Jesus Denies Salvation
to those Who Don’t Know Him or the Christian Faith
Jesus Christ claimed to be the only way to God and that sincerity will not save.
This is no surprise for the Book of Ecclesiastes condemns marrying and giving in
marriage and all activities under the sun as vanity. Vanity is stupid pride and
a sin. The book says the only exception is getting wisdom from God meaning not
just wisdom by itself but wisdom put into practice. So marriage is not sinful
unless you are some kind of saint. The teaching that all human actions are
vanity and pride implies that divine guidance is necessary for goodness and
salvation if salvation is possible. So you do your best and it is vanity. But if
you obtain knowledge from God and are wise in God’s estimation you have a chance
of avoiding this sin of vanity.
Jesus accepted Genesis as divinely inspired history and so he approved of
Genesis when it said that Eve was punished by God for believing the snake.
Though she meant well she was still condemned. She thought the evil she was
doing was good for she didn’t know what evil and good was. That was what she ate
the forbidden fruit for to get that knowledge. Read the account.
Jesus said that the man who had his master’s money and buried it instead of
investing it to make more money from it would be severely condemned. The man was
sincere when he thought his master would praise him for what he did but the
master rejected him and Jesus said God would do the same. The man cannot be
accused of having done no good for he accepted the money and he buried it and
gave it back but his goodness could not save him.
The Jews accused Jesus of casting out demons by the Devil’s power because they
suspected the Devil was helping to advertise him. Jesus said that a kingdom
divided against itself cannot stand so Satan couldn’t be casting out Satan and
said that the Church was his kingdom. He therefore condemned denominationism and
affirmed clearly in this that nobody can be saved or a Christian unless they
know of him and the salvation he brought. They must profess the Christian
dogmas. If pagans are saved and don’t know they are in union with Christ then if
they disapprove of the Church he founded we have the kingdom divided against
itself that Christ said didn’t exist in his religious system.
Jesus told the Jews they were guilty of the eternal sin of blasphemy against the
Holy Spirit in saying Satan was doing his miracles. They really thought Satan
and Jesus were plotting to make Jesus look good. They thought Satan didn’t need
to possess people and so didn’t mind putting demons out or he was planning
something so bad that it made it worthwhile for him to help Jesus fake
exorcisms. Jesus was saying that unbelief, excusable or not, blocks ones
salvation.
A scribe asked Jesus what the greatest commandment was and Jesus said it was the
one to love God totally and to love ones neighbour as oneself. The scribe said
he agreed and that it is more important to love God and neighbour than to offer
any ritual sacrifice. Jesus told him he was not far from the kingdom of God.
This was said merely because the scribe expressed correct belief. There is no
mention of his goodness or otherwise. He is told though that he still has some
way to go before becoming part of the kingdom of God.
Jesus said that he was the bread of life and that anybody who did not eat that
bread would have no life in them and he said that the Holy Spirit he gives would
satisfy every spiritual thirst (John 4:14). The implicit incitement to hatred
and intolerance and pride in this is very alarming for he made these promises as
if unbelievers could not avail of them for he said that one has to go to him to
receive it and the listeners would have understood him to mean coming to him in
explicit faith and obedience. If sincerity were enough, they would have been
unknowingly fed by and with Jesus.
First, Jesus was running down the experience of others who find satisfaction in
their god and calling them liars and boasting about himself. Anybody who has
ever enjoyed another God, say Krishna or whoever, knows that Jesus was a liar.
Second, he is telling Christians to believe that only he satisfies which making
them do the same thing. It is pride to say that you have the only source of
spiritual satisfaction the way they do it. How could you find as much
satisfaction in a God who sends people around you to Hell forever and who
created the law that whoever dies in sin must rot there forever as you could in
one who does not? There are Christians who do not believe in eternal punishing
and we must believe then that if Jesus is right and sends people to Hell that
their faith is in error and so they cannot have as much satisfaction as they
would have if they knew God better and that he does that. There is a problem
then in the fulfilment of Jesus’ promise unless it is made easy for Christians
to agree on doctrine if they want to for if it is true then the more doctrinal
accuracy the more Holy Spirit because when doctrine is needed before you can get
the Spirit then the more doctrine the more Spirit.
Jesus said that the road to damnation was smooth while the road to Heaven is
rocky and few find it (Matthew 7:13,14). If sincerity and repentance alone could
save them this would be untrue. Everybody would have found the road although
they would not all travel it. This saying implies that unless you believe in
Jesus explicitly and sincerely you have no hope of salvation. Remember how Jesus
said that his burden of law was light and First John says that the commandments
are not difficult. This suggests that the smooth wide road is not that way
because the commandments are not hard. It is because it is hard to have a faith
that is correct in Jesus’’ estimation. It is hard to get the truth. That is the
narrow way.
Once when he was asked if only a few would be saved, Jesus replied that people
have to strive to get into Heaven and to squeeze through the narrow door (Luke
13:23, 24). He did not say straight out that only a few can expect to be saved.
But when he started talking about the need for a struggle and to get in through
a narrow door yes was written all over it. Jesus said you have to strive to get
into Heaven and that many do so and don't make it. Jesus was saying that those
who battle to get into Heaven and fail are really trying. Thus sincerity is not
enough to get you into Heaven.
Thomas asked Jesus what the way of salvation was. Instead of telling him that he
knew and had the way which he would have done had sincerity been enough, Jesus
said that he was the way, the truth and the life and that no man could come to
the Father except by him (John 14:6). He told corrupt Jews in the same gospel
that where he would go, to the presence of God, they could not come. He
told a Samaritan woman that only the Jews could hope for salvation in John 4:22
and that she needed to start recognising the Jewish Temple as the real one not
her Temple. He even told her that at least the Jews knew what they were
worshipping despite the fact that faith wise, Jews and Samaritans did not have
huge differences.
This implies that sincerity alone cannot let you into Heaven – you have to be right too. The context is about the way to salvation therefore Jesus meant he was the essential way to God and the essential truth that leads to God. To make extra sure John 6:66 has Peter telling Jesus that he is the only one whose teaching can take you to eternal life in Heaven and Jesus clearly approves. His warning that unless you eat his flesh and drink his blood, ie embrace him while knowing what you are doing and knowing him, you will be left in spiritual death. There will be no eternal life.
Therefore having the truth is necessary for
salvation and there is no salvation for one who has the wrong faith. Jesus
called himself the truth that is the only way to God to emphasise that you have
to know some of the main truths about him to be saved. He stressed his being the
truth to emphasise that no other man could be the only way to God. The wrong man
or even the wrong perception of Jesus would mean you miss the only way to God.
The Catholics see a wafer that they think is Jesus to be the only way to God so
they have the wrong Jesus. Jesus’ words would be of little value if a wafer
could be claimed to be Jesus and make no difference even if it is not Jesus. Why
stop at wafers? Why not proclaim other Messiahs like Henry James Prince or
Father Divine or Vissarion to be Jesus? Jesus said having the right Jesus was
important. He condemned false Messiahs. St Paul said that some of his flock were
following another Christ not the right one. If sincerity alone is enough, then
it doesn’t matter who you worship as Jesus or what. The worship is meant for
Jesus and you have just made a mistake about who is Jesus. The bad thing about
it somebody gets the benefit of being treated and adored as Jesus.
Desmond Tutu linked Jesus' claim that he was the only way to God and the only
truth and the only life (meaning only following him makes your life a life or
worth living both for your sake and God's) to John's doctrine that Jesus was the
Word and the Word was in the beginning with God and the Word was God and became
flesh. He argues that Jesus being the only way does not mean that you must know
about the man Jesus to be saved. You can know about Jesus as the Word. He argues
that Jesus was active and saving as the Word before he became man. So Jesus
being the only saviour refers to the Word whether incarnate or not. But if Tutu
were right it would follow that Thomas already had found the way. But Jesus
talks to him as if he hasn't. I am the way the truth and the life refers to the
man Jesus. This is the more natural interpretation. Keep the Word stuff out of
it.
Jesus told the Jews that unless they believed in him they would die in their
sins (John 8:23). Some think he meant believe as in agree and believe as in do
what you believe so he meant that unless they repent and believe they will die
in their sins. But they could believe and repent because of his moral teaching
and not because of him. He specified that they have to believe in him so he
meant that unless they believe in him intellectually they have no hope. The view
that Jesus only meant , "I require you to believe in me and I will tell you what
to do to be saved from your sins", also implies that there is no salvation
without him.
In the very same chapter, Jesus told his apostles that if they continue in his
teaching then they are really his followers or Christians and they shall know
the truth and the truth will make them free (verses 31,32). This says that if
you try to be good you will see the truth for God’s grace will speak to you.
Anybody who does not believe properly is a bad person.
Jesus said that anybody who wants to do right will know that he is from God
(John 3:21; 7:17). So, anybody who hears of Jesus and the true gospel and does
not believe is just too devoted to sin to believe. So, such people will go to
Hell forever.
He also said that anyone who believes and trusts in him is saved and he who does
not is damned already (John 3:18). He said this to Nicodemus who also believed
in a God who would not accept the sincerely wrong idolater – there is no other
kind of idolater anyway. So Nicodemus would have taken him to mean that unless
you know of Jesus you cannot be saved and Jesus did not clarify so he was clear
enough and Nicodemus had the right understanding. Jesus was telling a sincere
Jew that he needed to be born again into a relationship with God. If Nicodemus
thought he was connected to God through his faith and religion and good living
he was wrong!
Also, when idolatry makes God exclude you it follows that if you do know of
Jesus but the picture is too distorted you are no better off. You have another
Jesus who cannot save (2 Corinthians 11). So you have to know of the real Jesus
to have any hope. The present tense Jesus used accentuates the impossibility of
being saved without knowing of him for it was only at the start of his ministry
and there wasn’t much reason to believe in him then for he hadn’t even made his
come-back from the grave yet and yet here he was saying that nobody who
“believes” in him will be condemned and whoever does not believe will be
rejected and “is condemned already” for not believing in God’s only Son. This
clearly implies that sincerity is insufficient for you could not blame anyone
for refusing to believe at that stage.
If you have not paid to get on the bus and are found out you will be thrown off
for the sake of justice. And even if you feel that the bus service owes you
money, you should be put out. If you think you can pay for your sins and have
not how can sincerity get you into Heaven? God will permit you being expelled
from the bus so he can penalise you for sincerity and ban you from Heaven for
being wrong.
Jesus said that he knows his own and his own know him (John 10:14). The context
says he means all who come to God. The sheep do not obey the false prophets
(John 10:5,8). So, his own consciously believe in Jesus. They know him so they
must be experts in the true faith. He also said that anybody who enters the fold
without him is rejected as a robber for stealing a place they are not entitled
to (John 10:1-9). This robber is hypothetical for he says later that the fold
follows him. He is not saying anybody can really enter the kingdom without using
Jesus as the door. He does not say that the robber is rejected for being a
sinner. The idea that a sinner could get into Heaven would be too ridiculous to
refute. Jesus says what is wrong is that they did not use him to enter which
implies that they sneaked into Heaven without belief in Jesus. Proof that it is
belief in verse 8 which says that all who came before Jesus were thieves and
robbers though none of them encouraged sin but did encourage false doctrine.
They steal sheep and they destroy them by leading them to Hell. It is not said
that they were sociopaths or uncivil people. Many say Jesus sees the thieves and
robbers as those who believe they should be in Heaven because of their good
works and religious sincerity. After all, openly evil people wouldn’t even want
to be in Heaven. You can’t steal or rape or murder in Heaven. Only those who use
Jesus as the only way to God and not their works belong in Heaven.
Most Christians say that Jesus will save you from sin and Hell if you are a
sincere unbeliever though you won’t know that it is him. They say that the
exclusive salvation doctrine means that only Christ and not his religion is
absolutely necessary for salvation.
But if sincerity will do then why didn’t Jesus save us secretly and secretly
send his spirit to guide us into charity? There would be no need for a
supernatural and infallible giver of revelation like a Bible or a Church. To
give them would be the sin of doing needless miracles. So the fact that Jesus
spoke of revelation infers that you have to consciously believe in him and hear
of him to be saved.
The apostles would not have suffered to deliver a gospel message to all people
if they had thought that sincerity was all that was required.
Some Christians say that Jesus said that other religions could not work for he
was compassionate and it needed saying (page 26, God, That’s Not Fair!). But if
sincerity cannot save it is because God refuses to accept it though he should so
it is anything but compassion.
The accusation against Christians that they are inciting their followers to
intolerance by saying that Jesus is the only way to God even if they believe
that Jesus will save those who don’t know of him by working in their souls like
an anonymous saviour is true. It is saying, “I don’t care if there is a more
plausible way to salvation, I proclaim Jesus as the only way to God.” It is an
intrinsically arrogant attitude and when going that far is allowed then other
forms of intolerance towards other religions must be allowed. Christians accuse
those who say such things about their belief in Jesus of indifference. Humanists
recognise that everybody has different likes and dislikes. Right and wrong in
the subjective sense is not the same for every person because each person has
different needs. Therefore we encourage people to do whatever they like to help
their Humanist life. Religion when it claims the right to proclaim Jesus the
only way should also encourage people to try out other saviours if they wish. I
have noticed in my own past religious life that I got sense of peace of turning
to Krishna by chanting Hare Krishna that I never got from Jesus. We can’t afford
to be indifferent in everything but if we regard religion as acceptable we can
afford to be indifferent to people choosing whatever gods and fairy stories
about them that click with them. Christianity wants you to think Jesus is best
for you but he might not be – it makes a fuss about nothing. If you get
happiness from Krishna more than Jesus nobody has the right to object – in your
emotional life in this line anything goes and indeed should. There is no doubt
that Christianity making Jesus the only saviour is against many important human
rights and therefore against the laws of the world that forbid such
trouble-making ideas.