I was in California last month and on a Friday afternoon I went to a high school graduation party at my niece’s friends house.  It was just a few blocks away where I was staying so I decided to walk to the party.  When I arrived outside the home there was a car parked there that had a bumper sticker that said in big letters “COEXIST” on the bumper.  If you haven’t seen this before each letter of the word is shaped in such a way as to represent a religious symbol, meaning that no matter what our beliefs they are all valid, and equal so we should live in peace with one another.

As I walked closer there were more words on the sticker…”Unless you’re an asshole!”  This literally stopped me in my tracks.  I had never seen a COEXIST sticker with that written on it before.  It was so contradictory!  Basically the message was “I will tolerate your belief as long as you don’t say your belief super-cedes mine”, which ironically… is an intolerant view!  WOW!

The idea is that “you believe what you believe and I believe what I believe and all religions are valid expressions of God, so why should we argue about it?  It would be arrogant and unkind to suggest what someone believes is wrong or their religion is better.  Don’t ruin their culture and way of life by converting them.”

All this sounds tolerant but it isn’t.  Its a violation of truth.  Doesn’t this person realize that truth, by its very nature, is exclusive?  It excludes everything that is not true!  For example, the person with the bumper sticker has only one mailing address, phone number, license plate number, social security number, etc..  It would be stupid to say all social security numbers are equally valid for one person.  Likewise, its also dumb to suggest all religions are a valid expression of who God is since they all contradict one another in their teachings, they can’t all be right!

In Christianity God sent His Son Jesus to die on the cross for our sins and there is only one God.  In Islam Allah never had a son and its blasphemous to suggest he did.  In Hinduism there are millions of gods.  Originally Buddhism didn’t believe in a god.  Mormonism believes we are all gods.  A simple cursory glance at these beliefs are enough to dismiss the idea that all religions are valid expressions of God or are on equal par with each other.

While I was standing there staring at the message I felt persecuted.  The person with the bumper sticker would think Jesus is an a-hole since He said this:

John 14:6
6 Jesus said to him, “I am the way, the truth, and the life. No one comes to the Father except through Me.

That statement is about as “intolerant” as it gets!  Jesus said the only way to God is through Him.  Well, that’s quite a statement to make!  Doesn’t Jesus know there are other religions in the world?  If He does I don’t think He cares.  But it gets worse.  The bible says that if you don’t believe in Jesus Christ you are “condemned already” by God.

John 3:18
18 He who believes in Him is not condemned; but he who does not believe is condemned already, because he has not believed in the name of the only begotten Son of God.

This is awful!  Hasn’t Jesus seen the COEXIST bumper sticker?  What about this next verse?  EVERYONE will bow their knee to Jesus and acknowledge Jesus is LORD?!  This would mean that Hindus, Buddhists, Muslims…EVERYONE will lose their religion to bow to Christ as Lord!

Philippians 2:10
 10 that at the name of Jesus every knee should bow, of those in heaven, and of those on earth, and of those under the earth, 11 and that every tongue should confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father.

The “Lord” Jesus has mighty angels?  And will judge those who do not know Him?

2 Thessalonians 1:7-9
7 and to give you who are troubled rest with us when the Lord Jesus is revealed from heaven with His mighty angels,8 in flaming fire taking vengeance on those who do not know God, and on those who do not obey the gospel of our Lord Jesus Christ. 9 These shall be punished with everlasting destruction from the presence of the Lord and from the glory of His power,

Jesus is…the Almighty?!

Revelations 1:7-8
7 Behold, He is coming with clouds, and every eye will see Him, even they who pierced Him. And all the tribes of the earth will mourn because of Him. Even so, Amen. 8 “I am the Alpha and the Omega, the Beginning and the End,” says the Lord, “who is and who was and who is to come, the Almighty.”

These are just a few verses and already we see the bumper sticker’s message of “tolerance” that each religion is a valid an equal way to reach God is not true.  In fact, the message is “intolerant” to what Jesus said… that He is the only way to God!

The message does raise an interesting question though.  Which religion, if any, are true?  They can’t all be true or its possible none of them are true.  Who invented them?  What are its claims of divine authorship?  Well, we don’t need to be scholars to figure this one out.   The answer is like mathematics.  Once you have the final answer there are no other answers.  2 + 2 = 4, not an infinite amount of other numbers.

The Christian Bible is the only book in existence that has solid evidence of its claims.  I’m not talking about religion because religions are what people make up to please God, I’m referring to facts.  God has introduced Himself to mankind through various eyewitness accounts and experiences of Him throughout history and this is recorded in the Bible.  He has told us what He wants us to do.  We don’t need to make it up as we go.

If God truly exists we better find out what He wants and do what He says.  For some solid evidence that God exists please watch this video below.

Speaking of tolerance