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Which Jesus Do You Follow?

The Bible repeatedly states that simple belief in Christ is sufficient for salvation because Christ satisfied all the necessary requirements through His atoning sacrifice.  Through faith in Him we have entered into a permanent Sabbath and have rested from our works (Heb. 3–4).

Though it is through faith alone in Christ alone that we are reconciled to God, we have to be very careful to recognize the Christ to whom we refer.  There are many people named Jesus and many who have been called Christ, but there is only one Jesus Christ with the power to save you.  Many who believe they are following Jesus will one day come face to face with the reality that they never knew the only Jesus who could save them (Mt. 7:21–23).

This is where Christians are called to be most discerning because there are two kinds of people who will not inherit eternal life: those who do not believe in Jesus and those who believe in a Jesus not found in the Bible.  People argue endlessly about Jesus’ Name.  Is it Yeshua?  Yehoshua?  Iesous?  Is it ok to just call Him Jesus?  There are thousands of languages and Jesus is called by hundreds, even thousands of names, but the real concern is not by which name you call Him, but to which Jesus you refer:


Muslim Jesus

This Jesus, also called Isa, can be found in the Quran.  He is praised and held in high esteem by many Muslims.  He’s even called the Messiah.  That’s close enough, right?  Unfortunately this isn’t the same Jesus that Christians know.  The Muslim Jesus was tortured on a cross, but he didn’t die and went on to recover from his wounds.  He didn’t rise from the dead and didn’t atone for mankind’s sins and therefore doesn’t have any power to save you.  He’s also subservient to the false prophet Mohammed.




Universalist Jesus

There are various beliefs about this Jesus.  Perhaps he was just one of many prophets: Moses, Buddha, Jesus, Mohammed, Bahá’u’lláh, etc.  Each of them provided an equally valid path to God.  Everyone, regardless of what they believe, will end up in the same wonderful place.  This Jesus may have died and rose again, but he clearly didn’t die for the sins of mankind if he was just one of many prophets or divine manifestations.  This Jesus is nothing special and doesn’t provide you with anything you can’t get somewhere else.




New Age Jesus

The New Age Jesus is similar to the universalist Jesus—just one of many prophets or divine manifestations.  In popular schools of New Age thought, Jesus is called an “Ascended Master.”  “Ascended Masters” or “Mahatmas” are numerous beings that may be seen as divine or even alien creatures who have overcome physical limitations.  In this second sense they seem eerily reminiscent of fallen angels or demonic beings.  This Jesus is often said to have died and then come back to life as Christianity teaches, but he never atoned for sin nor is he seen as necessary for salvation.




Mormon Jesus

This Jesus seems close to the real deal.  He died for mankind’s sins and rose again.  He is even called the Son of God.  Yet that is where the similarities end.  When you dig into the classical teachings of Mormonism you quickly discover that the god worshiped in that religion is a completely different god than the One worshiped in the Bible.  The god of Mormonism is not One.  He is one of at least three or four gods.  Classical Mormonism is a rejection of biblical monotheism and a number of basic theological truths, so even though this “Jesus” may have done all the right things, He is certainly not the same Jesus found in the Bible.  He is not YHWH in the flesh.  Suppose a random person from Mexico named Jesús came along and claimed to die for your sins and rise again.  The similarity of the name alone is not sufficient grounds for suggesting he is the same person as the Son of God.




Jehovah’s Witness Jesus

Like the Mormon Jesus, this Jesus seems close to authentic.  He died for mankind’s sins and rose again.  The problem is, this Jesus is a replay of an ancient heresy called Arianism, which teaches that Jesus is not God.  He is a mere creation.  On the other hand, the authentic Jesus is God in the flesh (Isa. 9:6; Mt. 1:23; Jn. 1:1, 18; 8:58; 20:28; Acts 20:28; Rm. 9:5; 10:9; Phil. 2:5–8; Tit. 2:13; Heb. 1:8; 2 Pt. 1:1; Rev. 1:8; 17:14).  When Jehovah’s Witnesses and Christians talk about Jesus, they are not talking about the same person.  And to be clear, there is no scholarly debate on this issue.  Early Christians worshiped Jesus and the Scriptures absolutely affirm the deity of Christ (see here).




Secular Jesus

The secular Jesus was a wise man and a good teacher.  He shook up the establishment and cared for the poor, yet he was killed by the Romans and that was the end of the story.  He didn’t atone for any sins and he didn’t rise again.  This Jesus can’t save anyone—this is not the Jesus of the Bible.




The Genuine Article: The Lord Jesus Christ

This Jesus is the One specifically chosen by God to be the Messiah of Israel and your personal Savior.  He is God in the flesh, the Son of God, and the Ruler over all creation.  He is Lord whether you want Him to be or not.  He is the only provision for sin because He died for your sins and rose again.  He is the original Jesus.  Compare this Jesus to the previous persons mentioned and you’ll notice the obvious fact that they all came after Him because they are all counterfeits.  The genuine article came first.

The genuine Jesus was a real person who verifiably rose from the dead (having been seen alive after death by over 500 eyewitnesses) and whose life and claims were confirmed by over 350 specific prophecies that were written many centuries before He was born.  It should be noted that the bodily remains of Buddha, Confucius, Mohammed, Bahá’u’lláh, and other founders of world religions are still with us today and we know where they are (Kandy, Sri Lanka; Qufu, China; Medina, Saudi Arabia; and Acre, Israel, respectively).  Yet the body of Jesus is nowhere to be found because His body is currently alive and enthroned in glory.




And having brought them out, he was saying, ‘Sirs, what is necessary of me to do, that I may be saved?’

And they said, ‘Believe on the Lord Jesus and you will be saved, you and your household.’ (Acts 16:30–31)


Belief in Jesus is synonymous with believing the Gospel.  When you believe in the real Jesus you are believing in the Gospel by default because the real Jesus died for your sins, was buried, and rose again.  And when you believe in the true Gospel you are also believing in the real Jesus because the Bible defines the Gospel to include the fact that Jesus is both Lord (Rm. 10:9) and Christ (1 Cor. 15:3).




Make sure that you trust and know the real Jesus because He is the only One who can save you.


I am trying here to prevent anyone saying the really foolish thing that people often say about Him: I’m ready to accept Jesus as a great moral teacher, but I don’t accept his claim to be God.  That is the one thing we must not say.  A man who was merely a man and said the sort of things Jesus said would not be a great moral teacher.  He would either be a lunatic—on the level with the man who says he is a poached egg—or else he would be the Devil of Hell.  You must make your choice.  Either this man was, and is, the Son of God, or else a madman or something worse.  You can shut him up for a fool, you can spit at him and kill him as a demon or you can fall at his feet and call him Lord and God, but let us not come with any patronizing nonsense about his being a great human teacher.  He has not left that open to us.  He did not intend to.
— C.S. Lewis, Mere Christianity

Post A Comment

24 comments:

  1. Fantastic and timely. Thank you so much.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Thank you! I believe this is a message the Church and the world need to hear right now.

      Delete
  2. [Mar 8:29 KJV] 29 And he saith unto them, But whom say ye that I am? And Peter answereth and saith unto him, Thou art the Christ.

    Everyone is asked this question!
    I answer also "Thou art the Christ". Jesus is Lord, He is 100% God, He is 100% man, He is Perfect, He is the Atonement, He is the Great "I AM THAT I AM", He is our Final Sacrifice! He is sitting at the right hand of God with full authority from God to be God.

    Here is a scary thought, in light of what Jesus said, just putting it out there:
    [Jhn 8:44 KJV] Ye are of [your] father the devil, and the lusts of your father ye will do. He was a murderer from the beginning, and abode not in the truth, because there is no truth in him. When he speaketh a lie, he speaketh of his own: for he is a liar, and the father of it.
    Based on John 8:44, IF you do not believe the "True Gospel" Who are you praying to when you recite, lets say the 'Lords Prayer'?

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Not what you are getting at in your question but John 8:44 is Jesus telling the Pharasees that they are not followers of God but of Satan. They had created their own "religion" and laws to suit themselves vs. following the law of God. All of their "laws" they created where nothing but burdens on those actually seeking God.

      Delete
  3. good article Gary. You did miss one other 'Jesus' however. The ecumenical one. The one that says 'hey, I didn't really mean all that stuff I wrote about sin'. The one that says 'though I say that you shall have no other God before me, I didn't mean to let it get in the way of inter-faith relationship'. Its the Jesus that gives 'christians' freedom to create new revelation on scripture that does not exist, that submits to social practices without the need for salvation, the one who changes his mind about who can get married and how. The one that is calling 'evil, good', and 'good, evil'. The 'Jesus' that is unfortunately permeating more and more churches nowadays.

    Keep away from that 'Jesus' as well.

    Ryan D

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. You bring up a good point. That's definitely a false Jesus, too. In my mind he kind of falls into the Universalist or New Age categories.

      The true Jesus wants no compromise on the truth, but He did pray for unity in the Church.

      Delete
    2. Yes!! The "New Apostolic Reformation 'Jesus'" that also sounds like the RCC in it's eschatology. I came out of the NAR post-trib Kingdom Now theology 'Emo-Jesus' movement.

      Delete
  4. White? Beard? Long Hair? No, No No.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Are you referring to the Mormon Jesus? (:

      Delete
    2. help me Anonymous. what are you trying to say with your questions and answer. you asked ''white?'beard? long hair?'' do you mean the Jesus we know is not any related to the features highlighted? i just came across this page today and may not remember to visit it again, so ,please, reach me by email=suoyedaniel@gmail.com=

      Delete
  5. barbiosheepgirl7/18/2017 3:06 PM

    facebooked it! still will call on deaf ears, but the title may capture a few who otherwise wouldn't read...

    ReplyDelete
  6. In the English speaking world, he is Jesus Christ, or Jesus of Nazareth. God knows all languages and sees the heart, so don't fret over uttering his name in a tongue that is not really yours (this is a current fashion and trend since about 2009).

    If you have New Age friends or people on the fence, tell them that in New Age/Witcraft circles, and in the UFO contactee community, there is also an expected 'rapture', where millions of 'undesirables' who impede mankind's progress will be taken OUT to another dimension or planet before the great cleansing and Golden Age returns.

    The dark side too suspect there is a rapture, and has prepared accordingly!

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Plus, there is pretty widespread scholarly consensus that the New Testament was originally written in Greek, not Aramaic or Hebrew. It is likely that Jesus spoke both Aramaic and Greek, and could at least read and write in Hebrew, but the original NT MSS themselves were likely Greek. The epistles + Revelation almost definitely were.

      Delete
  7. Apparently there a lot of people following a Hebrew Roots mmovement Jesus followers who say the name Jesus is a false prophet and that He should only be called by His hebrew name, which they can't even stick to the same pronunciation or spelling. These Jesus followers think they are closer to Him than the saved by Grace Jesus followers because they keep his feast days, call him by His hebrew name, only eat kosher, etc. Someone said to me: ' to say that those of us who try to actually be Christ like, to actually live like Him as much as we are able, is about as dangerous and ridiculous of an argument as a believer could have.'

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. The Hebrew Roots movement is at odds with basically every epistle in the New Testament. Pretty shocking for people who claim to be such diligent students of God's Word.

      Delete
    2. Thank you! I am finding it extremely disturbing! And they think they are being more Christ like while ridiculing those that follow the simple message of the Gospel and Jesus.

      Delete
  8. As a Mormon, I would just like to say that I believe in God the Father and Jesus Christ the son. Jesus Christ was sent to do the work that the father sent him to do. Two Persons in the Godhead with a third member: The Holy Spirit which is a spirit so that he may bring the message of truth into our hearts. As far as I know that is only Two Gods not 3 or 4, Just saying.

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    Replies
    1. Christianity

      There is only One God manifested in 3 Persons in the Holy Bible: God The Father, God The Son, God The Holy Spirit. We Christians believe in one God – who is the Creator of heaven and earth. That He is sovereign and self-existent and immutable (unchanging) and only one who is Good. Christians believe that God is triune. That is, God is one and has eternally exists in three persons: the Father, the Son and the Holy Spirit.
      The Son was God manifested in the flesh, who came to earth to die for humanity and bring salvation to those who believe in Him as He says He is in the Gospel. Christian don’t believe in being saved by doing works.

      Mormonism

      In the early years, Mormon leader Brigham Young taught that Adam was the father of the spirit of Jesus, and that Adam is God. Mormon’s today do not believe this. Rather, Mormons believe in a doctrine called eternal progression. They teach that God was once a man and was capable of physical death, but He progressed to become God the Father. Mormons also teach that we also can become gods.

      Mormons believe that gods, angles, people an devils are all fundamentally of the same substance, but that are merely at different places in the eternal progression.
      Christianity

      Christians believe that Jesus Christ is the Son of God, the second member of the trinity. When Jesus was born, the “Word became flesh and dwelt among us.” (John 1:14). Christians hold that Christ has existed eternally and is truly God. Colossians 2:9 says: For in Him (Christ) the whole fullness of deity dwells bodily.

      Mormonism

      Mormons hold that Jesus is pre-existent, but His pre-mortal form was not as God. Rather, Jesus is our elder brother from the great star, Kolob. Mormons explicitly (if complicatedly) deny the full deity of Jesus Christ. (See https://biblereasons.com/christianity-vs-mormonism/)

      Delete
  9. You missed the largest and most deceptful one out there - the RCC! They used the very same terminology but VERY DIFFERENT DEFINITIONS! They worship a different Jesus and practice a different gospel! You should study this organization!

    ReplyDelete
  10. There have been many changes in the depictions of Christian art throughout the ages, seemingly as the different sects of Christianity developed, broke off, and stemmed away from each other.Open Heaven 2019 Devotional

    ReplyDelete
  11. there is another Jesus that you missed in the article,The CPM/TPM/NTC/UPC/NCTC/ that this
    orgn propagates and usurps Apostles over the real Jesus.They keep out Holy Spirit God AND in His place they keep themselves as Apostles

    ReplyDelete
  12. Is there anyone that can comment on this video about Jesus name? It is very disturbing. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PXWRhzQ19WE&feature=share&fbclid=IwAR3fgVXqbfqKmKJwg_9LhIaObCuI0lUztvGKJed76u9GiacEw7o2eiU4R0o

    ReplyDelete


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