I'm old enough to remember watching a TV series back in the 60s called "To Tell The Truth," where 3 people would be introduced, all saying "My name is…." and giving the same name, and a panel who were to ask them questions and determine which of these 3 were the real so and so. After the panel put in their vote, they would ask, "will the real so and so please stand up?" Then the true person would stand and reveal themselves.
Our real Jesus stands up in the Bible, and we can see Who He is clearly if we go to the Word of God where He is revealed. As we look there we can clearly see all the false jesus's are also seen to be false. It's no wonder that those proclaiming a false jesus stir you away from the Bible telling you it is not relevant for our day. All who desire to know the real Jesus, can, and He will make Himself known to them. But you need to ask the right questions and look in the right place.
(John 6:29) Jesus answered them, "This is the work of God, that you believe in him whom he has sent."
"that ye believe"
Strong's:
pisteuō
pist-yoo'-o
From G4102; to have faith (in, upon, or with respect to, a person or thing), that is, credit; by implication to entrust (especially one’s spiritual well being to Christ): - believe (-r), commit (to trust), put in trust with.
"believe on" - to or into
To believe on Him is to have faith to Him, in and upon Him, Who He is, what He has said to be true, trusting His Word and committing oneself "into" the life He has for us. This entails a turning about from self to Him, not just a head knowledge and a tagging Him onto our lives as though we could gain Him as a good luck charm, or giving mental assent to His forgiveness but not understanding or appropriating His life. Many believe on a jesus of the world's making that is not Jesus the truth, the life, and the way, Whom the Bible speaks of and reveals. This jesus of the world cannot save them. In fact this jesus only exists in the imaginations of people. They write novels trying to portray their jesus, or movies or television programs. But we must be careful that we are not receiving a false jesus that is only imagined by someone. The One we are to "believe, entrust ourselves to" is "in Him Whom He (God) has sent," not in the one the world gives you.
Matthew 7:13-23
(13) "Enter by the narrow gate. For the gate is wide and the way is easy that leads to destruction, and those who enter by it are many.
(14) For the gate is narrow and the way is hard that leads to life, and those who find it are few.
(15) "Beware of false prophets, who come to you in sheep's clothing but inwardly are ravenous wolves.
(16) You will recognize them by their fruits. Are grapes gathered from thornbushes, or figs from thistles? (What comes forth from their mouth is not that Word of God, but that of the world)
(17) So, every healthy tree bears good fruit, but the diseased tree bears bad fruit.
(18) A healthy tree cannot bear bad fruit, nor can a diseased tree bear good fruit.
(19) Every tree that does not bear good fruit is cut down and thrown into the fire.
(20) Thus you will recognize them by their fruits.
(21) "Not everyone who says to me, 'Lord, Lord,' will enter the kingdom of heaven, but the one who does the will of my Father who is in heaven.
(22) On that day many will say to me, 'Lord, Lord, did we not prophesy in your name, and cast out demons in your name, and do many mighty works in your name?'
(23) And then will I declare to them, 'I never knew you; depart from me, you workers of lawlessness.'
Wolves in sheep's clothing can talk and act like true believers and fool many and even draw huge crowds. But Jesus says of them, "I never knew you." They can even do "signs and wonders" in His name. This is not true "fruit" that we are to receive, but whether or not they believe into the true Jesus of the Word, and glorify Him and His fruit of true eternal life is spoken by them to others to feed on. The true fruit is the Word of God, revealed in the Bible, for all to eat and live on (John 6).
There can be movies made of Jesus, but the jesus they portray is of someone's imagination rather than that of the Word of God, and can falsely portray Him. God's revelation of Jesus is the Word spoken to us by His Spirit and written down for us in the Bible. This is the only Jesus we are to learn to know, trust in, surrender our lives to, listen to and obey, as we believe in Him. Eating the fruit of this Jesus gives us true life. Abiding in this Jesus enables His fruit to come forth from us to feed others.
John 6:30-35
(30) So they said to him, "Then what sign do you do, that we may see and believe you? What work do you perform?
(31) Our fathers ate the manna in the wilderness; as it is written, 'He gave them bread from heaven to eat.'"
(32) Jesus then said to them, "Truly, truly, I say to you, it was not Moses who gave you the bread from heaven, but my Father gives you the true bread from heaven.
(33) For the bread of God is he who comes down from heaven and gives life to the world."
(34) They said to him, "Sir, give us this bread always."
(35) Jesus said to them, "I am the bread of life; whoever comes to me shall not hunger, and whoever believes in me shall never thirst.
How the enemy of our souls wants to keep us from that true Bread of life! Once we find it we wonder how we could have looked to anything else, or anyone else! Once that life comes into us and makes our spirits come alive, we don't want to feed on anything else. Nothing else will satisfy. Even as believers of the true Jesus, we must be on our guard that we are not listening or taking the word of another. We must be in HIS Word so we can discern whether or not we are. Don't let yourself be robbed!
Father in Heaven, I pray that many more will come to know You, the only true God, and Jesus Christ - the true Jesus Christ - Who You have sent. Open our eyes, Lord, we want to see Jesus!
If you want to know more about this salvation and are not sure you are going to Heaven, you can know. His Word assures us how we can know. Click here to read more.
