the action is but not without the aid of the analogy of Scripture. Let’s proceed to see what Paul is saying to those who ‘are saved’ and how their salvation might not be without any qualifications or conditions.

By doing so, we will discover that Christ has formally saved us all in a collective sense, but instrumentally, our salvation is still something we must “work out” for ourselves and finally attain in a distributive sense. We read in the King James Bible: “Wherefore, my beloved, as ye have always obeyed, not as in my presence only, but now much more in my absence, work out your own salvation with fear and trembling” (Phil 2:12). In other words, we must cooperate with our Lord in saving ourselves from drowning (subjective redemption) with his principal help now that he has taken charge of our eternal destiny by his single self-sacrifice (objective redemption).

In the present tense, Paul envisions the ongoing process of becoming holy and righteous, contrasting this with the habitual state of sin experienced by those who are “perishing” (the present participle: ἀπολλυμένοις or apollymenois, meaning “are destroyed” or “do destroy”) due to their obstinacy. Their commitment made during baptism signifies the beginning of a lifelong journey of justification and sanctification. As the Corinthians receive the grace of justification and forgiveness through their baptism, they have the opportunity to earn more grace and a deeper level of sanctification and charity as a reward for their friendship with God. This growth allows them to more closely reflect the image of God in their lives, aided by the gifts of the Holy Spirit.

Sanctification is the essence or fundamental cause of justification. To be just before God, we must be made inherently holy and righteous. We cannot be the "aroma of Christ" or reflect Christ-like qualities as members of His mystical Body unless our righteousness is genuinely ours, obtained through the infusion of sanctifying grace into our souls (2 Cor 13:15). This process requires our active collaboration with the Holy Spirit. Ultimately, we are responsible for and deserving of the eternal reward or punishment we receive. Christ does not save each of us personally solely through His work on the cross; rather, He makes it possible for us to be saved by the grace that He alone has earned through His redeeming merits.

To be just in God’s sight is to be intrinsically holy by the power of the Spirit who dwells in our souls. Thus, if we commit a mortal sin (i.e., the act of adultery or bearing false witness against our neighbor), we risk forfeiting the salvation Christ gained for us since our souls would no longer be in the state of sanctifying grace until we confess our sins and make an act of contrition and do penance preferably through the Sacrament of Reconciliation. For this reason, we must repent of our post-baptismal sins and do penance to be fully restored to friendship with God. “We must look to ourselves that we lose not the things which we have wrought (a meritorious increase in grace or bearing fruit) but that we receive a full reward” (1 Jn 2:8). John underscores the importance of cooperating with divine grace to ensure the instrumental application of our own salvation and its attainment by persevering in grace to the end, now that our Lord and Savior has made this possible for everyone by his passion, death, and resurrection.

Certainly, Paul did not view justification as a static, one-time event in the lives of Christians that occurred in the past, completed by their baptism through faith in Christ. For him, it was an ongoing process that required human collaboration with God's work through the Holy Spirit. This process involves constructive transformations of the soul and daily renewal (see 2 Corinthians 3:18; 4:16; Ephesians 4:22-24; Philippians 2:13). Our salvation is something we must diligently "work out in fear and trembling," as we risk falling from grace and reverting to our former sinful ways, which could jeopardize our salvation. We should feel no fear of eternal condemnation if all we needed to do was simply place our faith in Christ's redeeming merits and accept Jesus as our personal Lord and Savior. While the grace of justification and forgiveness is indeed a gift, it is not a license to sin (Romans 6:1).

It is essential for all baptized members of the Body of Christ to persevere in their faith until their last day. Jesus himself warns us that we must endure to the end if we hope to be saved, given that He alone has provided us with the gift of salvation (Mt 10:22; 24:13; Mk 13:13). We must not allow ourselves to be lost or to undermine what Christ has achieved for us, as those who are perishing do.

This is all the more urgent, for you know how late it is;
time is running out. Wake up for our salvation is nearer now than
when we first believed. The night is past and the day is at hand. Let
us therefore cast off the works of darkness and put on the armour of light.
Romans 13, 11

In his Letter to the Romans, St. Paul addresses the concept of salvation as a future attainment that is drawing closer from the moment his followers first embraced their faith in Christ. Salvation, therefore, represents an ongoing hope for them in their journey of faith. It is not something they have fully attained in their personal lives, nor is it something that, regardless of their actions, they can never lose. The apostle emphasizes the importance of continually applying the truths of the Gospel in their daily lives to ensure they ultimately receive the hope they are anticipating. It seems that some members of the Roman church have returned to their pre-baptismal sinful habits, behaving unworthily as disciples of Christ despite their claims of faith.

Paul is urging those who have strayed from their faith to return to their renewed way of life and to remain steadfast in grace before it’s too late. Their personal judgment may come at any unexpected moment, so it’s essential for them to “wake up” and stop deceiving themselves. This way, they won’t be caught off guard and risk losing the salvation they hope for. There would be no need for Paul to encourage the Roman Christians if they were already assured of their salvation upon their initial profession of faith in Christ (1 Cor 6:9-11).

When Paul tells them to “put on the armor of light,” he means that they should continue to persevere in grace so that they can be considered righteous and saved at the time of their death. The apostle understood that one’s salvation is not guaranteed but rather a hope, despite the fact that all descendants of Adam have been formally redeemed (1 Cor 4:4). How we conduct our lives plays a crucial role in the personal application of the salvation that Christ secured for us on the Cross in accordance with strict justice.

Early Sacred Tradition

“And pray ye without ceasing in behalf of other men;
for there is hope of the repentance, that they may attain to God.
For ‘cannot he that falls arise again, and he may attain to God.’”
St. Ignatius of Antioch, To the Ephesians, 10
( A.D. 110)

“But He who raised Him up from the dead will raise up us also, if we do His will,
and walk in His commandments, and love what He loved, keeping ourselves from
all unrighteousness, covetousness, love of money, evil speaking, false witness;
‘not rendering evil for evil, or railing for railing,’ or blow for blow, or cursing for
cursing, but being mindful of what the Lord said in His teaching: ‘Judge not, that
ye be not judged; forgive, and it shall be forgiven unto you; be merciful, that ye
may obtain mercy; with what measure ye mete, it shall be measured to you
again; and once more, “Blessed are the poor, and those that are persecuted for
righteousness’ sake, for theirs is the kingdom of God.’”
St. Polycarp, To the Philippians, 2
(A.D. 135)

“And as many of them, he added, as have repented, shall have their dwelling in
the tower. And those of them who have been slower in repenting shall dwell
within the walls. And as many as do not repent at all, but abide in their deeds,
shall utterly perish…Yet they also, being naturally good, on hearing my
commandments, purified themselves, and soon repented. Their dwelling,
accordingly, was in the tower. But if anyone relapses into strife, he will be cast
out of the tower, and will lose his life.”
Hermas, The Shephard, 3:8:7
(A.D. 155)

“We have learned from the prophets, and we hold it to be true, that punishments,
and chastisements, and good rewards, are rendered according to the merit of
each man’s actions. Since if it be not so, but all things happen by fate, neither is
anything at all in our own power…But this we assert is inevitable fate, that they
who choose the good have worthy rewards, and those who choose the opposite
have their merited awards. For not like other things, as trees and quadrupeds,
which cannot act by choice, did God make man: for neither would he be worthy
of reward or praise did he not of himself choose the good, but were created for
this end; nor, if he were evil, would he be worthy of punishment, not being evil of
himself, but being able to be nothing else than what he was made.”
St. Justin Martyr, First Apology, 6
(A.D. 155)

“‘And other sheep there are also,’ saith the Lord, ‘which are not of this fold ‘
deemed worthy of another fold and mansion, in proportion to their faith. ‘But
My sheep hear My voice,’ understanding gnostically the commandments. And
this is to be taken in a magnanimous and worthy acceptation, along with also
the recompense and accompaniment of works. So that when we hear, ‘Thy faith
hath saved thee, we do not understand Him to say absolutely that those who
have believed in any way whatever shall be saved, unless also works follow. But
it was to the Jews alone that He spoke this utterance, who kept the law and lived
blamelessly, who wanted only faith in the Lord. No one, then, can be a believer
and at the same time be licentious; but though he quit the flesh, he must put off
the passions, so as to be capable of reaching his own mansion.”
St. Clement of Alexandria, The Stromata, 6:14
(A.D. 202)

“Whoever dies in his sins, even if he profess to believe in Christ, does not truly
believe in Him, and even if that which exists without works be called faith, such
faith is dead in itself, as we read in the Epistle bearing the name of James.”
Origen, Commentary on John, 19:6
(A.D. 232)

“He, in administering the righteous judgment of the Father to all, assigns to each
what is righteous according to his works….the justification will be seen in the
awarding to each that which is just; since to those who have done well shall be
assigned righteously eternal bliss, and to the lovers of iniquity shall be given
eternal punishment. And the fire which is un-quenchable and without end
awaits these latter, and a certain fiery worm which dieth not…But the righteous
will remember only the righteous deeds by which they reached the heavenly
kingdom, in which there is neither sleep, nor pain, nor corruption”
St. Hippolytus, Against Plato, 3
(ante A.D. 235)

“For both to prophesy and to cast out devils, and to do great acts upon the earth
is certainly a sublime and an admirable thing; but one does not attain the
kingdom of heaven although he is found in all these things, unless he walks in
the observance of the right and just way. The Lord denounces, and says, ‘Many
shall say to me in that day, Lord, Lord, have we not prophesied in Thy name, and
in Thy name have cast out devils, and in Thy name done many wonderful works
And then will I profess unto them, I never knew you: depart from me, ye that
work iniquity.’ There is need of righteousness, that one may deserve well of God
the Judge; we must obey His precepts and warnings, that our merits may
receive their reward.”
St. Cyprian, On the Unity of the Church, 16
(A.D. 251)

“Say not, none seeth me; think not, that there is no witness of the deed. Human
witness oftentimes there is not; but He who fashioned us, an unerring witness,
abides faithful in heaven, and beholds what thou doest. And the stains of sin also
remain in the body; for as when a wound has gone deep into the body, even if
there has been a healing, the scar remains, so sin wounds soul and body, and the
marks of its scars remain in all; and they are removed only from those who
receive the washing of Baptism. The past wounds therefore of soul and body God
heals by Baptism; against future ones let us one and all jointly guard ourselves,
that we may keep this vestment of the body pure, and may not for practicing
fornication and sensual indulgence or any other sin for a short season, lose the
salvation of heaven, but may inherit the eternal kingdom of God; of which may
God, of His own grace, deem all of you worthy.”
St. Cyril of Jerusalem, Catechetical Lectures, 18:19,20
(A.D. 350)

“But he that shall persevere to the end, he shall be saved.”
Matthew 24,13

Pax vobiscum