Last Two Minutes

An Exposition of Luke 23:39-43

Sinusundan ko ang bawat laro

Ng koponan kong nanghihingalo

Sa bawat bolang binibitaw

'Di mapigilang mapapasigaw

Iyan ang mga panimulang linya ng likhang-awit ni Gary Granada, “'Pag Nananalo ang Ginebra” (tinig ni Bayang Barrios). Ito ay pagsasalarawan ng kasiyahang nadarama ng isang tipikal na basketball fan kapag nagwawagi ang kanyang paboritong team. Iyan din ang mga panimulang linya ng awitin niyang “'Pag Natatalo ang Ginebra”, pagsasalarawan naman ng damdamin ng isang tipikal na fan kapag nagkakalat ang kanyang paboritong koponan. Para sa mga hindi basketball fans, mahirap unawain iyan pero ganun po talaga. Ganyan ang damdamin ng mga fans. Masyado silang affected sa nangyayari sa hinahangaang koponan

Ngayon ay hindi na ako nanonood, pero pinagdaanan ko rin 'yan. Kapag natatambakan ang aking paborito, at nakikita kong nauubos na ang oras, nasasaktan ako. Lalo na kapag nakikita mong unti-unti nababakante ang mga upuan. Lumalabas na ng ULTRA o Araneta Colosseum ang mga manonood kasi tiyak silang hindi na makakahabol pa yung natatalong koponan-- at malamang marami sa kanila ay nasasaktan din tulad ko. Parang gusto ko na ngang patayin ang telebisyon kasi nga masakit sa damdamin.

Bihirang mangyari, subalit kung minsan ay nangyayari na yung hindi mo inaasahang makakahabol pa ay nakakahabol pa. Sunod-sunod ang turnovers ng kabilang team at nakaka-iskor naman sila. Makikita mo, yung mga lumalabas ng Colosseum at hindi pa nakakalayo ay biglang bumabalik sa kanilang mga upuan. Napasarap ulit ang laban. Akala mo wala nang pag-asa, meron pa pala.

Ang taong katabi ni Kristo sa kanyang pagkakapako sa krus ay aakalain mong wala nang pag-asang maligtas. Bakit?

Una, hindi siya isang relihiyosong tao. Siya ay isang kriminal. Kapag nanonood ako ng police report sa mga newscast, tinatanong ng reporter yung mga nahuling suspek, “matagal na ba ninyong gawain ito?” . Sagot ng suspek (habang tinatakpan ang kanyang mukha), “hindi po sir, ngayon lang po. Nayaya lang ako.” Kadalasan ay hindi kapani-paniwala, pero ibigay na natin. Meron naman talaga sigurong natukso lang, hindi naman talaga niya gawain. Sinubukan lang gumawa ng kalokohan- timbog agad.

Ang kriminal sa tabi ng Panginoon ay tinawag na kakourgos. Ganito ang depinisyon ng isang Greek lexicon sa salitang iyan:

"one who customarily engages in doing what is bad"

(Louw-Nida)

Hindi siya isang one time criminal na natimbog; siya ay isang professional criminal. Normal na sa buhay niya ang paggawa ng masama-- ito ang kanyang career. Hindi siya yung tipo ng tao na makikinig sa mga usaping ispirituwal.

Pangalawa, sa ulat nina Mateo at Marcos, noong una ay kasama siya sa mga kumukutya at lumalapastangan sa Diyos. Ang salitang “robbers” sa Matt. 27:41-44 at Mark 15:32 ay nasa plural form. Hindi isa kundi yung dalawang kriminal ang kumukutya at lumalapastangan sa Panginoon.

Isipin na lang ninyo ang kanyang kalagayan. Nakapako sa krus, marami siyang tinanggap na hagupit; marami siyang sugat. Sa bawat oras na dumaraan ay nanghihina siya. Slowly but surely, he is dying.

Pero saan niya ginagamit ang natitirang lakas? Ginagamit niya ito sa paglapastangan sa Diyos na may likha ng daigdig, laban sa Diyos na nagbigay ng buhay sa kanya at patuloy na bumubuhay sa kanya. Death is at the doorstep and he will soon face his Creator, and he is using the depleting energy in his body to mock the judge who has the authority to declare him justified or guilty.

Malapit na siyang malagutan ng hininga. Kumbaga ay last two minutes na ng kanyang buhay at kung mamasdan mo ang kanyang kalagayan, wala talaga siyang kapag-apag-asang maligtas.

Unexpected turn of events

Humirit ulit ng isa pang round ng pang-aalaska ang isang kriminal:

Luke 23:39- One of the criminals who hung there hurled insults at him: "Aren't you the Christ? Save yourself and us!".

Ang inaasahan niya, sasali ulit yung kapwa niya kriminal sa pang-iinsulto sa Panginoon. Pero ang tugon ng kanyang kapwa kriminal ay kagulat-gulat:

“ But the other criminal rebuked him. "Don't you fear God..."

Marahil ay na-shock siya sa tugon ng kanyang kumpareng Kriminal-- “Anong nangyayari sa iyo pare?”

Makikita rin natin dito ang unang palatandaan ng isang taong binago ng Panginoon. Sabi niya “Don't you fear God”

But let me just say that these marks of conversion are not exhaustive. One must survey all the relevant accounts and deductive passages on conversion before we can present an exhaustive list of the Converts' marks. We will limit the marks to what we are seeing in Luke 23:39-43)

The first mark of conversion: fear of God.

Tulad ng lahat ng hindi pa mananampalataya, ang propesyonal na kriminal na ito ay walang takot sa Diyos. Ang pagsasalarawan ng bibliya sa lahat ng hindi pa mananampalataya ay "There is no fear of God before their eyes.” (Rom 3:18). Subalit ngayon ay may malaking pagbabago-- biglang nagkaroon siya ng takot sa Diyos.'

Ika nga ni John Macarthur: “the first thing you see in a real conversion is a heightened awareness that God is a threat”

He is crucified; he is suffering from a cruel form of capital punishment in the ancient times. That is terrifying enough. Yet escaping from the cross is not his concern right now. For him there is something more terrifying than crucifixion.

The Roman government can only destroy his body. But there is a higher judge who can destroy not just the body but the soul as well.

Do not be afraid of those who kill the body but cannot kill the soul. Rather, be afraid of the One who can destroy both soul and body in hell. (Matt. 10:29)

He has fallen into the hands of Roman authorities, and that is dreadful. Yet that is not his concern at the moment. For him there is something more dreadful.

“ It is a dreadful thing to fall into the hands of the living God.” (Heb. 10:31)

BTW, how do you evangelize? Is God a threat in your gospel presentation? Or do you have your own version of the gospel which offers a non-threatening God? Mag-ingat, baka hindi ebanghelyo yang ibinabahagi mo.

The second mark of conversion: a high view of Jesus Christ.

To the natural eyes, there is nothing impressive about Jesus. Even those who admired him in the early days demanded that he should be crucified during his trial. Christ is majestic in glory but he clothed it with frail humanity. As a result:

“He had no beauty or majesty to attract us to him,

nothing in his appearance that we should desire him.” (Isa.53:2 b)

The Pharisees, Saduccees, the Priests, Pilate, Herod and other authorities can't see his beauty. Moments ago, this criminal himself finds Jesus unattractive and unimpressive. He was mocking him moments ago. Yet there was a sudden change. His eyes were opened and he saw beyond what eyes could see.

a. He saw the sinlessness of Jesus.

Nakita niyang hindi nila ka-level si Hesus. They are rightly judged as criminals but this this man called Jesus is sinless. There is nothing in him that deserves this wicked punishment.

1 Peter 1:22- "He committed no sin, and no deceit was found in his mouth."

Heb. 4:15- "we have one who has been tempted in every way, just as we are--yet was without sin"

b. He saw Jesus as a King

The crowd entertained themselves by placing a crown of thorns upon the head of Jesus. They nailed a sign which says ““This is the king of the Jews.””. Earlier, they put a mock royal robe on him. The irony is, the one whom they mocked is the true king who deserves more than the best robe the world can offer; he deserves the best crown which the world cannot give. He is not just the King of the Jews but the King of the entire universe and the heaven itself

This criminal however asked Jesus to remember him when he comes into his Kingdom. That is a recognition that Jesus is indeed King. For What is a kingdom without a King?

Namamangha ako sa lalim ng insights na ibinigay ng Diyos sa taong ito. In search for a similar case of conversion, John Macarthur says this criminal's conversion is close to Paul's. Pero sa ganang akin, mukhang malayo. You see, there was a miracle in the conversion of Paul. There was that blinding light. He even heard the audible voice of the Lord Jesus.on the way to Damascus. This man's conversion however was unaided by miracles.

When Jesus died, there was a violent earthquake; The temple veil was rended from top to button. The centurion who was guarding him were terrified by the earthquake and so they confessed, “"Surely he was the Son of God!".

Praise God for the salvation of that centurion; praise God for the conversion of Paul. However, the criminal's conversion was unaided by miracles and signs. All he saw was a wounded and dying man, yet he saw him as King.

The followers of Jesus along Emmaus road said “we had hoped that he was the one who was going to redeem Israel (Luke 24:21)” – When Jesus died, their hopes for the Kingdom were shattered. But this man looks forward to the day when Christ will finally reign.

c. He saw Jesus' victory over death.

Again he saw something hidden from the eyes of others. In John 2:19-21, Jesus prophesied that when they shall murder him, he will rise again from the dead in three days. In verse 22, John reports that only after the resurrection did the the apostles understood the significance of Jesus' words about this resurrection. One apostle even said that he will not believe Christ's resurrection unless he can insert his fingers on Jesus' nail marks and his hand on Jesus wound by the side. These are men who benefited from Jesus' instruction and fellowship for three years.

~This criminal however did not have that privilege of walking with Jesus for three years. Ang mga Dabarkads niya sa nakaraang tatlong taon ay malamang mga kriminal din na kagaya niya. But he looks forward to the day when Jesus lives and reigns. Another unusually amazing deep insight from this man.

The third mark of Conversion: Willingness to be ridiculed for the cause of Christ.

The fact that it is written in the bible means that Luke's careful investigation (Luke 1:1-4) yielded eyewitnesses who heard of this confession. Just imagine the scene: the whole world is mocking Jesus. Everyone thinks he is a fraud. And out of that multitude of voices, you will confess Christ as King. For that reason, you will share the ridicule reserved only for Jesus.

~Charles Spurgeon comments: “Its easy to swim with the current, and hard to go against the flow”

Dear students, when the textbooks and the whole class assumes Darwinism (evolution), it will be easy for you if you will swim towards their direction. Life will be easier for you if you will just accept the assertion that molecules gradually change overtime to become man. But I'm telling you, God will be please if you can stand up for the Bible's teaching that man was instantly created by God in his image on the sixth day. Oh how I wish I could turn back time and be a maverick in the classroom.

When all the people around you think that homosexuality is okay, God will be pleased if you shall go against the flow at the risk of being labeled as a discriminator or an homophobic. Stand up for what the bible says about homosexuality.

Going against the flow not only pleases Christ, it is also a mark of true conversion, as demonstrated by that thief on the cross.

The fourth mark of conversion: his plea to be a recipient of mercy.

He knows he is a sinner; he knows what he deserves is punishment. Yet he sees Jesus as a merciful king and so he asked “Remember me”. That reminds me of the tax collector in Luke 18:13 who went to the temple yet stood at a distance. He can't even look up because of shame. And while beating his breast pleads “God, have mercy on me, a sinner.'

JESUS' Response

1. A Promise of Assurance

Aren't you glad there is certainty in Jesus promise? He said “you will be with me...” Ano kaya kung sinabi ni Hesus, Okay, you will be with me in paradise. Pero mag-ingat ka! May ilang oras ka pa para mabuhay. Baka magkasala sa last two minutes. Pagbabayaran mo sa purgatoryo ng sandaang taon. Magbilin ka na sa mga kamag-anak mo na mag-novena sila pagkamatay mo. Dapat ipagdasal ka nila tuwing death anniversary mo at All Soul's Days. No, Jesus gave a certain promise that he will be preserved for the remaining hours of his life so when he departs from this life, he will be in paradise.

Those who were faithful to the Lord for two minutes prior to death is just as safe as those who were faithful for the last twenty years. 


This ought to give us hope in sharing the gospel at someone's deathbed. Many times, our loved ones reject the gospel we offer. The rejection may last for decades, but God may still do something amazing in the last two minutes.


I'm also looking forward for surprises in heaven. We will see unexpected people there. "Nandito ka!!! "Di ba nagnakaw ka pa dalawang araw bago ka mamatay !!!"  We'll God granted him repentance before he took his last breathe.

2. Immediate fellowship

There are those who believe in Psychopannychy as an intermediate state, popularly called soul sleep . In this view, the soul is unconscious in between death and resurrection. This verse says that on that very day, the converted criminal will enjoy God's fellowship in paradise. The reunion of our souls with our bodies will wait until the resurrection--- John 6:44, “ I will raise him up on the last day” , but we will be in conscious fellowship with Jesus and other saints. Remember Lazarus with Abraham in Luke 16:19-31

Now if you think the doctrine of soul sleep is weird, there is something weirder. The Jehovah's Witnesses insist on this translation:

'Truly I tell you today, You will be with me in paradise." (New World Translation)

Other translations however read:

"I tell you the truth, today you will be with me in paradise." (NIV)

“Truly, I say to you, today you will be with me in Paradise” (ESV)

Legitimate bible translations place the comma before the word today; but the NWT places it after. That is strange because in other instances where the phrase “amen soi lego“ appears, the NWT always placed the break immediately after it. Luke 23:43 is the only exception. Why? As in other places where the NWT is controversial, they were translating out of theological bias.

NWT translated it that way to support a distinctive of the Jehovah's Witnesses: they believe that men cease to exist as persons at death. In their system the repentant criminal has been non-existent for the past 2000 years.

The following verses are proofs that we will enter into immediate fellowship with the Lord after death:

Acts 7:59

While they were stoning him, Stephen prayed, "Lord Jesus, receive my spirit."

Phil 1:21-24

“For to me, to live is Christ and to die is gain. If I am to go on living in the body, this will mean fruitful labor for me. Yet what shall I choose? I do not know! I am torn between the two: I desire to depart and be with Christ, which is better by far; but it is more necessary for you that I remain in the body.”

2 Cor. 5:6-8

Therefore we are always confident and know that as long as we are at home in the body we are away from the Lord. We live by faith, not by sight. We are confident, I say, and would prefer to be away from the body and at home with the Lord.

This is not just to defend a doctrine. It is meant to give you hope that even death can do you no harm. All it can do to you is to bring you to immediate fellowship with your King.

CONCLUSION

Sa basketbol, ang isang koponan ay maaaring makahabol sa last two minutes malamang dahil sa husay ng mga manlalaro at sa strategy ng kanilang coach o di kaya ay dahil sa mga “lucky breaks”. Pero sa last two minutes salvation, hindi husay o suwerte ang batayan upang makahabol sa langit, kundi habag ng Diyos.

John 6:44 “"No one can come to me unless the Father who sent me draws him, and I will raise him up at the last day.”

This is the story of two criminals. Both were notorious sinners. Both were deserving of eternal punishment. Both were unable to come to Jesus. The only difference is that God the Father has drawn one to come to his Son and the other was not. God's sovereignty and God's mercy were both displayed in this account of a salvation in the last two minutes.

William Paul Young Believes My God is a Monster

“I don’t need to punish people for sin.
Sin is its own punishment, devouring from the inside. It’s not my purpose to punish it; it’s my joy to cure it”

- says Papa in William Paul Young's The Shack

In my previous post, I referred you to James De Young's list of comparison between The Shack and the creeds of Universalism. Number 2 in that list is:

"There is no eternal punishment for sin. The creed of 1899 again asserts that God “will finally restore the whole family of mankind to holiness and happiness.” Similarly, Young denies that Papa (God) “pours out wrath and throws people” into hell. God does not punish sin; it’s his “joy to cure it” (p. 120). Papa “redeems” final judgment (p. 127). God will not “condemn most to an eternity of torment, away from his presence and apart from his love” (p. 162);"

In June this year, Ray Yungen of Lighthouse Trails Research visited Concordia University in Portland, Oregon just to hear the voice of William Paul Young  (WPY).

Yungen reports the following:
1. WPY rejects the evangelical doctrine that God will judge the unbelievers.
2. WPY rejects the substitutionary view of the atonement.
3. WPY says: "the God of evangelical Christianity is a monster."
4. WPY refers to the evangelical view as "darkness" and exhorts the audience to get rid of it.

It is very clear; William Paul Young hates the God of Evangelicalism-- he hates my God!

See this post from the Lighthouse Trails Research blog.

William Paul Young: a Universalist ???!!!

In my post Biblical Exclusivism and the Destiny of the Unevangelized, I briefly discussed Pluralism and Inclusivism. For today's post, I would just like to mention another view that you must be aware (and beware) of.   This view is Universalism: " A belief which affirms that in the fullness of time all souls will be released from the penalties of sin and restored to God." (-David Eller in Elwell's Evangelical Dictionary of Theology, 1st edition)        This post is prompted by the continuous success of The Shack, a book written by William Paul Young (from hereon, WPY). It's present  and strong in every bestsellers list: Amazon, USA Today, New York Times, ECPA-- name it        One controversial portion of that book (among many others) is when WPY's version of Jesus said: "Those who love me come from every system that exists. They were Buddhists or Mormons, Baptists or Muslims, Democrats, Republicans and many who don't vote or are not part of any Sunday morning or religious institutions."       WPY's Jesus says further: "I have no desire to make them Christian, but I do want to join them in their transformation into sons and daughters of my Papa, into my brothers and sisters, my Beloved." One man who claims to have known WPY for over a dozen years has recently written Burning Down The Shack in response to bestseller. His name is James De Young (from hereon, JDY), professor of New Testament Language and Literature at  Western Seminary in Portland, Oregon for over 30 years.        As a long time friend of WPY, JDY informs the readers that way back in April, 2004, WPY presented a 103-page paper defending a form of universalism. JDY defines this version of universalism this way: "Christian universalism (also known as universal reconciliation) asserts that love is the supreme attribute of God that trumps all others. His love reaches beyond the grave to save all those who refuse Christ throughout their lifetimes. Even fallen angels, and the Devil himself, will one day repent, be delivered from hell and enter heaven. There cannot be left in the universe any being whom the love of God does not conquer; hence the words, universal reconciliation. This view of future destinies claims many texts that seem to assert that the reconciliation Jesus accomplished on the cross extends to all creatures (Rom. 5:18; 2 Cor. 5:16-20; Col. 1:19-20), that all universally will confess him as Lord (Phil. 2:6-11), and that God's desire that all be saved (1 Tim. 2:4) will be accomplished. Nothing can thwart God's will and love."        JDY demonstrates that universalism is embedded within The Shack by comparing it to the creeds of universalism. You can read his list here. ----------------- More Reviews of The Shack from Respected Christian Personalities: Tim Challies- A Reader's Review of the Shack (pdf) Albert Mohler- The Shack — The Missing Art of Evangelical Discernment Albert Mohler- A Look at "The Shack" (mp3) Norman Geisler and Bill Roach- The Shack: Helpful or Heretical? Charles Colson- Stay Out of 'The Shack'

When I'm 64

Wala akong maisip na pamagat para sa paskil na ito. Eh naalala ko lang ang kantang ito: In sports which require high levels of physical strength and skill, retirement comes early. If you are 40 and still active and productive, that's extraordinary. That's why the world was shocked when George Foreman regained the heavyweight championship belt at the age of 40. Cagers who seemingly walked on air have come and gone. They were called by different monickers: Aerial Voyager (Vergel Meneses), Sky Walker (Samboy Lim), Air Jordan (do I have to name him?). I really miss Jojo Lastimosa's acrobatic shots which were common to him in his rookie year. They are all retired now ; and by the time they reach the age of 70, I doubt if they could jump three inches high. As age advances, physical and mental productivity progressively declines. That's why there is a point called mandatory retirement in the workplace. When it come to spiritual service, Psalm 92:14 offers hope for the aged saints. They will still bear fruit in old age,     they will stay fresh and green (NIV) If the Lord will be pleased to grant me a long life, I would love to be an instrument in the Master's hand to strengthen the weak, to enlighten the confused, to humble the proud, and encourage the weary. But I can't wait till I'm 64. Lord use me NOW. Let me bear fruit NOW.

The Happiest and Safest Place in the Universe

The Manila Bus Hostage Crisis; a screenshot from a Youtube video.

I will use the 2007 data because I can't find a more recent report on Philippine tourism. In that year, the Philippines ranked #53 with 3.1 million tourist arrivals. I hope my forecast is wrong, but it is reasonable to expect a decline in our tourism industry after that horrible Manila Bus hostage crisis.

I would say that in order to attract tourists, we have to convince them of two things:

1. We have to convince that they will be happy here-- that they will enjoy their stay here.
2. We have to convince them that they are safe here-- that no harm awaits them.

France was the top tourist destination for that year with 81.9 million tourist arrivals (kaunti lang lamang nila sa atin-- 78.8 million lang).

For some reasons, people are convinced of two things:

1. They are convinced that they will be happy in France
2. They are convinced that they are safe and secure in France

Now, suppose a multi-billionaire offers you an all-expense paid trip to France with the following benefits:

• you shall be there not as a tourist but as a resident in Paris, France's best city for a period of 1,000 days (almost three years)
• you can take your loved ones with you so you won't miss them
• you shall receive a lavish allowance regularly so you don't have to worry about earning money.

Let's suppose all these are available to you with a few conditions:

• You are forbidden to open the bible
• You are forbidden to pray
• You are forbidden to attend church
• You are forbidden to sing songs of praise and worship to your God.

 Would you accept the offer?

The psalmist has already made up his mind:

Better is one day in your courts
    than a thousand elsewhere;
  I would rather be a doorkeeper in the house of my God
    than dwell in the tents of the wicked.

Psalm 84:10 (NIV)

He is convinced of two things:
a. True happines is in the Lord's presence only

the LORD bestows favor and honor;
  no good thing does he withhold
    from those whose walk is blameless.

Psalm 84:11

b. True security is in the Lord's presence only
he is our "shield" (v.11) a protection from flaming arrows and bullets.

Apprehending the goodness, grace, mercy, and power of God will make you desire to stay with him. You will not trade him for all the best things the world has to offer. The happiest and safest place in the universe is God's presence.

Praise God for the Penal System

When Cain murdered his brother Abel, he forfeited his farming vocation. No matter how much hard work he will invest in tilling the soil, it will yield nothing. He was banished from his land and from the presence of the Lord. He will no longer be farmer but a homeless wanderer.

Cain realizes the gravity of the punishment. He said that the punishment is too hard for him to endure. He expresses his fear that all who will see him as a wandering fugitive shall try to kill him.

God replies, “Not so; if anyone kills Cain, he will suffer vengeance seven times over." (Gen.4:15 NIV). He then put a mark on Cain to warn everyone.

I derive two points from this:

1st, God is merciful. Though his justice demands punishment for Cain’s sin, he also displayed his grace by providing protection for Cain from potential attackers.

2nd, In the very first case of murder in human history, Scripture points out that punishing wrongdoers helps in reducing crime rate. Cain’s mark warned everyone that a more severe penalty awaits them if they would harm the wandering fugitive.  The penal system is thus a deterrent to crime. Have you ever thought before that we can praise God for the penal code?

“he does not bear the sword for nothing. He is God's servant, an agent of wrath to bring punishment on the wrongdoer.” (Rom. 13:4)

Biblical Exclusivism and the Destiny of the Unevangelized

"We deny that anyone is saved in any other way than by Jesus Christ and his Gospel.

The Bible offers no hope that sincere worshippers of other religions will be saved without personal faith in Jesus Christ."

The Gospel of Jesus Christ:

An Evangelical Celebration

From the movie Starzan, Joey De Leon's spoof of Tarzan. With him is his sidekick Rene Requiestas playing the role of Chitaeh

One of the purposes of the church is reaching the lost with the gospel of Jesus Christ for it is the power of God for the salvation of everyone who believes. This is one of the reason's of the church's existence. Because of this, the church must be faithful in keeping the gospel pure. We must reject means and methods of evangelism that will dilute or alter the biblical message. There is only one gospel and the other alternatives are no gospel at all. We must therefore strive for precision when it comes to the saving message.

Yet there are loud voices all around saying: The gospel is not essential. God will save people without it.

 ------------------------------

PLURALISM 

“is the view that all major religions are equally valid and lead to God and salvation. Thus, no one religion is inherently better or superior to any other major world religion. With Religious Pluralism, all the major religions such as Christianity, Judaism, Hinduism, Buddhism, and Islam are equal. For pluralists, there may be differences in rituals and beliefs among these groups, but on the most important issues, there is great similarity. Most religions, they claim, stress love for God and love for fellow human beings.” (-Michael Vlach)

This is Oprah's view

Oprah:   It talks about, one of the points it brings out is one of the mistakes that human beings make is believing that there is only one way…to live. We don’t accept that there are diverse ways of being in the world; that there are millions of ways to be a human being. And many ways, no(to an audience member commenting to her remarks), many paths to what you call God. That her path might be something else and when she gets there she might call it the light. But her loving, and her kindness, and her generosity brings her to the, brings her to the same point that it brings you. It doesn’t matter whether she called it ‘God’ along the way or not.”

When some members of the audience objected, Oprah reasoned:


Oprah: No!  You think, do you thing that if you are somewhere on the planet and you never hear the name of Jesus but yet you live with a loving heart. You lived as Jesus would have had you to live. You lived for the same purpose as Jesus came to the planet to teach us all, but you are in some remote part of the earth and you never heard the name of Jesus. You cannot get to Heaven you think?

INCLUSIVISM
“... the position that one religion is uniquely true but salvation is accessible to those outside of that faith. For example, a Christian inclusivist might say, "I am a Christian and I think Christianity is the most correct religion, but I also think there is saving truth in other religions like Islam and Hinduism. People of other faiths can be saved by Jesus even if they do not explicitly believe in Him." Inclusivists do not go as far as pluralists in that inclusivists do not claim that all religions are equal. They do believe, though, that truth and salvation can be found in other religions." (Michael Vlach)


This is the official position of the Roman Catholic Church since the Second Vatican Council (1962-1965)

“Those also can attain to salvation who through no fault of their own do not know the Gospel of Christ or His Church, yet sincerely seek God and moved by grace strive by their deeds to do His will as it is known to them through the dictates of conscience”

This is a million miles away or even totally opposite to what the Roman Catholic Church has traditionally believed for many centuries. There was a papal bull issued by Pope Boniface VIII in 1302 which says:

“extra ecclesiam nulla salus” 

(“no salvation outside the church”).

That is significant because while we believe in Sola Scriptura, the Roman Catholic Church is for Sola Ecclesia-- that is the Roman Catholic church is the infallible interpreter of both  Scripture and Tradition; Whatever the church defines as a dogma, that is certainly true and the faithful must believe it. But how can an infallible authority pronounce two contradictory dogmas? We hear Martin Luther's protest once again: “Unless I am convinced by Scripture and by plain reason, and not by popes and councils who have so often contradicted themselves...”

INCLUSIVISM in the Evangelical Camp
But sadly, the problem of inclusivism has penetrated the evangelical camp as well. There are numerous proponents of this view within our ranks but I'll mention the two most popular. The first one is Joel Osteen at Larry King Live!

King: What if you're Jewish or Muslim, you don't accept Christ at all?

Osteen: You know, I'm very careful about saying who would and wouldn't go to heaven. I don't know

King: If you believe you have to believe in Christ? They're wrong, aren't they?

Osteen: Well, I don't know if I believe they're wrong. I believe here's what the Bible teaches and from the Christian faith this is what I believe. But I just think that only God with judge a person's heart. I spent a lot of time in India with my father. I don't know all about their religion. But I know they love God. And I don't know. I've seen their sincerity. So I don't know. I know for me, and what the Bible teaches, I want to have a relationship with Jesus.

You know what he is saying here: those who subscribe to Hinduism (the predominant religion in India), those who believe in these cycle of karmas-- you are what you are today because of what you did in your past life and your ultimate goal is to live as best as you so you can be united to Brahman-- and you  don't even eat beef because you believe cows are divine. Osteen said these people are sincerely in love with God!

In fairness, Osteen apologized for not being clear on the gospel on that TV appearance. If forgivesness is being sought, Christians should grant forgiveness. I can forgive Osteen. But since that is Larry King Live!, you cannot deny the magnitude of the damage that has been done.

Another popular figure is the preacher we all respect, Dr. Billy Graham. In another TV program (The Hour of Power)

Schuller: "Tell me, what is the future of Christianity?"

Graham: "I think there's the body of Christ which comes from all the Christian groups around the world, or outside the Christian groups. I think everybody that loves Christ or knows Christ, whether they're conscious of it or not, they're members of the body of Christ. And I don't think we're going to see a great sweeping revival that will turn the whole world to Christ at any time." In other words, what he is saying is there are people in the body of Christ who have never heard of Christ so we don't need to expect that they're all going to come to Christ. They're going to come another way.

 "God's purpose for this age is to call out a people for His name and that's what God is doing today. He's calling people out of the world for His name whether they come from the Muslim world or the Buddhist world or the Christian world or the non-believing world, they are members of the body of Christ because they've been called by God. They may not even know the name of Jesus but they know in their hearts that they need something that they don't have and they turn to the only light they have and I think they're saved and they're going to be with us in heaven."

Schuller: "What I hear you saying is that it's possible for Jesus Christ to come into a human heart and soul and life even if they've been born in darkness and never heard and never had exposure to the Bible. Is that a correct interpretation of what you're saying."

Graham: "Yes it is because I believe that. I've met people in various parts of the world in tribal situations, they have never seen a Bible or heard about a Bible, have never heard of Jesus but they've believed in their hearts that there is a God and they've tried to live a life that was quite apart from the surrounding community in which they lived."

Schuller: "This is fantastic. I'm so thrilled to hear you say that. There is a wideness in God's mercy."

Graham: "There is, there certainly is."

This is a man who has spent most of his life preaching the gospel. We ought to thank God for the souls saved through his ministry. But this interview is really devastating for the cause of the gospel. He is saying that his message is not even necessary for the salvation of men. We spend millions of dollars for  training missionaries and sending them to the remote corners of the world. Some of these missionaries like Jim Elliot and his gang shed blood for the cause of Christ. Some of the missionaries we sent died as Martyrs for the gospel. Yet here is a man, who is very much respected, who is supposed to be our spokesman saying people can be save even without missionaries.

What is the destiny of the unevangelized?

We are saved Sola Fide-- by faith in Christ alone; Will they be save without the instrumentality of faith in Christ?

Are there two ways of salvation then; first way-- by grace through faith in Christ  and second way by grace as long as I am sincere?

Will good boy Tarzan who lives in the middle of the jungle be accepted in heaven by on the basis of his goodness and sincerity?

If jungle men Starzan and Chitaeh have never heard about Jesus crucified and his resurrection, yet they live exemplary lives and recognize that they need something they don't have, are they members of the body of Christ as Graham said? Can we then call them Bro. Starzan and Bro. Chitaeh?

The view that I will advocate here is EXCLUSIVISM:

“the view that there is only one way to God and salvation. Thus one religion is uniquely and supremely true and all other religions are false.” (Michael Vlach)

THE PILLARS OF CHRISTIAN EXCLUSIVISM
I have to modify the word exclusvism with the word Cristian to distinguish it from other forms of exclusivism.The claim to be the only way to God is not unique to Christianiy. Judaism claims to be the exclusive way; Islam claims exclusivity; same is true for cults like Iglesia ni Cristo and The Jehovah's Witnesses. The form of exclusivity I'm advocating here is the Christ-centered one; the exclusivity of the biblical gospel as the only way for man to be reconciled to God. Yet because of the broadness of the issue, I cannot touch on things that are related to the topic which might be of interest to you-- like the destiny of those who die in infancy or those who are mentally underdeveloped. But I encourage you to check out John Macarthur's The Salvation of Babies Who Die (Part 1; part 2)

1. There is a revelation outside the Holy Scriptures which are available to all people at all times.

~theologians call this General Revelation (Psalm 19:1-4; Acts 14:15-17, Acts 17:24-31; Romans 2:14-15)

    Psalm 19:1-4 This portion of the Psalm mainly teaches that the created order sends a message to the people everywhere. Today, we are aided by powerful telescopes and see the complexity and the beauty of the created order. And in our awe we declare the greatness and power of our God! You know what, those powerful telescopes are not even available when this Psalm was written. That technology is not available to the tribes living in the jungle. But look at verses 3-4. It says the proclamation made by the heavens has been heard everywhere. It has reached the ends of the earth. Tarzan is without the Hubble Space telescope but with his bare eyes alone, he has seen the majesty of the Creator.

    It is a 24/7 non-stop proclamation of God's glory (v.2)-- When an atheist demands “give me an evidence that God exists", the very sun and the clouds above him are calling upon him, “Hey Mr. Atheist!, look at us. We are the evidence you are looking for.”

    Acts 14:15-17- Paul and Barnabas went for mission in Lystra (in modern day Turkey). Paul healed a man who has never walked all his life. All of a sudden, this man jumped and started to walk. The people were deeply pagans in their hearts that they concluded “The gods have come down to us in human form”. They called Barnabas as Zeus, the chief of the Olympian gods. Barnabas, who did the speaking most of the time was thought to be Hermes, the messenger of the gods in Greek mythology. There was a temple for pagan worship nearby and the priest of Zeus brought bulls and flowers for sacrifice.

    Paul and Barnabas tore their clothes in grief. In a crowd like that  you have to shout and so they did. “Men, why are you doing this? We too are only men, human like you. We are bringing you good news, telling you to turn from these worthless things to the living God, who made heaven and earth and sea and everything in them. 16 In the past, he let all nations go their own way. 17 Yet he has not left himself without testimony: He has shown kindness by giving you rain from heaven and crops in their seasons; he provides you with plenty of food and fills your hearts with joy."

Notice what they say the present religion of these pagans are worthless. Why then should we credit too much weight for Islam, Buddhism, Hinduism, Taoism and other world religions when the Bible labels them as worthless things. Paul and Barnabas called for the abandonment of such religion and turn to serve the true God.

Now about general revelation, we can glean here that though God let all the nations go their ways, he never left himself without testimony. How? By showing kindness to them. He sent rain, and gave them bountiful harvest. He provides food and provides the things that makes them happy. And so we see hear that when Tarzan catches a fish with his spear and is happy with it, it is God's act of kindness to him and at the same time God's testimony that He alone is the true God that Tarzan must worship him.

Acts 17:24-31-This time in Athens; Ruins of structures such as the Parthenon testifies of the idolatrous pagan worship of the ancient people there. When Paul arrived there, the sight is so distressing. The city is full of idols. There were idols for all sorts of gods and for fear that they may have left out someone, they have an altar for the Unknown god.

    Now when Paul gets a chance to speak, he told them that they have indeed left out someone. And of all the gods that they honor, what they have missed is the true God. We can read in verse 27 that this true God did something for the purpose of planting a desire in the hearts of men a desire to seek him. What is this thing that God did? In context, it is God's sustaining acts. He gave men life and breathe and everything else. Included here is his sustaining the universe is his control over history. From one common ancestor (Adam), men multiplied and nations were formed by his providence. Kings and Kingdoms rise and fall by his will. He determined the eras when each one shall live and their geographical locations. I was born in San Carlos City in the province of Pangasinan because God wants it that way. God has sovereignly decided that I should be a 21st century Filipino and not a 13th century Scottish lest I should compete with William Wallace as the national hero of Scotland.

Romans 2:14-15 Aside from God's revelation in nature and history, God has also implanted in the heart of man  a conscience that tells him what's right and what's wrong. By instinct, men of every place and time know the basic moral demands of God. Paul says here that though the pagans were not recipients of God's written law, though they don't have a Moses who would present the 10 commandments written on tablets of stone, they sometimes do by nature things required by the law simply because the requirements of the law were written on their hearts.

    That's why, even non-Christian Governments institute laws that punishes stealing, murder, and rape. In a biblical worldview, it's not surprising to find out that an ancient Chinese philospher like Confucius can teach a passive version of the Golden Rule “Do not do unto others what you don't want others do unto you” which sounds very similar to Jesus' active Golden Rule “So in everything, do to others what you would have them do to you" (Matthew 7:12)

 2.God's Revelation was Repaid by Men With Universal Rejection  (Romans 1:18-32)

The section starts with... “The wrath of God is being revealed from heaven against all the godlessness and wickedness of men... ” Oh, how could that be? Earlier we have seen the kindness of God. He sends rain, makes our crop grow; he provides us with food and everything else we need; and fills our hearts with gladness. What could be the reason for this fierce anger of God? What makes him angry is man's suppresion of truth.

    The information about God in Nature is so plain because God made it plain. All humanity scattered in all the islands and continents on the face of the earth witnessed it. It is clearly seen says verse 20. They know God but refused to give him glory; and refused to give thanks for all the kindness that he has shown. Total Depravity in action.. Men chose images of created things at the expense of God's glory. They exchanged the glory of God for a lie; choosing created things rather than the Creator.

From general revelation, men ought to know that God is separate and distinct from his creation. But men would rather believe in Pantheism (all is God; God is in everything; God and the Universe is identical) such as Hinduism. The are culpable. So in verse 20, Paul declares that they are without excuse.

From general revelation, men ought to know that God is very active in the universe; he is very much involved in operating this world, yet Men would deliberately suppress that truth and adapt the Deistic position. What is Deism? The view that God created the world, he puts fixed seasons and physical laws such as gravity but he left it to run on its own course. He doesn't interfere with the world's affairs anymore. Lies, lies, lies, and more lies to suppress the truth.

    Look at verses 26-27. The point is, applying simple anatomy, humanity has clearly seen  that God has designed that a man should take a woman as a partner; and a woman should take a man as a partner. That is God's natural design and simple anatomy confirms it. Yet men suppressed the truth once again, disregarding the design in exhange for what is not natural: homosexual relationships.

    You might have heard the recent news. Proposition 8, which defines marriage as a union between a man and a woman was put into vote in the state of California. The traditional view won by a slight margin. The losers brought the case to the court and by the power of one judge, it was decided that the citizens of California does not have the right to define what a marriage is. That is Romans 1:26-27 demonstrated.

    And what did men do to the conscience God has given them? The conscience which is supposed to be a storage for God's moral demands, they perverted it until their minds were so darkened and made heroes out of evil doers (Rom. 1:28-32).

    Let us turn for Psalm 14 for a while. Verse 1 says, that through all the revelation God has given, only a fool would turn out to be an atheist. They are fools indeed but you may be surprised to know that the next two verses of the psalm teaches that not only professing atheists such as Richard Dawkins and Christopher Hitchens are fools but all people on the face of the earth. We may confess the existence of God with our lips but we live as if he doesn't exist. Some call this “practical atheism”. This foolishness is universal.

Russel Moore says: “It is not just that persons ought to know God throught general revelation. It is instead that they do know  God through this revelation, and they despise him anyway.”

God's verdict: the jungle man is guilty and he is without excuse for the sins he has committed.

3.The only way for any man to be saved is to accept the gospel of Jesus Christ (Romans 10:9-15)

Paul here explains that the way to salvation is through an explicit faith in Jesus Christ. Everyone who runs toward him for refuge shall never be put to shame. They will surely be saved. But God works through means in saving individuals. In verses 14-15, the Apostle Paul just moves backwards through the process of evangelism. Yes it true according to verse 13 that ALL men  who call upon the name of the Lord shall be saved.

“But how could Tarzan call upon the one whom he has not believed in?”

“How could Tarzan believe on him if he has not heard the message?”

“How could Tarzan hear without a preacher?”

“And how could there be a preacher if we are not sending them”

verse 17: “Consequently, faith comes from hearing the message,

and the message is heard through the word of Christ.”

There is no way for Tarzan to have faith if the message about Christ will not be preached. And the message about Christ is not heard through general revelation. There is no way you can look at the stars and conclude that Jesus is God incarnate, crucified, buried, and raised from the dead on the third day. Chitaeh cannot learn the gospel from Alingawngaw. Someone must bring the message to them if they are to be saved.

John 14:6 "Jesus is the way, the truth and the life. No one comes to the Father except by him"

Acts 4:12- “Salvation is found in no one else, for there is no other name under heaven given to men by which we must be saved."

The Greater Blessedness and Accountability of the Philippines Compared to Her Neighbors
I just would like to note that despite of our economic difficulties, we Filipinos are still blessed! The evangelical population in this country is less than 10%. Yes that is small. But in a study made by Christianity Today, 2% of the population is enough to make a significant impact in reaching the community. Based on this study, peoples who have less than 2% of Christians in its population are labeled as unreached or least reached with the gospel.

We Filipinos are still blessed compared to our neighbors based on these numbers:

Percentage of the Unreached 

Philippines10.8% 

Indonesia: 25.5%

Thailand: 66.7%

Japan: 67.6%

Cambodia: 71.4%

China: 82.8%

Laos: 91.2%

God has blessed us so much! We and our relatives are saturated with the gospel message. Our Asian neighbors are not as blessed as we are. Many peoples doesn't have an access to the saving message. But let us also remember that to whom much is given, much is required. We will be judged more strictly for if the general revelation is clear, how much more is the gospel clearer? If by the dim light of nature, conscience and history, men are held accountable for their sins, how much greater terror a man must face if he has trampled upon the message of Jesus' incarnation, sacrifice and resurrection?

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Recommended Resources:

John Macarthur, The Exclusiveness of the Gospel (parts 1 & 2)

Gordon Lewis & Bruce Demarest, Integrative Theology, Vol.1

Russell Moore, Natural Revelation (chapter 2 in A Theology for the Church; edited by Daniel Akin)

Curt Daniel, Destiny of the Unevangelized (mp3)

The Bridgemaster Illustration Missed the Essentials of the Penal Substitution

"The story of the railway switchman illustrates the substitutionary nature of Christ's death, but gives a distorted portrayal of God's will and God's law. The switchman (representing God the Father) is compelled to make a choice between two distinctly unpalatable options, and the decision is forced upon him by the pressure of unforeseen circumstances. His son is an unfortunate, passive victim who has landed himself and his father in this dreadful situation by sheer carelessness, and he does not willingly consent to die. This contrasts starkly with the biblical picture of the cross as part of God's eternal plan, devised before the creation of the world to glorify the Son; of the Father as the one who deliberately chose to send his Son into the world; of the Son as the willing, determined, self-giving Savior of his people".

Pierced for Our Transgressions:

Rediscovering the Glory of Penal Substitution (page 332-333)

Steve Jeffery, Mike Ovey and Andrew Sach