Is Jesus the Only Way to Heaven?

Is Jesus the Only Way to Heaven?

One of the biggest criticisms of Christianity is our belief that Jesus is the only way to heaven. We are accused of being narrow-minded and bigoted for holding this view. How do we answer that criticism?

A number of years ago I was asked to speak to a group of professors and graduate students at the University of Colorado on the topic of the uniqueness of Jesus. I defended the idea that Christ is the only way to heaven.   I was met with a certain amount of anger. How can I say that all other religions are wrong? 

I began with the biblical definition of the human predicament. If you accept the Bible’s definition of man’s problem then you are obligated to conclude that Jesus is the only answer. Man’s problem is sin. In Is. 59:1 the prophet says God is able to save men but, “Your sin has separated you from your God so that He will not save.” The prophet Jeremiah said that the heart is deceitful above all things and desperately wicked. The apostle Paul in writing to the Ephesian Christians said that before they came to Christ they were dead in their trespasses and sin. In Romans 3 Paul quotes the Old Testament, “There are none righteous, no not one.” I could quote a lot more verses but you get it. The Bible teaches that the fundamental human problem is sin, a sin that makes us do horrible things, a sin that separates us from our Creator so that we do not know Him or have a personal relationship with Him. In Genesis 3 God said that if a man sins he will surely die. Our death, both physical and spiritual, is the result of sin.

So if that’s the problem what is the solution? If God says that sin must be punished by death then someone must die. This is where we find the unique Christian solution. Someone did die. But it was someone who did not need to die for his own sin. It was the unique Son of God, the only one who could pay for our sins, because He had none of His own to pay for. I think this is a hard concept to get your head around, but Paul says this in 2 Cor. 5:21: For our sake God made Jesus to be sin who knew no sin, so that we might become the righteousness of God in Him. Or 1 Peter 1:18,19: knowing that you were ransomed from the futile ways inherited from your forefathers, not with perishable things such as silver or gold, ¹⁹ but with the precious blood of Christ; or 1 Peter 2:24: Jesus Christ bore our sins in his body on the cross, that we might die to sin and live to righteousness. By his wounds you have been healed.

So it couldn’t be clearer. The Bible describes man’s problem as sin, sin that demands the death penalty. And the Bible states the solution: Christ dying in our place, for our sins.

There is one more step: Christ’s death only saves you if you ask Him to forgive your sins and come into your life to be your Lord and Savior. John 1:12: If anyone receives Jesus, God gives him the power to become a child of God. Not very many people take this last step. Matt. 7:14: Jesus says the way to him is narrow and very few people find the path. 

Is Christ the only way to heaven? Yes. Let me summarize with four reasons:

First, the logic of the Christian doctrine of sin demands it.

Second, it is clearly taught in the Bible. Jesus said to His disciples, “I am the way , the truth, and the life. No man comes to the father but through me.”

Third, it was the universal declaration of the early church. The founders of Christianity insisted on it. Acts 4:12

Fourth, it has always been the missionary motivation for Christians. We have gone all over the world telling people about Jesus, because He is their only hope. We have translated the Bible into more languages than any book in history because people need to hear the good news that Jesus died for them, preferably in their own language.

When I was finished with my university presentation a philosophy professor came up to me and said, the answer to this question completely depends on your view of the Bible. I said, you are right. If you believe the Bible is the Word of God, you believe that Jesus is the only way to heaven.

Let the Bible have the last word: 1 John 5:11,12

Thanks for reading this. May our God bless you this day in a mighty way.

More Resources:

A helpful video on this topic is: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3YfAq9g8SEs&t=142s

John MacArthur has an excellent sermon if you

want to go into more depth on this topic: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0eSNW8WBHr4