“When belief takes a wrong turn: down
Any Street”
RUMCJanuary 10, 2016
One time we were on vacation in
Colorado. We went up to Cripple Creek to ride the train. Perhaps you have been
there. We took the highway up, but as I looked at the map, there was a road
that looked like a shortcut back to Colorado Springs. I’m always up for new
scenery so we went that way. Let me tell you it got us there, but we had to
ford some shallow mountain streams, there were times I was sure the road was
not wide enough to get both of my tires between the steep cliff on one side and
the steep drop-off on the other. Oh, it was a beautiful drive, but it was
clearly the wrong road to take.
Another time, I remember coming to a
detour in the highway and thinking that detour is going to take me the wrong
direction completely. “I can find a better way.” I thought. You can probably
guess, after dead ends, driving in circles, and a chorus of I told you so’s I
had to find my way back to the detour to follow their silly signs. Clearly, the
road I took was not going to get me where I wanted to go. It was the wrong
road.
Obviously, there is such a thing as a
wrong road when we are driving. Yet I have heard people … even some of you say
that all religions are equal… all roads lead to God. There are no wrong roads
in faith. Can that be true?
First, let’s think about Christianity by
itself. Christianity’s 2.2 billion faithful are divided among 33,820
denominations or organizations. That doesn’t include the 386 million believers
in independent churches.
Each of those groups has a slightly
different emphasis on the basic Christian message. As pluralistic United
Methodists we say “In essentials unity.” as long as they accept the essential
Christian beliefs in common, those found in the Apostle’s Creed, we are
brothers and sisters in Christ. Even if
we disagree about the non-essential detours others may take, we are still
brothers and sisters in Christ. “In essentials unity, in nonessentials
liberty.” That works within the Christian faith.
The United States was even founded on a
similar philosophy, what matters is that we are united as fellow Americans. The
language you speak or where your parents came from are not essential and are
not supposed to be an issue. At various times in history, of course, that has
worked better than others. “In essentials unity, in nonessentials liberty.”
We now live in a culture, however,
which has whittled away at the essentials. We have come to the point where
political correctness expects us to accept anything and everything that someone
else may believe. We have become so afraid of offending anyone that we are
afraid to say anything. We are told that all opinions and beliefs are equally
valid and true. When Pluralism pushed to the breaking point, it is called
relativism.
While understanding other perspectives
and tolerating other beliefs is important to me, I have a problem with
relativism and this extreme political correctness. I have an even bigger
problem with it when it spills over into our religious beliefs.
So we go back to the unity and liberty.
We have to understand that this is not an either or. This is not a multiple
choice. It is a process. First, we establish that we share the core beliefs. As
long as we share those core beliefs then the rest of it is just chicken
feathers. As long as we share those core
beliefs, then we can say liberty in nonessentials.
How many of you have heard someone say that
all religions are the same? They all lead to the same God? They are all equally
true, and equally valid? That every way is the right way. Have we all heard
that at one time or another? Maybe you have even said it? I will admit it is
tempting to say it just to sound tolerant and accepting of others.
The truth, however, is it is not as
simple as saying, “live and let live.” While it is true I can get to California
by going east on interstate 80, if Robyn is sitting next to me she will quickly
tell me I went the wrong way. Not every road is the right way.
Let me say right off the bat I am
unapologetically Christian and not a comparative religions expert. I do not
pretend to be. If you want detailed information on different religions, I would
suggest a good comparative religions textbook. Today, however, I am taking a
two-forked approach: the authority of scripture and common sense. I am not
criticizing any other religion or its adherents, but proclaiming the gospel of
Jesus Christ.
I am assuming that the Bible is a significant
source of authority for you as it is for me. Biblically the evidence is very
clear.
• Starting
with the one and only God, not a pantheon of Gods creating the world.
• We
keep going through the decisive defeats of the Egyptian religion represented in
the series of plagues brought on Egypt;
• To
the very first commandment, “no other God’s before me;”
• To
the Shema, “Hear, O Israel, the Lord is our God, the Lord is One;”
• Through
Elijah’s defeat of the priests of Baal;
• To
the prophets who over and over condemned the people who either strayed from the
one true God, or brought outside religious practices into their worship of God;
• To
today’s scripture in which Jesus declares that he is the “Way the truth and the
life, and no one comes to the father except by me;”
• To
Paul’s dealings with the Roman world and defending the Christian faith from a
whole pantheon on Gods, idols, mystery religions, cults, and strange ritual
practices…
From the beginning to the end the Bible
leaves no option but one God, “ There is one body and one Spirit, just as you
were called to the one hope of your calling,
one Lord, one faith, one baptism, 6 one God and Father of all, who is above
all and through all and in all.”
That’s really all there is to say. The
Bible is clear. We have to start with those core beliefs, those things
essential to the faith: God, the commandments, Jesus, the cross and the tomb,
the Holy Spirit, sanctification, and heaven. If another religion does not agree
on those core essential things, then it is impossible to say that all religions
are the same. Though you might find it distasteful, the Biblical message is not
all religions are equally valid, and not all religious lead to the same place.
Different religions are NOT just different paths to God. And there is only one
way that leads to relationship with God, salvation, and eternal life.
God is the only God. Jesus is the only
begotten son of God. The only way to salvation is by God’s grace drawing us to
faith in his incarnation, death, and resurrection. The story of God’s extreme
love for all of humanity is the only way to reconciliation and relationship
with God.
There are those who argue that it is
egotistical and closed mined to say that Christianity is the only way. Let me
quickly point out, those are not my words. It is Jesus, God’s son who said, “No
one comes to the father except by me.”
In spite of the accusations of the uneducated,
Christianity is not the only religion that claims exclusivity? Christians say
ours is the only way so we evangelize. We see from the Koran, that Muslims say
theirs is the only way and they are to kill the infidels who will not accept
Allah. Hinduism claims it is the only religion that was not invented by
someone; it is the eternal way. In the Buddhist sacred text, The Baghavad Gita,
Krishna emphatically instructs, “Abandon all varieties of religion and just
surrender unto me. I shall deliver you from all sinful reactions. Do not
fear"
As far as I know, just about any
religion that doesn’t claim that it is the only way, goes to the opposite
extreme and claims that religions are the same.
Don’t let anyone tell you that you are
closed minded or bigoted for believing that Jesus is the only way, the only
truth, and the only way to life. That’s not being egotistical or bigoted. That
is being Biblical. That is being faithful to the teachings of Jesus.
Second, some say, maybe the paths aren’t the same, but the God is the
same.
I say not so.
• Buddhism
is essentially atheistic. Christianity starts and ends with God.
• Christianity
says that there is one eternal God who created the universe. Hinduism says that
everything is God. You are god. I am god. Jim’s piano is God.
• Islam
claims to be a cousin to Christianity. The tradition is that they came from
Abraham’s first son, Ishmael who was driven into the desert with his mother
Hagar to die. Judaism and Christianity come from Isaac, Abraham’s second son.
That is the claim. But does this sound to you like the same God.
• Mohamed
says "I have been commanded to fight against people till they testify that
there is no god but Allah, and that Muhammad is the messenger of
Allah"(Muslim 1:33)
o Jesus
says, "He who lives by the sword will die by the sword." (Matthew
26:52)
• Allah
says "If anyone transgresses the prohibition against you, Transgress ye likewise against him"
(Qur'an 2:194)
o Jesus
says, "If someone strikes you on the right cheek, turn to him the other
also." (Matthew 5:39)
• The
Koran says "Let not compassion move
you from carrying out God's law..."(Qur'an 24:2)
o The
Bible says, "Love is patient. Love is kind... It keeps no record of
wrongs" (1 Corinthians 13:4-5)
Do those really sound like the same
God? Not in my observation. The hard truth is that not all religions worship
the same God. The Bible would call the other religions idolaters. I would say
they are pursuing a very warped view of God. Jesus simply said, “I am the only
way.”
Finally, there are those who say that each religion may have its own
road, but we are all going to the same place.
Now, there is some common ground
between many of the world’s religions, particularly concerning certain basic
values and morality. But to say we are all headed to the same place is just
wrong. You can’t say they lead to the same “mountain top” because they don’t
agree on what the top of the “mountain” is.
• For
example, Buddhism and Hinduism teach that we don’t go to Heaven but rather are
reincarnated over and over again on earth. Whether you come back as a stinkbug
or the President of the United States depends on how you’ve lived your life.
• Islam
teaches that Heaven is a paradise of wine, women, and song. And the way to achieve
this blissful paradise is ironically to abstain from these things in this world
or to be a martyr.
• Our
faith teaches that Heaven is where we are with Jesus face to face for eternity,
praising Him alongside other Christ-followers. Do you think a Muslim or a Hindu
or a Jew would consider that paradise?
Different religions, you can see now,
are not just different paths to the same goal, or the same goal. In fact, they
are on contradictory paths. Logically, the” law of non contradiction” says that
two contradictory statements cannot both be true.
Being unapologetically Christian I
proclaim today, that Any Way is not the right way. Jesus is the only right road
to God. He is THE way THE truth and THE
life, no one comes to God except by him.
Someone once noted that other religious
leaders say, “Follow me and I’ll show you many doors that lead to God,”
but Jesus says, “I am the door.”
Other religious leaders say, “Follow me and
I’ll show you how to become enlightened,”
but Jesus says, “I am the light of the
world.”
Other religious leaders say, “Follow me
and I’ll show you how
to find truth,” but Jesus says, “I am
the truth.”
Other religious leaders say, “Follow me
and I’ll show you the way to salvation,” but
Jesus says, “I am the life.”
Do you see the difference? How can
anyone say all religions are the same, all roads are the same, or all the
mountaintops are the same? They just aren’t,
Jesus says, “So follow Me.”
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