On the cross, God judged Jesus for our sin so that we wouldn't have to be. That's why He is the only way to God. Only Jesus was willing and able to die for us to pay our death penalty, thus providing forgiveness for our sins. No one other religious leader has done this; no one else could have done this.
We can receive forgiveness and eternal life only through Jesus because only He has taken away our sin and bridged the gulf between us and God. It took His death to pay the penalty for our sin. If there had been any other way, Jesus would not have died (Gal 2:21). Considering the sacrifice Jesus made, we should not think it is unfair that there is only one way, but we should be glad that there is any way at all.
We can believe what Jesus said because He gave evidence that validates His claim. Jesus not only claimed to be the only way to God, but He also claimed to be God (John 5:18; 10:30-33). He then rose from the dead, proving that what He said was true. There is more evidence for Christ's resurrection than any event in ancient history. Buddha, Confucius, Mohammed and all of the other religious leaders of the past are still in their tombs. But not Jesus. Who would you believe?
We must always remember that people of other religions can be saved, but not by their religion. If they come to Jesus, He will save them. The invitation is open to all.
Hi Rob, Thanks for taking the trouble to post a comment.
Sadly, I have obviously failed to communicate to you.
Perhaps if you read my sermon again you will understand that I support entirely the notion that Jesus is The Way to the Father. I am, however, seeking to open up the possibility that the Cosmic Christ's act of reconciling all things to himself (see Hebrews) means that we have no warrant for assuming that salvation is only available to Christians.
I suggest that we need to be humble about the way we read Scripture - especially when there are such obviously contradictory passages as the ones I quote in the Sermon.
The point is that this is actually Good News! It means God is even bigger, even more loving, even more of a Father than we have previously imagined!
Do you live anywhere near Portsmouth? If so, I'd be delighted to explore this further with you, one to one.
Perhaps we need to distinguish truth claims from salvation claims; 'what is true?' from 'who gets saved?'. On the first I think that religions share some common ground - belief in a Creator and much moral teaching, for example. But on some things it makes sense to disagree and stand our ground. And it doesn't help anyone to fudge these issues with mushy talk about inter-faith dialogue.
The second question 'who gets saved?' is the more interesting. I'm quite happy to say that the only way to the Father is through the Son but precisely how this works is not exactly obvious. I'm with Tom on this one. Although instead of 'theological humility' I'd rather go with 'radical ignorance'. That's probably closer to the mark.
Hi Tom!
ReplyDeleteOn the cross, God judged Jesus for our sin so that we wouldn't have to be. That's why He is the only way to God. Only Jesus was willing and able to die for us to pay our death penalty, thus providing forgiveness for our sins. No one other religious leader has done this; no one else could have done this.
We can receive forgiveness and eternal life only through Jesus because only He has taken away our sin and bridged the gulf between us and God. It took His death to pay the penalty for our sin. If there had been any other way, Jesus would not have died (Gal 2:21). Considering the sacrifice Jesus made, we should not think it is unfair that there is only one way, but we should be glad that there is any way at all.
We can believe what Jesus said because He gave evidence that validates His claim. Jesus not only claimed to be the only way to God, but He also claimed to be God (John 5:18; 10:30-33). He then rose from the dead, proving that what He said was true. There is more evidence for Christ's resurrection than any event in ancient history. Buddha, Confucius, Mohammed and all of the other religious leaders of the past are still in their tombs. But not Jesus. Who would you believe?
We must always remember that people of other religions can be saved, but not by their religion. If they come to Jesus, He will save them. The invitation is open to all.
God Bless,
Rob
Hi Rob,
ReplyDeleteThanks for taking the trouble to post a comment.
Sadly, I have obviously failed to communicate to you.
Perhaps if you read my sermon again you will understand that I support entirely the notion that Jesus is The Way to the Father. I am, however, seeking to open up the possibility that the Cosmic Christ's act of reconciling all things to himself (see Hebrews) means that we have no warrant for assuming that salvation is only available to Christians.
I suggest that we need to be humble about the way we read Scripture - especially when there are such obviously contradictory passages as the ones I quote in the Sermon.
The point is that this is actually Good News! It means God is even bigger, even more loving, even more of a Father than we have previously imagined!
Do you live anywhere near Portsmouth? If so, I'd be delighted to explore this further with you, one to one.
Best wishes and blessings on you.
Tom
Perhaps we need to distinguish truth claims from salvation claims; 'what is true?' from 'who gets saved?'. On the first I think that religions share some common ground - belief in a Creator and much moral teaching, for example. But on some things it makes sense to disagree and stand our ground. And it doesn't help anyone to fudge these issues with mushy talk about inter-faith dialogue.
ReplyDeleteThe second question 'who gets saved?' is the more interesting. I'm quite happy to say that the only way to the Father is through the Son but precisely how this works is not exactly obvious. I'm with Tom on this one. Although instead of 'theological humility' I'd rather go with 'radical ignorance'. That's probably closer to the mark.
Best wishes.