A man once said to me, "All roads lead to God. It's like climbing a mountain. You can start anywhere at the base, but eventually everyone comes to the same place at the top."

Such inclusivism is very popular in our world today. Yet it runs counter to Jesus' words: "I am the way, the truth, and the life. No one comes to the Father except through Me" (John 14:6). But there is more.

The New Testament tells us "to contend earnestly for the faith which was once for all delivered to the saints" (Jude 3). Jude's expression "the faith" refers to the body of teaching believed by first-century Christians and lived out in the power of the Spirit. Why such an admonition? Because false teachers were subverting the truth. They were "ungodly," they turned "the grace of our God into lewdness," and they denied "the only Lord God and our Lord Jesus Christ" (v.4).

We must not compromise the exclusiveness of Jesus' words. And we must not fail to proclaim the all-inclusiveness of the gospel. God loved the world so much that He gave His only Son to die for our sins. Therefore anyone who believes in Him will not perish but have everlasting life (John 3:16).

Yes, the truth is both exclusive and inclusive.  —DJD  — Dennis J. De Haan