by Jacob Ninan
Now and then we come across people who, we know, are 'unbelievers' but who seem to be better people than many 'believers'! This matter becomes very relevant when some believers are considering marriage. There is something perplexing about this, and this may raise the question in our mind whether these unbelievers will also be in heaven, and how unfair God will be if He denies them a place while admitting these 'believers' who are not even as good as these unbelievers, just because they have 'accepted Jesus'!
There are a couple of things we can look at in order to understand this. First of all, all who claim to be believers are not so! A lot of preaching is aimed at drawing more people rather than at presenting the true Gospel to people. Therefore it is very sad that many hearers are deceived into thinking that they have become children of God by merely repeating a prayer, without actually turning away from their sins to God. So, no real change has taken place in their heart, and as a result there is no progress that can be seen in their lives. They may have become a bit religious in that they read the Bible and go to church, but they don't really have a relationship with Jesus as their Saviour.
"Not everyone who says to Me, 'Lord, Lord,' will enter the kingdom of heaven, but the one who does the will of My Father who is in heaven will enter. Many will say to Me on that day, 'Lord, Lord, did we not prophesy in Your name, and in Your name cast out demons, and in Your name perform many miracles?' And then I will declare to them, 'I never knew you; LEAVE ME, YOU WHO PRACTICE LAWLESSNESS'" (Matt.7:21-23 NASB). One thing we can see from here is that it is not enough to call Jesus, "Lord, Lord," while doing our own will. If we have made Him our Lord, we should then be doing, or doing our best to do, what He wants. If this change has not taken place in our life, we must realise that we don't really know Jesus as our Lord and Saviour. Another thing we can see from here is that all those who are involved in Christian work or supporting the church in several ways are also not necessarily Christians. Those who are born of God cannot continually practise sin, and what Jesus says here is that He will not accept those who are practising sin even if they are doing many good works (1Jn.3:9). So this tells us that some people who consider themselves believers are mistaken about it.
A second mistake we can make when we look at believers is to expect mature fruit from 'young' Christians. Even the most mature ones among us are still far from being perfect or complete, and we can all see one another's lacks and shortcomings. Paul referred to this as the treasure of God's presence being contained by our earthly vessels (2Cor.4:7). At the same time, we have this foolish expectation to see perfection in the way others deal with us, especially when they are believers! But, we must remember that we are all under renovation, as someone said, and forgive and bear with one another in the meantime (Col.3:13). If God has started working in us, let us also give time to one another for this work to progress (Matt.13:33).
Unbelievers do not have God's presence in their lives, and His nature is not growing there. One day they are going to hear from Jesus that He does not know them. These two things should help us to make the right decision concerning our working together with them or marrying them (2Cor.6:14).
There is only one way to become accepted by God and that is through Jesus. "Jesus *said to him, 'I am the way, and the truth, and the life; no one comes to the Father except through Me'" (Jn.14:6 NASB). That is why we Christians wish to share this good news of salvation through Jesus to those who do not know Him yet. But, in general, while people are very happy with Christians who help them through hospitals, schools, colleges, orphanages, etc., they are very upset when they hear that this is the only way. On our part we must be clear how Jesus is really the only way.
The first point we can see is that when we see the whole revelation of God through the Bible, it makes perfect sense that Jesus alone is the way to God. It fits in perfectly, and forms an integral part of the plan of salvation that God shows from the beginning of the Bible to its end. If we believe the Bible as the word of God, we can come to no other conclusion.
The Bible tells us that God created man and provided everything for him. But when the test came, man chose to become independent of God even at the cost of disobeying Him. As a result of this sin, our whole nature became corrupted, and even the earth became affected by its consequences. It was such a bad situation that no mere teaching or correction was found sufficient to bring us back to God. God's justice required that sin and disobedience needed to be punished. Because God loved us at the same time, He placed the punishment of our sins on Jesus, His Son, instead of us. The fact that Jesus rose again from death shows us that He was no ordinary Man but the Son of God. Now what He wants us to do in order to be restored to Him is to admit we are sinners, turn away from our sins, and ask for forgiveness knowing that Jesus has already been punished in our place.
No one else offers us salvation in this way, based merely on God's unmerited favour towards us. No one else has given His life and taken our punishment in order to make it possible for God to forgive us. There is no other way except through Jesus how we can be saved from our sins, because whatever sacrifice or penance we may do can never be enough to pay the punishment for our sins.
Another thing that convinces us that Jesus is the only way to God is to look at His birth, life, work, teachings, death and resurrection. Isn't it amazing that the birth of Jesus was predicted by the prophets hundreds of years earlier, in terms of the family, place and time? See how God caused Joseph and Mary to proceed to Bethlehem where He was to be born, how He protected Him from Herod who wanted Him killed! He lived such a sinless life that even His enemies could not find anything to accuse Him with. The miracles He did to heal the sick, raise the dead, calm the storm, walk on the sea, feeding the crowd, all show that He was not an ordinary Man (Jn.14:11). He knew earlier that He was to be put to death by crucifixion, and He neither resisted it nor argue because He had come to the earth to die for our sins (Jn.10:17). After He was dead and buried, He came back to life, proving beyond any shadow of doubt that He was what He claimed to be, the Son of God. Many hundreds of people saw Him alive, and it was this confidence that turned a set of disciples from hiding to proclaiming the Gospel boldly, even to the extent of dying for it.
The third thing that convinces us that Jesus is real and that there is no one else like Him is that millions of people who have lived since His time and now have testified of a personal knowledge and relationship with Jesus. He is alive, and He is here to save anyone who goes to Him. An uncountable number of people, including many of us, can describe the miraculous transformation Jesus has brought about in our lives when we went to Him in our helplessness and need. Think of the large number of Christians who have travelled to distant places to tell other people about the love of God. Think of the many schools, hospitals, orphanages which the followers of Jesus have started in His name, think of how they have worked with lepers and other untouchables, how they have worked hard to try to eliminate different evils present in society. It is their love for Christ that propels them forward to show their love for people.
Fourthly, look at the Bible. Isn't it amazing that about forty different people in different places and over 1500 years have written this collection of books in the Bible and they all speak about the same God and His dealings with people? Its prophecies have come true, and we can even see that happening now. Many people have tried to destroy the Bible but God has preserved it through the centuries. People who read it sincerely come to experience salvation from their sins and set free from sin's power in their lives. Its words comfort, encourage, guide, correct and teach us in the different practical situations of life. It also tells us about the future, how this world is going to end, how everyone will have to give an account to God and the life to come in eternity, either with God or away from God.
The story of Jesus is the story of how God is reaching out to people who have rejected Him and gone about doing whatever they liked. It is still open for us to turn away from our sinful way of life and turn to Him for salvation which He has prepared through Jesus. This salvation is free for us and we can receive it by faith in Jesus who stands there as our Saviour (Eph.2:8,9). And if we have understood what God has done in order to save us, our response will be to lay down our life for Him and live the rest of our life for Him (2Cor.5:14,15).