The Religious Buffet Line

Today's society is one that claims tolerance and co-existence. This mentality has seeped into the church in a big way. We have said that for the sake of "co-existence" we will claim the doctrine of humility and call all religions good. After all if we are truly humble then how can any of us claim that we know absolute truth. Under this doctrine of humility we allow ourselves to treat all religions as a buffet line so that we can take the parts we like from varying religions. In the mainline Protestant/Evangelical religion some have taken the Bible and carved it up so that all that is intolerable, all that may be offensive and all that may cause others to be convicted by their sin, is taken out of our so-called faith.

I know I cannot escape the following verses when it comes to God, Jesus and the Bible and for that reason I do claim to know absolute truth.

"All the paths of the LORD are lovingkindness and truth To those who keep His covenant and His testimonies." Psalm 25:10

"Into Your hand I commit my spirit; You have ransomed me, O LORD, God of truth." Psalm 31:5

"For His lovingkindness is great toward us, And the truth of the LORD is everlasting. Praise the LORD!" Psalm 117:2

"The sum of Your word is truth, And every one of Your righteous ordinances is everlasting." Psalm 119:160

"For the Law was given through Moses; grace and truth were realized through Jesus Christ." John 1:17

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

"Sanctify them in the truth; Your word is truth." John 17:17

"because of the hope laid up for you in heaven, of which you previously heard in the word of truth, the gospel" Colossians 1:5

"In the exercise of His will He brought us forth by the word of truth, so that we would be a kind of first fruits among His creatures." James 1:18

The above are only a few verses in scripture that testify to 1) God being the truth; 2) Jesus being the truth; and 3) Scripture being the truth because they are the words of God. So for me is there absolute truth? Absolutely, scripture tells me so.

One argument that is made by buffet line Christians and that is that Jesus is a way and not the only way. Well look at John 14:6 above. Jesus says clearly that He is the way and that no one gets to heaven except through Him. I do believe that makes His statement absolute. This is not a verse we can leave behind as we pass through the buffet of religions. Christianity is not part of the buffet line, it is the meal.

Another argument seems be the humility argument. The one that says that if I were truly humble I would see that there are many ways to heaven and my way is only one. Well true humility is humbling yourself before an almighty God, realizing that you are the created being and He is the Creator. It is actually prideful of us when we choose the buffet line in opposition to the one true God and the one way. True humility is not found through self-actualization or relying on your own understanding to find out what is truth, it is the belief in one true God and then coming into submission and obedience to that one true God.

I just want to close this post with one verse, " For they exchanged the truth of God for a lie, and worshiped and served the creature rather than the Creator, who is blessed forever. Amen." Romans 1:25.