I bet you hold Jesus in high regard. Nearly everyone does, no matter their religious leaning. We’ve been considering the position of the inclusivist. Let’s invite Jesus into the conversation.
With love in his eyes, Jesus begins, “I am the way, the truth, and the life, no one comes to the Father except through me” (Jn 14:6).
Jesus is no inclusivist. How would he respond to the inclusivist?
The Bible claims that Jesus is our only rescue. Throughout the pages of the New Testament, writer after writer and Jesus himself claim that Jesus Christ alone connects humankind back to God. Jesus claims he is no mere human being, but is God himself. When questioned by the Jewish leaders, Jesus claims to be eternal:
“Your father Abraham rejoiced that he would see my day. He saw it and was glad.” So the Jews said to him, “You are not yet fifty years old, and have you seen Abraham?” Jesus said to them, “Truly, truly, I say to you, before Abraham was, I am.” So they picked up stones to throw at him, but Jesus hid himself and went out of the temple. John 8:56-59
Jesus not only claims to be before Abraham, who lived roughly 2000 years earlier, Jesus claims to be the only true God of Israel.
In a significant moment of self-disclosure, the God of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob revealed himself to Moses as Yahweh, which means “I am who I am” or just “I am” (see Exodus 3:13-14). From that time forward, the name was God's holiest and most personal name and not to be trifled with.
And yet, throughout his ministry, Jesus uses God’s divine name “Yahweh” as his own. In the gospel of John, Jesus makes this claim thirty-nine times. When Jesus says, “Before Abraham was, I am,” he is not misusing grammar. He is saying, “Before Abraham was, Yahweh.” And the Jews get what Jesus has done. He has just claimed to be the one true God, and so they do the appropriate thing to someone who has claimed to be God: he deserves to be stoned. And yet, Jesus doesn’t say, “Whoa, whoa, whoa, you totally misunderstood me.” No. They have perfectly understood Jesus.
Two chapters later, nearly the same thing happens in John’s gospel. Explaining his shepherd’s heart for the sheep, Jesus claims, “I and the Father are one. The Jews picked up stones again to stone him”(John 10:30-31). Again, Jesus offers no defense; he doesn’t insist they misunderstand him. No, they’ve perfectly understood him.
When the Sanhedrin questions Jesus on the count of blasphemy, this is what he said:
“Again the high priest asked him, “Are you the Christ, the Son of the Blessed?” And Jesus said, “I am, and you will see the Son of Man seated at the right hand of Power, and coming with the clouds of heaven.” And the high priest tore his garments and said, “What further witnesses do we need? You have heard his blasphemy. What is your decision?” And they all condemned him as deserving death.” (Mark 14:61-64) (see also Matthew 26:65-66)
Jesus declares that he is the Messiah, the Son of the Blessed, which means God, and then doubles down, saying that he will sit at God’s right hand at the judge of the world. How does the high priest respond? By tearing his garments as a sign of extreme shock and contrition that this man has just claimed to be God himself.
He accuses Jesus of blasphemy and then they condemn Jesus to death. And does Jesus beg that they have misunderstood him? Does he try to clarify what has just happened? No. They have understood him perfectly. And he will die because they have understood him perfectly.
Jesus dies because of this charge. And then, after his resurrection (the proof that what he said was true!), Jesus concludes his ministry with a claim that he will live eternally and a call for his disciples to go and make disciples, “And Jesus came and said to them, “All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me. Go therefore and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, teaching them to observe all that I have commanded you. And behold, I am with you always, to the end of the age” (Matthew 28:18-20). Jesus claims to have all authority—authority that only God can have. And then Jesus tells them to make disciples and baptize people in the Triune name of God, which includes himself.
Christians make exclusive claims because Jesus made exclusive claims. We don’t make exclusive claims because we are proud or think we’re better. We make exclusive claims because we love. We believe that Jesus is the only way and want you to experience life reunited with God. Christians share the good news of Jesus’ rescue because Jesus calls us to. Christians make disciples because Jesus made disciples and tells us to do the same.
You can ask God the why not question on the final day, but today, God asks you whether you will say yes or no to his Son. If it is true, will you believe it?
Who is Jesus?
Is Jesus, like the Buddhists believe, an enlightened man?
Is Jesus, like the Hindus believe, an incarnation of a god?
Is Jesus, like Muslims believe, a man and prophet, but inferior to Muhammed?
Or is Jesus, like most pluralists believe, a good and moral teacher?
Or is Jesus, as he claims, God himself, the only way, truth, and life?
All of those answers except the final one have a problem. If Jesus was so enlightened, why would he claim to be the one true God? If Jesus was such a good prophet or such a good teacher, why would he make exclusive claims about himself that exclude all other religions and worldviews?
Following the moral crisis of world wars of the 20th century, CS Lewis noted that it is not possible that Jesus can be any of the options others give us. He is either a liar or a lunatic.[i] Jesus was either a pathological liar or pathologically deranged. Or he was what he claimed to be: the Lord over the universe, and the Lord over you and me.
If Jesus was God in human form and we take him only as a teacher, then we misunderstand him and reject him. Jesus does not leave us any other path. We may accept or reject this one way of rescue between us and him, which, cost him suffering, pain, humiliation, and death.
In the gospel of Mark, Jesus begins his ministry with these words, “The time is fulfilled, and the kingdom of God is at hand; repent and believe in the gospel” (Mark 1:15).
If God has made a way for us to be rescued: by becoming a man, living a perfect life, dying for us, and then overcoming death in resurrection, we cannot ignore this because we would rather it not be so. We must grapple with Jesus's claims on its own merits.
In the wake of the #metoo movement, where women have importantly stood up to men who have abused their positions of power and abused women sexually, Oprah Winfrey set aside her inclusivism. She said, “What I know for sure is that speaking your truth is the most powerful tool we all have.”[ii]
I think Winfrey is correct. If we believe we know the truth, especially if that truth brings about justice and hope, then the most important thing we can do is to speak that truth. Inclusivism can’t address claims for justice because its foundation doesn’t allow us to mediate between which truth is actually true.
We either each have our perception of what is real and no one can be held to account, or there is actual truth and justice is based on the foundation of that truth. We can’t have it both ways.
Even Winfrey, when she faces right and wrong, justice and injustice, knows that truth has to cut through. Winfrey doesn’t just shrug at the man who takes advantage of a woman sexually and say, “Well, if he believed it was okay and she didn’t, then who is to say?” No, there is right and wrong and truth will prevail. And a belief system where all of our truths are actual truths cannot be a system that brings about justice and where all things are ultimately made right.
We cannot shrug in the face of life and death, good and evil, and hope everything will turn out okay no matter what choice people make.
Every worldview is ultimately exclusive. The question is, which exclusive claim are you going to choose?
And, to be more personal, the question that the Bible tells us each of us will have to answer on that final day is whether or not we trusted who Jesus said he was and whether we put our trust in him or ourselves.
Do you trust Jesus, or do you trust yourself?
Through his sacrifice, Jesus offers hope in the face of despair, and life in the face of darkness. That is the most humble, gracious offer. I encourage you to receive Jesus’ offer today.
[i] The other option available to us is that Jesus was dramatically misquoted. This option is an important one and was dealt with in my sermon on whether or not we can trust the Bible. The thesis of that sermon was that, in fact, that Jesus is the most attested historic ancient human being to ever walk the planet and that the testimony of the eyewitnesses present is trustworthy.
[ii] Rebecca McLaughlin, Confronting Christianity, 51.
You May Also Appreciate:
Part 1: Why Is Jesus the Only Way?
Part 2: An Elephant and a Cure: the Challenge of the Inclusivist
Part 3: Jesus Responds to the Inclusivist
Photo by Raghavendra V. Konkathi on Unsplash