Jesus Only

As a youth, growing up in a Catholic country, I found this whole God-thing intriguing but it was hard to get straight answers.  Both of my parents were atheists.  People I knew, could not answer my questions and would defer any answer to their priests.  I did try to get answers from them but their reply was always that I either must just accept as "truth" what is said or understand that tradition must be accepted - unquestioned!  No questioning of Church authority allowed!

When I was relocated to a Lutheran country, I tried again to figure this "god-thing" out.  But, as I have related in the past - questions were not allowed here either, you were supposed to just magically "know".  To this day I have never been more disappointed in a church than the one of Miesau ... God-less shepherds refusing to lead ... condemning their youth to find their own way ... is it any wonder Germany has rotted the way it has?

It was when I left home and moved to Kent, Washington that I ran into someone whom could answer my questions - a woman named Debby Kramer.  Lutheran but also heavily active in the local youth groups.  But the unaffiliated church I was attending, kept pointing back to all of the answers were to be found through Jesus' torture and the cross.  "its the blood" ... they would chant.  But this just could not be true!  Anyone can bleed!

Through my Hutterite family I was to learn the idea of Jesus only.  And although the cross was a horrible thing - it was Jesus' lone resurrection from the grave which set him apart in the stream of mankind.

So, Jesus was alone in this, it validates that his death truly was a sacrifice, it means I needed to believe - if I had the brain everyone had told me of in my youth.

Were there others whom claimed to be the Jewish Messiah before Jesus?
I studied to find out - Yup.
Were there others whom claimed to be the Messiah after Jesus?
Again reading histories - Yup! 
Oh, yeah, even to this day!

If Jesus was not the truth, then there would be no need to have so many rise up to claim his special status ... but none of them ever came back from the grave.....

So, it seems appropriate to understand that there is a basis for correcting our ruined relationship with our Creator and that is Jesus, Jesus alone. 

Some might argue that baptism is also required for salvation.  But we are commanded to be baptized, so it is a matter of obedience not salvation.  And baptism is just a matter of witnessing to your community as well.

Well I am exhausted.  My typing still takes forever!  (3 hours!)