As I’m sure most of you know, I’m a pastor. On most Sunday mornings I get up early and make my way to the church to finish preparations for that day’s message. Every now and then, a rare Sunday comes along where I will have someone else in my pulpit to preach providing me a little break. Those Sundays lead to break in routine allowing me to sleep a little longer and go in a little later. On those Sundays, I normally take my son with me because he’s awake and bouncing off the walls by then. We’ve developed our own little routine on these Sundays. Swing by Hardees and grab him some bacon (he loves it as much as his Daddy) and head straight to church. Once there, I park in the space furthest from the sanctuary. When we get out of the car my son picks a crack to follow me to make his way to the church building. Let me explain. Our church is older and so is the pavement outside. Our parking lot needs a significant amount of work done to it and there are cracks everywhere. My son could literally follow any number of cracks in the pavement, in any given direction, and eventually make his way to the church building. He calls this little game, “Get to Daddy.” It’s funny to watch him walk through the maze of cracks. This past Sunday was one of those days. He started his trek adding a little comment for drama. “I hope I can get to you today!” as I continued walking with a playful smile on his face making his way toward the building. Cracking a joke about the pavement (pardon the pun), I said, “Buddy, there are MANY ways to get to me!!” I felt God whisper. “Not me!”
Years ago, in an earlier session of Oprah Winfrey’s long running talk show, she made a statement that has always stuck with me (and not in a good way). She stated, “There are millions of ways to be a human being, and many paths to what you call God.” She has alluded to this same mindset over and over again since then and has continued to add facets as the years have gone by. Ms. Winfrey has focused on enlightenment through meditation and other such methods. Going so far as to allude these moments of enlightenment are moments when she has reached God. Let me be clear. I don’t judge this woman. What she is doing isn’t any different than what has been happening for thousands of years. Sadly, she has been convinced of this lie. Many take portions of Jesus’ teachings and create their own pseudo religions to serve their on desires and purposes. For anyone who claims to be Christian, I assure you there is only ONE way to the Father. And His name is Jesus. Scripture states, John 14:6, “Jesus said, “I am the way, and the truth, and the life. No one [my emphasis] comes to the Father except through me.” Getting to God is less about enlightenment, as some would have you think. The very foundation of Christianity is belief in and a personal relationship with God’s son versus doing what makes us feel good or tickles our ears with pseudo-revelation.
Closing remarks and encouragement: I am a man who stands on the word of God and attempts to follow it to the best of my ability. Not out of legalism, tradition, or being forced to do so. Rather, as a result of a meaningful relationship with my Savior and my desire to live a life of holiness that would be pleasing to Him. Do I make mistakes? Sure! We all do! Many mean well when they say such things as, “God wants you to live your best life!” While it may sound good, it has no Biblical basis. Truth be told, once you give your heart to Him, your life is not your own any longer. You become dead to self and alive in Him. To live your best life would be to do things on your own selfish terms. And that was never God’s desire. As the old adage states, “There are many ways to skin a cat.” In other words, there are many ways to do certain things. But make no mistake, there’s only ONE way to God. The enemy is shrewd and cunning. Just because it sounds good doesn’t make it acceptable. Believers-I challenge you to be careful what you say and how you say it. The world is listening. Your life might be the only Bible many will ever read.
Photo by Becca Lavin on Unsplash