I am the way, the truth and the life...

John 14: 6 “Jesus said to him, “I am the way, and the truth, and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me.” In this article I am going to examine this statement that Christ Jesus made to Thomas while he was speaking to the disciples.

Firstly let’s look at His statement “I am the way.” What does Jesus mean when He says “ I am the way.”  

Webster's Revised Unabridged Dictionary
1. (n.) A trodden way; a footway.

2. (n.) A way, course, or track, in which anything moves or has moved; route; passage; an established way; as, the path of a meteor, of a caravan, of a storm, of a pestilence. Also used figuratively, of a course of life or action.

3. (v. t.) To make a path in, or on (something), or for (some one).

4. (v. i.) To walk or go.

I believe that Jesus is telling Thomas that He is the literal path to salvation. If we wish to find atonement for our sins we must believe on Christ Jesus and follow his directions through life. Literally take up our cross and follow Him (Matthew 16:24). He is the way and His is the name by which we must be saved (Acts 4:12).

In Matthew 7:13 Matthew describes the way like this “Enter by the narrow gate. For the gate is wide and the way is easy that leads to destruction, and those who enter by it are many.” Conversely the way of Christ Jesus is narrow and difficult is the path to salvation but none will take you from His hand. Those who overcome He will give a crown.

The Truth.

Easton's Bible Dictionary

Truth

Used in various senses in Scripture. In Proverbs 12:17, 19, it denotes that which is opposed to falsehood. In Isaiah 59:14, 15, Jeremiah 7:28, it means fidelity or truthfulness. The doctrine of Christ is called "the truth of the gospel" (Galatians 2:5), "the truth" (2 Timothy 3:7; 4:4). Our Lord says of himself, "I am the way, and the truth" (John 14:6).

What is the Truth of Christ Jesus? Simply put God’s Truth is the exact opposite of the truth of Satan and therefore the false truth of this world (Lies). The apostle Paul said this in Romans 1: 18 -20 “For the wrath of God is revealed from heaven against all ungodliness and unrighteousness of men, who by their unrighteousness suppress the truth. For what can be known about God is plain to them, because God has shown it to them. For his invisible attributes, namely, his eternal power and divine nature, have been clearly perceived, ever since the creation of the world, in the things that have been made. So they are without excuse.

The World rejects the Truth of God and derides God’s Law. Probably because as Paul explained in 1 Corinthians 2:14 “The natural person does not accept the things of the Spirit of God, for they are folly to him, and he is not able to understand them because they are spiritually discerned.” So the truth of God is in the Holy Spirit and the ordinary man or unbeliever finds them to be folly and cannot understand them.

This idea is central to what Jesus spoke about when he spoke of entering by the narrow gate. You see the world is full of false truth and deception but because of the method that Satan uses to deceive people, altering the truth in clever ways so that it seems right to a man. People accept the lie and reject the Truth of God also not being saved and not having the Holy Spirit to reveal the Truth to them.

Therefore Jesus when He said He was the Truth meant that all of the truth available to the Jews at the time in the Torah and the Law that was fulfilled in Him. If we read of the New Covenant in Jeremiah and Hebrews we find that the Law is written in the hearts of believers by the Holy Spirit (Jeremiah 31: 31-34; Hebrews 8: 8-12). We also know it is the purpose of the Holy Spirit to reveal the person of Jesus Christ in us as He sanctifies us for eternal life (John 15:26).

So the truth is that God created the World and everything beyond it (The Universe). Man was created in the image of God and was in constant communion with God in the beginning until Adam and Eve disobeyed God at the Fall. That was when man became sinful and his relationship to God was broken.

The various covenants between man and God described in the bible are based on the truth about sin and mans position in relation to God at the times they were given. The Ten Commandments and the Law as given to Moses and Israel are all biblical and God given truth. They indicate God’s high standards with regard to sin and that man needs a saviour in order to cleansed of sin.

Thus the truth is that Jesus is the truth and in Him all things can be reconciled to God through the sacrifice and shedding of His blood at Calvary. He is the living water through which we can be baptised into the resurrection of life (Justified), and in that baptism by believing on His name we receive the Holy Spirit who cleanses and reorients believers into the person of Jesus Christ (Sanctification).

The Life. What does Jesus mean when He says He is The Life?

Easton's Bible Dictionary

Life

Generally of physical life (Genesis 2:7; Luke 16:25, etc.); also used figuratively (1) for immortality (Hebrews 7:16); (2) conduct or manner of life (Romans 6:4); (3) spiritual life or salvation (John 3:16, 17, 18, 36); (4) eternal life (Matthew 19:16, 17; John 3:15); of God and Christ as the absolute source and cause of all life (John 1:4; 5:26, 39; 11:25; 12:50).

So Easton’s Bible Dictionary covers the definition of Life in a sensible way. However, Jesus spoke of the life that comes from Him  as wells of Living Water (John 7: 37-39). He spoke of Himself being the Resurrection and the Life meaning the source of eternal life (John 11:25). Romans 6:23 speaks of the wages of sin being death but the freely given gift of God being eternal life in Jesus Christ our Lord. What Jesus was saying here relates not to the life we live now as it is temporary and inadequate.

He is speaking about the life to come which if you believe on Jesus Christ as your Saviour will be eternal and lived in the righteousness of God. Further, it will be lived in the Law of Love in Christ Jesus our Lord and King in His Kingdom which will last forever. Remembering that we become partakers in that life when we believe on Jesus Christ and are justified through His sacrifice on the Cross and the shedding of His blood for our sins.

As time moves on and we find ourselves in an age where paganism and antichrist are on the rise. In a world where there are more people alive than at anytime in the past and where we could truly say sin is at the levels of Noah’s time. Where God saw that the wickedness of man was great in the earth, and that every imagination of the thoughts of his heart was only evil continually (Genesis 6:5). I suppose what I am speaking of here is that we are close to the end of the Age of Grace and the return of Jesus Christ is imminent (Matthew 24).

But before Jesus returns will be a period of judgement so violent that if it were not shortened no flesh would survive (Matthew 24:22). If we look at the world as it stands and even if we excluded God’s judgment as a cause of what we see looming in the near future. Dangerous global floods, famine, war and pestilence would seem to be going to make it very hard for mankind to have any sort of future on the Earth.

Because of the population of mankind (8 Billion), and the selfish way in which resources are gathered and used nearly every species of plant and animal are threatened with extinction. Only a few species can survive beside man. Ultimately even if God doesn’t judge us the excesses of our greed will come home to roost and man will effectively judge himself via the consequences of our sins against the Earth.

So we have a choice, accept that Jesus Christ is the way and reject the ways of this world and Satan. Believe that Jesus is the Truth and reject the lies of this world and Satan. Believe that Jesus is the Life and reject the life of this world and Satan.

Or, accept the way, lies and life of this world and Satan and ultimately perish in our own folly. The bible says It is destined for every man to die once from this life (Hebrews 9:27), but it is up to you whether you believe on Jesus Christ and gain eternal life and avoid the second death which is forever.

Revelation 2:11 “He who has an ear, let him hear what the Spirit says to the churches. The one who conquers will not be hurt by the second death.”

Revelation 21:8 “ But as for the cowardly, the faithless, the detestable, as for murderers, the sexually immoral, sorcerers, idolaters, and all liars, their portion will be in the lake that burns with fire and sulphur, which is the second death.”

So in the end, the choice we all have to make is will we accept Christ Jesus as our Saviour. Thereby accepting the way of righteousness; the righteous truth; and live His righteous life in the Spirit? Ultimately ending in life eternal with Jesus of Nazareth. Or, will we take the default option and accept the wicked way; the wicked lies; and the life of the wicked. Ultimately ending in eternal death?

I realise it’s not always as clear cut as that and I intend no judgement. Believe me I’m not perfect either but I am a saint led to repentance, a life long struggle against the flesh. But, I have chosen the way, the truth and the life eternal in Christ Jesus. My prayer is that God will extend His grace to you so you also may see the light and the Lamb of God and choose life eternal.

What is Biblical Truth And Why Is It Important?

The apostle Paul has this to say about truth in Romans 1:18-21 “For the wrath of God is revealed from heaven against all ungodliness and unrighteousness of men, who by their unrighteousness suppress the truth. For what can be known about God is plain to them, because God has shown it to them. For his invisible attributes, namely, his eternal power and divine nature, have been clearly perceived, ever since the creation of the world, in the things that have been made. So they are without excuse...”

So the biblical truth describes the claims that God (Yahweh Elohim), makes about the world in which we live. Namely that He is the creator of the heavens and the Earth, that he made them in six twenty four hour periods called days with which everyone is familiar. That all things were made for and by His Son, Jesus Christ (Colossians 1"15-20), who is the first born of all creation.

One thing that we need to clearly understand is that the Bible is true and everything that is written in it is inspired by God for the benefit of mankind. 2 Timothy 3:16 “All Scripture is breathed out by God and profitable for teaching, for reproof, for correction, and for training in righteousness...” So when we speak of biblical truth we could definitely say that God’s truth is embodied by the Bible because it is inspired by the Holy Spirit through the various writers involved.

In John 14:6 Jesus said “I am the way, and the truth, and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me.“ Now as a Christian I believe this statement to be the truth but it is not the truth because I happen to believe that it is a true statement. It is the truth because of the fact that we have only to look around us to know that God is the creator of the Heavens and the Earth. We also look at creation and know that it needs a Creator. I suppose that in the end a person either believes this statement or not. It is a matter of Faith.

Now as we continue to ask the question of whether the Bible is true and if it is the Word of God. We could acknowledge that The Jews call it the Book or at least the Old Testament part of it. So, it comes down to what we individually believe about the Bible being the Word of God. To the believer the bible is the foundational Christian text. To the Jew the Torah or the Old Testament part of the Bible is a foundational text while the New Testament is not. To the Deist it probably one of a number of potentially revered texts while to the liberal Christian various parts of the may or may not be true.

To the unbeliever it may be just a series of myths and legends. To the evolutionist it is a group of fallacies with no scientific basis and they will not believe in a creator of the universe without empirical proof. So truth is very much dependent on a person’s schema. In other words what they have been exposed too and how this causes them to view the world or the lens through which they interact with the culture and society they live in.  

I have to say that how you view biblical truth depends on faith as I mentioned before. The bible tells us that faith is a very important quality to God. Hebrews 11: 1-3 describes faith like this “Now faith is the assurance of things hoped for, the conviction of things not seen. 2 For by it the people of old received their commendation. By faith we understand that the universe was created by the word of God, so that what is seen was not made out of things that are visible.”

So faith is inimical to truth as we find it in the bible. Because of faith we believe that in relation to God’s Word that what we hope for is indeed true. Even though we can’t see these things we hope for and even though we can’t test them scientifically. We still believe them to be true and trust in the promises of God.

In the end we need to understand that God is for righteousness and He will not tolerate evil or unrighteousness. All that we find in the bible is the truth about the righteousness of God and describes His battle with Satan who opposes righteousness and uses spin to normalise evil, unrighteousness and sin in the eyes of mankind. God is for the good of mankind while Satan’s intention is to destroy mankind and usurp man’s right to the Earth.

Thankfully God was able to win the victory for mankind by sending His only begotten Son, Jesus Christ, to pay the sin debt of mankind and make it possible for those who believe that He bore their sin on the Cross. To be saved. This is the truth and the truth will set you free.

John 8: 32-33 “So Jesus said to the Jews who had believed him, “If you abide in my word, you are truly my disciples, and you will know the truth, and the truth will set you free.” 

The Truth About Sin

 

You know it’s interesting how we humans are so prepared to snatch at shadows in the attempt to avoid accepting the reality of some inconvenient truths. Satan is also a master of whispering lies into our minds in the pursuit of getting us to accept false perceptions involving the truth. The truth about sin is a case in point.

To set the scene for what I am trying to share with you I think it is worth discussing what the Lord Jesus Christ said to two people that He healed and helped during His ministry among the folk of Israel 2000 years ago. There are two specific instances in the bible of Christ Jesus saying to people go and sin no more. The first is described in John 5:1-15 and is about a paralytic who lay by the Pool of Bethesda each day for thirty seven years. Jesus healed the man and later sought to speak with him instructing him to sin no more so that he was not made unwell again.

The second instance is in John 8: 3-11 and describes how the Scribes and Pharisees sought to trap Jesus by bringing a woman caught in the act of adultery to Him to judge. Jesus famously told them “Let him who is without sin cast the first stone.” He then knelt down and drew in the dirt. No one actually knows what he drew but some have surmised that it may have been the sins of the men accusing the woman. In any case we will never know but the men apparently departed one at a time until the woman was left alone with Jesus. He then said to her “Woman where are your accusers?” To which she answered “They have all gone Lord.” He then said “Then neither do I accuse you. Go and sin no more.”

So what can we learn about the truth of sin from these two instances. I think the first item that we can take away is the in Christ Jesus our sins can be forgiven. In the first case with the paralytic man we learn that certain sin can make us physically unwell and we need to stop sinning to avoid those kinds of consequences. In the second case with the adulterous woman we learn that in Christ we can be forgiven any sin and that once forgiven it is imperative that we resist the urge to continue sinning. The obvious way to achieve this is by being obedient to God and by seeking him to fortify us through prayer. In the case of the woman we believe she became one of the women who followed Jesus with the disciples and was at the cross when He died for us all.

Now one thing I want to stress here is the in the eyes of God all sin is equal. There are no paramount sins as we humans might see them. For instance murder is a big sin whereas speeding in our vehicle is minor. 1 John 5: 16-17 says this “If anyone sees his brother committing a sin not leading to death, he shall ask, and God will give him life—to those who commit sins that do not lead to death. There is sin that leads to death; I do not say that one should pray for that. All wrongdoing is sin, but there is sin that does not lead to death.” So all wrongdoing is sin but as I understand it the apostle John is saying that the sin that leads to death is to deliberately refuse to believe on Jesus Christ for the forgiveness of sins.

So looking back at the adulterous woman and the situation that occurred there. What would happen if we substituted other sins into that scenario? For instance if we put a person accused of homosexuality into that situation what would Jesus have said and done. Well I believe that it would have played out exactly as it did with the adulterous woman. The accusers would have left one by one as Jesus named their sins and then he would have been alone with the accused person. He would have asked “Where are the accusers.” and the person would have replied “They have all gone Lord.” To which the Lord Jesus would have replied “Then neither do I accuse you. Go and sin no more.”

You see we are all descended of Adam and Eve our first parents. They sinned and fell by disobeying God and we have inherited their fallen natures. None of us are lesser sinners than anyone else and all wrongdoing is sin in the eyes of God. So regardless of who we are, we stand before Christ Jesus laid bare. He is the only one who can accuse us and instead he offers us forgiveness. He is the only one in whom we can be forgiven and His is the only name under heaven by which we must be saved (Acts 4:12).

Now there is plenty of disinformation out there. One of the favourite pass times in our era is to state what science has discovered as an excuse for disobeying God. We could take homosexuality as an example and attach to that the current furore over gender assignment. Now science says that a gay person has a different kind of mind than a straight person and they are essentially a different sex mentally than they are physically. Not only that but gender bias is most unhelpful to people who can’t be simply defined as male or female. What is being argued is that these people can’t help being who they are and so if a male feels like a female then we must accept that this is the case.

What is actually the case is that the devil has gotten control of the hearts and minds of the people and has them believing that they have the right of things when in fact they are deceived into thinking that there is no God and there is no sin. Thus there is no one who can hold them accountable. The sad truth of the matter is that there is a God and everyone of us will be held accountable for our sins in the day of judgement. Only those who have found forgiveness for our sins by believing on Jesus Christ will be saved from the consequences of sin and receive eternal life. This is the truth of the matter.

Many Christians believe the liberal propaganda about sin and feel sorry for the people who are told that they are sinning when science actually shows that can’t help being how they are. Other Christians are scared to challenge the dominant discourse or even to correct those Christians that believe the liberal perspective. Thus they are silenced for fear of attack and backed into a corner.

Personally, I believe that we are near to the end of the age and Jesus is coming soon. So it is important to get the gospel to the lost and to share a pertinent scripture with our liberal Christian brethren. 2 Chronicles 7:14 says “If my people who are called by my name humble themselves, and pray and seek my face and turn from their wicked ways, then I will hear from heaven and will forgive their sin and heal their land.”

In a world where righteousness is in steep decline and paganism is back with a vengeance. Where the weather seems to be bringing calamity after calamity to much of the Earth. While war, poverty and famine are causing heart ache upon heart ache to much of humanity (Matthew 24). It is time to share the gospel of salvation in the redemptive work of Jesus Christ on the Cross to all who can hear it (John 3:16). A final thought is from Isaiah 52:7 “How lovely on the mountains Are the feet of him who brings good news, Who announces peace And brings good news of happiness, Who announces salvation, And says to Zion, “Your God reigns!” Amen.

We are Chosen and yet Christ Jesus died for all. How do we reconcile the two?

Ephesians 1:5 “He predestined us for adoption to himself as sons through Jesus Christ, according to the purpose of his will...”

So the bible tell us that those who believe on Christ Jesus are chosen, predestined from the beginning. This is a controversial statement because it indicates that God chose us from the beginning (Ephesians 1: 4-5). It implies we have no choice and also that the a person may by default chosen for damnation. A lot of Christians don’t like this concept as it portrays a very unflattering perspective of the character of God.

As true as this may be there is more to the story than just predestination. Just as there are scriptures which state the case for predestination. That indicate that it is a fact. So there are scriptures which bring balance to the salvation narrative. The most well known of these scriptures being John 3:16 “For God so loved the world, that he gave his only Son, that whoever believes in him should not perish but have eternal life.”

Now many believe that this scripture when it says that ‘God so loved the World’ that it is speaking generally and not meaning that Christ Jesus died for all mankind. They feel that, rather, he died in a larger sense to rescue the whole World from sin. I would point out here that the non human life of Earth while being corrupted by the sins of mankind and therefore suffering under sin. Is not capable of repentance and is not responsible for the sin itself. So only mankind who in the beginning was made custodian of Earth and all of creation on it, can believe on Christ Jesus and have their sins forgiven thereby being restored to a relationship with God. Thus in the salvation of man exists the restoration of all the World. So when John says God so loved the World he is saying God so loved all mankind that he gave His only Son, that whoever believes on Him, shall not perish but inherit eternal life. Because only in the restoration of man can the World be restored.

Of course then we get into the mire of Calvinism and Tulip with total depravity, unconditional election, limited atonement, irresistible grace and perseverance of the saints. Total depravity states that the heart of man is so degraded post fall that no man can willingly choose salvation in Christ Jesus for themselves. God must do it for them. John 6:44 says “No one can come to me unless the Father who sent me draws him. And I will raise him up on the last day.” So Jesus clearly states that that God brings us into salvation but does he state that the reason is because man is totally depraved?

Next, is a Christian unconditionally elected. Jesus speaking in Luke 8:10 “he said, “To you it has been given to know the secrets of the kingdom of God, but for others they are in parables, so that ‘seeing they may not see, and hearing they may not understand.’” So Christ indicated that he was shrouding certain facts so that others might not understand what he was telling them. Does this imply that the elect shall know but those who hate God shall not? Doesn’t this statement rather imply that the lost must consider the facts and make a choice. I mean if people are unconditionally elected why tell them anything. No decision is possible because God has already decided the matter.

Now we must consider if atonement is limited? John 6:44 suggests that it is and the way Jesus spoke of the elect indicates that those who are saved are a special group of people belonging to God (1Peter 2:9). The word elect does imply that Christians have been chosen by God. So atonement is limited but to those who believe on Jesus Christ (John 3:16) It is thereby conditional on believing on Jesus.

So is grace irresistible? I would say no because the tone of scripture is that God allows the Christian the right to become a child of God. Yes he provides assistance in every way but it doesn’t sound like we are forced to become His children. I enclose a link to a search for you to peruse to make your own mind up about this issue. https://www.openbible.info/topics/choice_and_salvation

Finally, is there perseverance of the Saints? Hebrews 6:4-6 “For it is impossible, in the case of those who have once been enlightened, who have tasted the heavenly gift, and have shared in the Holy Spirit, and have tasted the goodness of the word of God and the powers of the age to come, and then have fallen away, to restore them again to repentance, since they are crucifying once again the Son of God to their own harm and holding him up to contempt.” So yes I believe on the strength of the Hebrews 6: 4-6 that you can turn away from the Saviour and that if you do so you can never be restored to a relationship with Jesus Christ again. In my humble opinion you can lose your salvation.

On the other side the Arminian considers that essentially Christ died for all men not just a select few and the in grace man is free to believe on Christ Jesus or not to believe and that a person may be drawn to Christ by hearing the gospel many times and decide to reject the gospel or eventually accept the truth. The acronym that Arminianism uses today is called Facts. Freed by Grace (to Believe). Atonement for All. Conditional Election. Total Depravity. Security in Christ.

They believe that man is freed to make a decision about salvation by God’s Grace. That atonement in Christ Jesus is unlimited and available to all. Election is conditional in that there is choice but is given only to those who believe on Christ Jesus as mentioned in John 3:16. They agree that man is totally depraved and can only make a decision to believe in the redemptive work of Jesus Christ if the Holy Spirit, through conviction of sin, draws them near to Christ. They believe that those who believe on Jesus have eternal security but that those who reject Christ having been once saved are lost to salvation as described in Hebrews 6: 4-6 as I mentioned before. I restate “For it is impossible, in the case of those who have once been enlightened, who have tasted the heavenly gift, and have shared in the Holy Spirit, and have tasted the goodness of the word of God and the powers of the age to come, and then have fallen away, to restore them again to repentance, since they are crucifying once again the Son of God to their own harm and holding him up to contempt.”

This argument about predestination and freedom of choice is basically a black hole. People, including myself, get fired up about this and there are many scriptures that indicate both sides have truth. I tend to think that the we are indeed predestined and I think it is definitely true that we need the Father to draw us near to Christ in order to respond to the gospel.

However, I firmly believe that the gospel is intended to reach all of mankind and that those who are saved are enabled to respond to the gospel by the action of the Holy Spirit upon their hearts. I feel that the predestination aspect of salvation is the underlying legal description of what is done for the believer by the Father in the gift of His only begotten Son in the power of the Holy Spirit. Salvation in the Law of God as it were

The Romans 6:23 “For the wages of sin is death, but the free gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord.” gift of salvation to all who will believe speaks of forgiveness and the love of God toward all of mankind and through mankind to all of the World. Thus Salvation in the Law of God’s Love. The Law in the Holy Spirit of God.

The former is the Written Law and the latter is the Fluid Grace of the Holy Spirit. One is a trial by Judge while the other is mercy and forgiveness dispensed directly from our advocate Jesus Christ. As Christians we have an advocate that is Christ Jesus who is both judge and advocate on our behalf and in whom we have salvation and a connection with the Son of the Living God.

So in the end it is not really just Predestination of a small elect as opposed the Gospel being available to All. It is both and we need to understand and accept that this is so because if we look at the scriptures without bias then that is what they indicate. The law is fulfilled in Christ Jesus and Law of Love is offered to all men in the New Covenant (Hebrews 8: 8-12).