Article
Is Jesus the Only Way to Heaven?
Jesus says he is the way, the truth, and the life, and that no one comes to the Father except by him. Acts 4:12 names no other name. The Catechism and the Westminster Confession speak, in different words, about people who have not heard.
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Jesus says he is the way, the truth, and the life, and that no one comes to the Father except by him. Peter says there is no other name under heaven by which we must be saved. The Catholic Church and the Westminster Confession both speak about people outside the hearing of the gospel, and they do not say the same thing.
Key Points
- John 14:6John 14:6 · King James Version
Jesus saith unto him, I am the way, the truth, and the life: no man cometh unto the Father, but by me.
John 14:6 · King James VersionOpen source (1): “I am the way, the truth, and the life: no man cometh unto the Father, but by me.” - John 10:9John 10:9 · King James Version
I am the door: by me if any man enter in, he shall be saved, and shall go in and out, and find pasture.
John 10:9 · King James VersionOpen source: “I am the door: by me if any man enter in, he shall be saved.” - Acts 4:12Acts 4:12 · King James Version
Neither is there salvation in any other: for there is none other name under heaven given among men, whereby we must be saved.
Acts 4:12 · King James VersionOpen source (2): “Neither is there salvation in any other: for there is none other name under heaven given among men, whereby we must be saved.” - 1 Timothy 2:51 Timothy 2:5 · King James Version
For there is one God, and one mediator between God and men, the man Christ Jesus;
1 Timothy 2:5 · King James VersionOpen source (3): “For there is one God, and one mediator between God and men, the man Christ Jesus.” - Catechism 846 (5) says all salvation comes from Christ the Head through the Church. Paragraph 847 speaks of those who, through no fault of their own, do not know the Gospel. Westminster 10.4 (6) says men not professing the Christian religion cannot be saved in any other way.
What Does John 14:6 Say?
Jesus saith unto him, I am the way, the truth, and the life: no man cometh unto the Father, but by me.
John 14:6 · King James Version
The sentence is Jesus’ answer to Thomas, who has asked the way. “The way” and “no man cometh” are the same breath. John 14:2John 14:2 · King James VersionIn my Father’s house are many mansions: if it were not so, I would have told you. I go to prepare a place for you.
John 14:2 · King James VersionOpen source is the Father’s house with many mansions, and Jesus going to prepare a place. The way to that house, in the next verses, is Jesus himself. What Does the Bible Say About Salvation? is the longer account of grace, faith, and the churches’ words. The Resurrection of Jesus is why the Church calls him Lord.
Is There Another Name?
Acts 4:12Acts 4:12 · King James VersionNeither is there salvation in any other: for there is none other name under heaven given among men, whereby we must be saved.
Acts 4:12 · King James VersionOpen source (2) says there is salvation in no other, “for there is none other name under heaven given among men, whereby we must be saved.” John 10:9John 10:9 · King James VersionI am the door: by me if any man enter in, he shall be saved, and shall go in and out, and find pasture.
John 10:9 · King James VersionOpen source says he is the door. 1 Timothy 2:51 Timothy 2:5 · King James VersionFor there is one God, and one mediator between God and men, the man Christ Jesus;
1 Timothy 2:5 · King James VersionOpen source (3) names one mediator, “the man Christ Jesus.” John 1:1John 1:1 · King James VersionIn the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God.
John 1:1 · King James VersionOpen source says the Word was God. John 20:28John 20:28 · King James VersionAnd Thomas answered and said unto him, My LORD and my God.
John 20:28 · King James VersionOpen source records Thomas: “My LORD and my God.” The only way in these sentences is a person Christians confess as God, not a second path beside him. Is Jesus God? is that confession.
What About People Who Have Not Heard?
The Catechism restates an old sentence, “Outside the Church there is no salvation,” and then comments on it.
Re-formulated positively, it means that all salvation comes from Christ the Head through the Church which is his Body.
Paragraph 846 continues: Christ “is the mediator and the way of salvation,” faith and baptism are necessary, and “they could not be saved who, knowing that the Catholic Church was founded as necessary by God through Christ, would refuse either to enter it or to remain in it.”
Paragraph 847: “This affirmation is not aimed at those who, through no fault of their own, do not know Christ and his Church.” It says those who “seek God with a sincere heart, and, moved by grace, try in their actions to do his will as they know it through the dictates of their conscience — those too may achieve eternal salvation.” Paragraph 848 says God can lead those who are ignorant of the Gospel to faith, and that the Church still has the obligation to evangelize.
Westminster 10.3 says elect infants, dying in infancy, are regenerated and saved by Christ through the Spirit, “so also are all other elect persons who are incapable of being outwardly called by the ministry of the Word.” Section 10.4 is quoted in the next heading. Catechism 847 and that section are two published accounts. Can You Lose Your Salvation? quotes related texts and does not pick a side. This page does not add a third rule that softens John 14:6.
What Does Westminster 10.4 Say?
Others, not elected, although they may be called by the ministry of the Word, and may have some common operations of the Spirit, yet they never truly come unto Christ, and therefore cannot be saved: much less can men, not professing the Christian religion, be saved in any other way whatsoever, be they never so diligent to frame their lives according to the light of nature, and the laws of that religion they do profess. And, to assert and maintain that they may, is very pernicious, and to be detested.
The last clause is the confession’s own wording. This page does not adopt “detested” as its word for another church.
What Does Matthew 7:21–23 Say?
Matthew 7:21Matthew 7:21 · King James VersionNot every one that saith unto me, Lord, Lord, shall enter into the kingdom of heaven; but he that doeth the will of my Father which is in heaven.
Matthew 7:21 · King James VersionOpen source (4): “Not every one that saith unto me, Lord, Lord, shall enter into the kingdom of heaven; but he that doeth the will of my Father which is in heaven.” Verses 22 and 23 say many will plead prophecy and mighty works, and Jesus will say, “I never knew you: depart from me, ye that work iniquity.” The verses are about people who say “Lord” and do not do the Father’s will. They do not name a second way to the Father. John 14:6 still says no one comes except by him.
Does John 12:47 Cancel John 14:6?
John 12:47John 12:47 · King James VersionAnd if any man hear my words, and believe not, I judge him not: for I came not to judge the world, but to save the world.
John 12:47 · King James VersionOpen source: “And if any man hear my words, and believe not, I judge him not: for I came not to judge the world, but to save the world.” The verse says why he came: to save the world, not to judge it in that hour. The next verse, John 12:48John 12:48 · King James VersionHe that rejecteth me, and receiveth not my words, hath one that judgeth him: the word that I have spoken, the same shall judge him in the last day.
John 12:48 · King James VersionOpen source, says the word he has spoken will judge on the last day. John 12:47 does not say there is another name.
Frequently Asked Questions
Is Jesus the Only Way to God?
John 14:6John 14:6 · King James VersionJesus saith unto him, I am the way, the truth, and the life: no man cometh unto the Father, but by me.
John 14:6 · King James VersionOpen source (1) says no one comes to the Father but by him. 1 Timothy 2:51 Timothy 2:5 · King James VersionFor there is one God, and one mediator between God and men, the man Christ Jesus;
1 Timothy 2:5 · King James VersionOpen source (3) says there is one mediator.
Is Jesus the Only Way to Heaven?
The Father’s house in John 14 is the place he goes to prepare. The way he names is himself. Acts 4:12 says there is no other name by which we must be saved.
What Do Churches Say About Those Who Have Not Heard?
Catechism 847 says the “no salvation outside the Church” sentence is not aimed at people who, through no fault of their own, do not know Christ and his Church, and it says such people may be saved if they seek God with a sincere heart. Westminster 10.3 speaks of elect persons who cannot be outwardly called. Westminster 10.4 says people who do not profess the Christian religion cannot be saved in any other way. Those are the churches’ sentences.
Keep Reading
References
- Gospel of John, 14:6John 14:6 · King James Version
Jesus saith unto him, I am the way, the truth, and the life: no man cometh unto the Father, but by me.
John 14:6 · King James VersionOpen source. King James Version - Acts of the Apostles, 4:12Acts 4:12 · King James Version
Neither is there salvation in any other: for there is none other name under heaven given among men, whereby we must be saved.
Acts 4:12 · King James VersionOpen source. King James Version - First Letter to Timothy, 2:51 Timothy 2:5 · King James Version
For there is one God, and one mediator between God and men, the man Christ Jesus;
1 Timothy 2:5 · King James VersionOpen source. King James Version - Gospel of Matthew, 7:21–23Matthew 7:21–23 · King James Version7:21
Not every one that saith unto me, Lord, Lord, shall enter into the kingdom of heaven; but he that doeth the will of my Father which is in heaven.
7:22Many will say to me in that day, Lord, Lord, have we not prophesied in thy name? and in thy name have cast out devils? and in thy name done many wonderful works?
7:23And then will I profess unto them, I never knew you: depart from me, ye that work iniquity.
Matthew 7:21–23 · King James VersionOpen source. King James Version - Catechism of the Catholic Church, 846–848
- Westminster Confession of Faith, 10.3–10.4 (The confession as published by the Orthodox Presbyterian Church.)
See Also
- Can You Lose Your Salvation? What Each Church Teaches About "Once Saved, Always Saved" — Can a Christian lose salvation? Official teaching from Catholic, Orthodox, Lutheran, Reformed, Baptist, Methodist, Pentecostal, and other churches, with the King James verses each side cites.
- Is Baptism Necessary for Salvation? — Catholic, Orthodox, Lutheran, Reformed, Baptist, Methodist, and Pentecostal texts on whether baptism is necessary for salvation, with Acts 2:38, Mark 16:16, 1 Peter 3:21, and the thief on the cross.
- What Does Grace Mean in the Bible? — Grace in the New Testament is the Greek word charis, God’s favor given freely in Jesus Christ. Ephesians 2:8–9 says salvation is that gift, not a wage.
- What Does the Bible Say About Salvation? — The Bible says people are saved by grace through faith, not of works. Churches that confess the Trinity disagree about baptism and about whether a believer can fall away.
- Are Mormons Christians? — Latter-day Saints worship Jesus Christ and use his name. Their teaching of God, of Jesus, and of salvation is not the Nicene confession, so they are not a denomination inside Trinitarian Christianity.