Salvation and Righteousness: The Heart of the Gospel Message
September 7, 2023 - Thursday, 22nd week in Ordinary Time
Psalm 98:2-3ab, 3cd-4, 5-6
Verses 2 and 3 of Psalm 98 bring four keywords that are of vital importance to our faith. These are usually translated as salvation, righteousness, mercy, and faithfulness. I have discussed God’s mercy and his faithfulness often on our podcast and one episode was dedicated to the Hebrew word “hesed” often rendered as mercy, steadfast love or grace. Today, I would like to focus on the first two words: salvation and righteousness.
The psalmist declares that “the LORD has made his salvation known”. The word “salvation” in Hebrew sounds like the name of Jesus - Yeshua. Now, we understand why in the Gospel of Matthew an angel of the Lord tells Joseph to name the child miraculously conceived in the womb of Mary Jesus. He is God’s salvation. When old Simeon took baby Jesus in his arms he thanked God and said: “My eyes have seen your salvation” (Luke 2:30). And the angel of the Lord explained the name of Jesus to Joseph by linking it with salvation. The angel told Joseph that Jesus came to save us from our sins (see Matt 1:21).
It has been the conviction of the followers of Christ from the beginning that nobody else could, can, and will ever be able to offer the grace of salvation to humanity except Jesus Christ (see Acts 4:12). Moreover, under the guidance of the Holy Spirit the early disciples of Jesus revealed to us that people throughout the ages can find salvation in the risen and glorified Christ. The letter to the Hebrews tells us that Jesus “became the source of eternal salvation for all who obey him” (Heb. 5:9).
In a poetic parallelism, the psalmist pairs the word salvation with righteousness: “The LORD has made his salvation known: in the sight of the nations he has revealed his righteousness” (Ps 98:2). In the New Testament, Saint Paul is the champion of the word righteousness. From the apostle to the Gentiles, we learn that Jesus is “our righteousness” (1 Cor 1:30). In his letters to the Romans and Galatians, we find the thought that all human beings need God’s righteousness, “since all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God” (Rom 3:23; cf. Rom 1:18- 3:20; 11:32; Gal 3:22). This righteousness comes to us as grace through the death and the resurrection of Christ. We are made righteous in the eyes of God through the sacrificial death of his son. “For by grace you have been saved through faith. And this is not your own doing; it is the gift of God, not a result of works, so that no one may boast” (Eph 2:8-9).
In English translations of the New Testament, we find two terms that stamp from a similar Greek root - righteousness and justification. The first term refers to “the condition acceptable to God”, and the second refers to “the act of God declaring people free from guilt and acceptable to him”. Both terms are related to Jesus Christ, who justifies us and makes us righteous.
Thus, at the core message of the Gospel revealed by God to the Church is salvation and righteousness through Jesus Christ. Through her proclamation, the Church makes known this Gospel to all the ends of the earth.