March 14, 2004 John 14:6
“Is Jesus the only way?”
INTRODUCTION
The election for a new president is about 8 months away, but already, things in the political world are heating up. All week long, President Bush and John Kerry have been taking jabs at each other. They have been making accusations back and forth on issues such as health care, defense, education and the economy. And the way that they believe about each of these issues is very different from one another. They do all this because both of them have a great desire to be the next president of these United States. They know that we the voters are going to choose the next president based on how well they can convince us that the road that they want to take us on as a nation is the right one. Both of them would have us believe that their way is the only way to success for our nation.
Jesus is on a campaign trail too. Like the candidates for political office, He wants to secure your vote for Him as the sole leader of the universe and as the sole leader of your life. He wants you to choose to follow Him rather than following other potential candidates, and He wants you to volunteer at His campaign headquarters to help secure the commitments of other people. He would have you believe that His way is the only way to heaven.
Many if not most of you here would probably say that there is no need for you to listen to the political propaganda anymore, because you have already voted for Jesus. You agree that Jesus is the way to heaven. You believe He has forgiven you of your sins. And you would assume that the people sitting near you would voice that same commitment. After all, we are sitting here in a church – a Baptist church – and we are people who say that we believe the Bible. Don’t all Baptists believe that Jesus is the only way to heaven? Apparently not.
In our Southern Baptist Convention we pass resolutions every year. A resolution is a statement that tells what we believe. One of the things that the Southern Baptist Convention did a few years ago was to pass a resolution stating that we believe Jesus is the only way to salvation. Listen to what one pastor said about this resolution:
“In regard to the resolution, I understand God to be a gracious, life-giving mystery who, for me, is most clearly encountered in the human Jesus, the Christ. Therefore, I am a Christian. I assume that there are other lights, other understandings of God’s movement of love and justice in our world. To judge with certainty another person’s relationship to God is for me the height of arrogance.” (SBC Annual Meeting June, 1994)
That was a pastor of a Southern Baptist Church saying that he believed that there had to be other ways to heaven than just Jesus! Folks, if a Baptist pastor believes that, then I think I am safe to assume that there are people in the seats of Baptist churches – maybe people in this church – who do not believe that Jesus is the only way to salvation.
For that reason, we need to deal with this question: “Is Jesus the only way to heaven?”
1. What did Jesus say?
Politicians are known for making some pretty bold statements. The first George Bush boldly said, “Read my lips. No new taxes.” When it became clear that Dean had lost the New Hampshire primary, he made a wild speech in which he boldly proclaimed that he would take the White House. That speech is affectionately known as the scream speech. That’s all it was – a scream. It was bold, but it was empty.
What about the claims of Jesus? Jesus said some pretty bold things, the boldest of which is found in John 14:6.
(John 14:6 NIV) Jesus answered, "I am the way and the truth and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me.
“Imagine a married man boasting, ‘I have the most beautiful wife in the world!’ You might smile at the man’s affection, though behind his back you recognize his obvious romantic blindness. Such exaggeration is forgivable, and is the stuff of good marriages – even though it’s not reliable information about this woman.
“Now picture that same man’s wife walking up to you and stating, without the least hint of exaggeration, ‘I am the most beautiful woman in the world.’ You would most likely have an entirely different reaction, thinking her arrogant or at least terribly confused [especially since you know that your wife is the most beautiful woman in the world]. ... If she were to summon you to debate the claim, you might not know where to start – but you would definitely know she was wrong.” – p. 11
That is the exact same reaction that people have to the claim that Jesus is the only way to heaven. “Jesus says that if you want to find God and salvation for your souls, you must come through Him and Him alone.” Them’s fightin’ words. When I agree with Jesus that He is the only way, I am also saying that everyone else who chooses a different pathway is wrong. It’s like a spit in the face. I’m right, and you’re wrong. It’s a little intimidating to say that to the rest of the people in the world who believe differently than I do. “After all, can 4 billion people who disagree with [me] be all wrong? The answer is yes, because truth is not determined by opinion polls or majority rule.” – Brian La Croix
Is it possible that we just misunderstood Jesus? Did He really mean what He said? Let’s ask one of his greatest spokesmen, Paul:
(Acts 4:12 NIV) “Salvation is found in no one else, for there is no other name under heaven given to men by which we must be saved."
(1 Tim 2:5 NIV) “For there is one God and one mediator between God and men, the man Christ Jesus,”
“Both of these passages clearly state that any religion, philosophy or creed that does not have Jesus Christ, as the mediator between man and God is wrong and the adherents will not see salvation because they do not have His Spirit. That is exclusive and narrow as Jesus described the way to God.” – Ronald Shultz
(Mat 7:14 NIV) “But small is the gate and narrow the road that leads to life, and only a few find it.”- Jesus
People take great offense at Jesus’ claims because they don’t like anyone telling them what to do or how to live. They value independence, free choice. They don’t like authority. They like to have options – many restaurants, large menus, buffets. It gives them a sense of self-determination. They treat it as if its Ryan’s. Everything is laid out for you, and it’s all good. But you can refuse any part that doesn’t sit well with you. A little bit of Christianity here - just the parts I like though, a little bit of Islam there and top it all off with some Buddhism just to add a touch of spice. When it comes to truth, you can’t think of it as a buffet. Think of it more as a multivitamin – it’s all or nothing, and at times, it’s hard to swallow.
In claiming to be the only way, Jesus was right. It’s okay to be narrow-minded when you are right. How would you feel about a fireman who in the middle of a blazing fire told you there was only one way to safely get out? What about a doctor who told you that there was a cure for your cancer that definitely would work, but there was only one way? Would you take it? Is that being narrow-minded?
Still people would rather take all the religions of the world, boil them down to their essential ingredients, find those things that we can all agree on and just concentrate on that stuff. That way, everyone can be right, and no one has to be wrong, and we can all feel really good about each other. Don’t all those differences lead to war and intolerance anyway? Sounds good, until you remember what Jesus said: “I am the way, the truth and the life; no man comes to the Father except through me.”
TRAN: Ok, fine; what if Jesus did say that? What gives Him the right to make that bold and arrogant claim? Who does He think He is after all?
2. Who was Jesus?
Political ads have begun to fill the TV screen. It’s only going to get worse the closer that we get to the election. In those ads for George Bush, he makes this statement: “I am President George Bush, and I authorized this ad.” Is that a bold and arrogant statement for George Bush to call himself the President of the United States? No! He is the President of the United States. It’s no more arrogant for him to state that than it is for me to state that I am the pastor of New Life Baptist Church and the husband of Tammy, both of which I am very proud to declare, but neither of which is a prideful statement. They are both true. They are statements of fact about who I am. And they give me a certain level of authority to base other statements on.
Jesus and the men who wrote down His biographies – Matthew, Mark, Luke and John – made some statements about His identity too. Part of the descriptions that they give Jesus would make you think he was a normal human being.
Born from a woman (Luke 2:6,7)
Went through the developmental stages of childhood (Luke 2:52)
Normal job as a carpenter (Mark 6:3)
He got hungry and thirsty (Matt. 4:2; John 19:28)
He got tired. (Mark 4:38)
He was sad (John 11:35)
He had limited knowledge (Matt. 24:36)
He got angry (John 2:13-17)
His friends disappointed Him (Matthew 26:46-48)
He bled and died (Jn. 19:33-34)
The biographers of Jesus recorded details about his humanness to make it clear that Jesus was like us. The fact that Jesus was human means that He was able to go through everything that we face and so He is able to identify with us in our humanity. It means that we were important to Him enough to Him for Him to humble himself and come down to our level. But His humanness doesn’t give him the right to say that He is the only way to God. Let’s see what else is written about Him.
As normal as Jesus was in His humanity, from the point of His birth, it was clear that there was also an extraordinary part to who He was.
His birth was filled with signs and wonders (Matt. 1:18-25)
He had great wisdom (Luke 2:41-49)
He changed lives (Luke 19:1-8)
He had supernatural knowledge (John 4:16-18)
He confounded His enemies (Matt. 22:15-46)
He considered himself without sin (John 5:30-32; 7:18; 18:23)
Those around Him considered Him sinless (Jn. 10:31-33)
Okay, so maybe Jesus was more than just your average human being. Maybe He was special in a lot of ways. Still, we have a lot of extraordinary human beings in our history books – Ghandi, Mother Theresa, Houdini, Einstein and Abraham Lincoln. And we have extraordinary people living in our world today. None of these people ever claimed to be the only way to God. We need something else about Jesus’ identity that would give us reason to accept this preposterous, bigoted, intolerant claim.
That reason is this. Jesus and His followers claimed that He was more than just a human; more than just an extraordinary human. They claimed that He was God. Listen to these things that Jesus believed about Himself: Jesus believed...
He would judge the world at the end of time (Matt. 7:21-23; John 5:22)
He should be honored as much as God (John 5:23)
He gave eternal life to those who came to Him (John 5:21,40)
To know Him was to know God (John 8:19)
To hate Him was to hate God (John 15:23)
He could forgive sin (Mark 2:5,10)
It was ok for him to accept worship and be called “God” (Jn 20:28-29)
He claimed titles exclusive to God (Jn 8:56-59)
He claimed He and the Father were one (Jn 10:30)
He had been with God in heaven and shared divine glory (Jn. 17:5)
He could hear and answer prayer (Jn. 14:14)
He was omnipresent (Matt 28:20 compared with Jn 14:23)
Let’s take a look at just a few of these verses so that you can come to your own conclusion about what Jesus believed about Himself.
(John 5:16-18 NIV) So, because Jesus was doing these things on the Sabbath, the Jews persecuted him. Jesus said to them, "My Father is always at his work to this very day, and I, too, am working." For this reason the Jews tried all the harder to kill him; not only was he breaking the Sabbath, but he was even calling God his own Father, making himself equal with God.
(John 8:56-59 NIV) Your father Abraham rejoiced at the thought of seeing my day; he saw it and was glad. "You are not yet fifty years old," the Jews said to him, "and you have seen Abraham!" "I tell you the truth," Jesus answered, "before Abraham was born, I am!" At this, they picked up stones to stone him, but Jesus hid himself, slipping away from the temple grounds.
(John 14:8-9 NIV) Philip said, "Lord, show us the Father and that will be enough for us." Jesus answered: "Don’t you know me, Philip, even after I have been among you such a long time? Anyone who has seen me has seen the Father. ...”
(Luke 22:67-70 NIV) "If you are the Christ," they said, "tell us." Jesus answered, "If I tell you, you will not believe me, and if I asked you, you would not answer. But from now on, the Son of Man will be seated at the right hand of the mighty God." They all asked, "Are you then the Son of God?" He replied, "You are right in saying I am."
The biographers included these details about Jesus’ life to show that He was God. Those who say that Jesus never claimed to be God but only claimed He was a great teacher or rabbi really haven’t looked too closely at what Jesus actually said.
People don’t want to acknowledge that Jesus was God. They’re willing to call Him a teacher, a guru, a good man or any number of other designations.
“A man who was merely a man and said the sort of things Jesus said would not be a great moral teacher. He would either be a lunatic – on the level with the man who says he is a poached egg – or else he would be the Devil of Hell. You must make your choice. Either this was, and is, the Son of God; or else a madman or something worse. You can shut him up for a fool, you can spit at him and kill him as a demon, or you can fall at his feet and call him Lord and God. But let us not come with any patronizing nonsense about his being a great human teacher.” – C.S. Lewis, Mere Christianity
To acknowledge that He is God would mean that people would have to reckon with all of the statements that He made and all of the requirements that He makes on their lives.
“Clearly some people find the possibility that we are a ‘visited planet’ – that God came and lived among us – very exciting and hopeful. Yet history shows a widespread hostility to this understanding of Jesus’ life.” – p. 37 People don’t want God to poke His nose into their lives. It’s kind of like mother-in-laws. They might love us, have wisdom and really intend good things for us, but we still would rather they leave us alone.
The implication of Jesus actually being God as He claimed to be would be that all He said carries the authority of God. For those who are willing to accept Jesus’ claims to being God and accept His rule over their lives, they have reason for joy. Jesus made some great promises, and as God, He has the power to fulfill those promises. But for others who are faced with the reality that He just might be God, then it creates either fear or anger. Fear because they know that they have done some things that displease God, and it looks like they’re going to have to face judgment before Him. And anger because that means that Jesus has the right to tell them what to do.
TRAN: If your next door neighbor made the claims that Jesus did, you would think he was crazy, that you needed to call someone to come and pick him up and that he was a little too absorbed with himself. Normal people don’t make those kind of claims about themselves – only dangerous madmen make claims like that. And anyone can make claims about themselves. And they can begin to believe their own press releases. Just because someone makes a claim to be someone of importance doesn’t mean that they actually are that person. What evidence is there to back up Jesus’ claims?
3. What evidence is there to back up Jesus’ claims?
Fulfilled prophecy
The Old Testament contains over three hundred prophetic passages that refer to the first coming of Jesus the Messiah. Forty-eight of these prophecies refer specifically to the life, death and resurrection of Jesus. All of them published during and eleven-hundred year period that ended four centuries before Jesus was born in Bethlehem. - Grant R. Jeffrey, Jesus, the Great Debate (Toronto, Ontario: Frontier Research Pub. Inc., 1999), 229.
(Luke 24:27 NIV) And beginning with Moses and all the Prophets, he explained to them what was said in all the Scriptures concerning himself.
Miracles
(John 14:11 NIV) Believe me when I say that I am in the Father and the Father is in me; or at least believe on the evidence of the miracles themselves.
(Mark 2:1-11 NIV) A few days later, when Jesus again entered Capernaum, the people heard that he had come home. So many gathered that there was no room left, not even outside the door, and he preached the word to them. Some men came, bringing to him a paralytic, carried by four of them. Since they could not get him to Jesus because of the crowd, they made an opening in the roof above Jesus and, after digging through it, lowered the mat the paralyzed man was lying on. When Jesus saw their faith, he said to the paralytic, "Son, your sins are forgiven." Now some teachers of the law were sitting there, thinking to themselves, "Why does this fellow talk like that? He’s blaspheming! Who can forgive sins but God alone?" Immediately Jesus knew in his spirit that this was what they were thinking in their hearts, and he said to them, "Why are you thinking these things? Which is easier: to say to the paralytic, ’Your sins are forgiven,’ or to say, ’Get up, take your mat and walk’? But that you may know that the Son of Man has authority on earth to forgive sins . . . ." He said to the paralytic, "I tell you, get up, take your mat and go home." He got up, took his mat and walked out in full view of them all. This amazed everyone and they praised God, saying, "We have never seen anything like this!"
(John 20:30-31 NIV) Jesus did many other miraculous signs in the presence of his disciples, which are not recorded in this book. But these are written that you may believe that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of God, and that by believing you may have life in his name.
Jesus’ resurrection
(Mark 8:31-32 NIV) He then began to teach them that the Son of Man must suffer many things and be rejected by the elders, chief priests and teachers of the law, and that he must be killed and after three days rise again. He spoke plainly about this...
(Mark 9:31 NIV) ... He said to them, "The Son of Man is going to be betrayed into the hands of men. They will kill him, and after three days he will rise."
(Mark 10:33-34 NIV) "We are going up to Jerusalem," he said, "and the Son of Man will be betrayed to the chief priests and teachers of the law. They will condemn him to death and will hand him over to the Gentiles, who will mock him and spit on him, flog him and kill him. Three days later he will rise."
(Mat 27:63 NIV) "Sir," they said, "we remember that while he was still alive that deceiver said, ’After three days I will rise again.’
How would you respond to someone who said, “I’m going to die, but don’t worry. Three days later, I’m going to rise from the dead.” You’d pull him to the side and tell him to shut up unless he wanted the guys from the insane asylum to come and get him and put him in a padded room. How would you respond to someone who said that, and then you watched as this impossible prophecy actually came true? Would you find it possible to believe other preposterously bold statements that He made – statements like “I am God” and “I am the only way to Heaven”? Would it change your mind about who Jesus was? It changed Thomas’ mind.
(John 20:27-28 NIV) Then he (Jesus) said to Thomas, "Put your finger here; see my hands. Reach out your hand and put it into my side. Stop doubting and believe." Thomas said to him, "My Lord and my God!"
It is not Jesus’ death that you watched at the theaters over the last few weeks that makes Jesus unique or that should prove to you that He is the only way to receive forgiveness of sins and entrance into heaven. Every other religious leader has died or will die. It is a part of being human. What makes Jesus unique is His resurrection. That is what sets Him apart from every other religious leader and what validates every other statement that He ever made.
(1 Cor 15:3-6 NIV) ...Christ died for our sins according to the Scriptures, that he was buried, that he was raised on the third day according to the Scriptures, and that he appeared to Peter, and then to the Twelve. After that, he appeared to more than five hundred of the brothers at the same time, most of whom are still living, though some have fallen asleep.
4. What am I supposed to do about it?
Be sure – when you are confronted with the claims of other religions that there are alternate ways to God, be sure that you are on the right and only pathway. Jesus validated everything that He ever claimed including His claim to have the only way to God.
Be thankful – instead of complaining that there is only one way, be thankful that there is a way. God was never under any obligation to provide a way of salvation to anyone. He provided a way because of His grace and mercy.
Be loving – when you are confronted with people who believe different than you do, don’t attack them and get all angry, obnoxious and loud. The Bible says that we are to answer with gentleness and respect those who differ with us (1 Peter 3:15).
Rom 12:18-21 “If it be possible, as much as lieth in you, live peaceably with all men. Dearly beloved, avenge not yourselves, but rather give place unto wrath: for it is written, Vengeance is mine; I will repay, saith the Lord. Therefore if thine enemy hunger, feed him; if he thirst, give him drink: for in so doing thou shalt heap coals of fire on his head. Be not overcome of evil, but overcome evil with good. (KJV)
We’re accused of being hateful and intolerant by saying that Jesus is the only way. Other religions of the world teach their followers to kill and destroy anyone who does not believe as they do. Jesus taught His followers to love those who believe differently than they do. It is love that will keep us from becoming like them. And it is love that will convince people that Jesus is who He says He is and that His way is the right way.
Be talkative – since Jesus is the only way, then we have a responsibility to tell. No, the world does not want to hear what we have to say, and the temptation is to just hide behind our church walls and let the world go to hell. But we, the ones who have the cure to the problems of the world, have a responsibility to be vocal about that cure. Jesus is narrow in how you get to heaven, but He is broad in that He wants all men to go to heaven.
(1 Tim 2:4 NIV) [God] wants all men to be saved and to come to a knowledge of the truth.
"Jesus.
It’s a little name.
A small word.
Say this little name in public, however, in a way other than an obscenity, and stand back and watch the fireworks.
This little name is like a tiny detonator that triggers a nuclear warhead.
You can say "God," and you won’t get a squeak.
You can say "Our Father/Mother in Heaven," and few will flinch.
You can say "Great Spirit," and people will nod in approval.
You can say "Allah" and you will be deemed tolerant.
But say "Jesus" and just wait for the sonic boom.
Articles will appear in the paper. Reprimands will be posted from the home office. Suits will be threatened by the civil liberties block.
So don’t say Jesus.
Jesus is divisive, and now is a time for unity.
Jesus is an extremist, and that must mean right wing.
Jesus is exclusive, so His name amounts to hate speech.
Keep His name to yourself. Cloister it in your church. Lock it in your prayer closet. Close it between the covers of your Bible. But for God’s sake, don’t voice it in the public square!
It’s immodest. It’s immoral. It’s unloving.
Only one problem.
Jesus is God.
Only one problem.
Jesus alone brings salvation.
Only one problem.
All other gods are nothing.
So speak His name aloud.
Shout it from the mountain.
Whisper it in the dark.
Write it in the sky.
That’s not hate, it’s hope."
SOURCE: From The Southeast Christian Church, Louisville, KY, Newsletter, http://www.southeastchristian.org/. CITED IN: "The Question That Condemned Jesus - (Whose Line Is It?)": Matthew 26:57-68 by Jeff Strite. http://www.sermoncentral.com/sermon.asp? SermonID=55872
CONCLUSION
Regardless of how you vote in the presidential election in November, you will have a chance to change your mind again in four years. With Jesus, once you make up your mind and make your choice, that is an eternal commitment. If Jesus is not the only way, then his death was a waste, a mistake. If Jesus is not the only way, then He is not a way at all because He claimed to be the only way. That makes Him either insane or a liar. Neither a crazy person nor a sinner can get me or you to heaven.
But Jesus wasn’t crazy, and He wasn’t a liar. And His death was not a mistake. By dying on that cross, He provided the only way for you to receive forgiveness for your sins and a permanent home in heaven. Jesus is alive today. He wants a relationship with you. Will you submit yourself to the only way and find that it is the best way for all your needs to be met both now and for eternity?
(Rom 1:16 NIV) I am not ashamed of the gospel, because it is the power of God for the salvation of everyone who believes....
NOTE: All quotes, unless otherwise noted are from either the student guide or leader guide of the Tough Questions small group material authored by Garry Poole and Judson Poling and put out by Zondervan
