Jesus’ Unique Teachings

I am the way, and the truth, and the life; no one comes to the Father but through Me.
–John 14:6

Jesus is unique from other religious leaders due to His unique teachings. What did Jesus teach?

First, Jesus taught there are two possible eternal destinations when we die. Jesus said not everybody goes to Heaven. Some people will go to Heaven, and some people will go to Hell. In Matthew 25:46, Jesus said the unrighteous “will go away into eternal punishment, but the righteous into eternal life.” You cannot say, “I accept what Jesus said about Heaven, but I am going to ignore what He said about Hell.” That is intellectually dishonest.

Second, even more troubling, Jesus taught that the majority of mankind will spend eternity in Hell. In Matthew 7:13-14, Jesus said there are two roads with two gates that open up to two very different destinations. Jesus said, “Enter through the narrow gate; for the gate is wide and the way is broad that leads to destruction, and there are many who enter through it. For the gate is small and the way is narrow that leads to life, and there are few who find it.” People say, “Christianity is too narrow because it says only those who believe in Jesus go to Heaven.” That is right; Jesus said the way to Heaven is narrow. Few are those who enter through it.

Jesus went on to say that many of those on the road to Hell think they are Christians. Jesus continued, “Not everyone who says to Me, ‘Lord, Lord,’ will enter the kingdom of heaven, but he who does the will of My Father who is in heaven will enter. Many will say to Me on that day, ‘Lord, Lord, did we not prophesy in Your name, and in Your name cast out demons, and in Your name perform many miracles?’ And then I will declare to them, ‘I never knew you; depart from Me, you who practice lawlessness’” (Matthew 7:21-23). Wouldn’t that be the worst surprise of your life, to awaken in the presence of God after you die only to realize you had been on the wrong road the entire time?

Third, Jesus taught He was the exclusive way to Heaven. Every now and then, people say to me, “Pastor, you are being intolerant when you say that people have to trust in Jesus to be saved.” Whenever people accuse me of that, I explain, “That is not me saying that. That is what the founder of our faith said.” Jesus said in John 14:6, “I am the way, and the truth, and the life; no one comes to the Father but through Me.” That is Jesus’ claim. There are not many ways to Heaven; there is one way to Heaven, and it is through Him. By the way, Jesus taught that not because He wanted to keep people out of Heaven but because He wanted as many people as possible to come to Heaven. In John 5:24, Jesus said, “He who hears My word, and believes Him who sent Me, has eternal life, and does not come into judgment, but has passed out of death into life.” Even sincere followers of other religions are not exempt from this truth. There is only one way for a person to go to Heaven, and it is through faith in Jesus Christ.

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Today’s devotion is excerpted from “Jesus: Man, Myth, Or Messiah?” ” by Dr. Robert Jeffress, 2017.

Scripture taken from the NEW AMERICAN STANDARD BIBLE®, Copyright © 1960,1962,1963,1968,1971,1972,1973,1975,1977,1995 by The Lockman Foundation. Used by permission.