The World’s Trouble: Chapter 7

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And it is appointed unto men once to die, but after this the judgment: - Hebrews 9:27
And it is appointed unto men once to die, but after this the judgment:
– Hebrews 9:27

Chapter 7

[H]ave you ever wondered why there are so many ways, so many religions, and even so many denominations claiming to be Christian? Many claim to be the one and only way while others merely claim to be a way. I have heard some say all religions are equally valid or invalid. Some take the proliferation of religions and denominations to be a sure sign that God doesn’t exist. That would be like going to an open-air market in Mexico and seeing many different vendors selling Louis Vuitton knock-offs for cheap and concluding that Louis Vuitton doesn’t exist or there is no such thing as a genuine handbag.

Famous designers of jewelry, bags, clothes, and shoes have their products counterfeited all the time. The existence and availability of these counterfeits in no way disproves the existence or value of the genuine. Why do people counterfeit Saddleback leather bags yet no one counterfeits brown plastic Kroger grocery bags? I have yet to see someone selling knock-off plastic grocery bags out of the trunk of their car. You have to have three basic realities for counterfeits to exist.

  1. The genuine original has to exist to be copied.
  2. The genuine original has to have value.
  3. There has to be a market. In other words, people have to want or need it.

While Kroger bags satisfy the first, they fail miserably on the latter two. From this we can supply a couple of answers to the question of why so many religions/denominations exist. First, God exists and there is a true way to Him but many find something objectionable so they seek counterfeits. Why do people buy knock-off Rolex watches? Because they want the look, feel, and brand recognition but they don’t want to pay the cost for the genuine. Of course, they ultimately find out they get what they pay for when the fake doesn’t work as well or last as long.

Second, the proliferation of religions illustrate that people want something more. People find that earthly things don’t provide lasting satisfaction and they want something more. People want some way to assuage their guilt and have peace of mind. People have some sense of eternity or their soul and are concerned about the afterlife. Thus, there is an abundant market for false religions and denominations. Rather than disproving the existence of the genuine, they point to the fact there really is a way but people find something about God or His way objectionable. We need a test. We need a method for finding the true way.

When agents are trained to detect counterfeit currency, they spend time studying the counterfeits, but they spend more time studying the genuine. They are always comparing against the genuine to see if they have a false bill. They do spend time with counterfeits, learning to recognize common faults in them. No one agent is ever going to encounter every possible counterfeit bill, but he doesn’t have to because he always has the genuine to compare against.

Likewise, we can’t examine every possible false way. I have tried to acquaint you with some common ones but we are far from looking at all of them. It’s more important for us to have the true way as a standard of measure for all ways we encounter. In Chapter 5, I brought up Colossians 2:8

Beware, lest any man spoil you through philosophy and vain deceit, after the tradition of men, after the rudiments of the world, and not after Christ.
– Colossians 2:8

Paul warned about false philosophies they would encounter and gave “after Christ” as the standard of measure. So all ways should be tested against the way Christ taught. If they do not align, then they are to be rejected. Christ is the genuine. He must be the center and ground of the way or it is false. The problem with all other ways is that they are Christless. They may present a false christ but a false christ is no christ at all. Any message, philosophy, or way that claims salvation without Jesus Christ alone is false. Do not be deceived by it. Do not follow it. Do not be taken away by it. That is what Paul was saying.

The Bible is plain: “Without shedding of blood is no remission” (Hebrews 9:22). Shedding of blood means the death of Jesus Christ on the cross in the place of sinners. It’s simple, but it’s foolishness to some and offensive to others (1 Corinthians 1:23). It’s easy to see then how there would be counterfeits made. People want to go to Heaven but they don’t want to humble themselves, repent of their sins, and leave off everything to trust completely in Christ alone to save them (Acts 4:10-12).

Naaman the Syrian was a leper, and there was no cure for leprosy. He came to Samaria to see Elisha, the prophet of God. Elisha told him to wash seven times in the Jordan River and he would be cleansed of his leprosy (2 Kings 5:10). Naaman was furious with Elisha’s message. He thought it too simple, too mundane. He expected some great happenings and showings. Finally, his servant persuaded him that if he was willing to do some great thing had Elisha requested it, why should he not rather be willing to do so simple a thing as washing in the Jordan. Naaman listened and was healed of his leprosy (2 Kings 5:11-15).

If Naaman had found a false prophet, he would have been told to participate in some elaborate ritual or ceremony. Naaman would have been very glad with such a word and would have followed it straightaway. But what would have been the problem with this? It would not have healed his leprosy. In the end, the only effectual cure was the way God spoke through His prophet. Likewise, the only way of salvation is what God has provided through His Son (John 3:16-21; Acts 4:12).

From this perspective, it’s easy to see how false ways proliferate. In the rest of this book though, I want to focus on that one, true way, Jesus Christ. Why did Jesus have to die? How does His death do anything to affect our standing before God?

This is a portion of a book that I have been writing. I have decided to post it here in serial form. It is intended to be evangelistic. If the book has merit, I may seek to publish it in some form. Please feel free to share it and I welcome any feedback.

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