Who Was Jesus Christ, and Who is Jesus Christ Now?
Did Christ pre-exist His human birth?
The name of Jesus Christ is about as universal a name as any
we could mention. Most people have heard the name but exactly
what does it convey to most people? In order to understand who
and what Christ really is, we need to begin at the beginning, and
you may be surprised at just where that really is.
First and foremost, "God" is NOT a trinity. There is no evidence to support that, and a vast
amount to prove "God" is NOT limited to "three in one." Christ, as explained in the article on the "trinity," is a separate being that is
part of what the bible calls "God," and Jesus Christ is a key figure in that "Godhead," and of absolute necessity, had to have been a separate being, or the death penalty on mankind could not have actually been paid by one distinct being called God.
So, then, who is Jesus Christ... Yeshua?
John 1:1-4 "In the beginning was the Word, and the Word
was with God, and the Word was God. 2 He was in the beginning
with God. 3 All things were made through Him, and without Him
nothing was made that was made. 4 In Him was life, and the life
was the light of men. :10-14 He was in the world, and the world
was made through Him, and the world did not know Him. 11 He came
to His own, and His own did not receive Him. 12 But as many as
received Him, to them He gave the right to become children of
God, to those who believe in His name: 13 who were born, not of
blood, nor of the will of the flesh, nor of the will of man, but
of God. 14 And the Word became flesh and dwelt among us, and we
beheld His glory, the glory as of the only begotten of the
Father, full of grace and truth."
The word "Word" is from the Greek word "logos", meaning "speaker" or "something said." This same "Word" who was "in the beginning with God", was called the "word of God" throughout the Old Testament... "the word of God came to..." Christ came to personally reveal to us, in this New Covenant era, the laws of the Father, and also the Father Himself. He is certainly our spokesman for what the Father wants us to hear.
Contrary to where most people would have turned to begin
learning about Christ, this is the actual beginning of the entire
written word, chronologically speaking. That is, this describes a
time before all other times mentioned in scripture. This reveals
that "The Word" was the name for a being who was WITH
God and who was ALSO called God.
This being is the one who literally gave up His divinity, His
nature as a spirit being, and came to live as a human man, with carnal human nature. He was
literally "God in the flesh." He was one of the
"US" mentioned in Genesis 1:26;
"Then God said, "Let Us make man in Our image,
according to Our likeness."
You also need to understand that the Word, now Jesus Christ,
was the "God" of the Old Testament. Many references
to God and being seen or talking with mankind in the Old Testament refer
to Christ. Let's take a look at the proof. We have actually
covered many scriptures elsewhere that point this out, but for
clarity, I will repeat them here.
Matt 7:24 "Therefore whoever hears these sayings of Mine, and does them, I will liken him to a wise man who built his house on the rock: 25 and the rain descended, the floods came, and the winds blew and beat on that house; and it did not fall, for it was founded on the rock. 26 "But everyone who hears these sayings of Mine, and does not do them, will be like a foolish man who built his house on the sand: 27 and the rain descended, the floods came, and the winds blew and beat on that house; and it fell. And great was its fall. 28 And so it was, when Jesus had ended these u, that the people were astonished at His teaching, 29 for He taught them as one having authority, and not as the scribes."
The words interpreted as "sayings" is actually from the same word "Logos" which was used above.
We need to remember that all of the scriptures need to be
taken together. We can't discount what scriptures say
elsewhere without throwing out the entire Bible. We can't
pick and choose what we want to believe. We either believe what the
bible says or we believe lies. Let's focus on the truth.
John 1:18 "No one has seen God at any time. The
only begotten Son, who is in the bosom of the Father, He has
declared [Him.]"
1 John 4:12 "No one has seen God at any time. If
we love one another, God abides in us, and His love has been
perfected in us."
John 6:46 "Not that anyone has seen the Father, except
He who is from God; He has seen the Father."
Christ and John make it quite clear that NO MAN HAS EVER SEEN
THE FATHER. If this is true, then how do we explain all the Old
Testament references where God actually speaks with and is
standing with men?
Exodus 33:11 "So the LORD spoke to Moses face to
face, as a man speaks to his friend . . ."
Joshua 5:14-15 "So He said, "No, but [as] Commander
of the army of the LORD I have now come." And Joshua fell on
his face to the earth and worshiped, and said to Him, "What
does my Lord say to His servant?" 15 Then the Commander of
the Lord’s army said to Joshua, "Take your sandal off
your foot, for the place where you stand [is] holy." And
Joshua did so."
Ex 24:9 Then Moses went up, also Aaron, Nadab, and Abihu, and seventy of the elders of Israel, 10 and they saw the God of Israel. And there was under His feet as it were a paved work of sapphire stone, and it was like the very heavens in its clarity. 11 But on the nobles of the children of Israel He did not lay His hand. So they saw God, and they ate and drank.
Ex 33:22 And it shall come to pass, while my glory passes
by, that I will put you in a clift of the rock, and will cover
you with my hand while I pass by: 23 And I will take away my
hand, and you shall see my back parts: but my face shall not be seen.
Genesis 12:7 "Then the LORD appeared to Abram and
said, "To your descendants I will give this land." And
there he built an altar to the LORD, who had appeared to
him."
Genesis 32:30 "And Jacob called the name of the place
Peniel: For I have seen God face to face, and my life is
preserved."
POINT: The above scriptures should be enough to show
you that "God" DID appear to man, quite a few times, so why would Christ make the following statement...
Luke 10:22 "All things have been delivered to Me by My Father, and no one knows who the Son is except the Father, and who the Father is except the Son, and the one to whom the Son wills to reveal Him."
Joh 5:37 "And the Father himself, which has sent me, has borne witness of me. You have neither heard his voice at any time, nor seen his shape."
If the God of the old testament was the one everyone was aware of, saw, and whom they worshiped and followed, why would Christ first state no one knows who the Father is, (everyone "knows" He (the Father) is the one who dealt with ancient Israel, right???) and, second, that He would have to "reveal" the Father to those He willed to reveal Him? This is the very thing which got Him killed... when He equated Himself with "God," and that he was "one" with this God. The Jews believed there was only one being as God, as their "Shema..." Dt. 6:4 "Hear, oh Israel, The Lord our God, the Lord is one" (taken outside all other scriptures) seems to suggest. They couldn't comprehend that there was a anything outside their own belief system.
Matt 15:7 "Hypocrites! Well did Isaiah prophesy about you, saying: 8 "These people draw near to Me with their mouth, And honor Me with their lips, But their heart is far from Me. 9 And in vain they worship Me, Teaching as doctrines the commandments of men.'"
What is this telling us? Christ is stating to the "hypocrites" that they are fulfilling the prophecy that mentions what? "These people draw near to Me with their mouth, And honor Me with their lips, But their heart is far from Me. 9 And in vain they worship Me, Teaching as doctrines the commandments of men."
Christ is quoting from Isaiah...
Isa 29:13 "Therefore the Lord said: "Inasmuch as these people draw near with their mouths And honor Me with their lips, But have removed their hearts far from Me, And their fear toward Me is taught by the commandment of men..."
This is the "Lord" speaking. Who is this Lord? Christ tells us that it is "HE" that they are drawing near to, or honoring, not some one else, and worshiping HIM in vain, not some other. If this Lord being mentioned was someone else other than Christ, then Christ did NOT have to "reveal" the Father because everyone already knew who He was... the "one" God, single entity and mind.
Remember in John 1:1, there are two separate beings described. One is the "Word" the other is "God," yet they BOTH were ALSO called by the name God. Let's look further into the nature of Christ, as He explains Himself.
John 3:13 "No one has ascended to heaven but He who
came down from heaven, [that is,] the Son of Man who is in
heaven."
John 6:44 "No one can come to Me unless the Father
who sent Me draws him; and I will raise him up at the last
day."
John 5:46 "For if you believed Moses, you would believe
Me; for he wrote about Me."
John 6:51 "I (Christ) am the living bread which came
down from heaven. . . "
John 6:62 "[What] then if you should see the Son of
Man ascend where He was before?"
John 13:3 "Jesus, knowing that the Father had given all
things into His hands, and that He had come from God and was
going to God,"
John 16:28 "I came forth from the Father and have come
into the world. Again, I leave the world and go to the
Father."
John 17:5 "And now, O Father, glorify Me together with
Yourself, with the glory which I had with You before the world
was."
John 6:38 "For I have come down from heaven, not
to do My own will, but the will of Him who sent Me. "
You can plainly see how Christ made numerous references to being with the Father at one time, NOT BEING THE
FATHER HIMSELF. Christ is described as a separate being with His
own will.
Ephesians 3:9 "And to make all see what [is] the
fellowship of the mystery, which from the beginning of the ages
has been hidden in God who created all things through Jesus
Christ;"
Hebrews 1:2 "Has in these last days spoken to us by
[His] Son, whom He has appointed heir of all things, through
whom also He made the worlds;"
Philippians 2:5-8 "Let this mind be in you which was
also in Christ Jesus, 6 who, being in the form of God, did not
consider it robbery to be equal with God, 7 but made Himself
of no reputation, taking the form of a bondservant, [and] coming
in the likeness of men. 8 And being found in appearance as a
man, He humbled Himself and became obedient to [the point of]
death, even the death of the cross."
Hebrews 2:14-17 "Forasmuch then as the children are
partakers of flesh and blood, he also
himself likewise took part of the same; that through death he might destroy him
that had the power of death, that is, the devil; 15 And deliver
them who through fear of death were all their lifetime subject to
bondage. 16 For verily he took not on [him the nature of] angels;
but he took on [him] the seed of Abraham. 17 Wherefore in all
things it behoved him to be made like to [his] brethren, that
he might be a merciful and faithful high priest in things
[pertaining] to God, to make reconciliation for the sins of the
people."
1 Peter 1:11 "Searching what, or what manner of time
the Spirit of Christ which was in them (some ancient Israelites such
as Moses, Aaron, Joshua, Caleb) did signify, when it
testified beforehand the sufferings of Christ, and the glory that
should follow."
1 Peter 3:18-20 "For Christ also has once suffered for
sins, the just for the unjust, that he might bring us to God,
being put to death in the flesh, but quickened by the Spirit: 19
By which also he went and preached to the spirits (demons) in
prison; 20 Which sometime were disobedient, when once the
long-suffering of God waited in the days of Noah, while
the ark was a preparing, wherein few, that is, eight souls were
saved by water."
1 Corinthians 10:4 "And did all drink the same spiritual
drink: for they drank of that spiritual Rock that followed
them: and that Rock was Christ."
POINT: There are dozens more scriptures which talk of
Christ being the "Rock," the
"First and the Last," and the "Holy One."
These are all terms which were used for the God of the Old
Testament, and Christ used them of Himself quite often in the New
Testament. It can't be disputed that the "God"
family originally consisted of just two beings, and still
consists of the Son of God and the Father... for a time. When you
read all the scriptures of how we are called God's children,
or that we are of the "household of God," you begin to
see more of the incredible scope of what God is doing.
Prov 30:4 Who has ascended up into heaven, or descended? Who has gathered the wind in his fists? Who has bound the waters in a garment? Who has established all the ends of the earth? What is his name, and what is his son's name, if you can tell?
For greater details on how the Father and Word are referenced
in the bible, read about Yahweh, and Yahshua
(Jesus), the Word of Yahweh, Yahweh and Yahshua, One God and Christ's Pre-Existence.
Read also Human Destiny for more details into our awesome destiny.
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The God Kind web pages created
and material written by Jeffrey T. Maehr. Common Law Copyright © 2015. All rights reserved. Reproduction allowed if credit to thegodkind.org is listed with material. All other authors or copyrights listed accordingly.
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