Islington Baptist Church May 13, 2001
Series: Why follow Jesus and not any other religion, philosophy, or way
Key text for this week: I John 5:20
Scripture readings: Isaiah 43-46, I Kings 18:16-40
Follow Jesus because of who he is: He is the only true God; He is Lord
For the past 3 weeks we have been considering the following question: Why follow Jesus and not any other religion, system, philosophy, or way?
It’s a question the Bible calls us to be prepared to answer at any time; for as I Peter 1:15 says “But in your hearts set apart Christ as Lord. Always be prepared to give an answer to everyone who asks you to give the reason for the hope that you have. But do this with gentleness and respect”
So far in our series we have considered 3 very important reasons for why a person must follow Jesus and not any other religion, system, philosophy, or way.
1. Follow Jesus because He is the only way to the Father.
In spite of the many voices who assert that there are many ways to God, the fact remains that “There is no other name given to men by which they must be saved”. As Jesus himself said “I am the way, the truth, and the life, no one comes to the Father but by me” (That was our key verse: John 14:6)
2. Follow Jesus because His sinless and perfect life qualifies him to declare the way to the Father.
Unlike the founders and gods of other religions, Jesus suffers from no moral credibility or sin issues. Jesus is the only person who has ever been sinless. The fact of his sinless and perfect life qualifies Jesus to definitively teach the way to God. Since his character, purity, morality, and credibility are beyond reproach, we can be supremely confident in the way of salvation that he teaches.
3. Follow Jesus because he offers a better way of salvation
3 reasons for why the way of salvation Jesus offers is better….
a. His work addresses and provides remedy for man’s core problem: his sinfulness
b. Complete assurance of your salvation can be had.
Our friends who belong to other religions have no iron clad assurances that they will ever get to the stated goals of their religions. They have no true confidence and according to the teachings of their religions, no basis for confidence either.
When a person comes to Jesus as the only Savior and Lord, the Bible “bends over backwards” communicating to them that their sins have been totally forgiven and that eternal life is truly theirs.
c. The salvation and forgiveness of sins that Jesus offers is not conditioned upon ones efforts and work.
The strivings of a sinful person to save themselves and merit the favor of God is a futile act. It is not by personal works that a person is or can be saved, it’s by the grace of God and the work of Jesus Christ on the cross.
Today, as we consider the “Why follow Jesus?” question, we are going to ponder this answer: Follow Jesus because of who he is: the only true God and Lord
In beginning with today’s subject I would like to read to you and excerpt from Ravi Zacharias’ new book “Jesus among other gods”
When Napoleon was exiled on the rock of St. Helena, he, the conqueror of civilized Europe, had time to reflect on the measure of his accomplishments. On one occasion he called Count Montholon to his side and asked him, “Can you tell me who Jesus Christ was?” The count declined to respond, but Napoleon had something to say.
“Well then, I will tell you. Alexander, Caesar, Charlemagne and I myself have founded great empires; but upon what did these creations of our genius depend? Upon force. Jesus alone founded His empire upon love, and to this very day millions will die for Him…. I think I understand something of human nature; and I tell you, Alexander, Caesar, Charlemagne, and I, are but men: none else is like Him; Jesus Christ was more than a man…. I have inspired multitudes with such an enthusiastic devotion that they would have died for me…. But to do this it was necessary that I should be visibly present with the electric influence of my looks, my words, of my voice. When I saw men and spoke them, I lighted up the flame of self devotion in their hearts…. Christ alone has succeeded in so raising the mind of man toward the unseen, that it becomes insensible to the barriers of time and space. Across of chasm of 1800 years, Jesus Christ makes a demand which is beyond all others difficult to satisfy; He asks for that which a philosopher may often seek in vain at the hands of his friends, or a father of his children, or a bride of her spouse, or a man of his brother. He asks for the human heart; He will have it entirely to Himself. He demands it unconditionally; and forthwith His demand is granted. Wonderful! In defiance of time and space, the soul of man, with all its powers and faculties, becomes an annexation to the empire of Christ. All who sincerely believe in Him, experience that remarkable, supernatural love toward Him. This phenomenon is unaccountable; it is altogether beyond the scope of man’s creative powers. Time, the great destroyer, is powerless to extinguish this sacred flame; time can neither exhaust its strength nor put a limit to its range. This is it, which strikes me most; I have often thought of it. This it is which proves to me quite convincingly the Divinity of Jesus Christ.
It seems to be beyond all doubt that Napoleon was convinced that Jesus was God, not just a god, but the true and only God.
I don’t know whether Napoleon was a believer or not. Perhaps his conviction that Jesus was Lord came from a believing heart or perhaps his conclusion was merely an intellectual and logical one. I do not know
What we do know is this: the Christian faith hangs upon 2 great declarations: Jesus is Lord and Jesus rose from the dead on the third day.
Romans 10:9 says “If you confess with your mouth “Jesus is Lord” and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead, you will be saved”
As mentioned, our topic revolves around this point: one must follow Jesus and not any other religion because he is the true God and eternal life.
I John 5:20b which is today’s key verse says of Jesus “…He is the true God and eternal life”
This is a weighty and controversial claim that deserves our full attention—for there are many who contend just the opposite.
In presenting Jesus as the true God we are going to follow a biblical argument: The Bible argues that:
1. The God of the Bible is the true God.
2. Jesus is God
3. Jesus is the true God (the conclusion of the matter)
I. THE GOD OF THE BIBLE IS THE TRUE GOD
1. The Bible repeatedly proclaims that there is only 1 true God
In Isaiah 45:6 it says “I am the LORD, and there is no other”. Many other texts declare this truth particularly between Isaiah 43-46
2. That there is only 1 true God has been repeatedly demonstrated
While every religion that professes a belief in a god, proclaims their God to be the true one, their problem is that they suffer the burden of proof, and more specifically: they suffer from a lack of proof.
-last week we noted how the Philippian jailer came to be convinced
-when Jonah was on the foundering ship God demonstrated that He alone was the true God
-I Kings 18 is a classic passage: Elijah challenged the prophets of Baal and Asherah to a contest. “If the LORD is God, follow him; but if Baal is God, follow him” then note this “But the people said nothing. Then Elijah said to them, “I am the only one of the LORD’s prophets left, but Baal has 450 prophets. Get 2 bulls for us. Let them choose one for themselves, and let them cut it into pieces and put it on the wood but not set fire to it. Then you call on the name of your god, and I will call on the name of the LORD. The god who answers by fire- he is God.” We all know what happened!
When God rescued Shad, Mesh, Abednego from the fiery furnace; what was Neb. conclusion? “No other god can save in this way!” Daniel 3
Over and over again God has provided and continues to prove that He alone is God, the true God.
3. It is a logical conclusion to say: idols are false gods and the God of the scriptures is the true God
When it comes to this point, there are many angles one can take: we could legitimately consider the inconsistent nature, revelation, and character of “competing gods”, however lets consider the approach that is found in the book of Isaiah.
In Isaiah chapters 43-46 it is repeatedly asserted that the God we serve is the true and only God and that all other ‘gods’ are false gods.
Listen to a section of Isaiah’s reasoning: Isaiah 44:6-17 “This is what the LORD says –Israel’s King and Redeemer, the LORD Almighty: I am the first and I am the last; apart from me there is no God. Who then is like me? Let him proclaim it. Let him declare and lay out before me what has happened since I established my ancient people, and what is yet to come- yes, let him foretell what will come. Do not tremble, do not be afraid. Did I not proclaim this and foretell it long ago? You are my witnesses. Is there any God besides me? No, there is no other Rock; I know not one.” All who make idols are nothing, and the things they treasure are worthless. Those who would speak up for them are blind; they are ignorant, to their own shame. Who shapes a god and casts an idol, which can profit him nothing? He and his kind will be put to shame; craftsmen are nothing but men. Let them all come together and take their stand; they will be brought down to terror and infamy. The blacksmith takes a tool and works with it in the coals; he shapes an idol with hammers, he forges it with the might of his arm. He gets hungry and loses his strength; he drinks no water and grows faint. The carpenter measures with a line and makes an outline with a marker; he roughs it out with chisels and marks it with compasses. He shapes it in the form of man, of man in all his glory, that it may dwell in a shrine. He cut down cedars, or perhaps took a cypress or oak. He let it grow among the trees of the forest, or planted a pine, and the rain made it grow. It is man’s fuel for burning; some of it he takes and warms himself, he kindles a fire and bakes bread. But he also fashions a god and worships it; he makes an idol and bows down to it. Half of the wood he burns in the fire; over it he prepares his meal, he roasts his meat and eats his fill. He also warms himself and says “Ah! I am warm; I see the fire.” From the rest he makes a god, his idol; he bows down to it and worships. He prays to it and says “Save me; you are my god.”
The logical conclusion is this: god’s that men conceive of and make are no gods at all. There is a true God though, the God of the Bible who has revealed and proven himself.
II. JESUS IS GOD
1. One of the cardinal claims of Jesus is this: He is God
Jesus said “I and the Father are one, if you have seen me you have seen the Father”
Jesus said to the Pharisees “Before Abraham was, I AM”. If you know this passage you will know that the very next thing that the Jews did was to pick up stones to kill Jesus, for they rightly perceived Jesus to be claiming to be God—the same One who revealed himself to Moses at the burning bush in Exodus 3:14, naming himself as “I AM”
In John 5:22 Jesus claims to be the judge of the world: that’s God’s domain
In numerous texts he proclaims himself to be the one who gives eternal life: this is God’s domain: hence the conclusion that Jesus is claiming to be God
2. Jesus backed up his claim to be God in the flesh by performing powerful miracles
In Mark 2 he shows that he views himself to have the authority to forgive sins. The conclusion of those around him is that only God can forgive sins. To prove the point that he was God and had the authority to forgive sins, Jesus healed the sick man of his disease.
In John 10:24-25 it records this “the Jews gathered around him, saying, “How long will you keep us in suspense? If you are the Christ, tell us plainly.” Jesus answered, “I did tell you, but you do not believe. The miracles I do in my Father’s name speak me”. What was Jesus doing? He was saying look “The many miracles I have done serve as proof for my claims”
Also note this: there is one other reason for believing that Jesus is God. The greatest of all miracles: His resurrection from the dead.
Jesus’ attested and logically provable resurrection from dead confirms his claim to be God.
What was it that Thomas said upon being convinced that Jesus had risen from the dead? “My Lord and My God”
3 Jesus claimed to be God and the convincing proofs he offered resulted in strong conviction in the hearts of his disciples
For what did they do? they worshipped him as God, they addressed him as God, they proclaimed him as God, they prayed in his name and cast out demons in the name of Jesus.
III. THE CONCLUSION OF THE MATTER IS THIS: JESUS IS THE TRUE GOD
This is the testimony of I John 5:20 “He is the true God and eternal life”. and then note what the very next words say “Dear children, keep yourselves form idols”
Why ought a person to follow Jesus and not any other religion, philosophy, or way? Because he is the true God, He is the only Lord
The Bible’s argumentation is quite simple: it’s a logical argument
1. The God who is revealed to us in the scriptures, is the true and only God.
a. This is the repeated declaration of God in the scriptures: He is true God, there are no others
b. God has repeatedly demonstrated and continues to demonstrate that he is the true and only God
c. It is also a logical conclusion to say that idols and gods conceived of by men are false God and that the God of the scriptures is the true God.
2. Jesus is God. Jesus is the very same One/God who revealed himself to Moses at the burning bush
Just think of all the times Jesus made this claim: “I AM the door, the way, the truth, the life, the resurrection and the life, the alpha and the omega, etc”. He backed these claims up.
3. Since Jesus is the same One/God who revealed himself to Moses at the burning bush the conclusion is this: Jesus is the true God.
APPLICATION
You and I just can’t stop here. It’s all very nice to walk through a logical argument that that shows Jesus to be the true and only God. Yet; there needs to be application. We have to address the “So what?” question
a. Follow Jesus and commit to him because He is the true God and Lord.
As we noted earlier: the key confession of a Christian is that Jesus is Lord. If a person wants to be saved from their sins there must be an agreement on their part with Jesus’ claim to be God.
If not a Christian and still unsure whether or not Jesus is God, read through the book of John. John’s major premise is that Jesus is God.
Since Jesus declares himself to be the only way to the Father, you must turn to him alone for the salvation of your soul; there is no other way.
b. Since Jesus is the true God. Since Jesus is the one who revealed himself to Moses at the burning, He is worthy of our worship.
Revelations 4:11 says “You are worthy our Lord and God, to receive glory and honor and power,……”
Jesus is worthy of being the object of our affection and attention. He is worthy of our praises.
c. Since Jesus is the true God and eternal life a complete surrender on our parts to his Lordship is necessary
You and I can’t come to Jesus with conditions. “I’ll serve and obey you if and when”. Jesus is worthy of 1st place in our lives.
In Luke 6:46 Jesus says “Why do you call me, “Lord, Lord,” and do not do what I say?”
These are words all of us need to be challenged with. We need to take a look at our lives and note where we are in disobedience to our Savior
-have you yet been baptized
-are you serving your brothers and sisters in Christ
-do you fellowship often with the saints
-are in a right relationship or a wrong one
-do you carry bitterness and resentment and unforgiveness in your heart
-do you tithe of your income to the church and God’s work
These are the practical implications to us of Jesus’ Lordship: He is the only way and the only Savior. He is worthy of our worship. Complete and loving surrender on our parts to his lordship is required of us.
