Monday, March 30, 2009

There's Only One Road to Heaven?

Neither is there salvation in any other: for there is none other name under heaven given among men, whereby we must be saved. (Acts 4:12)

Has this verse been excised from your Bible? I hope not, although I fear it has been removed from many. How clearer a statement than this could not be expressed.

Over the years I have heard many say that as long as one is sincere it really doesn't matter what one believes. That is, if the Hindu, Jew, or Mohammedan sincerely believes he is worshiping God, than that is all that matters. I would like to believe that, but it is simply not so. If you do not trust in Jesus Christ as your Savior you are not, nor can be, saved until you embrace him with all your heart, soul, and mind as the Redeemer.

Sad to say, those that once were luminaries have apostatized by giving credence to the possibility that Jesus Christ is not the only way of salvation. In 1978 Billy Graham, in an interview published in McCall's magazine, said "I used to believe that pagans in far off countries were lost going to hell if they did not have the Gospel of Jesus Christ preached to them. I No longer believe that. I believe that there are other ways of recognizing God through nature for instance and plenty of other ways of saying 'yes' to God". In 1997 he said essentially the same thing in an interview with Dr. Schuller of Crystal Cathedral fame:
"I think there's the body of Christ which comes from all the Christian groups around the world, or outside the Christian groups. I think that everybody that loves Christ or knows Christ, whether they're conscious of it or not, they're members of the body of Christ. And I don't think that we're going to see a great sweeping revival that will turn the whole world to Christ at any time.

"What God is doing today is calling people out of the world for His name. Whether they come from the Muslim world, or the Buddhist world, or the Christian world, or the non-believing world, they are members of the body of Christ because they've been called by God. They may not even know the name of Jesus, but they know in their hearts they need something that they don't have and they turn to the only light they have and I think they're saved and they're going to be with us in heaven."

So Billy Graham and others that agree with him have a higher authority than St. Peter? They know more than God who put the words of Acts 4:12 into his mouth and had them flow from Luke's pen? How much clearer than, "Neither is there salvation in any other" can it be stated?

No one, no Christian, can take any pleasure in the death of the wicked or of relatively good sincere unbelievers. The recognition and acknowledgment that they all will have their part in the lake of fire is not a comforting thought. In fact, that knowledge presses upon any with the knowledge of God an urgency to declare the riches of God's grace in Jesus Christ to those that have not yet believed.

Jesus Christ himself said, "I am the way, the truth, and the life: no man comes to the Father, but by me." (John 14:6) Notice, he did not say, "I am a way," but "I am the way." That one statement excludes all other paths, all other ways. All roads may lead to Rome, but only one leads to Heaven. Peter affirms this in the verse under discussion, the last clause of which states: "whereby we must be saved." The Greek indicates that if one is to be saved he must of necessity be saved by faith in Jesus Christ.

The question then remains: In what or whom are you trusting for your salvation? Many have told me they made a decision and that's all they need to know. They have "put a stake in the ground." My friend, making a decision for Christ will not save you. Jesus saves, and he alone. Baptism does not save you, church membership does not save you, being born into a Christian family or a Christian nation does not save you.

Peter said, "there is none other name under heaven given among men, whereby we must be saved." The name is the person. Salvation is in a person and that person is Jesus Christ. However much we may want to believe that people can be saved some other way, the Bible tells us the only way is Jesus Christ. This we must boldly and unashamedly proclaim, for it is man's only hope.

(This post was originally published on my hermeneutics blog on August 22, 2007)

Sunday, March 29, 2009

The Basis of the Trinitarian Belief

In my blog post “One God — or many?” I said, “The Bible teaches that God is one,” and, “. . .this one God exists in a plurality of persons.” Many reject the idea of God as a Trinity because they cannot comprehend it or because they misunderstand it. The belief that the one God consists of three persons is difficult to understand, I admit.

There are those that would argue that the Trinity is not mentioned in the Bible. They are correct. However, the truth of the Trinity is taught in the word of God. The Bible does not teach systematically. One must often deduce truth by compilation: that is, we find bits and pieces here and there which, when put together, bring us to a certain conclusion.

Some argue against the Trinitarian position by claiming that the early church never taught it. That is also correct. However, The early church never taught contrary to the Trinitarian position, either. Specifically, the Church has never taught that Jesus was a god separate from the one, true God. Nor has the church ever accepted such a teaching that Jesus Christ was a created being. The Trinitarian formula was developed to counter the heresy espoused by Arius (d. A.D. 336) that Jesus was a created being and not truly divine. Arius and his beliefs were subsequently tried before the Council of Nicaea (A.D. 325) which formulated from the Bible the first Trinitarian statement of faith.

Only God can have all the attributes of divinity. The Bible ascribes to Jesus Christ and to the Holy Spirit all the attributes of divinity. One example should be sufficient to support the Trinitarian position. Only God is eternal. The Bible ascribes eternality to God the Father (Deuteronomy 33:27). It ascribes eternality to Jesus Christ (Isaiah 9:6). It also ascribes eternality to the Holy Spirit (Hebrews 9:14).

Only God can create something from nothing. The Genesis creation account says God created the heavens and the earth. When God was about to make man he said, "Let us make man in our image, in our likeness." This is the first indication the Bible gives, and that in the first chapter, that God consists of a plurality of persons. The apostle John said (John 1:3) Jesus Christ created the world. “All things were made by him, and [to add emphasis] without him was not made anything that was made.” Jesus could not have created himself nor could he be previously created, seeing he created “all things.” Likewise, the Holy Spirit was involved in creating the earth. Many scripture passages refer to the Holy Spirit working in creation, Psalm 104:24-30 among them: “You send forth your Spirit, they [the works of God] are created: and you renew the face of the earth.”

A careful study of the Bible can lead only to a belief in the Tri-unity of God, and only a study of the Bible will lead there. May God bless you with the realization of this truth.