I am going to tell you a little about myself and you need to guess who I am. Imagine that I am speaking with an English accent. My name is Kate and I live in London England. I have 3 kids named George, Charlotte and Louis. I am married to a man named Prince William? I am probably starting to paint a picture of the royal family in your mind. I could continue to go on with matching descriptions, but what if I then told you Prince was not a title but the actual first name of my husband and his last name is William? Then the person you were thinking about is probably starting to change. I am no longer talking about the future king but some commoner named Prince William. If I am married to a commoner then I am not royalty and will not be living in a palace.
There are religions out there that claim to be Christian but their Jesus is not the Jesus of the Bible. The Jesus of the bible is the one that saves you. Remember Jesus the Prince of Peace is our Bridegroom and if we are engaged to a different Jesus than the one the bible teaches then, you will not be moving into the heavenly palace when Jesus returns to get his bride. It is so important that the Jesus you believe in aligns with the Jesus in the bible.
2 Corinthians 11:3-5, But I
am afraid that as the serpent deceived Eve by his cunning, your thoughts will
be led astray from a sincere and pure devotion to Christ. For if someone comes
and proclaims another Jesus than the
one we proclaimed, or if you receive a different
spirit from the one you received, or if you accept a different gospel from the one you accepted, you put up with it
readily enough. Indeed, I consider that I am not in the least inferior to these
super-apostles.
God in the Flesh
So
who is Jesus? Some say Jesus is a
prophet or a good teacher. Some say he
is one of many gods that lead to heaven. I’m here to tell you, Jesus is God in the
Flesh. He is a Divine spirit that took
on fleshly form. When we agree to make
him Lord, we become betrothed to him and through that relationship we get
entrance into heaven. Like Kate
Middleton even though she is a commoner with no royal blood, she gets to live
in the palace due to her relationship with Prince William. So we need to make sure we have the right
Prince and are not believing an impersonator.
There are at least
two large religions professing to be Christian but which believe in a different
Jesus than the one the Bible describes.
Mormons will say what
sounds right at first so it does not raise any red flags. They say Jesus is the son of God and our Lord
and savior. When you dig deeper you find
out they believe Jesus was just a mortal man and not the divine creator, but
through his good works on earth, he earned himself Godship. They do not believe Christ was conceived by
the Holy Spirit within Mary as Luke 1 describes. They believe anyone through good works and
reincarnation can eventually become a god themselves. Jesus is just one of many gods who has a
planet.
Jehovah’s Witnesses
will also say Jesus is the son of God and their Lord and savior. When you dig deeper you will find out they do
not believe Jesus is divine in nature but a created being. They believe Jesus is the Arch Angel Michael.
They don’t believe in the Trinity. Jehovah’s Witnesses have other false teachings
as well but, these are the scariest.
John 8:24, for
unless you believe that I am he you will die in your sins.
Jesus was Divine when
He was on earth and He is Divine now. He
has all the attributes of Divinity. Matthew 18:20 shows He is
omnipresent. Acts 3:14, says He is
Holy. John 1:3 He is the
Creator. Matthew 28:81, He is all powerful. Luke 5:22, Jesus knows your thoughts. All these Divine attributes apply to God the
Father, God the Son and God the Holy Spirit.
The Jews wanted to
stone Jesus because he was claiming to be God.
John 10:30-33, I and the Father are one.” The Jews picked up stones
again to stone him. Jesus answered them, “I have shown you many good works from
the Father; for which of them are you going to stone me?” The Jews answered
him, “It is not for a good work that we are going to stone you but for
blasphemy, because you, being a man, make yourself God.”
Thomas Called Jesus God. John 20:28
Matthew called Jesus God. Matthew 1:23
Peter called Jesus God. 2 Peter 1:1Paul called Jesus God. Titus 2:13, Romans 9:5, Philippians 2:5-6, & Colossians 2:8-9
Colossians 2:8-9
8 See to it that no one takes you captive by philosophy and empty deceit, according to human tradition, according to the elemental spirits of the world, and not according to Christ. 9 For in him the whole fullness of deity dwells bodily.
There are many more verses in the Bible that back this up. Jesus is God. If you choose not to believe this, you do not believe the Jesus of the Bible.
Worship belongs to God only
Worship belongs to God only. Since Jesus is divine we should see worship in scripture associated with Him.
Exodus 34:14, Do not worship any other god, for the LORD, whose name is Jealous, is a jealous God.
Jesus backs this up in
Luke 4:8, You shall worship the Lord your God, and him only shall you serve.
So where does it say we can worship Jesus?
Matthew 2:2, is referring to the wise men. It says “Where is he who has been born king of the Jews? For, we saw his star when it rose and have come to worship him.”
Matthew 14:33, Then, the disciples worshiped him. "You really are the Son of God!" They exclaimed!
The Kingdom
Now, that we know who Jesus is, let’s look at his teachings.
Matthew 4:23, And he went throughout all Galilee, teaching in their synagogues and proclaiming the gospel of the kingdom and healing every disease and every affliction among the people.
What is the Gospel and what is the Kingdom that he is proclaiming?
The first definition of Kingdom in Webster’s dictionary is; the realm in which God's will is fulfilled.
Matthew 7:21, “Not everyone who says to me, ‘Lord, Lord,’ will enter the kingdom of heaven, but the one who does the will of my Father who is in heaven.
The Gospel
The gospel means good news. So what is the good news that Jesus went around preaching?
Ephesians 1:13, you were included in
Christ when you heard the word of truth, the gospel of your salvation. Having believed, you were marked in him with
a seal, the promised Holy Spirit…
The Gospel is the good news of salvation.
Jesus said in John 3:16-17, “For God so loved the world, that he gave his only Son, that whoever believes in him should not perish but have eternal life. For God did not send his Son into the world to condemn the world, but in order that the world might be saved through him.
The Gospel is the good news of salvation.
Jesus said in John 3:16-17, “For God so loved the world, that he gave his only Son, that whoever believes in him should not perish but have eternal life. For God did not send his Son into the world to condemn the world, but in order that the world might be saved through him.
This is the main message of the gospel. Because of our sin we have been separated from God and are not able to enter a sinless Holy Heaven. If we break even one commandment or law in thought, word, or deed we cannot enter. God had no desire to be separated from us, but God is a God of Justice. He had a solution on how to fulfill every commandment and law. He sent his son to live the sinless life we could not live, and through him we can enter heaven.
· Wages of sin is death. Romans 6:23
· Jesus was obedient and sinless in every area. 1 Peter 2:22
· Jesus took our wages of death in his body. 1 Peter 3:18
· Jesus died and rose on the 3rd day. 1 Corinthians 15:4
· Jesus then ascended into heaven and sits at God’s right side. Mark 16:10
Once we believe this in our hearts and proclaim that Jesus is our Lord as Romans 10:9 says, then we need to confess our sins and ask for forgiveness. Jesus will then wash away our sins and cover us in his righteousness as 1 John 1:9 says.
1 Corinthians 15:2-4, By this gospel you are saved, if you hold firmly to the word I preached to you. Otherwise, you have believed in vain. 3 For what I received I passed on to you as of first importance: that Christ died for our sins according to the Scriptures, 4 that he was buried, that he was raised on the third day according to the Scriptures.
Jesus is the only way
It is through the works and sacrifice of Jesus that we are saved. There are not many roads to heaven. There is just one. Most religions have similarities such as God, prayer, heaven and hell, etc., but where the main differences lie, are in regards to Jesus and salvation. These different doctrines are contradictory, and they can’t all be right. I am here to tell you that Jesus is the only way to salvation.
This is a great YouTube video explaining that their is only one way to God. I highly recommend watching this short video. Bill Wiese - Directions to Heaven
John 14:6 Jesus
said to him, “I am the way, and the truth, and the life. No one comes to the
Father except through me.
One of the false
doctrines within the Christian community is the belief Mary is a sinless
co-redeemer with Christ. In Luke 1:47 Mary called God her
Savior. She wouldn’t need a savior if
she was a redeemer.
Acts 4:12, And there is
salvation in no one else, for there is no other name under heaven given among
men by which we must be saved.
Purgatory is another
false doctrine. There is no scriptural support for this belief. This is a
doctrine of works. They are not trusting
in the completed works of Jesus but are relying on their works. Jesus paid your penalty on the cross but if
you want to pay for your sins it will be for eternity and not in a temporary
holding place.
Romans 4:4-5, Now to the one who works, his wages are not counted as a gift but as his due. And to the one who does not work but believes in him who justifies the ungodly, his faith is counted as righteousness.
There is faith that
leads to death and faith that leads to life. Faith in Jesus is the only way to
salvation.
Ephesians 2:8 For by
grace you have been saved through faith; and that not of yourselves, it is the
gift of God.
In Luke 23:43 Jesus told the sinful
thief on the cross next to him that today
you will be with me in paradise. He did
not say after you get enough mass cards and have paid for your little sins
because me hanging here on the cross with nails in my hands and feet is good
enough to cover that white lie you told when you were a kid.
How do we serve Jesus?
Once we declare and believe the Jesus of the bible as our Lord and Savior we need to start living for him. This does not mean selling everything you own and quitting your job, what it means is your boss changes from your earthly one such as yourself to a heavenly one.
Once we declare and believe the Jesus of the bible as our Lord and Savior we need to start living for him. This does not mean selling everything you own and quitting your job, what it means is your boss changes from your earthly one such as yourself to a heavenly one.
Colossians 3:23, Whatever you do, work heartily, as for the Lord and not for men.
Colossians 3:1-2 1 If then you have been raised with Christ, seek the things that are above, where Christ is, seated at the right hand of God. 2 Set your minds on things that are above, not on things that are on earth.
Everyone needs Jesus. It does not matter if you have no money or you’re a millionaire. It does not matter if you have a long wrap sheet or you’re a priest. We are all sinners and need salvation through Jesus. The Jesus of the Bible!
