Do you have to believe that Jesus is the literal son of God to be Christan?
starfish asked:
Or can you simply call yourself a Chrisitian because you believe and follow his teachings of love and forgiveness. If Jesus “son of God” status was disproved would your world be turned upside down or would Jesus have relevance in your life?
Jos This entry was posted on Saturday, December 31st, 2011 at 5:21 am and is filed under Christian Music. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.
Or can you simply call yourself a Chrisitian because you believe and follow his teachings of love and forgiveness. If Jesus “son of God” status was disproved would your world be turned upside down or would Jesus have relevance in your life?
Jos This entry was posted on Saturday, December 31st, 2011 at 5:21 am and is filed under Christian Music. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.
January 1st, 2012 at 11:35 am
Audrey
No
January 2nd, 2012 at 8:01 am
Mia
since it’s all BS what difference does it make?
January 3rd, 2012 at 4:20 am
Samantha
Do you have to believe that Jesus is the literal son of God to be Christan?
Yes- for sure.
January 4th, 2012 at 10:26 am
Daniel
Ancient church Tradition:
Ignatius of Antioch
“Jesus Christ . . . was with the Father before the beginning of time, and in the end was revealed” (Letter to the Magnesians 6 [A.D. 110]).
Justin Martyr
“Jesus Christ is the only proper Son who has been begotten by God, being his Word and first-begotten, and power; and, becoming man according to his will, he taught us these things for the conversion and restoration of the human race” (First Apology 23 [A.D. 151]).
“God begot before all creatures a beginning, who was a certain rational power from himself and whom the Holy Spirit calls . . . sometimes the Son
. . . sometimes Lord and Word. . . . We see things happen similarly among ourselves, for whenever we utter some word, we beget a word, yet not by any cutting off, which would diminish the word in us when we utter it. We see a similar occurrence when one fire enkindles another. It is not diminished through the enkindling of the other, but remains as it was” (Dialogue with Trypho the Jew 61 [A.D. 155]).
Irenaeus
“[The Gnostics] transfer the generation of the uttered word of men to the eternal Word of God, attributing to him a beginning of utterance and a coming into being . . . . In what manner, then, would the Word of God—indeed, the great God himself, since he is the Word—differ from the word of men?” (Against Heresies 2:13:8 [A.D. 189]).
Tertullian
“The Father makes him equal to himself, and the Son, by proceeding from him, was made the first-begotten, since he was begotten before all things, and the only-begotten, because he alone was begotten of God, in a manner peculiar to himself, from the womb of his own heart, to which even the Father himself gives witness: ‘My heart has poured forth my finest Word’ [Ps. 45:1–2]” (Against Praxeas 7:1 [A.D. 216]).
Hippolytus
“Therefore, this sole and universal God, by reflecting, first brought forth the Word—not a word as in speech, but as a mental word, the reason for everything. . . . The Word was the cause of those things which came into existence, carrying out in himself the will of him by whom he was begotten. . . . Only [God’s] Word is from himself and is therefore also God, becoming the substance of God” (Refutation of All Heresies 10:33 [A.D. 228]).
Origen
“So also Wisdom, since he proceeds from God, is generated from the very substance of God” (Commentary on Hebrews [A.D. 237]).
Gregory the Wonderworker
“There is one God, the Father of the living Word, who is his subsistent wisdom and power and eternal image: perfect begetter of the perfect begotten, Father of the only-begotten Son. There is one Lord, only of the only, God of God, image and likeness of deity, efficient Word, wisdom comprehensive of the constitution of all things, and power formative of the whole creation, true Son of true Father” (Declaration of Faith [A.D. 265]).
Lactantius
“When we speak of God the Father and God the Son, we do not speak of them as different, nor do we separate them, because the Father cannot exist without the Son, nor can the Son be separated from the Father, since the name of ‘Father’ cannot be given without the Son, nor can the Son be begotten without the Father. . . . [T]hey both have one mind, one spirit, one substance; but the former [the Father] is as it were an overflowing fountain, the latter [the Son] as a stream flowing forth from it. The former as the sun, the latter as it were a ray [of light] extended from the sun” (Divine Institutes 4:28–29 [A.D. 307]).
Council of Nicaea I
“We believe . . . in our one Lord Jesus Christ the Son of God, the only-begotten born of the Father, that is, of the substance of the Father, God of God, light of light, true God of true God, begotten, not made . . .” (The Creed of Nicaea [A.D. 325]).
January 5th, 2012 at 12:57 pm
Landon
If Jesus was the son of God, he could not be the messiah because God was not of David’s line
January 6th, 2012 at 12:27 pm
Ayden
duh yea
January 8th, 2012 at 8:22 am
Lillian
Yes, because belief in the Messiahship of, and divinity of, Jesus is a core theological element of Christianity.
There’s little point in speculating on what would happen if “Jesus’ ‘Son of God’ status was disproved,” because that’s the same as talking about the existence of the sun and the moon being disproved. Too unrealistic to talk about.
.
January 9th, 2012 at 6:17 pm
Parker
Yes, you have to believe that Jesus is the only begotten son of God to be Christian.
January 11th, 2012 at 7:41 pm
Kevin
You do, yes. That’s pretty much the point. Just agreeing with his teachings doesn’t mean anything, since virtually everything Jesus taught had been said before.
January 12th, 2012 at 4:14 am
Cameron
yes. you have to believe that the Son, the Father, and the Holy Ghost are one. Jesus is the bridge to God. He bridged the gap that sin made.
January 14th, 2012 at 6:23 pm
Allison
ya
January 17th, 2012 at 8:03 am
Leah
Only speaking for myself. A christian is a follower of Christ, regardless of the religious dogma and tradition that has been created out of his teachings. Christ’s teachings were not religious, they were transcendental, but “man” has created a human intitution out of these teachings that have become dogmatic, exclusive and self righteous.
January 18th, 2012 at 2:10 pm
Emily
Yes. To be Christian, you have to believe that Jesus is God, the eternal Son of the Father. God the Son entered into time and history when He took on flesh and became man. He was able to be born to a human mother because of the “yes” that the Blessed Virgin Mary said to God. This is the main difference in belief between a Christian and any other religion. If you refuse to accept this, you would not be following His teachings.
Jesus said that He is the Lord of the Sabbath. No one but the Almighty and eternal God could be the Lord of the Sabbath. Jesus also gave the Holy Spirit to His disciples by breathing on them. Only God can breathe the Holy Spirit into someone. I could go on and on, but there isn’t the space here and no one likes a long answer.
If Jesus lied about being the Almighty God, then He would not have been a good teacher. I believe that He was telling the truth.
January 20th, 2012 at 9:46 pm
Madison
Absolutely! Jesus hasn’t been disproved for the past 2000 years so what makes you think He will be now? Jesus is the ONLY begotton (birthed) son of God.
January 23rd, 2012 at 5:08 pm
Brayden
Yes you must believe he is the literal Son of God. His Son of God status can never be disproved to me. I’m not brainwashed. I’m washed in the Blood.
January 26th, 2012 at 8:11 pm
Jack
It is as simple as this if a man could be perfect and without sin why would a just God not require it of all mere mortals? The reason of Christ to come to this world is to atone for sin because no man is perfect. If we could have done perfection without the atonement it would have been unnecessary.All have sinned and fallen short of the glory of God. God is righteous and the wages of sin is death. Our only hope was that God himself paid the penalty of death for us. It is the reason Christ said no man comes to the Father but through the Son. He provided the way by paying the penalty of death for us.
January 29th, 2012 at 4:06 am
Sebastian
I really can’t imagine Jesus caring what you think of him. If you follow his example, call yourself Christian if it makes you feel good.
January 30th, 2012 at 10:20 am
Addison
YES, It is written in the BIBLE that HE was the SON of GOD. Why wouldn’t you believe that HE WAS? I believe that to be a True Christian, you must.
Read: John 1:18 No one has seen God at any time. The only begotten Son,[a] who is in the bosom of the Father, He has declared Him.
Read:
John 3:35-36 The Father loves the Son, and has given all things into His hand. He who believes in the Son has everlasting life; and he who does not believe the Son shall not see life, but the wrath of God abides on him.”
I hope that this answers your question. The BIBLE is our GUIDE as to what GOD said and we are/are not to believe and do.
Eds
January 31st, 2012 at 11:41 am
William
Nope
Literal son.
February 2nd, 2012 at 11:07 pm
Hailey
Living a “Christ like” life and believing in all the bosh of the Bible are two different things and they are not completely exclusive of one and another.
While it’s possible for a Christian to believe to his core that each and every word printed in the Bible is true, he may still fall short of achieving the parallel to a Christ-like life and may be far less “Christ-like” than non-Christians.
It’s curious that you call yourself a Christian at all. If you doubt this important tenon of the Christian doctrine, you are quite inaccurate to describe yourself as a Christian.
I personally try to live my life with the idea that being “Christ-like” in most respects is an ideal. I’m an Atheist, died in the wool, but I recognize that a good example of living a moral existence can be found (at least in part) by emulating Christ’s image, but I wouldn’t begin to think of myself as a Christian because of this..!
Christianity clings to a great deal of incredible nonsense that I couldn’t force myself to believe even if it meant my life. The idea that Jesus is the “Son of God” is just one of them… God, of course is another… and there are far too many to list after these for me to go on….
Are you in the same ball park? It’s very likely that you aren’t a Christian at all.
If the genial line of Jesus became known and he was proven to be a mere mortal, the idea of a “Christ-like” life would still have significance, would it not? It’s the idea of living a good life that is important to us here and that isn’t dependent upon anything, factual or false or somewhere in between, that is attached to the truth about Jesus.
[][][] r u randy? [][][]
.
February 5th, 2012 at 1:24 pm
Destiny
OUTWARD FORMS AND SYMBOLS MUST BE USED TO CONVEY INTELLECTUAL CONCEPTIONS
A subject that is essential 1 for the comprehension of the questions that we have mentioned, and of others of which we are about to speak, so that the essence of the problems may be understood, is this: that human knowledge is of two kinds. One is the knowledge of things perceptible to the senses—that is to say, things which the eye, or ear, or smell, or taste, or touch can perceive, which are called objective or sensible. So the sun, because it can be seen, is said to be objective; and in the same way sounds are sensible because the ear hears them; perfumes are sensible because they can be inhaled and the sense of smell perceives them; foods are sensible because the palate perceives their sweetness, sourness or saltness; heat and cold are sensible because the feelings perceive them. These are said to be sensible realities.
The other kind of human knowledge is intellectual—that is to say, it is a reality of the intellect; it has no outward form and no place and is not perceptible to the senses. For example, the power of intellect is not sensible; none of the inner qualities of man is a sensible thing; on the contrary, they are intellectual realities. So love is a mental reality and not sensible; for this reality the ear does not hear, the eye does not see, the smell does not perceive, the taste does not discern, the touch does not feel. Even 84 ethereal matter, the forces of which are said in physics to be heat, light, electricity and magnetism, is an intellectual reality, and is not sensible. In the same way, nature, also, in its essence is an intellectual reality and is not sensible; the human spirit is an intellectual, not sensible reality. In explaining these intellectual realities, one is obliged to express them by sensible figures because in exterior existence there is nothing that is not material. Therefore, to explain the reality of the spirit—its condition, its station—one is obliged to give explanations under the forms of sensible things because in the external world all that exists is sensible. For example, grief and happiness are intellectual things; when you wish to express those spiritual qualities you say: “My heart is oppressed; my heart is dilated,” though the heart of man is neither oppressed nor dilated. This is an intellectual or spiritual state, to explain which you are obliged to have recourse to sensible figures. Another example: you say, “such an individual made great progress,” though he is remaining in the same place; or again, “such a one’s position was exalted,” although, like everyone else, he walks upon the earth. This exaltation and this progress are spiritual states and intellectual realities, but to explain them you are obliged to have recourse to sensible figures because in the exterior world there is nothing that is not sensible.
So the symbol of knowledge is light, and of ignorance, darkness; but reflect, is knowledge sensible light, or ignorance sensible darkness? No, they are merely symbols. These are only intellectual states, but when you desire to express them outwardly, you call knowledge light, and ignorance darkness. You say: “My heart was gloomy, and it became enlightened.” Now, that light of knowledge, and that darkness of ignorance, are intellectual realities, not sensible ones; but when we seek for explanations in the external world, we are obliged to give them a sensible form. 85
Then it is evident that the dove which descended upon Christ was not a material dove, but it was a spiritual state, which, that it might be comprehensible, was expressed by a sensible figure. Thus in the Old Testament it is said that God appeared as a pillar of fire: this does not signify the material form; it is an intellectual reality which is expressed by a sensible image.
Christ says, “The Father is in the Son, and the Son is in the Father.” Was Christ within God, or God within Christ? No, in the name of God! On the contrary, this is an intellectual state which is expressed in a sensible figure.
We come to the explanation of the words of Bahá’u’lláh when He says: “O king! I was but a man like others, asleep upon My couch, when lo, the breezes of the All-Glorious were wafted over Me, and taught Me the knowledge of all that hath been. This thing is not from Me, but from One Who is Almighty and All-Knowing.” 2 This is the state of manifestation: it is not sensible; it is an intellectual reality, exempt and freed from time, from past, present and future; it is an explanation, a simile, a metaphor and is not to be accepted literally; it is not a state that can be comprehended by man. Sleeping and waking is passing from one state to another. Sleeping is the condition of repose, and wakefulness is the condition of movement. Sleeping is the state of silence; wakefulness is the state of speech. Sleeping is the state of mystery; wakefulness is the state of manifestation.
For example, it is a Persian and Arabic expression to say that the earth was asleep, and the spring came, and it awoke; or the earth was dead, and the spring came, and it revived. These expressions are metaphors, allegories, mystic explanations in the world of signification.
Briefly, the Holy Manifestations have ever been, and ever will be, Luminous Realities; no change or variation 86 takes place in Their essence. Before declaring Their manifestation, They are silent and quiet like a sleeper, and after Their manifestation, They speak and are illuminated, like one who is awake.
1. Lit., the pivot. [ Back To Reference]
2. Extract from the letter to Násiri’d-Dín Sháh. [ Back To Reference]
February 6th, 2012 at 9:55 pm
Zachary
You can call yourself what you want. But, you must believe He’s the literal son of God to actually BE a Christian and get to Heaven.
Why would you want to only CALL yourself a Christian though without actually being one?
February 6th, 2012 at 11:59 pm
David
If yo don’t believe what all Christians believe, you really can’t call yourself a Christian, and Jesus being the only begotten son of God is one of the most fundamental truths of Christianity.