How can we discern if someone preaches "a different Jesus" today? The Setting: Paul’s Urgent Warning “For if someone comes and proclaims a Jesus other than the One we proclaimed, or if you receive a different spirit than the one you received, or a different gospel than the one you accepted, you put up with it way too easily.” (2 Corinthians 11:4) What Makes the Real Jesus Non-Negotiable? • Fully God – “In the beginning was the Word… and the Word was God.” (John 1:1) • Fully Man – “The Word became flesh and made His dwelling among us.” (John 1:14) • Sinless Substitute – “Christ died for our sins according to the Scriptures.” (1 Corinthians 15:3) • Bodily Risen – “He was raised on the third day.” (1 Corinthians 15:4) • Exclusive Savior – “Salvation exists in no one else.” (Acts 4:12) • Returning King – “This same Jesus… will come back.” (Acts 1:11) Any teaching that alters, adds to, or subtracts from these truths presents “a different Jesus.” Four Scriptural Filters for Discernment 1. The Christology Test (Who is Jesus?) – Colossians 2:9: “In Christ all the fullness of Deity dwells bodily.” – 1 John 4:2-3: True teachers confess Jesus as God come in the flesh. 2. The Gospel Test (What saves?) – Galatians 1:8: Even an angel must match the apostolic gospel or be accursed. – Ephesians 2:8-9: Salvation is by grace through faith, not works. 3. The Spirit Test (What power is operating?) – 1 John 4:1: “Do not believe every spirit, but test the spirits.” – A message driven by the Holy Spirit magnifies Christ and produces holiness. 4. The Fruit Test (What life follows?) – Matthew 7:15-20: Fruit reveals the tree. – Titus 2:11-14: Sound doctrine trains believers to renounce ungodliness. Common “Different Jesus” Signals Today • Diminishing His deity or humanity • Presenting Him merely as teacher, life-coach, or political revolutionary • Replacing the cross with moralism, prosperity, or self-empowerment • Denying bodily resurrection or future judgment • Treating other paths as equally saving • Emphasizing secret revelations that bypass Scripture Practical Steps to Stay Grounded • Saturate your mind with Scripture daily (Psalm 119:11) • Compare every sermon, song, and study to the whole counsel of God (Acts 17:11) • Keep gospel summaries (1 Corinthians 15:3-4; Romans 1:16-17) at your fingertips • Watch long-term character: humility, obedience, love for the church (1 Timothy 3) • Stay connected to a Bible-honoring fellowship for mutual accountability (Hebrews 10:24-25) Encouragement for the Faithful 2 Peter 2:1 forewarns us that false teachers will arise; Jude 3-4 tells us to contend for the faith. Yet the Spirit, the Word, and the church together equip us to recognize counterfeit christs and to hold fast to the true Lord Jesus, “the same yesterday and today and forever” (Hebrews 13:8). |
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