September 3 I Tuesday

Psalms 140-142

1 Corinthians 14:1-20

“Salvation is found in no one else, for there is no other Name under heaven given to mankind by which we must be saved.”   —Acts 4:12

“A way” presupposes the separation of two points and a journey that must take place between those two points. There is a point of origin and a point of destination, and a means of getting there is the way. In the Christian life, the journey is not to a place, which many people perceive as heaven, but to a person—the Father. As important as the place is, it is only incidental to the objective of the Gospel, which is reconciliation to God.
Reconciliation to God is what makes heaven possible and is the substance of the Gospel.

As it was for the Israelites, it can be quite easy to confuse the relationship with God with the destination. Once freed from Egyptian captivity, God led His people to Canaan, but Canaan was not the objective. God said to them, “You yourselves have seen what I did to Egypt, and how I carried you on eagles’ wings and brought you to Myself” (Exodus 19:4). Canaan was purely a geographic location, as heaven is, but the objective of the journey was God bringing His people to Himself.

In the New Testament, Paul writes, “He died for us so that, whether we are awake or asleep, we may live together with Him” (1 Thessalonians 5:10). That is, whether we are physically alive or have passed on, we may live together with God. Whether we are in heaven or on earth is irrelevant.
The relevant issue is that we are reconciled to God through the death and resurrection of Jesus Christ and are brought into relationship with Him.

After Pentecost, Peter and John were arrested for speaking out to the people and proclaiming in Jesus Christ the resurrection of the dead. The next day, they were brought before the high priest, elders and teachers of the law. Peter, filled with the Holy Spirit, told them the only way to salvation is through Jesus Christ.

Under the New Covenant, the only way to the Father is through Jesus Christ, but the way to Jesus is not through God. We should not start off with preconceived notions of God. If we try to persuade people there is a God, they will probably have as many arguments against it as we have for it. We should begin by looking at Jesus. Who is He? What does He say and how will He impact our life? Jesus says, “I am the Way” (John 14:6). It is He alone who will reconcile us to God, and that is the most fundamental need of the human heart.

Prayer: Dear Lord, being reconciled to You is what keeps me grounded and makes sense of this life. Thank You for giving us the way through Jesus Christ.