The Only Way

I am on a soap box this evening and if you have known me long enough, you know that periodically I take a prominent seat up here and proceed to tell everyone exactly what I think. Sometimes it is a good thing, and other times, I need to get my opinions in check and tone down a bit. Lucky for me that the usual recipient of whatever I am going on about is my husband, who usually agrees with me or tells me that I am absolutely wrong. So, J if you are reading, post me a comment, stroke my ego, let me know that I am not alone out here on this one. (As a side bar comment, I did have him read the following to check my accuracy only to have him shake his head at me for wanting to hold myself accountable by publically posting my soapbox. This one is a common one in our household).

So, what got me started this Thursday evening? My friend Missy over at it’s almost naptime. She has a wonderful post today on Oprah’s new book and in chatting with her about her post and in thinking about what she said, I realized something, I am not bold enough in my stand for Christ. I applaud her for her stance on social issues, in standing up for what she believes in and for not keeping quiet when inaccuracies in the world abound. Doesn’t that happen all too often? It seems to me that the unchurched, the unsaved are speaking louder in this world than us as Christians, myself included. What is it that is keeping me from boldly standing for my faith? What is keeping you from standing for yours? Is it that we are afraid of what people will think of us? That we won’t know what to say? That we are afraid of what they might say? That we might offend them? Lose a friend? All of the above?

2 Corinthians 2:15-16 states, “For we are to God the aroma of Christ among those who are being saved and those who are perishing. To the one we are the smell of death; to the other, the fragrance of life. And who is equal to such a task?” God’s word clearly states that to some we are a sweet aroma and to others the smell of death but still we are to share the gospel. Side note from my husband, we need to let the gospel itself be the stench not the manner in which we present it. We need to be presenting the gospel in love.

Christ also gives us the great commission in Matthew 28:19-20
“Therefore go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, and teaching them to obey everything I have commanded you. And surely I am with you always, to the very end of the age."

I can not make disciples, followers of Christ, if I do not first tell them about Christ. So, that my friends is what my soapbox this evening is all about. How do we become followers of Christ?
I hear all the time, and even from people very close to me, inaccurate statements about how we get to heaven, how we get in a right standing with the Lord. I have heard: I go to church every Sunday, I have my list of “good” things that I do – I feed the homeless, I volunteer, I serve at church, my mom/dad/grandparents were Christians, I was raised in a Christian home, I am a “good” person (boy, we sure do give ourselves too much credit), etc. To top it all off I have heard that to be born again is a load of pooh pooh; I have heard that since the Jews are God’s people that he has a special plan for them outside of Christ because they are God’s chosen people. Side note, Yes, they are God’s chosen people, but they also rejected Christ as the Messiah, and in doing so they opened the door to all of us Gentiles to receive Christ. There will come a time when they will return, but their way to heaven is the same as all of ours. The Bible is extremely clear on this. Jesus Christ says in John 14:6, “I am the way, the truth, and the life, no one comes to the Father except through me. “ We either accept all the word of God as the absolute truth or we accept none of it. It is an all or none proposition. One of the pastors at my church says, “We don’t get to be cafeteria Christians picking and choosing which parts of the Bible that we want to believe.” Therefore, there is only one way to the Father and that is accepting that His Son, Jesus Christ, came to this earth, lived a sinless life, died on the cross for our sins and rose again from the dead! He is the only way there is to save us from our sinful life.

Make no mistake, there is no other way than Jesus Christ. There is no special dispensation because you are red, yellow, green, black or white – there are “no get out of hell” free cards just because. There is ONE and only way into heaven, into eternal life with the Lord and that is through Jesus Christ His son.

My challenge to you today is who do you need to share this truth to? Our silence is keeping people out of the greatest relationship they will ever know. May the Love of Christ dwell with you deeply today and may He give you the boldness to take a stand for Him.

JCS