Questions
With Answers (1) Who Was Jesus? (2) Was God Jesus’Father?
Plus More
(3) Where Was The Father
When Jesus Was On Earth? (4) Was Jesus Human or Spirit?
(5) Where Did Jesus Come
From? (6) Why Did
Jesus Come Here?
(7) How Did
He Get Here? (8) Is Jesus Just Another Personality of God?
(9) Where Did He Go? 10) What Scriptures are Used to Support the Trinity?
(11) So, Who Was Jesus?
Plus
Open The Importance of Being the Firstborn.
From
open the
God and Father of our Lord Jesus--2001Translation.com/Jesus.htm Commentary
Answers
Who Was Jesus
(1) There may be no greater debated Christian theology than who
Jesus actually was. Why, even during the First Century, Christians apparently
argued this subject, for John (the Apostle) says at 2 John 1:7, ‘Many have
strayed [back] into the world and won’t admit that Jesus the Anointed One
came in the flesh. These who have strayed are the Antichrists.’ So, even at
that early date, there was some question as to who Jesus was, and even if he
ever existed. That is why John in his latter years devoted so much of his
writing to this subject.
The name Jesus is a Greek pronunciation of the name Joshua.
In fact, in the Septuagint translation, Joshua is called Jesus (Iesous). The first part of the name (Je or Jo) is a shortened form of Jehovah. The second part
of the name (sus or shua)
means savior or salvation. So, depending on the point that individuals are
trying to make, the name has been rendered as either Jehovah is Salvation,
or, Jehovah Savior.
It is interesting that Aramaic texts say that Jesus was
really named EliAzar, but he was called Jesus. This
could be true, for it is in line with the words of God’s messenger to Mary,
that ‘he should be called Jesus.’ And the name EliAzar
(meaning God has Helped) is very similar to the other name that Jesus was to be
given, Immanuel (God is With Us). Also
see SBT IMMANUELplus.htm
During the centuries following the deaths of the Apostles,
Christians continued to argue the nature of Jesus. This resulted in a great
theological debate, which ended in the formation and adoption of what is called
‘the Trinity Doctrine.’ In this teaching, which is often referred to as a
‘Divine Mystery,’ Jesus is said to be a part of a three-person Godhead – one of
the three personalities of God – that consists of ‘the Father, the Son, and the
Holy Ghost.’ This doctrine was first accepted by the Catholic (or Universal)
Church in the Fourth Century Council of Nicaea,
and was then adopted into many Protestant religions as they spun off from
Catholicism in the Sixteenth and Seventeenth Centuries. In this teaching, Jesus
isn’t referred to as the Son of God, but as God the Son. Also see SBT N-C-O-W2 and NiceneCouncilOriginalWrittingsWhatDidTheySay.htm
Of course, not all Christian religions have adopted the Trinity
doctrine. And as the result, many other teachings have emerged. Some believe
that Jesus is simply (as he said) a son of God. However, others believe that he is in fact the same
person as Jehovah God of what they call ‘the Old Testament.’ So, no trinity is
implied. Also see SBT GODorgod.htm
Even among those who believe that Jesus is just a son of God, there is further disagreement. Some believe that
he was once a mighty spirit son of God whose life was
transferred (by God) into a human fetus, so that he was born a human. Others
think of him as a ‘god-man’ or an ‘angel-man’
(superhuman), and there are those who think he just came into existence when he
was born as a human. To find out which, if any, of these teachings is true,
let’s look at some of the scriptures that bear on this subject.
(2) Matthew 1:20-23, ‘What has been fathered in her is from [God’s] Holy
Breath. She will give birth to a son and you will call his name Jesus,
because he will save his people from their sins. This whole thing happened so
that what was spoken by Jehovah through the prophet would be fulfilled: {Look!}
The virgin will become pregnant and give birth to a son, and they will name
him Immanuel (which translates as, God is with us).’
Matthew 3:16, 17, ‘After being baptized, Jesus came up out of the
water. Then {look!} the heavens opened and he saw God’s Breath coming down on
him like a dove. And {look!} there was a voice that came from the sky, which
said, This is my loved Son and I’m
very pleased with him.’
Matthew 16:15-17, ‘Then [Jesus] asked: ‘But, who do you say that I
am?’ Simon Peter answered: ‘You are the Anointed One, the Son of the living
God.’ Then Jesus said to him, ‘You are blest,
Simon son of Jonah, because this wasn’t shown to you by flesh and blood, by
my Father in the heavens.’ Also see SBT Matt-16-13-17.htm
Matthew 26:63, 64, ‘By the living God, I put you under oath to
tell us whether you are the Anointed One, the Son of God!’ And Jesus
answered: ‘You said it yourself!’
Luke 2:49, ‘But he replied, Why did you have to search for me?
Didn’t you know that I had to be in the [House] of my Father?’
Luke 22:69, 70, ‘However, from now on the Son of Man will be
sitting at the powerful right hand of God.’ Well, at this, they all
asked, ‘So, are you the Son of God?’ And he said, ‘You yourselves are
saying that I am.’
John 1:34, ‘I have seen it and I testified to the fact that this
is the Son of God. Also see SBT’ GodTheSon and Prov
8-22-
John 19:7, ‘We have a law. And according
to that law he ought to die, because he made himself God’s Son.’
2 Corinthians 1:3, ‘May the God and Father of our Lord Jesus
the Anointed One, the Father of mercy and the God of all comfort, be blest.
(3) Matthew 7:11, ‘So, if
you in your wickedness know how to give good gifts to your children, how much
more will your Father in heaven give good things to those who ask him?’
Matthew 10:32, 33, ‘For everyone who admits that they are with me
in front of men, I will admit that I’m with them in front of my Father in
the heavens. But for whoever denies knowing me in front of men, I will also
deny knowing him in front of my Father in the heavens.’
Matthew 11:25-27, ‘It was concerning this that Jesus prayed:
I praise You publicly Father, Lord of heaven and earth, because You have
hidden these things from the wise and intelligent, and have uncovered them to
the childlike. Yes, Father, this is the way You approved. My
Father has given everything to me. And nobody really knows the Son
like his Father, nor does anyone really know the Father but the Son (and anyone
else who the Son is willing to show Him to).’
Matthew 11:50, ‘Whoever does all that my Father in
heaven wishes, is my brother, sister, and mother.’
John 12:27, ‘Now, I am deeply disturbed. What should I say:
Father, save me from this hour? That’s why I came to this hour. Father,
glorify Your Name!’ Then a voice came out of the sky, ‘I glorified it
and will glorify it again.’
(4) Psalm 40:6, ‘Sacrifices and offerings You
have not wanted, so You prepared a body for me.’
Matthew 9:6, ‘I want you to know that the Son of Man has
the power to forgive sins here on the earth.’
Matthew 22:41-45, ‘Now, while the Pharisees were all there in
front of him, Jesus asked, What do you believe about the Anointed One? Whose
son is he? They replied, David’s. So, he said, Then,
why did David (through the Breath [of God]), call him Lord, saying, Jehovah
said to my Lord, Sit at my right hand until I put your enemies under
your feet? If David called him Lord, how can he be his son?’
Luke 22:22, ‘The Son (who is for a fact from men) is going
the way that was marked out for him.’
Hebrews 2:9, ‘He was made a little lower than [God’s]
messengers. And it was because he suffered and died that he was crowned
with glory and honor.’
Hebrews 2:16, 17, ‘So, [when he came], he
really didn’t take on [the shape] of one of [God’s] messengers somewhere, but
he took [the shape of] Abraham’s seed. He was obligated to become like
his brothers in every way, so he could become a merciful and faithful
High Priest before God and offer a sacrifice to cover over peoples’ sins.’
(5) Micah 5:2, ‘And as from
you O BethLehem, of the house of EphRatha…
the few among the thousands of Judah; from out of you will come forth, the one
who is Israel’s ruler. His [roots] are from most ancient times, and from the
days of the ages.’
John 1:1-3, ‘In the beginning there was
the Word. The Word was with God and the Word was Powerful. [The Word]
was with God in the beginning. Everything came into existence through
him. Life came into existence through him and the life was the light
of men.’
John 1:15, ‘John witnessed about him. He’s the one who said it; he
yelled it out loud, The one coming behind me has come before me, because
he was first, before I was.’
John 1:18, ‘The only-created god
(gr. monogenes theos),
who is the Father’s favorite [son], has explained him.’
John 1:29, 30, ‘The next day he saw Jesus
coming toward him and said, Look! The Lamb of God who lifts sin from the
world! This is the one I meant when I said, The one coming behind me has
come before me, because he was first, before I was.’
John 5:30, ‘I’m not looking to do the things that I want, but
to do the will of Him who sent me.’
John 5:36-38, ‘I am doing the work that my Father assigned me
to finish. These are the things that testify about me [and prove] that the
Father sent me. Why, even the Father who sent me has testified about me.
You’ve never heard His voice or seen His shape and His words don’t stick
with you, because you don’t believe the one who He sent.’
John 6:37, 38, ‘Everything that the Father gives me will come
to me, and I won’t reject anyone who comes to me, because I didn’t come from
heaven to do my will, but [to do] the will of the One who sent me.
John 6:57, ‘The living Father sent me and I live because of the
Father.’
John 7:28, 29, ‘He who sent me is real and you don’t know Him. I
know Him, because I came from Him, and because He sent me here.’
John 8:26, ‘The One who sent me is
truthful, and I’m telling the world the things that I heard from Him.’
John 8:29, ‘The One who sent me is with me. He didn’t send me
off alone, because I always do things to please Him.’
John 8:42, ‘If God were your Father you would love me, because I
came here from God. I didn’t come here on my own. He sent me.’
John 8:58, ‘I tell you the truth, I existed before Abraham was
born.’
John 13:3, 4, ‘And knowing that the Father had put everything in
his hands, and that he came from God and was returning to God, he got up
from the meal and laid his outer clothing aside.’
John 16:27, 28, ‘The Father cares for you, because you cared for
me and you believed that I came out [from my position] beside the Father (gr.
ego para tou patros exelthon, or, I
next/to the Father came out). I am from the Father and I came into the
world. I am also leaving the world and returning to the Father.’
John 17:4-8, ‘I have glorified You on the earth and perfectly completed the work
that You assigned to me. So Father, glorify me
beside You with the glory that I had beside You before there was a world. I
have made Your Name shine among the men You gave me
from the world. They were Yours, but You gave them to
me, and they have obeyed Your words. They now realize that everything You gave me came from You, because I passed along to them
all the things that You told me, and they welcomed them. They know it as a fact
that I came as Your representative and they believe
that You sent me.
Colossians 1:13-18, ‘He drew us to himself from out of the power
of darkness, and transferred us into the Kingdom of the Son of his love. And
the ransom price, which frees us from our sins, has been paid through him. He’s
the image of the invisible God, the firstborn of all creation (gr. protokos pases ktiseos – first/taken all creation). Through him,
everything in heaven and on the earth was created, both the things that are
visible and those that are invisible. Everything has been created through him
and for him, regardless of whether they are thrones, or rulerships,
or governments, or powers. He was before everything and everything came into
existence through him. He’s the head of the body of the congregation. He’s
the earliest and the first one to be born from the dead, so that he would be
first in everything.’
Revelation 3:14, ‘And write this to the messenger of the
congregation in Laodicea, ‘This is what the Amen says, the faithful and true
witness, the earliest creation of God (gr. he arche
tes ktisios tou Theou – the beginning
of/the creation of/the God).’
(6) Matthew 20:28, ‘This is
how the Son of Man came, not to be served, but to serve and to give
his living body as a ransom for many.’
Matthew 21:9 ‘Part of the crowd walked ahead of him and those who
followed were shouting: [God] save the Son of David! Praise
the one who comes in [Jehovah’s] name! May [God] in the highest places save him!’
Luke 1:31-33, ‘{Look!} You will get pregnant and give birth to a
son who you are to name Jesus. He will be great and he will be called the
Son of the Most High, and Jehovah God will give him the throne of David
his father. He will rule over the house of Jacob into the ages and there
will be no end to his Kingdom.’
John 3:16, 17, ‘This
is how God loved the world: He gave His only-created Son so that everyone
who believes in him won’t be destroyed, but will have life through the ages.
God didn’t send his Son into the world to judge it, but for the world
to be saved through him.’
John 3:35, 36, ‘The Father loves the Son and has entrusted
everything into his hands. The one who believes the Son has life for the
age. The one who disobeys the Son won’t see life, because God remains angry
with him.’
John 5:19-23, ‘Then Jesus said to them, I tell you the truth, the
Son can’t do anything on his own, other than what he sees the Father doing.
Whatever [the Father] does is what the Son does. And because the Father cares
about the Son, he shows him everything he does. Besides, [God] will show
him greater works than these, just to amaze you. As the Father raises the dead
and makes them alive, the Son can also make whomever he wishes alive. And
the Father doesn’t judge anyone, but he has left all the judging to the Son, so
that all may honor the Son as they honor the Father. Whoever doesn’t honor the
Son doesn’t honor the Father who sent him.’
John 5:26, ‘For just as
the Father has life in himself, he has also given the Son life in
himself and authorized him to do judging. This is because he is
the Son of Man.’
John 6:37, ‘Everything that the
Father gives me will come to me. I won’t reject anyone who comes to me,
because I didn’t come from heaven to do my will, but [to do] the will of the
One who sent me.’
Hebrews 4:14, 15, ‘So, in view of the fact that we have a great
High Priest who has passed up through the heavens, Jesus the Son of God,
let’s keep talking about him. We don’t have a High Priest that can’t sympathize
with our weaknesses, but one who has been tested in every way, just like us
(however, [he didn’t] sin).’
Hebrews 7:22, ‘So, Jesus has become the promise of a better
Sacred Agreement.’
(7) John 1:14, ‘So, the
Expression became flesh and lived among us; and we saw his glory, the glory
of the only one born to a Father’ (gr. doxan
hos monogenous para patros, or, glory as
only/generated next/to father).
Philippians 2:5-11, ‘Keep this attitude in you that the Anointed
One Jesus had: Although he once existed in the same shape as God, he didn’t
consider trying to make himself equal to God (gr. oux
harpagmon hegesato to einai isa Theo, or, not
snatching he/considered the to/be equal God).
Rather, he emptied himself into the shape of a slave and became a man.
And when he found himself shaped as a man, he humbled himself and became
obedient until his death; yes, death on a pole. This is why God promoted him
to a superior position (gr. Theos auton upperrupsosen, or, God
him put/high/over) and kindly gave him the title that is over all
others. So, in the name of Jesus, every knee in heaven, on earth and under the
ground should bend, and every tongue should confess that Jesus the Anointed One
is Lord, to the glory of God the Father.
(8) Isaiah 53:11, ‘It was
Jehovah’s will to remove, the misery in that life with His hand… which showed
him light and shaped his understanding, and proved this righteous one just…
this good one who was serving for many, so as to bear all their sins.’
Matthew 23:9-10, ‘And don’t address anyone on earth as Father,
because there’s just one who is your Father, the heavenly One. Nor
should you be called Leaders, because you only have one Leader, the Anointed
One.’
Matthew 24:36, ‘Nobody knows the day and hour – no, not the
messengers of heaven or the Son, but only the Father.’
Matthew 26:39, ‘And going a little way forward, he fell on his
face praying and said, ‘My Father, if it’s possible, let this cup pass
from me; however, not my will, but Yours.’
Matthew 26:53, ‘Why, don’t you think that I can ask my Father
to send more than twelve legions of messengers immediately?’
Matthew 27:46, ‘Jesus called out in a loud voice: Eli, Eli,
lama sabachthani? That is, My God, my God,
why have you let me down?’
Luke 4:6-8, ‘Then the Slanderer said, I will give you power
over all of these and the glory of them, because they’ve been given to me and I
can give them to whoever I wish. They will all be yours, if you will just bow
in front of me.’ But Jesus answered, ‘It’s written, you must worship
Jehovah your God. He’s the only One you should worship.’
Luke 6:12 ‘It was around that time that he went up a mountain to
pray, spending the whole night in prayer to God.’
Luke 18:19, ‘Jesus replied, ‘Why
do you call me good? Nobody is good except one, God.’
Luke 23:34, ‘Father, forgive them, because they don’t know what
they are doing,’
John 3:45 ‘Don’t think that I’m going to accuse you to
the Father. He who accuses you is Moses.’
John 6:27, ‘The Son of Man . . . was sealed by the God and
Father.’
John 6:44, 45, ‘Nobody can come to me unless the Father who
sent me attracts him and I will resurrect him on the last day. The Prophets
wrote, They will all be taught by God. So, everyone who listens to
the Father and learns comes to me.’
John 6:46, ‘Of course, no one has seen the Father other than the
one who was with God. This one has seen the Father.’
John 12:48-50, ‘The things I’ve said are what
will judge him on the last day, because the things that I said didn’t come
from me. The Father who sent me has commanded me what to tell and what to say.
I know that His Commandments mean life through the age. So, I say whatever the
Father told me to say. And that’s what I’m saying.’
John 14:28, ‘You heard me tell you that
I’m going away and I am coming back to you. If you loved me, you would cry out
in joy that I am going to the Father, because, the Father is greater than I
am.’
John 20:17, ‘Jesus said to her, Don’t
touch me, because I haven’t ascended to the Father yet. But go to my brothers
and tell them that I am ascending to my Father and your Father, to my God
and your God.’
Acts 2:24-26, ‘But God resurrected him, freeing him from
the cords of death, because it wasn’t possible for [death] to hold him. David
said this about him; I have put Jehovah in front of me always. Since He’s at
my right hand, I will never be shaken. Because, my heart is cheerful and my
tongue is rejoicing, my body will rest in hope. You won’t abandon me in the
grave, and you won’t allow your loyal one to rot. You’ve shown me the ways of
life and you will fill me with joy as I look at your face.’
Acts 2:34-36, ‘Jehovah said to my Lord, Sit
at my right hand until I set your enemies as a stool for your feet. So, let the entire
House of Israel know for sure, that God made Jesus (who you impaled) the
Lord and Anointed One.’
1 Corinthians 15:24, 28, ‘Then, in the end, after he has brought
all governments, authorities, and powers to nothing, he will hand over the
Kingdom to his God and Father. However, after everything has been put under
him, then the Son will submit to the One who put everything under him,
so God can be everything to everyone.’
Ephesians 1:20-23, ‘He raised him from the dead and seated him
at His right hand in the heavens, far above every government, authority,
power, lordship, and every name that has been given not only in this age, but
also in the one that’s coming. He has put everything under his feet and made
him the head over everything to the congregation (his body), to fill him
with everything that belongs to the One who does the filling.’
Hebrews 1:2-4, ‘In the last part of these days, He spoke to us
through a Son who he made the heir to everything... the one that he used
to create this era. He shines with the same glory, is the exact image of
His being, and He is responsible for everything that’s said through His power.
And after he cleansed us of our sins, he sat down at the right hand of the
Great One in the highest places. He has become so much greater than the
[other] messengers [of God] and so different, that he has inherited a [special]
name among them.’
Revelation 1:1, ‘A revelation that God gave to Jesus the
Anointed One, to show his slaves the things that must soon happen.’
Revelation 6:2, ‘At that {look!}, I saw a white horse, and the one
who was sitting on it had a bow. He was given a crown and he came out to
conquer and to complete his victory.’
(9) Acts 7:55, 56, ‘But
[Stephen], being filled with [God’s] Holy Breath, stared into the sky and saw
the Glory of God – and Jesus standing at God’s right hand – and he said,
Look! I see the heavens opening up and the Son of Man standing at God’s
right hand!’
Romans 8:34, ‘Why, the Anointed One Jesus (who died, was raised
from the dead, and who is at God’s right hand) also pleads for us.’
Ephesians 1:20, 21, ‘He raised him from the dead and seated him
at His right hand in the heavens, far above every government, authority,
power, lordship, and above every name that has been given, not only in this
age, but also in the one that’s coming.’
Hebrews 1:3, ‘And after he cleansed us of our sins, he sat down
at the right hand of the Great One in the highest places.’
(10) Matthew 28:19, ‘So, go
and make disciples from all nations, baptizing them in the name of
the Father, the Son, and [God’s] Holy Breath.’ (Note that this scripture
may well be spurious. For more information, see the Note Matthew 28:19).
John 8:18, 19, ‘I testify about myself and the Father
who sent me testifies about me.’ Then they asked, ‘Where is your Father?’ And
Jesus answered, ‘You don’t know me or my Father. If you knew me you would
also know my Father.’
John 10:25-30, ‘The things that I am doing in my Father’s name
testify about me. But you don’t believe it because [none of] you are my
sheep. My sheep listen to my voice. I know them and they follow me. I will give
them life for the ages, and none will be destroyed in this era, nor will anyone
take them out of my hands. My Father who gave them to me is greater than
everyone and nobody can take them out of the hands of the Father. The
Father and I are united.’
John 10:36-38, ‘How can you tell me (one who was made holy and sent
into the world by the Father) that I blaspheme, because I say I am God’s
Son? If I’m not doing what my Father wants, don’t believe me. But if I am
doing that, even if you don’t believe me, believe in what I am doing. Then you
will come to know (and keep knowing) that the Father is one with me and I am
united with the Father.’
John 12:44, ‘Whoever believes in me
doesn’t just believe in me alone, but in the One who sent me. And
whoever sees me also sees the One who sent me.’
John 14:6-10, ‘And Jesus replied, I am the Way, and the Truth,
and the Life. Nobody comes to the Father unless it is through me. If you men
had known me, you would have recognized my Father also. From now on, you
have known him and have seen him. Then Philip said, ‘Lord, show us the
Father and that will be enough for us.’ And Jesus said, ‘Have I spent so much
time with you, and yet, you haven’t come to know me Philip? Whoever has seen
me has seen the Father. So, why are you saying, Show us the Father?
Don’t you believe that I am in unity with the Father and the Father is in
unity with me?
John 14:20, ‘In that day, you will know that I am in unity with
my Father, you are in unity with me, and I am in unity with you.’
John 17:22-24, ‘I have also given them the glory that You gave me, so they can be in unity as we are in unity,
I in them and You in me. In this way, they can be perfected into one, so the
world may know that You sent me and that You love them
just as You love me. Father, as to what You have given me: I want them to be
where I am, so they can see the glory that You gave me, because You have
loved me from before the founding of the world.’
Acts 4:12; ‘Salvation doesn’t come from anyone else, because there
isn’t another name which has been given to any man under heaven that we need to
save us.’
Matthew 16:15-17 ‘Then [Jesus] asked, But who would you say
that I am? Simon Peter answered: You’re the Anointed, the Son of the
living God. Then Jesus said to him, You are blest, Simon son of
Jonah, because this wasn’t shown to you by flesh and blood, but by my Father in
the heavens.
For more information, see the linked document, The
Importance of Being the Firstborn.
Also, for a well-researched paper written by a non-religious
person, please see the linked document ‘The
Trinity.’
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1 Peter, an Apostle of Jesus the Anointed One, to the elected ones among the scattered [Jews]
who are currently living in Pontus, Galatia, Cappadocia,
Asia, and Bithynia, 2 who God the Father
has known, who were made holy by [God’s] Breath, and who are obedient and
sprinkled with the blood of Jesus the Anointed One: May you grow in [God’s] peace
and caring.
3 May the
God and Father of our Lord Jesus the Anointed One be praised,
because; by His great mercy He caused us to be born again into the hope of life
(through the resurrection of Jesus the Anointed One from the dead), 4 to an inheritance
that is clean and incorruptible, and which can never grow old or fade away, for
this is what’s awaiting you in the heavens.
From the
God and Father of our Lord Jesus