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Does God operate a theological cafeteria? Are all of the world’s religions (e.g., Buddhism, Hinduism, Islam, Judaism, et al.) on His “steam table”? Is Christianity on the menu as merely one among many choices of access leading to God and salvation? Does He allow men to choose which of these is most appealing to them?
Those who believe the Bible is the only revelation from God must answer “No” to all but the last of the foregoing questions. God has granted men free will, allowing us to choose our religious diet, even if it poisons and kills us. The religious smorgasbord described above is not God’s. It belongs to men, though God allows men to operate it and dine to their own destruction. He has never coerced obedience to His will.
The philosophy of Postmodernism has modern man in its grip. It gives “moral equivalency” to all philosophies, political systems, ethical systems, and religions. In this diabolical and irrational scheme of relativism, all truth claims are counted equal. There is no such thing as objective, immutable, absolute truth. Whatever one believes or thinks is one’s “truth,” but directly contradictory beliefs and thoughts are no less “truth.”
Evidence—by which truth is established and by which hoaxes, lies, and errors are exposed—is of no consequence to the Postmodernist. The assertions of the “global warming” and “man-made climate change” champions continue in spite of the mounds of evidence that such claims are a manufactured hoax, well illustrating the modern disdain for evidence—and for truth. Their attitude is, “We don’t care what the evidence demands, this is our story, and we’re sticking to it.” Thus truth, once generally respected and sought above all else, has thereby been cast on history’s ash heap by very many of those born since the 1980s.
Postmodern philosophy produces cafeteria theology when applied to religion. It denies the existence of one true and living God, one alone Who is man’s Savior, and an exclusive God- revealed infallible way by which men might be reconciled to God. Clearly, the Jews five centuries before Christ were Postmodernists, exalting the idols of their pagan neighbors to “moral equivalency” with their Creator and Benefactor. He commissioned Babylon to destroy Jerusalem and lead His people into exile. They learned God’s attitude toward this vile and damnable philosophy “the hard way.”
The Bible declares one God, one Savior, and one way—exclusively:
- God’s Word is Truth (John 17:17).
- Jesus is God’s beloved Son; we must hear Him (Mat. 17:5).
- We must believe Jesus is His Son or die in—and because of—sin (John 8:24; Rom. 6:23).
- Jesus is the way, truth, and life; the only way to God (John 14:6).
- Jesus’ way alone leads to eternal life; all other paths (composing the “broad way”) end in spiritual, eternal death (Mat. 7:13–14).
- Men can be saved only through Jesus (Acts. 4:12).
- God will uproot all of the religious institutions men have founded (Mat. 15:13).
These and a host of other statements exclude Buddhism, Islam, Confucianism, Hinduism, Baha’ism, Judaism, and all other “world religions.” These statements also exclude those thousands of religious institutions that profess belief in the Bible, while denying some of its plainest declarations (e.g., the plan of salvation, authorized worship, et al.). Postmodernism has captured practically all of the educational institutions operated by brethren. It explains the plague of liberalism and apostasy that has stolen hundreds of congregations of the Lord’s church over the last few decades. No philosophy is more anti-Biblical or anti-Christian than Postmodernism.
[Note: I wrote this article for and it was published in The Lighthouse, weekly bulletin of Northpoint Church of Christ, Denton, TX, February 8, 2015, of which I was editor.]
Attribution: From thescripturecache.com; Dub McClish, owner and administrator.
