Is Jesus really the only way to heaven?

Is Jesus really the only way to heaven?  How would I know?  What would convince me?  What about the other explanations out there?  There are a ton of explanations out there for how to get to heaven, and what that means to us.

This is something that humankind has thought about, argued for, and fought over since before we even were able to write.  From the polytheism of the Ancient Egyptians to the monotheism of the Israelites, to the whatever you want from the New Age movement, to the "There is no God" non-theism of secular thinking.  We are always asking the question of, "Where will we go in the future when we die?"  Whether we think we are going to float over a river in the afterlife and have to "pay the boatman" or just cease to exist, we all believe something.

Wait, we all believe something?  Yes, we do.  But what if I say that, "I don't believe that there is a god, or that I am not sure?  I don't believe in anything then, right?"  No.  The belief itself may not be a strong one, but whatever we would say is the answer is still a belief.  Even if it is, "I don't know." And belief is something that we have faith in–and faith, in the end, is our own choice.  We may have good reason to believe something, but at the end of the day, we still have to make a choice.  Even if the choice is to be unsure and "not choose" an answer.

So, what do I believe? I believe that Jesus was real and that what he taught was true.  Which then means that I believe in the scripture that presents Him, the Bible.  Which means then that I believe the whole Bible is true.  Which then means that I believe that God created the "everything" and that I follow Him.  Which also means that I believe Jesus died on the cross, was buried, and came back to life, so that He could send us His Holy Spirit and that we could be with him in heaven.

But, is Jesus the only way to heaven?

Jesus, himself, had said that he is the only way to heaven.  "Jesus answered, 'I am the way, and the truth, and the life. The only way to the Father is through me.'" (John 14:6 NCV)*  Which I have heard many people state that if we believe Jesus is a trustworthy person, then we cannot just brush past what he said here.  I know that there are people out there who might say otherwise, but if I believe in Jesus, then I need to accept what He told us.  And others in the Bible agreed.  I found that the apostle Peter in Acts 4:12 says, "Jesus is the only One who can save people. No one else in the world is able to save us."  (NCV)*  The apostle John has written many books of the Bible, including the above quote (John 14:6).

So that is what I believe, but do I have any stories confirming my beliefs?  Yes, I do!  There have been many times in my life that I have felt God's hand upon me and my family.  There have been times where my family didn't have enough money to pay for food to eat or to keep the electricity on.  Yet, just at the right time, some Christian had brought us hope and just enough to get by with.  There have been multiple times where I truly believe that God saved me from death.  I also have seen Him working in my children as they have been learning about faith and Jesus.

So what does that really mean?  What am I saying when I believe in Jesus?  The truth is that believing in Jesus is more than just saying a prayer and thinking, "Okay, got that one taken care of!"  Believing in Jesus is actually developing a relationship with God.  Through prayer, reading scripture, celebrating with a group of fellow Christians, and doing works in response to the love I've experienced from God.  Does confessing my sin to Jesus and indicating a reliance on Him save me?  Instantaneously!  But also, I need to continue that relationship with Him.  Just like getting married means that I have a wife.  Just talking to her once per day or per week, (or longer...) and sharing my needs without listening to her just leads to a crappy self-centered relationship.  Who would want to live long-term with someone like that?  The same applies to our relationship with God.

This is not an "either-or" situation.  It is a "both-and" situation.  I need to pray for God's grace through the life, death, and resurrection of Jesus Christ; AND declare my love for God through my actions in response to His love for me.

So, what do you believe and why?

Just remember that this coming Sunday is Easter... :-) 

*Scriptures found in a similar post, https://www.gotquestions.org/Jesus-only-way.html

"Houston, we've had a problem..."

How many people can hear those words said aloud when we the read "Houston, we have a problem."?  I know that I do.  I can still see Tom Hanks' face as he says those words playing the role of James Lowell in the movie "Apollo 13."  People a little more mature than I am might even remember Jack Swigert saying similar words (repeated by Lowell) on the real flight of Apollo 13.  So, why am I thinking about these today?  The movie happened in 1995 and the real Apollo 13 happened in 1970.  What I have been thinking about is that these words are true for all of us. 

All of us at some point in our lives have just thrown up our hands and say those special words, "I have a problem." Yes, we all have, every single one of us.  What we wish though is to be able to call some sort of helpline and get things sorted out.  At least I have.  However, that is something that I have come to see as something I don't want.

Now you must be thinking to yourself, "Why? Why wouldn't he want a way out of trouble?"  The truth is that I do want a way out.  But I have found that God has allowed me into trouble for two reasons.  One -- so that I learn to reach out and ask Him and those around me for help.  Two -- for His glory, so that I can show his glory and majesty to those around me and so He can teach me how to lean in on Him. 

The first reason has been a big part of my spiritual growth recently.  I used to be the kind of person who would always (and I mean ALWAYS) believed that I could take anything on and handle it myself.  I viewed myself as a jack-of-all-trades, as a renaissance man, and as a person that if I didn't know it now, I would in like 30 seconds.  Truth is that I feared to reach out to another person and admit that I could NOT do something.  So I never did.  And that's part of why I made choices that led me down a dark path.  Yet God did not create us to live lives alone, without other people.  In fact, the definition of love includes being able to do something for someone else and being loved means that you let others do things for you.  But after hitting the bottom of isolating myself I soon found out how important it is to live with other people--in ALL the areas of my life.

The second reason has been a more difficult thing for me to handle and accept.  I totally get the idea of asking God for help so that I can get out of a difficult situation.  But what if the answer God gives me is, "Wait."?  I have received that answer far too often for my comfort.  What if the answer means that I will have to lose something--or someone?  What if the answer is that by my pain and suffering means someone else finds healing in God?  The truth I have seen is that we will always encounter trouble.  We need it to grow.  We encounter it because of our bad choices.  It is inflicted upon us by people who harbor hate in their hearts.  Sometimes I have found trouble entering into my life because I have been doing great in my faith in Jesus.

'The only temptation that has come to you is that which everyone has. But you can trust God, who will not permit you to be tempted more than you can stand. But when you are tempted, he will also give you a way to escape so that you will be able to stand it.' 1 Corinthians 10:13 (NCV)

 This piece of scripture tells me that temptation and suffering is common to us all.  The exact way it troubles us may differ.  It also assures me that God provides a way out of it for all of us.

'We believe with our hearts, and so we are made right with God. And we declare with our mouths that we believe, and so we are saved. As the Scripture says, “Anyone who trusts in him will never be disappointed.” That Scripture says “anyone” because there is no difference between those who are Jews and those who are not. The same Lord is the Lord of all and gives many blessings to all who trust in him, as the Scripture says, “Anyone who calls on the Lord will be saved.”'  Romans 10:10-13 (NCV)

I have found that the word "saved" can mean several different things.  It can mean having everything as I want it.  But it can also mean being saved from danger in ways I couldn't have ever imagined.  In fact, it always seems to come up more like the latter.  How I get saved also changes from time to time.  But the one thing that I have found through this is the fact that God's overwhelming power, enwrapping love, and all-knowing mind cares for me (and you!) and desires that in all things I seek Him, talk to Him, and be with Him.  So even if I am in a "Houston, I have a problem" situation I know that He will get me through and that my value is based on that rather than on what I can or can't do.

Frustration!!! What point is there anyway?

Ever feel frustrated?  I know that I do all the time!  It can be something humongous and complicated or tiny and small.  I have experienced a range of frustrations through my life.  How close that guy was when he cut in front of me in traffic this morning (like just missed my bumper!).  The tone of my wife's voice when she's relating something to me.  Being told that as I continue to grow older my body will be performing less and less as well than it used to--and there is nothing that I can do about that.  Things can really frustrate me, sometimes even to the point where it stops me from progressing onward.

So what am I feeling when I am frustrated?  I have been somewhat surprised to note that I feel many

Sometimes, right???

different feelings when I am frustrated.  I expected frustration to be some form of anger set on a low simmering heat, kind of like the sidewalks in Arizona in the summertime.  But that's not all there is to frustration.  There can be an air of melancholy desperation that causes me to be sad and want to just quit.  There can be the feeling of sinking in quicksand and being stuck, unable to get yourself out.  Frustration rears its ugly head when you are at a point where you cannot see a possibility of changing the situation that you're in.

So how have I learned to deal with frustration? I used to push all my feelings away and just try to disappear from the situation.  I used to try to control the situation, and the people, and how everyone felt about what was going on.  Even still today I still find myself trying to react like I used to: either disappear or use others.  But I have found a different path that I wanted to explore.

What I have found to be my most effective antidote to the clinging cancer of frustration is to know that there is actually a way out.  Whether it would come from me, another person, or God Himself; I need to know that there is a solution.  But how do I come to that knowledge?  It sure isn't easy--I definitely had found that I floundered in frustration's continuous grasp way too often.  When I am frustrated I often get too emotional to hear the truth or make changes in my behavior.  But the truth is what I need to have in my hands in order to break that grasp.




Here's what I have found helpful to find the truth in my situations in life:

1. Ask myself what I am feeling right at that moment.  Then I explore why I am feeling that way.
2. Ask myself what I am thinking.  Does that match my feelings?
3. Look for truth in my feelings and accept them.  Then let go of the things that aren't true.
4. Look for ways that I can follow in order to relieve myself of my frustration.
1. Sometimes I need to actually do something and not just sit there thinking about my frustration.  Am I afraid or angry?  Hungry or tired?  Lonely?  Do I just need to stand up and do my part?
2. Sometimes I need to ask someone else to help me.  This is probably the hardest thing for me to do, personally.  It can add frustration upon frustration if I am not careful.
3. Finally, there are times where there is nothing that I can do, nothing that other people can do, only God can find an answer or solution for me.  This is not a form of giving up, it is ultimately surrendering everything to God and trusting in him.

I have found these verses helpful when I am at the place where trusting God is what I need to do, what I am called to, what I must do:

33 “I told you these things so that you can have peace in me. In this world you will have trouble, but be brave! I have defeated the world.” John 16:33 (NCV)

7 Give all your worries to him, because he cares about you. 1 Peter 5:7 (NCV)

5 Trust in the Lord with all your heart and lean not on your own understanding; 6 in all your ways submit to him, and he will make your paths straight. Proverbs 3:5-6 (NIV)

11 "I say this because I know what I am planning for you,” says the Lord. “I have good plans for you, not plans to hurt you. I will give you hope and a good future. 12 Then you will call my name. You will come to me and pray to me, and I will listen to you. 13 You will search for me. And when you search for me with all your heart, you will find me!" Jeremiah 29:11-13 (NCV)

2 My brothers and sisters, when you have many kinds of troubles, you should be full of joy, 3 because you know that these troubles test your faith, and this will give you patience. 4 Let your patience show itself perfectly in what you do. Then you will be perfect and complete and will have everything you need. 5 But if any of you needs wisdom, you should ask God for it. He is generous to everyone and will give you wisdom without criticizing you. James 1:2-5 (NCV)

I have found peace in these Bible passages when I read through them.  And there are more!  The Bible has many passages that teach us how to accept where we are and then move forward.  Often though I have found that the only thing I need to move is myself--trusting in myself never works as well as trusting God.

How do I become better?

 We all want to be better than we are today.  Deep down there is always something that we can pick out of who we are and want to be better there.  We want this so much that slogans like:

"Training to be better...Just read Scripture!"

How to be "Good, better, best..."

"I'm better than before..."  Etc....

Tend to prick our brains and we at least are interested.  But! Are we seeking to be "Better Christians" Or have a better relationship with Christ"?

Question: Why do you want to be better?  So you can feel better about yourself, or so you can experience life more fully?  Is there guilt or shame tied to this question for you? Are you in competition with someone?  Do you feel lost and don't know who you are?  You feel that you are set free by the grace of God and want to be better because of that?  Why do you want to be better?

I know that we all want to be better than we are.  I also know (from personal experience) that we want to be better for a variety of reasons--often all at the same time!  I know that I want to be better because I am afraid of losing what is important to me.  I want to be better because it may end strife and difficult conversations between myself and others.  I want to be better than "that guy" because I feel competitive.  I want to be better because I want good things to give to my loved ones.  I want to be better because Jesus has made me clean of my sins and I want to live up to that.

Who doesn't want that?

But my motivation changes how and why I seek to be made better.

16 All Scripture is God-breathed and is useful for teaching, rebuking, correcting and training in righteousness, 17 so that the servant of God may be thoroughly equipped for every good work.  2 Timothy 3:16-17 (NIV)

Here are what some of the terms used in that scripture mean:

• Teach: show or explain to (someone) how to do something.
• Rebuke: sharp, stern disapproval; reproof; reprimand.
• Correct: 1) (adj) free from error; in accordance with fact or truth. 2) (verb) put right (an error or fault).
• Training: the action of teaching a person or animal a particular skill or type of behavior.

Each of those terms is about change.  Basically, it means that God has inspired Scripture to change us.  But who is it supposed to change? Strangers?  Sinners?  Wayward people?  No.  Scripture was not inspired by God so that we can stand on a street corner yelling at people to change their lives over to Jesus.  It is intended to change us, the believer.  We can and should use scripture to help us as we talk with other people about our faith.  But it is intended to be read and used by us so that we know some things about God.  It tells who God is.  It shows us what God wants us to do.  It teaches us how God has acted toward humanity in the past.  It was created to develop a relationship with Him. All the things listed above are intended for those who already love Him.

So when we read Scripture, we are reading what God has written to us.  Sometimes like a love note, sometimes like a history, always an explanation for us to pray with and think over and learn to apply to ourselves.  When I wonder what I need to be doing, I know that one thing I need to do is go read the Bible.

Want to become better with me?