| | | | March 5, 2015
Another Jesus
"For if he that cometh preacheth another Jesus, whom we have not preached, or if ye receive another spirit, which ye have not received, or another gospel, which ye have not accepted, ye might well bear with him." (2 Corinthians 11:4) The verses following our text contain an enlightening warning about false teachers. One should not carelessly follow a personable religious leader merely because he "preaches Jesus" or urges audiences to "receive the Spirit." "Jesus" is quite popular among worldly people today, but not the true Jesus. The popular Jesus may be the baby Jesus in the manger at Christmastime, or the buddy Jesus of Nashville "gospel" music, or the success-counseling Jesus of the positive thinkers. He may be the romantic Jesus of the Christian crooners, the rhythmic Jesus of Christian rock, or the reforming Jesus of the liberals, but none of these are the Jesus preached by the apostle Paul, and therefore not the real Jesus who saves men and women from their sins. Jesus in reality is the Lord Jesus Christ, the offended Creator of the universe (Colossians 1:16), who had to die as man on the cross to redeem us through His shed blood (Colossians 1:14, 20), and who then rose from the dead to be set "far above all principality, and power, and might, and dominion, and every name that is named" (Ephesians 1:21). Finally, it is this Jesus "who shall judge the quick and the dead at his appearing and his kingdom" (2 Timothy 4:1). The Lord Jesus, as He really is, is not the popular Jesus of T-shirts and bumper stickers, politicians and entertainers. He was "despised and rejected of men" (Isaiah 53:3) so they "crucified the Lord of glory" (1 Corinthians 2:8). He is the mighty God, the perfect man, the only Savior, the eternal King, and Lord of lords. God-called teachers will not preach an imaginary Jesus who appeals to the flesh, but rather the true Christ of creation and salvation. HMM | | |
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