We get this question so often that we’re answering it again here. The short answer is no, they don’t. There is no “path” to God as some of the world’s religions suggest. Self-sacrifice, good works and performing a variety of religious rites or rituals will not ensure connection with God or eternal life free of the evil, pain, suffering of human existence.
Only through Jesus, who is fully God and fully man, can man find peace–in this life and the next. Jesus is also known as Emmanuel, or God with us. He proclaimed:
“I am the Way, the Truth and the Life; no one comes to the Father (God) except by me.”
John 14:6
The only way to a present and eternal relationship with God is to commit one’s life to Jesus as Savior and Lord, follow Him and obey His Commandments. When asked by religious leaders of his day, “Of all the commandments, which is the most important?”
“The most important one,” answered Jesus, “is this: ‘Hear, O Israel: The Lord our God, the Lord is one. Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind and with all your strength.’ The second is this: ‘Love your neighbor as yourself.’ There is no commandment greater than these.”
Salvation is a gift of God, not something to be earned by human acts. In his letter to the church in Rome, the apostle Paul wrote:
If you declare with your mouth, “Jesus is Lord,” and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead, you will be saved. For it is with your heart that you believe and are justified, and it is with your mouth that you profess your faith and are saved.
Romans 10:9-10
This is the only way to God and to eternal life. True followers of Christ are unlike followers of many of the world’s religions do not have to do anything to earn God’s favor. God, through his son, Jesus, has paid the penalty for the sins of everyone, past, present and future. He only asks individuals to accept this gift of sacrifice made by Jesus.
That’s why Christians cannot think themselves better than any others because they too are sinners redeemed by Grace. Their charge from Jesus is not to tell others what to do or think, but rather to invite friends and family into the family of believers by telling them the Good News of Jesus’ death and resurrection. If you would like to learn more about the only true way to God, read our post, How does one become a Christian?