Another Jesus?

I wish you would bear with me in a little foolishness. Do bear with me! ² For I feel a divine jealousy for you, since I betrothed you to one husband, to present you as a pure virgin to Christ. ³ 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. ⁴ 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.  (2 Cor. 11:1-4)

Another Jesus?  A different spirit, and a different gospel?  What can Paul mean.  Isn’t there just one Jesus?

When  I speak with cultists, I often use the example of a native in the jungle who worships a tree.  Is he a pagan?  Of course he is.  If he cuts it down and brings it into his home and worships it, is he still a pagan?  Of course he is.  If he carves it into an idol and worships it, is he still a pagan?  They will agree again.  Then I ask, “If he names it Jesus, is he still a pagan.”  Most will agree.  Others will see my point and get angry.  I tell them their Jesus is not the Jesus of the Bible and, therefore, is as much the true Jesus as that pagan’s idol.

It’s true.  There are other Jesuses that are not the biblical Jesus.  There is the Jesus of the Jehovah’s Witnesses, the Jesus of the Mormons, there are even other Jesuses believed by people in the church.  There’s the Jesus who would save everyone.  After all He loves us all, doesn’t he?  There’s the Jesus who is expected to wait on us for our every request, the “Name it and Claim it” folks.  There’s the Jesus that that was just a good teacher or He didn’t really exist and is only a legend. 

There is only one Jesus, as I’m sure you know.  He is God the Son, second Person of the Trinity.   He came to earth as a man but still God.  He lived here for at least 33 years as a perfect sinless man.  He died to pay the price for our sins and rose bodily on the third day for our justification (Rom. 4:25).  The biblical Jesus will be coming back with ten thousands of His saint to execute judgment on all (Jude 14,15).

As Christians, our faith is founded on that Jesus and the miracle He performed by raising Himself from the dead (John 2:18-22).

It’s not that we can lose our salvation if we begin to believe in another Jesus.  I would argue the Holy Spirit within us will keep us from that although I’ve seen Bible-believing Christians do some pretty strange things.  Our salvation, if it is according to the faith once and for all delivered to the saints (Jude 3), is secure.  It is the effectiveness and possibility of leading someone else into error that should concern the believer.

I had a father who never came to a single ball game or band concert I was playing in.  He seemed always to be looking for me to step out of line so he could punish me.  My life back then was characterized by fear. 

Because of that, my view of God was much the same.  I thought He was just waiting for me to make a mistake and wasn’t really interested in me.  I had this view of Jesus for years after I met Him and lived in fear of displeasing Him.  Today, I have a much better idea of just Who He is, and my life is now characterized by trust.

The true Jesus was cheering at my ball games and applauding loudest at my concerts.  Even though I hadn’t met Him yet, He was there.

Why is this important?

Having the wrong Jesus stumbles us.  We can get stuck in a rut thinking He’s just waiting for us to step out of line, or we think He’s going to save everyone anyway, why tell people about Him.  We become sterile Christians, and a sterile Christian is just what the enemy wants.  We must know Him intimately and as brothers do His will gladly.

¹⁰ that I may know him and the power of his resurrection, and may share his sufferings, becoming like him in his death, (Phil. 3:10)

When we know the true Christ well, counterfeits become obvious.