Do we need to believe Jesus is the only way to God to be saved?

WHAT DOES THE BIBLE SAY?

The Bible makes it clear that salvation is possible only by the grace and forgiveness God offers us through Christ's sacrifice. Jesus is God, so only through Him can we have salvation (John 1:1). The Old Testament prophesied about Jesus as One who would suffer for the our sins (Isaiah 53), and many other Old Testament verses speak of His kingdom (Isaiah 9:6-7; Psalm 22:27; Daniel 7:14).  This shows that Christ is the One who will save us and have dominion over us.

The New Testament indicates that Jesus is the fulfillment of Old Testament prophecy (Matthew 5:17) and points to salvation only through Him. Jesus is not merely a wise man, as some would claim. He is the only way to salvation, a claim He makes many times (Jesus Himself indicates that He is the only way to salvation (John 10:9, 11:25, 14:6).  The apostles, such as Peter, John, and Paul, reaffirm that truth in their own writings (Acts 4:12; 1 Timothy 2:5).

The Bible is clear: Jesus is the only way to salvation.

FROM THE OLD TESTAMENT

• Isaiah 53:5 prophesies about Jesus being "pierced for our transgressions" and "crushed for our iniquities." Isaiah writes that "by his wounds we are healed." Without Christ, our sins would be on us, and we would be subject to God's wrath.
• Other Old Testament passages prophesey Jesus' kingdom (Isaiah 9:6-7; Psalm 22:27; Daniel 7:14).

FROM THE NEW TESTAMENT

• In His Sermon on the Mount, Jesus indicates that He fulfills the Old Testament prophecies: "“Do not think that I have come to abolish the Law or the Prophets; I have not come to abolish them but to fulfill them" (Matthew 5:17).
• In fact, Jesus of false messiahs, showing that though many will claim to be the savior, only He is truly the Savior (Mark 13:6).
• Jesus also said, "I am the way and the truth and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me" (John 14:6; emphasis added). 
  
• Jesus also refers to Himself as "the gate" to salvation and "the resurrection and the life" (John 10:9, 11:25; emphasis added), showing He is the only way to salvation.
• Only God has the power to save. Jesus is God, so only through Him can we be saved (John 1:1). Acts 4:12 says, "And there is salvation in no one else, for there is no other name under heaven given among men[a] by which we must be saved" (Acts 4:12).
• Paul identifies Jesus is the only mediator between us and God: "For there is one God and one mediator between God and mankind, the man Christ Jesus" (1 Timothy 2:5). No other way of salvation exists except Christ.
  

IMPLICATIONS FOR TODAY

Many today like Jesus according to their terms. They see Him as a "good" man, a "wise" teacher. But their words are self-contradicting. As C.S. Lewis pointed out in Mere Christianity, "A man who was merely a man and said the sort of things Jesus said would not be a great moral teacher. He would either be a lunatic– on a level with the man who says he is a poached egg– or else he would be the Devil of Hell."

We cannot accept a Christ of our own making. That Christ won't save us. The true Christ will. That's why when believers hear others denying Christ's deity and His saving power, we must correct it, gently but firmly (1 Peter 3:15). Their eternal life is at stake. Jesus, fully God and fully man, came to Earth to show us God and willingly gave up His life, dying on the cross for the sins of the world, and rising again, conquering sin and death. All who put their trust in this Jesus will be saved.

UNDERSTAND

• Jesus is the way to Heaven because He alone came from Heaven to save those who place their faith in Him.
• Jesus is the only One who can offer forgiveness for our sins.
• We cannot find salvation through anyone other than Jesus.

REFLECT

• How does knowing that Jesus alone is the way to salvation help you to view the many promises made by world leaders, political or religious?
• Where are you most tempted to soften or redefine Jesus’ claim to be the only way, and how can you remember the importance of His exclusivity?
• How does believing that salvation rests entirely on Jesus shape the way you view your past, your present obedience, and your future hope?

ENGAGE

• How can Christians best engage with unbelievers who believe in "many roads" to salvation?
• In what ways do cultural ideas about tolerance and inclusion challenge the Christian claim that Jesus alone saves, and how should believers respond wisely and lovingly?
• How can we share the truth of Jesus' free gift of salvation to those who do not trust Him yet?