The Corinthians were warned-  “I promised you to one husband, to Christ, so that I might present you as a pure virgin to him.  But I am afraid that just as Eve was deceived by the serpent’s cunning, your minds may somehow be led astray from your sincere and pure devotion to Christ.  For if some one comes to you and preaches a Jesus other than the Jesus we preached, or if you receive a different spirit from the one you received, or a different gospel from the one you accepted, you put up with it easily enough.” (2 Cor. 11:2-4)

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Satan is a deceiver.  He will not come to us, and say, “I am Satan, follow me”.  He will come to us and say -“I am a ‘slightly different’ Jesus”.  As it is written, “for Satan himself masquerades as an angel of light.” (2 Cor. 11:14).

 

 It is important to realise that the people who were leading the Corinthians astray, were preaching the name of ‘Jesus’.  But it was “a Jesus other than the Jesus we preached”. It was a ‘slightly different’ Jesus.

 

The mere fact that a pastor says ‘glory to God’ or ‘in Jesus name’ every now and then, does not guarantee that he is telling the truth, because what the pastor is saying, can often be in the name of a different Jesus.

 

As it says, “Let God be true and every man a liar”. (Rom.3:4)

 

The pastor says in his letter, ‘To think that one interpretation of God and His Word could paint the picture of who He is, is just crazy.’

Another local pastor told his congregation, ’We all have a different view of God, according to our upbringing’. 

 

So; when the pastor says, ‘I've learned to let God be God and over a long time of loving, encouraging and building relationships with people I see God changing those things to be more like Himself.’ - Which God is he talking about?  Who are these people becoming ‘more like’?

 

Scripture does not tell us that there are many ways to ‘interpret’ God.  Scripture says “for there are some who are ignorant of God - I say this to your shame.”  (1 Cor. 15:34). 

 

When the Lord Jesus asked his disciples who the people thought he was, his apostles gave him several answers.  However, when Jesus asked his apostles who they thought he was, he only received one response:  “When Jesus came to the region of Caesarea Philippi, he asked his disciples, ‘Who do people say the Son of Man is’?  They replied, ‘Some say John the Baptist, others say Elijah and still others, Jeremiah or one of the prophets.’  ‘But what about you?’ he asked, ‘Who do you say I am?’  Simon Peter answered ‘You are the Christ, the Son of the living God.’  Jesus replied, ‘Blessed are you Simon, son of Jonah, for this was not revealed to you by man, but by my Father in heaven.’” (Matt. 16:13-17).  Jesus did not encourage or even acknowledge the other ‘points of view’ presented to him.  He simply acknowledged the truth of Peter’s declaration, by saying that it had come from God.  The worldly have different views about who God is, but for us there is only one!  “We know that an idol is nothing at all in the world and that there is no God but one.  For even if there are so-called gods, whether in heaven or on earth (as indeed there are many ‘gods’ and many ‘lords’), yet for us there is but one God, the Father, from whom all things came and for whom we live; and there is but one Lord, Jesus Christ, through whom all things came and through whom we live.” (1 Cor. 8:4-6).

Just as it is written, “For there is one God and one mediator between God and men, the man Christ Jesus, who gave himself as a ransom for all men.” (1 Tim. 2:5-6). It is also written, “Jesus Christ is the same yesterday and today and forever.” (Heb. 13:8).

 

There are many problems with the pastor’s declarations.  Generally speaking; it is easy to be seen as ‘godly’ within any congregation.  All one needs to do is parrot the doctrines of that denomination, and the pastor will consider that we are becoming godlier.  Pastors are just men.  Men judge by outwardly appearances, while God judges the motives of our hearts.  “He will bring to light what is hidden in darkness and will expose the motives of a man’s heart.  At that time each will receive his praise from God.” (1 Cor. 4:5) 

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Pastors often suffer from the same syndrome as police officers.  What I mean is this; we have all been on the road at times when the traffic in front of us suddenly slows down for no apparent reason.  Then, when we get a little further along, we notice a highway patrol car at the side of the road, checking the speed of motorists.  Once the line of traffic has cleared the view of the patrol car, people generally speed up again. 

Many churchgoers are exactly like this with their pastors.  Whenever the pastor is around, they act according to the pastor’s desires.  As soon as the pastor is gone, they revert to their normal behavior.  So the pastor only sees what the churchgoer wants him to see.  Are these church-goers really becoming ‘more like Himself’?

 

Too many people believe in ‘an idea of God’.  As a result, when life’s circumstances shatter their ‘idea of God’, they give up on the true living God, without ever having known him.   Many preachers are now encouraging people to deceive themselves this way. 

 

It is ridiculous to claim that we can all have a different idea of who God is, and then claim that we are becoming more like him!  Which version of God are they becoming more like?

 

For example, I know a preacher who holds a lofty position within his organisation (church).  He claims to believe Jesus, but he denies that Jesus performed any miracles, because miracles don’t fit in with his intellectual ‘perspective’.  So he preaches a ‘slightly different’ Jesus - a Jesus who did not perform any miracles.  Is this ‘great’, as the pastor asserts in his letter?  Is a ‘Jesus’, who did not perform any miracles, still the Son of God?  What does the word of God say about the miracles? 

According to the Bible, the miracles that the Lord Jesus performed are a crucial part of his character and his testimony.  In fact, we are told in scripture, that his glory was revealed through his miracles!  “This, the first of his miraculous signs was performed at Cana in Galilee.  He thus revealed his glory, and his disciples put their faith in him.” (John 2:11)

Then, in John chapter 8, we read;  “Jesus answered, ‘I did tell you but you did not believe.  The miracles I do in my Father’s name speak for me, but you do not believe because you are my not my sheep’”.  Verses 31-32 say; “Again the Jews picked up stones to stone him, but Jesus said to them, ‘I have shown you many great miracles from the Father.  For which of these do you stone me’?”  Again in verses 37-38, Jesus said, “Do not believe me unless I do what my Father does.  But if I do it, even though you do not believe me, believe the miracles, that you may know and understand that the Father is in me, and I in the Father” (John 10:25-38)

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Even unbelievers were convinced of the miracles that Jesus performed. After Jesus raised Lazarus from the dead, the chief priests and Pharisees called a meeting to discuss how they might get rid of him.  “Therefore many of the Jews who had come to visit Mary, and had seen what Jesus did, put their faith in him.  But some of them went to the Pharisees and told them what Jesus had done.  Then the chief priests and the Pharisees called a meeting of the Sanhedrin.  ‘What are we accomplishing?’ they asked.  ‘Here is this man performing many miraculous signs.  If we let him go on like this, everyone will believe in him..’” (John 11:45-48)

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The first time that the new covenant was preached by the apostles, Peter says, “Men of Israel, listen to this; Jesus of Nazareth was a man accredited by God to you by miracles, wonders and signs, which God did among you through him, as you yourselves know.” (Acts 2:22)

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Jesus and the apostles claim that the Lord Jesus performed many great miracles, and all the people accepted this as truth, because so many had seen the miracles themselves.  This is why Peter says, “As you yourselves know”.  The apostles actually knew the Lord Jesus, and they tell us that he performed many miracles.  But this man is preaching that none of these miracles took place, and he is still claiming that he is a minister of the gospel. 

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This preacher and others like him are quick to quote Phil. 1:18, which says, “But what does it matter?  The important thing is that in every way, whether from false motives or true, Christ is preached.  And because of this I rejoice.” They think that this scripture gives them license to preach anything they desire. However, it says, “The important thing is that Christ is preached”!  In truth, this man is not preaching Christ.  In fact, this man is calling Jesus Christ a liar.  He is calling the apostles liars, and he is preaching a ‘Jesus’ that he has made up in his own mind!  He is preaching a false ‘Jesus’ who did not perform any miracles - a 'Jesus' that will not save anyone!   Such deceptions are often referred to as ‘schools of thought’, which makes them sound acceptable.  But they are not acceptable in any way.  Wasn’t the Lord’s resurrection from the dead a miracle?  Can anyone be saved without it?  For we are told; “And if Christ has not been raised, our preaching is useless and so is your faith.  More than that, we are found to be false witnesses about God, for we have testified about God that he raised Christ from the dead.” (1 Cor. 15:14-15). Scripture is all God breathed, it is all-important!  

We cannot simply make up a ‘Jesus’ to suit our own ideas, and then expect a ‘made up Jesus ‘ to save us.  It is written, “We must pay more careful attention, therefore to what we have heard, so that we do not drift away.  For if the message spoken by angels was binding, and every violation and disobedience received its just punishment, how shall we escape if we ignore such a great salvation?  This salvation, which was first announced by the Lord, was confirmed to us by those who heard him.  God testified to it by signs, wonders and various miracles, and gifts of the Holy Spirit distributed according to his will.” (Heb. 2:1-4)  According to this passage, the miracles performed by Christ and his apostles are God’s testimony to the validity of their message!

 

Sadly, we seem to be encouraging the worldly to hold on to their false ideas about Jesus, by becoming involved in worldly events such as Carols by Candlelight.  Many churchgoers seem to think that it is a great event – an outreach to the community.  To my shame, I have been involved in these events in the past.  But events such as these should be treated with great caution by those who believe.

 

The worldly willingly accept this ‘celebration’ because it requires nothing from them.  They are happy to believe a story about a baby Jesus who is forever lying in a manger surrounded by cute furry animals.  This story is not a threat to their lifestyle any more than Santa Claus is.  A baby Jesus does not demand repentance from them.  A 'baby Jesus' does not require them to obey his commands.  A ‘baby Jesus’ demands nothing!  According to the songs we sing at these events, the Lord requires nothing from anyone.  The popular song says ‘A long time ago in Bethlehem, so the Holy Bible say.  Mary’s boy child Jesus Christ was born on Christmas day.’  The song then goes on to tell them - ‘Hark now hear the angels sing, listen to what they say, that man will live forevermore, because of Christmas day’.  Clearly, the Bible says no such thing!  Yet we help them to propagate this lie year after year.  If we do not correct these falsehoods - if we let them walk away thinking that they have nothing to fear from God - WE DECEIVE THEM!  

 

Since we have already read the warning: “But even if we or an angel from heaven should preach a gospel other than the one we preached to you, let him be eternally condemned.” (Gal. 1:8)  It would be very unwise if we did not ask ourselves the questions:  Are we preaching a different gospel?  Did the apostles ever preach salvation through faith in a baby Jesus?   Perhaps the best approach to these kinds of situations is simply to "do what it says", which is, "come out from them and be separate." (2 Cor. 6:17)

 

The Lord is not slow in keeping his promise, as some understand slowness.  He is patient with you, not wanting anyone to perish, but everyone to come to repentance.  But the day of the Lord will come like a thief.  The heavens will disappear with a roar, the elements will be destroyed by fire, and the earth and everything in it will be laid bare.  Since everything will be destroyed this way, what kind of people ought you to be?  You ought to live holy and godly lives as you look forward to the day of our God and speed it’s coming.” (2 Peter 3:9-12)

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The true Lord is calling his people to repent.  This is written to us!  It does not say that no one will perish; it says that God doesn’t want us to perish.  That is why he is patient with us, so that we can repent.   Neither does it say that God never angers; it simply says he is slow to anger. 

“The Lord is slow to anger and great in power; the Lord will not leave the guilty unpunished.  His way is in the whirlwind and the storm”. (Nahum 1:3)

It is also written, “worship God acceptably with reverence and awe, for our God is a consuming fire.” (Heb. 12:29)

“He is patient with you”, but it is not wise to test his patience.

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“I tell you friends, do not be afraid of those who can only kill your body and after that do no more.  But I will show you whom you should fear.  Fear him who, after killing the body, has the power to throw you into hell.  Yes, I tell you, fear him.”  (Luke 12:4-5)   A 'slightly different' Jesus will noanyone!