"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
I would to God that all men understood these words from the bible. The bible clearly states in this verse that there is no other way of salvation, that there is no other name (whether your own name, your uncle's name, your ancestor's name, or any other religious name) by which man can be saved.
We have been given only one name, and that name is Jesus. By that name can we be saved, by that name are we qualified for eternal life, and by that name are we able to be reconciled to the Father.
You may have been looking for salvation. You may have been wondering how you can get close to God, how you can be in fellowship with Him. You may have been wondering how you can be saved from sin, from death, and from the evil in this world.
satan has confused the world and has created confusion by offering the world so many false religions. He has offered the world a false hope of salvation, because he knows that there is a part of man that yearns to be close to his Creator, the part that causes man to know that he 'needs' salvation.
But Jesus is the only way.
The bible says about Jesus that He is, "...The Way, the Truth, and the Life. No man comes to the Father but by Him" - John 14:6.
Look at the three definite articles in the above scripture. He said I am 'The Way'. Not 'a way' but 'the way'. Then He said, I am 'The Truth'. Not 'a truth' but 'the truth', meaning Jesus is 'the truth'. And so the bible calls Him, the 'true light' that lighteth every man (John 1:9). Then He also said, I am 'the Life'. If you never want to die again, you need Jesus.
Now somebody said, "... well, any man can talk like that. Any religious leader can make the same claims like Jesus did!"
Brother! Sister!
The bible says about Jesus, that 'He was ‘declared to be the Son of God with power, by the resurrection from the dead' (Romans 1:4).
Did you see that? Jesus was declared to be the Son of God, with power, by the resurrection from the dead.
If you compare Jesus to other 'religious' leaders, you will realize that Jesus is the only ONE that was RAISED from the dead.
Study the history of all other religious leaders. When they died, they were finished.
And so we preach a resurrected Christ, who is alive even today. Jesus Christ is alive and He can save you.
In fact, to study the synoptic gospels Matthew, Mark, Luke, and John as the history of Jesus or as an 'autobiography' would be a serious error.
Autobiographies, and history books are recorded for those who have died.
But Jesus is alive.
So the books written about Him are not an autobiography or a history of Him.
So when you study those synoptic gospels, rather, you should study them as the 'Revelation of Jesus Christ'. See them as the revelation of the Christ, His nature, His characteristics and how He went about His business.
Those who study the gospels as a historical account are those who have a problem with some dates when it seems like the dates don't add up.
The dates all add up.
What they forget is that the gospels were not necessarily written in chronological order, and the stories were not necessarily written in the manner of 'from point A Jesus went to point B'. Rather, the stories were written as a 'revelation of Jesus Christ'. Each verse has it's part in the revelation of the Christ, and it doesn't mean they have to be in alphabetic order.
If you are not yet acquainted with the Christ, get to know Him. Understand that He is the only way of salvation.
