The Truth About Christianity - Week 2

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- There’s an old story that’s told of a group of blind men who stumble across an elephant.

- One blind man feels the elephant’s leg, and wrapping his arms around it says to the other blind men “this elephant is solid and round, like the stump of a great tree.”

- A second blind man shouts back, as he holds on to the elephant’s tail, “I have no idea what you are talking about, an elephant is long, skinny, and flexible, like a rope”.

- “Long and flexible may be right” a third blind man responds, “but an elephant is far thicker than any piece of rope I’ve ever felt before, it is more like a large snake” as he feels his way along the elephant’s trunk.

- “I can’t believe how incorrect you all are” a fourth blind man responds, “this elephant is nothing like what you are describing, it is large, thin, and bendable, like a fan or a rug” as he pulls on the elephant’s ear.

- “My friends, are you thinking about this at all?” a fifth blind man interjects, as he runs his hand down the elephant’s tusk, “an elephant is hard and sharp, like a spear”.

- And finally, a sixth blind man interrupts all of the other arguing blind men, and feels his way up the massive elephant’s body, “this elephant is not nearly as intricate or complicated as any of you suggest.  Rather, this elephant is like a wall.”

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- And so this is our second week into the series “The Truth About Christianity” where we are looking at some of the biggest objections, the biggest problems, that people have against Christianity.

- And if you weren’t here last week, we looked at the topic of “Can we trust the Bible?” and I’d encourage you to check it out on our Faceboook page, so that you can hear what we said for an introduction to this entire series, as well as how we answered last week’s question.

- And so today, we are going to look at this question:  “Is there only one way to God?”

- Or are there multiple paths?

- Is there one right religion, and if so, does that mean that every other religion is wrong?

- Or are all religions essentially leading people down the same path, where they will find themselves at the same destination eventually, even if they take different routes to get there?

- And so today we are going to be specifically tackling the issue of pluralism, and whether there is any reason to believe in the absolute and exclusive claims of a particular religion (specifically Christianity), or whether all religions can co-exist and merge together, agreeing that they all can be true, and it doesn’t have to be one or the other.

- And so this morning, we need to be clear up front, that whenever we talk about “exclusive claims” or “absolute claims” of a religion, what we are talking about are beliefs along the lines of “this is the one way to find God... this is the one religion to follow to inherit eternal life” or things of that nature.

- Obviously we’ll be focusing on the exclusive claims as they specifically apply to Christianity, but other major world religions also make exclusive claims.  And so the heart of this message isn’t about comparing the various exclusive claims, but seeing if pluralism is a viable option with all of these different religions that call for exclusivity.

- So let’s clear up a common misunderstanding right now.

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- Some people think that pluralism believes that all religions are true.  But that isn’t the case.

- It isn’t that simple.

- Because obviously there are some contradictory claims between the various religions that cannot both be true.

- For example, if Christianity says that Jesus is God, and Judaism says that Jesus is not God, both of these statements cannot be true simultaneously.

- And so it is overly simplistic, and illogical, to just say “all religions are true”.

- And that really isn’t what the true pluralism believes anyways.

- Because the idea that “all religions are true” is easily dismissed.

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- And so, the more sophisticated view of pluralism, is that all religions are partially true, and all religions are partially false.

- But the heart of them all is essentially the same.

- Pluralism believes that when you look at all of the different religions of the world, Christianity and Judaism, Islam and Buddhism, etc.,

- When you look at the different religions of the world, and the claims they make about God and faith and life and heaven, this can best be understood as the equivalent of a group of blind men stumbling across an elephant.

- Because an elephant is so big, that no one single blind man can feel the entire elephant himself.

- Likewise, the truth about God and religion and faith is so big, that no one single religion can grasp all of its truth.

- And so Christianity may say that God is like a spear, and Hinduism may say that God is like a wall, and they aren’t totally wrong.

- But they also aren’t totally right.

- They have a limited amount of information, and the truth is actually found when you take all of the blind men’s experiences with the elephant and put them together to form the most accurate picture possible.

- And so today, our goal is to honestly and intelligently consider this question: “Is there only one way to God?”

- Let’s look at what a few different people have to say about this subject:

- John Lennon said: “I believe that what Jesus and Mohammad and Buddha and all the rest said was right. It’s just that the translations have gone wrong.”

- Mahatma Gandhi is quoted as saying: “All paths leading to God are equally good.”

- Oprah Winfrey once said: “One of the biggest mistakes humans make is to believe there is only one way. Actually, there are many diverse paths leading to what you call God.”

- And of course, a discussion on pluralism would not be complete without this quote from Homer Simpson: “I’m gonna die! Jesus, Allah, Buddha – I love you all!”

- So those are a few opinions on the subject of pluralism.

- But where does Christianity stand on this issue?

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- John 8:23-24

o Jesus continued, “You are from below; I am from above. You belong to this world; I do not. That is why I said that you will die in your sins; for unless you believe that I am who I claim to be, you will die in your sins.”

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- Acts 4:11-12

o For Jesus is the one referred to in the Scriptures, where it says,

o ‘The stone that you builders rejected has now become the cornerstone.’

o There is salvation in no one else! God has given no other name under heaven by which we must be saved.”

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- 1 Timothy 2:3-5

o This is good and pleases God our Savior, who wants everyone to be saved and to understand the truth. For,

o There is one God and one Mediator who can reconcile God and humanity—the man Christ Jesus.

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- John 14:6

o Jesus told him, “I am the way, the truth, and the life. No one can come to the Father except through me.”

- And so there is no getting around this fact.  Christianity makes exclusive claims.

- Followers of Jesus believe that they are following the one true God, and that all other paths are not just different paths leading to the same destination, but they are lies that are leading people in the opposite direction (further away from the one true Saviour and further away from everlasting life).

- But this morning, I would like us to take a step back, and try to be as objective, as logical, and as fair as possible, as we consider whether or not there is any reason to believe that there is actually only one way to God, or whether Christianity is just one of the many possible options for people to follow.

- And, just like I said last week, I want to strongly emphasize, that this morning is not about arming anyone to have better arguments to arrogantly and unlovingly “defend” our faith against those we view as threats.

- This is about showing why there is reason to believe in and trust the claims of Christianity, so that if any of us are not following Jesus, we may at least have something to consider this week as we reflect on this.

- And if we are following Jesus, then I hope that this will better prepare us to have a real conversation (not a monologue, a conversation) with someone who does believe in pluralism.

- And if you don’t know anyone who believes in pluralism, then all you need to do is get out of your house and go meet some of the people God has placed you around, because I guarantee you they are all around you.

- Because the truth is that Christians often come across as narrow-minded, arrogant, intolerant, and judgmental (and, at least some of the time, we are).

- But, maybe it’s possible to be loving, to be welcoming, to be open and inviting and encouraging of people’s doubts and questions and struggles (and we all have them).

- Maybe it’s possible to be all of that, and still believe in the exclusive claims of Jesus.

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- Now, look at this picture here, which illustrates the golden rule.

- Now, you probably can’t read all of the tiny text up here on the screen, but just to give you an idea of what this says, under “Christianity”, it quotes Matthew 7, which says “in everything, do to others as you would have them do to you...”

- And then, under Taoism, it has a quote which says “regard your neighbour’s gain as your own gain, and your neighbour’s loss as your own loss.”

- Move over to Hinduism, which says “This is the sum of duty: do not do to others what would cause pain if done to you.”

- And so on and so forth. All of these various religions all have their own version of the “golden rule”.

- And this picture is a great example of pluralism, and a great argument for pluralists.

- “Because look! This shows that all religions are essentially teaching the same thing.”

- “Sure, they may differ in some minor areas, but they are in agreement and in harmony in the major ones.”

- So what can those who believe in absolute truth say in response to this?

- Quite simply, this idea that all religions are the same in the major areas but differ in the minor areas, we can actually say that it is the opposite that is true.

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- There are similarities between religions when you look at ethical teachings – areas like the golden rule.

- But even though many religions have similarities in areas like ethics, there are massive differences in their soteriological beliefs – which means there are huge differences in what they say about how people can be saved.

- There is a pluralistic belief that says “the religions of the earth differ in rites and forms, but they are the same in what they teach.”

- Concerning this, G.K. Chesterton writes that this idea “is false; it is the opposite of the fact.  The religions of the earth do not greatly differ in rites and forms; they do greatly differ in what they teach...almost every great religion on earth works with the same external methods, with priests, scriptures, altars, sworn brotherhoods, special feasts. They agree in the mode of teaching; what they differ about is the thing to be taught...Creeds that exist to destroy each other both have scriptures, just as armies that exist to destroy each other both have guns.”

- Let’s take a deeper look for just a minute or two on this.

- If all religions essentially teach the same major things, then we should be able to see those similarities when we look at some major foundational beliefs for major world religions.

- I mean, if we go back to thinking about the blind men feeling different parts of an elephant, if the blind men keep talking to one another, and keep feeling around, then eventually they will be able to see how they do overlap, and they will come to see the bigger picture of what an elephant actually looks like and feels like.

- And so let’s take three major beliefs that should line up if pluralism is actually a viable option.

- Let’s quickly look at how religions view ultimate reality, the human condition, and spiritual liberation.

- And if pluralism is to be plausible, then at the very least we should find some strategy that we can use to bring unity to their differences, as with the elephant story.

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- And so here is a quick little chart that compares how Christianity, Hinduism, and Buddhism address these three core beliefs within their individual worldviews.

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- Christianity says that ultimate reality is found in the triune, personal God – Father, Son, and Spirit.

- Hinduism says that it is found in an impersonal god.

- And Buddhism says it is found in an impersonal state of being (because there is no god).

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- Regarding human condition, Christianity says we are made in God’s image, but we’ve fallen into sin.

- Hinduism says that we are divine, yet ignorant.

- And Buddhism says that we do not have a soul, and we are ignorant.

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- And finally, for spiritual liberation (how are we saved), Christianity says by grace through faith in Jesus Christ alone.

- Hinduism says by knowledge of inner divinity.

- And Buddhism says by the path of knowledge leading to nirvana.

- And so now we are forced to ask, can we really reconcile these differences?

- In looking at only three major beliefs, for only three major religions, does pluralism seem possible?

- Can you think of any way to reconcile how God can be both a personal God and an impersonal state of being?

- Can humanity be divine and nonsubstantial at the same time?

- Can we be saved by faith and through our own knowledge simultaneously?

- Again, let’s go back to the blind men and their differing claims about the elephant.

- Although the elephant can be rough in one spot and smooth in another, it cannot be smooth all over and rough all over simultaneously.

- Likewise, the ultimate reality cannot be both nirvana and the personal God as revealed through the person of Jesus.

- We cannot look at a chart like this, ask “what is true?” and come to the conclusion, “All of the above”.

- It just doesn’t work.

- There’s an interesting book by a guy named Stephen Prothero that my dad gave me years ago.

- And it’s worth mentioning that Stephen is not a Christian, and is not a follower of Jesus.

- Rather, he describes himself as being “religiously confused”.

- And Stephen is an expert on world religions. He wrote a book called “God Is Not One”, which was written to address the idea that all religions are essentially the same.

- And, at the time of writing that book at least, he is a professor in the department of religion at Boston University, has appeared on numerous television shows regarding religious topics, he served as a consultant on U.S. religious history at the Smithsonian’s National Museum of American History, and has written numerous bestsellers on the topic of religion.

- And so Stephen Prothero, seen as an expert on religion from a non-Christian perspective, says that pluralism just doesn’t work. He calls it “wishful thinking” that does not make the world a safer place.

- He calls on pluralists to “climb out of the rabbit hole” and come back to reality.

- Here’s a quote he writes in his book:

o “One purpose of the ‘all religions are one’ mantra is to stop this fighting and this killing.  And it is comforting to pretend that the great religions make up one big, happy family. But this sentiment, however well-intentioned, is neither accurate nor ethically responsible. God is not one. Faith in the unity of religions is just that – faith (perhaps even a kind of fundamentalism). And the leap that gets us there is an act of the hyperactive imagination.”

- And so, it doesn’t work to say that religions are essentially the same in the major areas and only differ in minor areas, because the exact opposite is actually the case.

- There are similarities in minor areas, but significant, irreconcilable differences in major ones.

- And so, with the time we have left this morning, I would like to give two responses that may be helpful for our own spiritual journeys, or in our conversations with others.

- If we are talking to someone who thinks that religious belief is just like a group of blind men touching an elephant (or if maybe we still feel a bit of that ourselves, possibly because we just feel uncomfortable at how confrontational exclusive religious claims make us feel), then here are two responses for why the blind men and the elephant view doesn’t work.

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- The first is this:  Pluralism is self-defeating and contradictory.

- The story of the blind men and the elephant, as well as pluralism itself, contradicts itself and destroys itself with its own argument.

- Think about it this way.

- A pluralist tells you the story of the blind men and the elephant, and they sound very scholarly and convincing.

- But really think about what they’ve just said.

- Christianity is a blind man touching the trunk.

- Islam is a blind man touching the tail.

- Buddhism is a blind man touching the ear.

- And so on and so forth.

- But, by telling this story and using this metaphor, they are saying that pluralism is the one and only view that gets to not only have their sense of sight, but they also get to take a step back and see the whole picture.

- They are the only ones who get to see from a superior vantage point, while all of the other worldviews and beliefs are blind men stumbling around with limited information.

- Pluralism is a belief – it is a worldview – and yet it doesn’t include itself in its own discussion of how all belief systems and worldviews are like blind men feeling one part of an elephant.

- Timothy Keller words it this way: “How could you possibly know that no religion can see the whole truth unless you yourself have the superior, comprehensive knowledge of spiritual reality you just claimed that none of the religions have?”

- And if you judge pluralism by its own standards and guidelines that it sets up itself and enforces on other religions itself, pluralism fails to live up to its own standards, every single time.

- Pluralism seems so humble and loving (and many who believe it do so because they believe it is the most loving and least-judgmental way to view the world), but it is in fact the most arrogant belief out there.

- You can’t say “all exclusive claims about religions are wrong and narrow-minded... except this claim that I am making right now.”

- If you insist that no belief-system has it entirely right, then that must be true of you as well.

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- Timothy Keller writes:

o It is no more narrow to claim that one religion is right than to claim that one way to think about all religions (namely that all are equal) is right. We are all exclusive in our beliefs about religion, but in different ways.”

- (you may notice that I quote Timothy Keller a few times throughout this series, and if you are interested in this series, then you should definitely go check out his book “The Reason for God”, which I recommend very, very highly)

- Christians are exclusive.

- Muslims are exclusive.

- Hindus are exclusive.

- Buddhists are exclusive.

- And, pluralists are exclusive.

- Pluralists are exclusive in believing that there cannot be any exclusive claims.

- For example, if someone was to say, “There is no such thing as absolute truth with respect to religion” we can simply ask, “Is that statement absolutely true?” And they have to stop.

- Because saying anything means that there is such a thing as absolute truth with respect to religion – and they believe that they have found that truth (the truth being that there is absolutely no such thing as absolute truth).

- Let’s say someone believes that religion and belief is all relative, and is a matter of taste (it is an issue of personal preference).

- Then you can ask that person: “Is your idea – that what is true for one individual is not necessarily true for another – is that idea true for you, or is it true for me and everyone else also?”

- Pluralism, based on the criteria it establishes itself, cannot logically label a different belief as being wrong; it can only logically say that the different belief is… different.

- Yet the minute pluralism decides they are right and that those who believe in absolutes are wrong, they must logically conclude that some absolute standard exists.

- And, if some absolute standard does exist, then consequently, pluralism cannot be true.

- Let me give you one more example of how pluralism is contradictory and self-defeating.

- Some say that we are only Christian because of where we were born and how we were raised.

- We wouldn’t be Christians if we had been born on the other side of the world where the Gospel has not spread.

- So, some pluralists will say that this proves that our religious view is all relative to our upbringing, culture, and society that we are familiar with.

- And there is some truth to that.

- I do not know if I would be following Jesus if I had not been born to parents who took me to church, if I did not grow up in Canada where Christianity is so common, and if I instead lived in a village where the Gospel of Jesus has never been spread.

- None of us know if we would be following Jesus had we been born under different circumstances.

- And so that part is true. But pluralism takes this and concludes that this means that all religion is relative.

- But if this is the case, then the argument itself also destroys pluralism.

- Alvin Plantinga writes: “Suppose we concede that if I had been born of Muslim parents in Morocco rather than Christian parents in Michigan, my beliefs would have been quite different.  But the same goes for the pluralist... If the pluralist had been born in Morocco he probably wouldn’t be a pluralist.  Does it follow that his pluralist beliefs are produced in him by an unreliable belief-producing process?”

- Just because our religious beliefs are shaped by our upbringing (and they are), doesn’t mean that there isn’t absolute truth that can be discovered.

- Just because someone is raised in a village that has never heard about Jesus, doesn’t mean that Jesus doesn’t exist and that He isn’t the one true God that He claimed to be.

- Ok, so that’s the first response to the blind men and the elephant story.

- The story of the blind men and the elephant only works if you assume that pluralism has a higher vantage point that it says no belief system can have. And therefore, pluralism defeats itself by contradicting itself.

- And here’s one more.

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- Pluralism requires the “elephant” to remain silent.

- The story of the blind men and the elephant also only works if the elephant doesn’t ever speak.

- The pluralist worldview comes crashing down if there is actually a God who wants to reveal Himself to humanity.

- Because the story falls apart very quickly if the first blind man goes “Oh, this elephant is like a big wall”, but then before the second man can speak up the elephant stops them all and goes “Hold on!  You’re just feeling my side. Let me describe myself to you so that you can understand exactly what you’re feeling here.”

- And Christianity (and other religions as well) do believe that God has spoken and revealed Himself.

- He has told us what He is like.

- He has told us what He thinks.

- He has told us what He feels.

- He has told us what He wants for us.

- He has told us what He commands for us.

- And He has told us the way we can enter into everlasting life.

- The elephant isn’t silent.

- We can actually know what God is like, and we can actually have a more accurate picture than just being another blind man grabbing at a part of an elephant.

- There are many people who hear Jesus saying “I am the way, the truth, and the life, and no one comes to the Father except through me”, and they have a negative reaction.

- They think “How could He say something so exclusive, so narrow-minded, so arrogant?”

- But, if that’s where any of us are at this morning, let’s think about it from the opposite perspective for a minute.

- Let’s think about it from the side of “what if Jesus is actually right?”

- Because sure, if pluralism is true and Jesus isn’t actually the only way to approach God, then the fact that He said He was makes Him either a liar or a flat-out crazy person (more on that next week).

- But, if Jesus was telling the truth, if He is actually the only way to heaven, because He is the one and only God who came down from His Kingdom to make it possible for us to know Him, then His claim is not a negative, narrow-minded, judgemental one, it’s actually a merciful, grace-filled declaration of love.

- It’s not about Jesus saying “I’M THE ONLY WAY TO HEAVEN, SO SUCK IT UP AND FOLLOW ME BECAUSE I SAID SO!!!”

- If it’s true, then this is about Jesus saying: “Everyone, please listen to me, no one else is coming for you.  No one else can save you.  You need to turn to me to receive life, because I am the only one who can give it to you, and I did in fact come to give life to you.”

- Josh McDowell says that people constantly ask him “What’s so special about Jesus? Why is He the only way that someone can know God?”

- And this is how he responds: “The first point to make is that we did not invent the idea of Jesus being the only way.  This is not our claim; it is His. We are merely relating His claim, and the claim of the writers of the New Testament.”

- And so I have two different conclusions to this sermon that I would like to give this morning.

- The first conclusion is for those here who are not followers of Jesus.

- And so maybe some of us are here today, and we still aren’t sure about these exclusive claims of Jesus, and we aren’t sure about this idea of absolute truth.

- I hope that what we’ve talked about today has at least given reason to question and examine the idea of pluralism a little bit, and see if it really holds up.

- But, for those are still not totally on board and ready to sign on the dotted line “I’m in! I’m following Jesus!” Then I would ask that we show a little grace to the Christians we do know who believe in the exclusive claims of Jesus, and don’t believe that all religions are just different paths to the same destination.

- Seriously, Christians are constantly being told that they are narrow-minded, judgmental, and arrogant (and some of us are) just because we believe that Jesus is the only way to heaven.

- But think about it from a Christian perspective for a second.

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- Because Christians didn’t invent the exclusive claims of Jesus. Jesus said them!

- If Christians really believe Jesus (which they have to do if they are going to be Christians), then they have to believe His claim that He is the only way to heaven.

- Therefore, you cannot be a Christian and believe there are other ways to heaven, otherwise you don’t believe what Jesus said.

- We cannot believe that Jesus is who He says He is, and then come to the conclusion that Christianity is just one nice way among a plethora of possible options.

- Either Jesus is who He says He is, and Christianity is the truth. Or else Jesus isn’t who He says He is, and then Christianity is a lie.

- Saying that Jesus is the only way sounds intolerant in our culture, but this isn’t a position that Christians hold because we want to be divisive.

- If we believe in Jesus, and believe in all that the Bible says about Him (and we talked about why we can trust the Bible last week), then we have to believe that He is the only way to everlasting life (because it’s what He told us).

- For a Christian, there is no other option. Because the second there is another option, then you are no longer a Christian.

- So please, if you are going to be skeptical of how exclusive Christianity is, and be in favour of a pluralistic approach (and that’s ok if you still feel that way and you’re unconvinced by everything that I’ve said today), but please at least be willing to see that the Christian worldview needs to be exclusive.

- And if all worldviews are equally valid, then that includes the exclusive claims of Christianity – otherwise you’re saying all worldviews aren’t equally valid, and we’re back to the self-defeating part that we’ve already talked about.

- Now, here’s my conclusion for this morning for those of us who are followers of Jesus.

- Maybe some of us are familiar with being called narrow-minded, judgmental, and arrogant.

- Let’s make sure that while we do hold on to the exclusive claims of Jesus and the absolute truth of the Scriptures, let’s make sure that we aren’t helping further those arguments by actually being narrow-minded, judgmental, and arrogant.

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- Just because Christians believe in the exclusivity of Jesus doesn’t mean that Christians need to be intolerant and unwilling to listen.

- Friendly discussion can still take place.

- Stephen Prothero (the non-Christian author I quoted before), makes another good point when he writes: “pretending that the world’s religions are the same does not make our world safer.  Like all forms of ignorance, it makes our world more dangerous. What we need on this furiously religious planet is a realistic view of where religious rivals clash and where they can cooperate.”

- And so to all of the Christians here today, let’s not be afraid to cooperate with those who don’t believe what we believe.

- One of the reasons why pluralism is so popular is because people believe that if we would just get past our exclusive claims, then we could achieve world peace.

- And it is easy to say that exclusive fundamentalism will lead to violence, oppression, war, and division.

- However, as we have seen, all of us have exclusive, fundamental beliefs that we think are superior to those of others (including pluralists).

- Therefore, the real question we need to actually ask is: “Which exclusive, fundamental beliefs will lead their believers to be the most loving and receptive to those with whom they differ?”

- Which set of unavoidably exclusive beliefs will lead us to humble, peace-loving behaviour?

- And so, to all of the Christians here today, I want you to know this:

- In the Greco-Roman world where Christianity began, there was a very open belief-system.

- Everyone was welcome to have their own god and believe what they wanted (and you could just keep adding other gods to your collection as you wanted).

- Yet Christianity insisted that Jesus was the one and only true God.

- Now, did this exclusivity result in Christians being the most negative, harsh, violent people?

- Absolutely not.

- In the Greco-Roman culture, there was a huge gap between the rich and the poor, and yet the Christians sought to live equally with one another, mixing with people of different races and classes in ways that seemed scandalous to those around them.

- The Greco-Roman world held women in very low status. Female infanticide, forced marriages, and economic inequality were common.

- In ancient culture it was common to throw out brand new baby girls and leave them to die because they were viewed so lowly.

- The Christian church forbade this practice.

- The Greco-Roman culture saw no value to a woman if she was unmarried, and so it was illegal for a widow to go more than two years without remarrying.

- However, Christianity taught its followers that they should not force widows to remarry, but to provide for them so that they were not under any financial pressure or burden should they choose not to remarry.

- Greco-Roman widows lost all control of their husband’s estate when they remarried, but the Christian church allowed widows to maintain their husband’s estate.

- And these are just a few examples.

- Once again, to quote Timothy Keller:

o “Why would such an exclusive belief system lead to behavior that was so open to others?  It was because Christians had within their belief system the strongest possible resource for practicing sacrificial service, generosity, and peace-making.  At the very heart of their view of reality was a man who died for his enemies, praying for their forgiveness.  Reflection on this could only lead to a radically different way of dealing with those who were different from them.  It meant they could not act in violence and oppression toward their opponents.”

- Keller goes on to say:

o “At the heart of the Christian’s view of spiritual reality is a man who gave his life in sacrifice for people who did not believe in him, a man who died asking for forgiveness for the people who were killing him.  Therefore, Christianity is an exclusive claim, but it is the most inclusive exclusive claim because it wants you to exclusively believe in this man who died for his enemies, and asks you to love and care for yours.  So, does the message that Jesus is the only way to God necessarily lead to intolerance?  Christians can only become intolerant to the degree that they misunderstand the heart of the gospel”

- And so the point of this series is to discover the truth about Christianity, and this morning our specific focus was to ask “is there only one way to God?”

- And I don’t think anyone will be surprised when I say that I believe “yes, there is only one way to God”.

- But, for those of you here today who would agree with me, and you also agree that Jesus is the only way to God, then we cannot let that belief lead us to being intolerant of others.

- The Christian church used to be known for how well it loved those outside its walls (because the church was never meant to have walls in the first place).

- The Christian church used to be known for how well it reached out to those in need – even when they had no connection with Jesus whatsoever.

- And now, the Christian church – at least in North America – is known for how well it can put together protests, sign petitions, and vote for the things that serve their own interests over those of others.

- Something needs to change.

- We need to hold on to the exclusive claims of Jesus, we need to firmly believe that He is the only way to everlasting life (because if He’s not, then He’s not worth following at all).

- We need to hold firmly to this exclusive belief while being undeniably inclusive, loving, caring, and giving to everyone – ESPECIALLY to those who do not believe in our exclusive claims.

- And so, is there only one way to God?

- Yes, because pluralism just doesn’t make sense and doesn’t hold up when you really examine it.

- In all of the exclusive claims of all of the religions, there has to be one that actually has it right.

- And so with that, let me invite you to come out next week, as we take the next step on this journey.

- Because, just because pluralism defeats itself by its own standards and leads us to conclude that there is only one way to God, all of that doesn’t actually prove that Christianity is that one right way.

- And so next week, we’re going to specifically look at this, and we’re going to ask:

- “Is Jesus God?”

- So I hope you will come out, and invite anyone else you know who has thoughts about this topic to join us, as we tackle this incredibly important question, in our quest for the truth about Christianity.

- Close in prayer

- (*) Now What

- Benediction:

- Benediction: Hebrews 13:20-21

Now may the God of peace—

    who brought up from the dead our Lord Jesus,

the great Shepherd of the sheep,

    and ratified an eternal covenant with his blood—

may he equip you with all you need

    for doing his will.

May he produce in you,

    through the power of Jesus Christ,

every good thing that is pleasing to him.

All glory to him forever and ever! Amen.

Scripture:

- John 8:21-30

- Acts 4:8-22

- 1 Timothy 2:1-7

- John 14:1-14

Prayer:

- Pray that God would give you a passion for Him exclusively. Pray that your desires and affections would gravitate towards your one and only Saviour. Pray that the “exclusive claims” of Christianity would first touch your own heart in a powerful way that causes you to love Him more than you ever have before.

- Pray that God would give you opportunities in a pluralistic world to share the Good News of Jesus. Pray that you would be filled with His Holy Spirit to be His witness, and that you would be able to do it without coming across as intolerant or unwilling to listen to someone else.

Discussion/Reflection:

- What do you think of the analogy of the blind man touching an elephant? Have you heard it before? Have you believed it? Do you still believe it (or even part of it)? Why or why not? Why do you think this analogy (and the belief of pluralism in general) is so appealing in our culture today?

- What do you think about the idea that pluralism is self-defeating and contradictory? Do you agree or disagree? Why? Can pluralism make sense when held up to its own standards of denying absolute truth?

- Pluralism fails as a worldview if the “elephant” speaks. Do you believe that God has revealed Himself to humanity? If so, how? If not, why not? How do you know (or how could you know) if God has spoken to you?

- How would you answer the question “Is there only one way to God?”

Now What Next Step:

- Get together as a family – or with a group of friends – and take turns answering the question “Is there only one way to God?”

- The other people can ask follow-up questions, playing the role of someone who believes in pluralism.

- This can be a helpful exercise in preparing to answer the real questions that real people have.