John 14:1-11
“Christians are so narrow – they think they have the corner on truth and that Jesus is the only way to God!” Perhaps you’ve heard that statement or something similar to it. Our culture frowns upon claims to have the right way to the exclusion of others. So do we deserve the accusation of being narrow? Ya, sure, ya betcha! But not because of what we say, it’s because of what Jesus says, and here in John 14 is a great example of clarity from him. If we believe that Jesus is truly God in the flesh (and I do!), and we believe that the Bible is the inspired Word of God, containing the actual words that Jesus spoke, then we’ve got to take this passage seriously!
“I am the way, the truth, and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me” (v6). There is no other way to interpret this saying, other than Jesus claiming to be the only way into relationship with God. Competing teachings from other religions therefore are wrong. There are not other ways to heaven, other ways to salvation. God designed the system, and we’ve got the choice to embrace his way or reject it. Creating our own way won’t work – he is God and we’re not and he gets to make the rules.
But rather than castigating God as being harsh and unloving, this is the ultimate expression of God’s love. Jesus came from heaven to live on earth as a human, and sacrificed himself so that we might be forgiven and have relationship with God. Because Jesus is God in the flesh, when you trust in Jesus, you are trusting in God.
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