Today's Devotional

September 21, 2004

Subject:  Jesus Only? 

John 14:6 - "Jesus saith unto him, I am the way, the truth, and the life: no man cometh unto the Father, but by me."

In my Sunday School class on Sunday, we were studying John 14:1-14.  When we got to the part about Jesus saying "I am the way, the truth and the life," I could sense that there was some discomfort.  During the lesson we compared the basic tenets of some other world religions like Islam, Judaism and Hinduism.  That really peaked their interest.  Then I thought back to when I was their age and remembered the big problem I had with Christianity - it was exclusive (either you believe in Jesus or you go to hell).  That made me think U.S. Christians were holding themselves above everyone else just because they happened to be born in a country that was overwhelmingly Christian.  What would happen if they were born in a Muslim country?  When I voiced the concerns to my class that I had at their age, there was a lot of nodding. I told them that Christ's exclusive claims were a problem for me for a while, particularly in a culture that espouses acceptance and "tolerance."  But finally I realized that my trying to intellectualize "the way" is just another of Satan's devices to keep me from sharing "the way" in love for fear of offending.  I don't know better than God.  I don't understand it all, but I trust that He knows best.

 Melanie G.