“Many paths lead from the foot of the mountain, but at the peak we all gaze at the single bright moon.”^[1]

You’ve probably heard something similar to this before. This quote was written by the Buddhist monk Ikkyu, and it basically means that you can reach God and salvation through whatever religion you choose to practice. Our culture today loves and embraces this idea. They preach that you should be able to believe and practice whatever you want to believe and practice and that what’s true for you may not be true for somebody else. In fact, the Ligonier State of Theology Survey found in 2018 that sixty-five percent of American adults agree with the statement that “God accepts the worship of all religions, including Christianity, Judaism, and Islam.”^[2] But can this really be true? Does this statement agree with the truth we find in the Word of God?

The short answer: no. Because the truth of Scripture differs greatly from and clearly disagrees with the claims and beliefs of other world religions.

The first difference between Christianity and other major world religions is their beliefs about who God is. The Bible teaches that there is only one God – Yahweh, the Creator of the world, the Sustainer of our souls, the Redeemer of our lives. This one God exists in three persons: the Father, the Son (also known as Jesus Christ), and the Holy Spirit (also known as the Helper). These three persons have different roles, but they are all the one God (John 1:1-3, Acts 5:3-4). Paul wrote to the church in Corinth-

“Yet for us there is one God, the Father, from whom are all things and for whom we exist, and one Lord, Jesus Christ, through whom are all things and through whom we exist.” 1 Corinthians 8:6, ESV

Other religions don’t believe this. Buddhists don’t believe in a personal God. Mormons worship a few gods, and Hindus worship many gods. Judaism and Islam are both monotheistic religions like Christianity, but they believe that God is only one person.^[3] While they may acknowledge that Jesus existed and walked on the earth, they do not believe that He is the Son of God.

Another difference between the religions of this world is their beliefs about humanity. It is clear in the Bible that human beings are naturally sinful. Ever since the fall, all human beings (except for Jesus) are bent towards sin. Their hearts are deceitful and desperately sick (Jeremiah 17:9). It is impossible for anyone to be naturally good or righteous (Romans 3:10), and if you suggest otherwise, you’re just deceiving yourself (1 John 1:8).

“For all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God,” Romans 3:23

Many other world religions downplay our sinfulness. They teach that we are mostly good people or that it is possible for us to be good people, to live good lives, to do good deeds through our own effort and hard work. In fact, most of them teach that if you do enough good things, you can be saved.^[4] And this leads into the final difference.

Christianity and other world religions differ on how salvation is possible. Most of the major religions of this world teach that salvation comes from doing good things. They teach that if you obey every law in the Torah, if you practice the Five Pillars and please Allah, if you follow the Noble Eightfold Path, if you achieve enlightenment by pursuing a certain way of life, then you will be saved or liberated. But is there any real hope here? What if you don’t do enough good things? What if you can’t follow all the practices? What if you’re never able to achieve enlightenment?

But Christians do have hope, a living hope that is sure and steadfast, Jesus (1 Peter 1:3, Hebrews 6:19-20). We are imperfect, sinful beings, and God is perfectly holy and righteous. We cannot do enough good things to be accepted by God and saved, and we don’t have to! Jesus, the Son of God, came to the earth, lived a sinless life, and died as a perfect sacrifice for our sins. We are not saved by doing good works; we are saved by grace through faith (Ephesians 3:8-9). And the only thing we need to do to be saved is to believe and confess that Jesus is our Lord and Savior (Romans 10:9).

So, does God accept all religions? The Bible tells us that there is one God who exists in three persons. It teaches that all of humanity is totally sinful and that God came down in human form to save us from our sin. We reach salvation not by doing enough good deeds, but by grace and through faith. This is the truth we find in God’s Word, which means that all other beliefs and practices are untrue and unacceptable to God.

If you have believed things or practiced things that go against the Bible, you can never be too far from God’s reach, you can never be too late to receive salvation, you can never out-sin God’s grace. He loves you, and His grace is available to you. Call out to Him today. He will answer.

“Thus says the LORD who made the earth, the LORD who formed it to establish it – the LORD is His name: Call to Me and I will answer you, and will tell you great and hidden things that you have not known.” Jeremiah 33:3

^[1] “Ikkyu quotes,” Goodreads, accessed May 10, 2020, https://www.goodreads.com/author/quotes/150277.Ikkyu.

^[2] “Data Explorer,” The State of Theology, accessed May 10, 2020, https://thestateoftheology.com/data-explorer/2018/3?AGE=30&MF=14&REGION=30&EDUCATION=62&INCOME=254&MARITAL=126&ETHNICITY=62&RELTRAD=62&ATTENDANCE=254.

^[3] Simon Turpin, “Do All Religions Lead to God?,” last modified September 6, 2017, https://answersingenesis.org/world-religions/do-all-religions-lead-to-god/.

^[4] Ibid.