If you have friends or ever sit down to watch a few minutes of television, you’ve probably heard someone’s opinion about religion and how a person receives salvation. As Americans, we pride ourselves in our opinions, and we just can’t wait to share them with other people. In this postmodern world we live in, we’re told to move past traditional thoughts on religion and think “out of the box.” In an attempt to be politically correct, we are expected to accept every religious opinion or teaching as equal with every other. You may already know how big of an oxymoron religious tolerance is, but there are many who truly believe it can and should be practiced. In a world full of so many conflicting answers to life’s questions about God and salvation, how can we say that there is one way and only one way? I hope you’ll give me a few more minutes of your time as I explore that question.
I recently read a news article about Oprah Winfrey and her religious views that she is now making public. She claims Christianity as her faith, but she did something recently that has many of her fans not only questioning that but also questioning their fan status. While taping a recent show, Oprah engaged in a debate with one fan sitting in her studio audience. Oprah made a statement similar to, “Jesus is not the only way to heaven,” and a very upset Christian fan stood firm on her faith and challenged that outrageous claim. The fact that Oprah’s statement was made in such a public way opened my eyes even more to the ugly fact that there are far more people teaching their opinions than there are teaching truth. After reading about that fan’s courage to stand and challenge “the most influential woman in America,” I know I need to do more in my circle of the world to spread God’s truth also.
If you would call yourself a Christian and believe what the Bible teaches, the answer to this question should be easy. Jesus said in John 14:6 that, through a relationship with Him, is the only way to receive salvation. That leaves no room for doubt! Those of us who call ourselves Christians have no choice in believing that statement or not. One requirement for becoming a Christian in the first place is believing the good news message of Jesus Christ. We can’t pick and chose what to believe or reject. Most non-Christians don’t understand that, so they may justify asking this question by claiming that we can’t trust what the Bible says is true. If that describes you, I would simply ask you to study and research with an open mind the Bible’s historical reliability and accuracy.
As you may already notice, this topic is a little more complex than the simple question about only one way to receive salvation. I don’t have room to write all that would be necessary, and you might not like to read all of those pages if I did. To study this topic further, please follow the link below to download an audio file of a sermon I preached recently on this very topic. The sermon is titled "Salvation...God's Way." Whether you are a Christian or not, I strongly encourage you to listen to this lesson as it is a message that is seldom taught. Feel free to post your comments on this page.
Audio Sermon Archive
Monday, July 21, 2008
Tuesday, July 15, 2008
Waiting On God
I was reminded recently of a story I enjoyed when I first heard it, and it’s taken on even more meaning for me today. A flood threatens a town, and everyone is forced to evacuate. One resident, who views himself as a “devout man,” decides to stay because he knows God will save him. As the water rises in the town, a small family in a row boat passes by and offers the man a ride to safety. The man replies, “No thanks. I know God will save me.” The water continues to rise, and the man is forced to seek higher ground and eventually finds himself on his rooftop. About that time, a search and rescue boat comes by and tries desperately to convince the man to leave. “I don’t need your help, I know God will save me,” he replied. The water continued to rise, more rapidly now, and it would soon wash the man off his roof to a certain death. A rescue helicopter hovering above dropped a rope ladder to the man in one last attempt, but the man stood firm on his decision to wait for God. Just as the rescue workers knew would happen, the man was soon swept away to his death in the turbulent, debris-filled water. When he reached heaven and stood before God, he asked, “God, where were you? Why didn’t you save me?” God replied, “I sent three different groups of people to you, but you just wouldn’t let them help.”
Like I said, I enjoyed this story very much the first time I heard it, but it has even more meaning in my life today. The moral of the story is simple. Real faith is not just belief, it’s obedient and it leads to action. As Christians, we believe God will provide for us and take care of us, but that alone is not faith. Faith leads us to accept God’s help in its many forms, most of which are unknown to us at the time. This may seem easy to understand now, but it often proves difficult to remember when we face struggles in life.
When we face difficult situations in life, three things are always the same. God knew beforehand it would happen, He knows how to get us through it, and He already has a plan to help us. Most of us accept these things about God, but we struggle with one major thing. Sometimes we expect God to do all the work, including the parts that we can do for ourselves.
If you’ve ever had to move to a new place, you know how stressful and difficult that process can be. If you’re a Christian, you probably prayed for God to help you as you looked for a new home. If you were to use the same logic as the man in the story, you would have prayed and then done nothing but wait for God to move you Himself. Of course, we know that’s not the way God really works. God may open many doors for us, or He may open just one, but the fact remains we have to walk through the door to get on the other side.
In 1 Corinthians 10:13, Paul writes the following, “No temptation has seized you except what is common to man. And God is faithful; he will not let you be tempted beyond what you can bear. But when you are tempted, he will also provide a way out so that you can stand up under it.” No matter what the situation, God promises us a safe path through it. Our belief leads us to accept that as truth, and our faith leads us to act on that belief by looking for the opportunities God has made available and doing whatever we can to make use of them. When you pray, do you expect God to do all the work, or are you willing to meet Him halfway?
Like I said, I enjoyed this story very much the first time I heard it, but it has even more meaning in my life today. The moral of the story is simple. Real faith is not just belief, it’s obedient and it leads to action. As Christians, we believe God will provide for us and take care of us, but that alone is not faith. Faith leads us to accept God’s help in its many forms, most of which are unknown to us at the time. This may seem easy to understand now, but it often proves difficult to remember when we face struggles in life.
When we face difficult situations in life, three things are always the same. God knew beforehand it would happen, He knows how to get us through it, and He already has a plan to help us. Most of us accept these things about God, but we struggle with one major thing. Sometimes we expect God to do all the work, including the parts that we can do for ourselves.
If you’ve ever had to move to a new place, you know how stressful and difficult that process can be. If you’re a Christian, you probably prayed for God to help you as you looked for a new home. If you were to use the same logic as the man in the story, you would have prayed and then done nothing but wait for God to move you Himself. Of course, we know that’s not the way God really works. God may open many doors for us, or He may open just one, but the fact remains we have to walk through the door to get on the other side.
In 1 Corinthians 10:13, Paul writes the following, “No temptation has seized you except what is common to man. And God is faithful; he will not let you be tempted beyond what you can bear. But when you are tempted, he will also provide a way out so that you can stand up under it.” No matter what the situation, God promises us a safe path through it. Our belief leads us to accept that as truth, and our faith leads us to act on that belief by looking for the opportunities God has made available and doing whatever we can to make use of them. When you pray, do you expect God to do all the work, or are you willing to meet Him halfway?
Tuesday, July 1, 2008
Reclaiming What's Been Lost
As you may have noticed from some of my other articles on this site, I spend a lot of time thinking about the differences between the Christians of the 1st Century and us today. One of the differences that comes to my mind first is the way we look at “going to church.” I think we’ve lost something that was clearly present among the early Christians, but it doesn’t have to be lost forever. I’d like to explore some of the attitudes about “going to church” that those early Christians had, because I really do think we’ve lost something great that we need to reclaim.
In Acts 2:42-47, Luke describes something great that would probably seem a little strange to us today. Not only did the early Christians meet together on the first day of the week, but every moment of their lives were fully devoted to following the teachings of Christ given to them by the apostles. They lived their lives with Christ as their absolute top priority as they devoted themselves to prayer in every situation they faced. They chose to be together with other Christians every single day of the week so they could eat, praise, and worship God…together.
We can see from that passage in Acts a little about the early Christians’ attitude toward each other, but I like how Paul elaborates on that even further. When Paul wrote his letters to the churches, he always started the same way. He began by thanking God for them and their faith. With great sincerity and eloquence he reaffirmed his Christian love for all his brothers and sisters who would be reading that letter. He even included the new converts that he hadn’t yet been able to meet but had heard about and rejoiced with. Another common theme in all of Paul’s letters was his strong desire to be reunited with those he loved so much. It hurt him that he couldn’t be with them all the time, and he wanted nothing more than to be joined with them again.
Just take those examples for now. You should already be able to see some differences in our attitude toward “going to church” and that of the 1st Century followers. For one reason or another, getting together with other Christians has become somewhat routine for us. We seem to have lost the spark that Luke and Paul write about. Maybe it’s because you work long hours at a hard job, and the weekend is your time to retreat from everything and crash. Maybe it’s because you see church attendance as just another obligation, and you know if you don’t show up somebody will call and ask where you were. Maybe your reason is different, but the fact remains that our attitude toward being with other Christians just isn’t what it could be, and our lives are not as joyful because of it.
It’s true that many things compete for our time today, and the main portion of our time is spent just trying to put food on the table for our family. After working hard all week, we do need a time of rest; but our idea of rest may need a little adjusting. Unless you work around nothing but Christians all week long, you’re bound to feel a little disconnected by the end of the week. That’s just how we were made; humans need contact with other humans to survive, and Christians need contact with other Christians to survive spiritually. You see, “church” was never intended to be an obligation.
We have the privilege of being able to gather together with other Christians at least once each week, and we need to view it as a privilege. The early Christians had to be secretive about their meetings for fear of persecution, but we don’t have that worry today. How often do we think about that? The early Christians gathered together every day to recharge their batteries and renew their spirits. If you’re feeling drained by the end of the week, are you looking forward to your time to get together with other Christians, or do you see it as a routine? My point is simple; in the 1st Century, thousands of new Christians were being added to Christ’s church every day as a result of dedicated, sincere, and joyful spirits. Just imagine what we could do for God’s kingdom today if we had the same attitudes they did!
In Acts 2:42-47, Luke describes something great that would probably seem a little strange to us today. Not only did the early Christians meet together on the first day of the week, but every moment of their lives were fully devoted to following the teachings of Christ given to them by the apostles. They lived their lives with Christ as their absolute top priority as they devoted themselves to prayer in every situation they faced. They chose to be together with other Christians every single day of the week so they could eat, praise, and worship God…together.
We can see from that passage in Acts a little about the early Christians’ attitude toward each other, but I like how Paul elaborates on that even further. When Paul wrote his letters to the churches, he always started the same way. He began by thanking God for them and their faith. With great sincerity and eloquence he reaffirmed his Christian love for all his brothers and sisters who would be reading that letter. He even included the new converts that he hadn’t yet been able to meet but had heard about and rejoiced with. Another common theme in all of Paul’s letters was his strong desire to be reunited with those he loved so much. It hurt him that he couldn’t be with them all the time, and he wanted nothing more than to be joined with them again.
Just take those examples for now. You should already be able to see some differences in our attitude toward “going to church” and that of the 1st Century followers. For one reason or another, getting together with other Christians has become somewhat routine for us. We seem to have lost the spark that Luke and Paul write about. Maybe it’s because you work long hours at a hard job, and the weekend is your time to retreat from everything and crash. Maybe it’s because you see church attendance as just another obligation, and you know if you don’t show up somebody will call and ask where you were. Maybe your reason is different, but the fact remains that our attitude toward being with other Christians just isn’t what it could be, and our lives are not as joyful because of it.
It’s true that many things compete for our time today, and the main portion of our time is spent just trying to put food on the table for our family. After working hard all week, we do need a time of rest; but our idea of rest may need a little adjusting. Unless you work around nothing but Christians all week long, you’re bound to feel a little disconnected by the end of the week. That’s just how we were made; humans need contact with other humans to survive, and Christians need contact with other Christians to survive spiritually. You see, “church” was never intended to be an obligation.
We have the privilege of being able to gather together with other Christians at least once each week, and we need to view it as a privilege. The early Christians had to be secretive about their meetings for fear of persecution, but we don’t have that worry today. How often do we think about that? The early Christians gathered together every day to recharge their batteries and renew their spirits. If you’re feeling drained by the end of the week, are you looking forward to your time to get together with other Christians, or do you see it as a routine? My point is simple; in the 1st Century, thousands of new Christians were being added to Christ’s church every day as a result of dedicated, sincere, and joyful spirits. Just imagine what we could do for God’s kingdom today if we had the same attitudes they did!
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