The Exclusivity of Christ

The Exclusivity of Christ and the Question of Salvation

Let's turn to the gospel of John chapter 14. John chapter 14 and the title of this morning's message is the exclusivity of Christ. The exclusivity of Christ, what we're talking about is that Jesus, this is the question, is Jesus the only way of salvation?

Is Jesus the only way to God? This is perhaps the most basic of all Christian teachings. I mean, first of all, if there are other paths, what was the point of the cross, if there are other paths? If there are other paths, then the New Testament is not true because as you're going to see, the New Testament clearly teaches that Jesus is the way, the truth, and the life.

So this is, again, one of the most basic, if not the most basic teachings of Christianity that Jesus is the way, the truth, and the life. So basic that Christianity originally, it wasn't called Christianity, it was called the way because everybody understood who believed on Jesus, he is the way.

So while this viewpoint, while this teaching is under attack today, we're going to look at what the Bible teaches and we're going to show that this is the clear teaching of Jesus, it's the clear teaching of the New Testament, and you kind of have to wonder why is it under attack because it's not just unbelievers or other religions that would deny this.

Now you're getting people within Christian churches, even pastors saying that there are other paths. Well, let's look at what the Bible says, John 14, let's read verses one through six, Jesus speaking to his disciples, he said, let not your heart be troubled.

You believe in God, believe also in me. In my father's house are many mansions. If it were not so, I would have told you. I go to prepare a place for you. And if I go and prepare a place for you, I will come again and receive you to myself that where I am there, you may be also.

And where I go, you know, and the way, you know. And Thomas said to him, Lord, we do not know where you're going and how can we know the.

Way?

And Jesus said to him, I am the way, the truth, and the life. No one comes to the father except through me. And may God have a blessing to the reading of his word. But this is an exclusive statement, isn't it?

No one, okay, a universal negative. No one comes to the father, Jesus says, except through me. Is that exclusive? One way, right? So throughout the gospels, we see Jesus repeating this same thing. I mean, this is his whole message other than repent, but even repent, it's repent and turn.

You'll believe in me, turn to me. You have to believe in me. And that's the message of Jesus in the gospels, and it's the message you see throughout the rest of the New Testament epistles, where the Lord's messengers, the apostles are saying the exact same thing, that the way to the true God is Christ.

Salvation is only found in Christ. For the first 1 ,800 years, 1 ,900 years of the Christian church, this is the message you would hear from pulpits. But starting somewhere in the, well, it was 1744 when the Universalist church started.

And of course, they say that there's many paths to God and Jesus is one way, but he's not the only way. But really, that idea didn't catch on because universalism wasn't considered Orthodox Christianity.

This idea really didn't start getting into Baptist churches and evangelical churches until the 20th century. So for, again, 1 ,800 years, 1 ,900 years, it was just assumed, it was just very clear Christ is the only way.

But now, instead of being exclusive or teaching the exclusivity of Christ, what's the word that we hear a lot these days?

Inclusive.

Yeah, we hear about people wanting to be inclusive. You don't want to be exclusive. The thing today is to be inclusive. So the inclusive teaching is that, yeah, everyone's going to be okay. There's many paths, everyone will get there in the end, and more and more churches are buying into this.

So the idea is, the thinking is, Jesus died for everyone, God loves everyone, God's love.

Is unconditional.

So even if you don't believe in Jesus, there's probably some other way or God will let you.

In.

God will see that you're sincere and everyone's going to make it in the end. If that's true, what was our scripture reading on? What was the subject?

Missions.

Missions.

Okay.

This church has always been a big supporter of missions. And as long as we're able to support missionaries, we're going to support missionaries because we believe that missionaries are very important.

Why?

Because we believe the world needs Jesus. The heathen are lost. The people of this world in general, they are lost. They need Jesus. But more and more churches are not supporting missions. Why is that?

Because they probably don't really think that the heathen are lost. They probably think that people out in the jungle and, and people all over the world, they're going to get led into heaven too. So why support missions?

See, as soon as you buy into this idea, not only is missionary work pointless, really the Christian church becomes pointless because there's all these other paths. So really everything hinges on this point.

If we lose this teaching of the exclusivity of Christ, everything is going to fall apart. But I think again, for the majority of church history, this was just understood. It was, it was evident to all the first objection though, to the exclusive nature of salvation.

We're going to go through these verses because Jesus proves it right here. If there's any passage that proves that Jesus is the way it's John chapter 14. So we'll go through these verses. But the first objection to the exclusive nature of, of salvation is that Jesus, people say he can't be the only way you say why they say, well, that's just too narrow, right?

Isn't this what we hear? It's not inclusive enough. It's just too narrow. It's funny though. We accept exclusivity and many, many areas of life. If you think about it, there's only one way to become president and that's through the election process.

All right.

Maybe that's not a good example, but I was trying to get a laugh out of you, you know, if you, if you're going to get your driver's license, you have to go through the DMV, right? It's very exclusive.

If you're going to get married, you need the marriage license. There's only one way to really do it for it to be recognized. So you know, if you're going to get to my house, there's only one way to my house and that's my road.

So I mean, this is just kind of common sense in some ways and it's clearly what the Bible.

Teaches.

Christ as the Only Way to the Father

So why, why does the Bible teach that? Why does this make sense that Jesus is the only way to God, put it simply, Jesus is the only God there is. To reject Jesus is to reject the only God there is. Look at what Jesus says in John 14 verse one.

He equates himself with God, the father. He says in verse one, you believe in God, what if you believe in God, believe also in.

Me.

See, no prophet would ever say that no rabbi would ever say that. I mean, that is a claim to deity, is it not? Many of you are familiar with the, I am statements of Jesus. They're all found in the gospel of John.

And this is one of those, I am statements where I am, you know, the, the way, the truth and the life. Uh, but this is Jesus in the, I am statements. Jesus says other things like what I am the door. If anyone comes through me, he will be saved, right?

So Jesus is the door. He is the way, the truth and the life. And that, that term I am, you know what it is, right? This is when God gave his sacred name to Moses at the burning bush, whether you call it Yahweh or in English people say Jehovah, but I am that I am.

This is the sacred name of God that Jesus applies to himself. He says that about himself.

I am.

So just in that statement, which Jesus says, what, seven, eight, eight times, and there's two other instances where he says that Jesus essentially is calling himself the great I.

Am.

But he says, if you believe in God, believe also in me, this is a claim to deity. So Jesus is the only way to God simply because he is the only God there is. Um, so I, I think we have to take, uh, this, this, uh, statement by CS Lewis.

I find it very helpful. We have to take this into consideration. Everyone has to make a decision about Jesus, right? This claim that he makes Jesus is either a liar, a lunatic, or he actually is God. He actually is Lord.

If Jesus is a liar, uh, do you want to follow a liar? I don't want to follow a liar. If I really believe that Jesus was a liar, I wouldn't be here this morning.

Okay.

Uh, if Jesus, let's say Jesus though, really believed he was God, but he was just insane. Well, you w you definitely wouldn't want to follow someone who's insane. A lot of people in the world are following liars and they probably know it.

Some of them, but nobody wants to follow someone who's mad. But the third option is that Jesus is actually the Lord, that he is actually God in human flesh. So as soon as you believe, and this is the Christian profession of faith, that Jesus is Lord.

So as soon as you believe that Jesus is God, then it all makes sense that he's the only way to God because he's the son of God. We believe in one God, the Trinity, father, son, and Holy spirit. God, the father is too holy to approach.

Have you ever read the old Testament? When people tried to approach, they couldn't approach God. They couldn't look at God. God, the father is too holy. The only way to him is through the intercessor, Jesus, who is our one mediator.

So again, it's very evident to anyone who actually knows the scripture. So Jesus here in verse one clearly is putting himself on the same level as God. If you believe in God, believe also in me. And then he makes promises because if you're going to accept these promises, you have to trust what Jesus says.

So look at verses two and three, he says, in my father's house are many mansions. I think we, we get so used to reading this. We don't see how amazing the claim is. No Jew would have ever said, God is my father.

No one would have ever said such a thing because again, they understood what that meant, but Jesus says it. He says in my father's house are many mansions. If we're not, so I would have told you, I go to prepare a place for you.

And if I go and prepare a place for you, I will come again and receive you to myself that where I am there, you may be also. So what are these promises? Well, first he says there is room in the father's house.

Where's the father's house? Yeah, this is just another name for heaven. So there is room in heaven. Number one, Jesus is promising an afterlife. Number two, there is room in heaven. There is room in the afterlife for you.

And then number three, the promises that Jesus is coming back and he is going to bring his followers to be where he is. And Jesus we now know is in heaven. So Jesus speaks about the father's house. Here's the part I like.

He talks about it like it's his house too. Like he's, he's making claims, authoritative claims. He's talking like he owns the place, right? He's saying there's a place for you. Well, shouldn't the father say that?

Well, Jesus can say it because it's his house as well. You know what this is like. You grew up. Most of you grew up in your father's house. Was it your father's home? Yeah, it was probably his name or your parents' name on the deed.

Was it your home too?

Yeah.

And then if, especially if you're the only child, guess what? The inheritance, it all goes to you. And of course we know that Jesus, he does inherit all things. So this is his house and this is how he is able to make such claims.

And he says in the father's house are many mansions. The Greek word monay is translated mansion. That's in the King James and new King James version, which I prefer. Some of the other translations say in the father's house are many rooms.

And the father's house are many dwelling places. One Bible scholar said it actually could even be translated, in the father's house are many apartments. I don't know about you, it just doesn't have the same ring to it, right?

And, but the point is not that we're gonna have this huge house all to ourselves in heaven, that is not the point. Just trying to get across that the greatest mansion on earth pales in comparison to what heaven is gonna be like.

And it's amazing that Jesus says, there's a place for you there. I am preparing a place for you. But who is he talking to? Is he just talking to anyone who just happens to be listening? Is he making that promise to all humanity?

You know, an inclusive statement. Anyone and everybody. Well, that's not what he's saying. He's actually talking to his disciples. So there's a place in heaven for them. And then by extension, if we are followers of Christ today, there is a place for us.

What does that tell us? It tells us that God is not distant. God cares, Jesus cares. He cares enough not only to die for us, but to prepare a place for us. The gods of other religions, I don't know if you've studied other religions, but they're.

Distant.

They need to be appeased. And of course, God does have wrath, that's true. But these other pagan deities, if you look at them, some of the depictions, some of them look like monsters. Some of the Eastern deities, they actually look like, some of them look like demons.

And they're just angry, wrathful deities who really don't care about people. Some of them demand like human sacrifice, and some cultures have sacrificed children to their deities. You see, God is not like that.

God is not like that at all. God cares. He desires that all men be saved, the Bible says, and come to the knowledge of the truth. So we learn something about God in Jesus. Jesus is more, if you've read the gospels, you've seen this.

Jesus is more compassionate than any other human being you've ever seen or encountered or read about. He is more compassionate than I'll ever be. So we learn that God cares. But there is one way, and that's maybe another argument against the exclusivity of Christ that, you know, if God was really loving, he'd provide all these other paths.

To me, it makes it very simple for us, makes it easy, that there's one way we can know the way, because if there's many paths, you're kind of left guessing. How do I know this is the right path? Because there has to be some wrong paths.

And I'm pretty sure most religions would acknowledge worshiping the devil is the wrong path to God. So even just one path, you know that you're on the right road. So God, in some ways, does us a favor by giving us only one way.

But look at the response of Thomas here in verse 4. You know, Jesus tells him and he tells us about this. He's going to return to heaven and you know the way. And Thomas says, Jesus says in verse 4, where I go, you know the way you know.

And Thomas says to him in response, Lord, we don't know where you're going. And how can we know the way? So where did Jesus go? Not a trick question. He went to heaven. So the way is the way to heaven, right?

Lord, how can we know the way to heaven? So the way to heaven, Jesus makes it oh so clear in verse 6, I am the way. I am the way to heaven. I am the way of eternal life. I am the only path. This is what he's saying.

I am the way. I am the truth and the life. And just in case you couldn't figure that out, he makes it even more clear in the next.

Statement.

Nobody comes to the Father except through me. He kind of already said that in the first statement, but he makes it even more clear in the next. So does that really leave us with any doubt? I don't think so.

And yet why? Why are these people doubting it? Why are these people denying it? Well, I suppose people have different motivations. But all that to say this, John 14, one through six, clearly teaches the exclusivity of Christ in salvation.

This is why Jesus gave the great commission to the disciples and to the church to make disciples of all the nations.

Why?

Because the nations, the people of this world need to be saved. There's a pastor who just came out this past week. A lot of talk about him. I was teaching that the heathen people in remote tribal situations, he says they can be saved without Jesus.

As long as they do the best they can, no longer as they're turning to the only light that they have, they can be saved without hearing the gospel. Why would you support missionaries if that were true?

I mean, really? First of all, I think it denies what Jesus says. Here's some of the arguments that people say, yeah, but in the old Testament, uh, Abraham didn't know the name of Jesus. Do you believe Abraham's in heaven?

Who believes Abraham is in heaven? Here's how the argument goes. Well, Abraham didn't know the name of Jesus. Abraham didn't know about the cross and the resurrection. You know what? That's true. Abraham didn't know about those things.

Here's what Abraham did know. He knew something about the word of God because in Genesis 12, God actually appeared to Abraham and God spoke to Abraham and God made a promise to Abraham. He made another promise to Abraham in Genesis 15 and you know what the Bible says, Abraham believed God and it was accounted to him for righteousness.

So these people in the old Testament that it's true, they didn't know the name of Jesus. They had the word of God. They didn't have the 66 books of the Bible, but they had some special revelation from God and when they put their faith in God and in his word, God accounted that to them as.

What?

Righteousness. So besides, I mean, old Testament saints are different today. Uh, back then the cross hadn't happened today. It has happened. The information is pretty much been spread all around the world and yet still people, they just look for all these different ways to maybe find a backdoor into heaven that leaves Jesus out and uh, it's the type of thing that needs to be addressed.

But again, if the heathen are saved, if people living out in the, here's another question that comes up. What about the poor, innocent native in the jungle? What happens to them? You notice how they're sort of cooking the books a little bit with that statement.

The poor, he might be poor, innocent though, native in the, why is he innocent? You know, whether you're living in Timbuktu or New York city, you're not innocent.

Okay.

All have come short of the glory of God and you see that in Romans chapters one through three. So as soon as you accept this idea that people can be saved by doing their best, by being sincere, missionary work is pointless.

The gospel is almost pointless because there's other ways the church is pointless and perhaps that's why Christianity is in decline in the Western world is because people have bought into this idea. I mean, it's a logical conclusion that people would see the faith as not all that important.

Why is it important? Because Jesus is the way. Do you believe Jesus is the way this morning? You believe that he is the truth. Truth is another thing that, you know, where, where do you even go to find truth anymore?

You should be able to go to a Christian church and find truth. That should be the one place that you should be able to go to find the truth. Unfortunately, that isn't even the case. Certainly in New England, going to a, you know, a white building with a steeple on top, the odds of you finding the truth in places like this, it's, it's hit or miss, but Jesus is the truth.

He is the way, the truth, and the life. What other life do you want to live other than the Christian life? I mean, we have hope for the future. We have peace for the present. We have hope for the future.

So we have a home in heaven, but even the Christian life is, is the best. It's the best life. I know not everyone looks at it that way, but it really is the best life to live. Jesus said that he gives life and life, what more abundant.

So to say, to deny that Jesus is the way it's just, it's just troubling why anyone who would say they're a Christian would make such a claim, but back to the text, let's turn to Acts chapter four, because we see another statement.

It's not just Jesus and Jesus's words would be enough. I mean, if anyone can teach on the exclusivity of Christ, I mean, it's Christ himself. And we saw what Jesus said in John chapter 14, but now we see what his, you might call Peter, the main apostle of the, of the 12th.

He was certainly the spokesman and considered a leader of the 12th. Here's what Peter says in Acts chapter four, verse 12, Luke, of course, writing it down. Peter says in Acts four, 12, there is salvation in what?

No other, there is salvation in none other for there is no other name under heaven given among men by which we must be saved. Is that an exclusive statement?

Yes.

Again, it's like a universal negative, no other salvation in none other. There's no salvation in Buddha. There's no salvation in Muhammad. There's no salvation in whoever the other religious leader is.

There's only salvation in one, one name. And that name is the name above every name. And let's speaking of that, let's turn to Philippians chapter two, because I mean, I'm just thinking of all these passages that kind of reinforce the same, same point.

But if you say there's another path, doesn't that, doesn't that do dishonor to the name of Christ to say there's another path? I mean, you think about it. If somebody says, and I understand the motivation, I think for some people that they have compassion for people.

They want people in the end, they want people to go to heaven. So they look at 1 billion Muslims in the world and they, they don't like the thought of all these people being lost. I can understand that.

But to say that there's salvation within Islam, did Muhammad die for your sins? How can you say Muhammad is the way that he didn't die for your sins? There's only one who died for our sins. There is only one who deserves that glory.

Look at Philippians chapter two, starting in verse five, Paul says, let this mind be a new, which was also in Christ Jesus, who being in the form of God did not consider it robbery to be equal with God.

Did you notice that equality with God, but made himself of no reputation, taking the form of a bond servant and coming in the likeness of men and being found in appearance as a man, he humbled himself and became obedient to the point of death.

Even the death of the cross. Therefore God also has highly exalted him and given him the name, which is above every name that at the name of Jesus, every knee should bow of those in heaven, those on the earth and those under the earth, and that every tongue should confess that Jesus Christ is Lord to the glory of God, the father.

See, if there's another path, if somebody gets in through a Buddha, if you get to have them through, of course, boot booted, didn't even believe in heaven. So I mean, that's why would you even think that if someone got to heaven through Buddha or Mohammed, whose name would they praise?

I got in through him when they praise his name, what does the Bible say? There's one name that's going to be praised. So it's really an offense against the name of Jesus. It's an offense against the cross of Christ.

So the enemy is striking the foundation today of Christian truth. I know a lot of pastors, they, they kind of preach on, you know, they, they don't do sermons like this. They do, you know, four weeks, six weeks, sermon series from Philippians, how to do, you know, handle stress and anxiety in your life.

And you know, that's all fine and good. There's a, there's a place for that type of practical teaching. And we try to do that here, but the focus has to be on Christ. The focus has to be on the gospel because just living as a believer for this many years, one thing I've noticed that just because somebody professes to be a believer doesn't mean they.

Are.

I mean, you need to reinforce this message of the gospel because there's so many people that are not convinced. And then there's people that are turning away from it, compromising the gospel. So we need to keep the main thing, the main thing.

So I've heard, you know, I've heard this a thousand times before, then you should be able to go out and tell other people, you can preach the sermon on the exclusivity of Christ to your friends, but it's under attack today.

Like never before. Just a couple examples and I'll respond and then we'll close. Let's just turn to Romans 10. This will be the last place we turn, but today there's many different names for this. Again, universalism is kind of that old name that's been around for a few hundred years where they believe, you know, everyone's going to make it, everyone goes to heaven.

And then there's different variations. One, one term for this, that there are other paths is wider mercy.

Okay.

So this is a teaching that some people have coined wider mercy that, you know, yeah, I mean for Christians, Jesus is the only way, but people in remote parts of the world, again, they've never heard the gospel.

This will be the final question I address. They say, well, if someone's never heard the gospel, they can't be held accountable for rejecting what they've never heard.

Right?

I mean, that is a powerful argument. If someone dies without ever hearing the gospel, God is not going to judge them for rejecting.

Jesus.

They never heard of Jesus.

Right?

You know, that's true. They're not going to be judged for rejecting Jesus. If they never heard, what are they going to be judged on? Their sin. Romans chapter, or excuse me, revelation chapter 20 says that the great white throne judgment, the books are opened and people are judged out of the books.

See the default position for humanity is that all are under sin, all are lost. We need salvation. So if someone's never heard, and I can, somebody said, well, God could have given someone a vision in the, someone living in the jungle could have got a special revelation or a vision.

I accept that is possible.

Okay.

So I'm not going to say this person or this group is lost. He's saved. He's law. I'm not going to play God and say who saved and whose law. Here's one thing I'm definitely not going to say. I'm not going to say that people who have never heard the gospel are saved.

I'm definitely not going to say that.

Why?

Because look at Romans chapter 10. So some people call this wider mercy. Others use terms like trans dispensationalism. Others just call it universalism. It doesn't matter what you call it. Here's what the Bible says in Romans chapter 10, Romans 10, 14, how then shall they call on him in whom they have not believed?

And how shall they believe in him in whom they have not heard? And how shall they hear without a preacher? And how shall they preach unless they are sent? What did Jesus tell the disciples to do? Go where?

Go where?

Go into all the world and then do what? Preach the gospel, right? So if you look at Romans 10, just go back a few verses. Look at verse nine. If you can fit, here's the gospel. If you confess with your mouth, the Lord Jesus, and believe in your heart that God has raised him from the dead, you will be saved.

There's not a single verse in the Bible that says people who don't do that are saved some other way, but Paul is building up to verse 13 where he says, whoever calls on the name of the Lord shall be saved.

So what do you have to do to go to heaven? You have to believe in Jesus. Is that a controversial thing for a Christian minister to say in order to go to heaven? You have to believe in Jesus. Isn't that kind of what we expect pastors to say?

Once pastors stop saying that, I mean, I don't know, but that's kind of the world we're living.

In.

So he says, for whosoever calls on the name of the Lord shall be saved. And that's when he gets into this other section. How are they going to call on him in whom they have not believed? And how shall they believe in him in whom they have not heard?

And how shall they hear without a preacher? So we don't have Peter and Paul and John and Thomas. We don't have these men traveling the world today. Is it Thomas that history tells us brought the gospel all the way to India?

Why did Thomas bring the gospel to India? If people in India could be saved by doing the best they can, why would he do that? Why would these men give up their lives? Why would we support those missionaries on the board and give them money and keep them going in ministry and pray for them?

And some of them who read about the missionary couple in Haiti who lost their life just a few weeks ago, a young couple killed for the name of Christ. Why would they do that if the people in Haiti are already saved just by doing the best they.

Can?

My friends, it's an offense. It's an offense to the name of Jesus. So let's just finish this passage. Verse 15, Romans 10, and how shall they preach unless they are sent? As it is written, how beautiful are the feet of those who preach the gospel of peace, who bring glad tidings of good things.

You know, God bless all those preachers. You know, I'm here in Western Massachusetts. I got a nice house. I got a comfortable life. I'm living on easy street compared to these missionaries who are in India and in the jungle and Burma and all these places in the world.

You know, these people are risking their lives to bring Christ to the heathen. Their feet are what beautiful. When we see people bringing the gospel to these places that don't have an established Christian church, these are wonderful servants of God, but it's all made, all made pointless.

If we say that Christ is not the only way, look at verse 16, but they have not all obeyed the gospel for Isaiah says, Lord, who has believed our report. And then he concludes with this statement in verse 17.

How can a person be saved? Faith comes by hearing and hearing by the word of God. This is what is necessary for salvation. A person needs the special revelation of God. Everyone knows there's a God because of general revelation.

You can look up at the sky at night and know there's a God, but you know what? You're not saved by trusting in a God, all the enemies of Israel in the old Testament, the Philistines, right? The Amalekites, you realize they all had their own gods.

The Philistines all believed in God wasn't the true God where the Philistines saved by worshiping Dagon, where the Romans saved by worshiping Caesar. No, there's only one true God. So a person needs special revelation.

They need God's word and of course they need the regenerating work of the Holy Spirit. So in conclusion, Christ is the only way of salvation. Not because I say so, but because Jesus said so. He said, I am the way, I am the truth, and I am the life.

No man comes unto the father except through me.