JESUS EARNED THE TITLE “CHRIST”

A Theosophical Analysis

of the Deification of Jesus

Dr J. K. Danmbaezue, D.Psych., FACRS.

PROLOGUE

At the Diamond Jubilee celebrations of one of the minor seminaries in Onitsha Ecclesiastical Province, history was made when all the ‘Old Boys’ of the institution conferred titles on prominent members of their Alumni Association. This was one of the hilarious highlights of the events lined up to entertain the octogenarian Cardinals and Archbishops who came all that way from Rome, the capital of Roman Catholicism.

It was comical as some of the ‘famous & notorious boys’ during their schooling years as adolescents in the seminary were the butt of the jokes. To cut the long story short, some were ‘ordained’ “Rev. Fr. Echipus” meaning that ‘they were qualified candidates that never stayed long enough to get their papal ordinations, but have settled on being good husbands and exemplary ‘lay-priests’ in their various homes, families and communities!

This author was unanimously catapulted to the rank of “Rt. Rev Bishop Echipu”as objections were raised from the rostrum by his former students who were already bishops and one of them who protested was actually the newly installed Auxiliary Archbishop of the province! So, it was that he immediately shed his former teenage nickname of “Atom” and put on the new toga! The three bishops who ensured that their mentor/teacher got the deserved title topped the hilarious occasion by donating three bottles of champagne!

This event happened as far back as 1999 at All Hallows Seminary Onitsha that was founded in 1924. Unknown to most of the celebrants, the recipient was hurting inside. He had uncovered so many puerile dogmas and futile doctrines he considered born of pagan origins in Roman Mithraism! He had written down inspirations he got to call a press conference to expose the deceits. He was really going through the hardest trials of his Christian faith! He was confused; should he publicly recant and risk being labelled an apostate or hide his head as an ostrich does in the sand forgetting that the massive body was still exposed to public glare? Or, in the alternative, should he continue to suffer under the canopy of being an exemplary ex-seminarian; the few good ones that pretended all was well with their once religious traditions and acquiesced to the imperial authority of Rome?

This dissertation answers the last ambiguity in a way that leaves no one in doubt as to where the Rt. Rev. Bishop is heading now. Enjoy his anxieties!

Chapter 1:

JESUS NEVER ENTHRONED HIMSELF AS GOD

Only the writer of the Epistle to the Hebrews captured the personality traits of Jesus conferred on him by the Almighty Father! In this opening chapter unlike every other book in the entire Bible, the narrative confirms my thesis that Jesus was/is the Son of God, elevated above every other created beings but never equal to the Supreme Being that created him and us! We do not show respect to the Father by equating him to his created, nor do we favour Jesus by setting him up against his Father.

Meditate on the bold phrases in this excerpt and really think them over. Can an ambassador be equal to the President of his home country? Can one who was granted special powers ever be equal to the One who gave him the powers in the first place? The answer is definitely; NO!

This passage states the statuses and special favours God, the Almighty Father of all of us bestowed on Jesus for a purpose! That is why he was able to stand all the temptations and triumph over the devil in every way even ‘death on the cross.’ My hope is that Christians should learn to worship only God the Father as Jesus enjoined us to and conscientiously respect him as the Son of God for accepting to die to save mankind!

Hebrews 1

1:1 In the past God spoke to our forefathers through the prophets at many times and in various ways,

2 but in these last days he has spoken to us by his Son, whom he appointed heir of all things, and through whom he made the universe.

3 The Son is the radiance of God's glory and the exact representation of his being, sustaining all things by his powerful word. After he had provided purification for sins, he sat down at the right hand of the Majesty in heaven.

4 So he became as much superior to the angels as the name he has inherited is superior to theirs.

5 For to which of the angels did God ever say, "You are my Son; today I have become your Father"? Or again, "I will be his Father, and he will be my Son"?

6 And again, when God brings his firstborn into the world, he says, "Let all God's angels worship him.”

7 In speaking of the angels he says, "He makes his angels winds, his servants flames of fire."

8 But about the Son he says, "Your throne, O God, will last for ever and ever, and righteousness will be the sceptre of your kingdom.

9 You have loved righteousness and hated wickedness; therefore God, your God, has set you above your companions by anointing you with the oil of joy."

10 He also says, "In the beginning, O Lord, you laid the foundations of the earth, and the heavens are the work of your hands.

11 They will perish, but you remain; they will all wear out like a garment.

12 You will roll them up like a robe; like a garment they will be changed. But you remain the same, and your years will never end."

13 To which of the angels did God ever say, "Sit at my right hand until I make your enemies a footstool for your feet"?

14 Are not all angels ministering spirits sent to serve those who will inherit salvation?

I have said it on several occasions that anyone who is very serious with authentic religion; obedience to the natural laws of the Almighty Father, and tenacious about true worship of Him with works of charity, mercy and forgiveness can aspire to Sainthood, just as Jesus did to earn Christhood! Jesus was not born the ‘Son of God’ but was adopted by the Almighty Father of us all at his baptism.

Tell me, was Jesus not a descendant from the family root of King David as prophesied in the OT? Even in the psalms credited to David, is the evidence not clear? He received a special gift of anointing by the ‘Holy Spirit that came down in the form of a dove and rested on him’, as was reported by John, the Baptist, his maternal cousin!

Matt 3:13-17

13 Then Jesus came from Galilee to the Jordan to be baptised by John.

14 But John tried to deter him, saying, "I need to be baptised by you, and do you come to me?"

15 Jesus replied, "Let it be so now; it is proper for us to do this to fulfil all righteousness." Then John consented.

16 As soon as Jesus was baptised, he went up out of the water. At that moment heaven was opened, and he saw the Spirit of God descending like a dove and lighting on him.

17 And a voice from heaven said, "This is my Son, whom I love; with him I am well pleased."

This is the truth of the matter as is again clearly stated by Peter, the head of the apostles during his inaugural speech in defence of the charge of drunkenness levied at the apostles on the day of first ever Pentecost;

Acts 10:37&38

37 You know what has happened throughout Judea, beginning in Galilee after the baptism that John preached—

38 how God anointed Jesus of Nazareth with the Holy Spirit and power, and how he went around doing good and healing all who were under the power of the devil, because God was with him.

So, ‘Emmanuel’ the name the angel gave before his conception was changed to ‘Christ’ at this baptism! This is still done to date in churches! So, what is the encyclopaedic definition of “Christ”; a Greek translation?

“CHRIST”, is a Greek term found in the Greek version of the Old Testament (see Bible), the Septuagint, translating the Hebrew verb “mâshakh”, meaning, “to anoint.” In early

Israel

, the custom of anointing signified the endowment of the person with the qualification for exalted office. The term Christ was applied not only to priests, but also to kings, prophets, and patriarchs. In time, the term came to mean the redeemer and restorer of the Jewish nation. In the New Testament, Christ, as a common noun and as a proper name, generally refers to Jesus of Nazareth (see Jesus Christ).[1]

This is my analysis of the contentious matter regarding the divinity ascribed to him in most Christian communities.

The word ‘Christ’ is a term that has historically been applied to kings, prophets and patriarchs in early Israel long before Jesus was born.
The truth therefore is that Jesus was born of Joseph and a virgin mother, Mary. He was later adopted by the Most High as his ‘Beloved Son in whom I am well pleased, listen to him’!

· This fact does not reduce his honour and position as the first-born. Rather it emphasises the fact that anyone that works hard by imitating him will also earn God’s adoption. If you have been assigned a divine ministry as Jesus was, then work hard at it and follow it through!

His predecessors who could have earned the title were not prudent, obedient nor tenacious and therefore failed by the way side due to human concupiscence. A few leaders, prophets and judges of the old dispensation like Patriarch Enoch (Gen 5), Joshua and Prophet Elijah (Kings 7) passed!

Moses failed because of his quick temper and doubtfully striking the rock twice erratically rather than once.
Samson did not heed the instructions about wine and women before his birth; rather he recklessly slept with prostitutes and later married against God’s instruction.
Saul disobeyed the Almighty who made him king as he thought that God preferred sacrifices rather obedience. He should have obeyed the instructions of the Almighty God to the letter.
David disappointed the Most High when he committed adultery and complicated it with a pre-meditated murder.
Solomon, the first to be adopted by the God of the Israelites was an ingrate. He was too romantic, had insatiable lust for sex, married foreign women and worshipped their gods and so openly violated God’s covenant with his father David.

I will supply a more detailed list of references to this list later;

Judges 13

13:1 Again the Israelites did evil in the eyes of the LORD, so the LORD delivered them into the hands of the Philistines for forty years.

2 A certain man of Zorah, named Manoah, from the clan of the Danites, had a wife who was sterile and remained childless.

3 The angel of the LORD appeared to her and said, "You are sterile and childless, but you are going to conceive and have a son.

4 Now see to it that you drink no wine or other fermented drink and that you do not eat anything unclean,

5 because you will conceive and give birth to a son. No razor may be used on his head, because the boy is to be a Nazirite, set apart to God from birth, and he will begin the deliverance of

Israel

from the hands of the Philistines."

6 Then the woman went to her husband and told him, "A man of God came to me. He looked like an angel of God, very awesome. I didn't ask him where he came from, and he didn't tell me his name.

7 But he said to me, 'You will conceive and give birth to a son. Now then, drink no wine or other fermented drink and do not eat anything unclean, because the boy will be a Nazirite of God from birth until the day of his death.'"

8 Then Manoah prayed to the LORD: "O Lord, I beg you, let the man of God you sent to us come again to teach us how to bring up the boy who is to be born."

9 God heard Manoah, and the angel of God came again to the woman while she was out in the field; but her husband Manoah was not with her.

10 The woman hurried to tell her husband, "He's here! The man who appeared to me the other day!"

11 Manoah got up and followed his wife. When he came to the man, he said, "Are you the one who talked to my wife?" "I am," he said.

12 So Manoah asked him, "When your words are fulfilled, what is to be the rule for the boy's life and work?"

13 The angel of the LORD answered, "Your wife must do all that I have told her.

14 She must not eat anything that comes from the grapevine, nor drink any wine or other fermented drink nor eat anything unclean. She must do everything I have commanded her."

15 Manoah said to the angel of the LORD, "We would like you to stay until we prepare a young goat for you."

16 The angel of the LORD replied, "Even though you detain me, I will not eat any of your food. But if you prepare a burnt offering, offer it to the LORD." (Manoah did not realise that it was the angel of the LORD.)

17 Then Manoah enquired of the angel of the LORD, "What is your name, so that we may honour you when your word comes true?"

18 He replied, "Why do you ask my name? It is beyond understanding."

19 Then Manoah took a young goat, together with the grain offering, and sacrificed it on a rock to the LORD. And the LORD did an amazing thing while Manoah and his wife watched:

20 As the flame blazed up from the altar towards heaven, the angel of the LORD ascended in the flame. Seeing this, Manoah and his wife fell with their faces to the ground.

21 When the angel of the LORD did not show himself again to Manoah and his wife, Manoah realised that it was the angel of the LORD.

22 "We are doomed to die!" he said to his wife. "We have seen God!"

23 But his wife answered, "If the LORD had meant to kill us, he would not have accepted a burnt offering and grain offering from our hands, nor shown us all these things or now told us this."

24 The woman gave birth to a boy and named him Samson. He grew and the LORD blessed him,

25 and the Spirit of the LORD began to stir him while he was in Mahaneh Dan, between Zorah and Eshtaol.

If only Samson had listened and obeyed his parents, could he not have been renowned as a Saviour of his nation? He failed! For now, let us get a biblical support for my assertion that every believer qualifies for the title; ‘Christ’ right from birth! You can attain the level of sanctity for becoming adopted. In other words, we are all equipped to earn ‘Christhood’! Turn to;

Hebrews 5

5:1 Every high priest is selected from among men and is appointed to represent them in matters related to God, to offer gifts and sacrifices for sins.

2 He is able to deal gently with those who are ignorant and are going astray, since he himself is subject to weakness.

3 This is why he has to offer sacrifices for his own sins, as well as for the sins of the people.

4 No one takes this honour upon himself; he must be called by God, just as Aaron was.

5 So Christ also did not take upon himself the glory of becoming a high priest. But God said to him,

"You are my Son; today I have become your Father."

6 And he says in another place,

"You are a priest forever, in the order of Melchizedek."

7 During the days of Jesus' life on earth, he offered up prayers and petitions with loud cries and tears to the one who could save him from death, and he was heard because of his reverent submission.

8 Although he was a son, he learned obedience from what he suffered

9 and, once made perfect, he became the source of eternal salvation for all who obey him

10 and was designated by God to be high priest in the order of Melchizedek.

11 We have much to say about this, but it is hard to explain because you are slow to learn.

12 In fact, though by this time you ought to be teachers, you need someone to teach you the elementary truths of God's word all over again. You need milk, not solid food!

13 Anyone who lives on milk, being still an infant, is not acquainted with the teaching about righteousness.

14 But solid food is for the mature, who by constant use have trained themselves to distinguish good from evil.

If that long explanation does not satisfy your fanatical position, then follow it up with the very next chapter! If you do believe that ‘the whole scripture is the word of God’ and is for our edification, then believe what you read;

Hebrews 6

6:1 Therefore let us leave the elementary teachings about Christ and go on to maturity, not laying again the foundation of repentance from acts that lead to death, and of faith in God,

2 instruction about baptisms, the laying on of hands, the resurrection of the dead, and eternal judgment.

3 And God permitting, we will do so.

4 It is impossible for those who have once been enlightened, who have tasted the heavenly gift, who have shared in the Holy Spirit,

5 who have tasted the goodness of the word of God and the powers of the coming age,

6 if they fall away, to be brought back to repentance, because to their loss they are crucifying the Son of God all over again and subjecting him to public disgrace.

7 Land that drinks in the rain often falling on it and that produces a crop useful to those for whom it is farmed receives the blessing of God.

8 But land that produces thorns and thistles is worthless and is in danger of being cursed. In the end it will be burned.

9 Even though we speak like this, dear friends, we are confident of better things in your case-things that accompany salvation.

10 God is not unjust; he will not forget your work and the love you have shown him as you have helped his people and continue to help them.

11 We want each of you to show this same diligence to the very end, in order to make your hope sure.

12 We do not want you to become lazy, but to imitate those who through faith and patience inherit what has been promised.

13 When God made his promise to Abraham, since there was no one greater for him to swear by, he swore by himself,

14 saying, "I will surely bless you and give you many descendants”.

15 And so after waiting patiently, Abraham received what was promised.

16 Men swear by someone greater than themselves, and the oath confirms what is said and puts an end to all argument.

17 Because God wanted to make the unchanging nature of his purpose very clear to the heirs of what was promised, he confirmed it with an oath.

18 God did this so that, by two unchangeable things in which it is impossible for God to lie, we who have fled to take hold of the hope offered to us may be greatly encouraged.

19 We have this hope as an anchor for the soul, firm and secure. It enters the inner sanctuary behind the curtain,

20 where Jesus, who went before us, has entered on our behalf. He has become a high priest forever, in the order of Melchizedek.

It is reported that Solomon was also adopted by the Most High. Go back and read all about his choice by the Almighty as the one to build him a temple. Many other prophets of old had performed miracles that equalled those of Jesus yet they did not earn the title, the Messiah or ‘Christ’; so it is left for us to decipher what made Jesus so exceptional that he was the only one fit to be adopted by the Father as; ‘This is my Beloved Son in whom I am well pleased, hear you him’. Revisit the miracles of Elijah or Elisha;

2 Kings 4

4:1 The wife of a man from the company of the prophets cried out to Elisha, "Your servant my husband is dead, and you know that he revered the LORD. But now his creditor is coming to take my two boys as his slaves."

2 Elisha replied to her, "How can I help you? Tell me, what do you have in your house?" "Your servant has nothing there at all," she said, "except a little oil."

3 Elisha said, "Go round and ask all your neighbours for empty jars. Don't ask for just a few.

4 Then go inside and shut the door behind you and your sons. Pour oil into all the jars, and as each is filled, put it to one side."

5 She left him and afterwards shut the door behind her and her sons. They brought the jars to her and she kept pouring.

6 When all the jars were full, she said to her son, "Bring me another one." But he replied, "There is not a jar left." Then the oil stopped flowing.

7 She went and told the man of God, and he said, "Go, sell the oil and pay your debts. You and your sons can live on what is left."

8 One day Elisha went to Shunem. And a well-to-do woman was there, who urged him to stay for a meal. So whenever he came by, he stopped there to eat.

9 She said to her husband, "I know that this man who often comes our way is a holy man of God.

10 Let's make a small room on the roof and put in it a bed and a table, a chair and a lamp for him. Then he can stay there whenever he comes to us."

11 One day when Elisha came, he went up to his room and lay down there.

12 He said to his servant Gehazi, "Call the Shunammite." So he called her, and she stood before him.

13 Elisha said to him, "Tell her, 'You have gone to all this trouble for us. Now what can be done for you? Can we speak on your behalf to the king or the commander of the army?'" She replied, "I have a home among my own people."

14 "What can be done for her?" Elisha asked. Gehazi said, "Well, she has no son and her husband is old."

15 Then Elisha said, "Call her." So he called her, and she stood in the doorway.

16 "About this time next year," Elisha said, "you will hold a son in your arms." "No, my lord," she objected. "Don't mislead your servant, O man of God!"

17 But the woman became pregnant, and the next year about that same time she gave birth to a son, just as Elisha had told her.

18 The child grew, and one day he went out to his father, who was with the reapers.

19 "My head! My head!" he said to his father. His father told a servant, "Carry him to his mother."

20 After the servant had lifted him up and carried him to his mother, the boy sat on her lap until noon, and then he died.

21 She went up and laid him on the bed of the man of God, then shut the door and went out.

22 She called her husband and said, "Please send me one of the servants and a donkey so I can go to the man of God quickly and return."

23 "Why go to him today?" he asked. "It's not the New Moon or the Sabbath." "It's all right," she said.

24 She saddled the donkey and said to her servant, "Lead on; don't slow down for me unless I tell you."

25 So she set out and came to the man of God at Mount Carmel. When he saw her in the distance, the man of God said to his servant Gehazi, "Look! There's the Shunammite!

26 Run to meet her and ask her, 'Are you all right? Is your husband all right? Is your child all right?'" "Everything is all right," she said.

27 When she reached the man of God at the mountain, she took hold of his feet. Gehazi came over to push her away, but the man of God said, "Leave her alone! She is in bitter distress, but the LORD has hidden it from me and has not told me why."

28 "Did I ask you for a son, my lord?" she said. "Didn't I tell you, 'Don't raise my hopes'?"

29 Elisha said to Gehazi, "Tuck your cloak into your belt, take my staff in your hand and run. If you meet anyone, do not greet him, and if anyone greets you, do not answer. Lay my staff on the boy's face."

30 But the child's mother said, "As surely as the LORD lives and as you live, I will not leave you." So he got up and followed her.

31 Gehazi went on ahead and laid the staff on the boy's face, but there was no sound or response. So Gehazi went back to meet Elisha and told him, "The boy has not awakened."

32 When Elisha reached the house, there was the boy lying dead on his couch.

33 He went in, shut the door on the two of them and prayed to the LORD.

34 Then he got on the bed and lay upon the boy, mouth to mouth, eyes to eyes, hands to hands. As he stretched himself out upon him, the boy's body grew warm.

35 Elisha turned away and walked back and forth in the room and then got onto the bed and stretched out upon him once more. The boy sneezed seven times and opened his eyes.

36 Elisha summoned Gehazi and said, "Call the Shunammite." And he did. When she came, he said, "Take your son."

37 She came in, fell at his feet and bowed to the ground. Then she took her son and went out.

38 Elisha returned to Gilgal and there was a famine in that region. While the company of the prophets was meeting with him, he said to his servant, "Put on the large pot and cook some stew for these men."

……………………………………………………………………………………………..

42 A man came from Baal Shalishah, bringing the man of God twenty loaves of barley bread baked from the first ripe corn, along with some ears of new corn. "Give it to the people to eat," Elisha said.

43 "How can I set this before a hundred men?" his servant asked. But Elisha answered, "Give it to the people to eat. For this is what the LORD says: 'They will eat and have some left over.'"

44 Then he set it before them, and they ate and had some left over, according to the word of the LORD.

My people in the Republic of Biafra, who are definitely ‘primus inter pares’ in Sub-Saharan Africa say; ‘anwuna ngwo na nkwu n’abia’ literally meaning; ‘Don’t drink raffia wine whereas you know that palm wine is on the way’! Again we say; ‘Mmadu adighi ahapu ebe ana echi ozo, gaba ebe a na aru agwu.’ This one rationalises that ‘One does not leave where the ‘ozo’ festivity is on, only to settle for a local ritual; ‘ebe a na aru agwu’! Guess why? There is more to eat and drink in the former!

Chapter 2

OTHERS WHO COULD HAVE EARNED THE TITLE

The birth of Jesus was not the only one announced by an angel of god nor was it even as miraculous as so many others where the Most High showed his omnipotent power or demonstrated his authority over human affairs!

The birth of Isaac was miraculous, his conception coming at the age of 90 for a barren woman. That of Samson was so nearly like that of Jesus except that his mother was very old whereas the mother of Jesus was a very young girl. Again, the mother of Samuel slept, wept and prayed in the temple for years before his birth. A promise of dedicating the child for the service of the temple was even entered into before his miraculous birth!

The best evidence that Jesus earned the title; ‘Son of god’ is borne out by the unabridged narrative in Chapter 12 of St John’s gospel, acclaimed as ‘the beloved apostle’ and ‘brother of Jesus, the Christ’ at Golgotha;

John 12

12:1 Six days before the Passover, Jesus arrived at Bethany, where Lazarus lived, whom Jesus had raised from the dead.

2 Here a dinner was given in Jesus' honor. Martha served, while Lazarus was among those reclining at the table with him.

3 Then Mary took about a pint of pure nard, an expensive perfume; she poured it on Jesus' feet and wiped his feet with her hair. And, the house was filled with the fragrance of the perfume.

4 But one of his disciples, Judas Iscariot, who was later to betray him, objected,

5 "Why wasn't this perfume sold and the money given to the poor? It was worth a year's wages."

6 He did not say this because he cared about the poor but because he was a thief; as keeper of the money bag, he used to help himself to what was put into it.

7 "Leave her alone," Jesus replied. "[It was intended] that she should save this perfume for the day of my burial.

8 You will always have the poor among you, but you will not always have me."

9 Meanwhile a large crowd of Jews found out that Jesus was there and came, not only because of him but also to see Lazarus, whom he had raised from the dead.

10 So the chief priests made plans to kill Lazarus as well,

11 for on account of him many of the Jews were going over to Jesus and putting their faith in him.

12 The next day the great crowd that had come for the Feast heard that Jesus was on his way to Jerusalem.

13 They took palm branches and went out to meet him, shouting,

"Hosanna!"

"Blessed is he who comes in the name of the Lord!"

"Blessed is the King of Israel!"

14 Jesus found a young donkey and sat upon it, as it is written,

15 "Do not be afraid, O Daughter of Zion; see, your king is coming, seated on a donkey's colt."

16 At first, his disciples did not understand all this. Only after Jesus was glorified, did they realize that these things had been written about him and that they had done these things to him.

17 Now the crowd that was with him when he called Lazarus from the tomb and raised him from the dead continued to spread the word.

18 Many people, because they had heard that he had given this miraculous sign, went out to meet him.

19 So the Pharisees said to one another, "See, this is getting us nowhere. Look how the whole world has gone after him!"

20 Now, there were some Greeks among those who went up to worship at the Feast.

21 They came to Philip, who was from Bethsaida in Galilee, with a request. "Sir," they said, "we would like to see Jesus."

22 Philip went to tell Andrew; Andrew and Philip in turn told Jesus.

23 Jesus replied, "The hour has come for the Son of Man to be glorified.

24 I tell you the truth, unless a kernel of wheat falls to the ground and dies, it remains only a single seed. But, if it dies, it produces many seeds.

25 The man who loves his life will lose it, while the man who hates his life in this world will keep it for eternal life.

26 Whoever serves me must follow me; and where I am, my servant will be. My Father will honor the one who serves me.

27 "Now my heart is troubled, and what shall I say? ‘Father, save me from this hour'? No, it was for this very reason I came to this hour.

28 Father, glorify your name!"

Then a voice came from heaven, "I have glorified it, and will glorify it again”.

29 The crowd that was there and heard it said it had thundered; others said an angel had spoken to him.

30 Jesus said, "This voice was for your benefit, not mine.

31 Now is the time for judgment on this world; now the prince of this world will be driven out.

32 But I, when I am lifted up from the earth, will draw all men to myself."

33 He said this to show the kind of death he was going to die.

34 The crowd spoke up, "We have heard from the Law that the Christ will remain forever, so how can you say, 'The Son of Man must be lifted up'? Who is this 'Son of Man'?"

35 Then Jesus told them, "You are going to have the light just a little while longer. Walk while you have the light, before darkness overtakes you. The man who walks in the dark does not know where he is going.

36 Put your trust in the light while you have it, so that you may become sons of light." When he had finished speaking, Jesus left and hid himself from them.

37 Even after Jesus had done all these miraculous signs in their presence, they still would not believe in him.

38 This was to fulfil the word of Isaiah the prophet:

"Lord, who has believed our message and to whom has the arm of the Lord been revealed?"

39 For this reason they could not believe, because, as Isaiah says elsewhere:

40 "He has blinded their eyes and deadened their hearts, so they can neither see with their eyes, nor understand with their hearts, nor turn-and I would heal them."

41 Isaiah said this because he saw Jesus' glory and spoke about him.

42 Yet at the same time many even among the leaders believed in him. But because of the Pharisees they would not confess their faith for fear they would be put out of the synagogue;

43 for they loved praise from men more than praise from God.

44 Then Jesus cried out, "When a man believes in me, he does not believe in me only, but in the one who sent me.

45 When he looks at me, he sees the one who sent me.

46 I have come into the world as a light, so that no one who believes in me should stay in darkness.

47 "As for the person who hears my words but does not keep them, I do not judge him. For I did not come to judge the world, but to save it.

48 There is a judge for the one who rejects me and does not accept my words; that very word, which I spoke, will condemn him at the last day.

49 For I did not speak of my own accord, but the Father who sent me commanded me what to say and how to say it.

50 I know that his command leads to eternal life. So whatever I say is just what the Father has told me to say."

The writer of the Epistle to the Hebrews, who was not an eyewitness of the events that occurred during his ministry, recognised that Jesus was only the ‘Son of God’, but not ‘God, the Son’ as the dogma of Trinity insists!

Heb 4:13-16

13 Nothing in all creation is hidden from God's sight. Everything is uncovered and laid bare before the eyes of him to whom we must give account.

14 Therefore, since we have a great high priest who has gone through the heavens, Jesus the Son of God, let us hold firmly to the faith we profess.

15 For we do not have a high priest who is unable to sympathise with our weaknesses, but we have one who has been tempted in every way, just as we are-- yet was without sin.

16 Let us then approach the throne of grace with confidence, so that we may receive mercy and find grace to help us in our time of need.

So many fanatical titles have been manufactured by Roman theologians that have led Christendom into idolatry thereby breaking the first three commandments given to Moses, the Patriarch on Mount Sinai! We must repent for the disservice we have done to ourselves and posterity!

Even Patriarch King David, many centuries before the birth of Jesus, the Christ, was permitted to predict the relationship between Jesus and God, the Father:

Psalm 2:7-12

7 I will proclaim the decree of the LORD: He said to me, "You are my Son; today I have become your Father.

8 Ask of me, and I will make the nations your inheritance, the ends of the earth your possession.

9 You will rule them with an iron sceptre; you will dash them to pieces like pottery."

10 Therefore, you kings, be wise; be warned, you rulers of the earth.

11 Serve the LORD with fear and rejoice with trembling.

12 Kiss the Son, lest he be angry and you be destroyed in your way, for his wrath can flare up in a moment. Blessed are all who take refuge in him.

Even he commoners knew that Jesus was only a great prophet in the mould of Elijah or Elisha. They had attempted crowning before. Later after raising Lazarus from the dead after four days decay, the crowd did the next best thing; THE TRIUMPHAL ENTRY INTO JERUSALEM and proclaiming him “the Son of David! And singing “Hosanna, blessed is he who comes in the name of God!”

John 6:11-15

11 Jesus then took the loaves, gave thanks, and distributed to those who were seated as much as they wanted. He did the same with the fish.

12 When they had all had enough to eat, he said to his disciples, "Gather the pieces that are left over. Let nothing be wasted."

13 So they gathered them and filled twelve baskets with the pieces of the five barley loaves left over by those who had eaten.

14 After the people saw the miraculous sign that Jesus did, they began to say, "Surely this is the Prophet who is to come into the world”.

15 Jesus, knowing that they intended to come and make him king by force, withdrew again to a mountain by himself.

No Jew dead or alive would ever dream of equating a living person to their Almighty Jehovah. The best they thought of Jesus, “He is a Great Prophet, and God has visited his people”, after he cured the paralytic. Dr Kenez shares the same view. Jesus could be the greatest prophet or even the Son of God BUT he was, is and will never be God! At best, he is the “Word of God”.

Yours sincerely; -------------------Rev. Prof. J. J. Kenez (2006).

Chapter 3

JESUS WAS TRULY ONLY HUMAN WHILE ON EARTH

If genealogy is the science of descent and/or hereditary traits, then the Old Testament prophet was very accurate in his predictions about the family tree of Jesus and the special personality traits he was endowed with. Come over to Isaiah’s magnificent description of Jesus, a son of David;

Isaiah 11:1-11

11:1 A shoot will come up from the stump of Jesse; from his roots a Branch will bear fruit.

2 The Spirit of the LORD will rest on him-- the Spirit of wisdom and of understanding, the Spirit of counsel and of power, the Spirit of knowledge and of the fear of the LORD-

3 and he will delight in the fear of the LORD. He will not judge by what he sees with his eyes, or decide by what he hears with his ears;

4 but with righteousness he will judge the needy, with justice he will give decisions for the poor of the earth. He will strike the earth with the rod of his mouth; with the breath of his lips he will slay the wicked.

5 Righteousness will be his belt and faithfulness the sash round his waist.

6 The wolf will live with the lamb, the leopard will lie down with the goat, the calf and the lion and the yearling together; and a little child will lead them.

7 The cow will feed with the bear, their young will lie down together, and the lion will eat straw like the ox.

8 The infant will play near the hole of the cobra, and the young child put his hand into the viper's nest.

9 They will neither harm nor destroy on all my holy mountain, for the earth will be full of the knowledge of the LORD as the waters cover the sea.

10 In that day the Root of Jesse will stand as a banner for the peoples; the nations will rally to him, and his place of rest will be glorious.

This is the portion of the scripture Jesus used to inaugurate his mission on earth the very first day he was given an opportunity to address the elders if the synagogue!

Luke 4:16-31

16 He went to Nazareth, where he had been brought up, and on the Sabbath day he went into the synagogue, as was his custom. And he stood up to read.

17 The scroll of the prophet Isaiah was handed to him. Unrolling it, he found the place where it is written:

18 "The Spirit of the Lord is on me, because he has anointed me to preach good news to the poor. He has sent me to proclaim freedom for the prisoners and recovery of sight for the blind, to release the oppressed,

19 to proclaim the year of the Lord's favour."

20 Then he rolled up the scroll, gave it back to the attendant and sat down. The eyes of everyone in the synagogue were fastened on him,

21 and he began by saying to them, "Today this scripture is fulfilled in your hearing."

22 All spoke well of him and were amazed at the gracious words that came from his lips. "Isn't this Joseph's son?" they asked.

23 Jesus said to them, "Surely you will quote this proverb to me: 'Physician, heal yourself! Do here in your home town what we have heard that you did in Capernaum.'"

24 "I tell you the truth," he continued, "no prophet is accepted in his home town.

25 I assure you that there were many widows in Israel in Elijah's time, when the sky was shut for three and a half years and there was a severe famine throughout the land.

26 Yet Elijah was not sent to any of them, but to a widow in Zarephath in the region of Sidon.

27 And there were many in Israel with leprosy in the time of Elisha the prophet, yet not one of them was cleansed-- only Naaman the Syrian."

28 All the people in the synagogue were furious when they heard this.

29 They got up, drove him out of the town, and took him to the brow of the hill on which the town was built, in order to throw him down the cliff.

30 But he walked right through the crowd and went on his way.

That Jesus was truly human and could err was aptly demonstrated by his inability to foresee the tricks of the devil all the time, e.g. see his utter neglect or laxity in allowing the devil deceive him once

Matt 8:28-9:1

28 When he arrived at the other side in the region of the Gadarenes, two demon-possessed men coming from the tombs met him. They were so violent that no one could pass that way.

29 "What do you want with us, Son of God?" they shouted. "Have you come here to torture us before the appointed time?"

30 Some distance from them, a large herd of pigs was feeding.

31 The demons begged Jesus, "If you drive us out, send us into the herd of pigs."

32 He said to them, "Go!" So, they came out and went into the pigs, and the whole herd rushed down the steep bank into the lake and died in the water.

33 Those tending the pigs ran off, went into the town and reported all this, including what had happened to the demon-possessed men.

34 Then the whole town went out to meet Jesus. And when they saw him, they pleaded with him to leave their region.

The issue I am raising here s not that Jesus was not a ‘Son of God’ but that his conception was natural from a shoot of the root of Jesse as Isaiah the prophet foretold. This he proclaimed at the onset of his earthly ministry, "Today this scripture is fulfilled in your hearing." In all his statements while here on earth he always referred to himself as ‘son of man’. We do not do him any favour by deifying himself and making him equal to the almighty father in all respects! We must correct this idolatrous custom!

See how the writer of JOHN’S GOSPEL epitomises the spiritual height Jesus attained by faithfully obeying god in everything he did. We can emulate him and realise how easy or hard it is to earn CHRISTHOOD.

CHRIST'S CONSOLATORY DISCOURSE ON THE TRUE VINE

Matthew Henry’s Commentary on the narrative found in John 14:28-31

Christ here gives his disciples another reason why their hearts should not be troubled for his going away; and that is, because his heart was not. And here he tells them what it was that enabled him to endure the cross and despise the shame that they might look unto him, and run with patience. He comforted himself,

I. That, though he went away, he should come again: "You have heard how I have said, and now I say it again, I go away, and come again." Note, What we have heard of the doctrine of Christ, especially concerning his second coming, we have need to be told again and again. When we are under the power of any transport of passion, grief, or fear, or care, we forget that Christ will come again. See Phil 4:5. Christ encouraged himself with this, in his sufferings and death, that he should come again, and the same should comfort us in our departure at death; we go away to come again; the leave we take of our friends at that parting is only a good night, not a final farewell. See 1 Thessalonians 4:13-14.

II. That he went to his Father: "If you loved me, as by your sorrow you say you do, you would rejoice instead of mourning, because, though I leave you, yet I said, I go unto the Father, not only mine, but yours, which will be my advancement and your advantage; for my Father is greater than I." Observe here,

1. It is matter of joy to Christ's disciples that he is gone to the Father, to take possession for orphans, and make intercession for transgressors. His departure had a bright side as well as a dark side. Therefore he sent this message after his resurrection (John 20:17), I ascend to my Father and your Father, as most comfortable.

2. The reason of this is, because the Father is greater than he, which, if it be a proper proof of that for which it is alleged (as no doubt it is), must be understood thus, that his state with his Father would be much more excellent and glorious than his present state; his returning to his Father (so Dr. Hammond) would be the advancing of him to a much higher condition than that which he was now in. Or thus, His going to the Father himself, and bringing all his followers to him there, was the ultimate end of his undertaking, and therefore greater than the means. Thus Christ raises the thoughts and expectations of his disciples to something greater than that in which now they thought all their happiness bound up. The kingdom of the Father, wherein he shall be all in all, will be greater than the mediatorial kingdom.

3. The disciples of Christ should show that they love him by their rejoicing in the glories of his exaltation, rather than by lamenting the sorrows of his humiliation, and rejoicing that he is gone to his Father, where he would be, and where we shall be shortly with him. Many that love Christ, let their love run out in a wrong channel; they think if they love him they must be continually in pain because of him; whereas those that love him should dwell at ease in him, should rejoice in Christ Jesus.

III. That his going away, compared with the prophecies which went before of it, would be a means of confirming the faith of his disciples (v. 29): "I have told you before it come to pass that I must die and rise again, and ascend to the Father, and send the Comforter, that, when it is come to pass, you might believe." See this reason, John 13:19; 16:4. Christ told his disciples of his death, though he knew it would both puzzle them and grieve them, because it would afterwards redound to the confirmation of their faith in two things:-

1. That he who foretold these things had a divine prescience, and knew beforehand what day would bring forth. When St. Paul was going to Jerusalem, he knew not the things that did abide him there, but Christ did.

2. That the things foretold were according to the divine purpose and designation, not sudden resolves, but the counterparts of an eternal counsel. Let them therefore not be troubled at that which would be for the confirmation of their faith, and so would redound to their real benefit; for the trial of our faith is very precious, though it cost us present heaviness, through manifold temptations, 1 Peter 1:6.

IV. That he was sure of a victory over Satan, with whom he knew he was to have a struggle in his departure (v. 30): "Henceforth I will not talk much with you, having not much to say, but what may be adjourned to the pouring out of the Spirit." He had a great deal of good talk with them after this (ch. 15 and 16), but, in comparison with what he had said, it was not much. His time was now short, and he therefore spoke largely to them now, because the opportunity would soon be over. Note, We should always endeavour to talk to the purpose, because perhaps we may not have time to talk much. We know not how soon our breath may be stopped, and therefore should be always breathing something that is good. When we come to be sick and die, perhaps we may not be capable of talking much to those about us; and therefore what good counsel we have to give them, let us give it while we are in health. One reason why he would not talk much with them was because he had now other work to apply himself to: The prince of this world comes. He called the devil the prince of this world, John 12:31. The disciples dreamed of their Master being the prince of this world, and they worldly princes under him. But Christ tells them that the prince of this world was his enemy, and so were the princes of this world, that were actuated and ruled by him, 1 Cor 2:8. But he has nothing in me. Observe here,

1. The prospect Christ had of an approaching conflict, not only with men, but with the powers of darkness. The devil had set upon him with his temptations (Matt 4), had offered him the kingdoms of this world, if he would hold them as tributary to him, with an eye to which Christ calls him, in disdain, the prince of this world. Then the devil departed from him for a season; "But now," says Christ, "I see him rallying again, preparing to make a furious onset, and so to gain by terrors that which he could not gain by allurements;" to frighten from his undertaking, when he could not entice from it. Note, The foresight of a temptation gives us great advantage in our resistance of it; for, being fore-warned, we should be fore-armed. While we are here, we may see Satan continually coming against us, and ought therefore to be always upon our guard.

2. The assurance he had of good success in the conflict: He hath nothing in me, ouk echei ouden-He hath nothing at all.

(1.) There was no guilt in Christ to give authority to the prince of this world in his terrors. The devil is said to have the power of death (Heb 2:14); the Jews called him the angel of death, as an executioner. Now Christ having done no evil, Satan had no legal power against him, and therefore, though he prevailed to crucify him, he could not prevail to terrify him; though he hurried him to death, yet not to despair. When Satan comes to disquiet us, he has something in us to perplex us with, for we have all sinned; but, when he would disturb Christ, he found no occasion against him.

(2.) There was no corruption in Christ, to give advantage to the prince of this world in his temptations. He could not crush his undertaking by drawing him to sin, because there was nothing sinful in him, nothing irregular for his temptations to fasten upon, no tinder for him to strike fire into; such was the spotless purity of his nature that he was above the possibility of sinning. The more Satan's interest in us is crushed and decays, the more comfortably may we expect sufferings and death.

V. That his departure was in compliance with, and obedience to, his Father. Satan could not force his life from him, and yet he would die: that the world may know that I love the Father, v. 31. We may take this,

1. As confirming what he had often said, that his undertaking, as Mediator, was a demonstration to the world,

(1.) Of his compliance with the Father; hereby it appeared that he loved the Father. As it was an evidence of his love to man that he died for his salvation, so it was of his love to God that he died for his glory and the accomplishing of his purposes. Let the world know that between the Father and the Son there is not love lost. As the Father loved the Son, and gave all things into his hands; so the Son loved the Father, and gave his spirit into his hand.

(2.) Of his obedience to his Father: "As the Father gave me commandment, even so I did-did the thing commanded me in the manner commanded." Note, The best evidence of our love to the Father is our doing as he hath given us commandment. As Christ loved the Father, and obeyed him, even to the death, so we must love Christ, and obey him. Christ's eye to the Father's commandment, obliging him to suffer and die, bore him up with cheerfulness, and overcame the reluctances of nature; this took off the offence of the cross, that what he did was by order from the Father. The command of God is sufficient to bear us out in that which is most disputed by others, and therefore should be sufficient to bear us up in that which is most difficult to ourselves: This is the will of him that made me, that sent me.

2. As concluding what he had now said; having brought it to this, here he leaves it: that the world may know that I love the Father. You shall see how cheerfully I can meet the appointed cross: "Arise, let us go hence to the garden;" so some; or, to Jerusalem. When we talk of troubles at a distance, it is easy to say, Lord, I will follow thee whithersoever thou goest; but when it comes to the pinch, when an unavoidable cross lies in the way of duty, then to say, "Arise, let us go to meet it," instead of going out of our way to miss it, this lets the world know that we love the Father. If this discourse was at the close of the Passover-supper, it should seem that at these words he arose from the table, and retired into the drawing-room, where he might the more freely carry on the discourse with his disciples in the following chapters, and pray with them. Dr. Goodwin's remark upon this is, that Christ mentioning the great motive of his sufferings, his Father's commandment, was in all haste to go forth to suffer and die, was afraid of slipping the time of Judas's meeting him: Arise, says he, let us go hence but he looks upon the glass, as it were, sees it not quite out, and therefore sits down again, and preaches another sermon. Now,

(1.) In these words he gives his disciples an encouragement to follow him. He does not say, I must go; but, Let us go. He calls them out to no hardships but what he himself goes before them in as their leader. They had promised they would not desert him: "Come," says he, "let us go then; let us see how you will make the words good."

(2.) He gives them an example, teaching them at all times, especially in suffering times, to sit loose to all things here below, and often to think and speak of leaving them. Though we sit easy, and in the midst of the delights of an agreeable conversation, yet we must not think of being here always: Arise, let us go hence. If it was at the close of the paschal and Eucharistic supper, it teaches us that the solemnities of our communion with God are not to be constant in this world. When we sit down under Christ's shadow with delight, and say, It is good to be here; yet we must think of rising and going hence; going down from the mount.

(From Matthew Henry's Commentary on the Whole Bible:

Chapter 4

JESUS HAD A MANIFESTO AT THE ONSET OF HIS MINISTRY

You must quickly re-read the entire sermon on the mount to appreciate that Jesus also made it clear that no one can easily earn the title he got out of diligence when he gave his greatest homily. Remember to read the versions of Mark, Luke and John. Do a comparative analysis for your edification!

Matthew 5:1-19

5:1 Now when he saw the crowds, he went up on a mountainside and sat down. His disciples came to him,

2 and he began to teach them, saying:

3 "Blessed are the poor in spirit, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.

4 Blessed are those who mourn, for they will be comforted.

5 Blessed are the meek, for they will inherit the earth.

6 Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness, for they will be filled.

7 Blessed are the merciful, for they will be shown mercy.

8 Blessed are the pure in heart, for they will see God.

9 Blessed are the peacemakers, for they will be called sons of God.

10 Blessed are those who are persecuted because of righteousness, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.

11 "Blessed are you when people insult you, persecute you and falsely say all kinds of evil against you because of me.

12 Rejoice and be glad, because great is your reward in heaven, for in the same way they persecuted the prophets who were before you.

13 "You are the salt of the earth. But if the salt loses its saltiness, how can it be made salty again? It is no longer good for anything, except to be thrown out and trampled by men.

14 "You are the light of the world. A city on a hill cannot be hidden.

15 Neither do people light a lamp and put it under a bowl. Instead they put it on its stand, and it gives light to everyone in the house.

16 In the same way, let your light shine before men, that they may see your good deeds and praise your Father in heaven.

As a good teacher, he breaks up the declaration to expatiate on the implications of his manifesto, hence the following elaborative verses;

Matt 5:17-27

17 "Do not think that I have come to abolish the Law or the Prophets; I have not come to abolish them but to fulfil them.

18 I tell you the truth, until heaven and earth disappear, not the smallest letter, not the least stroke of a pen, will by any means disappear from the Law until everything is accomplished.

19 Anyone who breaks one of the least of these commandments and teaches others to do the same will be called least in the kingdom of heaven, but whoever practises and teaches these commands will be called great in the kingdom of heaven.

20 For I tell you that unless your righteousness surpasses that of the Pharisees and the teachers of the law, you will certainly not enter the kingdom of heaven.

21 "You have heard that it was said to the people long ago, 'Do not murder, and anyone who murders will be subject to judgment.'

22 But I tell you that anyone who is angry with his brother will be subject to judgment. Again, anyone who says to his brother, 'Raca,' is answerable to the Sanhedrin. But anyone who says, 'You fool!' will be in danger of the fire of hell.

23 "Therefore, if you are offering your gift at the altar and there remember that your brother has something against you,

24 leave your gift there in front of the altar. First go and be reconciled to your brother; then come and offer your gift.

25 "Settle matters quickly with your adversary who is taking you to court. Do it while you are still with him on the way, or he may hand you over to the judge, and the judge may hand you over to the officer, and you may be thrown into prison.

26 I tell you the truth, you will not get out until you have paid the last penny.

Now, for the avoidance of doubt and to stamp his authority over the old injunctions of Moses, he has these addenda;

Matt 5:33-37

33 "Again, you have heard that it was said to the people long ago, 'Do not break your oath, but keep the oaths you have made to the Lord.'

34 But I tell you, Do not swear at all: either by heaven, for it is God's throne;

35 or by the earth, for it is his footstool; or by Jerusalem, for it is the city of the Great King.

36 And do not swear by your head, for you cannot make even one hair white or black.

37 Simply let your 'Yes' be 'Yes', and your 'No', 'No'; anything beyond this comes from the evil one.

That Jesus prayed hard and sought God’s face before he was given divine wisdom and power to perform miracles is best illustrated by the queries of his kinsmen who were perplexed that an ordinary carpenter could do all those things:

Mark 6:1-6

6:1 Jesus left there and went to his home town, accompanied by his disciples.

2 When the Sabbath came, he began to teach in the synagogue, and many who heard him were amazed. "Where did this man get these things?" they asked. "What's this wisdom that has been given him, that he even does miracles!

3 Isn't this the carpenter? Isn't this Mary's son and the brother of James, Joseph, Judas and Simon? Aren't his sisters here with us?" And they took offence at him.

4 Jesus said to them, "Only in his home town, among his relatives and in his own house is a prophet without honour."

5 He could not do any miracles there, except lay his hands on a few sick people and heal them.

6 And he was amazed at their lack of faith. Then Jesus went round teaching from village to village.

No one has doubted that Jesus was not the son of Mary or that he was the son of a carpenter, a descendant of the line of David. According to Jewish tradition, he had learnt his father’s trade. As the first son, he had to take care of his four junior brothers and three sisters before settling down!

Is it surprising then that like his father he had to slave all his life to save enough money to pay the dowry on any damsel? Was it wrong for Mary of Magdala to fall in love with Jesus? Was Martha not naïve to had ‘left the most important thing to serve tables’ while her elder sister edged her out of the competition to win his hand in marriage?

Jesus was only getting to the ripe age of marriage by Jewish customs when he was arrested and murdered for putting the most sought after rich lady in the entire Palestine. Some have argued that his rivals over securing the attention of the amorous Mary of Magdala were he real plotters of his death rather than the Sanhedrin.

He underestimated what the descendant of Satan through Cain could do to thwart his ministry. They just bided their time and struck when he exhausted his miraculous powers raising his would-be in-law from the dead after four days. He underrated his real adversaries!

John 20:1-18

20:1 Early on the first day of the week, while it was still dark, Mary Magdalene went to the tomb and saw that the stone had been removed from the entrance.

2 So she came running to Simon Peter and the other disciple, the one Jesus loved, and said, "They have taken the Lord out of the tomb, and we don't know where they have put him!"

3 So Peter and the other disciple started for the tomb.

4 Both were running, but the other disciple outran Peter and reached the tomb first.

5 He bent over and looked in at the strips of linen lying there but did not go in.

6 Then Simon Peter, who was behind him, arrived and went into the tomb. He saw the strips of linen lying there,

7 as well as the burial cloth that had been around Jesus' head. The cloth was folded up by itself, separate from the linen.

8 Finally the other disciple, who had reached the tomb first, also went inside. He saw and believed.

9(They still did not understand from Scripture that Jesus had to rise from the dead.)

10 Then the disciples went back to their homes,

11 but Mary stood outside the tomb crying. As she wept, she bent over to look into the tomb

12 and saw two angels in white, seated where Jesus' body had been, one at the head and the other at the foot.

13 They asked her, "Woman, why are you crying?" "They have taken my Lord away," she said, "and I don't know where they have put him."

14 At this, she turned round and saw Jesus standing there, but she did not realise that it was Jesus.

15 "Woman," he said, "why are you crying? Who is it you are looking for?" Thinking he was the gardener, she said, "Sir, if you have carried him away, tell me where you have put him, and I will get him."

16 Jesus said to her, "Mary." She turned towards him and cried out in Aramaic, "Rabboni!" (which means Teacher).

17 Jesus said, "Do not hold on to me, for I have not yet returned to the Father. Go instead to my brothers and tell them, 'I am returning to my Father and your Father, to my God and your God.'"

18 Mary Magdalene went to the disciples with the news: "I have seen the Lord!" And she told them that he had said these things to her.

Verses 11 – 17 supports the school of thought that propounds that Jesus was formally engaged to Mary before his arrest and crucifixion. Analyse the prohibiting sentence in verse 17 and you will realise that she had always embraced her lord, the normal way wives greet their husbands when overwhelmed by such strong emotions as palpable fear, grief over a dead child, reunion after a quarrel, and now this ‘lost & found’ situation! Jesus was only human and if the scriptures could permit “Jesus loved Martha, Mary and Lazarus” to be retained in all the versions of the Christian Bible, we have enough reason o believe that he was truly human and had every right to fall in love with a woman who lavished the costliest oil on his head , washed his feet with her repentant tears and wiped them with her hairs!

Let us stop the buffoonery of thinking we are paying the Lord much respect or protecting his divinity by lying about his true human qualities that confirm that he was only human. In one vein, theologians would want to prove his humanity by pointing out that he wept at Lazarus graveyard. That is normal if your would-be in-law, the only surviving male that would give away the bride on her wedding day died some weeks to your proposed wedding!

The same theologians, would later turn around to state that Jesus could not marry because he was not an ordinary man! He would, they imply by so doing, need a woman half- divine and half-human to qualify for such a marriage! This is a diatribe! If the cap fits, let us be man enough to tell the truth, the whole truth and nothing but the truth! We shall shame the devil by so doing! That is my point of view!

That Jesus was just human is clearly demonstrated by his conversation both with the woman of Samaria at Jacob’s well and that of the Saprophynecian woman, which fully brought out the ethnocentric bias he lived as a true breed of the Jewish race:

Mark 7:24-31

24 Jesus left that place and went to the vicinity of Tyre. He entered a house and did not want anyone to know it; yet he could not keep his presence secret.

25 In fact, as soon as she heard about him, a woman whose little daughter was possessed by an evil spirit came and fell at his feet.

26 The woman was a Greek, born in Syrian Phoenicia. She begged Jesus to drive the demon out of her daughter.

27 "First let the children eat all they want," he told her, "for it is not right to take the children's bread and toss it to their dogs."

28 "Yes, Lord," she replied, "but even the dogs under the table eat the children's crumbs."

29 Then he told her, "For such a reply, you may go; the demon has left your daughter."

30 She went home and found her child lying on the bed, and the demon gone.

Is it not interesting to observe that Jesus before his death on the cross saw his mission as exclusively for the ‘Lost Children of Israel’? Jesus was only being human by reserving for his ethnic group the power of miracles as Moses, Joshua, Elijah and other OT prophets did! To avoid any untoward misunderstandings that Kenezianism is anti-Semitic, let us first of all consult ‘The Wycliffe Bible Commentary’ before I make my own remarks that may be branded rebellious or un-Christian!

“C. WITHDRAWAL TO THE REGION OF TYRE AND SIDON. 7:24-30.

In this brief section Mark reports a rather lengthy journey of Christ to the region of Phoenicia, where the incident with the Syrophoenican woman occurred.

Mark 7:24-25

And from thence he arose, and went into the borders of Tyre and Sidon, and entered into an house, and would have no man know it: but he could not be hid.

The borders of Tyre and Sidon. An idiomatic expression for the region of Tyre and Sidon. This was the only time, so far as the record goes, when Christ went out of Palestine into strictly Gentile territory. His purpose on these tours outside Galilee was not primarily to minister to the multitudes, but to instruct his disciples, which is the reason why he would have no man know that he was there.

Mark 7:26

The woman was a Greek, a Syrophenician by nation; and she besought him that he would cast forth the devil out of her daughter.

A Greek. This is the same as identifying the woman as a Gentile. By birth she was a Syrian of the region of Phoenicia. She besought him. Mark's use of the Greek imperfect tense pictures the repeated request of the woman. Devil. Should be translated demon.

Mark 7:27

But Jesus said unto her, Let the children first be filled: for it is not meet to take the children's bread, and to cast it unto the dogs.

Jesus used the term children to represent the Jews. His mission was first to the Jews in order that they might, in turn, fulfill their duty of becoming a blessing to all nations through the world-wide proclamation of the Gospel. The dogs. This was a common Jewish term of reproach applied to Gentiles. However, it is softened by the use of the diminutive form meaning "little dogs" or "puppies." These were the family pets, not the wild dogs of the street.

Mark 7:28

And she answered and said unto him, Yes, Lord: yet the dogs under the table eat of the children's crumbs.

The woman's undaunted reply was the response of faith. The dogs under the table. Taking up Christ's diminutive term for dogs, she paints a touching scene of the puppies licking up the crumbs dropped by the children. All she asked was a crumb of the blessings available to the Jews.

Mark 7:29-30

And he said unto her, For this saying go thy way; the devil is gone out of thy daughter.

Jesus recognized in this saying of the woman the evidence of genuine faith (cf. Matt 15:28). Already as He spoke the demon had left (Gr. perf. tense) her daughter. The unique feature of this miracle was that it was performed at a distance without any vocal command of Christ.

Do I really need to defend the Master? No, let us hear him out:

Now see the testimony of Jesus himself before his crucifixion:

Matt 20:17-19

17 Now as Jesus was going up to Jerusalem, he took the twelve disciples aside and said to them,

18 "We are going up to Jerusalem, and the Son of Man will be betrayed to the chief priests and the teachers of the law. They will condemn him to death

19 and will turn him over to the Gentiles to be mocked and flogged and crucified. On the third day he will be raised to life!"

“On the third day he will be raised to life!” Does that suggest omnipotence? Of course it does not! So, where did Paul get his version of ‘he rose from the dead’ which has been the most misleading phrase in Christendom? We must not put words into the mouth of Jesus, who was so humble and meek that he severally referred to himself simply as; ‘the son of man’ Saul of Tarsus, was over-reacting to the blinding light experience on the road to Damascus. We cannot allow his psychological problems delude us into ascribing to the Saviour, titles that he rejected while on earth!

It is high time we told the average Christian, the whole truth about Jesus! He was nor born a “Messiah”, rather he worked to merit it! He earned it! Whereas Joseph, Moses, Samson, Saul, David and Solomon failed to earn it, he obeyed God so well in all things that he was adopted a his baptism and confirmed at the transfiguration! We do not do him any favour by deifying him when he resisted anyone calling ‘Good Master’ as did the righteous rich man he told to go sell all you have and come follow me.' Have we so quickly forgotten that he even rejected earthly titles. Remember he escaped when the crowd wanted to make king by force shortly after he fed them with five loaves of bread and two fishes! And now the final proof that Jesus is not God is his own testimony;

Matt 20:20-23

20 Then the mother of Zebedee's sons came to Jesus with her sons and, kneeling down, asked a favour of him.

21 "What is it you want?" he asked. She said, "Grant that one of these two sons of mine may sit at your right and the other at your left in your kingdom."

22 "You don't know what you are asking," Jesus said to them. "Can you drink the cup I am going to drink?" "We can," they answered.

23 Jesus said to them, "You will indeed drink from my cup, but to sit at my right or left is not for me to grant. These places belong to those for whom they have been prepared by my Father."

Finally, Simon Peter ends the speculation in very clear terms that only eye witnesses of the Transfiguration on the mountain could ever or can give:

2 Peter 1:16-21

16 We did not follow cleverly invented stories when we told you about the power and coming of our Lord Jesus Christ, but we were eye-witnesses of his majesty.

17 For he received honour and glory from God the Father when the voice came to him from the Majestic Glory, saying, "This is my Son, whom I love; with him I am well pleased."

18 We ourselves heard this voice that came from heaven when we were with him on the sacred mountain.

19 And we have the word of the prophets made more certain, and you will do well to pay attention to it, as to a light shining in a dark place, until the day dawns and the morning star rises in your hearts.

20 Above all, you must understand that no prophecy of Scripture came about by the prophet's own interpretation.

21 For prophecy never had its origin in the will of man, but men spoke from God as they were carried along by the Holy Spirit.

We are damn lucky that Saul of Tarsus, later christened Paul, who was responsible for the deification of Jesus of Nazareth corrected himself in the letter to the Corinthians:

1 Cor 15:17-28

17 And if Christ has not been raised, your faith is futile; you are still in your sins.

18 Then those also who have fallen asleep in Christ are lost.

19 If only for this life we have hope in Christ, we are to be pitied more than all men.

20 But Christ has indeed been raised from the dead, the first fruits of those who have fallen asleep.

21 For since death came through a man, the resurrection of the dead comes also through a man.

22 For as in Adam all die, so in Christ all will be made alive.

23 But each in his own turn: Christ, the first fruits; then, when he comes, those who belong to him.

24 Then the end will come, when he hands over the kingdom to God the Father after he has destroyed all dominion, authority and power.

25 For he must reign until he has put all his enemies under his feet.

26 The last enemy to be destroyed is death.

27 For he "has put everything under his feet". Now when it says that "everything" has been put under him, it is clear that this does not include God himself, who put everything under Christ.

28 When he has done this, then the Son himself will be made subject to him who put everything under him, so that God may be all in all.

This is the title that Jesus would have earned if his enemies had allowed him ten more years on earth. However, they didn’t. They crucified him before he could fulfil all that Isaiah, the prophet, had predicted about him:

Isa 9:1-8

9:1 Nevertheless, there will be no more gloom for those who were in distress. In the past he humbled the land of Zebulun and the land of Naphtali, but in the future he will honour Galilee of the Gentiles, by the way of the sea, along the Jordan--

2 The people walking in darkness have seen a great light; on those living in the land of the shadow of death a light has dawned.

3 You have enlarged the nation and increased their joy; they rejoice before you as people rejoice at the harvest, as men rejoice when dividing the plunder.

4 For as in the day of Midian's defeat, you have shattered the yoke that burdens them, the bar across their shoulders, the rod of their oppressor.

5 Every warrior's boot used in battle and every garment rolled in blood will be destined for burning, will be fuel for the fire.

6 For to us a child is born, to us a son is given, and the government will be on his shoulders. And he will be called Wonderful Counsellor, Mighty God, Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace.

7 Of the increase of his government and peace there will be no end. He will reign on David's throne and over his kingdom, establishing and upholding it with justice and righteousness from that time on and for ever. The zeal of the LORD Almighty will accomplish this.

Jesus had barely accomplished the predictions in verses 1 & 2 when his adversaries struck. He hadn’t the time he needed to accomplish the rest of this prophecy! He never sat on the throne of David. He had not expanded the boundaries of Israel as suggested in verse 3, nor did he establish or uphold justice and righteousness “from that time on and for ever” as verse 7 predicted! In short, Jesus was cut off in his prime and so did not accomplish his mission on earth. He died at the age of 33 years! However, his spiritual kingdom was founded for ever!

Note also that even Daniel, the renowned prophet in exile had similar predictions on the throne that would be given to ‘the Son of Man’;

Dan 7: 2-23

2 Daniel spoke, saying, "I saw in my vision by night, and behold, the four winds of heaven were stirring up the Great Sea.

3 And four great beasts came up from the sea, each different from the other.

4 The first was like a lion, and had eagle's wings. I watched till its wings were plucked off; and it was lifted up from the earth and made to stand on two feet like a man, and a man's heart was given to it.

5 And suddenly another beast, a second, like a bear. It was raised up on one side, and had three ribs in its mouth between its teeth. And they said thus to it: 'Arise, devour much flesh!'

6 "After this I looked, and there was another, like a leopard, which had on its back four wings of a bird. The beast also had four heads, and dominion was given to it.

7 After this I saw in the night visions, and behold, a fourth beast, dreadful and terrible, exceedingly strong. It had huge iron teeth; it was devouring, breaking in pieces, and trampling the residue with its feet. It was different from all the beasts that were before it, and it had ten horns.

8 I was considering the horns, and there was another horn, a little one, coming up among them, before whom three of the first horns were plucked out by the roots. And there, in this horn, were eyes like the eyes of a man, and a mouth speaking pompous words.

9 "I watched till thrones were put in place, and the Ancient of Days was seated; His garment was white as snow, and the hair of His head was like pure wool. His throne was a fiery flame, its wheels a burning fire;

10 A fiery stream issued and came forth from before Him. A thousand thousands ministered to Him; Ten thousand times ten thousand stood before Him. The court was seated, and the books were opened.

11 "I watched then because of the sound of the pompous words which the horn was speaking; I watched till the beast was slain, and its body destroyed and given to the burning flame.

12 As for the rest of the beasts, they had their dominion taken away, yet their lives were prolonged for a season and a time.

13 "I was watching in the night visions, And behold, one like the Son of Man, Coming with the clouds of heaven! He came to the Ancient of Days, and they brought Him near before Him.

14 Then to Him was given dominion and glory and a kingdom that all peoples, nations, and languages should serve Him. His dominion is an everlasting dominion, which shall not pass away, And His kingdom the one which shall not be destroyed.

15 "I, Daniel, was grieved in my spirit within my body, and the visions of my head troubled me.

16 I came near to one of those who stood by, and asked him the truth of all this. So he told me and made known to me the interpretation of these things:

17'Those great beasts, which are four, are four kings which arise out of the earth.

18 But the saints of the Most High shall receive the kingdom, and possess the kingdom forever, even forever and ever.'

19 "Then I wished to know the truth about the fourth beast, which was different from all the others, exceedingly dreadful, with its teeth of iron and its nails of bronze, which devoured, broke in pieces, and trampled the residue with its feet;

20 and the ten horns that were on its head, and the other horn which came up, before which three fell, namely, that horn which had eyes and a mouth which spoke pompous words, whose appearance was greater than his fellows.

21 I was watching; and the same horn was making war against the saints, and prevailing against them,

22 until the Ancient of Days came, and a judgment was made in favour of the saints of the Most High, and the time came for the saints to possess the kingdom.

New King James Version

Daniel’s dreams and their interpretations have been a study many theologians and psychologists for decades. Could all his interpretations be taken as ‘gospel-truths’? We need to observe also that whoever wrote the Book of revelations copied verbatim portions of Daniel’s dreams and his interpretations!

Note, also that the onset of the fulfilment of Isaiah’s prophecies on Jesus went well until it was aborted by his early crucifixion. Elton John, today, would have sung thus: “…when like a candle in the wind, his innocent life and mission was snuffed out”. Again, refresh your mind with the Angel Gabriel’s message to the virgin mother:

Luke 1:26-37

26 In the sixth month, God sent the angel Gabriel to Nazareth, a town in Galilee,

27 to a virgin pledged to be married to a man named Joseph, a descendant of David. The virgin's name was Mary.

28 The angel went to her and said, "Greetings, you who are highly favoured! The Lord is with you."

29 Mary was greatly troubled at his words and wondered what kind of greeting this might be.

30 But the angel said to her, "Do not be afraid, Mary, you have found favour with God.

31 You will be with child and give birth to a son, and you are to give him the name Jesus.

32 He will be great and will be called the Son of the Most High. The Lord God will give him the throne of his father David,

33 and he will reign over the house of Jacob for ever; his kingdom will never end."

34 "How will this be," Mary asked the angel, "since I am a virgin?"

35 The angel answered, "The Holy Spirit will come upon you, and the power of the Most High will overshadow you. So the holy one to be born will be called the Son of God.

36 Even Elizabeth your relative is going to have a child in her old age, and she who was said to be barren is in her sixth month.

37 For nothing is impossible with God."

Whereas verse 31 was fulfilled to the letter, verses 32 & 33 were never fulfilled before his crucifixion? May be given another twenty years, Jesus would have accomplished all that were prophesied about him! But, Lucifer, the master tactician and prince of the underworld struck before the rest of the prophetic words of even an angel could materialise! The final proof that Jesus earned his title was his deliberate choice of scripture passages to drive home the point that he was destined for a great mission but that he had earned it through dint of hard work and remaining focussed all the time to the prophecies concerning his life;

Matthew 22

22:1 Jesus spoke to them again in parables, saying:

2 "The kingdom of heaven is like a king who prepared a wedding banquet for his son.

3 He sent his servants to those who had been invited to the banquet to tell them to come, but they refused to come.

4 "Then he sent some more servants and said, 'Tell those who have been invited that I have prepared my dinner: My oxen and fattened cattle have been slaughtered, and everything is ready. Come to the wedding banquet.'

5 "But they paid no attention and went off-- one to his field, another to his business.

6 The rest seized his servants, ill-treated them and killed them.

7 The king was enraged. He sent his army and destroyed those murderers and burned their city.

8 "Then he said to his servants, 'The wedding banquet is ready, but those I invited did not deserve to come.

9 Go to the street corners and invite to the banquet anyone you find.'

10 So the servants went out into the streets and gathered all the people they could find, both good and bad, and the wedding hall was filled with guests.

11 "But when the king came in to see the guests, he noticed a man there who was not wearing wedding clothes.

12'Friend,' he asked, 'how did you get in here without wedding clothes?' The man was speechless.

13 "Then the king told the attendants, 'Tie him hand and foot, and throw him outside, into the darkness, where there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth.'

14 "For many are invited, but few are chosen."

15 Then the Pharisees went out and laid plans to trap him in his words.

16 They sent their disciples to him along with the Herodians. "Teacher," they said, "we know you are a man of integrity and that you teach the way of God in accordance with the truth. You aren't swayed by men, because you pay no attention to who they are.

17 Tell us then, what is your opinion? Is it right to pay taxes to Caesar or not?"

18 But Jesus, knowing their evil intent, said, "You hypocrites, why are you trying to trap me?

19 Show me the coin used for paying the tax." They brought him a denarius,

20 and he asked them, "Whose portrait is this? And whose inscription?"

21 "Caesar's," they replied. Then he said to them, "Give to Caesar what is Caesar's, and to God what is God's."

22 When they heard this, they were amazed. So they left him and went away.

23 That same day the Sadducees, who say there is no resurrection, came to him with a question.

24 "Teacher," they said, "Moses told us that if a man dies without having children, his brother must marry the widow and have children for him.

25 Now there were seven brothers among us. The first one married and died, and since he had no children, he left his wife to his brother.

26 The same thing happened to the second and third brother, right on down to the seventh.

27 Finally, the woman died.

28 Now then, at the resurrection, whose wife will she be of the seven, since all of them were married to her?"

29 Jesus replied, "You are in error because you do not know the Scriptures or the power of God.

30 At the resurrection people will neither marry nor be given in marriage; they will be like the angels in heaven.

31 But about the resurrection of the dead-- have you not read what God said to you,

32'I am the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob'? He is not the God of the dead but of the living."

33 When the crowds heard this, they were astonished at his teaching.

34 Hearing that Jesus had silenced the Sadducees, the Pharisees got together.

35 One of them, an expert in the law, tested him with this question:

36 "Teacher, which is the greatest commandment in the Law?"

37 Jesus replied: "'Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind.'

38 This is the first and greatest commandment.

39 And the second is like it: 'Love your neighbour as yourself.'

40 All the Law and the Prophets hang on these two commandments."

41 While the Pharisees were gathered together, Jesus asked them,

42 "What do you think about the Christ? Whose son is he?" "The son of David," they replied.

43 He said to them, "How is it then that David, speaking by the Spirit, calls him 'Lord'? For he says,

44 "'The Lord said to my Lord: "Sit at my right hand until I put your enemies under your feet."'

45 If then David calls him 'Lord', how can he be his son?"

46 No-one could say a word in reply, and from that day on no-one dared to ask him any more questions.

Surely, only an educated man could defeat the two groups in his community that were recognised and dreaded for their wisdom.

That Jesus never claimed divinity while on earth is confirmed by

his own very words about his second coming to judge the world, witness:

Matt 25:31-26:1

31 "When the Son of Man comes in his glory, and all the angels with him, he will sit on his throne in heavenly glory.

32 All the nations will be gathered before him, and he will separate the people one from another as a shepherd separates the sheep from the goats.

33 He will put the sheep on his right and the goats on his left.

34 "Then the King will say to those on his right, 'Come, you who are blessed by my Father; take your inheritance, the kingdom prepared for you since the creation of the world.

35 For I was hungry and you gave me something to eat, I was thirsty and you gave me something to drink, I was a stranger and you invited me in,

36 I needed clothes and you clothed me, I was sick and you looked after me, I was in prison and you came to visit me.'

37 "Then the righteous will answer him, 'Lord, when did we see you hungry and feed you, or thirsty and give you something to drink?

38 When did we see you a stranger and invite you in, or needing clothes and clothe you?

39 When did we see you sick or in prison and go to visit you?'

40 "The King will reply, 'I tell you the truth, whatever you did for one of the least of these brothers of mine, you did for me.'

41 "Then he will say to those on his left, 'Depart from me, you who are cursed, into the eternal fire prepared for the devil and his angels.

42 For I was hungry and you gave me nothing to eat, I was thirsty and you gave me nothing to drink,

43 I was a stranger and you did not invite me in, I needed clothes and you did not clothe me, I was sick and in prison and you did not look after me.'

44 "They also will answer, 'Lord, when did we see you hungry or thirsty or a stranger or needing clothes or sick or in prison, and did not help you?'

45 "He will reply, 'I tell you the truth, whatever you did not do for one of the least of these, you did not do for me.'

46 "Then they will go away to eternal punishment, but the righteous to eternal life."

We do not need further evidence beyond this, The Son Of Man, was what he claimed until his death. It was based on his uprightness, loyalty and obedience even unto accepting to hang on the cross, saying; “Let thy will be done, not mine” that earned him the highest title of the Christ, the Holy One of God, but not equality with his Eternal father! QED

Note also that Jesus was not the first person to be adopted by Almighty God as a son; Solomon was the first, that is why in another dissertation I had claimed that Jesus was a reincarnate of some Old Testament figure who failed in his mission, which Jesus came and accomplished. This resounding success is what earned his the title “the Saviour”

1 Chronicles 28

28:1 David summoned all the officials of Israel to assemble at Jerusalem: the officers over the tribes, the commanders of the divisions in the service of the king, the commanders of thousands and commanders of hundreds, and the officials in charge of all the property and livestock belonging to the king and his sons, together with the palace officials, the mighty men and all the brave warriors.

2 King David rose to his feet and said: "Listen to me, my brothers and my people. I had it in my heart to build a house as a place of rest for the ark of the covenant of the LORD, for the footstool of our God, and I made plans to build it.

3 But God said to me, 'You are not to build a house for my Name, because you are a warrior and have shed blood.'

4 "Yet the LORD, the God of Israel, chose me from my whole family to be king over Israel for ever. He chose Judah as leader, and from the house of Judah he chose my family, and from my father's sons he was pleased to make me king over all Israel.

5 Of all my sons-- and the LORD has given me many-- he has chosen my son Solomon to sit on the throne of the kingdom of the LORD over Israel.

6 He said to me, 'Solomon your son is the one who will build my house and my courts, for I have chosen him to be my son, and I will be his father.

7 I will establish his kingdom for ever if he is unswerving in carrying out my commands and laws, as is being done at this time.'

8 "So now I charge you in the sight of all Israel and of the assembly of the LORD, and in the hearing of our God: Be careful to follow all the commands of the LORD your God, that you may possess this good land and pass it on as an inheritance to your descendants for ever.

9 "And you, my son Solomon, acknowledge the God of your father, and serve him with wholehearted devotion and with a willing mind, for the LORD searches every heart and understands every motive behind the thoughts. If you seek him, he will be found by you; but if you forsake him, he will reject you for ever.

10 Consider now, for the LORD has chosen you to build a temple as a sanctuary. Be strong and do the work."

RECAPITULATION & RESUME

The final nail on the coffin of those who deified Jesus, the Christ as having been born as ‘God, the Son’ is the opening verses of the Book of Hebrews. God, the Almighty Father of us all only compensated Jesus with the title for being the first to earn it meritoriously. Mark the choice of words used;

Hebrews 1

1:1 God, who at various times and in various ways spoke in time past to the fathers by the prophets, 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; 3 who being the brightness of His glory and the express image of His person, and upholding all things by the word of His power, when He had by Himself purged our sins, sat down at the right hand of the Majesty on high, 4 having become so much better than the angels, as He has by inheritance obtained a more excellent name than they.5 For to which of the angels did He ever say: "You are My Son, Today I have begotten You"?And again: "I will be to Him a Father, And He shall be to Me a Son"? 6 But, when He again brings the firstborn into the world, He says: "Let all the angels of God worship Him." 7 And of the angels He says: "Who makes His angels spirits And His ministers a flame of fire."

8 But to the Son He says: "Your throne, O God, is forever and ever; a sceptre of righteousness is the sceptre of Your Kingdom. 9 You have loved righteousness and hated lawlessness; Therefore God, Your God, has anointed you with the oil of gladness more than your companions."

10 And: "You, LORD, in the beginning laid the foundation of the earth, and the heavens are the work of your hands. 11 They will perish, but you remain; and they will all grow old like a garment; 12 Like a cloak you will fold them up, and they will be changed. But You are the same, And Your years will not fail." 13 But to which of the angels has He ever said:

"Sit at My right hand, till I make your enemies your footstool"?

14 Are they not all ministering spirits sent forth to minister for those who will inherit salvation?

From the New King James Version

Do I need to explain my thesis any further? No! I am done!!

Yours truly as always,

Rev Prof J. J. Kenez, D.Sc.

The Vessel of the Holy Spirit of God.

19:18:58HRS on Saturday, 22 July 2006 & Revised on Tuesday 11/09/2007 @ 09:12:07

A KENEZIAN POSTSCRIPT

Samson, Saul and Solomon missed the golden opportunities that had to earn the title ‘Christ’. The fell off from the track just the way of their forebear, Adam did. The serpent is still very much around and only Jesus defeated him after his forty days and forty nights fast at the onset of his ministry. That was what earned the title. You too can earn it but we have been misled to believe that only Jesus had the right to it!

If Jesus was equal in all respects with His Father, why did he pray to him in the Garden of Gethsemane? “Let thy will be done!”

Go and study the conversation between

Pontus

Pilate and Jesus before the washing of hands by the former sequel to the mob’s “Crucify him! Crucify him!” In that narrative any sane person can surmise that the Father had greater powers than the Son. Or else, explain why he would need to request for a legion of angels! Finally review what happened at his death and expatiate on the underlined verses:

Matthew 27:45-54

45 From the sixth hour until the ninth hour darkness came over all the land.

46 About the ninth hour Jesus cried out in a loud voice, "Eloi, Eloi, lama sabachthani?"-- which means, "My God, my God, why have you forsaken me?"

47 When some of those standing there heard this, they said, "He's calling Elijah."

48 Immediately one of them ran and got a sponge. He filled it with wine vinegar, put it on a stick, and offered it to Jesus to drink.

49 The rest said, "Now leave him alone. Let's see if Elijah comes to save him."

50 And when Jesus had cried out again in a loud voice, he gave up his spirit.

51 At that moment the curtain of the temple was torn in two from top to bottom. The earth shook and the rocks split.

52 The tombs broke open and the bodies of many holy people who had died were raised to life.

53 They came out of the tombs, and after Jesus' resurrection they went into the holy city and appeared to many people.

54 When the centurion and those with him who were guarding Jesus saw the earthquake and all that had happened, they were terrified, and exclaimed, "Surely he was the Son of God!"

However it is important to note that initially Paul never preached that Jesus was God. No, he always insisted in every authentic translation of his letters that, He is only a Lord, while his father was God!

Romans 1

1:1 Paul, a servant of Christ Jesus, called to be an apostle and set apart for the gospel of God--

2 the gospel he promised beforehand through his prophets in the Holy Scriptures

3 regarding his Son, who as to his human nature was a descendant of David,

4 and who through the Spirit of holiness was declared with power to be the Son of God, by his resurrection from the dead: Jesus Christ our Lord.

5 Through him and for his name's sake, we received grace and apostleship to call people from among all the Gentiles to the obedience that comes from faith.

6 And you also are among those who are called to belong to Jesus Christ.

7 To all in Rome who are loved by God and called to be saints: Grace and peace to you from God our Father and from the Lord Jesus Christ.

8 First, I thank my God through Jesus Christ for all of you, because your faith is being reported all over the world.

9 God, whom I serve with my whole heart in preaching the gospel of his Son, is my witness how constantly I remember you

10 in my prayers at all times; and I pray that now at last by God's will the way may be opened for me to come to you.

11 I long to see you so that I may impart to you some spiritual gift to make you strong--

12 that is, that you and I may be mutually encouraged by each other's faith.

13 I do not want you to be unaware, brothers, that I planned many times to come to you (but have been prevented from doing so until now) in order that I might have a harvest among you, just as I have had among the other Gentiles.

14 I am bound both to Greeks and Non-greeks, both to the wise and the foolish.

15 That is why I am so eager to preach the gospel also to you who are at Rome.

16 I am not ashamed of the gospel, because it is the power of God for the salvation of everyone who believes: first for the Jew, then for the Gentile.

17 For in the gospel a righteousness from God is revealed, a righteousness that is by faith from first to last, just as it is written: "The righteous will live by faith."

18 The wrath of God is being revealed from heaven against all the godlessness and wickedness of men who suppress the truth by their wickedness,

19 since what may be known about God is plain to them, because God has made it plain to them.

20 For since the creation of the world God's invisible qualities-- his eternal power and divine nature-- have been clearly seen, being understood from what has been made, so that men are without excuse.

21 For although they knew God, they neither glorified him as God nor gave thanks to him, but their thinking became futile and their foolish hearts were darkened.

22 Although they claimed to be wise, they became fools

23 and exchanged the glory of the immortal God for images made to look like mortal man and birds and animals and reptiles.

24 Therefore God gave them over in the sinful desires of their hearts to sexual impurity for the degrading of their bodies with one another.

25 They exchanged the truth of God for a lie, and worshipped and served created things rather than the Creator-- who is for ever praised. Amen.

26 Because of this, God gave them over to shameful lusts. Even their women exchanged natural relations for unnatural ones.

27 In the same way the men also abandoned natural relations with women and were inflamed with lust for one another. Men committed indecent acts with other men, and received in themselves the due penalty for their perversion.

28 Furthermore, since they did not think it worth while to retain the knowledge of God, he gave them over to a depraved mind, to do what ought not to be done.

29 They have become filled with every kind of wickedness, evil, greed and depravity. They are full of envy, murder, strife, deceit and malice. They are gossips,

30 slanderers, God-haters, insolent, arrogant and boastful; they invent ways of doing evil; they disobey their parents;

31 they are senseless, faithless, heartless, ruthless.

32 Although they know God's righteous decree that those who do such things deserve death, they not only continue to do these very things but also approve of those who practise them.

From the early part of this letter to educated Romans, it is clear that it was not Saul of Tarsus who initiated the deification process. So, we need to find out how the worship of Jesus as a god started. Constantine was a worshipper of Mithra, the god of the sun for many years before he fell in love with a Christian girl. To marry the throb of his heart Paul decreed that he must first become a Christian. To get what he wanted he obliged Paul. Soon he also became the emperor and officially declared the religion of his wife and in-laws, the state religion. He persuaded Paul to include some of their belief systems and that is eventually how Christianity conquered the paganism of the Romans!

Meditate on the bold phrases as think them over; Can one who was granted special powers ever be equal to the One who gave him the powers? The answer is definitely; NO! This passage states the statuses and special favours god, the Almighty Father of all of us bestowed on Jesus for a purpose! That is why he was able to stand all the temptations and triumph over the devil in every way even ‘death on the cross.’ My hope is that Christians should learn to worship god the Father as Jesus enjoined us to, and respect him for dying to save mankind!