Beliefs & Teachings about Redemption (AQA GCSE Religious Studies B): Revision Note

The death of Jesus as restoration through sacrifice

The relationship between free will and sin

• For humans to have free will, sin has to exist

• God created a perfect world, according to the Genesis account of creation

• As part of this creation, God gave humans free will

  • This is because God wanted people to choose to love and worship him

  • Humans must have free will to make this choice freely for themselves

• Human free will means that they are free to do both good and evil

• Humans can also use their free will to sin or do actions that reject God’s will

  • For example, Adam and Eve ate the forbidden fruit from the tree of knowledge in the Garden of Eden (Genesis 2)

• Because of Adam and Eve’s actions, all humans are born with the tendency to sin. This is known as original sin

• Sin has broken the relationship between God and humanity. Humans cannot repair this

• God the Son (Jesus) came to earth to restore the broken relationship between God and humanity

The death of Jesus

• Jesus lived his life in total obedience to God’s will. He:

  • Followed God’s wishes completely

  • Showed love to others through his actions and his teachings

  • Did not condemn

  • Remained faithful to God even when it led to condemnation and death

• Even when suffering, Jesus chose to show love and forgiveness; he forgave those who executed him, saying:

• Jesus’s total obedience to God’s will meant that his sacrificial death restored the broken relationship between God and humanity

The resurrection

• Because of Jesus’s complete and total obedience to the Father and his lack of sin, there was nothing to hold him away from God after his death on the cross

• Three days after his death, Jesus was raised back to life by God the Father. This is known as the resurrection

• Jesus’s resurrection destroyed the ultimate power of sin and death

  • After this event, humans are now able to be with God after they die

  • Although sin and death still exist, people are now able to overcome them

• Jesus's resurrection also helped to restore the harmony of creation

The ascension

• Forty days after Jesus’s resurrection, he rose up to heaven to take his place at the right hand of the Father as the Son of God, Lord of all and head of the church

  • This is known as the ascension

• Jesus's resurrection and ascension helped restore the cosmic order, making the whole of creation as perfect as God originally intended it to be

The significance of the story of redemption

• he events of Jesus’s death, burial, resurrection and ascension are of central importance for human redemption and the restoration of the relationship between God and humanity

Significance of Jesus’s death and burial

• In the Old Testament, many animal sacrifices were made to make up for people’s sins

  • These were only temporary offerings

• Jesus’s death and burial were the ultimate sacrifice for the eternal redemption of humanity

  • This sacrifice was enough; no further sacrifice would be needed to restore the relationship between God and humans

• The Gospels show the significance of Jesus’s death and burial for redemption. They report that:

  • When Jesus died, the sky turned dark in the middle of the day, and there was an earthquake. Jesus’s death affected all of creation

  • The veil in the temple in Jerusalem was torn in two, signifying the collapse of the divide between God and humanity

  • The executioner’s spear pierced Jesus’s side, causing blood and water to spill out; this symbolised the blood of the Eucharist and the waters of baptism

• Jesus was buried in a tomb

  • This meant that he went through the same process as everyone else who had died before him, but was separated from God by sin

  • Christians believe that this shows that God is with them, even in death

Significance of Jesus’s resurrection and ascension

• Belief in Jesus’s resurrection is central to Christian faith

• The resurrection made life after death possible by destroying the power of sin and death

• Saint Paul explained the importance of the resurrection to the Corinthians

• The Gospels make it very clear that Jesus’s resurrection was an actual physical one, not a myth

  • Jesus appeared to his followers in bodily form, even though they were in a locked room

• The ascension to heaven shows Christians that Jesus is now with God the Father in heaven for eternity

  • Jesus promised his followers before he left that he would send his Spirit

  • The presence of the Holy Spirit in the world today continues the work of Jesus through his followers

• Belief in the ascension is significant for Christians because it shows them that they, too, can have eternal life with Jesus in heaven

  • This is because Jesus promised his followers that they would follow him

Contrasting views on salvation and grace

• There are three contrasting Christian views on salvation and grace

  • Different Christian denominations may stress one aspect over another

• Christians may believe that salvation:

  • Is an event that happened in the past

  • Continues in the present and is an ongoing process

  • Will be completed in the future, at the end of time

• Salvation in the past meant that it was the saving work of Jesus’s death, resurrection and ascension that defeated sin and death. This redeemed humanity and made salvation possible

  • These events make it possible for Christians to have eternal life after death

  • Salvation is completely God’s work and is an act of grace

  • Humans have no power over it because they are too sinful to have saved themselves

• Some Protestants take the view that nothing else but these events is needed for salvation: salvation is complete 

• Salvation as an ongoing process means that while Jesus brought salvation, sin still exists

  • People still have to accept the salvation offered by the way they live: they need to resist sin and do good works

  • The Holy Spirit helps people in working towards salvation

• Salvation as a future event refers to the idea that salvation will only be truly completed at the end of time

  • When God’s Kingdom is fully established, all sin and death will be completely destroyed

  • At this time, all believers will be able to experience the joy of eternal life in heaven with God

• Most Catholics combine these different understandings: they believe that salvation is an ongoing process that began with Jesus’s death and resurrection and will be completed at the end of time

Catholic understanding of salvation in the liturgy

• The Mass shows that redemption is ongoing: during each Mass, Jesus Christ is offered again to God the Father

  • During Mass, Catholics offer themselves up with Christ

  • During Holy Communion, Catholics receive the body and blood of Christ, which means that Christ enters their lives and gives them grace and strength to resist evil. This brings them closer to salvation

  • The Mass is a chance to experience what the victory celebration of the heavenly banquet will be like in the future, when all sin and death have finally been conquered and salvation is complete