How is Christianity different from other religions?
The difference between Christianity and other religions can be summarized like these: Christianity: What God did to bring us salvation All other religions: What man does to bring salvation upon himself In other words, the religions of this world emphasize works, what man must do to be saved, while Christianity emphasizes what God did to save us. What did God do? 1 Peter 3:18 “For Christ died for sins once for all, the righteous for the unrighteous, to bring you to God.” NIV Jesus Christ the Son of God, died on our behalf, so that we could be saved! What happened to Jesus after His crucifixion? Matt 28:5-7 “The angel said to the women, "Do not be afraid, for I know that you are looking for Jesus, who was crucified. He is not here; he has risen, just as he said. Come and see the place where he lay. Then go quickly and tell his disciples: 'He has risen from the dead and is going ahead of you into Galilee. There you will see him.' Now I have told you." NIV He was resurrected and is alive and well. This was confirmed by more than 500 people to whom Jesus appeared after His resurrection. Acts 1:3 “After his suffering, he showed himself to these men and gave many convincing proofs that he was alive. He appeared to them over a period of forty days and spoke about the kingdom of God.” NIV 1 Cor 15:6 “After that, he appeared to more than five hundred of the brothers at the same time, most of whom are still living, though some have fallen asleep.” NIV During Jesus’ trial, all of His disciples were cowering and hiding for fear of losing their own lives. After Jesus’ resurrection, these same disciples became bold and preached the resurrected Messiah to all to hear, and backed up their testimony with their own blood: all of Jesus’ apostles died as martyrs, except for John. No one would die for a lie, even less, 11 people who used to worry about their own lives. Can we save ourselves by trying to lead a good life? No! Eph 2:8-9 “For it is by grace you have been saved, through faith-and this not from yourselves, it is the gift of God- not by works, so that no one can boast.” NIV Is there any other way to be saved? No! Acts 4:12 “Salvation is found in no one else, for there is no other name under heaven given to men by which we must be saved.” NIV What can we do to be saved? John 3:16-17 “For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life.” NIV Acts 2:38-39 “Repent and be baptized, every one of you, in the name of Jesus Christ for the forgiveness of your sins. And you will receive the gift of the Holy Spirit.” NIV Believe in Jesus as your Saviour and accept Him into your life. He paid the price of your salvation. Your works won’t save you. Your good looks won’t save you. Your dedication towards your church, mosque, or synagogue won’t save you. Only Jesus can save you if you accept His offer. Will you do this now by answering His call at http://www.answers2prayer.org/saviours_call.html and welcome His gift of the Holy Spirit? What is the Christian’s central message? Forgiveness. Acts 26:17-18 “I am sending you to them to open their eyes and turn them from darkness to light, and from the power of Satan to God, so that they may receive forgiveness of sins and a place among those who are sanctified by faith in me.'” NIV To read a true story of what forgiveness does in people’s lives, read Jesus Freaks, vol II. Minneapolis, Minnesota: Bethany House Publishers, 2002, p. 295, 296. www.persecution.com I have met (via online) a husband and wife from British Columbia who were our subscribers. Two years ago they traveled all the way from BC to Ontario (Vineland to be precise) with one goal: to meet the man who killed the wife’s mother because of drunk driving. Why would anyone want to meet the one who killed a loved one? Is it for revenge? Is it to insult him? Is it to belittle him? No, none of the above. They came to meet him in order to forgive him for what he had done. Yes, he had hurt them deeply, but Jesus’ love reigns in their heart and they wanted to share this with him. This is what true Christianity does to people: they are able to forgive! Have you troubles to forgive? Have you been eaten away by bad feelings and thoughts concerning certain people who have hurt you? Isn’t it time to let these rest and ask for Jesus’ help in forgiving these people. Be free and enjoy life! Accept Jesus’ in your life now and ask for His help in breaking you free from this unforgiveness by accepting His call. Who backs the Christian’s message? Jesus Himself through signs, wonders and miracles: Acts 5:12 “The apostles performed many miraculous signs and wonders among the people.” NIV Heb 2:4 “God also testified to it by signs, wonders and various miracles, and gifts of the Holy Spirit distributed according to his will.” NIV Personally, I have seen with my own eyes and have experienced in my own life these signs, wonders and miracles when Jesus’ true message of salvation is preached. I have seen hundreds of people being healed, confirmation to them that Jesus is alive and His message is true. I have seen the lame walk, the deaf hear and the blind see. I have seen demon possessed people being freed and become normal through the power of Jesus. Christianity is the only religion which is backed up by its founder: Jesus Christ. Why? Because He is alive! Come and start experiencing Jesus in your life. Come and accept Him now. He is calling you. Will you accept Him? The choice is yours. A choice between slavery to sin or freedom in Christ. In His Love, Rob Chaffart _________________________________________________ I think the one thing that sets Christianity apart from other religions is salvation by grace. Most other religions teach that we are saved or reach our highest potential by doing something. Here are some examples: Judaism teaches that a person is ultimely judged by how he/she keeps God's commandments. The belief regarding non-Jews is that if they are righteous (i.e. do good deeds), they have a place in "the world to come". Muslims, too, believe that a person obtains salvation by doing certain things. While Buddhism and Hinduism don't teach salvation, they believe that one is released from an endless cycle of reincarnation by reaching enlightenment. In their belief, your actions in one lifetime affect how much closer you get to enlightenment in your next life. Many followers of the New Age movement and pagans follow similar beliefs. Salvation by grace is a wonderful thing. Isn't it a blessing not to have to worrying about whether your good deeds will get you in heaven? Not to worry about reincarnation and the problems associated with that belief? I encourage anyone who's desiring to know the truth in
Christ to pray and ask God into your life. If you would like
prayer and guidance from our staff, please follow the
Savior's Call link found at the end of this newsletter. God
Bless. _________________________________________________ Ways Christianity is different: Todd Shilt _________________________________________________ Very simply stated! Christianity is NOT a religion. It is
a way of life. It is living the word of the Lord. It is
believing in Jesus Christ as our savior. It is believing
that we will join our Father in heaven one day. The
Christian belief is that there are three persons in one God;
Father, Son and Holy Ghost. Jesus Christ is the only name by
which we can be saved. Christians are Bible based and
believe the word of the Bible is the law of the Lord! Many
other religions think that they are just a nice bunch of
stories. Some only believe parts of the Bible, and of course
atheists believe nothing. MAY ALL BE BLESSED! _________________________________________________ Christianity is different from other religions for it is a personal relationship with a living God, Jesus Christ. Thus Christianity is not a religion. Sharon Niese _________________________________________________ Answer to Bible question... "How is Christianity different from other religions?" Very simple... JESUS LIVES! Lane Bridges _________________________________________________ Jesus Christ was raised from the dead and is alive
forever more _________________________________________________ I would like to reply to this week's bible question. _________________________________________________ Christianity is different from all other religions
because we worship & serve a living God. Other religions
worship people who lived & died but are still dead. Only
Jesus Christ is alive & able to give us salvation. Jesus
died on the cross to save us from sin, as a living sacrifice
for us because He loves us. This is the only "religion"
based on love & personal sacrifice. We are able to receive
salvation & get into Heaven only because God came down as a
baby, grew into manhood & gave Himself as a living sacrifice
for our sins. _________________________________________________ Christianity is different from all the other religions
because it is a GRACE religion. We have a God that pardons
us, not based on our works and "righteous effort", but based
on His love for us. It is different because all other
religions require the sinner to make some type of sacrifice
or offering because of his/her sin, but we (Christians) have
a God who made the sacrifice for us. Also, what other
religion has a Savior who makes intercession for His
children, or one that has promised to send His Spirit as a
helper, a guide, a comforter, and a teacher. Thanks be to
our Lord and Savior, the one who has saved us by grace
alone. _________________________________________________ Christianity is different from other religions because it
is the only religion whereby its founder and author offered
Himself in death, so that His followers would have eternal
life. _________________________________________________ Dear Bretheren, I hereby send two answers to your questions; Christianity
is different from other religions because of the following:
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