It appears that there is even more confusion and error being circulated in evangelical church circles lately (hard to believe it can get any worse) that are puzzling many believers as to who the real, factual and genuine Son of God is in light of another Jesus is being promoted that is ‘similar’ to the Jesus of Nazareth we have come to know, the Jesus of the Bible… but only somewhat! However what is different is monumental and unacceptable!

Now there have been many neurotics over the centuries who have claimed to be Jesus Christ, but it wasn’t long before people realized the man’s claims were simply empty words from an empty head and a darkened heart. Many cults and various religions have strategically tried to discredit Christ, diminish Him, portray Him as some wild eyed lunatic prophet/teacher from the wilderness while others, though in softer tones, but in my opinion more dangerous have attempted to reduce Jesus to simply a man, in fact a man that like you and I needed to be “BORN AGAIN”.
Well, one might say ‘you can expect outright lies and distortions from cults and other religions that are antagonistic towards Christianity. However this ‘Fabricated’ Jesus that these purveyors of error have created are not found in offbeat cults but are in fact adherents (so they claim) of the same Bible you and I believe to be the ‘Word of God. We are talking about evangelical/charismatic believers.

The Jesus they proclaim is a hybrid mixture of truth and men’s imagination; in conclusion a false Christ! There was a time not so long ago that we as a Christian Church were guarded against such mistaken doctrines or teaching – we could recognize them a mile away. The reason being is that they came all dressed up with the particular garb, attire, material and merchandize of their specific brand of belief. These detectable cults continue to boldly categorize Jesus as a well-meaning teacher, not a God, but a fraud in their view, thus giving true believers many red flags to recognize and avoid being taken in by their mistaken beliefs. That is no longer the case. What is so nefarious and deceptive about this ploy is that many highly respected Pastors, Evangelists, Faith healers and Preachers who have gained celebrity status, recognition, respect and honor in Christian Churches across the globe are now promoting this ‘Fabricated’ home – made Jesus as the veritable gospel truth — when it is in fact another Jesus and yes another Gospel to be sure.

This ‘new’ presentation of Jesus Christ however is not ‘new’, it has been around for some time. What is new is that it is gaining traction not only in fringe or far out groups but in what are solid Bible believing churches — leaders who should know better, leaders who grew up in the faith — whom I must say – need to pick up their Bibles once again and read them for what the words actually say.

If you are like me – you have to scratch your head and ask yourself what is it about the day and age we live in anyway, it’s a strange phenomenon… What was once understood to be obvious and undeniable scriptural error has now become accepted doctrine, embraced by influential people many look up to, leaders who once stood as sterling examples – models of the faith. The tragedy being is that they continue to be respected and credible though they are manifestly so off based scripturally and in more ways than just one.
Perhaps, in this day of social media with instant and broad access of information through the internet we have come to review and scrutinize teaching, doctrine and the lifestyles of these individuals to realize that they are flawed human beings like ourselves. Men and women who have been lifted up and exalted by followers and admirers who in the dizzying heights of success, fame and affluence these same individuals have failed like Samson to see the snares before. Though suffering basically the same fate of blindness as Samson they continue to reject any correction by their peers. If anything, they need our prayers, ‘that God may grant them repentance leading to the knowledge of the truth that they might escape the snare of the devil and come back to their senses.’ (2 Timothy 2:24 -26)

So, let us take a few moments and look at ‘Whom’ the real Jesus of the Bible actually is, then after we have given these scriptures some sobering thought, we will look at who this ‘other’ person is who they claim is Jesus Christ of the Bible. What better place to begin than the Gospel of John chapter 1. This is the Jesus Christ of the Bible we have all been taught from the moment we were saved. “In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. He was in the beginning with God. All things came into being through Him and apart from Him nothing came into being that has come into being. In Him was life; and the life was the light of men. And the light shines in the darkness; and the darkness did not comprehend it. There was the true light, which, coming into the world, enlightens every man. But as many as received Him, to them He gave the right to become children of God, even to those who believe in His name.
And the Word became flesh, and dwelt among us and we beheld His glory, glory as of the only begotten from the Father, full of grace and truth.” (Verses 1-5, 9, 12, 18)

Please ponder these verses and the following few verses for we will see that the Jesus of the Bible cannot be the same person we have been hearing about from the many ministers that teach Jesus Christ needed to be “born again or took on the nature of Satan.

Take note: This is not some small glitch or error, nor is it a slip-up in words. There is an intentional purpose for ‘their’ inaccuracy. Again consider the following verses: We are talking about the Jesus of the Bible.

“And He is the image of the invisible God, the first born of all creation. For in Him all things were created, both in the heavens and on earth, visible and invisible, whether thrones or dominions or rulers or authorities – all things have been created through Him and for Him. And He is before all things, and in Him all things hold together. He is also the head of the body, the church; and He is the beginning, the first- born of the dead; so that He Himself might come to have first place in everything. For it was the Father’s good pleasure for all the fullness to dwell in Him.” (Col. 1:15 -19) NASB

“in whom are hidden all the treasures of wisdom and knowledge.”(Col. 2:3)

“For in Him all the fullness of deity dwells in bodily form.” (Col.2:9)

I draw your attention to this last verse which is the key to understanding the deception being peddled to unsuspecting believers who are buying into the ‘born again’ Jesus heresy – blasphemy actually! “… FULLNESS of DEITY DWELLS in BODILY FORM.” (My added emphasis) Or in plain English ‘ALL’ of God’s essence and qualities were in Jesus Christ the ‘MAN.’ I believe we have already ample scriptures from a vast storehouse of verses to highlight the eternal majesty of Jesus Christ.

Now, Jesus did not cease being the Holy Eternal God. Jesus humbled Himself and took on a human body the Father Himself prepared for Jesus. (Hebrews 10:5) Jesus did not choose to exercise His own eternal power as God but humbled Himself and took on the form of a bondservant, being found in the likeness of men. Jesus resigned Himself to the Fathers will (Phil.2: 7, 8). “who although He existed in the form of God, did not regard equality with God a thing to be grasped.”(Phil.2:6) NASB

Please consider, God cannot cease being God. Jesus did not cease being God, that’s an impossibility. As we have seen in the scriptures above — ‘ALL’ the fullness on the Godhead dwelt in Jesus, so we cannot say that Jesus left behind His Godhood for a season of time and then took it up again as many teach today which they nicely try to convince us that Jesus was simply a man on earth. How can He who holds all things together as the Word of God suddenly stop being the eternal Word?  Wouldn’t that mean that everything in the universe which He holds together as God – would fall apart if He ceased being God for whatever moment of time?

Just to make this point again – crystal clear; nowhere in the Bible do you find any verses that takes away from the eternal majesty and Godhood of Jesus Christ while He lived on earth as a man. In fact as the Bible clearly states in the scriptures above, Jesus was fully God in human body. All the saints of past generations as should we — rejoiced in the fact that this wonderful Savior was ‘fully’ God and fully man. He also who made a way for us to the Father and continues to provide us all things that pertain to life and godliness. (2 Peter 1:3) However in this case, there is a reason why these false teachers endeavor to bring down Jesus to nothing more than a sinful man, and suppose that He is not God while living in His human body to the contradiction of the above noted scriptures and many more not listed here.

They claim – ‘Jesus died spiritually, suffered in Hell, needed to be born again, took on the nature of Satan, was made sinful — these are the words and teaching of Bill Johnson, Kenneth Copeland, Kenneth Hagin, Benny Hinn and so many others who have embraced the heretical teaching and have in fact expanded what was passed down to them from the father of the modern day faith movement, yours truly, E. W. Kenyon.

Let’s take a moment to consider these heretical assertions. EW Kenyon was in many ways the brainchild of New Thought /Mind Science. He is recognized as the person who expounded “New Thought”, put it in Christian Terminology which was later embraced by Kenneth Hagin who basically expanded Kenyon’s teachings even copying them as his own. The one component in particular that has been adopted throughout the years and has now in many circles become an entrenched doctrine is the teaching that ‘Jesus died spiritually.’ According to Hagin, Copeland, Johnson and so many others – Christ did not complete His sacrificial work of redemption on the cross. In fact they teach that Jesus went to Hell, took on the nature of Satan, and was sinful, where He became born again in Hell, then defeated Satan and returned to the Father. They teach Jesus died physically and then He died spiritually!

Think of that for a moment, the Eternal Creator who gives life to all men, the Light of the world, who holds all things together and the One in whom all the Godhead dwells within His bodily form:
DIED – spiritually? Does that even begin to make any sense at all?

Another false claim is that Jesus physical death alone ‘could not’ remove our sin. Again I would like to call your attention to where Jesus on the cross says: ‘It is finished’. To Hagin and the Faith Camp this does not actually mean, ‘it was finished’ but only partly finished – Jesus got it wrong, maybe all the pain and suffering Jesus undertook clouded His mind…?

“For by one offering He has perfected for all time those who are sanctified.”(Heb.10:14) One offering, one suffering! Suffering on the cross and then going to Hell to finish the job by suffering again and taking on the nature of Satan sounds like many offerings and many sufferings. The cross was a completed and final offering. Even the Old Testament lamb offerings (type and shadow) were not given to torture or abuse. Their singular death and shedding of blood atoned for the sins of the nation.

Jesus took on the nature of Satan… really? Didn’t Jesus get that same accusation from the Pharisees who said He did all His miracles by the power of Satan? And what did Jesus reply,
‘a house divided against itself cannot stand.’ (Mathew 12:25) Sounds like the same spirit of error to me, accusing Jesus of being of the nature of Satan. I have to wonder if these folks realize the blasphemy they are generating. As you read down in Mathew 12:31 you read the rebuke Jesus gives His accusers concerning blasphemy against the Holy Spirit.

Here is the only verse used by these folks which they assert proves that Jesus became sin. This is I suppose their proof text to give credence to their fallacious claims. “He (God) made Him (Jesus) who knew no sin to be sin on our behalf, that we might become the righteousness of God.” (2 Cor.5:21) Again take a good look at this verse; ‘Him who knew no sin.’  That should be clear enough for all who truly want to understand basic Bible 101. He who knew no sin or Him who was without sin; God made Him to be sin for us or on our behalf. Clearly, Jesus could not be the spotless Lamb of God or be the ‘Holy’ offering to take away the sins of the world if in fact He himself had sin. Our sins were placed upon Him. Jesus Himself was then and continues to be the Eternal Righteous Son, the Lamb who ‘bore’ our sins. “and He Himself bore our sins in His body on the cross that we might die to sin and to live to righteousness; for by His wounds you were healed.” (1 Peter 2:24)

Notice, Jesus bore, or carried not His sin but ours; and how did He carry them? In His ‘body’ on the ‘cross’. Jesus did not carry them in His spirit to Hell to then die spiritually. The sins he carried He suffered and atoned for, not in Hell, but once on the cross. Copeland, Johnson and the like take this verse to justify that Jesus not only took on sin but became sinful ‘personally’ – thus Jesus was sinful and needed to be born again. We just read ‘Him that knew no sin’ so we can all embrace the fact that Jesus was the spotless, sinless, and perfect Lamb of God.

Let me ask you: was the Old Testament sacrificial lamb in the book of Leviticus guilty of committing actual sins and iniquities such as fornication or idolatry, theft or lying? Or were these animals a substitute, a type , a shadow to bear the imputed sin of the nation of Israel in like fashion as Jesus Christ also became the lamb without blemish on behalf of the world? We forget the fact that only God miraculously took the sins of Israel (who else can?) and placed them on the sacrificial lamb in the Old Testament. In the New Testament we read that God took our sins and the sins of the world and placed them on Jesus Christ. (1 John 2:2) What is imputed or attributed is not their own nor does it make the lamb or the goat or the bullock a sinner; these animals were a shadow of what was to come, the blood of these animals and their life was satisfactory atonement for that dispensation to ‘cover’ sin.

Jesus’ death on the cross was the final and everlasting sacrifice that forever removes our ‘confessed’ sin yet it also brings with it a righteousness that is not our own but His alone. (1John 1:9)
“ how much more will the blood of Christ, who through the eternal Spirit offered Himself without blemish to God, cleanse your conscience from dead works to serve the living God.” (Hebrews 9:14)

Did anyone catch that part that says ‘offered Himself to God without blemish’? “So Christ also having been offered once to bear the sins of many…” (Hebrews 9:28) Again, it says Jesus was offered ‘once,’ or He died once, there is no ongoing sacrifice in Hell nor does Jesus die spiritually.

Chapter 9 of Hebrews would be a great resource to these teachers if they took the time to read and study what the Word of God actually teaches. For the record did Jesus actually go to Hell? Over the years we have been told Jesus suffered, died and went to Hell. This idea comes from the Apostles Creed we were taught in catechism or Sunday school; however it is a poor translation. Hades is the place of the departed dead in Biblical New Testament teaching. This should be a required Bible reading for all. So without getting into a prolonged study here, let me just highlight a certain passage of scripture (that can be complimented by many others on this subject) that Jesus Himself taught about the abode of the dead in Luke 16:19-31.

Jesus speaks of a place called Hades, where both the righteous dead went and also the wicked dead were kept. Between the two was a great chasm, gulf or divide. The righteous side of this divide is called Hades or Abraham’s bosom. (Luke 16:23) This is the place referred to in the Apostles Creed : Hades not Hell. In fact Hell was created for the devil and his angels, not people. (Matt.25:41; Rev.12:9)

Now Jesus on the cross responds to one of the thieves by saying, “this day you shall be with Me in Paradise” not Hell (Luke 23:43) “…the Son of Man will be three days and three nights in the heart of the earth.”(Mathew 12:40) There is a great distinction from the place we call Hades and Hell. (Hell is yet to be occupied.) “And whosoever was not found written in the book of life was cast into the lake of fire”(Rev.20:15). Hell is the place of judgement reserved for the fallen angels and the wicked at the end of the age; the devil is cast into the lake of fire (Rev. 20:10); Death and Hell (Hades) were cast into the lake of fire (Rev.20:14).

God cast down the fallen angels into Hell, the Greek word here for Hell is ‘tartaroo’ (2 Peter 2:4). Tartaroo (Hell) is described as the deepest abyss in Hades. The beast and the false prophet was cast into the lake of fire (Rev. 19:20). Angels who left their habitation and sinned are in everlasting chains awaiting judgement (Jude 1:6). At the last judgement those accursed wicked will depart to their eternal torment (Matt.25:41; 13: 40, 42).

Yes Jesus went down to Paradise (Abraham’s bosom) as He told the thief crucified beside Him and was there three days and three nights, and from there declared to them as He declared to John on the Isle of Patmos: “I am he that liveth and was dead and behold I am alive forever more Amen.”(Revelation 1:18) Jesus is no victim of Satan being tormented in Hell: Jesus is the Victor. From that place Jesus ascended to heaven leading the righteous captives of Hades with Him. (Eph.4:8, 9)

In conclusion I want to point out the underlying motive — the internal drive that perpetuates this lie which sadly is gaining momentum in the evangelical church primarily in charismatic circles and faith groups. I have referred and taught about this in previous posts. However once again I will refer to certain well known high profile Christian celebrities in brief in order for believers to discern what in fact these popular figures actually teach is not scripturaly sound. Much of what is taught is intertwined with some truth meant to slip in undetected, making it more difficult to discern the fabrication. These same names popup over and over again and sadly for the same reason. (This again is just scratching the surface.)

Kenneth Hagin writes: “Physical death would not remove our sins. He tasted death for every man –spiritual death. Jesus is the first person ever to be born again. Why did His spirit need to be born again? Because it was estranged from God.” (“The Name Of Jesus” Kenneth E. Hagin; pages 29, 30) On page 31 of the same book Hagin goes on to say spiritual death also means ‘Satan’s nature’.

Dear friends, you can’t even make this stuff up; it’s out there if one will take the time to study what these so called Bible teachers have actually been teaching. It is not sound orthodox Bible teaching nor the faith that has been handed down through millennia but a hybrid gospel meant to indoctrinate believers into their own twisted brand of beliefs.

Let me state at this juncture that we will all be accountable for what we embrace. Certainly what we believe and act upon will set the trajectory or the course we take either into the ways of God as we seek for Biblical truth or a trajectory that will take us far off the ‘path of the just’ that the Bible teaches – ‘burns brighter and brighter until the full day.’(Proverbs 4:18)

Benny Hinn believes and teaches as well that Jesus needed to be born again. In his video teaching, ‘Our Position in Christ” part one –TV #254, he says: “If He (Jesus) was not reborn, I would never be reborn.”

Kenneth Copeland in his book entitled ‘Substitution Identification’ speaks of a conversation he had with God where God says to Copeland: “…Oh, yeah, if you’d known and had the knowledge of the Word of God that He