“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.” – 2 Corinthians 11:3-4
THE APOSTLE IS FEARFUL that the church at Corinth will be led astray unawares by the false doctrines of false brethren. He is apprehensive that Satan’s subtlety will deceive them into departing from the simplicity that is in Christ, just as it beguiled Eve into disobeying God amidst Eden’s ethereal charms. Therefore, he offers an admonition for all ages against those who preach another Jesus, another spirit, another gospel. He beckons his readers to heed well the subtilty of the serpent, for the prince of this world has deluded many by mixing truth with lies. Satan does not point the religious masses to the real Jesus, to the real Holy Spirit, to the real gospel, but to calculated counterfeits which satisfy the carnal mind and appeal to the unregenerated heart. Have you yourself been swindled into believing a lie, into receiving false Christs, false spirits, and false gospels by which false prophets have led many into perdition? Pray consider what follows, lest you hear on the day of judgement, “Depart from me, ye cursed, into everlasting fire.”
ANOTHER JESUS
Who is this false “Jesus” which desires to displace the risen Savior? What powers does he wield, by which he deceives the whole world so? And how may we differentiate him from the real Immanuel, who loved us, and washed us from our sins in his own blood? Perhaps I should describe him for you. Surely you have seen those graven images of an effeminate, long-haired man with a sodomite’s countenance and a woman’s dress? Perhaps, even, you have beheld images purporting to exhibit divine mercy, but verily displaying occultic symbols of the vilest fashion.
Respecting the doctrine of the fake Jesus, he is the commensurate ecumenical, embracing all religions, heresies, and sins, and only condemning those who unashamedly proclaim the truths of God’s Word. This fake Jesus would never dare to scourge moneychangers with a whip and overthrow their sordid tables of usury (John 2:14-17), would never dare to rebuke famous religious leaders as hypocrites (Matthew 23:13), fools (Matthew 23:17,19), and serpents (Matthew 23:33), would never dare to proclaim himself as the way, truth, and light (John 14:6), the only door by which man can be saved (John 10:9). Why would he refrain from doing the things which the real Jesus unashamedly did? Because this fake Jesus tolerates all beliefs and religious convictions except those which uphold the King James Bible as the only real Bible, which warn of a literal hell where all Christ rejecters burn for eternity, which expose false teachers and evildoers for the corrupt frauds that they are.
If you have endured the misfortune of encountering how the character of the Lord Jesus is shamelessly slandered and distorted by demonic antichrist organizations as “He Gets Us”, or foully miscast by despicable television series as “The Chosen”, you doubtless understand the fake Christ is personified by compromise, tolerance, and a hypocritical “love” which quickly morphs into self-righteous hatred against any and all biblical behavior and principles.
Do you suppose the “another Jesus” I have written of above is, with a few minor exceptions, the Jesus of the Bible? Permit me to disabuse you of this foolish notion. Permit me to draw your attention to a variety of scriptures proving, beyond a reasonable doubt, that the real Jesus bears little resemblance to the hippie-esque imposters both infidels and unsaved religious people alike mistakenly think him to be. To begin with, observe that Jesus hates iniquity (Hebrews 1:9). Contrary to the false Christs, he does not tolerate sin in any form, for any reason. He did not commend the woman taken in adultery; rather, he told her “go, and sin no more” (John 8:11). He did not applaud the Samaritan woman’s licentious living (John 4:18). He did not overlook the ingratitude of the lepers which never thanked him for healing them (Luke 17:17).
Consider how Jesus condemned covetousness (Luke 12:15) and warned against setting one’s heart on riches (Matthew 6:19-21). Consider how, far from tolerating differing beliefs and philosophies, he rebuked manmade traditions and religious customs as vain and sinful (Mark 7:7-9). Consider how he specifically declared God must be worshipped in spirit and in truth, not in the hysteria and freakish emotional fervor which personifies carnal, false worship “services” (John 4:24). The real Jesus warned against false prophets as ravening wolves (Matthew 7:15) and snobbish religious hypocrites which trusted in themselves that they were righteous, and despised others (Luke 18:9). He cautioned his hearers that everlasting fire awaited them if they died in their sins (John 8:24), and warned that many who now call Jesus their “Lord” and rely upon their good works to save them will not enter heaven, but shall be denounced as workers of iniquity and cast into outer darkness (Matthew 7:21-23).
Jesus is mentioned frequently in the Old Testament, but given these references contradict the character and testimony of the fake Jesus, ecumenicals and their fellow helpers to the obfuscation of the truth never mention them. I will provide two such examples:
Psalm 45:6-7: “Thy throne, O God, is for ever and ever: the sceptre of thy kingdom is a right sceptre. Thou lovest righteousness, and hatest wickedness: therefore God, thy God, hath anointed thee with the oil of gladness above thy fellows.”
Isaiah 11:4: “But with righteousness shall he judge the poor, and reprove with equity for the meek of the earth: and he shall smite the earth with the rod of his mouth, and with the breath of his lips shall he slay the wicked.”
Does this description match the ecumenical vision of a tolerant, effeminate wimp who accepted all religions and behaviors? I do not think so. I do not think there can be any similarities at all between a man who whines about “not judging” and a man who drives usurious thieves out of the temple with a whip. I do not think there can be any similarities at all between a man who condones all manner of wickedness, but attacks those who attempt to expose it, with a man who rebukes all manner of wickedness, and reproves those who attempt to defend it. I do not think there can be any similarities at all between a man whose entire ethos consists of tolerance and compromise between religions, with a man whose entire ethos consists of being the only way to heaven. Apostates love to quote Matthew 7:1 as their excuse to disparage faithful Christians who obey God’s commandments by earnestly contending for the faith (Jude 1:3) and reproving the unfruitful works of darkness (Ephesians 5:11), but this holds no water when a cursory examination of the gospels demonstrates Jesus judged error and reproved sin without apology. The words, “It’s not my place to judge”, which the ecumenical hypocritically utters, were never spoken by the Prince of Peace.
And, in case you remonstrate that Jesus had long hair, I will ask you, “Doth not even nature itself teach you, that, if a man have long hair, it is a shame unto him?” (1 Corinthians 11:14). And, in case you believe that Jesus wore a dress because deceptive artistic renditions depict the fake Jesus as wearing a dress, I will remind you that Jesus came to fulfill the law. Here is one such article of the law: “The woman shall not wear that which pertaineth unto a man, neither shall a man put on a woman’s garment: for all they that do so are abomination unto the LORD thy God” (Deuteronomy 22:5). What was wrong to wear in the Old Testament was equally wrong in the New Testament, for God does not change (Malachi 3:6). And, in case you insist that the long-haired, dress-wearing, sin-loving, effeminate, fake Jesus is the same as the short-haired, sin-hating, carpenter, false-prophet exposing, false religion-refuting real Jesus, I will give you the words of the true Christ, whom you falsely claim to love and worship: “Ye do err, not knowing the scriptures, nor the power of God” (Matthew 22:29).
ANOTHER SPIRIT
What “spirit” is the apostle warning against, and how does it differ from the Holy Spirit, the Spirit of truth, who shall guide the Christian into all truth (John 16:13)? How may we distinguish one from the other? The apostle John provides a preliminary litmus test in 1 John 4:3: “every spirit that confesseth not that Jesus Christ is come in the flesh is not of God.” That is, anything, or anyone, who denies Christ’s deity is not of God, regardless of what they claim. This plainly disqualifies the “familiar spirits” of witchcraft and occultism in general, as well as the nebulous “spirituality” of the New Age movement. It likewise exposes Islam and Judaism, since both deny Christ’s deity, and assorted pseudo-Christian cults like Mormonism and Jehovah’s Witnesses. It even disavows the devilish spirit of oriental religious philosophies manifest in yogis and their dark practices of demonic influence.
But our discretion must extend beyond this initial test, for there are many spirits who confess that Jesus Christ is come in the flesh, yet are nevertheless “another spirit.” The designation of “another spirit” is not confined merely to one who denies Christ’s deity, but concerns any spirit at variance with the King James Bible. Men will speak of feeling “the spirit”, and being led by “the spirit”, but if this leads them to false doctrines and unbiblical acts, it cannot be the Holy Spirit, because the Holy Spirit is God, and God cannot contradict himself, for he is not the author of confusion (1 Corinthians 14:33). An unsaved religious person who feels “the spirit” approves of him using a vile modern translation of the Bible, like the NIV, and is leading him to disregard fundamental Bible doctrines in favor of “unity” amongst various religious denominations, and guiding him to follow Jesus as his “Lord” so he can earn his salvation, is operating under the influence of “another spirit.” Such is why John exhorted believers not to accept a spirit simply because it claims to represent Jesus Christ or Christianity in general, but “try the spirits whether they are of God: because many false prophets are gone out into the world” (1 John 4:1).
Many of these false prophets are active within the framework of mainstream “Christianity.” I have seen the ecumenical, evangelical spirit at work amongst the Protestant churches of so-called “Christendom”, and I must conclude, since its every labor is intended to secure “unity” amongst various hellbound religious groups, while scorning distinct biblical doctrine and separation from the world’s wicked systems, that this is not the spirt of God. I have seen the idolatrous, heathen spirit of Roman Catholic mass, and I must conclude, since this entire practice is wholly unscriptural, and involves a host of clearly unbiblical acts, that this is not the spirit of God. I have seen the frenzied, maniacal spirit of the Charismatic/Pentecostal freakshow, and I must conclude, since this barbaric lunacy is tantamount with demonic possession, that this is not the spirt of God.
“Another spirit” turns man away from simply receiving Jesus Christ as his Savior to go to heaven, to instead vainly attempting to earn salvation through his own goodness, and looking to human institutions like churches and social organizations to redeem his soul, and believing that reforming his behavior and being immersed in water can wash away his sins. It is the spirit which aims to convince man that only bigots and hypocrites care about sound doctrine and righteous judgement, for Jesus actually wants everyone to unite around vacuous social causes and a carnal, hypocritical “love”. It is the spirit which falsely claims there are many ways to heaven, and therefore none has a rightful claim to being the only way. Verily, it is the spirt of Satan, once more transformed as an angel of light, attempting to damn souls to hellfire by giving them a false assurance and a false peace.
I ask you, dear reader, which spirit do you have? Are you sure it is the Holy Spirit? If you believe a man’s lifestyle will determine where he spends eternity, you do not have the Holy Spirit. If you feel that you can go to heaven without receiving Jesus Christ as your Savior, you do not have the Holy Spirit. If you think you cannot be saved unless you also perform various religious deeds and exhibit a suitable amount of piety, you do not have the Holy Spirit. And if any man have not the spirit of Christ, he is none of his (Romans 8:9).
ANOTHER GOSPEL
What is “another gospel”, and why is it so dangerous? Does it really matter what gospel a man believes? How are we to discern between the right gospel and the wrong gospel, between the true form and its many counterfeits?
The biblical gospel, outlined in 1 Corinthians 15:1-4, is thus:
“Moreover, brethren, I declare unto you the gospel which I preached unto you, which also ye have received, and wherein ye stand; By which also ye are saved, if ye keep in memory what I preached unto you, unless ye have believed in vain. For I delivered unto you first of all that which I also received, how that Christ died for our sins according to the scriptures; And that he was buried, and that he rose again the third day according to the scriptures:”
This is the gospel: Jesus Christ, the only begotten Son of God, came to earth in human flesh and paid for the debt of your sins with his precious blood; he was buried; and he bodily resurrected three days later unto your justification. This is the power of God unto salvation to every one that believeth (Romans 1:16). Anything which adds to, subtracts from, or alters this plain, biblical truth in any way is “another gospel” which corrupts the simplicity that is in Christ and leads the soul who foolishly believes it into the Lake of Fire.
Of course, many will wave these crucial nuances away as the wranglings of pedants and self-righteous legalists who make too much of an issue over right and wrong doctrine. Others will contend that sincerity matters more than the object of one’s faith, since God sees the heart. But neither of these popular misconceptions can negate Christ’s words in John 14:6: “I am the way, the truth, and the life: no man cometh unto the Father, but by me.” Neither can they neutralize his declaring in John 3:18: “He that believeth not is condemned already, because he hath not believed in the name of the only begotten Son of God.” It does matter which gospel a man believes, dear reader, because things which are different are not the same. If you choose to believe something other than the gospel of Jesus Christ for salvation, you are rejecting his free gift of eternal life and will consequently spend eternity burning in the Lake of Fire.
Allow me to furnish a few examples of “another gospel” which have deceived many into futilely laboring to save themselves. I give you “Lordship Salvation”, an extremely popular heresy which deceitfully claims a man cannot be saved simply by receiving Christ as Savior, but that he must also surrender his life to following God’s will and following Jesus as his “Lord”. I give you a false definition of “repentance” which demands sinners commit to turning away from their sins and reforming their life as a prerequisite to salvation. I give you the sacramental salvation of the Catholic Church, which requires a man to keep its seven sacraments (confirmation, baptism, confession of sins to a pedophile priest, etc.) in order to be saved. I give you the baptismal regeneration of various Protestant denominations like Lutheranism, which compel men to be baptized in order to have eternal life. I give you the various false gospels of the evangelical, which require one to “invite Jesus into your heart”, or “make a commitment to Christ”, or “give your life to God” so he will go to heaven.
Though differing in their heresies, each of these accursed false gospels have the commonality of emphasizing you and how you must change your behavior or live a certain way, rather than emphasizing that Christ paid for your sins with his blood and, upon resurrecting from the dead, sprinkled that blood on heaven’s mercy seat to complete his work. They insist, like all the religions of this world insist, that you must do something so you can “earn” eternal life. But eternal life cannot be earned, my friend, because it is not a reward for the righteous; it is a gift for the guilty (Romans 6:23). If you desire eternal life, you must only acknowledge you are a sinner guilty of violating God’s law and deserving to spend eternity in hell because of it, then believe the gospel as your only hope for heaven. This act of faith grants the regeneration which all the religion and piety in the world can never enable you to obtain, for “except a man be born again, he cannot see the kingdom of God” (John 3:3).
CONCLUSION
The world abounds with imposters and counterfeits, and that is especially true respecting religion. A long-haired, cross-dressing, homosexual who tolerates sin and spurns righteous judgement pretends to be “Jesus.” A spirit which leads men into false doctrines and sins of all stripes pretends to be the “Holy Spirit.” A gospel which forces the sinner to live a certain lifestyle to earn salvation pretends to be “the gospel of Jesus Christ.” This unholy alliance has led gullible multitudes to everlasting destruction while convincing them they are on their way to paradise. Please be not deceived, dear reader. Do not allow Satan’s crafty counterfeits to lead you from the truth, and turn you unto fables. Disregard the devilish deceit which the masses applaud, for in the King James Bible you can find all you will ever need to know about Jesus Christ, about the Holy Spirit, and about salvation. “Search the scriptures,” saith Christ, “for in them ye think ye have eternal life: and they are they which testify of me” (John 5:39).