Inclusive and Exclusive

We are right in the middle of the “pumpkin spice” season.  I saw a sign locally that read, “Limited Time Only: Pumpkin Spice Insurance.” That’s pretty clever.  After all, it is all the rage.

            I have to admit to you that I agree with my Dad on this issue. He once said to me, “I think I might like pumpkin flavored stuff if it just didn’t taste like pumpkin.”  I remember the look on his face at a family reunion years ago when he thought he had a slice of sweet potato pie only to discover that it was actually pumpkin.  The one bite was his only bite. Yeah. Me, too.

            But it’s pretty clear that a lot of folks disagree with me. Pumpkin spiced flavoring wouldn’t be all over the place if someone wasn’t eating or drinking it.  So, to each his own.  You can have mine. What tastes good is merely an opinion.

            Unfortunately, many people want to take their religious beliefs on the basis of what “tastes good” to them.  “I’ll have a little of this, and a little of that, and when I blend them it will fit me just perfectly.”  That works at the local buffet. But not in matters of faith.

            I know it doesn’t fit the narrative of our day, but Jesus was clear on this issue. “I am the way, the truth, and the life,” He declared. “No one comes to the Father except by me.” And there are those who are highly offended by those words. I understand.  It is a difficult saying for many to accept.

            The Christian faith is highly inclusive, in that it is offered to all. But it is exclusive in that it teaches that Jesus is the truth, and that we must come to God through Him.  I’m going to continue to proclaim this biblical truth, and I pray that many will come to accept it.  Jesus is the answer for the world today.