Contemplating all Jesus is

I've read that followers of other religions, including followers of the Islam religion consider Jesus a prophet and nothing more because they do not believe Jesus is the Son of God; nor was he crucified or resurrected; nor is there any Holy Trinity.

More interesting info on what the Quran says about Jesus and the Bible.

Question- If Jesus is only a prophet, what about these facts about Jesus?,

Jesus, Son of God came to save us from the penalty of sin

Photo credit: mensatic from morguefile.com

A prophet is seen differently by people of different religions.
Mainly, a prophet is a person chosen of God to voice a direct message to his people.


Here's a list of 70 contradictions found in Al-Quran.
I'm not a scholar of the Quran, but if there are these many contradictions, could information
 written in the Quran about Jesus be erroneous?

There are over 200 names referring to the person of Jesus. It's quiet an impressive list referring to Jesus. I would conclude Jesus can be called more than just a prophet. (and one of his names is Everlasting Father which means he is God. God is limitless and He chose to be of three distinct attributes. Jesus is God incarnate so we could get a visual glimpse of God who is without form because God is Spirit, and so a part of God could be born of flesh in order to become the perfect, sinless, approved sacrificial-lamb for mankind so we can have our sins placed upon the perfect sacrifice for our sins to be forgiven by God.

God's master plan for the redemption of Man was in the making from the very beginning, long
fore Man came on the scene. That's some awesome master plan God has in the works!

And a prophet is a man or woman with a sin nature just as we all have.
Jesus came into his earthly body without a sin nature being conceived of the Holy Spirit.
I'd say Jesus is much more than a prophet. He did much more than voice a message from God.

Can you imagine that the Lord, relinquished part of his deity and became a growing fetus, dividing cells and all, within the uterus of Mary with human and holy DNA. What a miracle!
Jesus temporarily relinquished his everlasting spirit form and become one of flesh and bone and blood. He was born into the physical world by developing as a baby inside the chosen virgin named Mary, but he held onto his deity as Mary was visited by another attribute of God in the form of the Holy Spirit.

This holy, miracle impregnation proves nothing beyond the reach or is impossible to God.

Contemplate all Jesus is and all Jesus has and is doing for you right now.
This is far beyond prophet material. No mere prophet can be God and man.

No ordinary prophet was given authority to take away any one's sins. Jesus does.

We are not awaiting the return of an ordinary prophet.
Contemplate what Jesus is yet to do for those who call upon him as their Lord and Savior.
We are awaiting the return of Jesus, the Son of God.

Here are what we should be doing until his return.

And while we are waiting, if we pray according to his will, we can do great works in his name. How cool is that? And it's all because when we hook up with Jesus, through him we are empowered to do great things. Again, God gets the glory, through Jesus, not us. No ordinary prophet can do this.

May I suggest a thorough study of the Bible with the goal of searching for the truth should one wish to know who Jesus is.
And, I say 'is' because he IS alive.
He's our High Priest and our advocate in heaven and is busy mediating for us and preparing a place for us.
And at the appropriate, he will return in all his glory and the world will know without a doubt he is King of Kings, and Lord of Lords.


Until next time,  I'm walking on my glorious, narrow path leading to my Lord.

The Pope need saving, too

Just like us all, the Pope is a sinner and is in need of a Savior.  No disrespect intended. The Bible does not mention any person as being without sin. No matter whether their position is the Pontiff of the Catholic Church or the most generous person on Earth who volunteers thousands of hours and gives millions of dollars to benefit homeless, hungry, hurting children, EVERY PERSON IS a sinner. You, I, and every single person is born a sinner by fact of our ancestry back to the original sinners committing the original sin in the Garden. The Bible says so in black and white. There's no two ways about it.

So that means you, me, the Pope, and even those gone on before us, Mother Theresa, for instance, we are all equal in the sight of God. God is no respecter of persons, His Word says so, again in black and white for you and I to see. Down through the generations back to the first Man and Woman, Adam and Eve. A sinful nature is within us. We are sinners by virtue of inheritance. The Pope included. We all walk on this earth and have the same sinful nature, the Pope included. We're all of equal position in the category of sin.  In times past, prophets were chosen by God and anointed into their position. God usually chose a man whom man would not have chosen. There was no papal conclave in which men chose a leader whom God would use to speak to his people.

We do not need an elected Man to speak to God in our behalf for us. We can go directly to the High Priest in heaven ourselves.

Jesus is our High Priest of the order of Melchizedek, and Jesus, the Messiah, of the tribe of Judah is also our King and Savior.

To put it bluntly. unlike the Pope, Jesus never retires, never grows old or tired, never will he need to be replaced by a successor. Forever he will he be The High Priest. There's no higher position in all the universe and heavens. And to add to that, he wants to personally know you and for you know him. He's bled for you, prayed for you, took brutal beatings, endured extreme humiliation, and ultimately he was cruelly sacrificed and died for you.  He's proven his love for you and God has accepted all Jesus did. Jesus being perfect, and God being well- pleased with all he did is proof that Jesus is the Son of God and was sent to us so we would not have to die spiritually, but have life and be at peace with God.

The retiring Pope has introduced some 'cracks' in the notion of the Pope being infallible.  But the question still remains regarding God has no respecter of persons ' Who will pay for the Pope's sins? Even the Levis, had to offer sacrifices for their sins as well.

Vatican City, where the Pope resides

Photo credit: clarita from morguefile.com
 

Many claim it's Biblical to have a Pope as the head leader of the Catholic Church. 

 But the Pope needs saving as a sinner just the same as you and I. Read this question and answer regarding the infallibility of the position of Pope vs, the person, the Pope.

For an opposing point of view, see  this writing for points made of the false doctrine on papal infallibility and on Peter not being the first Pope. 

Peter, the apostle was imperfect. He needed a Savior.

God's Word is sharper than a two-edged sword and will stand the test of time. God's Holy Word is infallible. Jesus is infallible.

Another link for questions regarding the Catholic Church, Mary, etc. 

My question regarding Mary being without sin, goes back to saying there is no person without sin, and if they claim to be, they are lying. Mary was born to parents who were sinners by human nature and her grandparents and all the way back were sinners. She may have lead a godly life and had a heart pleasing to God, but she was human and henceforth, a sinner just like every other man, woman and child.

Mother Mary with infant Jesus

Photo credit: anon from morguefile.com
 
Mary was in need of a Savior, too.

Click here to see what the Bible says about the virgin Mary. 

Here are some interesting points pertaining to the story at a wedding feast, Mary brings it to Jesus' attention that the wine has run out. Mary knows to go to Jesus to make things right and she tells the servants to do whatever he tells them to do. Click here for some interesting points regarding this story.


Jesus is the only person born who was and is without sin. He knew no sin but was counted as sin for our sake. 

Thank God for his perfect plan to send part of himself to be born of flesh to be the perfect sacrificial Lamb and be given for the sake of our souls for all eternity.   Thank the Holy Spirit for raising Him from the dead. He is alive and we are with him as well when we believe, accept, and put our trust and faith upon the One whom the angels sing and worship, our Lord, the Messiah, our Savior, Jesus the Christ.



And in case you hadn't thought about it, you are in need of a Savior as well. 


Want to receive God's forgiveness, get a fresh new start, and receive the promises of God with a ticket to heaven and have eternal life. You can have it no matter your history or your past faults. All it takes is believing you can't save your self and believing Jesus is who he says he is and asking him to be the Lord and Savior of your heart and life. It's your second birth- this time of your spirit. The beginning of your new life in Christ. Let it start and grow and blossom as you begin a fresh start in which you will be at peace with the Heavenly Father with Jesus as your friend. Watch short vid with Charles Stanley-





Remember you can't work, or pray or buy your way into heaven or into God's good graces. It's only through the saving grace of Jesus. It's what Jesus did for you. Period.  Nothing else. But once you're saved you can do good works as glory unto God for all He's done for you. It's like bringing a present to present to the one who's having the birthday.  You won't want to go to heaven empty-handed and stand before Jesus and nothing to present to him.  But only works done by those who's sins are wiped away will stand the fire and be worthwhile.


Until next time,
I remain on my daily journey following the One who IS High and Mighty.

A garden surprise

It's very pleasant weather today so I went out to water plants I've neglected for weeks.
Something caught my eye as I was walking past the overgrown garden plot. There it was, a full sized watermelon! I couldn't believe it. A watermelon three times larger than the watermelons I was tending months ago. All had rotted underneath or the ants got into them, so I'd long given up the notion that I'd enjoy a homegrown watermelon this year.
This surprise melon was a nice sized, and to have grown to it's dimension on very little rain, well, I was in awe. We've not had much rain and it surely hadn't gotten an ounce of attention from me! 
This garden surprise was perfect and prime with it's only sustenance being good sunshine, enough rain, nutrients from the soil and the touch of God.
I brought out a measuring stick and took these photo before cuting the vine and gathering up my hefty garden delight and carryng it inside to show-and-tell to Mom. She had no idea it had been growing in the garden plot either. The weeds had concealed it until today.

Hidden watermelon

God has surprises like this every day. God's order of nature and the changing of seasons, is perfectly beautifully orchestrated by his hand. But even more so is the care God has for me and you.
I am grateful of the surprises waiting to be discovered just like this today. 
A watermelon in October out of a garden full of weeds was a mighty delightful surprise to me. 
This melon's gettin' chilled tonight for some enjoying tomorrow, compliments of my good God.

This made me think about God's vastness-He has no limitations, no boundaries, no restrictions or restraints- in other words God in not hindered by anything. When God is involved in the mix, the unexpected is guaranteed.  He is way above logic and the mundane.
I'm reminded of one story in the Old Testament of a widowed woman in debt and about to starve.
The prophet Elisha was sent to her, she obeyed him and a miracle happened, the last bit of oil kept flowing and she could sell it and pay her debts and live off the profits- that was a miracle.
My watermelon is my little miracle from God today. 
God knows how much I like watermelon, and yesterday at the grocery store I didn't see not the first one. God gave me this one personally.
Thank you God for seeing not only to my needs but also to give me this garden surprise to enjoy.

What is your miracle from God today?

Scripture reference- 2Kings 4:1-7



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Until next time, keep looking toward the Son!


Update Nov. 16, 2010  I had noticed this watermelon growing when I discovered the big watermelon last month. This one  is much smaller and shaped like a gorde. The vine looked like it was dying so cut it today and took this photo with one of my dogs nearby to show the size of this melon. However, the meat wasn't totally ripe, so my piggies got to finish it off. But it sure was fun having watermelon this late in the year.