What do the words 'salvation' and 'eternal life' mean?

Answer 1

Salvation simply means: Being preserved or delivered from danger - or - destruction.

Salvation is necessary from 3 situations of danger or destruction.

1) All mankind coming from Adam is in bondage to sin, and the resulting sickness & death. We need deliverance / salvation from that.

2) At various times in history, Jehovah God had determined that He will DESTROY - - NON-compliant ones. Mankind needs deliverance / salvation through those events of Destruction.

3) People who have enemies (ie the Israelites from the Egyptians) need deliverance / salvation from their hands.

'Eternal life' needs to be broken down into the 2 words:

Life means: Having existence. The opposite of 'life' is 'death'; or NON-existence.

When connected with Bible concepts, the word 'eternal' needs some explanation, to facilitate correct understanding.

1) Only Jehovah God, the Almighty, the Creator; can truly be Eternal in the truest sense of the word. He is eternal in both directions; past and present. He has no beginning; He was not created by another; He was not born. Jehovah has always existed. Likewise, God has no end of existence. God is self-sufficent, self-contained; not dependent on anyone or anything outside of himself. God has 'LIFE - within - His - essence.' NO ONE else can be called 'eternal' in this sense.

2) When God created other intelligent living beings --- He gave them 'existence'. He did not set a 'life-span' for these intelligent living beings.They were granted this thing called -- 'life'. Just plain 'life'. They could live forever, or eternally in one direction only --- the future. (Hindus believe in an eternal soul. The soul is neither created nor destroyed. This is not The Bible concept.)

3) But this thing called 'life' does not mean 'immortality'. (That's a different word in the Scriptures.)

4) 'Life' would be DEPENDENT though! -- upon following the 'rules of life'. (For example: For humans some rules of life are: eating, drinking, breathing, sleeping. If we do not follow these rules - - our 'existence' will end; because we were created -- being BOUND to these basic rules. That's easy to understand, right?

5) 'Life' would also be dependent regarding other matters. Just as when God created the physical universe. He did not just create the various items independent of each other, and just fling them into outer space. God provided GUIDANCE -- STRICT GUIDANCE for those items.

Likewise with intelligent beings; their 'existence' is CONTINGENT upon CO-OPERATION with their Maker. God requires 'order' 'unity'. God also requires 'willing obedience' to his righteous standards of right and wrong, good and bad. (This does not negate another invention: 'free will'. But this question is not about free will.)

6) While no pre-determined 'life-span' was placed on 'life'; at the same time, 'obedience and cooperation' would determine the length of existence. How intelligent beings use their free-will is the determining factor.

To help with understanding, some translations use the term 'ever lasting life'. This helps with some clarity in English.

Mankind received 'life without end / life without a life-span' when created. Adam sold his offspring from that heritage by his sinning against God's righteous requirement regarding the tree. Jehovah God has arranged for Christ Jesus' sacrifice to purchase us back from our heritage; and promises to UN-DO those effects of our heritage from Adam. God has promised to restore the real 'life' back to 'obedient' ones.