Jesus said, "I am the way, and the truth, and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me." (John 14:6) It pleased God to come to us in Jesus Christ, Emmanuel, God with us. God did not simply show us a path to follow, but lived among us as the Way, the Truth, and the Life. Although we have done nothing to deserve the free gift of God, in Jesus Christ we receive new life, know the truth about God and ourselves, and are set upon God's way in the world.
The cross of Christ is at the heart of our faith, for it is
through the Lord's death that we receive new life.... But death is not
the last word, for God has raised him from the dead and exalted him
above all.... The risen Christ is the living Lord of the cosmos. "In
Christ, God was reconciling the world to himself." (2 Corinthians 5:19)
Jesus Christ is the only Savior and Lord, and all people
everywhere are called to place their faith, hope, and love in him. No
one is saved by virtue of inherent goodness or admirable living, for
"by grace you have been saved through faith, and this is not your own
doing; it is the gift of God." (Ephesians 2:8)
No one is saved apart from God's gracious redemption in
Jesus Christ. Yet we do not presume to limit the sovereign freedom of
"God our Savior, who desires everyone to be saved and to come to the
knowledge of the truth." (1 Timothy 2:4)
Thus, we neither restrict the grace of God to those who
profess explicit faith in Christ nor assume that all people are saved
regardless of faith. Grace, love, and communion belong to God, and are
not ours to determine.
(Hope in the Lord Jesus Christ, 2002, 212th General Assembly
of the PCUSA)