In Galatians 1:6-9 Paul writes that Jesus called you into His grace:
“Him who called you in the grace of Christ“
Salvation is in the “unmerited favor” of Christ our God.
Salvation happens when you put your faith in the One God who came to earth, the Son of God, “the God-man Jesus. 1
So what is necessary to get saved? You do not have to be smart as a whip to understand the Gospel. And we know that no one is saved because of having correct doctrine. 2
We can have all kinds of weird, erroneous beliefs, wrong-headed thinking – and still arrive in Heaven “saved”.
BUT, you cannot get it wrong when it comes to who you follow. 3 We must accept and follow the true Jesus – in order to be saved.
Following a false Jesus (an “antichrist”) does not fool God. Warnings are given throughout the Bible: false Christ’s will arise. And they cannot save you. Why would anyone choose to follow a Jesus who is not God?
Salvation is only promised…
“To those who have received
a faith of the same [b]kind as ours,
[c]by the righteousness of
our God and Savior, Jesus Christ”
– 2 Peter 1: verse 1
Bethel and NAR churches preach one of those “false Christs”.
Their heresy is: denying Jesus was God in the flesh while on earth. That is a warning Paul emphasized.
21 I have not written to you because you do not know the truth, but because you do know it, and because no lie [nothing false, no deception] is of the truth.
22 Who is the liar but the one who denies that Jesus is the Christ (the Messiah, the Anointed)? This is the antichrist [the enemy and antagonist of Christ], the one who denies and consistently refuses to acknowledge the Father and the Son.
23 Whoever denies and repudiates the Son does not have the Father; the one who confesses and acknowledges the Son has the Father also. 24 As for you, let that remain in you [keeping in your hearts that message of salvation] which you heard from the beginning. If what you heard from the beginning remains in you, you too will remain in the Son and in the Father [forever]. – 1 John 2:21-24
Jesus’ disciple John wrote that. The Truth is:
The Son was God in Heaven
The Son was born as the man Christ Jesus, God on earth
Jesus, the Son, was God during His entire lifetime on earth
Jesus died on the cross — still God Almighty, the God-man Jesus.
Jesus will forever be the God-man Jesus throughout Eternity
John explains that any who deny that Jesus is God “(the Messiah, the Anointed)“, “does not have the Father” (v23). And he/she who does not have the Father – does not have the Son either.
The Bible teaches that His salvation for those who accept Him — is only through our God and Savior – Jesus the Messiah. Salvation is not by way of a mere man.
Through John, the Bible has us prepared to counter the apostates of today. John knew they were coming:
“I know that after my departure savage wolves will come in among you, not sparing the flock; 30 and from among your own selves men will arise, speaking perverse things to draw away the disciples after them.” – Acts 20:29-30
“Deceitful and seductive spirits and doctrines of demons”
Apostates like Bethel leaders and the other NAR church leaders – are dominated by a counterfeit spirit of god. They lead folks away from God’s salvation. Are you there, being led away…?
1 Timothy 4: verses 1-2 Amplified Bible (AMP)
But the [Holy] Spirit explicitly and unmistakably declares that in later times some will turn away from the faith, paying attention instead to deceitful and seductive spirits and doctrines of demons, 2 [misled] by the hypocrisy of liars whose consciences are seared as with a branding iron [leaving them incapable of ethical functioning]….
Apostates teach the heresy that Jesus was not God
Bethel/NAR doctrine teaches: Jesus was not God when He walked the earth and died on the cross. Utter nonsense! This is the classic sign to watch for when you want to identify a “cult”.
Anyone teaching that Jesus was not God in the flesh here on earth — is a cult teacher. That teaching absolutely deviates from the gospel of Paul-Matthew-Mark-Luke-John. It is totally a case of falsely interpreting this passage in Philippians 2:5-11. 4
Following a false Christ does not save anyone.
Philippians 2:5-11 NASB
5 Have this attitude [a]in yourselves which was also in Christ Jesus,
6 who, as He already existed in the form of God, did not consider equality with God something to be [b]grasped,
7 but emptied Himself [c I.e., set aside His divine rights] by taking the form of a bond-servant
and [d]being born in the likeness of men. 8 And being found in appearance as a man,
He humbled Himself by becoming obedient to the point of death: death [e]on a cross.”
9 For this reason also God highly exalted Him, and bestowed on Him the name which is above every name, 10 so that at the name of Jesus every knee will bow, of those who are in heaven and on earth and under the earth, 11 and
that every tongue will confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father.
Philippians 2:5-11 NASB
Let’s look into the NAR’s favorite passage, and see it for ourselves – as Paul really said it:
Verse 5: “Have this attitude [a]in yourselves which was also in Christ Jesus”
This passage has an attitude! It is a look into Jesus’ attitude. And it shows what should be our attitude.
Humbleness, Others-centered, Attitude
Paul here is teaching us about humility, humbleness. We are to have the mind of Christ – His attitudes, His ways of thinking.
The “attitude” of Jesus should be streaming from my soul, from deep inside my insides – because His attitude, inside His insides, was one of being humble. Jesus Christ is our example for how to be humble.
Verse 6: “who, as He already existed in the form of God, did not consider equality with God something to be [b]grasped”
So picture Jesus before coming to earth. He is God, the second entity of the Trinity. You cannot get any higher than THAT! But, Jesus was not egotistical and self-centered. He was confident and sure of Himself. After all, He was God Himself!
But Jesus was humble. Even with all the wealth, with all the powers to create a universe, with no rival anywhere — He did not consider all that as something to boast about, as something to tightly keep hold of when He became a puny man. He humbled Himself.
Status, Power, Attitude
Have you met an exceedingly rich and powerful person? And they always let you know it? They were imperious, proud, vain and boastful? That type tightly grasps their elevated status. Not Jesus.
That is what Jesus let go of: His rights to wield His powers and the elevated status He owned as God. (Of course He was never proud, never vain nor boastful, but you get my point.) Jesus was comfortable being a weak, unrecognized human. Jesus was truly and fully God, even as a man.
Verse 7-8: “but emptied Himself [c I.e., set aside His divine rights] by taking the form of a bond-servant and [d]being born in the likeness of men. 8 And being found in appearance as a man, He humbled Himself by becoming obedient to the point of death: death [e]on a cross.”
Jesus – emptied of His Rights
As Jesus thought about coming to earth, He pointedly choose to “set aside His divine rights” and He took-on the characteristics of what a bond-servant would be like. He chose the life of a (helpless newborn!) poor, country bumpkin 5
As God Almighty, He made Himself into a human being. He maintained Himself as a humble man without all the trappings of God Most Powerful. He still was God Most High. But He choose to downplay His powers. And He took that humbleness all the way to letting Himself be inhumanely treated and, submitted Himself to be obedient to His Father God – “to the point of death: death [e]on a cross”.
If Jesus had chosen to not be God
If Jesus had chosen to not be God during His mission on earth (something I think He could not have done, actually) – He would have died a worthless human “lamb sacrifice”, unworthy of Heaven’s Courts.
But no. He died the Perfect “Lamb of God, who takes away the sin of the world”! (John 1:29). God forgives sins by His Holy Holy Justice. As a mere man His death would have been as pointless as some beggar supposedly dying for the sin of the world.
Verse 9-11: “9 For this reason also God highly exalted Him, and bestowed on Him the name which is above every name, 10 so that at the name of Jesus every knee will bow, of those who are in heaven and on earth and under the earth, 11 and that every tongue will confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father.”
Being so faithful, even “to the point of death: death [e]on a cross”, Father God was extremely pleased. His will was accomplished. Now, on That Day of Judgement, all “will confess that Jesus Christ is Lord” – even Satan, even atheists, even every vile rejector of the Savior.
Who are you following?
If your Jesus died as a man-only, then your hope of salvation in that man-Jesus is a false hope. The perfect Lamb of God was necessary in the Heavenly Courts. A mere man on the cross – is a mere false teaching, not effective for eternal saving grace. It’s like as if you or I died for the sins of the world. Not very effective at all!
Following the name of Jesus-the-man… does not save you. There is salvation in no other name, in no other version of “Jesus”. None other.
Only in the Jesus of the Bible Acts 4:12
– in no one else (Amplified Bible and English Standard Version)
– in none other (American Standard Version)
– in any other (Young’s Literal Translation)
Acts 4:12 English Standard Version
And there is salvation in no one else, for there is no other name under heaven given among men by which we must be saved.”
Acts 4:12 American Standard Version
12 And in none other is there salvation: for neither is there any other name under heaven, that is given among men, wherein we must be saved.
Acts 4:12 Amplified Bible
12 And there is salvation in no one else; for there is no other name under heaven that has been given among people by which we must be saved [for God has provided the world no alternative for salvation].”
Apostates are on the wrong road
Apostate faith is a road that promises Heaven – but leads to Hell. Apostates are on the wrong road. Are you on that road too?
“But the [Holy] Spirit explicitly and unmistakably declares that in later times some will turn away from the faith, paying attention instead to deceitful and seductive spirits and doctrines of demons – 1 Timothy 4:1
Accept Jesus the Messiah today, the God-man, not the false man-Jesus of apostates.
6
1 Thessalonians 5: verse 21
“But test all things carefully
[so you can recognize what is good].
Hold firmly to that which is good.”
THIS is what happens in that moment when one accepts Christ as Lord.
17 Therefore if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creature; the old things passed away; behold, new things have come. –2 Corinthians 5:17
In the blink of an eye, the new believer is transformed inside
and passes…
from death — to life,
from condemnation — to no condemnation,
from a destiny in hell — to a destiny in heaven,
from mere humanness — to a child of God.
You can do this. Talk to God…
-
- Confess your sinfulness, your unworthiness before a totally Holy and Righteous Creator God; and
- Acknowledge Jesus as “the Messiah”, the One sent of God to pay the price of your sin.
Source: The Christ, Jesus
There is no other saving gospel
Galatians 1:6-9 English Standard Version
6 I am astonished that you are so quickly deserting him
who called you in the grace of Christ
and are turning to a different gospel—
7 not that there is another one,
but there are some who trouble you
and want to distort the gospel of Christ.
8 But even if we or an angel from heaven
should preach to you a gospel
contrary to the one we preached to you,
let him be accursed.
9 As we have said before, so now I say again:
If anyone is preaching to you a gospel
contrary to the one you received,
let him be accursed.
FOR MORE:
About Being Apostate… following “another gospel”
The NAR False Christology Doctrine, by Anthony Ho of the jcmanifesto.org False Teaching
What Is a Cult? The 6 Telltale Signs to Look For by Dr. Roger Barrier
A-NAR-THER GOSPEL of Famine In The LandBlog
Rediscovering bethel – divination, mysticism and vain imaginations – by of (FITL) Famine In The Land Blog
Comments from the FITL article – Rediscovering bethel – divination, mysticism and vain imaginations from July 13, 2021 by Rick Becker Mary Young
We left a church we’d been in for over twenty years because of infiltration from Bethel. Because it was a large church and people “gravitated” to likeminded individuals and groups, the infiltration was “hidden” for a long time. It was also hidden because we were slowly growing inured to subtle but definite departures from scriptural truth.
A new worship leader came, and the lyrics of the songs we sang (from Bethel, Hillsong, and Elevation mainly) became more and more “off”, false, shallow, and/or blatantly heretical. A number of people, us included, wrote a document to the pastor and shared it with some elders detailing the infiltrations.
For example, we had discovered books for sale at the church by Bethel leaders and associates (Bill Johnson, Kris Vallotton, and Heidi Baker, e.g.). We also learned that some of the small groups had prophets, people were “seeing” angels and “finding” their feathers. We were mystified and crushed when we found out our pastor and his wife and other people at our church were making regular trips to Bethel (from far away Tennessee).
We learned about the NAR when researching The Passion Translation in order to warn our small group about it. FITL became a valuable resource for us because of Rick Becker’s well-researched materials and accurate and thorough reference to the Bible.
Rick also provided us with wise counsel. One thing he told us that proved to be true is that our efforts to persuade the church leadership to teach and preach the truth would not succeed. We left the church and began attending a church where the truth is taught, and even though we never were seduced into the blatant lies of the NAR, as epitomized by Bill Johnson and company, we had ground “dull of hearing.”
Unadulterated truth has refreshed our souls and renewed our passion for the true church. We thank God for ministries like this that confirmed we weren’t “crazy”. In the wake of our experience, several of us collaborated to create a brief document for pastors and others who are unware or barely aware of the threat NAR lies pose for the Church.
We share this document with people we talk to about the issue so they can share it with pastors, leaders, and others in hopes awareness will help churches to not tolerate the purposeful infiltration of wolves in sheep’s clothing. FITL is one of the ministries we encourage people to read.
Another Comment from the FITL article Sickened
I’ve been praying for you and your family this last week.
Glad to see a clear acknowledgement of the demonic source of activities at Bethel. Colossians 2:18 describes Franklin perfectly. Paul never says they did not see what they did — he says they pose a danger and we are not to let them disqualify us, presumably by listening to what they say and following in their footsteps.
Paul describes their unregenerate minds and diagnoses the problem — pride; being puffed up. Pride is always fertile ground for deceit. The visions they have and go into great detail about revolve around their worship of angels — the ones Jesus referred to in Matthew 25:41. These angels are the source of their visions, just as the angels seen by Joseph Smith and William Branham were the source of theirs.
We need to read and heed the warnings of the word of God.
Guest Contributor Jeremy Sanders
A passionate conservative with a deep theological mind, Jeremy joins us to write on how theology relates to culture. His essays are long, detailed, and thorough. A military officer, Sanders’s writing reflects a passionate commitment to the Word of God and Christian living.
Editors Note: Jeremy Sanders continues exposing the pagan practices of the NAR:
God as man – the short version
About Evidences for faith in Jesus
God forgives sins by His Holy Holy Justice
About false teachings of today
There is a broad road that says heaven but goes to hell
Why suckling with the mother cat does not make the piglet a kitten
The Bible is the standard for Christian thought and practice – not me, not you …not unique Bethel prophets!
Apostasy
4 But the [Holy] Spirit explicitly and unmistakably declares that in later times some will turn away from the faith, paying attention instead to deceitful and seductive spirits and doctrines of demons, 2 [misled] by the hypocrisy of liars whose consciences are seared as with a branding iron [leaving them incapable of ethical functioning], 3 who forbid marriage and advocate abstaining from [certain kinds of] foods which God has created to be gratefully shared by those who believe and have [a clear] knowledge of the truth. 4 For everything God has created is good, and nothing is to be rejected if it is received with gratitude; 5 for it is sanctified [set apart, dedicated to God] by means of the word of God and prayer.
A Good Minister’s Discipline
6 If you point out these instructions to the [a]brothers and sisters, you will be a good servant of Christ Jesus, constantly nourished [through study] on the words of the faith and of the good [Christian] doctrine which you have closely followed. 7 But have nothing to do with irreverent folklore and silly myths.On the other hand, discipline yourself for the purpose of godliness [keeping yourself spiritually fit]. 8 For physical training is of some value, but godliness (spiritual training) is of value in everything and in every way, since it holds promise for the present life and for the life to come. 9 This is a faithful and trustworthy saying worthy of full acceptance and approval. 10 It is for this that we labor and strive [often called to account], because we have fixed our [confident] hope on the living God, who is the [b]Savior of all people, especially of those who believe [in Him, recognize Him as the Son of God, and accept Him as Savior and Lord].
Footnotes
- The God-man Jesus – as distinct from Father God and Holy Spirit God – who make-up the Holy Trinity, three entities in One.
- Just don’t be stupididiotic or accepting of what God rejects.
- Jesus Calls Me, I Must Follow (YouTube-piano).
-
This is how they do it. They take any version, but especially this from the ridiculous version of The Passion Translation (TPT) – and twist it to say Jesus totally emptied His “Godness” during His life on earth, and actually died a mere man. See this in the TPT, Philippians 2:5-11 (The unreliable Passion Translation):
6 He existed in the form of God, yet he gave no thought to seizing equality with God as his supreme prize.[a] 7 Instead he emptied himself of his outward glory by reducing himself to the form of a lowly servant. He became human! 8 He humbled himself and became vulnerable, choosing to be revealed as a man and was obedient.[b] He was a perfect example, even in his death—a criminal’s death by crucifixion![c] – Philippians 2:5-11 (in The unreliable Passion Translation)
Simmons (the TPT translator) has the TPT footnote-us-over-to: John.5.19, to mess with the Truth even more, translating it to say Jesus was “unable“. That is very sneaky-false. Jesus was actually totally able to do His own will. But, Jesus, as God the Son — choose to only do His Father’s will. This is shown quite clearly in the Amplified version, but the PTP distorts the original meaning.
The PTP distorts the original meaning.
Here is the PTP version of John.5.19:19 So Jesus said, “I speak to you eternal truth. The Son is unable to do anything from himself or through his own initiative. I only do the works that I see the Father doing, for the Son does the same works as his Father. – John.5.19 (in The unreliable Passion Translation)
Then the TPT is footnoted further in 2:11 saying (falsely):
“As translated from the Aramaic. The Greek text uses the word kurios, which is not the highest name for God. Yahweh (Hebrew) or Jehovah (Latin) is the highest name. Kurios is a title also used for false gods, land owners, merchants, and nobles. *(My Editor Note: Thus they can say Jesus was just a kurios, a mere man, not “the highest name” of God. Thus Jesus was not God, according to Simmons and NAR teaching.)”
The book of John was not in Aramaic. What? John was written in Greek. So why does he put it into Aramaic, and then to English? Very unprofessional. And then writes erroneous footnotes.
The NASB, which was put together by a large team of scholars, translates the Greek this way (whereas the one-man-band TPT Brian Simmons does not even know Greek):
19 Therefore Jesus answered and was saying to them, “Truly, truly, I say to you, the Son can do nothing of Himself, unless it is something He sees the Father doing; for whatever [a]the Father does, these things the Son also does in the same way. – John.5.19
And the Amplified puts it this way: John.5.19
19 So Jesus answered them by saying, “I assure you and most solemnly say to you, the Son [a]can do nothing of Himself [of His own accord], unless it is something He sees the Father doing; for whatever things the Father does, the Son [in His turn] also does in the same way. – John.5.19
The Amplified footnote here points-out: [a] John 5:19 Jesus uses the analogy of a son learning a trade from his father to show the religious leaders that when they condemn what He does, they are condemning the Father as well.
Jesus wanted to please His Father (God the Father), so Jesus determined that He would only do what the Father wanted.
- collinsdictionary.com “an awkward, simple, rustic person”.
-
The Bible is clear here in Deuteronomy 13:verse 1 “If a prophet arises among you….” That “Among you” today would refer to among you believers in the church. Believers and “the tares amongst the wheat”, can become false teachers. That is why the warning: do not be deceived. He is talking to believers, warning them to not be deceived and become caught-up in false practices and then start teaching those false beliefs.
Teaching “another gospel”. False teachers can definitely be church leaders who reject the Bible or portions of the Bible. They reject the gospel preached by Paul and Matthew, Mark, Luke and John, and Jesus… and begin to teach “another gospel” which is not the one from Jesus.
These false teachers begin practicing unbiblical practices and lead astray their flocks into their own gospel. These false prophets come from “within” Christian churches. They look good, talk good, smell good, and dress-up good, but they are stinking wolves in sheep skins.
The Apostle Paul warns us to carefully test prophecies and church practices. If it is good, then follow that. But it has to “pass the Bible test”. Paul implies that if the test shows it is not good – – then get rid of that prophecy, get rid of that false teaching, that false practice — get rid of those false prophets and teachers. Leave that church.
“Good” in this verse, means “biblical”. If it is not “biblical” then why on earth would we want it?
Source: Paraphrase of What false prophets are like.
