Audacious

We've all heard the outrage. "Are you saying that if people don't accept Christ, God will condemn them to hell?" "Are you saying that Jesus is the only way?" "Are you saying I'm a sinner and need Jesus?" "Are you saying ...?" Lots of these kinds of questions. They're always worded to make you sound ridiculous. "How outrageous that you would make such a claim!" And, in truth, it can make many of us hesitate. "It does sound a bit audacious, doesn't it?" (Even if you don't use the word "audacious".)

As it turns out, I can answer these types of questions without hesitation. "No, I'm not. God is." You see, I'm not the one who said, "I am the Way, the Truth, and the Life. No one comes to the Father but by Me." I didn't inspire John to write, "Little children, make sure no one deceives you; the one who practices righteousness is righteous, just as He is righteous; the one who practices sin is of the devil; for the devil has sinned from the beginning. The Son of God appeared for this purpose, to destroy the works of the devil. No one who is born of God practices sin, because His seed abides in him; and he cannot sin, because he is born of God. By this the children of God and the children of the devil are obvious: anyone who does not practice righteousness is not of God, nor the one who does not love his brother." (1 John 3:7-10) "Wait," I've been told, "are you saying that the one who makes a practice of sin is not born of God?" No, no I'm not. That is God's inspired Word saying that.

There is a difference in here. When the Bible says, "Go, therefore, and make disciples" and someone tells me (as they have), "That means that everyone needs to leave home and go to the mission field," I just might say, "Are you saying ...?" Because that's not what it says. But when it says, "There is salvation in no one else; for there is no other name under heaven that has been given among men by which we must be saved" (Act 4:12) and I repeat that, I am not saying it. I'm repeating it. When I say, "He who believes in Him is not judged; he who does not believe has been judged already, because he has not believed in the name of the only begotten Son of God" (John 3:18), it's not my idea. I'm simply quoting Jesus.

Is it, then, audacious (remember my word earlier?) to make such claims? I would argue that the more bold, impudent, and disrespectful (because that's the definition of "audacious") thing to do would be to deny it. You know, like the serpent in the garden: "Did God say?"

Update
And then I find this little item warning against binding conscience unbiblically ... something that I was talking about, too. I think that I can say with relative certainty that he didn't get it from me, but it's nice to see something like agreement elsewhere.