What is Congregational Salvation?

You might be wondering if such a concept exist? For the purpose of this entry, I will discuss only the Christian religion and no particular denomination. We know that most of the letters in the New Testament were written to real churches that existed at that time. The bible teaches that each individual must repent and believe to become a Christian, and Baptism in most churches is entry into the congregation life of that church. Nowhere in the bible will you find the erroneous concept of Universal of Congregational salvation. Yes, it is true that part of the Christian profession of faith is the declaration of the Lordship of Jesus Christ, and he is the head of the church. However upon entering the church, you are entering as an individual that is now part of the body of Christ's indivisible Body namely the church.

For congregational worship to work, you still retain your freedom and individuality as a saved person. When you hear in the bible of the church being redeemed it is referring to the individuals who make up that body. Is there a difference between individuals being saved in a church, or the church being saved? My answer is yes, the church is made up of individuals but that does not mean that everybody in one specific church are all saved. If this was the case, then the requirement for salvation would be based on church membership and not on a personal choice to believe and follow the Lord.

Churches hold the doctrine that they hold the keys (the Bible) and with these keys they retain who goes to Heaven. This cannot be further from the truth. It is God alone in the end, and now who determines who will go to Heaven. The way He does this is through His mercy and through the cross of Jesus Christ His Son. When a person has faith in Jesus, they are declared righteous. This means that the church facilitates the message of salvation or the cross, and through the church a person hears the Gospel that will save their soul. If Churches stop preaching the gospel, this would be bad because no one would be saved in the church any more, and the idea of congregational salvation would be done away with completely.

The church was put in place through the Holy Spirit to facilitate salvation and growth for a Christian. It is there for ministry and it is not the means by which a person is saved, the cross is that means. The idea that a whole congregation can be saved at the same time now, or for eternity is a made up concept that holds absolutely no Biblical reference. This is Mike.

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