7.30.2005 | Not Valid

In my post earlier today, I noted that "No religion that denies the truth of Jesus, after the fact of his death and resurrection, can be valid." No one who professes Christ as Lord can say otherwise, and remain a truthful witness to Him.

Is this "intolerant?" No. It is simply the truth. We must tolerate all faiths, or no faith at all, under our laws. With the exception, naturally, of faiths whose tenets include killing or converting us by force.

Tolerance is often confused with respect. One may tolerate all kinds of behavior, as in, allow them to exist -- assuming there was any chance of eliminating them in the first place. Respect is entirely different, and as applied to other faiths, implies giving honor and esteem to ideas and precepts that Christians must know to be false.

This is at the heart of the interfaith dialogue dodge that is oh so popular with many Christians -- that we Christians must not just tolerate, but respect, in the full meaning of the word, Islam and other faiths.

In this world, we must talk with Islam and others, if only to achieve some peace between our faiths. But let us never, ever, confuse talking with Islam, or any other faith, with accepting their false notions of God and salvation.

Is it hateful, or, God forfend, "hate speech" (the unlovely PC term for anything that liberals disagree with) to state that Christ is our Savior, none other need apply? No. It happens to be true. But we must never be boastful about it. Christ and our redemption through His blood are a free gift to us, owing to no effort on our part. It would be arrogant beyond belief were we to confuse our acceptance of this gift with its creation and offering by God through His Son.

Christians should, in love, state this truth to those of other faiths. It isn't a case of, "my God is greater than your god", although for some faiths this is also true. It is with love that we hope that those of other faiths would come to see that their salvation is solely through Jesus Christ.

The gift, in short, is available to all whom the Father has called. There have got to be more than a few Jews, Muslims, Hindus, and those who may think they've no faith at all, who we will greet as brothers and sisters in Christ when we go before the Throne.

| technorati tag | Christianity|