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To begin part five of our series, allow me to make a very important point. In all of the years that I've been teaching the Bible, I've never stated that Jesus is equal with God the Father insofar as His level of authority is concerned. While it is indeed true that God the Father bestowed upon Jesus all of His Power and Authority while Jesus served as His Father's Ambassador here on the Earth -- in a sense, we can say that Jesus was deputized -- nevertheless, the Bible also clearly indicates that ultimately, Jesus must still submit Himself to His Father's Will, exactly as He did two thousand years ago. This Scripture-based point alone fully supports my position that the authority of the Father supersedes that of the Son.

Please think about this. If one has greater authority than the other, then it becomes rather apparent that they cannot possibly be truly equal in every single regard, as a number of misguided Christian leaders and teachers propose. In fact, the truth of the matter is that this whole "co-equal" heresy stems directly from the erroneous trinitarian doctrine of the Roman Catholic Church, which I discuss in the series entitled "Roman Catholicism, Water Baptism and the Holy Trinity".

While God the Father and His Son may be viewed as being equal from the perspective that both of them are powerful Spiritual Beings who both form part of the godhead, and who are both of the same spiritual essence or substance, as I point out in a number of my articles, even Jesus Himself never once claimed that He is equal to God the Father when it comes to levels of Divine Authority. It was in fact the Jews who arrived at this erroneous conclusion, because the Lord constantly referred to God as His Father. To be perfectly clear, calling your father your father does NOT make you equal to your father, does it?

In other words, while God the Father and Jesus the Son work together as one in spiritual harmony and unity -- please see the seventeenth chapter of the Gospel of John -- ultimately, Jesus made it very clear that in matters of Divine Authority, His Father is in charge, that He -- meaning Jesus -- occupies the Second Position in rank at His Father's Right Hand, and that He must submit Himself to His Father's Will. This topic is more thoroughly discussed in my four-part series entitled "So You Really Think You Are So Humble?". Furthermore, Jesus plainly stated that the Father is greater than Himself, and greater than all, which totally destroys the "co-equal" Roman Catholic trinitarian doctrine. Following is clear evidence of this Scriptural truth:

"Ye have heard how I said unto you, I go away, and come again unto you. If ye loved me, ye would rejoice, because I said, I go unto the Father: for MY FATHER IS GREATER THAN I."


"My Father, which gave them me, is GREATER THAN ALL; and no man is able to pluck them out of my Father's hand."


While some Christians have found my particular position to be heretical, as far as I am concerned, it is completely supported by the previous Scriptures. In my view, there is simply no way to get around what Jesus says in them. So if anyone is in error, it is those people who remain deceived by Roman Catholic doctrine. Of course, those Scriptures are not the only verses which declare that Jesus is a little lower than the Father in rank. As you carefully study the additional verses which I will be sharing with you in just a moment, please pay special attention to the key phrases and words which are used in them, such as the following:

1. "is given unto me"

2. "hath given him authority"

3. "if thou be willing"

4. "nevertheless not my will, but thine, be done"

5. "I can of mine own self do nothing"

6. "I seek not mine own will, but the will of the Father which hath sent me"

7. "the Father hath sent me"

8. "he humbled himself, and became obedient unto death"

All of the previous phrases indicate that Jesus received His Power and Authority from Someone greater than Himself. That is, from His Father, to whom He had to submit Himself, even to the point of death. Here then are the full verses for your consideration:

"And Jesus came and spake unto them, saying, All power is given unto me in heaven and in earth."


"For he whom God hath sent speaketh the words of God: for God giveth not the Spirit by measure unto him."


"For as the Father hath life in himself; so hath he given to the Son to have life in himself; And hath given him authority to execute judgment also, because he is the Son of man."


"And he was withdrawn from them about a stone's cast, and kneeled down, and prayed, Saying, Father, if thou be willing, remove this cup from me: nevertheless not my will, but thine, be done."


"I can of mine own self do nothing: as I hear, I judge: and my judgment is just; because I seek not mine own will, but the will of the Father which hath sent me. If I bear witness of myself, my witness is not true. There is another that beareth witness of me; and I know that the witness which he witnesseth of me is true . . . But I have greater witness than that of John: for the works which the Father hath given me to finish, the same works that I do, bear witness of me, that the Father hath sent me. And the Father himself, which hath sent me, hath borne witness of me . . ."


"Let this mind be in you, which was also in Christ Jesus: Who, being in the form of God, thought it not robbery to be equal with God: But made himself of no reputation, and took upon him the form of a servant, and was made in the likeness of men: And being found in fashion as a man, he humbled himself, and became obedient unto death, even the death of the cross. Wherefore God also hath highly exalted him, and given him a name which is above every name: That at the name of Jesus every knee should bow, of things in heaven, and things in earth, and things under the earth; And that every tongue should confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father."


"For it is written, As I live, saith the Lord, every knee shall bow to me, and every tongue shall confess to God."


"For in him dwelleth all the fulness of the Godhead bodily."


I have left the following verses for last, due to the fact that the way in which they have been translated into English -- with so many he's and him's -- may be a bit difficult for some young Christians to understand. The words that you see in brackets are mine, and have been placed there for the sake of clarification. What these verses are saying, is that when all is said and done, Jesus will subject Himself to His Father, so that God the Father may be all in all:

"Then cometh the end, when he [Jesus] shall have delivered up the kingdom to God, even the Father; when he [Jesus] shall have put down all rule and all authority and power. For he [Jesus] must reign, till he [Jesus] hath put all enemies under his [under Jesus'] feet. The last enemy that shall be destroyed is death. For he [God the Father] hath put all things under his [under Jesus'] feet. But when he [God the Father] saith all things are put under him [under Jesus], it is manifest that he [God the Father] is excepted, which did put all things under him [under Jesus]. And when all things shall be subdued unto him, [unto Jesus] then shall the Son also himself be subject unto him [unto God the Father] that put all things under him [under Jesus], that God may be all in all."


As I noted earlier, while a great deal of Power and Authority has been delegated to Jesus by His Father, so that Jesus can undertake the task of cleaning up the Kingdom for His Father, nevertheless, Jesus' rightful position remains at the Right Hand of His Father. Jesus does NOT occupy the Throne of God. His Father does. One simply cannot occupy the Throne of God, and occupy the Right Hand of God, at the same time. It is totally illogical. Consider the following verses, which also clearly support my explanation of 1 Corinthians 15:24-28:

"Who is he that condemneth? It is Christ that died, yea rather, that is risen again, who is even at the right hand of God, who also maketh intercession for us."


"Which he wrought in Christ, when he raised him from the dead, and set him at his own right hand in the heavenly places,"


"If ye then be risen with Christ, seek those things which are above, where Christ sitteth on the right hand of God."


"Who being the brightness of his glory, and the express image of his person, and upholding all things by the word of his power, when he had by himself purged our sins, sat down on the right hand of the Majesty on high . . . But to which of the angels said he at any time, Sit on my right hand, until I make thine enemies thy footstool?"


"Now of the things which we have spoken this is the sum: We have such an high priest, who is set on the right hand of the throne of the Majesty in the heavens;"


"But this man, after he had offered one sacrifice for sins for ever, sat down on the right hand of God;"


"Looking unto Jesus the author and finisher of our faith; who for the joy that was set before him endured the cross, despising the shame, and is set down at the right hand of the throne of God."


"Who is gone into heaven, and is on the right hand of God; angels and authorities and powers being made subject unto him."


As we have already seen, it is the fact that we Christians, based upon what is clearly stated in the Scriptures, accept Jesus as the Son of God, as well as the only Savior of the world, which Jews and Muslims alike find so offensive and blasphemous. Due to their upbringing, their traditions, and their "One God" mentality, they are either unwilling, or simply incapable of grasping the concept of God the Father having a Son who died for the sins of us all. If you read the Qur'an, as I have done, you will discover that Muhammad is extremely adamant in his rejection of Jesus Christ being the Son of God. Following are some additional verses from the Qur'an for your consideration. They clearly reveal how Muhammad attempts to demote Jesus to the status of being just another Prophet and Messenger of God, but no more than that:

2:137. "Say ye, 'We believe in ALLAH and what has been revealed to us, and what was revealed to Abraham and Ishmael, and Isaac and Jacob and his children and what was given to Moses and Jesus, and what was given to all other Prophets from their Lord. We make no distinction between any of them; and to HIM we submit ourselves.'"

2:286. "This Messenger of OURS believes in that which has been revealed to him from his Lord, and so do the believers; all of them believe in ALLAH, and in HIS angels, and in HIS Books, and in HIS Messengers, saying, 'We make no distinction between any of HIS Messengers;' and they say 'We have heard and we are obedient. Our Lord, we implore THY forgiveness, and to Thee is the returning.'"

4:172. "O People of the Book ! exceed not the limits in your religion, and say not of ALLAH anything but the truth. Verily, the Messiah, Jesus, son of Mary, was only a Messenger of ALLAH, and a fulfillment of HIS word which HE has sent down to Mary, and a mercy from HIM. So believe in ALLAH and HIS Messengers, and say not, 'They are three.' Desist, it will be better for you. Verily, ALLAH is the only One God. Holy is HE, far above having a son. To HIM belongs whatever is in the heavens and whatever is in the earth. And sufficient is ALLAH as a guardian."

5:18. "They indeed have disbelieved who say, 'Surely ALLAH - He is the Messiah, son of Mary.' Say, 'Who then has any power against ALLAH, if HE desired to destroy the Messiah, son of Mary, and his mother and all those that are in the earth ?' And to ALLAH belongs the Kingdom of the heavens and the earth and what is between them. HE creates what HE pleases and ALLAH has power over all things."

5:73-76. "Indeed, they are disbelievers who say, 'ALLAH, HE is the Messiah, son of Mary,' whereas the Messiah himself said, 'O Children of Israel, worship ALLAH Who is my Lord and your Lord.' Surely, whoso associates partners with ALLAH, him has ALLAH forbidden Heaven, and the Fire will be his resort. And the wrongdoers shall have no helpers. They surely disbelieve who say, 'ALLAH is the third of three;' there is no god but the One God. And if they do not desist from what they say, a grievous punishment shall surely befall those of them that disbelieve. Will they not then turn to ALLAH and ask HIS forgiveness, while ALLAH is Most Forgiving and Merciful ? The Messiah, son of Mary, was only a Messenger; surely Messengers like unto him had passed away before him. And his mother was a truthful woman. They both used to eat food. See how WE explain the Signs for their good, and see how they are turned away."

5:117-118. "And when ALLAH will say, 'O Jesus, son of Mary, didst thou say to men, 'Take me and my mother for two gods beside ALLAH ?' he will answer, 'Holy art THOU, I could never say that which I had no right. If I had said it, Thou wouldst have surely known it. Thou knowest what is in my mind, and I know not what is in Thy mind. It is Thou alone WHO art the Knower of all hidden things; 'I said nothing to them except that which Thou didst command me - Worship ALLAH, my Lord and your Lord. And I was a witness over them as long as I remained among them, but since Thou didst cause me to die, Thou, hast been the Watcher over them, and Thou art Witness over all things;"

19:36-37. "It does not befit the Majesty of ALLAH to take unto Himself a son. Holy is HE. When HE decrees a thing, HE says to it, 'Be, and it comes into being.' Said Jesus, 'Surely, ALLAH is my Lord and your Lord, so worship HIM alone, this is the right path.'"

39:4-5. "Remember, it is to ALLAH alone that sincere obedience is due. And those who take as protectors others beside HIM, say, 'We serve them only that they may bring us near to ALLAH in station.' Surely, ALLAH will judge between them concerning that wherein they differ. Surely, ALLAH guides not him who is an ungrateful liar. If ALLAH had desired to take to Himself a son, HE could have chosen whom HE pleased out of what HE creates. Holy is HE ! HE is ALLAH, the One, the Most Supreme."

43:58-62. "And when the son of Mary is mentioned as an example, lo ! thy people raise a clamour thereat; And they say, 'Are our gods better, or he ?' They mention not this to thee but for the sake of disputation. Nay, but they are a contentious people. He was only Our servant, on whom WE bestowed Our favour, and WE made him an Example for the children of Israel. And if WE so willed, WE could make from among you angels to be your successors in the earth. But, verily, he was a sign of the Hour. So entertain no doubt about it, but follow me. This is the right path."

As you may already know, in writing his Epistle to Timothy, the Apostle Paul clearly stated that Jesus Christ is the only Mediator between God and man. In his Epistle to the Hebrews, Paul goes into even more detail, and explains how Jesus has become our final High Priest and Intercessor, thus annulling the necessity of the priesthood of the Old Testament period. Consider some of the key verses from Paul's writings which emphasize Christ's role as our Mediator. Please note that Paul -- like Christians today -- does not deny the fact that there is only ONE GOD. However, he also recognizes that due to our sinful condition, it became necessary for Christ to intervene on our behalf:

"For there is one God, and one mediator between God and men, the man Christ Jesus;"


"But now hath he obtained a more excellent ministry, by how much also he is the mediator of a better covenant, which was established upon better promises."


"And for this cause he is the mediator of the new testament, that by means of death, for the redemption of the transgressions that were under the first testament, they which are called might receive the promise of eternal inheritance."


"And to Jesus the mediator of the new covenant, and to the blood of sprinkling, that speaketh better things than that of Abel."


Thus, as I explain in some of my other articles, such as the series "Is Jesus the Only Begotten Son of God?", Jesus now occupies the important position of being our High Priest and Intercessor before the Throne of God. However, according to Muhammad, this core tenet of our Christian faith is nothing but a lie. Not only is there no room in the Qur'an for Jesus to be the Son of God, but neither is there any room for Him as our Mediator and Intercessor either, because the god of Islam -- Allah -- requires no intercessor, as the following verses from Surah Thirty-Nine demonstrate:

39:44-45. "Have they taken intercessors beside ALLAH ? Say, 'Even if they have no power over anything and no understanding ? Say, 'All intercession rests with ALLAH. To HIM belongs the Kingdom of the heavens and the earth. And to HIM, then, shall you be brought back.'"

So once again we see that while Jesus is greatly admired and respected as a Great Teacher and Prophet within the religion of Islam, He is totally stripped of His unique status as the only-begotten Son of God, the Saviour of the world, and our High Priest and Intercessor before the Throne of God. Islam may be an old religion, but it certainly possesses a New Age flavor to it.

As I mentioned earlier in this series, there are a variety of New Age religions which likewise embrace Jesus Christ to varying degrees. However, as with Islam, Jesus is not the Son of God and Savior of the world in said belief systems. Rather, the Son of God has been demoted to merely being an Avatar, an Ascended Master, or some spiritual being called Sananda, who is an equal with other spiritually-advanced beings who occupy the so-called "Great White Brotherhood". According to this wayward belief, this group of Ascended Masters includes the likes of Gautama Buddha, Maitreya and Confucius.

If you have been carefully reading this series, then you will realize that while Muhammad and the followers of Islam claim to believe in "what was given to Moses and Jesus", evidence from the Qur'an itself reveals what a deception and lie this really is. Their claim of accepting the Gospel -- the good news of Salvation through Jesus Christ -- is in reality an absolute fallacy. Is it possible that some of them simply do not understand what the word "Gospel" actually means? While this may be true for some Muslims, it seems to me that even Muhammad himself fully understood the concept, but simply chose to reject it, and by extension, told his followers to reject it as well.

That being the case, I can only conclude that when followers of Islam say that they are submitting to Allah, and are thus worthy of "The Gardens", they must be speaking of some other god, and some other "heaven", but most certainly not the God of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob, or the Heaven which is described in the pages of the Bible. Why do I say this? Because in order to reach the Heaven of the Bible, one must repent of his sins -- Muslims do not even accept the concept of sin -- as well as seek forgiveness through the Sacrifice of Jesus Christ.

The God of the Bible laid down clear and specific requisites regarding what is necessary in order for a person to obtain Eternal Salvation. It is plain to see -- just from reading the Qur'an -- that Islam and its prophet Muhammad deny all of them. While Muhammad claims that he received all of his revelations in the Qur'an from the Angel Gabriel, from this short study of the Qur'an, I can only conclude that this is simply not so. I am reminded of the following verses which were written by the Apostle Paul in his second Epistle to the brethren at Corinth:

"For such are false apostles, deceitful workers, transforming themselves into the apostles of Christ. And no marvel; for Satan himself is transformed into an angel of light. Therefore it is no great thing if his ministers also be transformed as the ministers of righteousness; whose end shall be according to their works."


Contrary to the hope of receiving Eternal Life in a wonderful place called "Jannah", or Paradise -- Firdaus is the highest level to which one can hope to attain in the Islamic version of Heaven -- it seems to me that unless they come to their senses, and acknowledge Christ as Savior in their lives, the followers of Islam will only be disappointed when they learn some day that their only reward will be darkness and God's judgment.

As the following verses from the Qur'an reveal, Muhammad was fully aware of the fact that he would be rejected by Jews and Christians alike, due to his refusal to accept "their creed". Nevertheless, he forcefully promoted himself -- in the name of Allah and the Muslim spiritual hierarchy -- claiming that he bore "the truth", "glad tidings", "the religion of truth", "knowledge", "wisdom" and "true guidance". But when speaking about the Christians and the Jews, Muhammad refers to them as "those who have no knowledge", who require a sign. As we saw earlier in this series, Muhammad also makes it clear in the following verses that his ultimate goal as Allah's messenger is for Islam "to prevail over all religions, however much those who associate partners with ALLAH may dislike it". That last phrase is again an obvious criticism against Christians who believe that Jesus is the Son of God -- or God's Partner.

2:119-121. "And those who have no knowledge say, 'Why does ALLAH not speak to us, or a Sign come to us direct ?' Likewise said those before them what was similar to their saying. Their hearts are all alike. We have certainly made the Signs plain for a people who firmly believe. We have sent thee with the Truth, as a bearer of glad tidings and a Warner. And thou wilt not be questioned concerning the inmates of Hell. And the Jews will never be pleased with thee, nor the Christians, unless thou followest their creed. Say 'Surely ALLAH's guidance alone is the true guidance,' And if thou follow their evil desires after the knowledge has come to thee, thou shalt have from ALLAH, no friend nor helper."

5:20. "O People of the Book ! there indeed has come to you Our Messenger, after a break in the series of Messengers, who makes things clear to you lest you should say, 'There has come to us no bearer of glad tidings and no Warner.' So a bearer of glad tidings and a warner has indeed come to you. And ALLAH has power over all things."

33:46-47. "O Prophet ! truly WE have sent thee as a Witness and a Bearer of glad tidings, and a Warner, And as a Summoner unto ALLAH by HIS command, and as a light-giving Lamp."

61:10. "HE it is Who has sent HIS Messenger with the guidance and the Religion of truth, that HE may cause it to prevail over all religions, however much those who associate partners with ALLAH may dislike it."

62:3. "HE it is Who has raised among the unlettered people a Messenger from among themselves who recites unto them HIS Signs, and purifies them, and teaches them the Book and Wisdom though before that they were in manifest error;"

Please notice how the spiritual beings who are supposedly speaking to Muhammad, refer to him as "a light-giving Lamp" who is bearing "glad tidings". As we have already discussed, according to God's Word, the "glad tidings" -- or Gospel -- is the Good News of Salvation through faith in Jesus Christ. Furthermore, in the Old Testament, we are told the following in the Book of Psalms concerning God's Word:

"Thy word is a lamp unto my feet, and a light unto my path."


In the New Testament, we also discover that Jesus -- who is the living Word of God -- is also the Light of the World, as we see by these verses:

"Then spake Jesus again unto them, saying, I am the light of the world: he that followeth me shall not walk in darkness, but shall have the light of life."


"As long as I am in the world, I am the light of the world."


So what we can conclude is that God's Word is our Spiritual Light, and that Jesus -- who is the Living Word of God -- is also the Light of the World. Furthermore, we have seen that the key message of God's Word is the Good News of Salvation through Jesus Christ. That is, the Gospel. This all-important message runs throughout both the Old and the New Testaments, both in prophetic form, and in revealed and fulfilled form.

The obvious question then is this: Does Islam's prophet -- Muhammad -- truly meet the Biblical requirements in order to merit the titles of "light-giving Lamp" or a bearer of "glad tidings"? Is the "light" which he claims to be sharing truly the Light of God's inspired Word; and are the "glad tidings" he bears, truly the same glad tidings which are spoken of in the Bible? If you are a Christian, then I believe that the answers to these important questions are rather obvious. But, if you require some Scriptural assistance, then allow me to refresh your memory with the following Biblical hints:

"Woe unto them that call evil good, and good evil; that put darkness for light, and light for darkness; that put bitter for sweet, and sweet for bitter!"


"For such are false apostles, deceitful workers, transforming themselves into the apostles of Christ. And no marvel; for Satan himself is transformed into an angel of light. Therefore it is no great thing if his ministers also be transformed as the ministers of righteousness; whose end shall be according to their works."


"The light of the body is the eye: if therefore thine eye be single, thy whole body shall be full of light. But if thine eye be evil, thy whole body shall be full of darkness. If therefore the light that is in thee be darkness, how great is that darkness!"


Please go to part six for the conclusion of this series.

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