Jesus

Question 1: Where was Jesus' spirit while His body was in the grave?

ANSWER: He was in Paradise. "And Jesus said unto him, Verily I say unto thee, today shalt thou be with me in paradise" (Luke 23:43). We note that after He had arisen, He appeared to Mary and said, "Touch me not; for I am not yet ascended to my Father" (John 20:17). Clearly then, He was not in heaven during the three days. Neither was He in the place of eternal torment. The Greek word "hades" in the King James Version is most often translated as "hell" and very often does not refer to the final place of eternal torment. For example, Acts 2:27, in reference to Jesus, the passage says, "Because thou will not leave my soul in "hell" (hades). . ." So with consideration to each of these passages, we learn that Jesus was in Paradise and Hades! Hades is the place of departed spirits. The righteous then, upon death, go to a place in Hades called Paradise or Abraham's bosom (Luke 16:22). The unrighteous go to a different place in Hades; a place of torments (Luke 16:19-31). Note in Luke 16:23 that the wicked rich man lifted up his eyes being in “hell.” The Greek word translated “hell” in this passage is also “hades.” Clearly then we can see that both Jesus and the wicked rich man went to “hades,” but not to the same place within “hades.” Jesus went to that part of “hades” known as paradise, while the wicked rich man went to that part of “hades” known as “torments.” The place of torments is also called “hell” in II Peter 2:4 and the Greek word for “hell” in this passage is Tartarus. Both the spirits of the righteous and the unrighteous dead will remain in the Hadean world (in either Paradise or Tartarus) to await the resurrection and final Judgment. After Judgment, the righteous will go to Heaven and the unrighteous will go to “hell,” the place of eternal punishment (Matthew 25:46). The Greek word translated “hell” that designates the final place of the wicked is Gehenna, as seen in Matthew 5:22, 29; and Matthew 10:28.

Question 2: In what way is Christ the "firstborn (first fruits)" from the dead?

ANSWER: Christ was the first raised from the dead to die no more. Faithful Christians will follow at the Second Coming of Christ (I Corinthians 15:17-23).

Question 3: Are all of the teachings of Christ to be found in the Bible?

ANSWER: Yes!  Further, to add words to the Bible is sinful (Revelation 22:18); to take words away from it is sinful (Revelation 22:19); and to change it in any way is sinful! Those who do so are to be accursed (Galatians 1:6-9)! Anything outside of God's Word, even if it be at the direction of today's Pastors, Priests, Bishops, Archbishops, Cardinals, and Popes, is nothing but the doctrines and commandments of fallible men, and when obeyed will result in sin through vain and empty worship. Such organizations are to be rooted up in the last day! (Matthew 15:3-14).

Question 4: Where was Jesus residing during the forty days before He went to heaven?

ANSWER: During the period of His public ministry, Jesus did not enjoy a residing place as such. He said in Matthew 8:20, "the foxes have holes, and the birds of the air have nests; but the Son of man hath not where to lay His head." There is no reason to think that in the forty days after His resurrection it was any different. He did "shew Himself alive after His passion by many infallible proofs, being seen of them (the apostles) forty days, and speaking of the things pertaining to the kingdom of God." Paul tells us in I Corinthians 15:5-8 of some of Christ's appearances, being "seen of above five-hundred brethren at once." However, we have no account of a residing place.

Question 5: What things did the disciples not understand about Jesus?

ANSWER: There were many things that, at the first, they did not understand. They did not understand when He spoke of His death (Luke 9:43-45; Luke 18:31-34); when He spoke of the Father (John 8:27); when He spoke in parables (John 10:6); nor when He spoke of the establishment of His spiritual kingdom, the church (Luke 18:20-37; Acts 1:6-7). They would not understand or remember these things fully until Jesus was glorified (John 12:16), that is, until He was resurrected and enthroned at the right hand of God. The Holy Spirit, who would guide them into all truth (John 16:13) and bring all things to their remembrance (John 14:26) was not promised or could be given to them until after Jesus was glorified (John 7:39). After this was accomplished, the Holy Spirit was given to the twelve in a great way in Acts 2:1-4, after which they understood and remembered all things "whatsoever I have said unto you" (John 14:26; John 15:26; John 16:13).

Question 6: What does Christ promise if we love and obey Him?

ANSWER: Among many others, he promises forgiveness (I John 1:7-9), the peace that passeth all understanding (Philippians 4:7), eternal life (Matthew 25:46) in a prepared place (John 14:1-3), and that we might be partakers of the divine nature (II Peter 1:4)!

Question 7: How can we abide in Christ and Christ in us (John 15:4)?

ANSWER: To abide in Christ carries the idea of "remaining faithful." Faith comes by hearing the word of God (Romans 10:17). We abide in Him by our obedience to His word. (John 15:3,10). He abides in us when we humbly let His words abide in us (John 15:7)

Question 8: Was Jesus a white-skinned man?

ANSWER: The exact tone of Jesus' skin is neither certain or known. However, being a Semitic Jew from the area of Palestine, it would appear likely that He exhibited the physical characteristics of that people, i.e., olive-skinned.

Question 9: Are there other messiahs today besides Christ?

ANSWER: No! "Neither is there salvation in any other: for there is none other name under heaven given among men, whereby we must be saved" (Acts 4:12). See also John 3:16; Ephesians 4:4-6; Hebrews 10:10. Those who claim to be messiahs and apostles today do so without biblical support and are leading the unlearned to destruction (Matthew 15:9-14).

Question 10: In answer to a question in the Bible Correspondence Course, I answered that Jesus had an earthly father named Joseph. You marked it wrong. Why?

ANSWER:  The Correspondence Course is teaching that Jesus was not physically fathered by a human being. This means that Joseph was not a participant in the conception of Jesus (Matthew 1:18). Matthew tells us that which was conceived in Mary was "of the Holy Ghost" (Matthew 1:20). Therefore, we may look at Joseph as Jesus' stepfather, but His true and real Father is the very God of heaven. Thus we refer to Him as the Son of God!

Question 11: Can man today live without food for forty days, as did Christ (Matthew 4:2)?

ANSWER: It is not likely that many, if any, could survive such an ordeal! It seems possible, but not necessarily so, that this particular fasting of Christ may have been miraculously supported.

Question 12: Some people say they have seen Jesus Christ. How is this possible if Jesus is a spirit?

ANSWER: Those today who say they have literally seen Jesus Christ are either lying or suffering from mental instability!

Peter says in I Peter 1:8 that we "see Him not," and though we "see Him not" we can still love and believe in Him. As a result, we can then "rejoice with joy unspeakable and full of glory." Christ says of His followers in John 20:29, "blessed are they that have not seen, and yet have believed."

The apostle John tells us in I John 3:2 that we "know" when Christ appears we shall be like Him. He also says, "it doth not yet appear what we shall be." Since the Bible says that we don't yet know what we shall be like, it follows then that we have not yet seen Christ; nor know what He is like! If we now knew what He was like, that is, if we had seen Him, then we would already know what we would be like! The fact that "it doth not yet appear what we shall be" is evidence of the fact that none today have seen Him!

The answer to the question is summed up in Paul's statement of II Corinthians 5:7 that Christians (all Christians) "walk by faith and not by sight!" If one today had really seen Jesus then he or she would be walking by sight and not by faith, thereby negating and contradicting how God said Christians are to walk!

Those who claim that God literally appeared to them or that God talked directly to them do so in direct opposition to His Word. If these cannot be shown the error in which they engage, they need to be avoided as false teachers who "serve not our Lord Jesus Christ, but their own belly; and by good words and fair speeches deceive the heart of the simple" (Romans 16:17-18).

Question 13: In the Old Testament, the term “Son of God” was applied to David (Psalms 89:27), the nation of Israel (Exodus 4:22), the children of Israel (Psalms 82:6), and Solomon (1 Chronicles 22:10). Jesus also used it for the peacemakers (Matthew 5:9). If Jesus was referring to himself as the Son of God in the literal sense, why did he not make it clear that he was differentiating between a symbolic reference and a literal meaning of the term?

ANSWER: Jesus made it manifestly clear that he was literally the Son of God! So clear, in fact, that some were ready to kill Him for so stating (Luke 22:71; John 5:18; John 8:58-59; John 10:30-31). Not only did He make it clear that He was/and is the Son of God, but so did the Father Matthew 3:16-17; Matthew 17:5) and the Holy Spirit (Philippians 2:5-11).

Question 14: Wherein does the power of Christ’s blood lie? Or what is it that gives to the blood of Jesus such power?

ANSWER: The power of Christ’s blood lies in His sacrificial death! When the phrases, “blood of Christ” and “blood of the Lamb” are used they should be understood to be figurative phrases that express His death of atonement. Without the shedding of blood there could no remission of sins (Hebrews 9:22), either for Christians today and even for those who lived before the Cross under the Old Law (Hebrews 9:15). Since the blood of bulls and goats could not take away sins (Hebrews 10:4), it was necessary that God, because of His love for the world (John 3:16) send His Son, as the only available and perfect sacrifice, without blemish and without spot (sinless and perfect in all His ways) to shed His precious blood (I Peter 1:19) for the remission of sins (Matthew 26:28; John 1:29) borne by all who would, in obedience, come to Him.

Question 15: What has the power of His blood accomplished and how can we experience its effects?

ANSWER: It has washed away the sins of the obedient ones under the Old Law (Hebrews 9:15)! It has washed (Revelation 1:5) and washes (I John 1:7) away the sins of the obedient child of God today, and will continue to do so even until the end of the world (Matthew 28:19-20)! It was the purchase price of the Church of Christ (Acts 20:28), which is His body (Ephesians 1: 22-23). Christ’s blood (its power) is in His body, the church. One can experience the effects of His blood only by being baptized into that body (I Corinthians 12:13) where His saving blood is located (II Timothy 2:10). In the act of baptism, we are said to be baptized “into” His death (Romans 6:3-4), i.e., we through baptism become recipients of the blessings offered by and through His sacrificial death!

It should be seen clearly that the blood of Christ is “only” in His body and in no other place! If one would have his sins remitted and be made fit for heaven, he or she must be in, and remain in, unto death (Revelation 2:10), the “one” body (Ephesians 4:4), the Church of Christ (Colossians 1:18; Colossians 1:24). One cannot access the cleansing blood of Christ on his or her own terms, or according to other men’s terms. It can not be accessed in the denominations or other religions of this world, because it was not placed in any of these! Access to His all-powerful, all-cleansing blood must be on His terms and in His “one” body, the Church of Christ!

Question 16: Why was Christ called the Son of man?

ANSWER: Christ, some eighty times, uses the designation “Son of Man.” It portrays Him as the Representative Man. It designates Him as the "last Adam" in distinction to the "first man, Adam" (I Corinthians 15:45). It sets Him forth as "the second man . . . from heaven" as compared to "the first man . . . from the earth" (I Corinthians 15:47). "The Son of Man" is thus our Lord's racial name, as the "Son of David" is distinctly His Jewish name and "the Son of God" His divine name. This term is uniformly used of Christ in connection with His mission (Luke 19:10), His death and resurrection (Matt 12:40; 20:18; 26:2), and His Second Coming. It is a phrase that goes beyond purely Jewish limitations and has application to the salvation of the entire race. Thus, when Nathanael owns Christ as "King of Israel," our Lord's reply is, "You shall see greater things than these . . . the angels of God ascending and descending on the Son of Man" (John 1:49-51). It is in this designation that universal judgment is committed to our Lord (John 5:22 & 27).

Question 17: Since Jesus did not have a human father, in what way then was he the seed of David?

ANSWER: Genesis 3:15 is accepted as the first prophecy regarding Christ. This verse discusses the fact that Satan would bruise the heel of the “woman’s” seed and that the “woman’s” seed would bruise the head of Satan. This passage teaches many things, one of which is that the seed is said to be of “the woman.” The reason for specifying “the woman” is that, as you suggest, He did not have a human father and could not therefore be in the physical lineage of Joseph. In Luke 1:32, we can see that God was to give Him the throne of His father David. Clearly now we can see that if David is said to be His father, then, since He did not literally have a male human parent, it follows that His mother Mary was of the tribe of Judah, as was David. Therefore, He was the seed of David through His mother, Mary!

Question 18: If Messiah means “the anointed One,” does it mean that others who were anointed could also be called Messiah?

ANSWER: Anointing was the means by which specific persons were appointed to specific tasks. Some were anointed to be kings; some to be priests, and some to a particular work. The word Messiah comes from a Hebrew term that simply means, "anointed one." Its Greek counterpart is Christos, from which the word Christ comes. Messiah in the singular was a name used throughout the Bible to describe who Jesus was as “The Anointed One,” i.e., the One anointed by God the Father. None other could rightly be called Messiah in the same sense since the definite article “THE” and the singular usage of the term reflects one and only one; that ONE being Jesus of Nazareth!

Question 19: What does the term “only begotten” mean?

ANSWER: The phrase “only begotten” means that, though we may be called the sons or children of God (I John 3:1-2), that Christ is the “unique” Son of God and that He alone, being God Himself, holds a particular and peculiar relationship to the Father. The word in the Greek that is translated “only begotten” is monogenes. The first part of the word, mono, means “only.” The second part of the word, genes, means “begotten.” Jesus Christ was begotten by God, not man, and is, therefore, God the Son, i.e., the “only begotten Son of the Father!” None else was so begotten by God. The Son is Deity, as the Father who had begotten Him, and He, therefore, alone has and holds the relationship as His “only begotten Son.” None else can have that relationship with God. This phrase which expresses Deity is reserved only and eternally for Jesus Christ! That Christ was born of a virgin is clearly and expressly stated in Matthew 1:23 in detailed fulfillment of the prophetic statement of Isaiah 7:14.

Question 20: Christ forgave sins [Matt. 9:2] outside of the authorized Levitical divinely established method [Day of Atonement; He declared Himself greater than the Temple [Matt. 12:6-John 1:14-John 2:19]; and He declared Himself the sole pathway to the Father [John 14:6]. If Christ were subject to the Law of Moses none of this could have been possible since it was only through Aaron and the Temple that God dealt with man. Would I be wrong in saying that since Christ's blood retroactively absolved him from being subject to the inferior shadow of Aaron, his priesthood, and its law?

ANSWER: Christ was God and, being God, is, and was, the Lawgiver. He gave the old Law and subjected Himself, when He was made flesh, to that law that He had given through Moses. His subjection and strict obedience to that law is evidenced by the fact that He had no sin (Hebrews 4:15). In order for Him to have sinned, He would have had to transgress the law in effect at that time and to which He was obedient in all things, i.e., the Old Law. There is no doubt that He, without sin, had subjected Himself in obedience to that law!

The purpose of Christ's shed blood was "for the remission of sins" (Matthew 26:28; Hebrews 9:26), not to retroactively absolve Him from being subject to the Old Law. Since the Old Law was God's law for all of Israel, of which Christ in the flesh was a citizen, had His blood retroactively absolved Him from being subject to it, it would also have retroactively absolved Him from having been subject to His Head, who is God, the Father (I Corinthians 11:3). That He was always subject to the will of the father is clear: "Not my will, but thine be done." For what purpose then would he have been retroactively absolved from subjection to God and how would His blood have effected such? Impossible! The notion is absurd! Further, one must ask, “What purpose would have been served by being retroactively absolved from keeping a law that had been kept perfectly?” Absolutely none! Yes! Your hypothesis is wrong!

Question 21: Did Jesus have siblings?

From the Book of Matthew, Chapter 13, Verse 55, we learn that, during the life and ministry of Christ on this earth, He had four brothers whose names were James, Joses, Simon, and Judas. In the following verse, we are told that He also had sisters. How many, or their names, is not revealed. It is worthy to note that Jesus' half-brother James was inspired to write the New Testament book named after him. The same is true of Judas who penned the New Testament book of Jude.

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