Yar said:
Christianity teaches that Jesus is THE guaranteed way to heaven but does not exclude other ways entirely.
There are two issues here. Does God exist and is Jesus his Son. If God does not exist all this is moot. If Jesus is not the son of God there is no Christian religion. If he is then what he said is fact and is far above any other view.
Christians response to Yar:Let's go to the horses mouth, the Scripture, to see if your statement above is correct. I refer to your statement "Christianity teaches that Jesus is THE guaranteed way to heaven but does not exclude other ways entirely."
Jesus had this to say about the fact that He was the only way to God (the Father), and hence heaven:
John 14:6
6.Jesus saith unto him, I am the way, the truth, and the life: NO MAN cometh unto the Father (GOD), BUT BY ME.Christian continue's:
Sounds totally exclusionary to me, with no "wiggle room" whatsoever.
Here is more for us to ponder:
The is only one name under all heaven by which men can be saved—Jesus Christ!
Acts, chapter 4, verses 11 & 12 tells us:
"11. For Jesus the Messiah is (the one referred to in the Scriptures when they speak of) a `stone discarded by the builders which became the capstone of the arch.' 12. There is salvation in no one else! UNDER ALL HEAVEN THERE IS NO OTHER NAME FOR MEN TO CALL UPON TO SAVE THEM.''
Sincerely,Christian
When you read Yar's column, you might agree, you might disagree, you might be moved to spirited debate, but you won't sorry you stopped by. Yar is a terrific writer, and challenging debater, so bring your "A" game. You'll find thoughtful articles on wide variety of subjects penned by a smart author who is engaging, witty and inspired. Yar's pieces always draw me into the conversation and you'll find he will draw you in, too.
I can always count on Yar to get me the most profound and the funniest articles from across the web. Thanks a lot Yar, you make me an elated Panda.
— Ansab
Yar has two of the qualities I value most in humanity: a strong faith in God, our Creator, and a sense of humour. It was worth being grafted into the Vine just to know him.
Cheers, mate :-)
yar, you're one of the best writers here. Thanks for proving that open-minded fairness is possible in a social community like Newsvine.
Thank you for interesting and engaging articles. Many of your views coincide with mine, but you are far more experienced in everything and you know what you're talking about. Me? I'm going by what I heard.. on the grapevine.
— Vyto
What I like most about yar is that he brings much to debate, especially when it comes to religion. I wish not to downplay his other major fields of debate, namely politics and society, but yar brings much to religious debates because of his free-thinking in regards to world religions; to be sure, he has his own view, but that does not block him for seeing all people as one in the same.
— Leon K
Initially I was extremely skeptical of the claim in the tag line "open-minded", I havent been around long and suspect I wont agree on a lot of political issues, but to date he does seem willing to consider other views. While I am new to newsvine, there are far too many who make abundantly clear that have no interest in anything that doesnt reinforce what they already believe.
As a side note, I think its important for open minded Christians to remind others that the close minded right wing fundamentalists that have a lot of political clout these days dont speak for all Christians.
— Catch22
I disagree with an awful lot of his views (but thats democracy right) although he is very open minded for Christian-American-Veteran has a very closed minded stereotype here in Europe.
yar is one of my favorite's on the vine to read. His commentary is both educational and thoughtful. I feel yar is a true credit to have on newsvine and think all would benefit from his work.
Do not try to label or confine yar, for he will surely surprise you. You may not know immediately what the purpose or reason for each of his articles are, but when he pulls back the curtains and reveals his intentions the experience will have been worth while.
yar's approach to Newsvine is to provide healthy and nutritious food for thought. You may not always like the taste, you may not know what the ingredients are, but his offerings are always good for your brain. Bon appétit!
yar is a passionate debater with both skill and flair, and a writer who can launch heated discussions at will and then dissect the comments with surgical precision to get to the essence of the issue. You better keep an eye on his column, because something is happening, and you probably don't know exactly what it is.
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