Jesus said, "No-one comes to the Father except through Me." Dicuss

[Tortington]

Jesus said, "No-one comes to the Father except through Me."

What i don't understand about this phrase comes on two levels.

1. supposing there is a corner of the world where a child dies never having heard of jesus. Do they get some 'Jesus' lessons in purgatory before St. Peter given them a golden ticket? or do they go to hell - hell being never knowing gods grace ( i believe)

2. the Jesus i read about, the kindly person bringing diferent peoples together - helping hte lowly samarian - pro women pretty much poster boy for the race equality commission - He would do this?

i'd like a debate about this rather than any hethens athiests agnostics telling me that god doesn't exist if you don't mind. ta.

athiests and agnostics just sit back and watch the christians fight it out

Certain Age - isn't it possible to have a companion 'within', especially if it is so notable a companion as the holy spirit? i often think of my loved ones as embedded in my heart, as carried around within, wherever i go.
will look up 'paraclete' now - new one on me!

I have always known the Holy Spirit to be something that comes alongside as a companion or comforter.

However, we do talk about inviting Jesus into our hearts...

However, I think the latter is metaphor, but I'll happily admit to not being sure. When we say that we are inviting Jesus into our hearts we mean that we have made a decision for follow Christ and to turn away from the ways of the world. The paraclete makes it easy for us to do this.

"God's truth is the one and only truth. You can't make your own version to suit what is comfortable to you."

I can't help but be struck by the irony of that statement.

There are so many types/forms of Christianity that God's truth as the one and only truth, is really all about different fits for different folks. The variety of versions indicates, to me, that Personal Truth is vital for the Evolution of Spirituality and Humanity.

Obedience is can be comforting, to know ones place within a schematic religion. The comfort of community...

I see more potential for the evolution of spirituality though the further development of how to access dimensions beyond the human physical world, by being the Way, Truth and Light within ones Self.

i found the post By CertainAge Sun 22-Nov-09 10:04:49, really intresting, it's helpful to have a context to these things

alongside papillions views - i think together these pretty well put an explaination to how i feel

I was wondering if any other Christians had a view on this verse

Erm...what did you think of my view?

Gaude, I definitely agree with your earlier post, especially the bit about Christians being supposed to treat everyone as if they were all Christs (I was hungry and you did not feed me etc). I also think that actually that was entirely the point, I think Jesus wasn't trying to set up Christianity as we know it today at all - that all came afterwards. His message was actually so radical that even now, if a messenger or prophet came saying the same things couched so that we as modern humans could understand it, we still wouldn't really be able to follow it. We would hear and then as soon as we were processing the information the understanding would start to fall away.

Your point about Sufism and the Christ within was really what I was getting at with my bit about the divinity within - although I know it annoys Christians when I say that. I think the mystics in each religion is the place to look - I find extraordinary similarities between the writings of St Teresa of Avila, St John of the Cross, Julian of Norwich and the writings of many of the medieval Sufi saints.

I think there is one truth that is sort of incomprehensible to our little human souls, and we extrapolate all kinds of things in our quest to "get it".

Personally I try to approach it from the point of view that essentially common sense dictates that all church/religious leader lead opinion and orthodoxy is a built up fossilised layer upon layer accretion of individual opinions over a few thousand years, rather than "the truth" but (hopefully) the heart of it is in the right place.

I then think to myself, since I am outside any religion, what does everything I know about the world and my experience of goodness and love and joy in nature and humanity tell me is "the truth", the point of my existence? What information can I glean from what others on the path have learned before me? I try to follow that, I try to follow my heart, and the hearts of others gone before.

I'm not claiming that I have the answer (greater minds than mine have struggled with that one!) but I do think that the answer definitely does not lie in any one religion alone.

I've always believed that my way to God is through Jesus. I wouldn't presume to know anyone's individual or any collective group's destination - that is the will of God.

Does that make sense?

Gaude,I think your words are beautiful.

" We have to look deep into every person, past their flaws and the treetrunks in our own eyes, and find out what there is to love in them. And love them. As if there was Christ in them, as if they were Jesus".

Just about the most amazing thing I have seen on Mnet.

Makes perfect sense to me, (if only I could live it though!).

Have any of you read "The Shack"? It has got a bit of a pasting on MN, but for me as a Christian, it was revelationary, and really challenged the way I see my relationship with God.

One of the sisters at my church read that book recently and was enthralled and challenged by it. I wanted to read it but was put off when she said it was very sad and about kids. I'm a bit too delicate for that at the moment.