THE IRONY OF ALL ROADS LEAD TO ROME: PART ONE

How often have you heard people say something like this:

“All roads lead to Rome. There are many religions in the world, and there are many ways to God. Some call God by the name ‘Allah,’ others by the name ‘Jehovah,’ and still others by a plethora of names. All religions have the same goal, namely, to get to heaven. It really does not matter what a person believes, as long as he is sincere.”

Unfortunately, there is a problem with this philosophy; what if does matter? What if the god being worshiped does not exist? Or, even if it did exist, would you want to spend eternity with a god who would allow someone like you into heaven? Wouldn't a heaven with you in it be just like this world, with all of its imperfections? Obviously, a religion that judges the acceptability of its members by using a "scale" that measures one's good qualities against one's bad qualities, is willing to accept people into heaven that were "good" only fifty-one percent of the time. I don't know about you, but that doesn't sound like heaven to me.
And yet, that is what every religion in the world teaches.

There is a way that leads to heaven which, although called a religion, is better described as a family. Christianity teaches that God, the One and only God, desires to spend eternity with His children. In fact, the only folks who will be in heaven will be members of His family. John 1:12 says, "But as many as received Him (Jesus), to them gave He power to become the sons (children) of God, even to them that believe on His name." There are dozens of passages that speak of believers in Jesus Christ as being the children of God, but three of the most important are found in the Books of Romans, Galatians and 1 John:

"The Spirit Itself beareth witness with our spirit, that we are the children of God: and if children, then heirs; heirs of God, and joint-heirs with Christ..." (Rom. 8:16-17). "For ye are all the children of God by faith in Christ Jesus" (Gal. 3:26). "Beloved, now are we the sons of God, and it doth not yet appear what we shall be: but we know that, when He shall appear, we shall be like Him; for we shall see Him as He is" (1 Jn. 3:2)

Notice that we are now a child of God because we have "faith in Christ Jesus." We do not earn a relationship by following a religious set of rules and regulations; we simply believe in Jesus. Paul wrote that even our faith in Jesus could not be counted as "works," because the faith, itself, was a gift from God: "For by grace are ye saved through faith; and that not of yourselves: it is the gift of God: not of works, lest any man should boast" (Eph. 2:8-9).

To be continued, Lord willing.