John 14:6 - Black and White or Shades of Grey

So the last couple of days I have been thinking a lot about John 14:6:

Jesus told him, "I am the way, the truth, and the life. No one can come to the Father except through me.

Often I hear people quote this as a verse that  speaks to Christianity being the only way to heaven. And here is where I shock, possibly disappoint, or offend some of my Christian friends and audience...but I am just not sure about that. I have been considering this verse as a part of my search to better understand and possibly come to a more definitive answer on this. I want to share some of my journey on this.

I started by considering the language of the verse, particularly the word father. I had a suspicion that the word Jesus used for father was not the same as what was used in the Old Testament. In looking at a concordance to better understand this, I discovered that Father is only used 10 times in the Old Testament as a reference to God and Jesus introduces a term for Father that includes intimacy. The references in the Old Testament are along the lines of Father in the creative or in the protector sense. So this had me rolling around in my mind the following question: Is this verse saying that Jesus is the way to intimacy with God? And is this different than being able to go to heaven?

I then noticed something interesting about this verse, the phrase, Jesus told him. Looking at other versions, it says Jesus answered. I decided I needed to better understand what the question was and who asked the question. I believe that context is crucial to understanding the message of the Bible, and yet it can be often ignored. So I went back to look at the verses proceeding this one. In it Jesus is talking about preparing a place for the disciples where he is going (Jesus has just told them he would be betrayed and would be leaving them) and in verse 5 Thomas, one of the disciples asks a question:

Thomas said to Him, “Lord, we do not know where You are going, and how can we know the way?”

So there is the answer to my questions. The person asking the question is Thomas and the question is how can we (the followers of Jesus or the disciples) know the way? Is this an answer then that applies to all people or is is an answer that applies to Thomas and the other disciples?

As I considered that, I can't help notice the phrase, no one. Now, of course this can be understood as no one period, or not one of the listeners (those the answer was given to), but I decided that it was time to be back to the concordance. Interestingly, I see reference to no one and not one, but I couldn't find an indication as to whether it was global or specific from a straight language perspective, commentaries vary in interpretation.

So what I find myself left with, and what I leave you with is a question of how to see this verse in the light of its context. I suspect that people will choose to see it in the way that supports their current belief, but maybe, this question will lead you to further study and to look at other verses to gain more understanding.


I find this to be a grey area. For me, I know that I can only understand God in very limited way, as human understanding is limited. I am reminded of the story of the elephant and the blind men. Each of these blind men experience a different part of the elephant and describe it through the lens of their experience. I often wonder if our experience and talk of God is the same, each one of us describing God as we experience God and through the lens of our experience and environment.

I believe in God and that Jesus is God and that He can and was a sacrifice that cleanses me from sin if I accept that gift. I believe that God wants us to be in relationship[ with God, and I live my life within that relationship. Can I stand here and say that what you describe as God is wrong and what I describe is right? No, I cannot. Even if I was in a conversation of only Christians, I would find we have different understandings, many areas are grey. I can not point to any definitive evidence that I am 100% right and anyone else is 100% wrong. All I can do is share my journey and invite others to experience the relationship with God that I experience (although theirs will be different because it is theirs).

Walk with me, and I will share my story. Share with me, and I will listen, and hopefully we will both come to greater understanding and love.