Part Seven: Two Objections: You Can Have Inner Peace and fulfillment Through Non-Christian Religions—or Without Any Religion
The previous six blogs in this eight-part series give effective apologetics that Christianity is not a “crutch” for weak and insecure people. Moreover, they show that only Christianity provides real and lasting inner peace and spiritual fulfillment—natural desires innate to the entire human race. However, critics may raise two objections that need a response.
“I have peace of mind, and I am not a religious person.”
Response: I am not saying peace of mind cannot result from, for example, good health or emotional stability. Fulfilling either of these two basic God-give human needs can result in a certain amount of satisfaction, or else they would not be genuine human desires. But this is a much different peace of mind than what one attains through spiritual fulfillment. Peace of mind that relies on good health, financial security, or emotional stability is tenuous and will vanish if these things are lost or even threatened. On the other hand, peace of mind founded on spiritual fulfillment will never die because its stability rests on God’s eternal power, love, and grace—not human strength, good health, emotional stability, financial success, or earthly objects (see last week’s blog post).
“Christianity is not the only religion that offers spiritual fulfillment. So do the hundreds of other religions around the world.”
Response: This objection contains a degree of truth. Spiritual fulfillment can be achieved in non-Christian religions. However, the error here is that other religions are counterfeit. Christian apologetics show that non-Christian religions are perversions of religious truth. They are not genuine—objectively demonstrable—revelations from God. If Christianity is the only true religion, then Christianity alone will offer eternal peace of mind. False beliefs can only provide a false sense of security. They do not have the answers to life’s bewildering questions, especially “What happens to me when I die,” or “What is the purpose and meaning of life?” At best, they can only provide a degree of emotional comfort.
To see this played out in real life, one need only examine religious conversions. Throughout church history, countless millions of practitioners of false religions and non-religious ideologies have converted to Christianity. They all acknowledge that Christianity is the only true religion. What they previously thought was spiritual fulfillment turned out to be spiritual deception. It is much more natural to walk from darkness to light than walk from light to darkness. Jesus put it powerfully when He said, “I am the light of the world. Whoever follows me will never walk in darkness, but will have the light of life” (John 8:12). ©
Next week I’ll conclude this series by looking at two ways Christianity provides spiritual fulfillment that no other religion can.