Reed Mueller

The discussion in this week’s installment of ‘Neglected’ (message will be posted here later this week) was posed to me in two different ways:

• I have a friend of ______ religion. They don’t believe that Jesus is who he says he is. Are they going to hell?
• I think we need to talk about the relationship of the Christian to members of other faiths – Islam, Judaism, Buddhism – and the church’s relationship to those other faiths. In an increasingly interconnected world do we insist on evangelism and conversion, or do we find another way to work together?

In working through this, it is very important to me that we begin where Jesus began. Interestingly, he made statements relating to these questions that were both inclusive and exclusive in nature. In Matthew 28:18, for example, Jesus made both an inclusive and an exclusive claim. His statement here was inclusive in the sense that there wasn’t any area in all of creation that was outside of his authority – it was and is all included. His statement was also exclusive in that it claimed that he, and he alone, was in charge. His point: there is no decision that escapes his authority. If this is true, and I believe his words to be true or I would not be his disciple, then decisions about who is saved and who is not are up to nobody but him. He has the authority in this domain.

So we must ask, “What does he say about who is saved?” Again, he is both inclusive and exlusive in his statements. On the one hand, he says that God loves the (whole) world (John 3:16-17) and Jesus’ first century followers Peter and Paul expressed similar thoughts in 2 Peter 3:9 and 1 Timothy 2:3-4, respectively. These statements are inclusive in nature. But there is particularity, or exclusivity, in Jesus’ statements, too. He states that a person must believe in him to find salvation because by rejecting him the wrath of God remains on a person (John 3:35-36). Elsewhere, in an explicitly exclusive claim, Jesus claims to be the only path to the Father (John 14:6). So again, Jesus’ statements as they relate to salvation are both inclusive (everyone is invited) and exclusive (there is only one Savior, himself, for any who would come receive the gift).

With this background, we can move on to the questions that were raised earlier. Starting with the more general of the two, I would say that we must not insist on evangelism for those of other faiths and instead should work for even more, inviting those of other faiths to become Jesus’ disciples (Matthew 28:18-20). This was Jesus’ call to the followers with whom he had shared life before taking the cross; by extension, it is his call to us. It is not enough for us to end at mere evangelism because our call is to walk with others toward maturity in Christ.

That being said, I am also of the mind that the Church has been woefully neglectful of building bridges with other faiths. To have to choose between evangelism (or discipleship as I’ve expanded it to be) or collaboration with those of other faiths is not something I am willing to do. Rather, to insist on both seems to give Christ the greatest honor. We must seek opportunities to converse and work with those of other faiths. Our call requires this and the world needs us to do this. In fact, I see this bridge-building to be an application of 1 Peter 3:15. Where, in the course of every day life (and particularly in the course of our shared work with those of other faiths), we will have opportunity to share our hope.

But this is too general, isn’t it? What about the specific question of your friend and their destiny. The key here is to remember that Christ alone has all authority. It is his decision, not mine, not yours. He is both the bridge to God (as the way, the truth, and the life) and the one who determines access to the bridge (no one comes to the Father except through him). Because I believe he is both wise and loving, I am comforted that he will work this out in every individual’s life. I also trust his words that the whole question can only be put to rest in our lives when we believe in him (again, John 3:16-17,35-36). Because he is wise, I believe his words to be truth; because he is compassionate, I believe his words to be shared because he desires to help people find salvation and peace and to put the nagging question of eternal destiny to rest. There is only one way to do this, and he has stated it clearly.

So what, in the end, are we to do? We are to have confidence that there is salvation in no one other than Jesus (Acts 4:12). We are to have confidence in Jesus’ authority and his goodness. And finally, we are to make disciples knowing that no person is better off having never heard the good news of Jesus.