Theology Survey (7): Necessary for Salvation?

Question: Is correct theology necessary for salvation?

#1: Yes. The definition of theology is the study of God and how he relates to the world. If you ask yourself, “What is God’s relationship to me?” and answer isn’t biblical (ie: he’s a higher power that created the world but isn’t involved in my life) then you don’t get saved.

#2: If by theology you mean a holistic system of beliefs, then no. Jesus says that he is the way to salvation, not theology. Now we can sit around and talk theology about what that statement meant, but he is the center of salvation. If there is only one "right" theology punching tickets to heaven, it could be a lonely place.

#3: No. If it is, then I’m a goner. But that’s not to say that we need to get certain things “right”, namely that Christ is the only hope for my hopeless attempt at goodness and being near God. There are only a few essentials….and I think God has a wide mercy, allowing for error in thinking to a great degree. This does not, however, take us off the hook in our responsibility to have sound theology.

#4: No. The only part we must take to heart and believe in for salvation comes from the Bible. The New Testament where Jesus answers that question by his teachings, his death, and his resurrection.

#5: Theology, or the study of god/God, is certainly necessary for salvation. How is one to form a system of beliefs based upon the Bible if not by first asking those bigger questions about who god/God is, and coming to some sort of self-realization?

#6: Theology concerning salvation and what you believe about Jesus- yes. If other stuff is a bit off I don’t think it leads to hell. When we stand before God, I really believe we will be judged on two things 1) If we knew Christ as our savior. 2) What we did with the gifts and blessings God gave us. Good theology leads us in the direction to believe these things more but it isn’t the theology itself that gets us into heaven.

#7: A correct theology of salvation (saving grace, and Christ’s role in it) is necessary. Outside of that, I don’t believe so, but I couldn’t be sure.

#8: I don’t think so, I think that initially you just need to accept Jesus, then the rest of it will come along as you grow and mature in faith.

#9: John says that “whoever believes in the Son has eternal life, but whoever rejects the Son will not see life..” and Paul tells us that” the gospel is “the power of God for the salvation of everyone who believes.” That is all I know.

#10: That depends on a person’s belief of salvation. If we are saved by our profession of faith in God, then yes. If we are saved by God’s sovereign will, then no.

#11: Correct theology is necessary for salvation because if it’s incorrect, then wouldn’t salvation be as well? I don’t really know.

#12: As important as it is, I would say that the answer to this question is NO! Not necessary! I would cite the thief on the cross who was saved…there is no apparent theology present…only confession and belief/faith (Rom. 10:9). This is not a means to disregard the importance of theology and doctrine, but a simple account and exposition of scriptural evidence.

#13: That’s a slippery slope, but I don’t believe so. I think that as long as people “confess with their mouth Jesus is Lord, and believe in their heart God raised Him from the dead, they will be saved.” I believe they must have a personal relationship with God and pursue Him with their lives.

#14: This is the formula for salvation: Belief in Jesus as the Savior. Modeling your life after his life. Continually striving to know the Trinity better.

#15: No, but I don’t know what the exact “requirement” is. To believe in Jesus, that he is the Son of God who died for my sins, and that he wants me to know him? What are the tenants that fully make someone a Christian, and do they all need to be completely believed in order to be a true believer? In one sense, maybe they do, but in a different sense, we are all, me mostly, on a path of believing to a greater extent than the day before. I believe more today than I did a year ago, but I know that a year ago I was still on this path and still fighting for the same thing. And my prayer is that 10 years down the road, I am still refining my belief and my theology, because I want it to be closer and closer to the truth and I want to know Jesus to an even greater degree than I did yesterday. I want the gap between my perspective and God’s perspective to get smaller and smaller.

#16: On a very basic level yes.

#17: No

#18: Yes. In the sense that salvation only comes through Jesus Christ, through confessing that He is Lord and believing that He raised us from the dead.
So if our view of God is wrong, then salvation couldn't be possible.
If there is an absolute truth, which I believe that there is, then it must be known to some extent to have salvation from it.

#19: I guess it depends first on how you define “correct theology”. But I have no idea.