Jesus existed

Was Jesus real? Is there extra Biblical evidence of an historical Christ?

Denial of Christ

There are a lot of people that leap at the idea that Jesus was completely made up and never existed.

The scholar Bart Ehrman who has written a number of critical books on modern christian ideas and biblical interpretations into a scholarly context of history says people who suggest that Jesus never existed "Just make themselves look silly." But then he is the same guy who said “The Christians did not invent Jesus. They invented the idea that the messiah had to be crucified.”

He wrote the book "Did Jesus Exist?" in which he wrote:

“The problem then with Jesus is that he cannot be removed from his time and transplanted into our own without simply creating him anew.”

Ehrman is not alone in his errors. Those who are suggesting that Jesus did not exist have been popping up like tares in a wheat field.

Just as the masses in those early days hated the doctrine of Jesus so did their masters.

Many today hate Jesus but if we want to understand why He provoked such hatred then we only need to hold His teachings up to the light.

Many modern Christians might hate the idea and those who share the truth that they are under a Strong delusion about their own faith and are actually the very workers of iniquity Jesus and His followers warned us about.

The real problem is the more doctrines modern Christians invent the less they seem to know about the real Jesus and the less they know about the real Jesus the more they give the real Jesus a bad name.

Historical Jesus

Religious movements with no grounding in reality whatsoever and real historical events are almost none existent. Yet, thousands of people were dying and being persecuted, having their property seized and their bodies dismembered and even set on fire. What was driving them?

They would not partake of the free bread and welfare of the Roman State which was at the core of the Christian conflict with Rome and even with the Pharisees and their Corban.

During times of economic failure, famines, and "dearths" the early Christians would not eat at the "tables" of the Roman State and were often mercilessly persecuted for that choice. That is a lot to expect from followers who had no Bible, no Churches and a supposedly made up founder.

Did any independent historian talk about Jesus?

Of course, Paul has two brief meetings with Jesus’ brother James. Since James’ existence could have been verified to the readers of Paul it would have been foolish to make him up.

Josephus

Josephus was a Roman-Jewish historian who supposedly wrote the Testimonium Flavianum—an ‘early’ reference to Christ. Some, however, think it is fake. But Josephus’s works also include a much less known passage that is not disputed.

In Book 20 of his Antiquities of the Jews there is a clear reference to the execution of “the brother of Jesus, who was called Christ, whose name was James”.

Tacitus

Tacitus' published Annals and the Histories examines the reigns of the emperors from the death of Augustus through Tiberius, Caligula, Claudius, Nero, and the First Jewish–Roman War(70 AD.). This period would include the changes in the roman culture that would bring its decline and the time in which Jesus appointed His kingdom to the early Church, the rise of the Christian conflict with Rome and much of the persecution early Christians endured.

Publius Cornelius Tacitus was a senator and a historian of the Roman Empire.

The Great Fire of Rome was talked about extensively by Tacitus clearly mentions Christ and His movement that was hated by the masses.

Tacitus wrote of his suspicions that the fire was set and then blamed on a "class hated for their abominations, called Christians". He also mentions the name of the man they followed identified as "Christus". He even makes reference to this Christus' death by torture during the "reign of Tiberius at the hands of one of our procurators, Pontius Pilatus”.

Tacitus at the risk of his own life wrote of a government coverup in his Annals 15.44 :

"Consequently, to get rid of the report, Nero fastened the guilt and inflicted the most exquisite tortures on a class hated for their abominations, called Christians by the populace. Christus, from whom the name had its origin, suffered the extreme penalty during the reign of Tiberius at the hands of one of our procurators, Pontius Pilatus.”

There has been clear evidence from many authors like Tacitus who went on to complain about this early Christian religion called a "superstition".

Here Tacitus calls Christianity a "mischievous superstition" that would be "checked" breifly but appeared again in Judea where it began.

"and a most mischievous superstition, thus checked for the moment, again broke out not only in Judaea, the first source of the evil, but even in Rome, where all things hideous and shameful from every part of the world find their centre and become popular."

Why does Tacitus call them "mischievous" and "evil"?

Why did so many Romans, at least those who took to the streets to riot, see Christians as deplorable?

Both the common terms translated religion and superstition had to do with religion. The former from the Greek :threskia meaning what you do and the latter was what you think.

Something about what Christians thought triggered Romans and also the Pharisees.

This could be because Romans and Christian separately called Caesar and Jesus the Son of God.

They both called their respective kings their Savior.

They both provided free bread at their tables of welfare.

They both where said to have temples but while Roman temples were made of stone the Christian temple was made without hands of lively stones.

Understanding the purpose of these Roman temples and their function and purpose is essential in understanding the Christian conflict with Rome.

The difference was that early Christians provided their daily ministration for their needy through a personal and voluntary network of believers by The Way of faith, hope and, fervent charity. While Romans and the Pharisees depend upon systems of legal charity through the rule of force, fear, and fealty.

The Way of those followers of "Christus" was called pure Religion by them because it was unspotted by the public religion of the world of Rome.

Many Christian Jews had been exiled from Rome under Claudius.

This exile was because jealousy and envy among the "masses" had caused riots and unrest which was the result of a sort of "Christus" derangement syndrome due to their own appetite for benefits and the habit of obtaining through force.

The masses of the Roman people had long been degenerating into perfect savages as predicted by Polybius 200 years earlier.

Now Tacitus writes of a true Holocaust against Christians.

"Accordingly, an arrest was first made of all who pleaded guilty; then upon their information, an immense multitude was convicted, not so much of the crime of firing the city, as of hatred against mankind."

They did admit to setong Re on fire but of being followers of this "superstition that Jesus was the Son of God and [[Savior and not Caesar.

They were not also not signed up

This hatred has been seen in the prison camps, in the Russian gulag, and Chinese reeducation camps.

Mockery of every sort was added to their deaths. Covered with the skins of beasts, they were torn by dogs and perished, or were nailed to crosses, or were doomed to the flames and burnt, to serve as a nightly illumination, when daylight had expired."

Why would someone even suggest there is no evidence that Jesus the Christ was real?

Why did the masses hate Him and His followers and would the masses today hate real Christian if they were actually doing what the early Church did?

Pliny the Younger

Pliny the Younger name was Gaius Plinius Caecilius Secundus, born Gaius Caecilius in 61 –ad and died 113, and was a lawyer, author, and magistrate of Ancient Rome.

Pliny's uncle, Pliny the Elder, helped raise and educate him.

Pliny the Younger wrote hundreds of letters, of which 247 survive, and are of historical value. Some are addressed to reigning emperors or to his friend and historian Tacitus. He served as an imperial magistrate under Trajan reign.

The reply of Trajan

Trajan' reply to Pliny did allow Pliny's treatment of the case but gives four orders:

1. Do not seek out the Christians for trial.
2. If the accused are found guilty of being Christian, then they must be punished.
3. If the accused deny they are Christians and show proof that they are not by worshipping the gods, then they must be pardoned.
4. Anonymous accusations should not be considered.

"Private religion" would not be fully outlawed until Saturninus during the Christian conflict in Africa.

Rome had a long history of freed of religion but the thinking of Christians was undermining the source of bureaucratic power.

It has been reported that Lucius Annaeus Seneca, the Younger once said "Religion is regarded by the common people as true, by the wise as false, and by rulers as useful."

Letter to Trajan

"It is my custom, O lord, to refer all questionable issues to you. For who is more capable of resolving my doubts and instructing my ignorance?"

"I have never been present at a formal inquiry of "Christ-niks." Consequently, I do not know the nature or the extent of the sanctions usually administered against them, nor the grounds for opening a formal inquiry and how far it should be pressed. Nor am I at all sure whether any distinction should be made between them on the basis of age, or whether young people and adults should be treated identically, whether a pardon ought to be granted to anyone retracting his beliefs, or if he has once professed being a "Christ-nik," he shall gain nothing by renouncing it; and whether it is the mere label which is actionable, even if not guilty of a crime, or rather the crimes associated with the name."

"In the meantime, this is the approach I have taken with everyone brought before me on the charge of being "Christ-niks": I have asked them in person if they are "Christ-niks"; and if they admit it, I repeat the question a second and third time with a warning of the sanction awaiting them. If they persist, I order them to be led away for execution. For, whatever the nature of their admission, I am convinced that their stubbornness and unshakeable obstinacy should not go unpunished. Others as fanatical who are citizens of Rome I have listed to be remanded to "the City" for trial."

"Now that I have begun to deal with this problem, as so often happens, the charges are becoming more widespread and increasing in variety. An anonymous writing has circulated which contains the names of several accused individuals. From these, I considered dismissing any who denied that they were or ever had been "Christ-niks" when they had recited after me an invocation of the gods and made offerings of wine and incense to your statue�which I ordered brought into court for this purpose along with the images of the gods�and further reviled the name of Christ: none of which, I understand, any true "Christ-nik" can be induced to do. Others, whose names were given to me by an informant, first admitted the charge and then denied it; they said that they had ceased to be "Christ-niks" two or more years before, and some of them even twenty years ago. They all venerated your statue and the images of the gods in the same way as the others, and cursed the name of Christ."

"They also declared that the totality of their guilt or error amounted to no more than this: they had met regularly before dawn on a certain day to chant verses antiphonally amongst themselves in honor of Christ as if to a god, and also to bind themselves with an oath, not in a criminal conspiracy, but to abstain from fraud, banditry, and adultery, to commit no breach of trust, and not to renege on a deposit. After completing this foolishness, it was their custom to disperse and reassemble later to take food of an common and innocuous type; but they had in fact given up this practice since my edict, issued on your instructions, which banned all associations. This made me decide it was all the more necessary to extract the truth from two female slaves�whom they call "ministers"�by means of torture. I found nothing but a degenerate sort of superstition carried to immoderate lengths."

"I have, therefore, put off any further consideration awaiting your counsel. The matter seems worthy of your consideration, especially in light of the number of persons at risk. For numerous persons of every age and every class, both genders, are being brought to trial, and this is likely to continue. It is not only the town, but villages and countryside as well which are infected through contact with this perverse superstition."

"I think that it is still possible for it to be checked and directed to better ends, for there is no doubt that people have begun to throng the temples, which had been almost entirely abandoned for a long time. And the sacred rites which had been allowed to lapse are again being performed, and the flesh of sacrificial meat is on sale everywhere, though until recently hardly anyone was buying it. It is easy to infer from this that a great many people could be rehabilitated if they were given an opportunity to recant."

Suetonius

Gaius Suetonius Tranquillus was born 69 CE in Rome and died after 122,

His family was of a knightly class, or Equestrian. As a protégé of the government official Pliny the Younger he was well known.

After Pliny’s death Suetonius found another patron, Septicius Clarus.

Under Emperor Hadrian (117), he entered the imperial service, holding the posts of controller of the Roman libraries, keeper of the archives, and adviser to the emperor on cultural matters. He was eventually promoted to secretary of the imperial correspondence,

As a Roman biographer and antiquarian sponsored by Pliny his writings include De viris illustribus (“Concerning Illustrious Men”) which was a collection of short biographies of well known Roman literary figures, and De vita Caesarum (Lives of the Caesars).

These often contained bits of gossip and scandal relating to the lives of Julius Caesar and the first 11 Roman emperors which secured him lasting place in history.

After Pliny's death Suetonius found another patron, Septicius Clarus, to whom he later dedicated De vita Caesarum.

We know about lives of Horace, Lucan, Terence, and Virgil from writers who derived their facts from Suetonius.

Life of Claudius

"He drove out from Rome the Jews who stirred up by Chrestus continually caused unrest."

Life of Nero

"[After the great fire of Rome] Punishment was inflicted on the Christians, a class of men addicted to a novel and mischievous superstition."

Suetonius meaning

So he saw the Christians as a knew "mischievous" religious thinking. It was mischievous because it caused "unrest". That unrest was undoubtedly because Romans who had been a part of the temples legal charity welfare system were now followers of The way contributing through fervent charity to a private religion system without the covetous practices which provided the free bread of Rome.

Some Romans could remember the war crimes of Caesar against the Gauls and the failure to prosecute him.

Many had turned a blind eye to his crimes because he spread amongst the "gifts, gratuities, and benefits" which was the ruin" of the people according to Plutarch.<Ref name=""That the man who first ruined the Roman people twas he who first gave them treats and gratuities" Plutarch's Life of Coriolanus (c. 100 AD.)

“The real destroyers of the liberties of the people is he who spreads among them bounties, donations, and benefits.” Plutarch</Ref>

Those who would not repent of their past sloth and avarice would grow to hate those who did.

One man's repentance is another man's superstition.

Archaeological evidence

Was there archaeological evidence that Christ existed?

What is the meaning of archaeological evidence?

The archaeological record is the body of physical (i.e. not written) evidence about the past. It is one of the core concepts in archaeology, the academic discipline concerned with documenting and interpreting the archaeological record.

What we usually call archaeological record are usually found in the ground.

What would you expect to find as an archaeological record of Jesus?

We know that James was Jesus brother and that he lived and we appear to have found his bone box. The Ossuary or bone box immediately came into question and the Israeli police arrested the collector who found Ossuary on the suspicion of forgery.

But the case was thrown out because those experts who were making these accusations were evidently lying and the inscriptions appear to be authentic.

The Ossuary or bone box of Caiaphas the high priest was also found containing bones and for some unknown reason also contained three spikes that could have been used in a crucifixion.

There are apparent discrepancies in the book we call the Bible but these do not affect the message of the Gospel. The ancient prophecy saying the Messiah would be born in Bethlehem begs why was he from Nazareth in Mark and only later from Bethlehem in Luke and Matthew.

Jesus's Mother having stayed in Bethlehem during the birth may make Jesus a prophetic anchor baby but he would still be from the polis of Nazareth. Even Herod Antipas' Mother went to Bethlehem to give birth to baby of Herod the Great just so he could improve his claim to the throne.

Piso and the Flavian Myth

Caesar's Messiah is a 2006 book of speculative non-fiction by Joseph Atwill, which argues that the New Testament Gospels were written as wartime propaganda by scholars connected to the Roman imperial court of the Flavian emperors: Vespasian, Titus and Domitian.

The Joseph Atwill's Piso/Flavian theory falls apart as soon as you find out what the character and mission of men like Moses and Jesus really were. They agreed with each other but the Pharisees did not agree with Jesus because they did not know Moses or what he actually was teaching the people.

Through false interpretation of the ancient manuscripts their meaning have become a lost to many people who image they know the truth so much so that people like Atwill are at a decided disadvantage to say nothing of their critics. If you begin with confusion more layers of confusion can easily add insult to injury.

What are they missing

Most of the early Church were actually Jews. Like the Church in the wilderness they were actually performing services for the people cast out of the Corban of Judea which Jesus had strongly objected to.

John the Baptist opposed Herod the Great's system of temple welfare which depended on forced offerings rather than the freewill offerings promoted by Moses.

If the Flavians wrote the Bible why would Jesus criticize the Corban of the Pharisees and Herod which was identical to the Qorban of Rome?

Richard Carrier

Did Richard Carrier prove that Jesus did not exist or that the image of Jesus and the role as Christ is distorted by the modern Church?

Jesus said their would be false Christs. What Richard Carrier is actually proving is that he does not understand history, the purpose of religions beyond the mythical parables used to carry the true meaning.

What is true worship?

What is the purpose of temples and altars?

What does superstition have to do with people that do not have the ears to hear nor eyes to see the true message of the kingdom of God and the intended nature of mankind?

Dr Maurice Casey's "Is John’s Gospel True", Joseph Hoffmann's “Controversy, Mythicism and the Historical Jesus”, Bart Erhman’s publications or comments by theologian Robert Price all go deeply in their own ideologies but none seem to grasp the actual message of the gospel about living by faith, hope, and charity while caring for the needy of society as opposed to the force, fear, and fealty practiced by the governments of the world who exercise authority and the different outcome that occurs when the masses follow the way of Christ as a doer of what he said and the the other which is the way of bondage, the cities of blood.

The appetite of those masses for the benefits and dainties of rulers at the expense of others is certainly a covetous practices that is a snare and a trap, the antithesis of the teaching of John the Baptist, Proverbs and all the Prophets, including Moses and the Ten Statements attributed to God by him.

No man father

Jesus also warned the people to call no man father. Yet, everyone at that time called the Roman emperors Father. One of His titles was Patronus, which is Our Father, and all the Senators of Rome were all called the conscripti patribecause they were the Conscripted fathers of Rome who saw to the funding of the Imperial Cult of Rome which provided the free bread of the Roman welfare state.

No idolatry

To take of that system was considered idolatry by Paul because it was a covetous system of Legal charity which is idolatry. The problem was the tables provided by their temples were systems of legal charity where their dainties were the wages of unrighteousness because they were provided by men who exercise authority one of the other which was covetous practices which made men merchandiseaccording to Peter.

No oaths

Why would Flavius write that Jesus was commanding his people to "Swear not"? And not apply to rulers of authority for benefits when those systems of legal charity gave Caesar more and more power of the people.

Or why would they write that James said "But above all things, my brethren, swear not, neither by heaven, neither by the earth, neither by any other oath: but let your yea be yea; and [your] nay, nay; lest ye fall into condemnation." James 5:12

These prohibitions against oaths and swearing would not be a part of the Flavian policies since an "Oath of Fidelity" was required by Vespasian, Titus, and Domitian, the entire judicial system and their gods many.

The Conflict

If people had been taught the truth about the Gospel of the Kingdom and the reason for the Christian conflict Atwill's suggestion that rebellious and violent Christians were persecuted would be seen as patently false.

The Christian conflict was because they would not sign up, usually requiring and oath, for their free bread offered at the tablse of the Roman welfare state. That persecution which began with Claudius and Marcus Aurelius continued with and the trial of the Acts of the Scillitan Martyrs who would not sign up for their welfare system.

Sons of God

There was an annual burning of incense at the temples of Rome where the faithful confirmed their allegiance and acceptance of Caesar as the Son of God.

But both Caesar and Jesus were called Savior and the Son of God. It was the difference in their means and methods which differentiated their Godhood. One called the people to repent, to think differently, to seek righteousness of the creator, while setting up a network of fervent charity to provide a social safety net for His people so they would have the courage and character to attend to the weightier matters of Law..

The other Son of God was the emperor of world of Rome who was also the Principas Civitas and Apotheos of that same world order bribed the people woth "treats and gratuities" and searing the conscience of the people with their "appetite for benefits and the habit of receiving them by way of a rule of force and violence. The people, having grown accustomed to feed at the expense of others and to depend for their livelihood on the property of others" degenerated the masses of the empire.

One operated by faith, hope, and charity setting the captive free and the other operated by force, fear , and fealty making the people more merchandise than citizens.

The Piso/Flavian Myth is a product the false religion of the Modern Church who no longer practice Pure Religion which has allowed the conscience of the people to be seared by the covetous practices of Legal charity through the welfare states of the world.

The same persecution and denial will come when the true gospel of the Kingdom of God and His righteousness is preached again to the world. It will be the Modern Christians who will be at the core of a Christian conflict with the modern New World Order of Rome which will come into conflict with Sound Doctrine which is the Doctrines of Jesus.

Other gods

During the Second Persecution, under Domitian, A.D. 81, persecutions among the Christians would bring death by order of their magistrates who commonly were addressed as gods required a "test oath" to prove innocents. Modern Christians do not know why they called these men gods. Likewise, modern Christians don't understand who their actual gods are today.

While those emperors took oaths themselves to be High-priests of their nation But Jesus was proclaimed high-priest and King. He was king because he was the highest son of David but high-priest because of his older cousin John the Baptist who declared that Jesus was to come after him.

It is only a lack of understanding of Jesus and The Way that allows anyone to accept Atwill's premise of a Flavian authorship. If Modern Christians would fully repent and seek the kingdom of God and His righteousness with their whole heart, mind and soul they could not be seduced by the falsehoods and misdirection of Atwill and others.

Parallels

Joseph Atwill also claims that there are dozens of parallels between the Gospels and the history of Titus and his military. This requires a huge stretch of imagination. They prove nothing but the desperate hope of selling more books.

Atwill and his followers mix facts and ignore others. They fail to explain the well-documented activities of early Christians who were well known Historical characters and what they were doing. They mislead people about the persecutions of Christians and seem ignorant of the court issue that got peaceful people executed by the tens of thousands.

The makers of the film Zeitgeist try to make comparisons with many other characters of ancient history to prove Jesus was a fictional character but the sources and information they present as fact are more often incorrect or entirely fictional.

Many people are quick to jump on board their thesis for a variety of reasons but the whole truth reveals they are confused and dependent upon speculation and leaps of logic.

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“Sometimes the best way to learn a lesson isn't just hearing the words, but putting it into practice by experimenting with it and finding its truth for yourself instead of taking someone else’s word for it.” ― A.J. Darkholme, Rise of the Morningstar

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They are right that pagan ideas crept into what began posing as Christianity after Flavius Salerus Constantinus's First Council of Nicaea that attracted only a small number of Bishops who convened in Nicaea in Bithynia.

The people advocating that the Flavians created Christianity are mixing the creation of the Church of Flavius Salerus Constantinus with real Christians.

A thousand years later during centuries of inquisitions the Church created by Constantinus would murder millions of real Christians who were a living Church practicing Pure Religion.

Rome had become a Welfare State. That had not only made the Caesar's gods but made the people subject to the Imperial Cult of Rome in much the same way as the modern image of Rome.

Early Christians were practicing Private welfare instead of Public religion. It was the Public religion which involves the Covetous Practices that made men Merchandise and curses their children with debt.

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"Fortunately for serious minds, a bias recognized is a bias sterilized." Benjamin Haydon

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"And ye shall know the truth, and the truth shall make you free." (John 8:32)

Who is the real Jesus? This article shows just some of the distinction between the early Church and modern Christians. The modern Christian think they know Jesus like the Pharisees thought they knew Moses
Εν αρχή ην ο λόγος, "In the beginning was the Word" that word was made flesh and according to many Jews at that time He was considered to be the Messiah, (Maschiach in Hebrew) = the Anointed One, the Chosen One = the Christ, χρίσμα in Greek or ΙησουΣ ΧριστοΣ, which is Greek for Jesus the Christ or Yeshua the Anointed One. Philo of Alexandria seems to be the first to associate the phrase "ο λόγος"(The logos) which could be translated the reason being Right Reason or in Hebrew might appear as Wisdom (ChetKafMemHey חָכְמָה). We see this in Jeremiah 10:12 and Jeremiah 51:15 as בְּחָכְמָת֑וֹ bə-ḥā-ḵə-mā-ṯōw BeitHeyKafMemTavVav or “by His Wisdom” "and at His discretion" or "by His understanding" וּבִתְבוּנָת֖וֹ ū-ḇiṯ-ḇū-nā-ṯōw VavBeitTavBeitVavNunTavVav "has stretched out" or "has extended the heavens" from what we call the spiritual realms. Using this "wisdom" God brings forth creation in Psalms 104:24 and 30.
There is another word for wisdom from a Hebrew word said to mean "substantiate" tuwshiyah

Personal relationship with Jesus

Do you have a personal relationship with Jesus?

This is a question often asked by modern Christians who think they have just such a relationship and they religiously clink to that belief that their relationship is genuine.

Of course, many of the Pharisees and Zealots thought they had a similar relationship with God and the teachings of Moses.

This sweet sounding phrase, like Born again, has a number of elements and ideas that we may need to be properly define in order to answer the question truthfully:

Personal. Of or relating to a particular person; while the word Person is applied to men, women and children.

Relationship. Synonyms include a connection or interconnection, association or interdependence, an affair or amorous entanglement or even a flirtation.

As a term it has been defined as "the way in which two or more people or groups regard and behave toward each other."

Jesus is the most important element of this commonly recited phrase or claim. But their are many images of Jesus created in peoples mind that may be far from the real Jesus.

Many people say they love Jesus but Jesus said there will people who say that but are actually workers of iniquity.

What is the psychology behind a personal relationship with Jesus?

And how do you know that personal relationship is with the real Jesus and not one that has been imagined or conjured out of the the doctrines of men?

How do you know that you are not under a strong delusion?

What can help us know if we are a part of the groups that deceived as spoken of by Christ.

This relationship that is often claimed by many to be a personal relationship with Jesus can give us a feeling of a meaning and purpose to life. This can improve emotions, hormone levels and eliminate or reduce debilitating or detrimental stress.

It is true that the phrase "personal relationship with Jesus" is not in the Bible, but every "personal" relationship with anyone must be mutual. The words "individual" and "private" may apply but since Jesus as LORD is integral and essential the claim should be accompanied by an unbiased conformity to His doctrine reinforced  by words and deeds that would give evidence of that  relationship in practice. 

We should remember that the relationship, if genuinely with Christ and His Holy Spirit it should produce evidence of spiritual fruit and a conformity with the doctrine of Jesus according to the will of God the Father.

Any such genuine relationship with the Real Jesus may clearly lead to a mutual rejection of the Fathers of the earth and their reward of unrighteousness. There also be an opening of the eyes, an embracing of the light which will reveal the iniquity of the world at its covetous practices.

Elements of a personal relationship

The profession of a personal relationship often involves numerous ideas and concepts that upon examination can clarify the truth of such a claim.

1. Trusting Jesus as the LORD over your life on a daily basis and living in a way that is defined by him. 

2. Communicating with Jesus can be real or part of a delusion with Jesus as an imaginary friend.   3. Prayer as a practice may be a continuous recognition of a superior source beyond ourselves because it may suggest a subordinate position. But it also can become a part of a delussion that "our God" is superior and therefore we are superior. This may appear as a holler than thou attitude.

4. Service is serving God and others. This brings religious service or worship service into the conversation. Religion has previously been defined as [....]

5. Repentance is  commonly listed as an element of that personal relationship but has also been mistakenly been identified as being sorry for bad action as we see in the phrase, "Repenting of sins and asking Jesus to forgive."

While we may be sorry "repentance" is thinking differently and would in this case would include thinking like Jesus. By examining Jesus and his doctrine we may perceive if we do or do not think like Jesus.  [....]

6. Union with Christ should include Believing that Christ or His Holy Spirit dwells in the heart of believers, and that believers abide in the heart of Christ. 

Again the truth of that should be detectable by comparing what people say with what they do.

  7. Interpersonal relationship: Having an interpersonal relationship with the Body of Christ, which includes other believers.   

Jesus the savior

Has Jesus saved you?

Is the real Jesus your savior?

Who is the real Jesus?

The real Jesus warned that many would be deceived about knowing Him and He knowing them.

Augustus Caesar was also called the "savior" and the "Son of God".

Christian were persecuted because they said there was another King one Jesus and did not trust nor have faith in the genius of Caesar.

Who is the real Jesus?

Did He die for your sins?

We are told in the Gospel of John that God sent His son that we might be saved.

Jesus told us many things that we might be saved.

The word "MIGHT" suggests that Jesus did what he came to do but some might not be saved simply because they say they love Jesus as their Lord.

Can you be saved if you do not follow the Doctrines of Jesus?

Is He really your savior if you have not repented?

Is He really your Lord if you do not do what he said?

Could you be deceived about what you believe about what the Doctrines of Jesus real are?

Do you really have faith if you are not seeking the dominion and righteousness of God?

Not doers

People who are not doers of the word may not be believers in the real Jesus.

Jesus makes it clear that "many" will think they love Him but have been deceived into believing in a false image of Jesus. These self deceived people will be told that they should get away from Him because he never knew them except as workers of iniquity.

How do we know that we are not one of those "many"?

People might be deceived because of unrighteous practices and lack of love for the truth.

He also told us that if we did not forgive then His Father would not forgive us.

So it is not automatic that we are forgiven nor saved.

Jesus also told us to seek the Righteousness of God and that many would think they came in His name but would be told to get away from Him because they were in fact Workers of Iniquity and not Doers of the Word. Like the Pharisees before them they will be under the delusion that they have their eyes on Jesus but in truth they do not even know him. We know this because they are not bearing Fruit worthy of those who truly repent.

The modern Christian is often not doing what Christ told us to be doing. They are doing the very things that Christ condemned the Pharisees for doing.

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