"Blessed is the coming kingdom of our father David!" "Hosanna in the highest!"( Mark 11:10)
From yesterday’s meditation by focusing on the meaning of Hosanna, “Save us”, salvation is gift of God, we can ask this question. Don’t we have anything to do for our salvation? This is a little difficult question to reply. If we say it at the ultimate level, as we can confirm it from the conception of ‘Sola Gratia’ of Martin Luther, we have nothing to do because salvation is God’s grace. It is similar as a child eats food. A child has nothing to do for his mother cooks for him.
At the Reformation times, Roman Catholic taught differently. Salvation was God’s grace but at the same time it required human’s religious achievement. Christians should follow Church’s teaching. It revealed salvation as a religious achievement and it became the other important part of salvation. The request for such achievement was connected to two issues: salvation is process and in this process Christians should be taught religious education.
The opinion of Luther and Catholic is not the matter of a choice of two things. It may be a different view point for salvation. The former has a view point to see beginning of salvation and its completion as one. The latter has a view point to divide its beginning and completion. Even in Protestant, those who emphasize sanctification seem to be closed to the latter view point. Despite taking at any view point, shouting of Hosanna is an indispensible fact. Though setting process and sanctification of salvation forth as a premise, ultimately everything is God’s grace.
At the moment of Jesus’ entry to Jerusalem, there was the shouting of “Hosanna in the highest!” Jesus is indeed the origin, ground, goal and process of salvation. Hosanna!
From yesterday’s meditation by focusing on the meaning of Hosanna, “Save us”, salvation is gift of God, we can ask this question. Don’t we have anything to do for our salvation? This is a little difficult question to reply. If we say it at the ultimate level, as we can confirm it from the conception of ‘Sola Gratia’ of Martin Luther, we have nothing to do because salvation is God’s grace. It is similar as a child eats food. A child has nothing to do for his mother cooks for him.
At the Reformation times, Roman Catholic taught differently. Salvation was God’s grace but at the same time it required human’s religious achievement. Christians should follow Church’s teaching. It revealed salvation as a religious achievement and it became the other important part of salvation. The request for such achievement was connected to two issues: salvation is process and in this process Christians should be taught religious education.
The opinion of Luther and Catholic is not the matter of a choice of two things. It may be a different view point for salvation. The former has a view point to see beginning of salvation and its completion as one. The latter has a view point to divide its beginning and completion. Even in Protestant, those who emphasize sanctification seem to be closed to the latter view point. Despite taking at any view point, shouting of Hosanna is an indispensible fact. Though setting process and sanctification of salvation forth as a premise, ultimately everything is God’s grace.
At the moment of Jesus’ entry to Jerusalem, there was the shouting of “Hosanna in the highest!” Jesus is indeed the origin, ground, goal and process of salvation. Hosanna!
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