6 Reasons Jesus is the Only Way to Salvation The Bible teaches that there is no way to salvation than through Jesus Christ, our Lord and Savior. By Lesli White

 

6 Reasons Jesus is the Only Way to Salvation

The Bible teaches that there is no way to salvation than through Jesus Christ, our Lord and Savior.

By Lesli White

Jesus Himself says in John 14:16, “I am the way, the truth and the life. No one comes to the Father except through Him.” From this we know that Jesus is the only way to salvation. He is not simple a way, as in one of many; He is the way, as in the one and only. There is not one person that can come to God the Father except through Jesus. There are believers that think that they can find their way to God through achievement, knowledge, reputation or personal holiness but God tells us that the only way is by being saved, which is deliverance or redemption from sin and its consequences. Scripture also tells us, “For it is by Grace you have been saved, through faith – and this is not from yourselves, it is a gift from God,” (Ephesians 2:8). Salvation is a God’s gift of grace that we receive through Jesus Christ. Here are six reasons Jesus is the only way to salvation.

Jesus Was Chosen By God to Be the Savior

Jesus is the only way to salvation for several reasons. One is that He was chosen by God to be the Savior. The Bible tells us, “As you come to Him, a living stone rejected by men but in the sight of God chosen and precious…” (1 Peter 2:4). Jesus is the only One to have come down from heaven and returned there (John 3:13). He is the only person to have lived a perfect human life (Hebrews 4:15). He is the only sacrifice for sin (1 John 2:2; Hebrews 10:26). He alone fulfilled the Law of the Prophets (Matthew 5:17). He is the only man to have conquered death forever. He is the only Mediator between God and man (1 Timothy 2:5). He is the only man whom God has “exalted…to the highest place” (Philippians 2:9). From this, we know that Jesus is the access point to God.

Jesus Knew From the Beginning Who He Was Called to Be

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One reason we know Jesus is the way of salvation is because this is what Jesus claimed about Himself. He declared that He is the way, the truth and the life, that no one comes to the Father except through Him (John 14:6). He knew He was the unique Son of God, sent by His Father into the world to save us from our sins. The only thing that separates us from god and keeps us out of heaven is our own sin. This is one of the reasons why our greatest need is to have our sins forgiven and cleansed, for only then can we be reconciled to God and go to be with Him throughout eternity. No matter how good we are, we can never erase our own sins. Only God can do this and that’s exactly what He did by sending Jesus Christ into the world for us.

The Apostles’ Preaching Focused on the Death and Resurrection of Jesus

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The apostle Peter, speaking to the Sanhedrin, clearly proclaimed Jesus as the only way to heaven: “Salvation is found in no one else, for there is no other name under heaven given to mankind by which we must be saved” (Acts 4:12). Paul, speaking to the synagogue in Antioch, singled out Jesus as the Savior: “I want you to know that through Jesus the forgiveness of sins is proclaimed to you. Through Him everyone who believes is set free from every sin” (Acts 13:38-39). John, writing to the church, specifies the name of Jesus as the basis of our forgiveness: “I am writing to you, dear children, because your sins have been forgiven on account of His name” (1 John 2:12). No one but Jesus can forgive sin.

Jesus Taught Repentance

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One of the first steps to take against sin is to repent. The importance of repentance is hard to overstate. After all, Jesus’ first public exhortation was “Repent!” (Mark 1:15). If repentance was this high on Jesus’ list, we probably should pay attention to it. Repentance requires honesty. The Bible tells us, “How happy is the man the LORD does not charge with sin, and in whose spirit is no deceit!” (Psalm 32:2). No one comes to God with true repentance in their heart unless they’ve first acknowledged their need for forgiveness and reconciliation with Him. Only those who have ceased trying to cover up their sin with self-righteousness and deceit can experience the deep and lasting change that comes only through repentance. It’s importance that you acknowledge the danger of sin and the damage of guilt. We must honestly assess the consequences of our sin, which means assessing both personal consequences and impact it has had – and will continue to have on others.

Jesus Breaks the Barrier Between Sin and God

As Christians, we are to avoid sin but this can be quite a task because we are sinful beings. As much as we don’t want to, we still sin in our daily lives because of the sinful nature that was injected into us through the fall. Because God is holy, He cannot tolerate sin, and our sin separates us from him, becoming a barrier to our fellowship with Him and even causing us to lose the joy of our salvation. Isiah 59:2 says, “Your iniquities have become a separation between you and your God, and your sins have hidden his face from you so that He does not hear.” The seriousness of sin should make us realize we cannot tolerate it or give sin any ground in our lives. But there is hope. We have the power to shake sin from our lives when we turn to Jesus. When we do this, we are removing the barriers that sin has created that have taken us away from God.

Jesus Defeated Sin

We know from Scripture that we can escape the chains of sin through Jesus. Backsliding refers to going backwards spiritually and morally. When a believer backslides, he falls back in some way into a less desirable condition; his lapse may be a relatively minor one and unintentional. He may simply fall back through neglect by not praying, reading the Bible, and keeping his focus on living for God. On the other hand, a believer may backslide by deliberately choosing to indulge in this life’s sinful pleasures. This type of backsliding can carry disastrous consequences. It can bring dishonor to the One who laid down His life for us. But there is good news for us when we backslide. God doesn’t condemn him. God’s loving concern for backsliders is steadfast and sure. A big step you take to escape the tangles of sin is turning to Jesus, the only One who has defeated sin and death out of His deep love for us.

In order to understand salvation, it’s imperative that you understand the death and resurrection of Christ which points to our salvation. To be saved is to accept the plan of salvation that Jesus offers us. The Son of God was made human, and during His earthly life, he lived a perfect life, and died not because He wanted to but because we needed salvation. He was made to die for us. Amazingly, God raised Him from the dead into new life, and promises to resurrect us when Jesus comes again. The salvation we need is Jesus, and can only be accessed through Him.

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Lesli White is a graduate of Virginia Commonwealth with a Bachelor’s degree in Mass Communications and a concentration in print and online journalism. In college, she took a number of religious studies courses and harnessed her talent for storytelling. White has a rich faith background. Her father, a Lutheran pastor and life coach was a big influence in her faith life, helping her to see the value of sharing the message of Christ with others. She has served in the church from an early age. Some of these roles include assisting ministry, mutual ministry, worship and music ministry and church council.