Jesus is the Greatest and Only God!...Or is He?

Micah 1-4; Psalm 135; Proverbs 30:5-6

Here in Swanton we have a football team. I just moved here, and I haven’t seen them in action yet. But I hear that we rarely win. You know what, though? The town still cheers for them! Faithfully! The Swanton football team is OUR football team, and we’re going to stick by them, even when they lose!

Why can’t Christians be that faithful to Jesus?

I was talking to a man who called himself a Christian a couple of months ago. But as we talked, he said (without my asking), “I don’t believe that people from other religions, like Islam and Hinduism, need to believe in Jesus Christ to go to heaven. If they’re good people, they’ll be fine.”

I was shocked! So I proceded to ask him a series of questions:

Me: So you don’t believe in sin?

Him: Well, sure I believe in sin. But I don’t believe that good people are going to miss out on heaven.

Me: So you don’t believe that good people have sinned? Good people have never sinned?

Him: I suppose everyone’s sinned. But God’s not going to send someone who’s working hard to be good to hell. They may not know about Him, but if they’re trying to serve their own God sincerely, God will be pleased with them.

Me: So you believe they’ve sinned, but you don’t believe they need to be forgiven by the true God?

Him: Well, no. I mean, what if they’ve never heard of Him? Will God really hold that against them? Different religions dominate different areas of the world.

Me: So you don’t believe that the whole world is God’s?

Him: Well, yes, but that still doesn’t mean that everyone is going to know Him.

Me: But if the whole world is God’s—if He created it, and He’s the King over it all—don’t you think He wants the whole world to honor Him above any other God?

Him: I think He understands when people in other areas of the world don’t know Him.

Me: So you think that God only expects to be called King by people in countries like America, where large parts of the country are considered Christian? You don’t think He expects to be called King everywhere in the world, since it’s all His?

Him: Yeah.

Me: Doesn’t [your denomination] send missionaries? What’s the point of sending missionaries if “good people” who don’t follow our God will be in heaven? Why not just let the various teachers of false religions—Islam, Buddhism, Hinduism, whatever—why not just let them teach their followers to be devout Muslims, Buddhists, etc.? Why send missionaries?

Him: I don’t know. But I still think they’ll be in heaven.

Me: If an American decided to help out Al Qaeda in attacking an American city, wouldn’t he be considered a traitor and sentenced to prison, or even death?

Him: Yes.

Me: So if someone created by God to be a member of His kingdom decides to rebel against God and serve a false god (and all false gods are Satanic), do you think God is going to let them into heaven for “serving their false god well”?

Him: Yes, I really do. I think God just wants people to live good lives.

Me (final question): Ok, let’s forget for a moment about whether people from other religions will be safely in heaven when Jesus returns. What do you think God has to say about people who claim to know Him; who claim to believe He created and owns the whole world; who claim to have found forgiveness through the death of His Son Jesus Christ—Jesus, who claimed to be the only way to the Father; who claim to have a hope of rising from the dead because Jesus rose from the dead; and who claim to believe that other gods are false gods; what do you think God has to say about His own people when His own people teach that it’s fine to follow those false gods? Is God pleased with Christians when they tell non-Christians that they don’t need to trust in Jesus Christ to go to heaven?

I think the implications are clear. God’s people should be GOD’S PEOPLE. Jesus Christ is the only God. And God’s people need to be faithful to Him, no matter how unpopular it is to say that other religions are false.

All the nations may walk in the name of their gods; we will walk in the name of the LORD our God for ever and ever. – Micah 4:5

Muslims, Hindus, Buddhists, and many others may be following their own gods. Even though it’s not good and will lead them to eternal death, it’s understandable because those false gods are “their” gods. But we, the people of Jesus Christ, should hold fast to the teachings of our Lord and King. Unlike the Swanton football team, He is ruler of the entire world and tells us that those who follow other gods are idolaters. Even Islam, which has no imagery or sculptures in its worship, is an idolatrous religion because it worships a god of its own imagination rather than the true God. Christians who teach that such rebellious worship practices are “fine” are being unfaithful to Jesus Christ. Let’s walk in the name of the LORD our God for ever and ever!

Your turn: What are your thoughts on what it means to be faithful to Jesus Christ?