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Matthew 24:4,5,23-25;   Jesus told them, “Don’t let anyone mislead you, for many will come in my name, claiming, ‘I am the Messiah.’ They will deceive many…“Then if anyone tells you, ‘Look, here is the Messiah,’ or ‘There he is,’ don’t believe it. For false messiahs and false prophets will rise up and perform great signs and wonders so as to deceive, if possible, even God’s chosen ones. See, I have warned you about this ahead of time.” – Jesus

Why is it important which Jesus you believe in?

Jesus clearly warns the people of his day and all of us, not to believe anyone who claims to be him. Why? Because if we get his identity wrong, we will be lost for eternity. Only Jesus saves, only one Jesus gave his life for us and has the authority to pardon our sins.

Think of it this way, you are on trial for murder and you are looking at the death penalty. You have put your life and trust in your lawyer who told you he was the best in the business. Only, when you get to court, the judge informs you that your lawyer is a fraud, he has no authority in his court and removes him from the courtroom. Now this is a primitive analogy but it does paint a picture.

 

FALSE GOSPEL

Galatians 1:6-9; “I am astonished that you are so quickly deserting the one who called you to live in the grace of Christ and are turning to a different gospel— which is really no gospel at all. Evidently some people are throwing you into confusion and are trying to pervert the gospel of Christ. But even if we or an angel from heaven should preach a gospel other than the one we preached to you, let them be under God’s curse! As we have already said, so now I say again: If anybody is preaching to you a gospel other than what you accepted, let them be under God’s curse!”

2 Corinthians 11:14; “for Satan himself masquerades as an angel of light. It is not surprising, then, if his servants also masquerade as servants of righteousness.”

Scripture is full of warnings about false Christ’s and false prophets because it is vital that those who seek a relationship with God and eternal life, find the one who is able to give it to them. God gave his Son for our sins. Jesus suffered greatly for our freedom from sin and death so no one else can give it to us.

1 Corinthians 6:20; “for God bought you with a high price.”

There are two major religions today who say that Jesus is a created being, that he is an angel, even Michael the Arch angel. Another says that the Jesus they follow, is the spirit brother of Satan. Both of these religions began with a single individual who claims to have been visited by an angel of light. The angel told them that God’s scripture has been corrupted and needs to be corrected.

SCRIPTURE CORRUPTED?

Is the God who created the universe able to keep his word safe from corruption? The Holy Bible has remained unchanged in thousands of years. Manuscript evidence dating back to before Christ shows how accurate the scriptures are today. Aside from some spelling mistakes and minor grammatical differences, the messages of the bible are intact.

In the 1800s, two major religions emerged challenging the authenticity of the bible. The founding “prophets” of these religion each claimed they were told by angels of light that the historic Holy Bible had become corrupt. These men both claim they were given the true corrected gospel.

I have a question for these new corrected religions, at what point did the New Testament become corrupt? Manuscript evidence dates back to very close to the time the originals were written. A biblical Scholar Gary Habermas says, “… the New Testament has far more manuscript evidence from a far earlier period than other classical works. There are just under 6000 NT manuscripts, with copies of most of the NT dating from just 100 years or so after its writing.” This does’t include all the manuscripts translated into many other languages.

Isaiah 40:8; “The grass withers and the flowers fall, but the word of our God endures forever.”

The foundation of the historic Christian church is built on the words of Jesus Christ and the witness of his Apostles who were eye witnesses to the events they wrote about.

2 Peter 1:16; “For we did not follow cleverly devised stories when we told you about the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ in power, but we were eyewitnesses of his majesty.”

Acts 2:32; “God has raised this Jesus to life, and we are all witnesses of it.”

The historic Christian believer can be confident in the:

  • manuscript evidence dating back thousands of years,
  • extra biblical corroboration of the bible,
  • archaeological evidence verifying people places and events,
  • authors of the New Testament and twelve Apostles who were there and experienced what they were writing about,
  • the testimonies and prophecies in the Old Testament.

The followers of these two other religions are hanging their eternity on one person’s testimony. Both of these men lived less than two hundred years ago. Millions are trusting in these men being correct in writing about events they had no direct knowledge of being the events occurred thousands of years before they were born.

What does scripture say about believing the testimony of one person?

2 Corinthians 13:1;  “Every matter must be established by the testimony of two or three witnesses.”

1 Timothy 5:19; “Do not entertain an accusation against an elder unless it is brought by two or three witnesses.”

Deuteronomy 19:15; “One witness is not enough to convict anyone accused of any crime or offense they may have committed. A matter must be established by the testimony of two or three witnesses.”

God created the heavens and the earth and everything in them. He did not go on vacation only to come back and realize that His means of communicating his love, charactor and salvation, has been leading his world astray. He has always been here caring for his creation and his word.

Psalm 119:105; “Your word is a lamp to guide my feet and a light for my path.”

Matthew 4:4;  Jesus answered, “It is written: ‘Man shall not live on bread alone, but on every word that comes from the mouth of God.”

2 Timothy 3:16-17; ” All Scripture is God-breathed and is useful for teaching, rebuking, correcting and training in righteousness, so that the servant of God may be thoroughly equipped for every good work.” 

Hebrews 4:12; “For the word of God is alive and active. Sharper than any double-edged sword, it penetrates even to dividing soul and spirit, joints and marrow; it judges the thoughts and attitudes of the heart.”

Without the reliable word of God, we are blind and lost.

John 8:31,32;  Jesus said, “If you hold to my teaching, you are really my disciples. Then you will know the truth, and the truth will set you free.”

Deuteronomy 8:3; “…to teach you that man does not live on bread alone but on every word that comes from the mouth of the Lord.”

Romans 10:17; “Consequently, faith comes from hearing the message, and the message is heard through the word about Christ.”

2 Peter 1:19-21; “We also have the prophetic message as something completely reliable, and you will do well to pay attention to it, as to a light shining in a dark place, until the day dawns and the morning star rises in your hearts. Above all, you must understand that no prophecy of Scripture came about by the prophet’s own interpretation of things. For prophecy never had its origin in the human will, but prophets, though human, spoke from God as they were carried along by the Holy Spirit.”

FALSE CHRIST

At the top of the page we are warned by Jesus to beware of anyone claiming to be him. It is clear in scripture that there is only one name under heaven by which we must be saved.

Acts 4:12; “Salvation is found in no one else, for there is no other name under heaven given to mankind by which we must be saved.”

The implication here is not the name, but the person of Jesus Christ, the one who God has placed His authority.

Matthew 28:18-20; “Then Jesus came to them and said, “All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me. Therefore go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, and teaching them to obey everything I have commanded you. And surely I am with you always, to the very end of the age.”

Not only were there false Christs in olden times, they are alive and well today. There is a man in south Florida today who claims he is Jesus Christ. His name is José Luis de Jesús Miranda and he has followers in churches all over the world. He has collected millions of dollars from his faithful believers and his deception is growing. José is not an isolated phenomenon. Since the founding of the Mormon church in the early 1800s, there has been over twenty five such people claiming to be Jesus Christ and counting, according to Wikipedia.

ONLY ONE JESUS

There is only one Jesus who saves according to the authoritative word of God. Jesus is not Satan’s spirit brother, he is not an angel or any other created being. In a follow up blog “WHO IS JESUS“, you will see who Jesus is from scripture. Is he worshiped, was he created, did he claim to be God, or was he just a good teacher and prophet?

John 1:17,18; “For the law was given through Moses; grace and truth came through Jesus Christ. No one has ever seen God, but the one and only Son, who is himself God and is in closest relationship with the Father, has made him known.” 

1 Timothy 2:5; “For there is one God and one mediator between God and mankind, the man Christ Jesus,”

1 Corinthians 8:6; “But we know that there is only one God, the Father, who created everything, and we live for him. And there is only one Lord, Jesus Christ, through whom God made everything and through whom we have been given life.”

Philippians 2:9-11; “Therefore, God elevated him to the place of highest honor

and gave him the name above all other names, that at the name of Jesus every knee should bow, in heaven and on earth and under the earth, and every tongue confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father.”

Only one Jesus Christ has authority. Would you expect to get away with paying your rent or buying a car with counterfeit money? No, well, you might try, but because that money lacks the authoritive backing of the government is just paper, even though it looks legitimate. Many people may believe it is real, but to a person trained to spot the real thing, it is useless. God the Father, knows his Son and requires anyone who wants to enter his kingdom to know him too. That knowledge and training comes from the authoritive word of God. As you can see, if God is unable to keep his word true, everyone is lost and his plan of salvation is out the window.

THE DIFFERENCE AUTHORITY MAKES

These men had the right name but apparently lacked the authority to use it. Things are no better when you have the right name but the wrong person. There are 20 people in the United States of America named Donald Trump, but only one has the authority to Pardon you. It is important you are trusting in the one Jesus who is Lord of all, who has the authority to protect and save you.

Acts 19:13-17; “A group of Jews was traveling from town to town casting out evil spirits. They tried to use the name of the Lord Jesus in their incantation, saying, “I command you in the name of Jesus, whom Paul preaches, to come out!” Seven sons of Sceva, a leading priest, were doing this. But one time when they tried it, the evil spirit replied, “I know Jesus, and I know Paul, but who are you?” Then the man with the evil spirit leaped on them, overpowered them, and attacked them with such violence that they fled from the house, naked and battered. The story of what happened spread quickly all through Ephesus, to Jews and Greeks alike. A solemn fear descended on the city, and the name of the Lord Jesus was greatly honored.”

Acts 4:12; “There is salvation in no one else! God has given no other name under heaven by which we must be saved.”

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Thank you,

Robert J.