Ro 10:1 Brethren, my heart's desire and prayer to God for Israel is that they may be saved.
Israel was, and still is, God's elect earthly people. And yet membership into that nation did not automatically guarantee one's salvation. Notice, that Paul here had to earnestly pray for Israel's salvation.
Today, many people think that membership with the one external, visible, organized religious community would ensure one's salvation. Nothing could be further from the truth.
Just as being a member of the nation Israel did not automatically result in the salvation of a Jew, if he or she did not place his or her trust in the Savior and what He did on the cross, so joining and participating with an external, visible, organized religious community cannot save if one has not repented and trusted in Christ for salvation.
Just as salvation for a Jew then was not about being a member of the nation Israel, so salvation right now is not about being a local member of a church and participating in it. Salvation, my friend, is about being united to Christ through the bonds of living faith.
