The significance of Salvation.

"Grace to you and peace from God our Father and the Lord Jesus the Savior." 1 Corinthians 1:3

Opening Readings

"Receiving the end of your faith, even the salvation of your souls. 10 Of which salvation the prophets have enquired and searched diligently, who prophesied of the grace that should come unto you." 1 Peter 1:9 (AKJV) 

"You are receiving what your trust is aiming at, namely, your deliverance. 10 The prophets, who prophesied about this gift of deliverance that was meant for you, pondered and inquired diligently about it." 1 Peter 1:9 (CJB) 

Introduction

The hope christianity offers is the hope that man (man is unisex in all cases where it appears in this composition) will be redeemed- saved from this body that feels hurts and pain, is subject to terrible and unavoidable passions and emotions, and which breaks down and dies- to attain the salvation of his soul or eternal life, a state where there will be no more hurts, sickness, pain or death.  This hope is expressed by the apostle Peter in the preceding passages (1 Peter 1:9-10). See also Revelations 21:3, ""I heard a loud voice from the throne say, “See! God’s Sh’khinah (Presence) is with mankind, and he will live with them. They will be his people, and he himself, God-with-them, will be their God.[b] 4 He will wipe away every tear from their eyes. There will no longer be any death; and there will no longer be any mourning, crying or pain; because the old order has passed away.”"

Why is there a need for salvation or Why does man need to be saved?

The foundation for understanding man's need for salvation is spelt out in Genesis 3:1-17. Because it is a long passage, I will give a short summary. Essentially, in the referred to scripture, God cursed the Serpent (Satan, the Adversary), cursed the woman (mother of all human beings), cursed the man (the procreator of mankind), and cursed the Earth (the sustainer of all lives). 

If you recognize that in Genesis 1:28, God blessed Adam and Eve, saying, “Be fruitful, multiply, fill the earth and subdue it; rule over the fish in the sea, the birds in the air and every living creature that crawls on the earth,” it becomes apparent that the curses pronounced in Genesis 3:1-17 effectively terminated the blessings originally conferred in Genesis 1:28. 

The ultimate meaning of this is that everything about man and created for man was now corrupted, spoiled and unsustainable; it would not keep him alive anymore. Rather, they would become his enemy and man would neither live nor enjoy the blessings he was initially gifted. An excellent scripture to describe the situation is Leviticus 18:25, "The land has become unclean, and this is why I am punishing it — the land itself will vomit out its inhabitants." 

Man thus needed to be saved so he could return to the blessed place God had originally prepared for him (see Revelations 21: 3-4, cited under introduction).

The Plan of Salvation

Because God is merciful and faithful, even when he was pronouncing the curses in Genesis 3:1-17, he was as well laying the foundation for man's ultimate salvation through his son Jesus Christ. Genesis 3:15, "I will put animosity between you (Serpent or Satan or Adversary) and the woman, and between your descendant (Satan's) and her descendant (Jesus Christ); he (Jesus Christ) will bruise your (Satan's) head, and you (Satan) will bruise his (Jesus') heel.” This prophecy was fulfilled when Jesus Christ died on the cross, opening up for us, once and for all, the way of salvation, the redemption of our souls, eternal life:  "This is the kind of High Priest that meets our need — holy, without evil, without stain, set apart from sinners and raised higher than the heavens; 27 one who does not have the daily necessity, like the other high priests, of offering up sacrifices first for their own sins and only then for those of the people; because he offered one sacrifice, once and for all, by offering up himself through dying on the cross. Hebrews 7:26

A comprehensive brief on the schema of salvation or A summary of the entire Bible or All of scripture (OT/NT) points towards Jesus Christ

Scripture first directly references Jesus Christ and his entry into history in Genesis 3:15,  "I will put animosity between you (Satan)and the woman, and between your descendant and her descendant (Jesus); he (Jesus) will bruise your head, and you (Satan) will bruise his heel.” This was the set up to the confrontation at the cross: 1 Corinthians 2:7, "We are communicating a secret wisdom from God which has been hidden until now but which, before history began, God had decreed would bring us glory. 8 Not one of this world’s leaders has understood it; because if they had, they would not have executed the Lord from whom this glory flows."

In order to execute this plan of salvation, Jesus had to come into the world as a man, a human person. Hebrews 2:16, "Indeed, it is obvious that he does not take hold of angels to help them; on the contrary, “He takes hold of the seed of Abraham (a person).”[e] 17 This is why he had to become like his brothers in every respect — so that he might become a merciful and faithful High Priest in the service of God, making an atonement for the sins of the people. 18 For since he himself suffered death when he was put to the test, he is able to help those who are being tested now."

For this to happen, God had to prepare him a family, and a nation, from where his origins could derive. This is how Abraham entered the picture. Genesis12:3, "I will bless those who bless you, but I will curse anyone who curses you; and by you (through Jesus) all the families of the earth will be blessed.” It is through Abraham that Jesus became a Jew and an Israelite. In other words, a bona fide human person in order to be able to save man. 

According to scripture: There were fourteen generations from Abraham to David, fourteen generations from David to the Babylonian Exile, and fourteen generations from the Babylonian Exile to the Messiah (Mathew 1:17). He became man and this is his ancestry or genealogy to prove.

The Meaning of the Death and the Resurrection of Jesus Christ.

An easier way to explain this would be to bring these two passages. 

Luke 1:67  His (John the Baptist's father) Zechariah was filled with the Holy Ghost and spoke this prophecy:

68 “Praised be Adonai, the God of Isra’el, [d]
    because he has visited and made a ransom to liberate his people
69 by raising up for us a mighty Deliverer
    who is a descendant of his servant David.
70 It is just as he has spoken
    through the mouth of the prophets from the very beginning —
71 that we should be delivered from our enemies
    and from the power of all who hate us.

72 “This has happened so that he might show
    the mercy promised to our fathers —
that he would remember his holy covenant,
73     the oath he swore before Abraham
74 to grant us that we, freed from our enemies,
    would serve him without fear,
75 in holiness and righteousness
    before him all our days.

76 You, child, will be called a prophet of The Highest;
    you will go before the Lord to prepare his way[e]
77 by spreading the knowledge among his people
    that deliverance comes by having sins forgiven
78 through our God’s most tender mercy,
    which causes the Sunrise to visit us from Heaven,
79 to shine on those in darkness, living in the shadow of death,[f]
    and to guide our feet into the paths of peace.”

AND

Colossians 2:13, "You were dead because of your sins, that is, because of your “foreskin,” your old nature. But God made you alive along with the Messiah (Jesus)  by forgiving you all your sins. 14 He wiped away the bill of charges against us. Because of the regulations (the Law), it stood as a testimony against us; but he removed it by nailing it to the Cross. 15 Stripping the rulers and authorities of their power, he made a public spectacle of them, triumphing over them by means of the Cross."

Briefly, the two scriptures state Jesus Christ has delivered us from all the things that were against us. This is the significance, meaning, of salvation. It touches on things that are against us in this world whether human, natural or spiritual. As well it secures us the life that we were deprived of when creation was cursed, as we  saw in the earlier part of composition. The overcoming life we can live here to some degree through the power of the Holy Ghost but attainment of the full eternal life will be when Jesus returns to claim us. 

1 Corinthians 15:51, "Look, I will tell you a secret — not all of us will die! But we will all be changed! 52 It will take but a moment, the blinking of an eye, at the final sounding of the trumpet. For the trumpet will sound, and the dead will be raised to live forever, and we too will be changed. 53 For this material which can decay must be clothed with imperishability, this which is mortal must be clothed with immortality. 54 When what decays puts on imperishability and what is mortal puts on immortality, then this passage in the Scripture will be fulfilled:

“Death is swallowed up in victory.[d]

55 “Death, where is your victory?
Death, where is your sting?”[e]

56 The sting of death is sin; and sin draws its power from the Law; 57 but thanks be to God, who gives us the victory through our Lord Jesus the savior! 58 So, my dear brothers, stand firm and immovable, always doing the Lord’s work as vigorously as you can, knowing that united with the Lord your efforts are not in vain."

Invitation

""On hearing this, they were stung in their hearts; and they said to Peter and the other apostles, "Brothers, what should we do?" Peter answered them, "Turn from sin, return to God, and each be baptized in the name of Jesus into forgiveness of your sins, and you will receive the gift of the Holy Ghost!"" Acts 2: 37-38

Closing blessing

"The grace of the Lord Jesus Christ, the love of God and the fellowship of the Holy Spirit be with you all." 2 Corinthians 13:14