Apr 7 - 24 - Acts 4:12

"Salvation is found in no one else,

for there is no other name

given under heaven

by which we must be saved."

Bible Rank: 24

Acts 4:12

 

Many people don’t like the specificity of one way, one Savior. Even some Christians think it sounds elitist – How dare we claim to have the only truth and thus claim that all other people, religions, and worldviews are wrong?

 

We live in a world where truth is viewed as “relative” and that all opinions must be viewed as equal. Indeed, judging another person – including their worldview, thought, and philosophies – is the height of arrogance.

 

Even good Christians cower under this politically correct pressure. We equivocate. We often remain silent. We don’t want to be perceived as judgmental.

 

So … here’s the question: Was Peter being judgmental when he stood in front of a murderous tribunal and said, “Salvation is found in no one else” … or was he telling the truth?

 

Remember the testimony of the Gospel – the Good News! Remember, why Jesus willingly gave his life upon the cross! The Gospel is either totally true or it totally isn’t. Jesus can’t be just kind-of-true. Our Lord’s sacrifice on the cross matters infinitely and definitively … or he was a deluded madman … or a crazy fraud. The Gospel is either totally true or it totally isn’t.

 

And the Good News is this:

 

·         Sin separates us from God – moment-by-moment and eternally.

·         And because God is so holy, perfect, and pure – and we’re not – then we can’t ever worm our way into his favor.

·         Thankfully, in an act of love and generosity God “gave his one and only son” (see John 3:16).

·         And in another act of love and generosity, Jesus not only stepped off the throne in heaven to come down to this broken earth, but died to take the penalty of our sin upon himself.

·         We are free – not by our own actions – but through the atoning sacrifice of Jesus Christ.

·         Thus, “salvation is found in no one else, for there is no other name given under heaven by which we must be saved.”

 

We are not judgmental when we say this!

 

Read that again. We are not judgmental when we say this. Why? Because God – not us – is the judge. Yet rather than angrily judging, God is his costly grace has offered a path to freedom and life.

 

Our world make it seem like a crime if we state this. (We’re deemed elitist … judgmental … narrow-minded … exclusive.)

 

So is testifying a crime of insensitivity? No, it’s a crime if we don’t speak! As in the story of the Good Samaritan, if we don’t graciously proclaim this life-giving truth, we’re the religious pretenders who walk by helpless, hopeless, dying people without offering a way to be saved.

 

God sets the terms of his salvation, not the political correctness of our culture. And God’s terms are generous, self-giving, and life-restoring. And this is the Good News: “Salvation is found in no one else, for there is no other name given under heaven by which we must be saved.”

 

In Christ’s Love,

a guy who cares

more for eternal truth

than worldly popularity