INDEX FOR THIS SECTION
1. PRESENTING JESUS AS THE ONLY WAY TO HEAVEN.
2. SCRIPTURES TEACHING JESUS AS THE ONLY WAY TO HEAVEN.
3. SCRIPTURES CONCERNING THOSE WHO WORSHIP THE FATHER BUT DENY THE SON.
4. YOU CANNOT HAVE THE FATHER WITHOUT THE SON. THERE ARE NO SCRIPTURES TEACHING THAT JESUS IS NOT THE ONLY WAY TO HEAVEN, INCLUDING ROMANS 1-4.

IS JESUS THE ONLY WAY TO HEAVEN?

JESUS IS THE ONLY WAY TO HEAVEN

The Bible clearly teaches that Jesus is the only way to heaven. Let’s review many of the scriptures that lead us to this conclusion and then summarize the major points from the scriptures. The scriptures are included on the following page. Let me emphasize that this is only a sample of the scriptures that tell us these things and that there are many more that tell us the same thing.

SUMMARY OF KEY POINTS FROM “JESUS IS THE ONLY WAY” SCRIPTURES

• “I am the way, the truth and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me.”
• Those who do not know the Son do not know the Father.
• Salvation is through Jesus alone, and no one else.
• Those who do not know God and obey Jesus’ gospel will be destroyed and shut out of the God’s presence.
• Anyone who practices a gospel other than the gospel of Jesus is eternally condemned.
• Those who reject Jesus will be judged and condemned.
• Those who reject Jesus reject eternal life.
• Rejection of Jesus has no cure.
  Jesus came to save those who are lost. Without him all are lost.
• Those who live by the law are lost since they have rejected Jesus.
• It is impossible for man to be good enough to deserve to go to heaven. Only God could make it possible. He did this through his substitutionary sacrifice.
• Those who haven’t heard about Jesus are not accountable for their sins in their judgments. However, they still go to hell; are separated from God eternally.
• Those who have not heard cannot be saved unless someone teaches them. Being zealous for God without knowledge can be futile.
• We either worship Jesus or we worship Satan.
• In the Garden Jesus prayed, “If there be any other way.” There was no other way!< /li>
• After Man was kicked out of the Garden of Eden, God erected a barrier so that man could not get back in. This garden was apparently in heaven. The barrier was “a flaming sword,” representing being purified by the Word, the gospel of Jesus. Man could only get back to heaven by going through Jesus.
• What conclusion could we come to from what these scriptures tell us other than the fact that Jesus is the only way to heaven. If there were only one or two scriptures that told us this, then we might argue that there was a translation problem. However, we have an extensive list of scriptures that lead us to this conclusion. If we believe the Bible to be the true Word of God, then Jesus is the only way! We are well beyond establishing the fact that the Bible is literally true. No other holy book in the world can make and substantiate that claim. Yes, Jesus is the only way!!!!!!! We will review one proof in detail as follows.
• The Garden of Eden seemed to be on earth in the area that we call Mesopotamia, in current Iraq, Gen 2:8-15. It also seems that there was a Garden of Eden in heaven, Ezek 28:13. Apparently man lived in and had access to both. It seems that the abode of man had at least four dimensions to it. We know that there is at least one other dimension that we cannot see and do not have access to, 2 Kings 6:15-18, Col 1:15-16, 1 Tim 1:17. This is the spiritual dimension where God and his angels live. The currently most accepted model of the universe postulated by physicists has ten dimensions in it (string theory). The possibility that man may have originally lived in a higher dimensional universe seems to be very consistent with the situation presented in Genesis. After man fell into sin God kicked him out of the Garden of Eden and erected a barrier so that man could not get back into the garden. The garden that man was kicked out of was certainly not the earthly garden since we still have access to Mesopotamia today and have had continued access to it throughout history, as far as we know. The garden that man was kicked out of was apparently the garden in heaven, the garden that contained the tree of life, which represents Jesus. It is the place where Jesus walks even today. The barrier that God erected was apparently a dimensional barrier. It is described in Gen 3:24 as a flaming sword. In the Bible the sword represents the word of God and Jesus is called the Word. A flaming sword would be one that purifies. This symbology represents the fact that the only way that man can now get back into heaven is through being purified by accepting the word of Jesus, the gospel of Jesus. Jesus is the only way to heaven. After man was thrown out of heaven he could no longer and still cannot get into heaven by his own doing. The only way he can ever get back there is by the grace of God and accepting the sacrifice of Jesus that makes us perfect again and fit to re-enter the garden of God.

• SCRIPTURES TEACHING THAT JESUS IS THE ONLY WAY TO HEAVEN (paraphrased)

  John 14:6, 11:25-26     “I am the way, the truth and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me.” “I am the resurrection and the life. He who believes in me will live, even though he dies: and whoever lives and believes in me will never die.”
  Acts 4:8-12     Salvation is through Jesus alone, and no one else.
  2 Thess 1:5-10, I Cor 15:1-4     Those who do not know God and obey the gospel of Jesus will be destroyed and shut out of the presence of God. The “gospel” is summarized by Paul in 1 Cor 15:1-8 and Col 1:21-23 and by Peter in 1 Peter 1:17-25. This gospel involves following the teachings of Jesus and believing that Jesus died for our sins, was buried, was resurrected on the 3rd day and then appeared to hundreds of believers before he ascended to heaven.
  Gal 1:6-9 Anyone who practices a gospel other than the gospel of Jesus is eternally condemned.
  Heb 9:22 Without the shedding of blood there is no forgiveness of sins.
  Heb 8:12, 10:17, Isa 1:18, 43:25, Matt 6:12, 26:28, Jer 31:34     Believers sins are forgotten by God. He no longer remembers them.
  Matt 5-7, 19:16-26, Heb 10:13-14     The Sermon on the Mount. It is impossible for man to be good enough to deserve to go to heaven. Only God could make it possible. He did this through his substitutionary sacrifice. Through Jesus we are made perfect in the eyes of the Father.
  1 Tim 2:5-6, Heb 9:14-15, 1 John 2:1-2 Jesus died as a ransom for all men. He is the one and only mediator between man and the Father.
  Heb 10:26-29 Jesus died for everyone’s sins. However, when someone rejects Jesus, this sacrifice is removed for him.
  Heb 6:1, 8:9, 9:14-15,10:26-31, 1 John 5:16-19, Rom 6:19-23, Matt 23:13-36 “The sin that leads to death” is continuing to perform useless rituals to receive forgiveness for sins and refusing to accept the new covenant involving Jesus “once for all” sacrifice for sin. This was meant for Jews and all others who think there is anything that they can do themselves to get to heaven other than to accept Jesus doing it for them.
  Rom 2:5-16, 3:9-26, John 5:25-29 Everyone, Jew and Gentile, will be judged for rewards and punishments according to the law. Gentiles have the law written in their hearts. Everyone who doesn’t know Jesus will perish, go to hell. Nobody is worthy of his own account. Judgment for believers is further discussed in 1 Cor 3:5-15.
  John 9:41, 15:22, 2 Peter 2:19-21, Rom 2:12, 3:22-25 Those who haven’t heard about Jesus are not accountable for their sins in their judgments. However, they still go to hell; are separated from God eternally.
  Rom 9-11 Those who have not heard cannot be saved unless someone teaches them. Being zealous for God without knowledge can be futile. Without knowledge of Jesus, people are lost. Those who hear and reject are spiritually dead and in hell. This includes the Jews.
  John 8:1-59 (esp. vs. 24) We either worship Jesus or we worship Satan.
  John 12:47-50, Rom 2:12, 6:20-23, 11:13-15 Those who reject Jesus will be judged and condemned.
  Luke 19:9-10 Jesus came to save those who are lost. Without him all are lost.
  Jer 30:15 Rejection of Jesus has no cure.
  Heb 4:2-12, 1 Pet 1:10-12, Prov 8:32-36 Even though the gospel was preached in the Old Testament times (through models, types, illustrations, etc.), most did not go to heaven because they did not believe.
  Gal 5:2-6 Those who live by the law are lost since they have rejected Jesus.
  Rom 1:19-2:4 All are without excuse.
  Matt 26:39 If there be any other way, take this cup from me. There was no other way.
  Isa 43:11 Apart from Jesus there is no savior.
  John 15:1-8, Rom 11:17-24 Anyone who does not remain in Jesus is cut-off from him, thrown into the fire and burned.
  Rom 10:9-13, John 20:30-31, John 3:17-18, Acts 16:30-31 If you confess with your mouth that Jesus is Lord and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead, you will be saved.
  John 3:18 Whoever does not believe in Jesus is condemned because he has not believed in God’s one and only son.
  Acts 13:46 Those who reject Jesus reject eternal life.
  Acts 26:17-18 Jesus said to Paul during his conversion experience, “ 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.'
  John 3:15-16, 6:40, 10:28, 1 Tim 1:15-16, Rom 6:23, 1 John 5:13 Eternal life comes through belief in Jesus.
  John 5:23, 27-28 Those who do not know the son do not know the father. Unbelieving Jews are not saved.
  Matt 11:27 No one knows the Father except the Son and anyone to whom the Son wills to reveal Him.
  Heb 9:27-28 Jesus died once to take away the sins of many. He will return a second time to bring salvation to those who are waiting for him.
  Matt 7:13-14, John 10:9 Small is the gate and narrow the road that leads to life, and only a few find it. Jesus is the gate; whoever enters through him will be saved.
  1 John 2:22-23  No one who denies the Son has the Father; whoever acknowledges the Son has the Father also.
  1 John 5:12   He who has Jesus has life; he who does not have Jesus does not have life.
  1 John 5:20   Jesus is the true God and eternal life.

  SCRIPTURES CONCERNING THOSE WHO WORSHIP THE FATHER BUT DENY THE SON

  Will those who worship the Father but deny that the Son is God go to heaven?
  Absolutely not, according to multiple scriptures. Some of the scriptures that tell us this are John 5:22-28, 37-38, John 8:38-44, 54-56, 1 John 2:23, 2 John 8-10, 1 Cor 3:16-17, 1 Cor 6:19-20, Gal 4:30-31, Isa 43:10-12. John 16:1-4 says that those who kill Christians in the name of God do not know the Father or the Son.
  I will quote a few key passages from the above scriptures that prove to us that those who do not know and honor the Son do not know and honor the Father.
  John 5:23 He who does not honor the Son does not honor the Father, who sent him.
  John 5:37-38 37 And the Father who sent me has himself testified concerning me. You have never heard his voice nor seen his form, 38 nor does his word dwell in you, for you do not believe the one he sent.
  John 8:54-56 54 Jesus replied, "If I glorify myself, my glory means nothing. My Father, whom you claim as your God, is the one who glorifies me. 55 Though you do not know him, I know him. If I said I did not, I would be a liar like you, but I do know him and keep his word. 56 Your father Abraham rejoiced at the thought of seeing my day; he saw it and was glad."
  I Jn 2:23 No one who denies the Son has the Father; whoever acknowledges the Son has the Father also.
  II Jn 1:9 Anyone who runs ahead and does not continue in the teaching of Christ does not have God; whoever continues in the teaching has both the Father and the Son.
  John 16:1-3 1 "All this I have told you so that you will not go astray. 2 They will put you out of the synagogue; in fact, a time is coming when anyone who kills you will think he is offering a service to God. 3 They will do such things because they have not known the Father or me.
  1 Cor 3:16-17 16 Don't you know that you yourselves are God's temple and that God's Spirit lives in you? 17 If anyone destroys God's temple, God will destroy him; for God's temple is sacred, and you are that temple.
  1 Cor 6:19-20 19 Do you not know that your body is a temple of the Holy Spirit, who is in you, whom you have received from God? You are not your own; 20 you were bought at a price.
  Gal 4:30-31 30 But what does the Scripture say? "Get rid of the slave woman and her son, for the slave woman's son will never share in the inheritance with the free woman's son."
  31 Therefore, brothers, we are not children of the slave woman, but of the free woman.
  Isa 43:10-12 10 "You are my witnesses," declares the LORD, "and my servant whom I have chosen, so that you may know and believe me and understand that I am he. Before me no god was formed, nor will there be one after me. 11 I, even I, am the LORD, and apart from me there is no savior. 12 I have revealed and saved and proclaimed-- I, and not some foreign god among you. You are my witnesses," declares the LORD, "that I am God.
  John 8:38-44  38 I am telling you what I have seen in the Father's presence, and you do what you have heard from your father." 39 "Abraham is our father," they answered. "If you were Abraham's children," said Jesus, "then you would do the things Abraham did. 40 As it is, you are determined to kill me, a man who has told you the truth that I heard from God. Abraham did not do such things. 41 You are doing the things your own father does." "We are not illegitimate children," they protested. "The only Father we have is God himself." 42 Jesus said to them, "If God were your Father, you would love me, for I came from God and now am here. I have not come on my own; but he sent me. 43 Why is my language not clear to you? Because you are unable to hear what I say. 44 You belong to your father, the devil, and you want to carry out your father's desire. He was a murderer from the beginning, not holding to the truth, for there is no truth in him. When he lies, he speaks his native language, for he is a liar and the father of lies.

  YOU CANNOT HAVE THE FATHER WITHOUT THE SON

  There are several religions in the world who claim to worship the same Father God as the Christians yet deny that Jesus is also God. What does our Bible say about people who believe this? We have the answer if we believe that our Bible in literally true and is the word of God. There are several scriptures that deal directly with this question. Let’s read a few of them and find our answer.
  John 5:22-29 22 Moreover, the Father judges no one, but has entrusted all judgment to the Son, 23   that all may honor the Son just as they honor the Father. He who does not honor the Son does not honor the Father, who sent him. 24 "I tell you the truth, whoever hears my word and believes him who sent me has eternal life and will not be condemned; he has crossed over from death to life. 25   I tell you the truth, a time is coming and has now come when the dead will hear the voice of the Son of God and those who hear will live. 26   For as the Father has life in himself, so he has granted the Son to have life in himself. 27  And he has given him authority to judge because he is the Son of Man. 28 "Do not be amazed at this, for a time is coming when all who are in their graves will hear his voice 29 and come out-- those who have done good will rise to live, and those who have done evil will rise to be condemned.
  John 8:54-56  54 Jesus replied, "If I glorify myself, my glory means nothing. My Father, whom you claim as your God, is the one who glorifies me. 55 Though you do not know him, I know him. If I said I did not, I would be a liar like you, but I do know him and keep his word. 56 Your father Abraham rejoiced at the thought of seeing my day; he saw it and was glad."
  I Jn 2:22-24   22 Who is the liar? It is the man who denies that Jesus is the Christ. Such a man is the antichrist-- he denies the Father and the Son. 23   No one who denies the Son has the Father; whoever acknowledges the Son has the Father also. 24   See that what you have heard from the beginning remains in you. If it does, you also will remain in the Son and in the Father.
  II Jn 1:8-11   8 Watch out that you do not lose what you have worked for, but that you may be rewarded fully. 9 Anyone who runs ahead and does not continue in the teaching of Christ does not have God; whoever continues in the teaching has both the Father and the Son. 10 If anyone comes to you and does not bring this teaching, do not take him into your house or welcome him. 11 Anyone who welcomes him shares in his wicked work.
  John 16:1-4   1 "All this I have told you so that you will not go astray. 2   They will put you out of the synagogue; in fact, a time is coming when anyone who kills you will think he is offering a service to God. 3   They will do such things because they have not known the Father or me. 4   I have told you this, so that when the time comes you will remember that I warned you. I did not tell you this at first because I was with you.
  So we have our question answered very clearly. We cannot know God the Father unless we also know God the Son, accept him for who he is, become a believer and try to pattern our lives after his.

  JESUS IS THE ONLY WAY TO HEAVEN: THERE ARE NO SCRIPTURES THAT TEACH OTHERWISE

  (Including a detailed study of Romans chapters 1-3)
  It has become increasingly more politically correct during the last few years to believe that there is some way to heaven other than through Jesus. My expectation is that in a few years it will be a civil crime punishable by jail time in some western nations to make a public statement that Jesus is the only way to heaven. This follows from my understanding that it is now a hate crime in a couple of western nations to say that homosexuality is a sin. Imagine it being a hate crime to say that Jesus is the only way to heaven.
  Saying that we worship the same God as other religions is akin to saying that Jesus is not the only way to heaven in my opinion. However, do we really worship the same God as the Muslims for example? Heavens no! We worship a God who is manifested in three persons, the Father, the Son and the Holy Spirit. It is fundamental to our faith to believe that Jesus is completely God. To the Muslims Jesus was a prophet, but it is an anathema to them to say that he is God. We’re 180 degrees out of phase with them. How can any informed person miss this?
  A few years ago I was developing a lesson to try to use Biblical scriptures to show that there was a way to heaven other than through Jesus. This was something that my compassionate heart wanted me to believe. I found a few scriptures that one can argue might lead to that conclusion, including Rom 2:14-16, John 9:41, John 15:22 and 2 Peter 2:21. After spending several days and 25-30 hours or so doing the study, God revealed to me in no uncertain terms that Jesus is the only way to heaven. I had no choice but to completely destroy my document without keeping any backups. Since that time any study that I have done in this area has shown conclusively that Jesus is the only way to heaven. I have researched this area diligently many times and continue to find that all of the pertinent evidence in both the Old and the New Testaments points to Jesus being the only way to heaven. Any time I find a passage that might lead me to question this conclusion even in the slightest, I seriously study it. After I have researched the context of the passage and tried to pin down the contextual meaning of the passage, I always come back to the conclusion that “Jesus is the only way to heaven.”
  There are very few scriptures which could be used to make an argument that there is any way to heaven other than through Jesus. It can easily be shown that the last three scriptures that I referenced above deal with judgment (loss of rewards or the severity of punishment) and do not indicate any real hope for salvation for anyone who does not follow Jesus. Rom 2:14-16 is much harder to interpret since it is in the midst of a long discourse that Paul is making. We must look at all of Rom chapters 1 through 3 in the context of Paul’s message to the Romans to interpret it. To interpret it to say that there is any hope of salvation other than through Jesus would run completely counter to literally hundreds of other scriptures that seem to indicate otherwise. Let’s look at Rom 2:14-16 in what I believe to be the context of Paul’s dissertation.
  Paul was apparently a very deep thinker and some of his writings are quite difficult to understand. This was true even in the first century during Paul’s time on earth as evidenced by Peter’s words as quoted below:
  2 Pet 3:15-16   15 Bear in mind that our Lord's patience means salvation, just as our dear brother Paul also wrote you with the wisdom that God gave him. 16   He writes the same way in all his letters, speaking in them of these matters. His letters contain some things that are hard to understand, which ignorant and unstable people distort, as they do the other Scriptures, to their own destruction.
  Peter also points out that it is easy to misinterpret or distort Paul’s words. It’s also interesting that Peter calls Paul’s letters “scriptures.” This was recognized even in the first century.
  The scriptures in Rom 1-3 are in the category that Peter was talking about. They are among the most difficult scriptures to understand. However, let’s give it a try, remembering that any interpretation must be consistent with other scriptures on the same subjects. First, Paul was writing to the Romans as we see below.
  Rom 1:7   To all in Rome who are loved by God and called to be saints:
  Paul says he longs to be with them and tells them why. He wants them to understand and be strong in the gospel of Jesus.
  Rom 1:11 I long to see you so that I may impart to you some spiritual gift to make you strong—
  Rom 1:14-16  14 I am obligated both to Greeks and non-Greeks, both to the wise and the foolish. 15 That is why I am so eager to preach the gospel also to you who are at Rome. 16 I am not ashamed of the gospel, because it is the power of God for the salvation of everyone who believes: first for the Jew, then for the Gentile.
  The leaders in Rome were certainly major players in suppressing the truth of Jesus. Paul says that the wrath of God is in store for them. He goes on to say that God’s divine nature and invisible power are readily apparent to everyone because of the creation. He says that because of this all men are without excuse. This includes those who have not heard about Jesus.
  Rom 1:18-20 18 The wrath of God is being revealed from heaven against all the godlessness and wickedness of men who suppress the truth by their wickedness, 19 since what may be known about God is plain to them, because God has made it plain to them. 20 For since the creation of the world God's invisible qualities-- his eternal power and divine nature-- have been clearly seen, being understood from what has been made, so that men are without excuse.
  Paul goes on in verses 1:21-32 to say that in spite of knowing God these leaders in Rome had done all sorts of vile things including creating idols, participating in all sorts of immoral and indecent behavior, and were filled with every kind of wickedness, evil, greed and depravity. In verse 32 Paul says that they deserve death.
  Rom 1:32   Although they know God's righteous decree that those who do such things deserve death, they not only continue to do these very things but also approve of those who practice them.
  Apparently those to whom Paul was writing recognized the extreme sinfulness of their leaders and were openly criticizing them. However, Paul points out that in God’s eyes they were guilty of committing the same sins. Paul says in Rom 2:1-2 that the same fate that awaited the leaders was also in store for them because God’s judgment against everyone was based on truth. And what is truth? Jesus Christ and his gospel!
  Rom 2:1-2   1   You, therefore, have no excuse, you who pass judgment on someone else, for at whatever point you judge the other, you are condemning yourself, because you who pass judgment do the same things. 2   Now we know that God's judgment against those who do such things is based on truth.
  Here Paul must be thinking of Jesus’ Sermon on the Mount where he points out what God’s standards are; in God’s eyes anger is equal to murder, lust is equal to adultery, etc. God’s standard is perfection, something that nobody can reach. The only solution was for Jesus to live the perfect life for us. He was trying to get the Romans to understand that they could not be good enough on their own to avoid God’s judgment and wrath. He was going through a long treatise to get them to understand the need for the gospel and the need for them to accept it and live by it.
  In Rom 2:5-16 it seems that Paul is addressing the coming end time judgments of believers and unbelievers, which includes Jews and gentiles. The Bible points out in several places that all of the judgments will be fair and be based on what we know, our abilities, etc. (Luke 12:41-48). The catch is that only those who have knowledge of Jesus, accept him and follow him will be allowed into heaven. Everyone else will face separation from God for eternity. Everyone will face judgment and it will be fair. For those who are followers of Jesus their judgment will be one to determine rewards in heaven. I Cor 3:8-15 tells how this judgment will be carried out. For those who have not been followers of Jesus, no matter what the reason, their judgment will also be fair. It will be a judgment to determine their fate and will also be based upon what they knew, what they did, their abilities etc. Again, their fate is separation from God but it will be different for different people. The extremes could be anything from lights out (complete destruction or eternal death of the spirit) to eternal suffering and punishment of some sort in hell.
  Verses 6-11 discuss the fairness of God’s judgments of both Jews and gentiles. The key to understanding what Paul is saying here may be in verse 9. According to the Sermon on the Mound everybody falls into the evil category except those who accept Jesus’ sacrifice for them. The Bible clearly teaches that nobody is worthy by their own works, no matter how good they may be. Paul is gradually leading us to that conclusion, but we must read on into chapter 3 before he clearly points it out.
  Rom 2:6-11 6 God "will give to each person according to what he has done."
  7   To those who by persistence in doing good seek glory, honor and immortality, he will give eternal life. 8  But for those who are self-seeking and who reject the truth and follow evil, there will be wrath and anger. 9   There will be trouble and distress for every human being who does evil: first for the Jew, then for the Gentile; 10  but glory, honor and peace for everyone who does good: first for the Jew, then for the Gentile. 11   For God does not show favoritism.
  Now we come to the verses we have been waiting for, verses 12-16. Again, Paul is addressing the judgment of both the Jews and gentiles, those who are judged under the law and those who are judged apart from the law. Paul points out that it really doesn’t matter whether one is Jew or gentile since the gentiles have God’s law written in their hearts, their consciences. He further points out that those who obey the law, whether Jew of gentile, will be declared righteous. Who will this be? Nobody, as we will see Paul point out later in these passages.
  Anyone who does not know the law or have it written in their hearts will perish according to verse 12. Apparently there are some people who are born without consciences, through defects caused by man’s sin nature I suppose, and these people may simply cease to exist at the judgment. This may be hinted at in Matt 10:28. Throughout the book of Romans and in several places in his other letters Paul teaches that the Jews are lost, except for a remnant who choose Jesus as their savior (Rom 9:27, 11:4-6, 13-14, 19-21, Gal 5:2-6). Jesus and other New Testament authors taught the same thing (for example see John 5:22-24, 37-38).
  Rom 2:12-16   12   All who sin apart from the law will also perish apart from the law, and all who sin under the law will be judged by the law. 13   For it is not those who hear the law who are righteous in God's sight, but it is those who obey the law who will be declared righteous. 14   (Indeed, when Gentiles, who do not have the law, do by nature things required by the law, they are a law for themselves, even though they do not have the law, 15   since they show that the requirements of the law are written on their hearts, their consciences also bearing witness, and their thoughts now accusing, now even defending them.) 16   This will take place on the day when God will judge men's secrets through Jesus Christ, as my gospel declares.
  Paul goes on in the rest of chapter 2 to discipline the Jews for what he calls blasphemy. He is pointing out that they don’t and really can’t keep the law. Paul finally points out to them that the only circumcision that really matters is circumcision of the heart. This circumcision of the heart is cutting away the old heart and replacing it with a new one, one cleansed by the blood of Jesus sacrifice. Paul is telling the Jews in a rather complicated way that they can only be saved by accepting the sacrifice of Jesus; otherwise they are lost. This circumcision of the heart is available to both Jews and gentiles and is the only way either can get to heaven. There is a prophecy in Jer 9:25-26 that says a day is coming when God will punish all those who are circumcised and also all those who are uncircumcised; only those who have circumcision of the heart will escape. Paul goes on in Rom 3 to argue that because of the failure of the Jews to achieve righteousness, God had to choose another way for people to get to heaven. In verses 10-12 he points out that there is no one who is righteous and in verse 20 he points out that no one will be declared righteous by keeping the law.
  Rom 3:10-12   10  As it is written: "There is no one righteous, not even one;
  11 there is no one who understands, no one who seeks God. 12 All have turned away, they have together become worthless; there is no one who does good, not even one."
  Rom 3:20   Therefore no one will be declared righteous in his sight by observing the law; rather, through the law we become conscious of sin.
  Finally, Paul reaches the conclusion of his long argument in Rom 3:21-26 when he points out that there was finally a righteousness apart from the law which God had provided to the people of the earth. This righteousness from God was through faith in Jesus and was available to all who believed in him. It came through the blood sacrifice of Jesus. God did this to demonstrate his justice because man had conclusively proven that he could not earn his way to heaven by himself. Man had proven that he could not be good enough on his own to meet God’s standard, which is perfection.
  Rom 3:21-26 21   But now a righteousness from God, apart from law, has been made known, to which the Law and the Prophets testify. 22   This righteousness from God comes through faith in Jesus Christ to all who believe. There is no difference 23   for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God,
  24   and are justified freely by his grace through the redemption that came by Christ Jesus. 25 God presented him as a sacrifice of atonement, through faith in his blood. He did this to demonstrate his justice, because in his forbearance he had left the sins committed beforehand unpunished-- 26 he did it to demonstrate his justice at the present time, so as to be just and the one who justifies those who have faith in Jesus.
  So we see that to understand Rom 2:14-16 we must study all of the first three chapters of Romans. We must look at the context of what Paul is saying. It is easy to pick these verses out of context and assume that those who don’t know Jesus can get to heaven in some alternate way; by following the law written in their conscience to the best of their ability. However, we see that that is not what Paul was pointing out at all; in fact it is just the opposite. Again, this is just one of Paul’s many long and complicated teachings. His conclusion is precisely the same as that reached throughout the rest of the Bible, namely that Jesus is the only way to heaven.

  We have seen Paul say that there are two theoretical paths to heaven as follows:

• Through Jesus, and Through living the perfect life.
• The only way to heaven other than through Jesus is impossible as Paul, Jesus and other New Testament authors point out. Again, Jesus is the only way!