ONLY ONE WAY   Oswald J. Smith

ONLY ONE WAY A BANKER and a business man sat opposite      each other in the manager's office.   The business man, leaning forward, was talking most earnestly, when suddenly, the other interrupted him.    "Ridiculous!   Absurd!   Foolishness!"   And the proud banker curled his lip in scorn.    "But why?" inquired the one to whom he had spoken.    "Why?   Do you, a thinking man, ask why? Such nonsense!"   And he laughed in derision.    "Yes, sir," responded the other.   "I ask you why?"    The face of the banker took on a scowl, and there was anger in his voice as he answered.    "Why?   Do you mean to tell me that the death of Jesus Christ in my place on the cross is going to satisfy God?   Away with such theories! If I am to be saved, I must accomplish it by my own efforts."   And he stamped his foot with passion.    "Ah!   I see," replied the other.   "Now I know what is the trouble.   You think you have a right to manufacture a way of your own, and so you reject and spurn the God-provided plan."    "What do you mean by that?" questioned the banker, with a mystified expression on his face.    "Now, listen!   Suppose a man should come to you and say, ‘Mr. Banker, I am in great need, and I want you to loan me some money.’   Tell me, who would have the right to make the terms and conditions upon which the money was to be loaned, you as a banker and owner, or the man in need?" 3

"Why, I would, of course.   He would have to meet my conditions before he could get the money," replied the banker.    "Exactly.   And that, sir, is your position. You are the poor, helpless sinner, lost and un- done, and God is the great Banker.   You are coming to Him for mercy and pardon.   Will you tell me who has the right to make the terms and lay down the conditions upon which you may receive His salvation, remembering now that you are the man in need, and God the Banker?"    "Ah!   I never saw it that way before," re- sponded the banker in an astonished tone of voice.   "Why, of course, I am not in a position to dictate terms.   God has that right, and He alone."    "And yet you have been manufacturing a scheme of your own, forgetting that paupers do not dictate; they accept.   And all the time God, the great Banker, has been offering you salva- tion according to His plan.   Will you aban- don yours and accept His?   Are you ready to meet God on His own terms?"    "God helping me, I will," replied the now humbled banker, as the new light broke upon his soul.    My friend, what about you?   Have you too been manufacturing a way of your own?   There are many who have. Religion    A lot of people think that their religion saves them.    "Madam, how is it with your soul?" inquired a British nobleman of Madam Cherkoff of Russia. 4

"Sir," replied the indignant Countess, "that is a matter between my father confessor and God."    Was she not a member of the Greek Ortho- dox Church?   Had she not paid large sums of money for its upkeep?   Did she not believe and practice all its doctrines?   Was she not faithful in her attendance on its services?   Why then should she worry?   It was no concern of hers; it was up to the Church to get her through.    Yes, my friend, and you, too, may be trusting in your church membership.   But I want to tell you that religion cannot save.   No religion, Protestant, Roman Catholic, Jewish, Greek Or- thodox, Coptic, Mohammedan, Buddhist, Confu- cian, or any other, can save your soul.   Only Jesus Christ can do that.    You may join as many churches as you like and still be lost.   The church cannot save.   You may be a Lutheran, a Presbyterian, a Methodist, a Baptist, an Episcopalian, or anything else, and yet perish.   There is no salvation in the church. Salvation is in Christ.    Religion cannot impart life, and you must re- ceive a new life in order to be saved.    Nicodemus was religious, but he wasn't saved. Jesus, therefore, said to him, "Ye must be born again".   (John 3:7)   The Pharisee was religious, but he wasn't saved (Luke 7:36-50).   Cornelius was de- voutly religious.   He feared God, gave alms, prayed, fasted, was well thought of, and yet he, too, was lost and had to be saved (Acts 10:22).    Paul was perhaps the most religious man of his day.   His religion dated from his childhood. He spoke of himself as zealous for God.   He had 5

been circumcised and had kept the law blame- lessly.   And yet he was a sinner in the sight of God.   He was lost though he knew it not.   He, too, had to be saved for God's righteousness he did not have.   He was religious, oh yes, a re- ligious sinner.   He called himself the chief of sinners.   (I Timothy 1:15)    Well, now, my friend, if religion could not save Paul and Cornelius, Nicodemus and the Pharisee, how then is it going to save you?    [...]    Are you, too, depending on your religious life for salvation?   Then you are anchored to a false hope.   You do not yet know Christ.    If religion can save, then why did Christ die? Calvary was unnecessary if religion, too, can save.   No, my friend, there is but one Saviour, not religion, but Christ. 6

'Twas not the church that saved my soul,    Nor yet my life so free from sin; 'Twas Jesus Christ, the Lamb of God,    He rescued me, He took me in. Morality    A great many people think they are saved be- cause they live a good life.   They rely on their morality to save them.    My friends, you might as well try to lift your- self by your own boot straps as to expect moral- ity to save you.    If a moral, upright life can save, then why did Christ die?   Of what value is His death?   You don't need Him if you can save yourself.    If you could reach Heaven by your own ef- forts, you would cry out, "Look at me; I got in because of the wonderful life I lived.   I was so good, so moral and upright, that God let me in. I didn't need a Saviour.   Christ I ignored, I saved myself."   But no, my friend, a thousand times, no!   No one will ever talk like that, for no one can live a good enough life to satisfy God.    "all our righteousnesses are as filthy rags" (Isa. 64:6), declares the Bible.   "There is none right- eous, no, not one:" (Rom. 3:10).   "all have sinned," therefore, all need a Saviour.   (Romans 3:23)    In any case, if you are righteous, self- righteous, then Christ never came for you.   "I came not to call the righteous, but sinners to re- pentance" (Luke 5:32), He said.   Are you righteous?   Then, my friend, you do not need Christ.    "I am not as other men are, extortioners, unjust, adulterers," said the Pharisee.   I am not "even as this publican."   I am right- 7

eous.   But the publican, with downcast eyes, smiting on his breast, cried, "God be merciful to me a sinner."   Jesus justified the publican but condemned the Pharisee (Luke 18:9-14).    You know you are not righteous.   Why, you wouldn't want your friends to know your thoughts.   Do you think then you are fit to stand in the presence of a holy God?    You tell me there is no dust in this room? Let the sun in.   Now look at that ray of light. No dust!   Millions, millions of specks every- where.    You say you are righteous.   But wait a mo- ment.   Let the white light of God's holiness enter your heart.   Now what?   Corruption, vile- ness, pollution.   In a word, sin.    Peter cried, "I am a sinful man, O Lord."   (Luke 5:8)   Job exclaimed, "I am vile;" (Job 40:4).   Isaiah said, "Woe is me!"   (Isaiah 6:5)   These men were the best, the most moral and upright of their day.   But when they saw the Lord, they saw themselves.    Here is the testimony of a public executioner: "I have always been a God-fearing, religious per- son.   I have endeavored to lead an honest, moral life, and in my dealings with others, have tried to follow the Golden Rule.   I have striven to be a good husband and a good father.   Where- ever I may have failed, it has not been for lack of sincere effort."    Sounds good, doesn't it?   But it is all wrong. It is all "I".   He speaks of his own honesty and morality, and his efforts to adhere to the Golden Rule.   But where is Christ?   He is never even mentioned.   He claims to be a religious man, not a saved man.   There is no mention of the New Birth, no word about having accepted 8

Christ.   He seeks to be his own saviour and he bases his hope on his personal morality.   What a false foundation.   Yet there millions like him.    And are you, too, going to stand on your own righteousness?   My friend, you know you are not righteous.   If you compare yourself with others, you may make a good showing; but when you measure yourself by the standards of God, how far short you fall!   God demands a perfect righteousness and there is only One who has it. That one is Jesus Christ.   If you are clothed in His righteousness you will be accepted; if not, you will be condemned.   Your own is faulty; it will never avail.    You may do your best, but your best will never pass muster with God.   But do you do your best?   Have you ever done your best?   You know you never have.   Time and time again you could have done just a little better than you did, and if that be so then you did not do your best. No one does.   Be honest now and face the facts. You are not doing the best you can, and you know it.    Then, my friend, you need Christ.   Only the wedding garment of His righteousness will get you through.   Like the prodigal, you must cast away your filthy rags, and let Him cover you with His spotless robe.   Plead His merits, not yours. Works    Multitudes think they are saved by their good works.    They practice penance and self-denial.   They give alms and say prayers.   They visit the sick and imprisoned and perform numerous long pil- 9

grimages and afflict their bodies.   And thus they expect to get to Heaven.    They work "for" salvation, whereas God tells them to work "out" their salvation.   It must become theirs first; then they can work it and live it out.   The student must first enroll before he can work out his college career.   You must first receive Christ and be saved; you must get salvation if you are to work it out.    What did the dying thief do to be saved? Work he could not, for his hands were nailed to a cross.   He did nothing, yet Jesus saved him.    Man's plan of salvation emphasizes the word "do".   God's speaks of "done".   Man insists on doing something, paying something.   He wants to merit salvation.   God says it is done.   There is nothing to do.   Jesus did it all.    Salvation, my friend, is a gift.   "the gift of God is eternal life through Jesus Christ our Lord" (Rom. 6:23).   What can you do to earn a gift?   If you pay for it then it is not a gift.   If you work for it you have a right to it, so then again, it is not a gift.   A gift is free, and so is salvation.    What did the prodigal son pay?   When you tell me how much he paid I will tell you how much you must pay.   But you know he paid nothing, for he had nothing.   He was bankrupt and so are you.   Salvation, my friend, is with- out money and without price.   It cannot be bought.    When I was in India I saw so-called holy men, working for salvation.   "What are you lying on that bed of spikes for?" I might have asked.   "To save my soul," would been the answer.   But why should they do what Christ did?   Did He not suffer, bleed and die for them? 10

Did He not atone for their sins?   And is not God satisfied with the sacrifice of His Son?   Why then should they, or you, seek to add to the finished work of Christ?    Hear now the Word of God.   How clear it is! How emphatic!    "For by grace are ye saved through faith; and that not of yourselves: it is the gift of God: Not of works, lest any man should boast" (Eph. 2:8-9).    "Not by works of righteousness which we have done" (Titus 3:5).    "But to him that worketh not, but believeth on him that justifieth the ungodly, his faith is counted for righteousness.   ...God imputeth right- eousness without works" (Rom. 4:5, 6).    "worketh not" and "not of works".   How definite!   No work of yours, no deeds of merit, nothing that you can do will avail in the least. It is Christ and Christ alone who saves.   Oh that you would come to Him, and rely on His finished work on Calvary, trust Him this mo- ment and be saved. 'Twas not my works that saved my soul,    Nor yet my zeal, my prayers, my tears; 'Twas Jesus Christ, the Son of God,    He bore my sins, he calmed my fears. Commandments    Some people think they are saved because they keep the commandments.    But Jesus said, "none of you keepeth the law[,]" and I would rather believe Him than you.   (John 7:19) You haven't kept the commandments, my friend, and what is more, you know it.   At some time or other in your life you broke one of them. 11

Now God says, "whosoever shall keep the whole law, and yet offend in one point, he is guilty of all" (Jas. 2:10).   One point, one sin, one com- mandment broken, and you have broken the law.    Then you are doomed.   You are condemned. You are a sinner.   You have transgressed, and you are guilty.   Well, what are you going to do about it?   "Oh," you say, "I am going to turn over a new leaf and live right.   I will never again break the commandments."   No?   Don't be too sure.   Frankly, I wouldn't trust you.   But even if you could, what about the past?   What about the commandment you broke?   Will God overlook it?    Most certainly not.   You must answer for every sin, that is, unless you will let Christ an- swer.   He never broke the commandments.   He was sinless.   He kept the law perfectly.   But because you did not, an atonement had to be made, a sacrifice offered.   Now He, the Lamb of God, is my sacrifice.   Why not let Him be yours, too?    Clean pages are fine and a clean life is ideal, but remember, you still have to reckon with the old pages with their blots of sin.   God will not overlook them.   They must be washed [by His blood] and washed clean.   Every debt must be wiped out.    Suppose you run up a bill at the grocery store, and then one day, start to pay cash.   Will that wipe out your debt and cancel your bill?   Why, certainly not.   The debt remains until it is paid. Turn over a new leaf if you want to; start to keep the commandments if you can, but what about the ones you have broken?    But suppose someone walks in and pays your debt, then what?   Oh, now you can begin anew. 12

Pay from now on and all will be well.   My friend, Christ paid your debt.   He atoned for every commandment you broke, every sin you ever committed.   Believe it, thank Him and go free.    It is as sensible to talk about keeping the law in order to be saved as it is to offer a patient in the sanatorium a book on the laws of health. He has a cancer and he needs a cure.   You, too, are diseased.   You have a sin cancer.   You need someone who can take your disease and give you His health, not a book of laws.   My friend, Christ did that.   He took your sin, bore it in His own body on the cross, and now He offers you His life--eternal life.    Paul had a never-ending battle with the Ju- daizers of his day over the law.   He called it "the Jews' religion" and turned from it to Christ. Listen to him:--    "Therefore by the deeds of the law there shall no flesh be justified in his sight: ... a man is justified by faith without the deeds of the law" (Rom. 3:20-28). "if righteousness come by the law, then Christ is dead in vain" (Gal. 2:16-21). 'Twas not the law that saved my soul,    Nor yet the deeds of virtue done; 'Twas Jesus Christ, the gift of God,    He bled, He died, my soul He won. Christ the Only Saviour    My friend, thus far I have dealt with man's way--religion, morality, works, commandments, --and proved it false.   Now let me turn to God's way of salvation.    There is only One who can save, and that One --the resurrected, living Christ. 13

"I am the way, the truth, and the life: no man cometh unto the Father, but by me" (John 14:6).    "I" Jesus Christ.   There is no other.   Not religion.   Not morality.   Nor good works.   Christ, the Son of God, is the one and only Saviour.    He is "the [W]ay".   Not the way- show-er.   No man can come to God but by Him.   Neither by Moses, nor by Buddha.   Not by Mohammed or Confucius.   Nor by a priest, a minister or a pope.   Only by Christ.   Will you then let Him save you?    "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).    What a verse!   There is no clearer statement in the Bible.   Salvation is in no other.   No other church.   No other individual.   Will you believe it? No other name--Roman Catholic, Greek Ortho- dox, Coptic, Protestant, Lutheran, Presbyterian, Methodist, Anglican, Baptist, Buddhist, Moham- medan, Confucianist.   "thou shalt call his name JESUS: for he shall save his people from their sins."   (Matthew 1:21)   Will you, then, turn from all others and trust Him, and Him alone? He only can save you.    "But will He save me?" you ask.   "him that cometh to me I will in no wise cast out[,]" are His own words (John 6:37).   He can cast you out or take you in.   He says He will not cast you out.   Then what will He do?   He will take you in.   Thank God for such a Saviour. What You Must Do    Perhaps you think that because God has pro- vided salvation there is nothing for you to do.    What a mistake!   Can you not see that you 14

must accept God's offer?   The Bible says, "Choose, Take, Receive."   Salvation has been provided, but you must accept it.   I may offer you a glass of water, but you must take it.   It is one thing for the doctor to prescribe medicine for you, but what good will it do you unless you take it?   You will have to receive Jesus Christ if you are ever to be saved.    Oh, my friend, take Christ.   "[A]s many as re- ceived him, to them gave he power to become the sons of God" (John 1:12).   But only those who receive Him are His sons and daughters. No one has ever drifted into salvation.   As a matter of fact, we cannot get anything without making a decision.   Nor can we get salvation. We must act.   A choice is absolutely necessary. Oh, then, receive Christ and receive Him now.    And remember, there is a difference between believing with the head and receiving in the heart.   You believe the elevator can take you down.   But you do not get down until you act on your belief and step into the elevator.   You believe the train can take you to your destina- tion.   But you do not reach your destination until you act on your belief and enter the train. You believe Jesus can save you.   But you are not saved until you act on your faith and trust Him.    This is the way The King James Bible states it: "Believe on the Lord Jesus Christ, and thou shalt be saved" (Acts 16:31).   Hence you must choose Christ, receive Him, rely upon Him, give yourself to Him, put your faith in Him.   It is trust that saves. 15

Now is the Time    Perhaps you know you must be saved, but you are putting it off for some other time.    There is no future with God.   "[N]ow is the accepted time; behold, now is the day of salva- tion" (2 Cor. 6:2).   God's time is "now".   My friend, the hour has struck, the time is at hand. Now is the moment to decide.   Tomorrow may be too late.   "Boast not thyself of to morrow; for thou knowest not what a day may bring forth" (Prov. 27:1).    Whatever you do, don't procrastinate.   Take Christ and take Him now.   This moment Eternal Life may be yours.   If Satan can persuade you to put it off, you may be lost forever.   Come, then, accept Him now.   "Seek ye the LORD while he may be found, call ye upon him while he is near" (Isa. 55:6).   There is a time coming when He will not be found; therefore, receive Him, and receive Him--NOW.

[Christian Helps Ministry (USA)] [Christian Home Bible Course]