Many Paths?

…But small is the gate and narrow is the road that leads to life. (Matthew 7:14).

I have long wished that I could say there is more than one way to God.  It would make life so much easier…but then, God never said it would be easy.  In fact He says ‘Wide is the gate and broad is the road that leads to destruction’(verse 13).   So there are many paths to destruction and only one to life.

The reason I bring this up is because it’s a very negative concept and I was uncomfortable with it for a long time.  I didn’t have an understanding of it that I was satisfied with (not that I expect to understand everything in this lifetime).   After all, God is a loving God, why would He make it so hard?  And then I realised one very simple thing.  He wouldn’t have sacrificed His son if there was another way.  Jesus gave up EVERYTHING because there was no other way.  And He didn’t have to.  In fact as I read about him hanging there on the cross knowing that at any time he could have called down angels (and let me tell you, if it was me up there on the cross I wouldn’t have hesitated – mankind would have been doomed.  To see the look on the faces of all those people standing there trying everything they could to degrade me).  But he didn’t.  And so instead of having no path at all, no gate, no road.  We have a narrow one.  It’s not meant to make it hard for us to get to God, its meant to make it easy.  It’s a gift not a burden.  We don’t have to do anything cause it’s already been done.

Greater love has no one than this, that he lay down his life for his friends. (John 15:13 NIV)