What Do You Believe? The Three S's Of False Religions

What do you believe?

Three S’s of false religions

Introduction

A. Today I want to start a series called “What do you believe?” We are

going to talk about some of the major false religions that we are faced

with today and why Christianity is different from them.

B. Many Christians today are so confused about what they believe. They

are not sure if other religions are okay or if they are the same as

Christianity. Many Christians have bought into the lie that there are

many ways to God and Christianity is just another one of those ways.

C. Over the next several weeks we will look at the beliefs of the Jehovah

Witnesses, the Mormons, Scientology, and Islam.

Why am I doing this teaching?

A. I am not teaching this series so you can argue with the Mormons,

Jehovah Witnesses or Muslims. Last week I had two Jehovah Witnesses stop

at my house. I just told them I was not interested in talking to them

and sent them on their way. I could have invited them into my house and

spent an hour arguing with them about how they are wrong.

B. I have done that in the past. In my years of experience I have not

found it profitable to argue with people about different religions,

especially those who are totally indoctrinated. But, I have found it

beneficial to talk to people who are looking for truth and are being

lead down the path of a false religion, like a relative or a friend or a

co worker, especially if they are asking me questions.

C. The main reason I am teaching this is to help you establish what it is

that you believe so that you are not lead astray and deceived. Sooner or

later every Christian has to come to grips with what it is that they

really believe and if it is really different than other religions. The

second reason to equip you so that you can help others who are open and

looking for truth.

Three signs of false religions (3 S’s)

A. There are three clear signs that a religion is a false religion. I

call them the three “S’s.” They stand for Savior, Salvation, and

Scripture. All false religions differ from the Christian view on these

three major issues. Let’s take a few minutes to look at how they differ.

Savior: All false religions change who Jesus really was. They do not

believe that He is the ‘only way’ to heaven. John 14:6

A. All false religions change who Jesus really is. They usually will

recognize that He was a good man. Some even recognize that He was a

prophet, but they don’t teach that He was truly the Son of God and that

He claimed to be the ‘only way to salvation.”

B. Jesus said many times that He was the only way to reach God. Turn to

John 14:6 and read, “I am the way the truth and the life, no man comes

to God BUT BY ME.”

C. CS Lewis wrote a book called “Mere Christianity” in it he challenges

those who say that Jesus was just a good man. How many good men do you

know go around telling people that they are the ONLY WAY to get to

God.What would you say to me, if I told you “I was the ONLY way to reach

God?”

D. This is where Jesus is different from all other leaders of false

religions. He claimed to be the way. Others only claimed to ‘show the

way.’ Either Jesus was who He said He was, the Savior, the ‘only way’ or

He was a heretic or crazy person. He could not have been a good man!

This is one of the more difficult issues for people to deal with. How

can there be only one way to heaven? Yet if we say we are followers of

Jesus then we have to decide to follow His teachings or to deny His

teachings.

Salvation: All false religions teach there are other ways to be cleansed from sin, i.e. good works Titus 3:5

A. All false religions struggle with the Christian view of grace. All

false religions teach that we must do good deeds to earn our way to

heaven.

B. Let’s turn to Titus 3:5 and read what Paul wrote about this, “not by

works of righteousness which we have done, but according to His mercy He

saved us, through the washing of regeneration and renewing of the Holy

Spirit.” Paul also taught in Ephesians 2:5-8 “even when we were dead in

trespasses, made us alive together with Christ (by grace you have been

saved), For by grace you have been saved through faith, and that not of