Monthly Archives: July 2018

Jul30

Jesus Is the Only Way to God Because He Is God.

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Thomas said to Him, “Lord, we do not know where You are going, and how can we know the way?” Jesus said to him, “I am the way, the truth, and the life. No one comes to the Father except through Me.” ~ John 14:6, NKJV.

I’ve heard many people object that Christians have no right to say that Jesus is the only way to God. I’ve also heard people say that Jesus never said He was God (not true, He said it many times in a number of different contexts). Seems to me, if people would recognize that He said He was God, then they would realize that, of course He was the only way to God, because He was God. He was the only way to reach Himself.

In addition, Jesus was the only figure representing a religion who called Himself God. Mohammed said he was Allah/God’s messenger, Buddhism has no gods, and Hinduism has 33 million gods.

“I and My Father are one.” ~ John 10:30, NKJV.

Philip said to Him, “Lord, show us the Father, and it is enough for us.” Jesus said to him, “Have I been with you so long, and you still do not know Me, Philip? Whoever has seen Me has seen the Father. How can you say ‘Show us the Father’?” ~ John 14:8-9, ESV.

It would be true that Jesus couldn’t say that He’s the only way to access God if He weren’t God but He is. He said He was God on many different occasions, as illustrated by the two instances above.

Additionally, when He was on the cross, one of the last things Jesus said was, “It is finished.” ~ John 19:30, NKJV. Then He died, after which the veil in the temple that separated the Holy Place from the Most Holy Place was torn in two from top to bottom. This was no mean feat, because the veil was reported to be sixty feet high and fifteen feet wide, and four inches thick. (some sources say it was thirty feet high and fifteen feet wide). Plus it was torn from top to bottom, sixty feet in the air, something no human being could have accomplished.

The veil was significant because it separated the Holy Place from the Most Holy Place in the temple, and originally in the tabernacle, and God was thought to have resided in the Most Holy Place. So if the veil separating the two was gone, then the wall closing off humanity from relationship with God was now removed, giving man access to God for the very first time since Adam’s sin way back in the beginning.

The upshot of all this is that if Jesus said He’s the way to reach God, and He speaks only the truth, then He must be the way to reach God because He was the only human to ever walk the earth who lived a perfect, sinless life. So He’s the only one who could be a bridge between us and a Holy God.

And He is exactly that!

Jul3

God Is God, So He Doesn’t Have to Play God.

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I had an interesting insight on the sovereignty of God recently.

I used to have big problems with God’s sovereignty in my life, because it seemed like it was God’s sovereignty that allowed me to be abused. And it used to make me SOOO ANGRY, because it felt like God wanted me to be abused, and it felt like cosmic child abuse.

I went through a whole seven-year period where I was enraged at God because of that, until I finally realized I was barking up the wrong tree ~ I was asking the wrong questions. I should have been asking who, what, and where questions instead of why questions. And once I started asking the right questions I actually got answers. God showed me where He was while I was being abused ~ which was all I really wanted to know in the first place.

But I realized recently that when someone is demanding that God explain Himself about something He’s done in that person’s life, what they’re really saying is, “How dare You play god with my life!” That made me laugh when I thought about it. How dare God play god with someone’s life? He IS God! He isn’t playing god, He’s BEING God! There’s a significant difference. The Apostle Paul says in Romans,

But who are you, O man, to answer back to God? Will what is molded say to its molder, “Why have you made me like this?” Has the potter no right over the clay, to make out of the same lump one vessel for honorable use and another for dishonorable use? ~ Romans 9: 20-21, ESV.

It seems to me Paul is saying here that God, because He is the Creator, has the right to do whatever He wants with the people He creates, and while those people can ask questions of Him, and pray for answers, they don’t have the right to demand explanations for His decisions.

You wouldn’t like it if your son demanded to know why you were taking him to the doctor’s office if his ear hurt, and then refused to go because he didn’t like the prick of needle from the shot. You would know why you were doing it ~ because the kid has an ear infection that needs to be healed, and if the doctor doesn’t give him an injection he could go deaf, or even die if it gets bad enough. You can see the big picture. You can see the end result, whereas the child can’t. The same holds true for God. The Bible says,

Only I can tell you the future before it even happens. Everything I plan will come to pass, for I do whatever I wish. ~ Isaiah 46:10, NLT.

I like the way the NIV says it as well,

I make known the end from the beginning, from ancient times, what is still to come. I say, ‘My purpose will stand, and I will do all that I please.’ ~ Isaiah 46:10, NIV.

What that says to me is that God knew everything that would ever happen to me before I was ever a thought in anyone’s mind. He knew every decision I would make, and every thought I would think. He also knew every decision He would make about me. The Bible also says He knows the day I’m going to die, something I find quite comforting.

Your eyes saw my unformed body; all the days ordained for me were written in your book before one of them came to be. ~ Psalm 139:16, NIV.

The reason I find that comforting is because now that I know that, it’s something I don’t have to worry about anymore. It’s God’s problem, not mine. All I have to do is go through my days doing my best to glorify God in all I do, basing my life on His Word, and God will take care of the rest.

Such a deal!