By Sherri Stevens

WHY IS JESUS THE ONLY WAY?

The Bible makes some very exclusive claims that Jesus Christ is the only way to be saved. “Jesus answered, ‘I am the way and the truth and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me” (John 14:6). Read also Acts 4:12. But why is Jesus the only way? What about being a follower of Buddha or Muhammad or just trying to be a good person?

God and man have two very different definitions of what is required for salvation. Man’s religious equation is based on a false gospel of moralism—a system of meritocracy—measuring his own self-righteousness according to whatever standard he has determined. The Bible is very clear, however, that God does not accept us on the basis of any good deeds or righteous works we have done. “Therefore no one will be declared righteous in God’s sight by the works of the law; rather, through the law we become conscious of our sin” (Rom.3:20). Read also Isaiah 64:6.

The Bible teaches that there are two very different kinds of righteousness: self-righteousness, which God does not accept, and God’s free gift of His righteousness, which is received by unmerited favor (grace) through faith. “For they being ignorant of God’s righteousness, and going about to establish their own righteousness, have not submitted themselves unto the righteousness of God” (Rom. 10:3).

Man’s religious equation is based on a false gospel of good works, a “curve" of whatever he has determined is good or bad conduct. God’s equation for salvation, on the other hand, is based on believing in His Son, and it addresses a bigger problem than man’s behavior: the fact that man is spiritually dead and in need of life. “You study the scriptures diligently because you think that in them you have eternal life. These are the very scriptures that testify about me, yet you refuse to come to me to have life” (John 5:39–40).

Religion is based on rules, rituals, and regulations that focus on our outward conduct. Christianity is the reality of a spiritual rebirth that addresses our inward spiritual condition. That is why, when Jesus spoke to the religious leaders, He said, “Very truly I tell you, no one can see the kingdom of God unless they are born again” (John 3:3).

The reality of being “born again” is supported throughout the New Testament. “But when the kindness and love of God our Savior appeared, he saved us, not because of righteous things we had done, but because of his mercy. He saved us through the washing of rebirth and renewal by the Holy Spirit” (Titus 3:4–5). Read also 1 Peter 3–4, 23.

So, why does the Bible teach such a narrow and exclusive way of receiving salvation? Why is Jesus Christ “the only way”?

1. Jesus Christ was the only person who lived a perfectly sinless life so that He could be our sinless substitute. God accepted Him, on our behalf, as a blameless and acceptable sacrifice so that the punishment for our sins could be laid upon Him. Without going into too much detail to explain the biblical importance of sacrifice, there is a fundamental principle throughout scripture that requires the shedding of blood for the remission of sin (Lev. 17:11; Heb. 9:22).

2. Jesus Christ was the only person who lived a perfectly righteous life so that He could impute His righteousness to us.

3. Jesus Christ was the only person qualified to offer spiritual life because He is the only one who ever conquered death through His resurrection. The “good news” is that God has made a provision for solving man’s problem. “Jesus said to her, ‘I am the resurrection and the life. The one who believes in me will live, even though they die” (John 11:25). Read also Ephesians 2:8–9.

Man’s religious ways, philosophies, or equations might make him “good” according to his own standards, but they do not make him alive! God’s equation for salvation, however, is not based on our being good or bad, but on our believing in His Son and being made spiritually alive in Jesus Christ! “For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life” (John 3:16). Read also 1 John 5:12.

Just as a butterfly experiences metamorphosis, a Christian’s metanoia (changing of mind) initiates God’s miraculous work of spiritual transformation in his or her life. “You have taken off your old self with its practices and have put on the new self, which is being renewed in knowledge in the image of its Creator” (Col. 3:10). Read also Ezekiel 36:26.

The concept of religion is completely different from the spiritual dynamic and reality of becoming a new creation in Christ. Being religious is like trying to be a good caterpillar, whereas spiritual rebirth means receiving new life, Christ’s life, and becoming a bold-winged butterfly in and through Him! It’s a takeover, not a makeover!

He gave His life for you, to give His life to you, to live His life through you!

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