Who Is Jesus Really?

2 Corinthians 11:4 “If someone comes to you and preaches a Jesus other than the Jesus we preached, or if you receive a different spirit from the Spirit you received, or a different gospel from the one you accepted, you put up with it easily enough.”

• Just to be clear…the apostle Paul is not complimenting the Corinthians when he says this. Apparently, there is another version of Jesus that is being preached and Paul is warning them to be on guard.

Who is Jesus according to the LDS Church? Their Church website says:

According to the LDS Church, LDS prophets and LDS apostles, Jesus was the firstborn spirit child of heavenly Father and heavenly mother in pre-existence. Just like us, Jesus had a beginning and was brought into existence by another being. At a certain point in the pre-existent life, the intelligence of Jesus was organized and that is when the person of Jesus began to exist.

Jesus was always sinless, but he was not always perfect, but became perfect AFTER his resurrection.

“Jesus became a God and reached His great state of understanding through consistent effort and continuous obedience to all the Gospel truths and universal laws. The Gospel of Jesus Christ teaches that God the Eternal Father is an exalted being…Mormon prophets have continuously taught the sublime truth that God the Eternal Father was once a mortal man who passed through a school of earth life similar to that through which we are now passing. He became God—an exalted being—through obedience to the same eternal Gospel truths that we are given opportunity today to obey.” – Milton R. Hunter (General Authority – Quorum of the Seventy).

“Christ worked out his own salvation by worshiping the Father. After the Firstborn of the Father, while yet a spirit being, had gained power and intelligence that made him like unto God.” – General Conference Bruce McConkie (General Authority – Apostle)

“Christ attained Godhood while yet in pre-existence, he too stood as a God to the other spirits” – Bruce McConkie (General Authority – Apostle)

• The Jesus of the LDS Church was brought into existence and has not always existed. He worked out his own salvation and become one of many Gods through his own effort and obedience. He has not always been omnipotent and omniscient but gained power and intelligence as he progressed to godhood. And he is not the creator of all things. Remember: there are many other creator Gods out there who have created their own universe according to the LDS Church.

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Psalm 90:2 “Before the mountains were born or you brought forth the whole world, from everlasting to everlasting you are God.”

• Bible based Christians and Latter Day Saints both agree that Jesus is Jehovah of the Old Testament and that is who this verse is talking about. According to God’s Word/the truth, how long has Jesus been God for? From everlasting to everlasting. In other words, Jesus has always been God and has never been anything less than God.

John 1:1-3 “In the beginning was the Word (Jesus), and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. The same was in the beginning with God. All things were made by him; and without him was not any thing made that was made.”

• From the very beginning…not just from the beginning of our universe, but from literally forever ago and eternity past, Jesus has always been with God and has always existed as God. (This is a perfect passage that alludes to the Trinity. For more information on this topic, check out my Bible lesson, “Is The Trinity Biblical or Manmade?” https://jllds.org/2023/12/15/is-the-trinity-biblical-or-man-made/)
• According to the truth, every single thing in every single universe and every single reality that has ever come into existence was created by who? That’s right…Jesus.

Colossians 1:16-17 “For by him were all things created, that are in heaven, and that are in earth, visible and invisible, whether they be thrones, or dominions, or principalities, or powers: all things were created by him, and for him: And he is before all things, and by him all things consist.^”

• According to God’s Word, was there anything (visible or invisible) in heaven or on earth that Jesus did not create? No! He literally created all things.
• According to God’s Word, was there anything that existed before the person of Jesus? No! Jesus is God and God is the first being to ever exist.

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Is Jesus the Firstborn and Only Begotten Son of God?

Many Latter Day Saints immediately respond with, “The Bible clearly calls Jesus the firstborn and the only begotten Son of God. Obviously, he can’t literally be the first being to ever exist as mainstream Christians claim.” But let’s dig deeper into these topics to better understand these two titles that are attributed to Jesus.

The first question that might seem odd is: How many “firstborns” does God have?

Exodus 4:22 “And thou shalt say unto Pharaoh, Thus saith the Lord, Israel is my son, even my firstborn:”

Psalm 89:27 “Also I will make him my firstborn, higher than the kings of the earth.” (Verse 20 clarifies that this is referring to king David)

Colossians 1:15 “Who is the image of the invisible God, the firstborn of every creature:”

• Israel, David, and Jesus are all called God’s “firstborn.”

What does “firstborn” mean in these passages?

1. Israel – God’s special group of people whom he chose to be holy/set apart and that he promised to preserve. “Firstborn” here is in reference to rank or position. In the sight of God, the preservation of the Israelites is of greatest importance than any other people group because it would be through the bloodline of David (an Israelite) that the Messiah and savior of the world would come. If the Israelites were wiped out, God would have failed at keeping his promise. They are the only group of people that God covenanted with in the Old Testament. Therefore, protecting and preserving them was of the highest importance to God.

• David – The last half of verse 27 helps us understand that “firstborn” is connected to David being the highest and most powerful king in the world. “Firstborn” here is also in clear reference to rank or position.

• Jesus – In the same way, the following verses (Colossians 1:16-17) give us context to help us properly understand what “firstborn” is referring to: Jesus created absolutely ALL things and existed before absolutely ALL things. “Firstborn” for Jesus is also referring to rank and position. It is saying that Jesus is highest in rank and supremacy. This contextually makes sense: Jesus is supreme over every single thing that has ever come into existence because he is the one who cause all things to come into existence. The context clarifies that “firstborn” is not a reference to a chronological genealogy of Jesus being the literal firstborn or first birthed offspring of God the Father.

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What does “only begotten son” mean?

Hebrews 11:17 “By faith Abraham, when he was tried, offered up Isaac: and he that had received the promises offered up his only begotten son,”

The term “only begotten” can mean “to be first produced” as a literal offspring. But it can also mean, “unique” or “one of a kind.” Was Isaac literally Abraham’s only begotten son? No. Abraham had Ishmael before Isaac. He also had other sons after Isaac. In this passage we can see that the phrase, “only begotten son” is not to be interpreted in the literal sense. What then might it be referring to here?

“Only begotten” in this passage means, “Unique” or “one of a kind.” Yes, Abraham did have more than one son, but Isaac was the only son he had by Sarah and Isaac is the son that God promised Abraham through His covenant. In this context, it makes sense for Isaac to be referred to as Abraham’s “only begotten son,” because of the unique/one of a kind son that Isaac was.

John 3:16 “For God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting life.”

• All throughout the New Testament, Jesus is called the Son of God. But there are also times where Christians are called sons and daughters of God by means of spiritual adoption (Romans 8:15). Adam, Solomon and angels are also called sons of God. Whenever we read that Jesus is the “only begotten” son of God, the Biblical writer is intentionally separating Jesus from the everyone else who is also called a son of God. The relationship that Jesus had/has with the Father is much more unique and intimate that our relationship with the Father. Another way to say this would be that Jesus is the unique son of God because of his unique relationship with the Father. This once again is not a reference to the person of Jesus being literally begotten or created in any sense.
  • Not only is Jesus called “the son of God.” Jesus commonly referred to himself as “the son of man.” Why is only Jesus rightfully called “the son of man” if every human male is also a literal son of man? It is because this is a symbolic title.
• Other titles belonging to Jesus are the lamb of God and eternal father. He is not literally a farm animal. Neither has he literally fathered children for all eternity. Therefore, we can understand that these are all symbolic titles to help us attain a better grasp of who this almighty savior is. It would be a mistake to interpret any of these titles in a hyper literal sense. Terms such as “Father” and “Son” are attributed to both God and Jesus in order to help us understand the relationship between the different persons of the Trinity.

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Why does this matter? Imagine this scenario:

You have a house and a pipe bursts. Water is starting to flood the bathroom. You have two friends who are both named “Joe.” One of them is a professional plumber while the other is a professional basketball player. Does it matter which “Joe” you call to save your house? The obvious answer is, “Yes, it absolutely matters” and this same concept applies to Jesus.

John 14:6 “Jesus answered, “I am the way and the truth and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me.”

There is only 1 way to heaven: that is to put your trust in the one true Christ.

• There are many different versions of “Christ” today:
  • Muslims believe Jesus was a prophet who did not die on the cross
  • Jehovah’s Witnesses believe that Jesus was God’s first creation and is also Michael the archangel.
  • The LDS Church teaches that there was a point where the person of Jesus began to exist, that he was once just like us, then over time, he eventually became one of many Gods.
  • Biblical Christianity teaches that Jesus has always been God and has never been anything less. That he has eternally existed with the Father and Holy Spirit. He is before all things and created all things.

A different Christ is a false Christ, and a false Christ cannot save anyone from their sins. If we put our faith in a false Christ, then we have also embraced a false gospel.

Here are our two options to choose between:

• Jesus: the created offspring of heavenly father and heavenly mother who has not always been God but became one of many Gods over time, was not always perfect and needed to work out his own salvation

OR

• Jesus: the one who has eternally existed as the uncreated and self-sufficient God, who has never been anything less than God, He created absolutely all things, and has always been perfect
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Which Jesus are you going to call on to save you?

Please let me know your thoughts, things you appreciated or things that you disagreed with in the comment section below. Thank you for reading and God bless!