John 8:44 says: "You are of your father the devil, and the desires of your father you will do. He was a murderer from the beginning, and he stood not in the truth; because truth is not in him. When he speaketh a lie, he speaketh of his own: for he is a liar, and the father thereof."
Revelation 2:9 says: "I know thy tribulation and thy poverty, but thou art rich: and thou art blasphemed by them that say they are Jews and are not, but are the synagogue of Satan."
Revelation 3:9 says: "Behold, I will bring of the synagogue of Satan, who say they are Jews, and are not, but do lie. Behold, I will make them to come and adore before thy feet. And they shall know that I have loved thee."
Those are the words of Christ. And I acknowledge that you could interpret Him saying that the Jews who don't worship Him are fake Jews (the Catholic position) or that He didn't mean that (your position).
Thus, we have to look at a different source to figure out the correct exegesis, since it isn't clear.
So we know St. John the Apostle wrote all of those above passages, but he didn't clarify in writing what Christ meant either... So who should we go to?
Well, as it turns out, St. John the Apostle had a couple of proteges in the early Church. One was named St. Ignatius of Antioch.
In his epistle to the Philadelphians, St. Ignatius says:
"If anyone preaches the one God of the law and the prophets, but denies Christ to be the Son of God, he is a liar, even as also is his father the devil, and is a Jew falsely so called, being possessed of mere carnal circumcision."
Let me unpack this quote for you: St. Ignatius is referencing his teacher, St. John the Apostle, in this quote and referencing specifically John 8:44 ("he is a liar, even as also is his father the devil") and Revelation 2:9/3:9 ("Jew falsely so called"). St. Ignatius is telling us that through St. John's inspired Scripture, Jesus Christ is telling us that Jews who practice the Law but deny Christ are the Synagogue of Satan.
And I am inclined to trust the exegesis of St. Ignatius, protege of the beloved Apostle, St. John, over the exegesis of anyone in the 21st Century. Hopefully, you will agree that it is most prudent to trust this exegesis over more modern exegesis that is essentially preaching a "new gospel". God bless!
Still nothing about Jesus and worship. Jesus also says we are brother and sisters in Christ and sons and daughters of God. I think people mistake him for God, when he is the one who led everyone to understand who God is.
That’s heresy my friend. St. John in the Gospel According to St. John chapter 1 says Jesus is the Word, who was with God (the Father) and is God Himself. And the Word was made flesh and dwelt among us. Denying Jesus’s divinity is the heresy of both the Ebonites (an early “Jewish Christian” sect) and the Arians (which prompted the First Council of Nicaea to condemn their heresy). If you don’t know the divinity of Jesus Christ then you cannot know God the Father.
And yes, St. John's disciple, St. Ignatius DOES condemn your views in the next 2 sentences after the one I quoted:
"If any one confesses Christ Jesus the Lord, but denies the God of the law and of the prophets, saying that the Father of Christ is not the Maker of heaven and earth, he has not continued in the truth any more than his father the devil, and is a disciple of Simon Magus, not of the Holy Spirit. If any one says there is one God, and also confesses Christ Jesus, but thinks the Lord to be a mere man, and not the only- begotten God, and Wisdom, and the Word of God, and deems Him to consist merely of a soul and body, such an one is a serpent, that preaches deceit and error for the destruction of men. And such a man is poor in understanding, even as by name he is an Ebionite."
I would suggest repenting and educating yourself while there is still time!
There are many who believe Jesus was merely a man or a man with valid prophecies and not divine. To take away the divinity of Jesus Christ means you are not a Christian. Many religions, including Muslims, claim Jesus Christ is a prophet but strip Him of divinity.
Jesus Christ is God in the Flesh. God manifesting Himself in the Human form He designed and created in His own image. God came to show His love, which is beyond our current comprehension. God did not come as a warrior or an avenger or a military general. Jesus showed us there is something far greater at stake than land or resources or surviving one manifestation of existence. Our souls, everlasting life.
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.
Your exegesis is incorrect. Let me show you why.
John 8:44 says: "You are of your father the devil, and the desires of your father you will do. He was a murderer from the beginning, and he stood not in the truth; because truth is not in him. When he speaketh a lie, he speaketh of his own: for he is a liar, and the father thereof."
Revelation 2:9 says: "I know thy tribulation and thy poverty, but thou art rich: and thou art blasphemed by them that say they are Jews and are not, but are the synagogue of Satan."
Revelation 3:9 says: "Behold, I will bring of the synagogue of Satan, who say they are Jews, and are not, but do lie. Behold, I will make them to come and adore before thy feet. And they shall know that I have loved thee."
Those are the words of Christ. And I acknowledge that you could interpret Him saying that the Jews who don't worship Him are fake Jews (the Catholic position) or that He didn't mean that (your position).
Thus, we have to look at a different source to figure out the correct exegesis, since it isn't clear.
So we know St. John the Apostle wrote all of those above passages, but he didn't clarify in writing what Christ meant either... So who should we go to?
Well, as it turns out, St. John the Apostle had a couple of proteges in the early Church. One was named St. Ignatius of Antioch.
In his epistle to the Philadelphians, St. Ignatius says:
"If anyone preaches the one God of the law and the prophets, but denies Christ to be the Son of God, he is a liar, even as also is his father the devil, and is a Jew falsely so called, being possessed of mere carnal circumcision."
Let me unpack this quote for you: St. Ignatius is referencing his teacher, St. John the Apostle, in this quote and referencing specifically John 8:44 ("he is a liar, even as also is his father the devil") and Revelation 2:9/3:9 ("Jew falsely so called"). St. Ignatius is telling us that through St. John's inspired Scripture, Jesus Christ is telling us that Jews who practice the Law but deny Christ are the Synagogue of Satan.
And I am inclined to trust the exegesis of St. Ignatius, protege of the beloved Apostle, St. John, over the exegesis of anyone in the 21st Century. Hopefully, you will agree that it is most prudent to trust this exegesis over more modern exegesis that is essentially preaching a "new gospel". God bless!
Still nothing about Jesus and worship. Jesus also says we are brother and sisters in Christ and sons and daughters of God. I think people mistake him for God, when he is the one who led everyone to understand who God is.
That’s heresy my friend. St. John in the Gospel According to St. John chapter 1 says Jesus is the Word, who was with God (the Father) and is God Himself. And the Word was made flesh and dwelt among us. Denying Jesus’s divinity is the heresy of both the Ebonites (an early “Jewish Christian” sect) and the Arians (which prompted the First Council of Nicaea to condemn their heresy). If you don’t know the divinity of Jesus Christ then you cannot know God the Father.
And yes, St. John's disciple, St. Ignatius DOES condemn your views in the next 2 sentences after the one I quoted:
"If any one confesses Christ Jesus the Lord, but denies the God of the law and of the prophets, saying that the Father of Christ is not the Maker of heaven and earth, he has not continued in the truth any more than his father the devil, and is a disciple of Simon Magus, not of the Holy Spirit. If any one says there is one God, and also confesses Christ Jesus, but thinks the Lord to be a mere man, and not the only- begotten God, and Wisdom, and the Word of God, and deems Him to consist merely of a soul and body, such an one is a serpent, that preaches deceit and error for the destruction of men. And such a man is poor in understanding, even as by name he is an Ebionite."
I would suggest repenting and educating yourself while there is still time!
That's the catholic doctrine. I'm not catholic brother.
That's mere Christianity. You are not even Christian. At best you are Ebionite or Arian.
There are many who believe Jesus was merely a man or a man with valid prophecies and not divine. To take away the divinity of Jesus Christ means you are not a Christian. Many religions, including Muslims, claim Jesus Christ is a prophet but strip Him of divinity.
Jesus Christ is God in the Flesh. God manifesting Himself in the Human form He designed and created in His own image. God came to show His love, which is beyond our current comprehension. God did not come as a warrior or an avenger or a military general. Jesus showed us there is something far greater at stake than land or resources or surviving one manifestation of existence. Our souls, everlasting life.
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.