"Jesus said, 'I am the way, the truth, and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me.'" ~John 14:6, emphasis mine
Recently, I saw a post on Facebook asking fellow Christians if they struggle with the idea that belief in Jesus is the only path to eternal life. The author went on to mention how devout Jews faithfully follow God as well, but don't believe in Jesus, and how many people live their entire lives without ever hearing about Him. He even went on to say that scientists believe that there are other planets that may support life, and that these aliens, if they exist and have sufficient intelligence to form a belief system, are overwhelmingly unlikely to believe in Jesus because He is an Earthling. You just can't make this stuff up people!
Until he devolved into talk about extraterrestrial life, I could see where he was coming from, to an extent. There are great people throughout history who were not Christians, and it seems wrong for them to be sent to Hell just because they do not believe in Jesus. One such example, which was mentioned by one of the commenters, is Gandhi. He led India in passive resistance to British rule, and while he read the Bible, was influenced by the Sermon on the Mount, and debated Christian theology with Quaker missionaries, he never became a Christian. Surely that little detail won't keep such a great man from going to Heaven, right?
The problem with that thinking is that going to Heaven has nothing to do with what we do, but what Christ has done for us. In Romans 3:23, Paul states that "all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God," and in Romans 6:23, he tells us "the wages of sin is death, but the free gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord" (emphasis mine). Gandhi, while a great man, was not perfect. None of us are. That's why Jesus came to Earth and died for our sins. He paid the price we could never pay so that we can have an eternal life far more wonderful than what we could ever imagine.
Another commenter brought up John 10:16, where Jesus says, "I have other sheep who are not of this sheepfold." While it's true that Jesus says this, I don't think for a second this verse extends salvation to those who don't believe in Christ. Jesus was a Jew, and he said this to other Jews. However, if you look at Christianity today, most of us aren't Jews. The other sheepfold Jesus is referring to is the sheepfold containing the Gentiles. Jesus was telling his disciples He didn't just come for the Jews but for everyone. However, not everyone is saved just because He came for everyone. Salvation still requires that we accept the forgiveness and grace that His death made available to us.
With verses like these in the Bible, it might seem strange to question whether or not Jesus is the way to be saved, as the author of this post and some of the commenters did. The reason I think these people are questioning is simply because of the fact that "God is love" (1 John 4:16). Many Christians have a hard time with the fact that a loving God would send people to Hell for not believing in Him. While I can see their point, God is also just and cannot ignore our sins. That's why in 2 Peter 3:9, it states, "The Lord is not slow about His promise, as some understand slowness, but is patient with you, not wanting any to perish, but all to come to repentance." (emphasis mine). God doesn't want anyone to end up in Hell either, but we have to make the choice to accept repentance to make it to Heaven.
Some in the original conversation think that it is unloving to claim that Jesus is the only way to salvation, but is it? Jesus said Himself that He is, and questioning it so publicly will cause others to believe that they can be saved without believing in Christ. Then, when they die, they will be doomed to Hell, when all they need to get to Heaven is knowing the truth. So the truly loving thing to do is to proclaim that truth.
There may be those who hate us, and there may be those who refuse to believe, but we need to keep telling others about Christ. As we share more, the number of people who have never heard the Good News shrinks. The more people hear the truth, the more people will accept the truth and believe in Christ. I believe that Heaven will be much more amazing than anything we could ever imagine, and I want it to be packed full of people, so I am going to share the gospel with everyone I can. Will you join me?
Recently, I saw a post on Facebook asking fellow Christians if they struggle with the idea that belief in Jesus is the only path to eternal life. The author went on to mention how devout Jews faithfully follow God as well, but don't believe in Jesus, and how many people live their entire lives without ever hearing about Him. He even went on to say that scientists believe that there are other planets that may support life, and that these aliens, if they exist and have sufficient intelligence to form a belief system, are overwhelmingly unlikely to believe in Jesus because He is an Earthling. You just can't make this stuff up people!
Until he devolved into talk about extraterrestrial life, I could see where he was coming from, to an extent. There are great people throughout history who were not Christians, and it seems wrong for them to be sent to Hell just because they do not believe in Jesus. One such example, which was mentioned by one of the commenters, is Gandhi. He led India in passive resistance to British rule, and while he read the Bible, was influenced by the Sermon on the Mount, and debated Christian theology with Quaker missionaries, he never became a Christian. Surely that little detail won't keep such a great man from going to Heaven, right?
The problem with that thinking is that going to Heaven has nothing to do with what we do, but what Christ has done for us. In Romans 3:23, Paul states that "all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God," and in Romans 6:23, he tells us "the wages of sin is death, but the free gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord" (emphasis mine). Gandhi, while a great man, was not perfect. None of us are. That's why Jesus came to Earth and died for our sins. He paid the price we could never pay so that we can have an eternal life far more wonderful than what we could ever imagine.
Another commenter brought up John 10:16, where Jesus says, "I have other sheep who are not of this sheepfold." While it's true that Jesus says this, I don't think for a second this verse extends salvation to those who don't believe in Christ. Jesus was a Jew, and he said this to other Jews. However, if you look at Christianity today, most of us aren't Jews. The other sheepfold Jesus is referring to is the sheepfold containing the Gentiles. Jesus was telling his disciples He didn't just come for the Jews but for everyone. However, not everyone is saved just because He came for everyone. Salvation still requires that we accept the forgiveness and grace that His death made available to us.
With verses like these in the Bible, it might seem strange to question whether or not Jesus is the way to be saved, as the author of this post and some of the commenters did. The reason I think these people are questioning is simply because of the fact that "God is love" (1 John 4:16). Many Christians have a hard time with the fact that a loving God would send people to Hell for not believing in Him. While I can see their point, God is also just and cannot ignore our sins. That's why in 2 Peter 3:9, it states, "The Lord is not slow about His promise, as some understand slowness, but is patient with you, not wanting any to perish, but all to come to repentance." (emphasis mine). God doesn't want anyone to end up in Hell either, but we have to make the choice to accept repentance to make it to Heaven.
Some in the original conversation think that it is unloving to claim that Jesus is the only way to salvation, but is it? Jesus said Himself that He is, and questioning it so publicly will cause others to believe that they can be saved without believing in Christ. Then, when they die, they will be doomed to Hell, when all they need to get to Heaven is knowing the truth. So the truly loving thing to do is to proclaim that truth.
There may be those who hate us, and there may be those who refuse to believe, but we need to keep telling others about Christ. As we share more, the number of people who have never heard the Good News shrinks. The more people hear the truth, the more people will accept the truth and believe in Christ. I believe that Heaven will be much more amazing than anything we could ever imagine, and I want it to be packed full of people, so I am going to share the gospel with everyone I can. Will you join me?
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