In a word, "lame-o". The LA Times put out an article recently on the spirituality of Californians. Within the article, a staggering stat jumped out at me, "Seventy percent believe that "many religions can lead to eternal life"; 57% of Evangelicals feel that way, as do 79% of Catholics."
WHAT!!!
57% of Evangelicals believe that "many religions can lead to eternal life", you have to be kidding me. Come on...really? If that is true, almost 6 out of 10 CHRISTIANS believe that faith in Jesus Christ is NOT the only way to eternal life.
The trouble I find in my heart and mind is that I believe that stat isn't far off.
Try and follow me here. We have a generation of young Christians raised in a culture that values extreme tolerance which produces the fruit of non-confrontation that in actuality make them feel devalued and exactly the same as everyone else. I think Dash had it best in the Incredible's cartoon movie when he said, "If everyone is special, then no one is." (It's as though our culture is pushing us Christians to say that Jesus isn't any more special than anyone else. But I digress)
I remember the first time I got a trophy for being on a sports team. The whole team got trophies, no one got a special trophy, we were all given the same ugly little trophy with a kid kicking a soccer ball and we were all told we were special. So I threw my trophy away, I wasn't an idiot. I knew what kids on the team were gifted in soccer and which kids were athletic nightmares. We weren't all the same, we were different and some stunk, and some were really good. Some kids deserved trophies and most didn't.
My parents told me that giving every kid a trophy was for their own self-esteem. If any kid didn't get a trophy they might feel bad about themselves. Great point, I mean what makes a kid feel great about themselves anymore than lying to them and telling them they are a great soccer player when they know, and we teammates have told them they stink.
I am not saying that telling my uncoordinated friends on my soccer team that they stink was good, it was hurtful, but giving them a trophy and telling them they were just as good as the kid who scored every goal for us that season (Hector) wasn't any better. Kids aren't that dumb, they knew that weren't as special as Hector at soccer. Hector deserved his own MVP trophy, but he got the same as everyone else.
So let's give every religion the same trophy, they are all the same. No one religion is more special than any other one.
Which is along the same line of thinking that states, "No one should decide for you what is right or wrong. You need to decide for yourself. Truth is what you say it is." I will blog about that statement at a later date. My initial response is again, "lame-o". Sorry I digressed again. That above quote is really saying that everyone is right, which people really don't believe, so since they don't really believe that everyone is right, they end up thinking, "If everyone is right, then no one is right."
And therein lies the rejection of faith in Jesus as the only way to attain eternal life.
Christian, don't be lame. You really don't believe that. Christianity and Jesus Christ are crystal clear that faith in Christ is the only way to heaven (John 14:6, John 3:16) and of course Acts 4:12 which I will post here for you, "And there is salvation in no one else; for there is no other name under heaven that has been given among men by which we must be saved."(NASB)
So why are so many evangelicals (that is Christians) taking the easy road and abandoning Jesus' own words and rock solid biblical doctrine of Salvation in Christ Alone. Simple, CONVENIENCE (a post-modern form of PRIDE.)
Convenience of making God look better in our culture than he appears in the Bible. Convenience of everyone liking how open minded you are. Convenience of living your life the way you want with the full approval of our lost friends.
Consider this, if Jesus really was the only way to heaven and if his commands were really the only thing we should be worried about obeying, then dang it; we would have to change and live holier lives and that just isn't convenient.
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