By: Lisa Spray
In the name of God, Most Gracious, Most Merciful
Peace be with you,
Each year, millions of people celebrate Christmas. Would Jesus want people to be devoted to him? Or would he want people to devote their worship to God alone? Let us examine his message to find out.
Jesus proclaimed aloud: “Whoever puts faith in me believes not so much in me as in him who sent me; ….. For I have not spoken on my own; no, the Father who sent me has commanded me what to say and how to speak. Since I know that his commandment means eternal life, whatever I say is spoken just as he instructed me.” [ John 12:44-50 ]
“Whoever welcomes me welcomes, not me, but him who sent me.” [ Matthew 10:40, Mark 9:37, Luke 9:48, & John 13:20 ]
Jesus looked up to heaven and said, “…Eternal life is this: to know you, the only true God, and him whom you have sent, Jesus Christ.” [John 17:1-3 ]
As he was setting out on a journey a man came running up, knelt down before him and asked, “Good Teacher, what must I do to share in everlasting life?” Jesus answered, “Why do you call me good? No one is good but God alone.” [ Mark 10:17-18 ]
“None of those who call me ‘Lord’ will enter the kingdom of God, but only the one who does the will of my Father in heaven.” [Matthew 7:21 ]
On The Day of Resurrection
[Quran 5:116] GOD will say, “O Jesus, son of Mary,* did you say to the people, ‘Make me and my mother idols beside GOD’?” He will say, “Be You glorified. I could not utter what was not right. Had I said it, you already would have known it. You know my thoughts, and I do not know your thoughts. You know all the secrets.
[5:117] “I told them only what you commanded me to say, that: ‘You shall worship GOD, my Lord, and your Lord.’ I was a witness among them for as long as I lived with them. When you terminated my life on earth, you became the Watcher of them. You witness all things.
[5:118] “If you punish them, they are Your constituents. If you forgive them, you are the Almighty, Most Wise.”
*5:116 It is noteworthy that the Quran consistently calls Jesus “son of Mary” and the Bible calls him “son of man.” God knew that some will blaspheme and call him “son of God”!
Would not the best way to honor Jesus be to worship as he did, to worship and glorify God alone?
(from Quran The Final Testament, by Rashad Khalifa, PhD.)
Jesus
The Quran informs us that Jesus was a human messenger of God whose sole mission was to deliver God’s message; he never possessed any power and is now dead ( 4: 171, 5: 75,117). Those who consider Jesus to be God, or Son of God, or part of a trinity are “pagans” ( 5: 17, 72,73). Outstanding Christian scholars have reached these same conclusions (THE MYTH OF GOD INCARNATE, John Hick, ed., The Westminster Press, Philadelphia, 1977 & THE MYTH MAKER, Hyam Maccoby, Harper & Row 1986). Christianity is the product of Nicene (AD 325).
The Bible’s Jesus
Jesus proclaimed aloud: “Whoever puts faith in me believes not so much in me as in him who sent me; For I have not spoken on my own; no, the Father who sent me has commanded me what to say and how to speak. Since I know that his commandment means eternal life, whatever I say is spoken just as he instructed me.” [John 12:44-50]
“I cannot do anything of myself. I judge as I hear, and my judgment is honest because I am not seeking my own will but the will of him who sent me.” [John 5:30]
Jesus said: “my doctrine is not my own; it comes from him who sent me.” [John 7:16 ]
“Men of Israel, listen to me! Jesus the Nazorean was a man whom God sent to you with miracles, wonders, and signs as his credentials. These God worked through him in your midst, as you well know.” [Acts 2:22 ]
“…The man who hears my word and has faith in him who sent me possesses eternal life.” [John 5:24 ]
“Whoever welcomes me welcomes, not me, but him who sent me.” [ Mattew 10:40, Mark 9:37, Luke 9:48, & John 13:20 ]
“…I have not come of myself. I was sent by one who has the right to send, and him you do not know. I know him because it is from him I come; he sent me.” [John 7:28-29]
Jesus looked up to heaven and said, “…Eternal life is this: to know you, the only true God, and him whom you have sent, Jesus Christ.” [John 17:1-3 ]
All who are led by the Spirit of God are sons of God. [Romans 8:14]
Jesus looked upward and said, “Father, I thank you for having heard me. I know that you always hear me but I have said this for the sake of the crowd, that they may believe that you sent me.” [John 11:41-42 ]
As he was setting out on a journey a man came running up, knelt down before him and asked, “Good Teacher, what must I do to share in everlasting life?” Jesus answered, “Why do you call me good? No one is good but God alone.” [Mark 10:17-18]
“None of those who call me `Lord’ will enter the kingdom of God, but only the one who does the will of my Father in heaven.” [Matthew 7:21 ]
“…Go to my brothers and tell them, `I am ascending to my Father and your Father, to my God and you’re God.’ ” [John 20:17]
“God is my Lord and your Lord; you shall worship Him alone. This is the right path.” [Quran 3:51, 19:36, & 43:64 ]
Trinity, the doctrine of God taught by Christians that asserts that God is one in essence but three in “person,” Father, Son, and Holy Spirit. Neither the word Trinity, nor the explicit doctrine as such, appears in the New Testament, nor did Jesus and his followers intend to contradict the Shema in the Old Testament: “Hear O Israel: The Lord our God is one” (Deut. 6:4). [Encyclopaedia Britannica, 1975 ]
| Jesus’ soul was raised, i.e., he was put to death prior to the arrest and crucifixion of his body. Thus, his persecutors arrested, tortured, and crucified an empty body – Jesus was already gone to the world of souls ( 3: 55,4:157). |
Jesus’ Death
This has been the single most controversial subject in the world. The Quran’s miraculous mathematical code has now provided the final answer to this topic:
They plotted and schemed,
but so did God,
and God is the best schemer.
Thus, God said, “O Jesus,
I am putting you to death,
and raising you to me;
I will save you from the disbelievers.” [ Quran 3:54-55 ]
They claimed that they killed the Messiah,
Jesus, the son of Mary, the messenger of God!
In fact, they never killed him;
they never crucified him;
they were led to believe that they did. [Quran 4:157 ]
Mercifully, God has given our generation a living example of a person whose soul departed this world, but his body continued to live for 19 months. On November 25, 1984, doctors at the Humana Hospital of Louisville, Kentucky removed the diseased heart of Mr. William Schroeder and replaced it with a plastic and metal pump (THE NEW YORK TIMES, Monday, November 26, 1984).
On the 19th day after this historic operation – Thursday, December 13, 1984 – Mr. Schroeder, the soul, the real person, departed this world. Mr. Schroeder died. But his body continued to function with the artificial heart implanted in his body. The world was told that he “probably suffered a stroke” (THE NEW YORK TIMES, December 14, 1984). Significantly, only one day before Mr. Schroeder’s departure, he talked with President Ronald Reagan on national TV, and demanded that the Social Security Administration send his overdue check. He was perfectly alert. From the moment “he suffered a stroke,” he did not recognize the day or time, nor his family members. In fact, Mr. Scroeder was no longer in this world.
The Gospels state clearly that the arrested body of Jesus was oblivious to the events surrounding it:
The chief priests, meanwhile,
brought many accusations against Jesus.
Pilate interrogated him again:
“Surely you have some answer?
See how many accusations
they are leveling at you.”
But greatly to Pilate’s surprise,
Jesus made no further response. [Mark 15:3-5 ]
Herod was extremely pleased to see Jesus. From the reports about him he had wanted for a long time to see him, and he was hoping to see him work some miracles. He questioned Jesus at considerable length, but Jesus made no response. The chief priests and scribes were at hand to accuse him vehemently. Herod and his guards then treated him with contempt and insult. [Luke 23:8-11 ]
The Savior said to me, “He whom you saw on the tree, glad and laughing, this is the living Jesus. But this one into whose hands and feet they drive the nails is the fleshly part. [Apocalypse of Peter, VII, 3, 81] from THE NAG HAMMADI LIBRARY (Harper & Row, 1977, James M. Robinson, ed, Page 339)
The facts that (1) Mr. Schroeder’s soul departed on the 19th day after the operation, and (2) his body survived for 19 months are uncanny reminders that God wanted the world to know the parallel between Schroeder’s situation, and the proven account of Jesus’ departure prior to the arrest, torture, and crucifixion of his soulless body.
Chapter One FAITH IN CRISIS the Need For Re-examination We live in a time of great change. Our individual lives are often in great flux. Many people find themselves changing jobs, moving from one place to another, often from one profession to another. Even the nuclear family is unstable. The divorce rate is astounding—in 1990, almost half that of new marriages. Family ties no longer have the strength of former times. This great instability is reflected in our society. The old patterns are breaking down, and great political and social change is taking place.
On the one hand, communism is rapidly dissolving in the face of growing economic and social pressure. On the other hand, democratic societies face a myriad of seemingly overwhelming problems. There is an onslaught of violent crime, growing drug problems, increasing homelessness, spiraling environmental contamination, unrest in our inner cities, and epidemics of ‘modern’ diseases—most notably AIDS and cancer.
The depths of these problems are difficult to comprehend. In the United States alone, up to 3 million people are homeless on any given night. Unemployment among certain segments of our population is 25%. In May of 1992 our major cities erupted once again in violent response to social conditions. Sparked by the decision in the Rodney King case, the breadth and violence of the rioting and looting which took place in the next few days stunned the nation and the world. The situation with AIDS is just as sobering.
What we are seeing now is just the tip of the iceberg, and already by the end of 1990, in major US cities, AIDS was the main cause of death for women between the ages of 20 and 40. There are estimates of 10 to 20 million people infected with HIV, the precursor to AIDS, worldwide. These are just samples of the great problems facing our society today. We could go on reciting them for volumes.
These problems are and of themselves force dramatic changes within the lives of individuals and society as a whole. And that change necessitates further changes. CHANGE WITHIN CHRISTIANITY Churches finds themselves caught in the middle of this great whirlwind of change.
Uncertain how to react to the drastic modifications is needs and attitudes of their members, they themselves must respond to the issues at hand. This internal conflict is vividly expressed by L. Howard in his article in the July 15, 1991, issue of Christianity & Crisis.
He had been present at the General Assembly of the Presbyterian Church in Baltimore when it voted on the report of its committee on human sexuality, which urged greater acceptance of homosexuals by the Church: What is perhaps most clear in Baltimore was that the crisis in human sexuality in our society and our churches is not limited. As the pastoral letter says, “We are being torn apart by issues of teenage sexuality and practice, sexual violence, clergy sexual misconduct, new reproductive technologies, AIDS and other sexually transmitted diseases, and the sexual needs of gay and lesbian persons, the disabled and older adults.” The report may not have been received officially. But the Presbyterian Church is forever changed by the debate it engendered.
Out of necessity, there is great change within most denominations. Views are changing regarding birth control, homosexuality, divorce and a myriad of other social and religious issues. In response to all of this personal, social and religious upheaval, many people have found themselves re-evaluating their own faith. Some have come to reject the concept of a deity outright.
Others now have serious doubts about some of the doctrines of their religion. CURRENT PERCEPTIONS OF JESUS At the core of those doctrines is the identity of Jesus Christ. For most Protestant denominations, Jesus is part of the Trinity and might be defined as God’s manifestation or revelation of Himself in human form. Catholics also accept the Trinity and bestow upon Mary the title of the ‘Mother of God,’ thus asserting that Jesus is, for them, truly man and truly God.
Some of the more recently formed denominations have quite a different view. For instance, Jehovah’s Witnesses do not accept the Trinity and see Jesus as the ransom sacrifice to redeem humanity, not God Himself. And Unitarians generally see Jesus as a great teacher and example, but fully human and God’s son only in the same sense that all humans are His children. On the scholarly front, there has long been a wide range of understandings of Jesus.
He has been seen as an Essence scholar, a member of a radical Jewish political movement, a witty rabbi, and many other things. For years a number of scholars have worked to discern the historical figure of Jesus Christ from the background of the scriptural narrations and whatever other sources they could find.
That interest continues today, as is witnessed by the recent paperback reprinting of Albert Schweitzer’s book The Quest of the Historical Jesus, and the new release of John Crossan (The Historical Jesus, Harper Collins, 1991). For some scholars, like John Bowden, the search has ended in serious questioning and skepticism. For others, the skepticism goes farther. As an example, G. A. Wells poses the following question about Jesus: “Can we really be sure that a person described in these terms ever had any earthly existence?” His answer is summed up by the last thought in his book: “is it not the time to look elsewhere than in the Scriptures for guidance in our living, and to stop basing our decisions and choices on ancient fantasies?” (Who Was Jesus? G. A. Wells, Open Court Publishing, La Salle, IL, 1989.)
The popular press also reflects a reassessment of our moral and religious values. Such reassessment is natural given the relatively recent surfacing of television evangelist scandals, the fresh memory of the Jonestown horror, and the realization that even Hitler used the banner of Christianity to try to help justify the abomination of genocide. With all these factors, it seems almost imperative that thinking people re-examine their own beliefs. Thus, the writing of this book Such reassessment is essentially a personal task. Within this examination, a great deal can be learned from the excellent work done by many scholars. I have referred to such work often in the following pages. But the essence of faith is very personal. No one else can tell you exactly what your personal relationship should be with your Creator.
You must find that for yourself. And no one else can tell you who Jesus is for you. This is a totally personal issue, between you and God. Christianity is a religion of great diversity.
The brief inventory of different denominational views of Jesus given above and a quick perusal of the church listings in any phone book leaves no doubt of that fact. The variability in beliefs and practices is matched only by the variability of human beings. It is not the intention of this book to address the beliefs of any specific denomination. Nor is it the intent to attack any of them, nor Christianity as a whole. Rather, in this first portion of the book, I hope to give you some insight into certain Christian beliefs in relation to the teachings of Christ as they are recorded in the scriptures.
Later in the book, I hope to introduce some new information that you may find useful in the assessment of your own beliefs. My hope in doing this is that you will find your own personal way to go about following the most important commandment for all humanity, the commandment which Jesus himself called the Great Commandment: You shall worship God with all your heart, and all your soul, and all your mind and all your strength. [Deuteronomy 6:5, Matthew 22:37, Mark 12:30 and Luke 10:27]