Can Christianity be harmonized with other worldviews? (Part 5)

This blog is part of my series titled “Is Christianity true?” The series addresses four common objections to the truthfulness of the Christian worldview, namely concerns about: (1) the trustworthiness of the Bible; (2) the historicity of Jesus’ resurrection; (3) the compatibility of faith in God with modern science; and (4) the incompatibility of Christian truth claims with those of other worldviews.

CAN CHRISTIANITY BE HARMONIZED WITH OTHER WORLDVIEWS? (Part 5)

The two major monotheistic alternatives to Christianity are Judaism and Islam. Judaism and Christianity are directly connected since their adherents worship the same God described in the Hebrew Scriptures. Christians believe that Jesus is the Jewish Messiah anticipated in their prophetic writings. As the eternal Son of God, we believe Jesus is one in essence with the God of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob, the forefathers of the Jewish people and he is the thread that is prophetically and typologically woven through the pages of the Hebrew Scriptures. 

However, in accordance with the writings of the New Testament and as foreshadowed in the Hebrew Scriptures, Christians believe that the Mosaic covenant with God was made obsolete by the new covenant established by Jesus (see Hebrews 8:13). The sacrifices offered under the Mosaic covenant could never cleanse a person from sin (see Hebrews 10:1). As the perfect, sinless Son of God, Jesus completely fulfilled the requirements of the Mosaic covenant. He became the only one ever born who could save humankind from the consequences of their sin. His sacrificial death satisfied God’s righteous judgment on sin once and for all. It is offered to everyone without exception and is applied to all those who believe in Him, both those who are Jewish and those who aren’t. 

Rabbinic Judaism as practiced for centuries down to the present day is fundamentally different from its ancient precursor.

Of course, modern Judaism is quite different from its ancient forerunner. After the temple in Jerusalem was destroyed by the Roman armies in AD 70 and the Jewish people were dispersed throughout the world, the system of temple sacrifices was made physically and spiritually obsolete. Therefore, Rabbinic Judaism as practiced for centuries down to the present day is fundamentally different from its ancient precursor. Jewish religious leaders maintain that Moses received not only the written Torah (Law) but also the oral Torah at Mount Sinai. The latter, called the Talmud, is based on understandings and interpretations of the law that were later put into writing. 

Like the ancient Jewish people, modern adherents of Judaism believe (in varying degrees) that they primarily relate to God through keeping the oral law and its associated practices. By contrast, Christians have always believed that reconciliation with God is based solely upon grace; that is, receiving God’s free offer of forgiveness by trusting in Jesus Christ alone. That said and quoting the apostle Paul, we Christians are grafted into the same olive tree as the Jews, except we are “wild by nature” whereas the Jews are the “natural branches.” Thus we have a very special relationship with the Jewish people.

As I write this, I am thinking of the horrendous, unprovoked attack on innocent Israeli civilians by Hamas terrorists on October 7, 2023 including mass murder and sexual atrocities together with the huge worldwide surge in antisemitism. As an advocate for justice and given the special relationship between Christians and Jews, I have contacted several Jews I know to tell them Mary and I stand with them in this terrible hour.

Next week, I will contrast Islam, the other monotheistic religion, with the Christian worldview.

Photo taken from cover of “Dissonant Voices” by Harold A. Netland