“For if one coming, proclaims another Jesus, whom we did not proclaim, or you receive a different spirit, which you did not take, or a different gospel, which you did not welcome, you are enduring well” (2 Corinthians 11:4).
This “another” Jesus – an allos Jesus in Greek – means another of the same sort. What does this mean? An allos Jesus is the same Jesus that is revealed in the scripture except that He is circumscribed to the extent that He is Jesus the Saviour only, not Jesus the Lord. This is the Jesus of modern Christianity and this allos Jesus is the outcome of a different spirit than the Holy Spirit and it leads to a different gospel than that contained in the full body of scripture.
This allos Jesus is our friend and He loves us, so nothing bad will happen to us; this “different spirit” says that we can claim the salvation He offers without any strings attached; the notion of yielding to His Lordship in our daily lives is alien to this “different gospel”.
The unworldly virtues of which Jesus spoke in the Sermon on the Mount are honoured in the breach by those following this allos Jesus; instead of poverty of spirit we find the rankest pride; instead of meekness we find fleshly arrogance; instead of mourning we find pleasure in this life; instead of hungering and thirsting after righteousness we find men seeking after the deceitfulness of riches; instead of mercy we find harsh judgement; instead of purity of heart we find vain and fleshly imaginations; instead of peacemakers we find resentment and taking offence.
This allos Jesus is a fleshly Jesus; He is the Jesus of phileo, not agape; this is the great error of Christianity; it is as the Psalmist said;
“But unto the wicked God said; What have you to do to declare my statutes, or that you should take my covenant in your mouth? Seeing you hate instruction, and cast my words behind you” (Psalm 50:16-17).
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