Sometimes people think that Jews are saved because they serve and believe in the same God of the Bible. Although this is true, in the New Testament we see that they rejected Jesus, who claimed to be one with God (Jn. 10:30), the only way to the Father (Jn. 14:6), and, more than this, the Messiah (Mt. 26:63–64). This raises the question, “Are Jews saved?” But to answer this question, we must define salvation and study what the Bible says is necessary for someone to be saved. Then, we can look at the foundational beliefs of the Jewish religion to determine if they meet the requirements for salvation. In that way, we can come to a conclusion about the salvation of the Jews.
What Do We Mean by “Salvation”?
It is important to remember that not all religions mean the same when they talk about salvation. In simple terms, salvation is deliverance from something. Both Christians and traditional Jews would agree that salvation has multiple aspects to it. Douglas Walker explains that the three aspects of salvation are rescue from danger, the renewal of the spirit (from the state of sin into the original condition of moral purity), and the restoration of a right relationship with God. For the rest of this blog, we will refer to salvation in reference to deliverance from sins—the restoration aspect of it.
Jewish and Christian Beliefs
When it is about salvation from sins, in Judaism the responsibility is on the sinner himself, while in Christianity hope is in what the Messiah did to pay for their sins. Jews celebrate the day of Yom Kippur. On this day, the High Priest used to sacrifice an animal for everyone’s sins, but now that there is no temple, they rely on prayer, repentance, and the merits of the Patriarchs. In other words, they rely on their own. For them, the Messiah hasn’t come yet, and when he comes, he will rescue them from their oppressors.
What Is Needed for Someone to Be Saved?
The Bible teaches us three principles about salvation. First, there is nothing we can do to earn salvation. Salvation is not something that we buy with good works or money. Salvation is a gift from God that we can either accept or reject. Second, the way to accept the gift of salvation is by believing in Jesus (Eph. 2:8–9; 1 Pt. 1:9). Therefore, faith in Jesus is the requirement for salvation. However, the fact that we don’t have to do anything to receive salvation doesn’t mean that we can continue living our lives in sin. As Christians, we believe that our salvation is reflected in our works. There is no salvation if there wasn’t true repentance, and repentance requires a turning point—a moment when we acknowledge our sin, confess it, and turn away from it and toward God. Therefore, our works reflect our salvation but are not the means to earn salvation. But why faith in Jesus? Because he lived a life in obedience to the Father, and his death on the cross made him the perfect sacrifice that was offered to pay for our sins (Rom. 3:24–25; 1 Jn. 2:2). And how do we know that Jesus is the Messiah? Because in him the Old Testament prophecies are fulfilled, because he did miracles that point to his divine authority, and because he rose from the dead (please look at other blogs on our page to learn more about this).
Are Jews Saved?
Now that we have defined salvation and talked about Jewish beliefs, we can answer our question: Are Jews saved? According to the biblical standard, faith in Jesus is a necessary condition for salvation, and because Jews do not believe in Jesus, they are not saved and are still not living in the hope that God offered us. However, according to the Bible, they will come to acknowledge Jesus as the Messiah (Zec. 12:10; Rom. 11:25–32).
Conclusion
The purpose of this post is not to judge our Jewish friends, but to encourage other Christians to pray for them and to be bold in sharing the gospel of Jesus Christ with their Jewish friends. Also, to encourage Jews to study the person of Jesus in the New Testament and see how their Tanakh points to him. Our desire and prayer for our Jewish friends is that they can also share the same hope that we have received from God.
Written by Valeria Mercado