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Thursday, June 21, 2012

Statement six... part 4...

Now we must look to the final segment of this Statement, and if ever there was a blatant expression of exclusivity and a single path to achieve salvation, this is it.  These words epitomize the belief that Christ is the Son, and they demand acceptance of this fact... because without accepting Him, you will go no farther than you alone are capable of going.

"Jesus told him, 'I am the way, the truth, and the life. No one comes to the Father except through Me.'"
John 14:6, HCSB

Let's just look at how pointed a statement this is: "No one comes to the Father except through Me."  It occurs to me that perhaps I should point out that if you are a Christian, and if you claim to believe that the Bible is God's divinely inspired Word, and since that Word comes from God it is infallible and perfect, then it stands to reason that you have NO OPTION but to accept that Jesus Christ is the only means of access that any person can ever have to get to the Father.  There is no other Mediator.  There is no other Counselor.  There is no other Messiah.  There is no other Lamb.  There is no other Son.  There is, quite simply, no other option.

I know, I know... you're thinking to yourself that I am being so counter-cultural, and that in our enlightened state we should certainly be able to find a different way, especially in America.  After all, this is the land of the endless list of options, and there is never only a single way to do anything in America.  Right?  Well, in a worldly sense, there is some measure of truth to that.  Millions of options exist for all kinds of scenarios every day.  However, while you're thinking on the positive and "glass half-full" side of things, let me bring you back down to earth a bit.  Each and every option comes with its very own specific set of consequences, too.  For instance, you can choose to ignore your boss with your freedoms in this country, and your boss can choose to stop paying you.  You can choose to ignore the IRS, and they can choose to imprison you.  You can choose to be a philanderer, and your family can choose to disassociate with you.  Gosh-lee-gee-wilickers, all these choices are so great, and I'm so glad I am enlightened to the point that I can choose my own path!

Wrong.  There is only one way to keep your boss pleased with your performance, and that is to perform.  There is only one way to avoid IRS imprisonment, and that is to pay your taxes.  There is only one way to have a fully blossomed and successful marriage, and that is absolute fidelity.  Just like there is only one signature that is yours, and a single Social Security Number that accesses your information.  So why is it so hard to believe that there can be only one way to salvation?  If you think about it, and allow the simple truths to surface past our own complicated versions of truth, you will see that it makes perfect sense.  And I could go further, believe me, in that blood properly flows in only one direction; oxygen has only one accurate recipe; exchange of oxygen and carbon dioxide only happens in one way; a day is exactly 24 hours, and there is no other measurement, just as a year and a week and a month each have their one and only specific measurements; do me a favor, and try to find a second way for any of these things that God created, and let me know how that works out for you.

Christian sibling, one powerful truth you must accept is that the Bible is irrefutable.  All of it.  And if the Word is perfect and unchanging, and unchangeable, then there is not another way to the Father.  Further, if you question that there is but a single way, then you are guilty of blasphemy.  In that scenario, no matter how knowledgeable one may be, the one who questions God is still wrong... like, flat wrong. 

NO ONE goes to the Father without Christ.  So for all those who think they figured it out on their own, or for anyone who believes in God without the Son and Spirit, or for anyone who chooses not to acknowledge the absolute Divine nature of Christ, those people cannot access the Father.  And if you cannot access the Father, then how do your prayers get answered... or even heard?  Jesus is the Way... the Truth... the Life... and He is the ONLY means by which you can access the power of Heaven to align you to the Father and His will for you on earth.  Accept this today if you haven't before, and honor the Lord in doing so!

God bless you all!!!

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