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Is God Three People? KNOWING THE REAL IDENTITY OF JESUS (8)
Dear Readers: Thank you for all your support this year. I believe the content in this current series is indispensible regarding the coming Great Awakening in America. We must all grow closer to the Lord Jesus. He must be exalted in this nation. His real identity must be known. Christian persecution will continue rising in America in 2016 and we must all be prepared. Please help make this current series reach as many believers as possible. Be blessed!
“When you lift up the Son of Man, then you will realize that I AM…” [John 8:28 NAB]
The Lord Jesus often taught in parables. If one did not have “eyes to see” and “ears to hear” one would not understand. One would not be able to receive revelation knowledge from the Lord. Period.
This parabolic and allegorical teaching approach contrasts sharply with historical and current methods of Christian teaching. The reason why is fairly obvious, though several theories are presented.
One theory consists of the basic difference between Eastern and Western thought. It is said that the Western method of teaching and gaining knowledge consists primarily of using the brain, the intellect, the mind, rational thinking, and the use of facts and figures. The Eastern method of learning primarily uses the heart.
This is a big difference. Since the Lord Jesus used the heart method, we can see that Western Christian thought has diverted from His original approach. This is why the vast majority of Christians are dependent on their brains. They have bypassed the heart. One can never fully know the Lord using the Western method.
REVELATORY KNOWLEDGE
Knowledge from God comes in two principle ways. It comes the way anyone gains knowledge, through what may be termed the regular or standard teaching process in which one learns by receiving facts from teachers and books, and through study of known references and established theories.
Yet, when dealing with the Lord Jesus, one must go beyond such a limited method. Western Christian thought does not and has never felt comfortable with this. The Lord’s original method is perceived as too open-ended. The student is given too much latitude. The student is allowed to be an independent critical thinker. Such allowances are anathema within the confines of limited and structured teachings methods.
In the West facts and figures prevail. People have been trained to receive and deposit facts like little mini-computers or small libraries, and then access such facts when necessary. This takes a lot of work. When one gains a large amount of knowledge and it is all neatly filed away, one has a decided tendency to never check such “facts” for error based on new discoveries. It is a terrible thing when religious institutions and the people thereof become invested in untruth since they refuse new revelation from God.
In the East, since the gaining of knowledge is based on the heart and not the mind, a much different dynamic is relied upon. There is a fluidity in one’s thinking which allows for input from one’s heart, and this is what the Lord was seeking to tap into. He was attempting to relate with others on a heart to heart level.
WHAT IS THE PROOF?
One may wonder, then, how one can prove such facts to be correct. Whereas in Western thought, there need be no actual three-dimensional proof of spiritual facts, in Eastern thought such proofs are demanded. In other words, when the Lord taught about spiritual principles and spiritual cause and effect He had to back it up. Western Christianity in general does not and never has subscribed to this method, largely because it appears too open ended and even spacey. “There must be a foundation!” Its proponents argue, yet they never argue for the real spiritual evidence of the originals.
Such theological brainiacs would have quickly grown exasperated with the Lord’s heart method of teaching. They simply cannot relate to knowing the Lord by revelation, as did Abraham, Isaac, Jacob, Joseph, and Moses:
And Moses summoned all Israel and said to them, “You have seen all that the LORD did before your eyes in the land of Egypt to Pharaoh and all his servants and all his land; the great trials which your eyes have seen, those great signs and wonders.
“Yet to this day the LORD has not given you a heart to know, nor eyes to see, nor ears to hear.” [Deuteronomy 29:2-4]
Moses spoke these words to the nation of Israel toward the very end of its wanderings in the Sinai. For forty years the Lord took care of them but the entire first generation that left Egypt, save for two men, still did not KNOW Him. They had no heart to KNOW, nor eyes to see, not ears to hear. They did not KNOW and they did not see or hear because the Lord did not give them the ability. They had no revelatory knowledge of God or of spiritual things.
From this we can easily understand that such abilities are GIFTS from God. Like salvation, which can never come by our own works, abilities, or knowledge, no one can gain access to God, no one can KNOW God, and no one can possess eyes to see and ears to hear unless the Lord GIVES a person such revelatory knowledge and ability.
In the above passage we can see that the Lord did not give that first generation of the nation of Israel in the Sinai such ability or knowledge. Why?
The very simple answer is: THEIR HEARTS WERE NOT RIGHT.
Yet subsequent generations of Israelites were blessed by the Lord with the ability to KNOW God according to then present revelation, as well as spiritual eyes and ears. But by the time Messiah arrived such knowledge and ability was largely gone:
“Therefore I speak to them in parables; because while seeing they do not see, and while hearing they do not hear, nor do they understand. In their case the prophecy of Isaiah is being fulfilled, which says,
‘YOU WILL KEEP ON HEARING, BUT WILL NOT UNDERSTAND; YOU WILL KEEP ON SEEING, BUT WILL NOT PERCEIVE; FOR THE HEART OF THIS PEOPLE HAS BECOME DULL, WITH THEIR EARS THEY SCARCELY HEAR, AND THEY HAVE CLOSED THEIR EYES, OTHERWISE THEY WOULD SEE WITH THEIR EYES, HEAR WITH THEIR EARS, AND UNDERSTAND WITH THEIR HEART AND RETURN, AND I WOULD HEAL THEM.’” [Matthew 13:13-15]
Their problem was a HEART problem. Their hearts had become “dull.” This word is defined as “thick, fat, stupid, dull, and callous.” Even though their minds might have been sharp as tacks, they were completely oblivious toward spiritual things. And because of that they had NO KNOWLEDGE OF GOD.
Like the majority of Western “Christians” they did not know God but only possessed an ill-defined concept of God based on mere human knowledge and mental assent. If one would KNOW God, really KNOW Him, such things will never suffice.
GOD IS NOT THREE PEOPLE
It is why the official “Trinity Doctrine” was invented 1700 years ago, three centuries after the original teachings of the Lord Jesus. The dull-hearted religious clergyites that created it, based on the ancient concept of Egyptian, Greek, and Roman triads, were high-minded, arrogant, philosophical, spiritual lame brains with absolutely NO KNOWLEDGE of God. They had no revelatory knowledge whatsoever. The Lord Jesus had not granted them that because their hearts were wrong, dull, and fat. And until they got their hearts right before God they would stay spiritually stupid.
This is why they invented teachings that supplanted the Lord’s original teachings. And most of all, it is why they created a brand new “Christian Triad.” It came straight from their polluted brains. In doing this they completely violated the first three commandments:
THEY CREATED A GOD TO SUIT THEMSELVES.
The nation of Israel, in its fallen state, had done the same thing. Rather than get right with God and receive by revelation His real identity, they created their own false concept of God.
The following is the Lord’s response to their idolatry:
What then? What Israel is seeking, it has not obtained, but those who were chosen obtained it, and the rest were hardened; just as it is written,
“GOD GAVE THEM A SPIRIT OF STUPOR, EYES TO SEE NOT AND EARS TO HEAR NOT, DOWN TO THIS VERY DAY.”
And David says, “LET THEIR TABLE BECOME A SNARE AND A TRAP, AND A STUMBLING BLOCK AND A RETRIBUTION TO THEM. LET THEIR EYES BE DARKENED TO SEE NOT, AND BEND THEIR BACKS FOREVER.”
I say then, they did not stumble so as to fall, did they? May it never be! But by their transgression salvation has come to the Gentiles, to make them jealous. [Romans 11:7-11]
This exact dynamic is currently taking place with reference to the artificial and dull-hearted lords of Unreal Christianity and their followers who worship a god of their own creation, and the Lord’s real disciples whom the Lord Jesus has raised up to make the clueless Christians jealous.
It is why the socially acceptable proponents of traditional Christianity hate and resist anything the Lord does to bring greater light and power to His people.
It is also why they want no part of the coming Great Awakening in America and will be its greatest resistors: The Lord’s revelatory knowledge will destroy them.
It was the same way in the first century between the Pharisees and the Lord and His followers.
It was exactly the same in the fourth century between the new Christian Pharisees and real Christians.
It is the same today.
Those with dull spiritual hearts do not KNOW the real identity of Jesus.
Who may ascend into the hill of the LORD? And who may stand in His holy place? He who has clean hands and a pure heart, who has not lifted up his soul to falsehood and has not sworn deceitfully. He shall receive a blessing from the LORD and righteousness from the God of his salvation. [Psalm 24:3-5] [1]
© 2015 by RJ Dawson. All Rights Reserved. [To Be Continued.]
[1] Unless otherwise noted all Scriptures are taken from the New American Standard Bible, © 1960, 1963, 1968, 1971, 1972, 1973, 1975, 1977, 1995 by The Lockman Foundation. Used by permission.
What is Truth?
No single person in the history of the world has ever been more misunderstood, disrespected, and dishonored than the Lord Jesus.
And though He has left us with a preponderance of pure and perfect teachings, most people, especially Christians, do not know His teachings, do not want to know, and are much more interested in transforming His teachings to suit themselves.
The Lord Jesus has been made out to be anything other than what and who He really is, and false interpretations abound, leaving His actual persona as something very few know.
There are obvious reasons for this, but such reasons are not so obvious to those who believe incorrectly. In fact, those who create and buy into a false creation of the Lord’s persona conclude that they pretty much know all there is to know, that there is really nothing more to know, and go about their Christian lives in a state of willful ignorant bliss.
Many Christians do this because they trust whatever their chosen authority figure or figures have told them, they allow their minds to be taken over by those who indoctrinate them, and they never accept any truth that is not approved by their church, denomination, pastor, theological seminary, or Christian guru.
Thus, they have no passion for truth, no love for truth, and do no searching for truth. As a result, truth may be in their immediate vicinity, but their blindness causes rudeness. This does truth a great disservice.
As Pontius Pilate gazed into the eyes of the Lord attempting to comprehend the nature of the Man before him, he asks, “What is truth?” [John 18:38]
Based on the fact that Pilate was a relatively young man, was a shallow non-thinker though quite intelligent, acted as though he had the world figured out, would do anything to protect his turf and keep his job, and was bloodthirsty and seemingly heartless to the core, something about the Lord caused him to pause. Something way down deep in his heart caused a slight stir.
Pilate asked the big question after the following conversation:
“Are You the King of the Jews?”
Jesus answered, “Are you saying this on your own initiative, or did others tell you about Me?”
Pilate answered, “I am not a Jew, am I? Your own nation and the chief priests delivered You to me; what have You done?”
Jesus answered, “My kingdom is not of this world. If My kingdom were of this world, then My servants would be fighting so that I would not be handed over to the Jews; but as it is, My kingdom is not of this realm.”
Therefore Pilate said to Him, “So You are a king?” Jesus answered, “You say correctly that I am a king. For this I have been born, and for this I have come into the world, to testify to the truth. Everyone who is of the truth hears My voice.” [John 18:33-37]
After this exchange Pilate showed his true colors. He states that he finds no guilt whatsoever in the Lord, knowing He was brought up on false charges. Yet he is willing to turn the Lord over to a rabid band of murderers and does. Then he decides to have the Lord beaten and ripped up through the barbaric practice of scourging.
So let’s review: Pontius Pilate essentially accepted the fact that the Lord was innocent and came to testify to the truth, yet by his authority he had the Truth tortured and killed. Pilate showed by his actions that he had no love for truth and could not hear the voice of Truth.
Because the Lord was not a self promoter, He didn’t go around trying to force people to see who He was. Instead He took the opposite tack. He kept as low a profile as possible and wanted people to see Him for who He was with their own eyes, absent any coercion or religious indoctrination. Meeting Him and getting to know Him would be like meeting and getting to know anyone else.
And rather than volunteering information about Himself that would likely fall on deaf ears, He waited for people to ask questions, as did His disciples Thomas and Philip in the following passage:
Thomas said to Him, “Lord, we do not know where You are going, how do we know the way?”
Jesus said to him, “I am the way, and the truth, and the life; no one comes to the Father but through Me.
“If you had known Me, you would have known My Father also; from now on you know Him, and have seen Him.”
Philip said to Him, “Lord, show us the Father, and it is enough for us.”
Jesus said to him, “Have I been so long with you, and yet you have not come to know Me, Philip? He who has seen Me has seen the Father; how can you say, ‘Show us the Father?’” [John 14:5-9]
Many theologians, in their bright and shining wisdom, generally fail to understand these simple statements and proceed to tell us what the statements actually mean, what the Lord is actually saying, and what He is not saying.
So without questioning such religious eggheads most people simply accept their explanations, which are designed to make things less mysterious, more formulaic, and much more satisfying to simple reason and to people with relatively low knowledge quotients with lazy attitudes toward searching things out, but who also must be brought into a religious fold.
For some men, straying from these things, have turned aside to fruitless discussion, wanting to be teachers of the Law, even though they do not understand either what they are saying or the matters about which they make confident assertions. [1 Timothy 1:6-7]
Regarding Philip’s question, rather than introducing several volumes of theological circlespeak, the Lord responds to him very clearly by telling him exactly who He is, the same way He told Pilate exactly who He is, based on the respective questions each put forth:
1. He is a King and He has a kingdom.
2. He is one who testifies to the truth.
3. He is the Truth.
4. He is the Way.
5. He is the Life.
6. He is the Father.
There are many such New Covenant Scriptures that make it difficult to classify God in the context of Western thought after centuries of extra-biblical dogma, though the majority of Christians believe that the classic three-in-one doctrine covers all the bases. Yet, if one is after truth and not simply a subpar explanation of truth, one will keep searching until he finds it. Those who don’t care so much will accept alternative doctrines that strive to satisfy the mind (but never the heart), meaning they only care to know of God on a head level, but never seek to know or love Him personally with their heart.
This tactic might be fine if you’re throwing horseshoes or hand grenades. But building a rocket to the moon entails a tad more fine tuning. Those not willing to put in the hard work never get there and remain earthbound.
Therefore, those who are satisfied the way Pilate was satisfied will never know the Lord though they claim otherwise, and those like Philip will ask the hard questions and keep on asking until they get the big idea. They will not merely believe the words or teachings of others. They must find out for themselves.
If not, they prove by their actions that they are not of the truth, because they cannot hear the Lord’s voice. Instead, they have stopped somewhere along the way (if they ever started), and began listening to the voices of others. This is exactly why the Lord said:
“Let them alone; they are blind guides of the blind. And if a blind man guides a blind man, both will fall into a pit.” [Matthew 15:14]
The Lord stated many times in the Gospels, “Follow Me.” He made it very clear that if one is to be His disciple one must follow Him. That means one better not follow someone other than Him. In the early going we will need the help of others to get started, illustrated by Paul’s statement, “Be imitators of me, just as I also am of Christ.” [1 Corinthians 11:1]
Paul led by example, and by his example he showed others how to follow the Lord. This verse is corrupted in the KJV by a bad translation to read, “Be ye followers of me.” Paul never said in this verse to follow him. Some have said that Paul said, “Follow me as I follow Christ.”
This is nonsense. Many pastors et al subscribe to this false idea and it has greatly contributed to their congregants following them as spiritual gurus instead of following the Lord. Many follow the dictates of their denomination for the same reason. Though they think they are doing the right thing, they are without excuse. The Lord will never accept the checking of one’s brain at the door.
Submitting to a shepherd is good, but at some point a real Christian will and must outgrow the need for a shepherd and begin to exclusively follow the Good Shepherd. This is exactly what Paul and the other apostles did, and what all the Lord’s disciples did, though some ceased from their course and invited rebuke:
For though by this time you ought to be teachers, you have need again for someone to teach you the elementary principles of the oracles of God, and you have come to need milk and not solid food. For everyone who partakes only of milk is not accustomed to the word of righteousness, for he is an infant. But solid food is for the mature, who because of practice have their senses trained to discern good and evil. [Hebrew 5:12-14]
To close, all followers of the Lord must be willing to put any doctrine up for examination not to be decided on by a majority, but whether or not it agrees completely with the Word of God. The triad doctrine stemming from ancient pagan religions does not and never has agreed with the Word, for example. The Word of God riddles it through and through as with a truth-testing machine gun, though such a weapon is rarely used by most. Instead, many Christians would rather attack truth, and in so doing attack the very Lord they claim as Master:
For the time will come when they will not endure sound doctrine; but wanting to have their ears tickled, they will accumulate for themselves teachers in accordance to their own desires, and will turn away their ears from the truth and will turn aside to myths. [2 Timothy 4:3-4] [1]
© 2013 by RJ Dawson. All Rights Reserved.
[1] Unless otherwise noted all Scriptures are taken from the New American Standard Bible, © 1960, 1963, 1968, 1971, 1972, 1973, 1975, 1977, 1995 by The Lockman Foundation. Used by permission.
