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2. Jesus Himself as the Path to Salvation
We have reviewed far more details for the first point than we will for any of the others,
largely due to our survey of some major non-Christian religious founders. Of course, the
indication that Jesus taught his own deity plays a major role in the overall teaching and authority
of Jesus, too. However, we will not delve into as many details with the remaining categories of
Jesus’ uniqueness, stating the last five subjects more succinctly.
The second subject is that, in one way or another, often with differing messages and
nuances, many major religious teachers have claimed to present God’s way of salvation.
Generally, as prophets and/or teachers, those who did so usually pointed to a path that often
involved good works, though some other emphases such as worship, or specific religious
disciplines also played major roles.
Examples of the different world religious roads to salvation certainly vary. As Hexham
outlines it, for Judaism and Islam it might be “obedience to the law of GOD as expressed in their
respective SCRIPTURES.” Personal piety is also emphasized. For Hinduism and Buddhism,
there are different teachings in the various traditions, but release from the cycle of birth and
rebirth in various reincarnations is a very frequent goal. Buddhism also prescribes the Fourfold
Path as the means of dealing with the perception of suffering and its cessation by eliminating
one’s desire. Further, the Buddhist Eightfold Path can be summarized under three headings:
faith, morality, and meditation. In contrast, Christianity emphasizes God’s grace being given
freely so that humans may commit their lives in faith to Jesus Christ, the Son of God, who died
for their sins and rose from the dead. 50
50 Irving Hexham, Concise Dictionary of Religion, pages 194-195, 85, 72, respectively (Hexham’s emphasis); cf.
also Levinson, Religion, 29-30, 94-95, 103.
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