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Sotieriology in the Early Church. Soteriology in the Early Church The human
condition in this world is a plight of fallen men. Constantly ...
Submitted by patmert on November 25, 2007
Category: Religion
Words: 765 | Pages: 4
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Soteriology in the Early Church
The human condition in this world is a plight of fallen men. Constantly trying to bring society and civilization to peace and prosperity our efforts are ruined by sin, which impacts us on a global level. However, through scripture God has revealed his plan for our salvation, and through Christ this has been done. The study of the doctrine of salvation is known as soteriology. There are four models of soteriology that can be detected in the literature of the early church. These four models are; salvation as illumination, salvation as recapitulation, salvation as victory over the devil, and salvation as deification.
Salvation as illumination deals with the concept of Jesus not only as a teacher, but as the Teacher. The early church viewed this through the idea that through Christ's death man has been blessed with the ability to gain the knowledge of Christ. Not only are we saved through the death and resurrection of Jesus, but also through Christ's saving works while he was alive. The gospels are a plethora of teachings from Jesus which include his parables, sermons, and miracles. Through the saving blood and knowledge of Jesus Christ, he has illuminated our hearts and minds to the path of eternal salvation.
Another model of soteriology is salvation as recapitulation. The models opens up the idea that Christ came to restore what was lost through the fall of Adam. Recapitulation can be described as the summing up of all things. In this sense recapitulation is the collection of all things in Christ. Just as sin and death were brought into the world by Adam, redemption and eternal life were brought into the world by the
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death and resurrection of Jesus Christ. This view incorporates humans across the ages, bringing us all together in Christ. In a sense, this theory states that creation and redemption have in a way been joined.
In the third model, a fight between good and evil...
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