No Other Way
"Jesus said to him, “I am the way, and the truth, and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me." - John 14 vs 6, ESV
Jesus is the way, the truth and the life.
There is no other way for salvation except through Jesus Christ the Lord.
If there were any other options then why would God "give his only son" (John 3 vs 16) as a sacrifice for our salvation ?
Therefore Jesus isn't one of many ways to God as some would believe. He is the only way.
"For the message of the cross is foolishness to those who are perishing.." (1 Cor. 1 vs 18)
During the times of the early church the message of the cross was scandalous and to speak of it was taboo. The definition of the cross for the unsaved world at that particular time only meant condemnation, the cross was for criminals. Therefore it was foolishness to those who did not believe, as it is foolishness to so many today.
Everything brings us to the cross. We find judgement at the cross, condemnation, guilt, and wrath. But because Jesus being the only way as there was no other option else God would have done away with the cross, we find in it, freedom, justice, forgiveness, mercy, hope, love, peace and life. Grace flows from the cross to those who believe.
There is simply no other way or even one of many ways. Jesus is the only way and the work he accomplished on the cross proves that salvation will always be found at the foot of the cross to those who choose to bend the knee there and decide to repent and believe.
People hate the cross because it shows them they are wrong, and nobody likes being wrong. It shows us that we cannot attain salvation by our own works and yet many believe they can do this on their own. For a true repentant and believing heart, that person aknowledges their weakness before God. They acknowledge that without Christ there's no salvation. But for the unregenerate heart the cross will always be a stumbling block.
And because of this, Christianity is unpopular. It runs against the grain of everything the world believes in. It teaches dependance on God and not self sufficiency. It admonishes us to forgive and in forgiveness there is forgetfulness and not taking revenge by holding a grudge. It tells us there is love for the worst of us and not hatred.
To believe in Jesus is to be unpopular. Christians say that we should live like Jesus and the world would be saved. But the fact is if we really and truly lived like him then they would crucify us the same way they crucified the Lord Jesus. The world cannot handle who Jesus is and therefore it will never tolerate those who are truly in Christ.
The Bible is unpopular. There is even a book out called, 'The Bible-The most dangerous book on earth'. In it the islamic author states how dangerous the Bible is. The point I want to make is simply this. The scriptures are unpopular because it reveals to us our true condition - SIN. It tells us that all have fallen short of God's glory and not one is righteous (Rom.6 vs 23). The world hates it, simply because people love the sinful indulgences that are a part of their lives and they refuse to let it go.
They hate it also because it not only reveals to us our sinful nature but it also points us in the direction of the resolution. Jesus is the only way, He is the only way out from the struggle of sin.
If you look at everyone in the scriptures, when confronted by Jesus, their lives changed. Peter was transformed when he came to the realisation that he was a sinful man and he said to the Lord, "Go away from me Lord for I am a sinful man.(My Paraphrase). Paul when he met Jesus on the road to Damascus. Jesus asked him why he was persecuting him and Paul's only response to that question was "Who are you Lord ?" (My Paraphrase again). And these are only two examples from scripture amongst many that tells us of everyone who encountered the Lord came to realize how sinful they are. Remember the prophet Isaiah in Isaiah chapter 6 ? No one who encounters God can walk away from Him and still remain the same.
Jesus is the way, the truth and the life.
There is no other way for salvation except through Jesus Christ the Lord.
If there were any other options then why would God "give his only son" (John 3 vs 16) as a sacrifice for our salvation ?
Therefore Jesus isn't one of many ways to God as some would believe. He is the only way.
"For the message of the cross is foolishness to those who are perishing.." (1 Cor. 1 vs 18)
During the times of the early church the message of the cross was scandalous and to speak of it was taboo. The definition of the cross for the unsaved world at that particular time only meant condemnation, the cross was for criminals. Therefore it was foolishness to those who did not believe, as it is foolishness to so many today.
Everything brings us to the cross. We find judgement at the cross, condemnation, guilt, and wrath. But because Jesus being the only way as there was no other option else God would have done away with the cross, we find in it, freedom, justice, forgiveness, mercy, hope, love, peace and life. Grace flows from the cross to those who believe.
There is simply no other way or even one of many ways. Jesus is the only way and the work he accomplished on the cross proves that salvation will always be found at the foot of the cross to those who choose to bend the knee there and decide to repent and believe.
People hate the cross because it shows them they are wrong, and nobody likes being wrong. It shows us that we cannot attain salvation by our own works and yet many believe they can do this on their own. For a true repentant and believing heart, that person aknowledges their weakness before God. They acknowledge that without Christ there's no salvation. But for the unregenerate heart the cross will always be a stumbling block.
And because of this, Christianity is unpopular. It runs against the grain of everything the world believes in. It teaches dependance on God and not self sufficiency. It admonishes us to forgive and in forgiveness there is forgetfulness and not taking revenge by holding a grudge. It tells us there is love for the worst of us and not hatred.
To believe in Jesus is to be unpopular. Christians say that we should live like Jesus and the world would be saved. But the fact is if we really and truly lived like him then they would crucify us the same way they crucified the Lord Jesus. The world cannot handle who Jesus is and therefore it will never tolerate those who are truly in Christ.
The Bible is unpopular. There is even a book out called, 'The Bible-The most dangerous book on earth'. In it the islamic author states how dangerous the Bible is. The point I want to make is simply this. The scriptures are unpopular because it reveals to us our true condition - SIN. It tells us that all have fallen short of God's glory and not one is righteous (Rom.6 vs 23). The world hates it, simply because people love the sinful indulgences that are a part of their lives and they refuse to let it go.
They hate it also because it not only reveals to us our sinful nature but it also points us in the direction of the resolution. Jesus is the only way, He is the only way out from the struggle of sin.
If you look at everyone in the scriptures, when confronted by Jesus, their lives changed. Peter was transformed when he came to the realisation that he was a sinful man and he said to the Lord, "Go away from me Lord for I am a sinful man.(My Paraphrase). Paul when he met Jesus on the road to Damascus. Jesus asked him why he was persecuting him and Paul's only response to that question was "Who are you Lord ?" (My Paraphrase again). And these are only two examples from scripture amongst many that tells us of everyone who encountered the Lord came to realize how sinful they are. Remember the prophet Isaiah in Isaiah chapter 6 ? No one who encounters God can walk away from Him and still remain the same.
That's why the unregenerate heart refuses an enconter with God because they know He will reveal exactly who they are to them and they hate it. What they seem to forget and maybe not even realize is that to get out of the trouble we're in, we have to first realise we're in trouble. They hate the fact that they need Jesus to get out of the trouble called SIN. The self righteous attitude says they dont need God and therefore can do it on their own. They can get out of sin on their own, they can get to heaven on their own. They can do it all because of their own 'good deeds.' Our own works can't get us anywhere, only Jesus can.
You see, it's all about us, only we can get for ourselves what we want, and that includes salvation. That's how they think.
The biblical viewpoint is that it's all about God. That's why only God can satisfy Himself of his wrath that was due to us. Jesus accomplished that on the cross. Man thinks he can remedy his condition on his own. That is the worst mistake he can make. Jesus remedied that condition and because of his saving grace, we have recieved his righteousness that removes our guilt, so we can stand before a holy God. We need to understand the gravity of our sin and that we are completely powerless to do anything about it. That's why we need Jesus. That's the beauty of the cross. Jesus is the only way.
God is holy and we are a sinful people. So how can a holy God bring sinful people to himself? The answer is the cross of Jesus Christ. The cross tells us we're wrong and thats why Jesus had to die. Thats why its so unpopular, it reminds us that we're too sinful to save ourselves. People love being self-righteous, thats why they can't accept the cross, it tells us we need the righteousness of God. They hate that because they love indulging in their sinful natures.
The world hates Jesus because although he was a miracle worker there was no show of power to the claims of being God. But on the cross, whilst there seemingly was no display of power, we must be reminded that the cross itself was indeed a burst of power shown. It cannot be seen by the unregenerate heart but to those who believe, they know its power to save. The cross has become a symbol of power over sin and death, but also more especially that through Jesus we have been reconciled to God our Father.
For people who have nothing to bring, God gave everything. He gave his only Son. What is the way? People ask. When we ask the wrong questions we get the wrong answers. The attempt to answer this question will always lead us down the wrong path. It will lead us to belief systems that will always prove inadequate to save us from the temporal and lead us into the eternal. So the question is not a matter of what but of who? Who is the way? And scripture reminds us clearly, it is only Jesus.
We have no idea what true joy and happiness is as long as we keep playing with the little things on this earth that will soon fade away, for they all have an expiration date. The only way to know true joy is to know Jesus. To know Jesus is to know eternal life. Redemption comes through Jesus Christ. This may not be popular with the world but it is the means God has chosen to bring sinners to himself.
The call of the gospel is to believe in the finished work of Jesus Christ.
JESUS IS THE ONLY WAY whether you accept it or not.
Blessings,
Shane.
NB: Don't forget to leave a comment or email us.
thepassionatebeliever@gmail.com
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