I had a very interesting conversation with a friend a couple of days ago about the way or ways to God. He was telling me that he thought that different religions were like beams of light coming out of a prism, and were all different paths to God.
I told him that this presented a problem with the words of Jesus Christ, "I am the way, the truth and the life, no one comes to the Father except through Me" (John 14 v 6).
If my friend is correct then that means that Christ is incorrect, and if the Lord Jesus was wrong about being the way then why would we ever think that He is a way? I mean think about it! Someone claims exclusivity when it comes to approaching God, He says He is the Son of God who came from heaven, and your eternal destiny depends on what you do with Him, and He says that these words are the very words of God. These are not modest claims! If He was wrong about these things then His message didn't come from God or have His authority, so why would we ever trust anything He says about how to get to God?
I told him that the exclusive claims of Jesus Christ made perfect sense to me when I see that He's the only one who claimed to die as a sacrifice for sins. If God is righteous (as He must be) then sin can't just be ignored - the penalty needs to be paid. Christ claimed to do that by His sacrificial death, and God confirmed that He did it by His glorious resurrection.
The light has shone into this world, and the His name is Jesus Christ. The different opinions of men and religions of the world are not reflections or refractions of the light, they are deflections and distractions from the light. People are closing their eyes to the light, preferring their own way.
I also wanted to point out to my friend that, while the Gospel is an exclusive message, it is also a very inclusive message, because it tells us that everyone is invited to come to Christ for salvation, and step out of darkness into the light of His love. That includes you.
