Thread by @ThomasCoutouzis

#Exetweet

1/ "Jesus said to him (Apostle Thomas), 'I am the way, and the truth, and the life; No one comes to the Father but through Me." John 14:6

2/ The context in verses 1-4 is Christ telling the disciples about him preparing to leave (his upcoming death), preparing a place for them in heaven, and His eventual return. Then Christ inserts in v4 "And you know the way that I am going?"

3/ This prompted Thomas to ask in v5 "...we do not know where you are going, how do we know the way?" And this brings us to the absolute and exclusive statement in v6 that Jesus is the only way for unbelieving man to get to heaven. There are no other ways.

4/ The term "way" is "hodos" in the Greek, and it denotes "a way/path/road". Christ uses this exact term in Matthew 7:13-14 ..."for the gate is wide and the way (hodos) is broad that leads to destruction, and there are many who enter through it."

5/ Christ is showing us that there are only two roads/ways (hodos) mankind can take. There is the way that leads to destruction that is broad because there are many that will be thrown into Hell, and then the narrow road, which few will find (See Matthew 7:13-14)

6/ Sin has separated us from God. Romans 3:10-11 says, "There is none righteous, not even one, There is none who understands, there is none who seeks for God." This is an absolute statement showing that man is not good, but evil, because of the sin we inherited from Adam.

7/ We were all destined for Hell and deservedly so. Sin made us rebels against God and the order in which His creation was to operate. We all sought to serve self instead of God, because sin is a love of self. showing Romans 3:11 to be true, "there is no one who seeks for God."

8/ This is why the road to Hell is wide and packed full of mankind and the road to Heaven has so few people that find it. The people on the Wide road say, "I am basically good" while the people on the narrow road realized, "I am so evil because I have transgressed against God."

9/ Jude 11 when talking about false teachers says, "Woe to them! For they have gone the way (hodos) of Cain." Cain loved himself. Cain hated God and did not want to submit to God's requirements for his sin offering (killing an animal) so He murdered his brother Abel.

10/ Cain's way was like that of the false teachers that Jude spoke about. They do not fear God, otherwise they would not sin against Him. They want to be their own god. They do not want to submit to God's order for anything. They want to live for themselves and not God.

11/ Christ's way (hodos) is different. Matthew 7:14 shows His way as the narrow road which very few find. This should immediately elicit a thought that not everyone who proclaims to be a Christian is. In fact, most of the people who "believe" in God are not Christians.

12/ Most people who claim to be Christians are theists. They believe there is a God and that is it. They do not believe that Christ was God incarnate or in His death, burial, and resurrection, or that He was sinless and substitute for any who believe and repent of their sin.

13/ These theists believe they are basically good and that if they do good things they will get into heaven. The Bible says that it is by grace that one is saved. Grace meaning unmerited favor, denoting that there is no good work that you can do that will get you into heaven.

14/ Christ then drops a second bomb, "(I am) the truth". "Aletheia" is the word used denoting, "true to fact" or "reality". Christ being part of the Trinity is the epitome of all that is true. Why? Because every word of scripture was breathed from His mouth.

15/ Every atom in creation was breathed in unity by the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit. He fulfilled the prophecy in Genesis 3:15 where He would come and die for the sins of man, showing that God is what scripture says He is.

16/ The Bible tells us that His word is truth. Every word breathed in scripture was written by men, but divinely inspired by the Holy Spirit. There are no contradictions in scripture. It is perfectly cohesive and without error. Christ is the foundation of all that is true.

17/ If Christ is the foundation of all that is true, then His word (scripture) never changes. False teachers will try to change the meanings by inserting lies, but that will not take away His words validity. On judgment day, His truth will be revealed to every person in...

18/ ...existence. There are those that say that truth is relative, when it is absolute. When someone states that "truth is relative" to each person it is a contradiction, because they are stating an absolute truth that all truth is relative, violating the law of non-contradiction

19/ One day when we stand before the author of all truth (Christ) every lie, deception and sin that man has believed will be broken over his righteousness. For the unredeemed it means an eternity of torment in Hell because they choose to continue to walk in deception.

20/ "(I am) the life" (zoe). His life was lived in complete submission to God the Father. The implication is that a true follower of Christ who will enter into heaven is one who lives a life of submission to God. That ultimately means submission to His word (Scripture).

21/ Our sin nature will not allow us to live in submission to God. He has to regenerate us and make us into a new creation (See 2 Corinthians 5:17). Those who have been regenerated in Christ will still battle with sin, but it will be less and less.

22/ God will sanctify His chosen ones, meaning that He will purify them over time to make them more holy. They will not achieve perfection in this life, but in the next. If we love God, we will obey His word (scripture). "If you love Me, you will obey My commandments." John 14:15

23/ If we love ourselves we will disobey Him and conform to the culture of this evil world system. He says in John 14:21 "He who has My commandments and keeps them is the one who loves Me;"

Obedience requires a sacrificing of self to obey God's word.

24/ A true believer will emulate Christ's life of submission to God. They will share the Gospel with perishing man even though they do not want it.

"No one comes to the Father except through Me." The word "No one" is "oudeis" in the Greek.

25/ "Ou" is the prefix & is a negative that denies something absolutely/categorically. Christ is saying that there is absolutely no other way to Heaven except through Him. Not Buddha, Not Vishnu, Not Allah, Not Krishna, Not Joseph Smith.Believe in Christ & turn away from your sin