THE FIRST BASIC DOCTRINE
OF
MODERN CHRISTIANITY
Christianity, as understood and believed by the Christians of both the
Roman Catholic and the Protestant persuasions, consists of Three Creeds;
namely, the Apostles, the Nicene and the Athanasian. The fundamental and
basic doctrines of Modern Christianity may be summarized as follows:
1.
Jesus is the Son of God or God. This is the
basic of the Doctrine of the Trinity, the Divinity of Jesus and the Divine
Son-ship of Jesus.
2.
Jesus died on the Cross for the forgiveness of
our sins and resurrected on the third day. This is the basis of the
Doctrine of Original Sin and the Doctrine of Atonement.
3.
Jesus has risen to the skies,
4.
Jesus himself will come back again.
I shall deal extensively with these doctrines
quoting several passages from the Bible and I hope to dismiss these
Christian doctrines which are not based on the authority of the teachings
of Jesus or on the authority of the Bible.
The first Basic Doctrine of Modern Christianity is that Jesus was the Son
of God Himself: this is the basis of the Doctrine of the Trinity, the
Divinity of Jesus and the Divine Son-ship of Jesus.
The first question to be
asked after reading the Bible is: Was Jesus the Son of God or was God
Himself?
The
Christians normally argue that Jesus was God or the Son of God because of
his having been conceived and born without the agency of the father. This
Doctrine is perfectly put by the Athanasian Creed.
There is one Person of the Father another of the Son, and another
of the Holy Ghost. But the Godhead of the Father, of the Son, and of the
Holy Ghost, is all one; The Glory equal, the Majesty coeternal.........
The Father is God, the Son of God and Holy Ghost is God. And yet there are
not three Gods, but one God......... Father like as we are completed by
the Christians verity to acknowledge other Person by Himself to be God and
Lord, we forbidden by the Catholic religion. Was that true to be three
Gods or three Lords.
The Christians contend that there is
abundant evidence for this I and the Bible.
I and the Father are One. The Jews took up stones again to stone him
Jesus answered, I have shown you many good works from the Father;
for which of these do you stone me ?
The Jews answered We stone you for no good work but for blasphemy;
because you, being a man make yourself God.
Jesus answered them Is it not written in your law, said you are gods? If he called them gods to whom the Father
consecrated and sent into the world, You
are blaspheming because I said, I am the Son of God?
[John 10:30-36]
The
above verses and other similar verses in the Bible should not be accepted
in their literal sense; rather, they have to be seen as figurative
statements capable of more than one interpretations. The title Son of God
is conferred on a host of believers and Prophets in the Bible. The
following passages from the Bible illustrate this very well:
And you shall say to Pharaoh Thus says the
Lord, Israel is my first born Son. [Exodus 4:22]
You are the son of the Lord your God..... [Deut. 14:1]
Father of the fatherless...is God......
[Psalms 68:5]
He shall build a house for my name, and I will
His Father, establish the throne of His kingdom for ever I will be
and He shall be my son......
[II Samuel 7:13-14]
He said to me, It
is Solomon your son who shall build my house and my courts, for I have
chosen him to be my son, and I will be his Father.
[I Chr. 22:10]
Blessed
are the peacemakers, for they shall be called sons of God.
[Matthew 5:9]
...so
that you may be sons of your Father who is in heaven.
[Matthew 5:45]
And call no man your father on earth, for
you have one Father who is in heaven. [Matthew 23:9]
Every
one who believes that Jesus is the Christ is a child of God and every one
who loves the parents loves the child. [John
5:1]
...the son of Egos the son of Seth, the
son of Adam, the son of God.
[Luke 3:38]
For
In Him we live and move and have our being ; as even some of your poets have said, For
we are indeed His offspring. [Acts
17:28]
For all who are led by the Spirit of God are
sons of God. [Romans 8:14]
...it is the Spirit Himself bearing
witness with our spirit that we are children of God. [Romans 8:16]
...and
not for the nation only, but to gather into one the children of God who
are scattered abroad. [John
11:5 2]
For
those whom He foreknow He also predestined to be conformed to the image of
His Son, in order that He might be the first born among many
brethren. [Romans
8:29]
Do you not know that you are Gods temple and that Gods Spirit dwells in you? [I
Corinthian 3:16]
And
I will be a Father to you, and you shall be My Sons and daughters, says
the Lord Almighty. [II Corinthians 6:18]
and
in the place where it was said to them, You are not my people, it shall be said to them, Sons of the living God. [Hosea
1:10]
...for I am a Father to Israel and Ephraim is
My first born. [Jeremiah
31:9]
It is as
clear as day from these passages, that in the Bible Son of God
signifies love and affecting Jesus (peace of God be upon him) was
undoubtedly one of Gods beloved prophets.
Furthermore, we learn from the Psalms that this title was given to David
long before it was given to Jesus. Psalms 2, verse 7 declares: I will declare the decree: the Lord hath said unto
me, Thou art my Son; this day have I begotten thee. Similarly, Israel has been
called the Son of God
in Exodus 4:22 and Solomon in I Chronicles 22:10.
Indeed, this phrase Son
of God meant nothing more than nearness to God. Jesus Christ himself said that
every righteous and merciful man was a Son
of God, He says as follows:
Love your enemies.........that ye may be the
children of your Father which is in Heaven. [Matthew
5:44-45]
Blessed are
the Peacemakers: For they shall be called the sons of God. [Matthew 5:9]
These
sayings should leave no doubt in our minds as to what this phrase meant
for Jesus. In view of these passages from the Bible, there is no reason
why Jesus should be regarded as the Son of God in a literal or unique sense.
We read in the Bible that Adams Conception lacked the agency of both father and mother Does he then
stand out greater than God and His Son? Similarly, we read about
Melchizedech, King of Salem:
He is without
Father or Mother or genealogy, and has neither beginning of days nor end
of life, but resembling the son of God he continues a priest for
ever. [Hebrews 7:3]
All
these are enough to invalidate the argument that Jesus was the Son of God
because he has been conceived and born without the agency of the father.
Leaving the Bible and other holy books alone we can consider the customs
and beliefs of our people to show that the word, son of God is used merely
as a metaphor. For example in Ikare, Western State Nigeria, Princes are
called OMO EKUN
meaning Son of Lion. This does not mean that the Prince so addressed
was born by a lion. The curious aspect of this doctrine is that God the Son is claimed to be equal to God the Father and divine attributes are assigned to him. This
claim is, to me beyond my understanding. For instance, when a Prince is
called the Son of Lion, no one tries to find out where the tail of the
Prince is since the expression is simply metaphorical.
Some Christians attribute the virtues of Son-ship to Jesus because it is
alleged he performed some miracles. In fact, in Christianity miracles are
given great significance; not only are they used as strong arguments to
support certain claims but it seems also that the central doctrine of the
Christian religion is itself based on alleged miracles such as the rising
of Jesus from the dead. It is not surprising that in the Gospels miracles
take the place not only of arguments but also of religious duties, moral
teachings and spiritual awakening. The dead are made to rise from the
graves, multitudes of the sick are healed, sight is restored to the blind,
the lames are made to walk, the deaf is made to hear, water is turned into
wine, devils are cast out and many other wonderful deeds are done.
Though the Gospels lay so much stress on miracles, the great significance
attached to them diminishes considerably when the following two
outstanding facts are considered. In the first place, similar miracles
were according to the Gospels performed even by the opponents of Jesus
Christ, for he himself has this to say:
And if I by
Beelzebub cast out devils, by whom do your children cast them out?
[Matthew 12:27; Luke 11:19]
The disciples of the
Pharisees could perform miracles just as Jesus did. Again, Jesus is
reported as saying:
Many
will say to me in that day, Lord, Lord, have we not prophesied in thy
name? And in thy name have cast out devils? And in thy name done many
wonderful works? [Matthew
7:22]
Even false Christ could
work the miracles which Jesus showed:
For there
shall arise false Christs and false prophets and shall show great signs
and wonders. [Matthew 24:24]
There is also the healing poor of those days which
again is a miracle:
Now there is
at Jerusalem by the sheep market a pool which is called in the Hebrew
tongue Bethesda, having five porches. In these lay a great multitude of
impotent folk, of blind, halt, withered, waiting for the moving of the
water. For an angel went down at a certain season into the pool, and
troubled the water: whosoever then first after the troubling of the
water stepped in was made whole of whatsoever disease he had.
[John 5:2-4]
If
miracles were so commonplace in those days, even if the disciples of the
Pharisees and iniquitous and false Messiahs could perform the self same
miracles which the Son
of God was performing. If there was such a miraculous pool as described above
what was there so unique about those miracles of Christ?
Yet another consideration makes the evidence of the Gospel miracle
worthless. The miracles in a prophets life is needed to assure the people to whom he is sent of the truth of
his message. Also, to convince the ordinary minds that he possesses some
supernatural power. The question, therefore is, supposing Jesus wrought
the miracles which are recorded of him in the Gospels, what was the effect
produced by those miracles? Certainly if such wonderful deeds were done,
the masses ought to have followed him without hesitation. But the Gospels
tell us that though multitudes of the sick followed him and were
healed and faith was a condition precedent to healing, yet Jesus never had
multitudes of follower. His following was very poor, perhaps no more than
five hundred men. His own disciples also did not show in any marked degree
the effect of the miracles performed by him upon their lives. Of the
twelve specially chosen, one turned traitor, another became cursed and the
rest all fled leaving their master in a sad
plight. Therefore, even if Jesus worked miracles they would never seem to
have fulfilled the objects for which miraculous power is vouchsafed.
There is not the least
doubt that Jesus often spoke in parables and used symbolic language
freely:
Let the dead bury their dead.
[Matthew 8:22]
The hour is
coming and now is, when the dead shall hear the voice of the Son of
God... for the hour is coming, in which all that are in the graves shall
hear His voice and shall come to forth. [John 5:25-29]
There seems to be no doubt
that words like these were the source from which sprang marvels like the
following:
And, behold
the veil of the temple was rent in twain from the top to the bottom; and
the earth did quake and the rocks rent; And the graves were opened; and
many bodies of the saints which slept arose. And came out of the graves
after his resurrection and went into the holy city, and appeared unto
many. [Matthew
27:51-53]
I believe
in..... one Lord Jesus Christ, the only begotten Son of God. Born of the
Father before all ages. God of God Light of Light, true God of true God.
Begotten not made: being of one substance with the Father.
Christians (both Roman
Catholics and Protestant) believe that Jesus was God from all eternity and
the Second Person of the
Trinity; that nearly two thousand years ago he chose to appear in a human
form and was born of the Virgin Mary.
This dogma does not seem to have any support from the words of Jesus
Christ, as recorded in the Gospels. The truth is that Jesus strongly
disclaimed Godhood or Divinity. Here are his own words:
Why
callest thou me good? There is none good but One, that is, God. [Mark
10:18]
Speaking about God, Jesus said:
My father and your Father, and my God and your God.
[John 20:17]
This
verse shows that Jesus stood in the same relation to God as any other
human being. In other words, he was a creature of God. In his agony on the
Cross, Jesus cried out:
Eloi, Eloi Lama sabachthani?
Translation:
My God ! My God ! why has thou forsaken me? [Mark
15:34]
Can any one imagine these words coming out of the mouth of God?
Here we have the cry of a helpless man to his Creator and Lord.
The fact is, Jesus claimed only to be a Prophet a Messenger of God. The
Gospels accord Jesus a status not a shade higher than that of a prophet
and a messenger. He was a man to whom God had
repealed His message for the guidance of other men. The following words of
Christ himself support this contention:
If
ye are Abrahams
children, ye would do the works of Abraham. But now ye seek to kill me, a
man that hath told J you the truth, which I have heard from God.
[John 8:39-40]
Whoever
receives one such child in my name receives me: and whoever receives me,
receives not me but Him who sent me.
[Mark 9:37]
He
answered, I
was sent only to the lost sheep of the house of Israel.
[Matthew 15:24]
If you keep my commandments, you will abide in my love, just as I
have kept my Fathers commandments and
abide in His love. [John
15:10]
He who
receives you receives me, and he who receives me receives Him who sent
me. [Matthew
10:40]
I have not
spoken of myself but the Father which seat me. He gave rue a commandment
what I should say and what I should speak.
[John 12:49]
God is comprehended from His
attributes. If it is proved and granted that Jesus is Master of Divine
attributes, one is justi6ed in taking him for God. On the other hand, if
the truth is otherwise and Jesus stands destitute of Divine attributes,
the claim to his Divinity is unsound and hostile to truth.
A comparison may be
drawn between the attributes and acts of God and those of Jesus:
1.
It is not up to God to
pray; it is up to man to beseech and tender supplication. The way of God
is to attend to mans Petitions, It is written :
The Lord is
far from the wicked but He hears the prayer of the righteous. [Proverbs 15:29]
But He withdrew to the
wilderness and prayed.
[Luke 5:16]
And being in an agony He
prayed more earnestly. [Luke
22:44]
Then Jesus want with
them to a place called Gethsemane, and he said to his disciples, Sit here while I go
yonder and pray. [Matthew
26:36]
In the days of
his flesh Jesus offered up prayers and supplications, with loud cries and
tears, to Him who was able to save him from death, and be was beard for
his godly fear. [Hebrew
5:7]
2.
God
is Almighty
...and I
will be a father to you, and you shall be my sons and daughters, says
the Lord Almighty. [II
Corinthians 6:18]
Jesus is not God and the type of Omnipotence ascribed to him is
rendered meaningless by the following verses from the Bible:
I can do
nothing on my own authority; as I hear, I judge; and my judgment is
just, because I seek not my own will but the will of Him who sent me.
[John 5:30]
And
he could do no mighty work there, except that he laid his hands upon a
few sick people and healed them.
[Mark 6:5]
When Herod
saw Jesus, he was very glad, for he had long desired to see him, because
he had heard about him, and he was- hoping to see some sign done by him.
So he questioned him some length; but he made no answer.
[Luke 23:8-9]
3.
God
is All-Knowing. He knows the Unseen and the Seen, nothing escapes His
knowledge.
He has the knowledge of earth and heaven and all
that is created. [I Kings
8:39]
In sharp contrast to God, Jesus is not imbued with this attribute
as evidenced from the following statements from the Gospel:
But of that
day or that hour no one knows, not even the angels in the heaven, nor
the Son, but only the Father.
[Mark 13:32]
In the morning, as he was returning to the city,
he was hungry; and seeing of fig tree by the wayside he went to it, and
found nothing on it but leaves only. And he said to it, May no fruit ever come from you again-and
the fig tree withered at once. [Matthew 2:18-19]
...came up behind him, and touched the fringe of
his garment; and immediately her flow of blood ceased. And Jesus said, Who was it that touched me? When all denied it, Peter said, Master, the multitudes surround you and press upon you. [Luke 8:44-45]
I will give
you the keys of the kingdom of heaven and whatever you bind on earth
shall be bound in heaven, and whatever you loose on earth shall be
loosed in heaven. [Matthew
16:19]
But he turned and said to Peter, Get behind me, Satan. You are a hindrance to me for you are not on the
side of God, but of men. [Matthew
16:23]
Judah was one of the twelve disciples of Jesus. He betrayed him and
recanted. Yet Jesus addresses them (including Judah) as follows:
Truly, I say to you, in the new world, when the Son of man shall sit on
his Glorious throne, you who have followed me will also sit on twelve
thrones, judging the twelve tribes of Israel. [Matthew
19:28]
It would seem, Jesus was not Omniscient as God; he knew neither of
the obscure nor the manifest. He was in the dark even regarding so crude a
matter as the produce season of the fig tree. It is, therefore, a flagrant
blunder to take Jesus for God.
4.
Death
overtakes Him not:
...who alone has immortality...
[I Timothy 6:16]
On the contrary, Jesus is reported to have died; consequently,
Jesus cannot possibly be God.
5.
It
is God who is the Savior of Mankind and shields them from disaster. David
says:
Many are the
afflictions of the righteous ; but the Lord delivers him out of them
all. [Psalms 34:19]
Jesus is not God but His righteous servant. God favored Him by His choicest
blessings. He was a paragon of virtue for the House of Israel.