Another Jesus

"Would to God ye could bear with me a little in my folly: and indeed bear with me. For I am jealous over you with godly jealousy: for I have espoused you to one husband, that I may present you as a chaste virgin to Christ. But I fear, lest by any means, as the serpent beguiled Eve through his subtilty, so your minds should be corrupted from the simplicity that is in Christ. 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." (II Corinthians 11:1-4)

Paul instructed the church at Corinth regarding the dangers of being beguiled through the preaching of "another Jesus" and as a result being removed from the "simplicity that is in Christ." In my observation, the most common attribute of "another Jesus" (II Corinthians 11:14) is that he died for all yet untold millions end up in hell none-the-less. This notion is utterly rejected by the apostle Paul's glorious statement, "Who is he that condemneth? It is Christ that died, yea rather, that is risen again, who is even at the right hand of God, who also maketh intercession for us." (Romans 8:34) Indeed, it is God that justifieth! (Romans 8:33)

There is arguably no more blasphemous assertion than to suggest that the blood of Christ did not accomplish the salvation of some for whom it was shed. I will go so far as to say that the blood of Christ is so unassailably effectual in the salvation of God's chosen people, that it saves even a great many who persist in believing this blasphemy. There is a great difference between being delivered unto glory by God, and having a right-understanding of the mechanics thereof. I submit that if the former required the latter, very, very few would ever be saved. But praise God, salvation is not resting on the foundation of man's understanding, but on the absolute efficacy of the blood of Jesus Christ in fulfilling the covenant (II Samuel 23:5).

It is impossible to "be ready always to give an answer to every man that asketh you a reason of the hope that is in you with meekness and fear:" (I Peter 3:15) apart from having a clear understanding of what the Lord Jesus Christ ACCOMPLISHED as an objective, historical fact (Hebrews 10:14). Understanding the Lord's accomplishment provides a sober perspective on modern Christendom, in that it reveals the rarity of accurately proclaiming Christ and the pervasiveness of "another Jesus" in our time.

The following questions prove helpful in identifying "another Jesus" in the Christian marketplace:

• Did Jesus obtain redemption for his people as a past accomplishment or is he conditionally redeeming people today? (Hebrews 9:12)

• Did Jesus perfect his people forever by his blood or is he conditionally perfecting them based on their response? (Hebrews 10:14)

• Did Jesus make his people righteous by his offering or is he conditionally offering to make them righteous provided they believe? (Romans 5:19)

• Is Jesus made wisdom, and righteousness, and sanctification, and redemption unto his people by what he did or is he waiting for you to do something to make it so? (I Corinthians 1:30)

• Is what Jesus Christ accomplished for his people a historical fact that is as objectively true the minute prior to your believing it as it is a minute after you believe it?

I referred to an understanding of the Lord's ACCOMPLISHMENT as "providing a sober perspective" for good reason. When held alongside the "Jesus" commonly preached in our day, proper answers to the these questions reveal that the vast majority of evangelicals are preaching "another Jesus" and as such are removed from "the simplicity that is in Christ" just as the apostle Paul warned us. Does this mean that those who believe these false doctrines are hell-bound, unregenerates? No, but it does mean that they stand in great need of correction if they are to avoid the confusion and spiritual instability that attends a gross misunderstanding of gospel truth. It is for this reason that James taught us, "Brethren, if any of you do err from the truth, and one convert him; Let him know, that he which converteth the sinner from the error of his way shall save a soul from death, and shall hide a multitude of sins." (James 5:19-20) 

It is in the spirit of biblical correction that I offer this article for your consideration. We should all take a moment to ask:  Am I preaching Jesus or am I preaching another Jesus? I wonder what might come to pass by combining the zeal and sheer number found in the latter with the relentless biblical truth of the former. Apart from a correcting conversion of God's people, we may never find out.