Is the sinless life of Christ and His atoning death and resurrection the only means by which the penalty of sin is paid and the power of sin defeated?
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Pluralism answers both questions “no.” The pluralist, like John Hick, believes that there are many paths to God, Jesus being only one of them. Since salvation can come through other religions and religious leaders, it surely follows that people do not have to believe in Christ to be saved.
Inclusivism answers the first question “yes” and the second question “no.” To the inclusivist, like Clark Pinnock, although Jesus has accomplished the work necessary to bring us back to God, nonetheless, people can be saved by responding positively to God’s revelation in creation and perhaps in aspects of their own religions. So, even though Christ is the only Savior, people do not have to know about or believe in Christ to be saved.
Exclusivism answers both questions “yes.” The exclusivist, such as the late Ronald H. Nash, believes that Scripture affirms both truths; first, that Jesus alone has accomplished the atoning work necessary to save sinners, and second, that knowledge of and faith in Christ is necessary for anyone to be saved. The remainder of this article offers a brief summary of some of the main support for these two claims.
Jesus is the only Savior
Why think that Jesus is the only Savior? Of all the people who have lived and ever will live, Jesus alone qualifies, in His person and work, as the only one capable of accomplishing atonement for the sin of the world. Consider the following ways in which Jesus alone qualifies as the exclusive Savior:
First, Christ alone was conceived by the Holy Spirit and born of a virgin (Isa. 7:14; Matt. 1:18–25; Luke 1:26–38); as such, He alone qualifies to be Savior. Why does this matter? Only as the Holy Spirit takes the place of the human father in Jesus’ conception can it be true that the one conceived is both fully God and fully man. Christ must be both God and man to atone for sin (see below), but for this to occur, He must be conceived by the Holy Spirit and born of a human virgin. No one else in the history of the world is conceived by the Spirit and born of a virgin mother. Therefore, Jesus alone qualifies to be Savior.
Second, Christ alone is God incarnate (John 1:1–18; Heb. 1:1–3; 2:14–18; Phil. 2:5–11; 1 Tim. 2:5–6); as such, He alone qualifies to be Savior. As Anselm argued in the eleventh century, our Savior must be fully man in order to take the place of men and die in their stead, and He must be fully God in order for the value of His sacrificial payment to satisfy the demands of our infinitely holy God. Man He must be, but a mere man simply could not make this infinite payment for sin. But no one else in the history of the world is both fully God and fully man. Therefore, Jesus alone qualifies to be Savior.
Third, Christ alone lived a sinless life (2 Cor. 5:21; Heb. 4:15; 7:23–28; 9:13–14; 1 Peter 2:21–24); as such, He alone qualifies to be Savior. As Leviticus makes clear, animals offered as sacrifices for sin must be without blemish. This prefigured the sacrifice of Christ who, as sinless, was able to die for the sins of others and not for Himself. But no one else in the history of the world has lived a totally sinless life. Therefore, Jesus alone qualifies to be Savior.
Fourth, Christ alone died a penal, substitutionary death (Isa. 53:4–6; Rom. 3:21–26; 2 Cor. 5:21; Gal. 3:10–14); as such, He alone qualifies to be Savior. The wages of sin is death (Rom. 6:23). And because Christ lived a sinless life, He did not deserve to die. Rather, the cause of His death was owing to the fact that the Father imputed to Him our sin. The death that He died was in our place. No one else in the history of the world has died because He bore the sin of others and not as the judgment for His own sin. Therefore, Jesus alone qualifies to be Savior.
Fifth, Christ alone rose from the dead triumphant over sin (Acts 2:22–24; Rom. 4:25; 1 Cor. 15:3–8, 16–23). As such, He alone qualifies to be Savior. The Bible indicates that a few people, other than Christ, have been raised from the dead (1 Kings 17:17–24; John 11:38–44), but only Christ has been raised from the dead never to die again, having triumphed over sin. The wages of sin is death, and the greatest power of sin is death. So, Christ’s resurrection from the dead demonstrates that His atoning death for sin accomplished both the full payment of sin’s penalty and full victory over sin’s greatest power. No one else in the history of the world has been raised from the dead triumphant over sin. Therefore, Jesus alone qualifies to be Savior.
The conclusion is unquestionable: Christ alone qualifies as Savior, and Christ alone is Savior. Jesus’ own words could not be clearer: “I am the way, and the truth, and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me” (John 14:6). And the apostle Peter confirms: “And there is salvation in no one else, for there is no other name under heaven given among men by which we must be saved” (Acts 4:12). These claims are true of no one else in the history of the world. Indeed, Jesus alone is Savior.
Faith in Christ is necessary to be saved
Why think that faith in Christ is necessary to be saved? The teaching of the apostles is clear, that the content of the Gospel now (since the coming of Christ) focuses directly upon the atoning death and resurrection of Christ and that by faith in Christ one is forgiven of his sin and granted eternal life. Consider the following passages that support the conviction that people are saved only as they know and trust in Christ as their Savior:
First, Jesus’ own teaching shows that the nations need to hear and repent to be saved (Luke 24:44–49). Jesus commands that “repentance and forgiveness of sins should be proclaimed in his name to all nations, beginning from Jerusalem” (Luke 24:47). The people Jesus here describes are currently both unrepentant and unforgiven. To be forgiven they must repent. But to repent they must hear the proclamation of Christ’s work in His name. And this is true for all the nations, including Jews who haven’t trusted Christ. Jesus does not envision the “nations” as already having saving revelation available to them. Rather, believers must proclaim the message of Christ to all the nations for people in those nations to be saved.
Second, Paul teaches that even pious Jews, and everyone else, must hear and believe in Christ to be saved (Rom. 10:1–4, 13–15). His heart’s desire and prayer is for the salvation of his fellow Jews. Even though they have a zeal for God, they do not know that God’s righteousness comes only through faith in Christ. So these Jews, even though pious, are not saved. Whoever will call upon the name of Christ (see Rom. 10:9, 13) will be saved. But this requires that someone tell them. And this requires that those are sent. Missions, then, is necessary, since people must hear the Gospel of Christ to be saved.
Third, Cornelius’s story demonstrates that even pious Gentiles must hear and believe in Christ to be saved (Acts 10:1–2, 38–43; 11:13–18; 15:7–9). Far from being saved before Peter came to him, as some think, Cornelius was a pious (10:2) Gentile who needed to hear of Christ and believe in Christ to be saved. When Peter reports about the conversion of the Gentiles, he declares that only when he preached did Cornelius hear the message he needed to hear in order to “be saved” (Acts 11:14; see also 15:8–9). Despite his piety, Cornelius needed to hear the proclamation of the Gospel of Christ to be saved.
Again, the conclusion is clear: Jesus is the only Savior, and people must know and believe in Christ to be saved. May we honor Christ and the Gospel, and may we manifest our faithfulness to God’s Word by upholding these twin truths and living in a manner that demonstrates our commitment to them.
(2008). Tabletalk Magazine, June 2008: Religious Pluralism, 18–21.
