"Jesus Is The Way To God"
Sermon Transcript for March 7, 2004
Scripture Reading: John 14:1-6
By Rev. Mike Beck
Jesus often surprised people with His teachings that cut across the grain of human nature. He said, “If you want to save your life, you have to lose it.” He said, “The first will be the last. That the meek would somehow inherit the earth.” He told His followers to rejoice in persecution, to pray for their enemies. He said, “It is better to give than it is to receive.” And He said, “There are times that the proper response to one who has harmed us is to turn the other cheek.” But one of the most outrageous statements that Jesus ever made—in our day we would say, “Jesus, that’s a totally politically incorrect statement”—was when He declared in John 14:6, He said: “I am the way, the truth, and the life. No one comes to the Father but by Me.”
This claim disturbs many. For it seems so narrow and inclusive. But Jesus made other related claims. He said on several occasions that He had the power to forgive sins, something that could only be attributed to God Himself. He said in the Upper Room to His disciples, “When you have seen me, you have seen God the Father for we are one.” So C.S. Lewis reminded us in his classic writings, Jesus hasn’t given us the option of viewing Him just as a good, moral teacher. For these kinds of bold claims force us into one of two conclusions. That either Jesus was just exactly who He said He was—the Son of the living God. Or we have to conclude that He was deceived in His thinking, emotionally unstable in His preaching.
I believe that Jesus was telling the truth when He made this claim. And I think that when we look at the evidence, Jesus’ statement makes perfect sense. And if His words are true, then the eternal destiny of all men and women throughout the world lies in our response to the same question that Pilate asked Jesus when he said, “What will I do with this Jesus who is called the Christ?”
Jesus’ words run counter to the belief held by many individuals who contend that when you get right down to its essence, all religions are basically the same and equally valid. Now we acknowledge that there are certainly some common ground between many of the world’s religions, particularly in relation to morality and certain basic values. But there are significant differences too. And by this one outlandish statement of Jesus, Christianity is put into a camp all by itself. Someone once noted that other religious leaders say: “Follow me and I’ll show you how to find truth”. But Jesus said, “I am the truth.” Other religious leaders say, “Follow me and I’ll show you the way to salvation.” But Jesus said, “I am the way.” Other religious leaders say, “Follow me and I’ll show you how to be enlightened.” But Jesus said, “I am the light of the world.”
For a long time, people have tried to harmonize the various religions of the world. But when we look at them carefully we realize there are some drastic, irreconcilable differences between Christianity and other belief systems. All the other religions of the world are based on people doing something, through struggling and striving, to somehow or other reach God. And there must be 1,001 ways in which people seek to reach up to God by their own efforts. But in Jesus Christ, God is the one who takes the initiative. And instead of us reaching up to Him, God reaches down to us. Other religions we might say are spelled D-O. But Christianity is spelled D-O-N-E because of what Christ has done for us on the cross.
Jesus said, “I am the way.” And then He said, “I am the truth.” If you haven’t noticed, truth is not a popular word in our culture of relativism. Do you recall the words of Pilate as he was interrogating Jesus? To one of Jesus’ replies, Pilate said, “What is truth?” That reply certainly echoes the prevailing philosophy of so many in our day. Pluralism proclaims loudly that truth is relative to the situation and to the individual. In terms of religion, the attitude of many is “There are numerous paths to God. It really doesn’t make much difference what you believe as long as you are sincere”. I would imagine most of you in casual conversation about religion have heard that statement. But, friends, we can be sincerely wrong often with tragic consequences. Proverbs 14:12 says, “There is a way that seems right unto man, but in the end it leads to death.” Jesus said in the Sermon on the Mount: “Enter through the narrow gate. For wide is the gate and broad is the road that leads to destruction”. And there are many on that road. But Jesus went on to say, “But small is the gate and narrow is the way that leads to life, and only a few find it.”
A fundamental question that we have to ask as we think about Jesus’ claim is this: How do we know that Jesus was telling the truth? For the Christian, faith as you read the Scriptures is the one essential ingredient that God always requires of those who would find Him. But faith, my friends, is not a blind leap in the dark. There is significant evidence for what we believe is true. Albert Outler, a leading United Methodist theologian of a couple of decades ago, in our Book of Discipline has given us what has come to be known as the Wesleyan Quadrilateral. In our search for truth, this tool suggests that we view things first and foremost through the lens of Scripture, but then also to examine it by tradition, reason, and experience. So lets look briefly at each of those.
Scripture. Scripture reveals that Jesus backs up His claim with powerful credentials. You know, I could come along and stand here before you this morning and say, “I am the way, the truth, and the light. No one comes to God the Father except through Mike Beck.” And you would naturally say, “Demonstrate, that’s a big claim. Show that there is something behind the claim.” One of the ways in which Scripture reveals that Jesus backed up His claim, are the dozens of century-old prophecies in the Old Testament that He fulfilled against every mathematical odd. If you have seen Gibson’s movie, The Passion of the Christ, you saw Judas throw his betrayal fee of thirty shekels into the Temple. That had been prophesied in the Old Testament Scripture hundreds of years before that event took place. Jesus performed great miracles that served to authenticate His claim of being God. And in the most spectacular demonstration of His deity, Jesus fulfilled His own prediction that He would be resurrected from the dead—an event that sparked a spiritual revolution unparalleled in human history. Friends, Christianity is not primarily a philosophy. It is a reality. It is based on human events that occurred in history. And the unique credentials of Jesus give Him credibility far and above any other spiritual leader to come our way.
Traditions: Our traditions within the church also lend credibility to the claims of Jesus. During my down time following my surgery, I picked out a couple of my church history books to re-read the story of the church down through the ages because when you become well versed in church history, you realize that there is very little new that we will deal with in our generation that previous generations in the church have not dealt with before. There are numerous pages in those books on church history of the church in its finest hour, displaying great power, sacrificing for the cause of Christ. We believe sincerely that the church is of God. But any of you that have taken time to study church history carefully, you know that it is certainly a very flawed institution. There has been numerous times where the church has abused its power, perpetrated wrongs onto other people. There are numerous times that reading through church history is not a pleasant experience.
But yet, I was thinking yesterday as I was gathered with our confirmation class at the Zionsville United Methodist Church with several hundred other youth from throughout Indiana that are going through confirmation classes, and our Bishop, Bishop White, shared with us…I was reminded that despite all of the heresies, the abuse of power, the wrongs perpetrated in the name of the church, that we can not just totally disregard that central message of the good news of Jesus Christ--His atoning death, His ability to transform human life. It has endured now twenty centuries from which time Jesus of Nazareth walked those dusty roads. I think that fact bears witness to Jesus’ words of truth.
Reason: Some would say, “Isn’t it rather arrogant, isn’t it awfully exclusive on our part, to believe that no one comes to God the Father except through Christ?” To try to respond to that question, let me use this one analogy related to human reason. Let’s pretend that there are two civic clubs. The first club only admits persons who have earned membership. To get in to this civic club, you’ve got to obtain superior wisdom, you’ve got to pay dues, and you’ve got to fulfill a list of demands. In that civic club, despite their best effort, lots of people don’t make the grade and are excluded from membership. The second civic club says, “Anybody who wants can come in because someone has already paid your lifetime membership in! Rich or poor, black or white, whatever your background, we’d like to include you. Entry is not based on your qualifications, but only on accepting our invitation.” Now, which civic club is being exclusive? And as one Christian put it: “Christianity is simply one beggar telling another beggar where they can find food.”
Experiences: Friends, Christianity is unique. When Jesus said He was the way, the truth, and the life, as you look through twenty centuries of history, you realize that history hasn’t laughed. Rather, history has been revolutionized by the experiences of countless persons who have chosen to follow the way of Jesus of Nazareth. I’m one of those persons. Since that time as a nine-year-old boy with very limited knowledge about the Christian faith at a Revival Meeting there in eastern Indiana, I responded in faith to receive Christ as my Savior. My life has never been the same since then.
So many of the versus of Scripture that mean so much to me—John 10:10 where Jesus said, “I come that you might have life and have it more abundantly.” John 3:16 that tells us, “For God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son.” That Mike Beck might believe in Him. That Mike would have everlasting life. Proverbs 3:5, which is my life verse, I’ve found to be true over and over again: “Trust in the Lord with all your heart. Don’t lean to your own understanding, but in all your way acknowledge Him and He will direct your paths.” The Disciple group this week was reading in the Book of Romans. Some of them are here this morning. What powerful promises are contained to the believer in that lesson book! And how often I have discovered the sufficiency of the grace of God to forgive me for sin and to give me strength in trials of life. Every one of us must answer the question that Jesus posed to Peter when He said, “But who do you say that I am?” To which Peter replied, “You are the Christ, the Son of the living God.” He believed that Jesus was indeed the way, the truth, and the life.
I want to add though this addendum. And the brief thoughts that I would share here are why I am proud to be a United Methodist believer rather than to pitch my tent with some of my more legalistic brothers and sisters in Christ. I believe that as we hold to what we understand to be divine revealed truth, we must hold on to that gingerly. We must hold on to that truth with humility and with grace. Friends, three things I want to say here:
Truth cannot become an excuse for arrogance and self-righteousness: Tom Small stopped to visit with me on his way to surgery this week. He had been reading one of the recent books that are on the best-selling book. And we got into a conversation about what is truth? And both of us acknowledged that the more we know, the more we realize we don’t know. And so we do not hold to truth with pride, with arrogance, or with self-righteousness.
Truth is not to be used as a bully-club as we contend for the faith: Scripture tells us very clearly--contend for the faith. Over and over again in the history of the church, the church has had to speak against heresy. It was counter to the basic Good News that Jesus came to proclaim. But sometimes I watch those who name the name of Christ, who are certain they have truth and all of the truth. It seems that they deal with others in a way that negates the love and the grace that Jesus said was to be manifest among his children.
The ultimate test of my faith is not perfect knowledge but a life that witnesses to the fruits of the Spirit: Jesus said that. He said, “If you want to know who are my disciples, look for the fruit of the Spirit in their life.” I’ve said often that when we get to Heaven, we’re going to be surprised at some of the folks who are our neighbors there! Perhaps Jesus is the path to God for some persons in ways that my human limitations, I’m unable to comprehend. My responsibility, knowing and accepting the truths of this book, is simply to walk in the clear light of the gospel to which I have been given. And that word tells me that I also must “go and proclaim that Gospel to all of the world.” And I’m committed to do that. The rest, I’m content to leave up to God. To avoid a spirit of judgmentalism, to leave it up to God who is holy and just, but who is also loving and merciful.
So in closing, I ash you, “What have you done with the claims of Christ that you have heard over and over again? Ninety percent of Americans believe there is a God. And that’s a good first step. But until we act on the gift of “the passion of the Christ”, we are still lost in our sin. When we receive Christ as Savior, when we begin to grow in our relationship with Him, we’ll discover that Jesus is the way. He is the way to a life of adventure and fulfillment, meaning and purpose. We’ll discover that Jesus is the truth. And that in His word there is wisdom that works for everyday life and works for the turbulent times as well. And we will discover that Jesus is the life. That He can give us confidence for our future in this world and give us hope for all eternity.
I pray that if you have not received this Jesus who said He was the way, the truth, and the life, that before this day is over, you would have trusted Him as your Savior. Friends, there is
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