Question:
Is telling people that"Jesus is the only way"absolutely wrong?If there were only 1 way out of a burning room
Very much in love with God.
2008-04-21 21:42:38 UTC
would you rather I let you think that "any direction" will lead you out safely? So that I would not hurt your feelings or offend you.
I also would feel a strong obligation to tell you in order to save your life and protect you whether you wanted me to tell you or not.
Im sorry but it wasnt Christians who began the "Jesus is the only way" saying. It was Christ who said "I am the way, the truth and the life." And no one comes to the Father except by me. So since this is what I believe, what is wrong with me trying to help people because of the integrity I have found in the Bible?
47 answers:
the nomad
2008-04-21 22:40:14 UTC
There is no problem with telling them that 'Jesus is the way'. Isn't that what he told you to tell the the world? So, for you and those who received your message it would be correct and the right thing to do, but from the world view of many opposed to your belief they will feel judged and reject the hearing of such things. SO as the question is solved in the bible, Is it better to regard God or man?
2008-04-21 22:02:19 UTC
1) Satan is the one who would let anyone think there is more than one way out of a burning room whilst blocking THE ONLY EXIT. He no doubt could do this without hurting feelings or being offensive.



2) I agree with/understand your obligation. The person who is told where the door is will make the decision to heed loving words. God gave us free will.



3) You are correct. It was Christ who said: "I am the way and the truth and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me." John 14:6



4) There is nothing wrong with SHARING the Word of God and helping plant a seed. It IS not right to minister to someone who is not ready or unwilling to hear it.



The Bible is the infalible Word of God. It is also proven historically correct archeologically. Keep on keeping on.



Remember:



"Blessed are those who are persecuted because of righteousness, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.



"Blessed are you when people insult you, persecute you and falsely say all kinds of evil against you because of me. Rejoice and be glad, because great is your reward in heaven, for in the same way they persecuted the prophets who were before you." Matthew 5:10-12



Blessings,

K



(Thank you for the thumbs down for it is a testament to Matthew 5:10-12 mentioned above)
Jrock2008
2008-04-21 22:05:19 UTC
There is absolutely nothing wrong with telling people that Jesus is the only way... because He is. If you saw a person about to walk into a fiery inferno, wouldn't you try to stop them? That is what telling people about Jesus is like. A lot of people don't realize that without Jesus Christ they are heading to a place void of God. Before the great white throne judgement, many people will be in hades... and the last time they will ever be in the presence of Almighty God will be at the time of judgement when God has no choice but to have them thrown into the lake of fire. That is why it is so important that we tell every single person we come into contact with that Jesus Christ is the only way to heaven. And many people think that we are condemning them, but how is that so? People who don't believe in the only begotten Son of God Jesus Christ are already condemned. But Jesus Christ has already paid their price and all they have to do is believe... if you ask me, I'd rather someone tell me when I'm wrong and save me from death then to let me continue living a lie and end up in hell.
disciple
2008-04-21 21:59:46 UTC
There's nothing wrong with telling people the truth that "neither is there salvation in any other: for there is none other name under heaven given among men, whereby we must be saved." Acts 4:12 (KJV) This is gospel truth, and it is the message of reconciliation with God that Scripture exhorts us to preach. There's a lot of pressure in the world today to bow to a syncretistic universalism. Don't succumb to it, brother ... it is leading the world to ecumenically embrace the whore of Babylon.



Don't be sorry, and don't apologize. You're speaking the truth. The humility and concern you have is admirable. Ask the Lord to maintain that attitude within you, and ask him to grow you in the love of Christ.



You'll do well to remember that our message will never be popular; the Lord has promised as much, so don't be discouraged, our help comes from the Lord. We're not working to gain the approval of man, but of God. Drive on, brother!
2008-04-21 21:53:30 UTC
Because sometimes people don't want to hear it. I'm a believer that Jesus is the way, however I respect others beliefs and keep religion a more personal thing.



And now here comes the "well your not a true Christian.."

My dad's a pastor and I get that all the time. But I really feel that religion is a personal relationship with whatever you subscribe to. You, as a human being, can not force someone to believe in Christ. It has to be them who accepts him into their hearts. It doesn't matter how much you preach. If they really don't want to hear it, it will just go in one ear and out the other.





So chill out and let people have their own views. Mmmk?
Bob C
2008-04-21 21:50:59 UTC
There is a story in the bible that says (paraphrased), talk to the people. If they invite you in, talk some more. If they don't want to listen, shake the dust off your feet and find different people.



People have free will. Of course if they are offended by Religion and Spirituality, they probably shouldn't be spending time in the Religion and Spirituality section.



As George Carlin put it-one knob changes the channels, the other one turns it off. There are a lot of other web pages out there to look at if this offends you.
Bill K Atheist Goodfella
2008-04-21 22:02:40 UTC
Here's the difference between 'Jesus being the only way' and the burning room:



You can prove the existence of the burning room.



To this day there has yet to be one shred of evidence to support the existence of 'Jesus', or the claims put forth in the bible concerning him.



"what is wrong with me trying to help people because of the integrity I have found in the Bible?" There's a simple answer to this. There is no integrity to be found in the bible. It fosters ignorance of the workings of the world, establishes a system of cultural and gender based elitism, advocates child abuse and slavery, and is mired in hypocrasy.
Fourth Line
2008-04-21 22:05:57 UTC
There is nothing wrong with telling people of the one exit YOU KNOW from a burning building.



But people were escaping the building thousands of years before Jesus came.



Hey, I suppose if the building were on fire, one exit would be enough, so I can't criticize you.
Bob L
2008-04-21 22:00:43 UTC
it's wrong because jesus didn't even write the gospels. there is no credible proof that he said any of that. they were written by 4 different dudes, and they disagree on many points.



secondly, such a concept shows a weak and unjust god. only a minority of people who have ever existed have even heard the name jesus. it shows that god only loves the people who by chance happened to have lived during a time when jesus was a household name.



keep in mind, billions of people even today live in countries where it's illegal to be christian, many of which today have never heard the name jesus. i guess they're screwed though, huh?



this concept shows conditional love. the condition being you have to be born in the right place and time in order to have known about jesus.



i hope that shows you how lame this concept is.
Rallie Florencio C
2008-04-21 21:56:08 UTC
No other one but YOU can save yourself from whatever damnation may befall on you.

Jesus already made an excuse by saying "Not all those who say God o God will be saved. I will say, 'away from me you evil doers' ".

Do not worry.

Anyway, if you go down to hell, Jesus will still meet you there since he claims he hold the key to Hades.

Read the book of Revelation about it..

He even said. "You cannot serve two masters at the same time". So, if he is entrusted with the key of hell, who really is his master? I do not think he is serving both.

www.thename.ph
Secret Agent of God (BWR)
2008-04-21 21:49:37 UTC
Yes, it's wrong.



Why?



Because it would be MUCH EASIER IF YOU SHOW them the way out of the burning room so that they can see it leads to safety.



I mean, seriously. Who wants to "start believing in God and then go around and pester other people to believe in Him"?



It's annoying as hell when people do this.



I hope to lead by example. I hope that people see how happy and carefree I am and that it helps to make a difference, even the smallest difference in someone's life. I don't care if they "accept Jesus" as their savior or not. I just want them to be happy. Getting God was what made me happy. But I had to be SHOWN.
jenn_aka_hazel
2008-04-21 21:48:37 UTC
There is nothing wrong with you telling people. The only thing is that you have to take in to concideration that there are people in this world who do not believe. You can tell people but do not force for that is not going to help. People are raised in different settings and walks of life. All you can do is to explain it to them and say " hey this is what i believe here are the reasons i believe it maybe you could try it"
2008-04-21 21:48:19 UTC
I agree with that but today it is so hard to mention Christ because so many Christians have pushed their believes on sinners that they do more harm than good but if said in a way that isn't shoving it down their throat but just letting them know he is there in a simple way and then let them add or stop i think is the best way today..always uphold Christ and mention it to them especially in a life threating situation but we need to try to encourage it instead of force it on others
Tim 47
2008-04-21 21:46:48 UTC
That is a horrible analogy.

Using analogies of getting out of a burning room, (I assume you mean a burning hell), is so very unpleasant.

Why? Because the very concept, of a God of love, burning up his created children, is just wrong.

This teaching, is the very reason, that so many people are totally not interested in hearing anything more about God. For, if we were created in his (God's) image, and the idea of burning people in hell is wrong to us,, then how much more so, is it unlikely that the creator would actually use this as a form of fair punishment? Answer,? He would not.



God himself, actually chastised the Jews, for making their children 'pass through the fire', a disgusting practice, that the Jews adopted from the pagan religions of their neighbors.

He said this was something that "Never entered my heart..", yet here we are today, with people promoting the lie, that the very same god that expressed disgust when humans burned their own children, will actually burn us, his own creation.



Until Christians realize, that this doctrine, is both unreasonable, and not even scriptural, you will by no means make much headway into appealing to those of us who are not afraid to use our god given intelligence, for, we were created by an intelligent creator, and should not be so shameful, and insulting to him, as to ignore this fact.

If God, was the Intelligent Designer, then Christians must show that they have enough intelligence, to turn away from doctrines and dogma, that create a God of contradiction and unreasonableness.
Kristi and Matt
2008-04-21 21:48:51 UTC
I am catholic but I would never, ever, be forceful on anybody when it comes to religion. You are entitled to your beliefs and so are others... so as long as you aren't being pushy about it then I dont see why you cant share your experiences with people. However, I would leave the preaching part to the pastors and priests.
Fox Puppet
2008-04-21 21:48:49 UTC
This is assuming that there is a burning room to begin with. You see, your metaphorical burning room is a room that may or may not be on fire. Nobody can actually see the room to be able to tell whether it is on fire or not.



It's like Shroedinger's cat. You can't see the room, or the state of the room, but you choose to assume that the room is on fire. The only way to prove that the room is indeed on fire is to look at the room (which you currently can't see) and check.
i
2008-04-21 21:51:43 UTC
it is not wrong of you to tell people about Jesus however since we live in such a liberal country people have the right to believe what they want ..when it comes to god that is what priests and messengers are for..
mustangsilver456
2008-04-21 22:02:27 UTC
I have made you a watchman for the house of Israel; so hear the word I speak and give them warning from me. When I say to a wicked man, "You will surely die," and you do not warn him or speak out to dissuade him from his evil ways in order to save his life, that wicked man will die for his sin, and I will hold you accountable for his blood. But if you do warn the wicked man and he does not turn from his wickedness or from his evil ways, he will die for his sin; but you will have saved yourself.



This is what we speak, not in words taught us by human wisdom but in words taught by the Spirit, expressing spiritual truths in spiritual words. The man without the Spirit does not accept the things that come from the Spirit of God, for they are foolishness to him, and he cannot understand them, because they are spiritually discerned.



For he has rescued us from the kingdom of darkness and transferred us into the Kingdom of his dear Son.
gelfling
2008-04-21 21:49:55 UTC
It's a lie. Jesus ISN'T the only way. Non-Christians DON'T WANT to spend eternity with the sadistic Hitler-God of the Bible. We don't need your kind of 'help'. We are happy not worshiping a monstrous, bloodthirsty killer.



Mind your own spiritual business.
?
2008-04-21 21:48:30 UTC
If I were in a burning room, I'd listen to people who actually tell me whether or not they've seen a door, rather than people who "feel" they've seen a door.
child of God
2008-04-21 21:48:42 UTC
Of course it's not wrong, but you need to remember that it's not your job to sell God's plan of salvation--you just need to share it. If people reject it or you, shake the dust off your shoes and move on to those who are worthy as Christ so instructed His disciples.

Blessings.
Cloverfield Monster
2008-04-21 21:47:58 UTC
Well, if you were in a burning building with me, you would most likely be praying that God or Jesus would save you. You would be telling everyone where the way out was and you would be quoting some random book, but when you got to where you thought it would be, you would find that you didn't know where the real way out was. On the other hand, i would use science, and think for myself, and find the correct way out.
....
2008-04-21 21:50:58 UTC
It would be wrong to let that person continue walking the wrong path. That is, if you believe your purpose is to spread the word.



I don't understand why you would see something wrong in trying to help people. That's your job. After all, it all comes down to each individual and his/her decisions.
mahdiya
2008-04-21 21:48:02 UTC
Go for what you know

I believe Allah is the way, the Creator, not a man

nor do I believe in the works of an altered Bible, which no one knows the truth from the false...... unlike Islam and the Quran,you can't trace the writers of the Bible nor all of its stories

Pray to God to forgive you for worshiping a man
lostnsavd
2008-04-21 21:51:13 UTC
Good for you!



God's Word is absolute Truth; and His "Instruction Manual" for us to live an abundant life. It is also His "Love Letter" to us.



Any treasure hunters out there? God's Word is a Treasure Chest. Dig in! There are all sorts of precious Gems... waiting just for... you.
2008-04-21 21:49:07 UTC
the bible is god breathed the bible is the word and the word is truth Jesus is the only way dont say otherwise u might hurt there feelings now but save them from an eternity of hurt later
Kate
2008-04-21 21:52:32 UTC
that is very misinterpreted. christ saying "I am the way" yadda yadda.



i remember i was told what it truly meant but i forget.



many things jesus said are totally misinterpreted. he spoke deeper than we can fathom or he knew more and was more advanced than us.



by all means help others the way that you can. but have an open mind to other ways
Trey H
2008-04-21 21:47:07 UTC
If I was in a room that was on fire and some dude was telling me that Jesus was the only way out, I would knock him out and use his unconscious body to ram a hole through the door and get us both to safety.
2008-04-21 21:48:47 UTC
Thats crazy
Goku
2008-04-21 21:48:25 UTC
There is nothing wrong with wanting to help people, but not everyone agrees with each other on what the "truth" is.



No one wants to be told what to do. It is as simple as that.



_______________



EDIT:



BURNING ROOM SCENARIO:



Honestly, I do not know what I would do in the burning room scenario. I would probably just ask you to show me the way yourself, as another answerer had suggested.



I can, however, tell you that, in such extreme circumstances, most (non-Christian/non-Catholic) people would start with the most practical approaches (i.e. searching, asking for your help, etc.) and work their way up to the more subjective methods until they eventually reached your proposed method of using Jesus.



It is common knowledge that people will do almost anything to save their lives, so, if you told someone that Jesus is the only way out after his or her spirit had broken, he or she would probably say something along the lines of, "Anything to get out of here! Just help me!", "I guess it's worth a shot if you think it will work.", or, "What choice do I have? I have nothing to lose anyway. I can either try your method or burn to a crisp."



"would you rather I let you think that "any direction" will lead you out safely? So that I would not hurt your feelings or offend you."



In that kind of situation, their feelings would not be hurt very much. They just would not listen to you until they had run out of options. Either that or they would die stubbornly defending their beliefs.



"I also would feel a strong obligation to tell you in order to save your life and protect you whether you wanted me to tell you or not."



Some would appreciate it, but most would not. You would need to either convince them somehow or wait until they had lost all hope before telling/reminding them how to get out.



_______________



MY ANSWER IN GENERAL:



"So since this is what I believe, what is wrong with me trying to help people because of the integrity I have found in the Bible?"



Like I said before, there is nothing wrong with wanting to help people because of your beliefs (and your integrity and adherence to them).



Before I continue, I must let everyone here know that I am neither a Christian, nor a Catholic, nor an atheist:



I am an agnostic who holds a position as that of a Buddhist who believes that Buddhism is more likely to be the "true" way than any other (non-) belief system. In other words, my beliefs are not set in stone: They are just inclinations. I strongly believe that it is (currently) impossible to prove or disprove any (or almost any) belief/non-belief system known to the world as it stands.



Some will listen, most will not. The main problem is that is (almost literally) hurts (I can tell you this from experience) to be told (by a stranger often times, which is even worse) that the only way you can be saved from eternal damnation is by accepting a highly debated historic individual as your savior.



There are three main reasons why this hurts "non-believers'" feelings so much:



1. We simply do not agree with what we are being told. Their isn't really a way to get around that, so the material that I have listed below can be used to soften that inevitable complication.



2. It is not being presented to us as a possibility, it is being presented to us as a certainty and as a declaritive statement. This often comes across as extremely offensive because it completely fails to acknowledge our own beliefs and non-beliefs. This is simple to overcome. All one must do is present it in a non-declaritive manner.



Example:



"I believe that Jesus really was the son of God and that we can find salvation by accepting him as our savior. What do you think?"



The question at the end is very important because it acknowledges the person that you are speaking to and gives him or her to assert his or her own opinion, allowing him or her to contribute to the conversation constructively without being nearly as offended.



3. Most of us do not like hearing about or discussing beliefs without first agreeing to do so. If we were asked if we wanted to hear a person's religious opinion we would not have the problem in the first place.



Example:



"Excuse me sir/ma'am. Would you like to discuss Christianity/the bible/the life of Jesus Christ with me?"



"No, but thank you for asking."



If you heed those three rules, I can guarantee that you will reduce the amount of people you offend by a massive amount. That is the secret to spreading your believes in the least offensive way in person.



_______________



AN OPTIMISTIC NOTE FOR ALL:



I am aware that it is the goal of Christians and Catholics to spread the word of Jesus and to get others to accept Jesus as their savior. You might say that it is the ultimate goal of Christians and Catholics to get every person on earth to accept Jesus Christ as their personal savior.



Well, people of other belief systems also have ultimate goals.



In my belief system, for example, the ultimate goal is that every being in existence eventually reaches spiritual enlightenment.



All in all, the believers in most of the various faiths share common benign goals whose fulfillment will make life for everyone/everthing more pleasant in some way.



Okay, I'll cut to the chase now.



I believe that, as the state of the world worsens, more and more people will begin to "lose their faith" and convert to different belief/non-belief systems. The end result would be that belief and non-belief systems would continue to be "eliminated" from common approval until only one would remain as the majority, which would then eventually become the universal belief/non-belief system.



Whatever that belief/non-belief system may be remains to be seen.



All of this is, of course, would be assuming that our humble little planet (or just civilization in general) survives that long.



Very much in love with God.,



You obviously believe very strongly in your faith, so, as far as I'm concerned, you will have nothing to worry about. If Christianity is somehow "proven" to be the "right" way, then the ultimate goal of you and your fellow Christians will eventually be met if the human race/the planet survives long enough.



I hope that my answer was informative and objective enough for you,



EE
pheobe
2008-04-21 21:51:36 UTC
Those who believes in God would know. help comes from different form, matters or size. It can come from God through a person... i believe when we have those good intention, Its God whispering to us.
Heron By The Sea
2008-04-21 21:47:26 UTC
It would not be wrong if it were true. And for you, who believes that it is true, you are doing what you feel is best by telling people this. If it were indeed true, you are of course right. However, I do not believe it is true. And I also do not believe that Jesus said those words. I think they were put in his mouth years after he died.
5280
2008-04-21 21:46:44 UTC
We as Christians are supposed to spread the word of Jesus and God. Obviously if someone just refuses, then that is something to accept, and you always know that you at least tried. And you then pray for them. :)
OUpreacher
2008-04-21 21:46:43 UTC
And what do you know those word of John 14:6 are in red in the red letter addition of the Bible.



JESUS is so intolerant, i guess.



Good point!
?
2008-04-21 21:48:18 UTC
You're welcome to your opinion, your belief and your religion. But that doesn't mean you have the right to push it on other people who have no wish to hear about it.



Would you like it if someone else were to push their religion (or lack of it) on you all the time?
LabGrrl
2008-04-21 21:46:23 UTC
Actually Jesus said his father's house had many rooms. You're the one cherry picking the Bible to suit your own view.
cameron_c
2008-04-21 21:47:42 UTC
You sound like a bigot and a militant fundy who thinks he has absolute truth. You got nothing. Jesus is a fraud and I don't want to hear about frauds. So yes, it is wrong to me.
2008-04-21 21:48:55 UTC
Did you know that there is a difference between your beliefs and the objective truth?



Did you know that not knowing this makes christians seem incredibly unintelligent and narrow minded?



Did you know that your jesus never existed, and his character is a knock-off of earlier, cooler gods?



http://www.wilsonsalmanac.com/jesus_similar.html

http://www.medmalexperts.com/POCM/getting_started_pocm.html



http://www.geocities.com/paulntobin/jesus.html

http://nobeliefs.com/exist.htm

http://www.inu.net/skeptic/exist.html

http://www.atheists.org/christianity/didjesusexist.html



http://www.jesusneverexisted.com/



Did you know that the bible is a pretty horrible book?

http://www.skepticsannotatedbible.com/

http://www.evilbible.com/
yoohoo
2008-04-21 21:47:52 UTC
If it was a burning room we would all die a painful death. If your trying to save my @$$ tell me where the god damned door is @$$.
2008-04-21 21:45:35 UTC
Yes. If I was in a burning room, I'd rather you show me the door than some imaginary being that's going to "save" my soul, which not only doesn't need saving, but doesn't exist.
Christy
2008-04-21 21:47:03 UTC
If people wanted to be "Saved" they would do it themselves. They aren't trying t force their views on them, so don't force yours on them.
quantumrift
2008-04-21 21:45:39 UTC
If it is God's word, then why would it be 'wrong'?
2008-04-21 21:46:09 UTC
Saying you're "in love" with a god, tells me we can't have an intelligent conversation.



It is not up to you to "save" me or anyone else. Just worry about your own ***.
gasket300
2008-04-21 21:45:35 UTC
a
cheir
2008-04-21 21:45:27 UTC
That's a red rag to the majority - who hate God.
2008-04-21 21:46:18 UTC
it is wrong because your beliefs are ridiculous



You wanna be delusional, then fine, but just keep it to yourself mmmmkkkaayy?
honestly7777
2008-04-21 21:46:37 UTC
there only needs to be one way out when that way is guaranteed to work!!!!!!!!!!!!


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