What if I believe in The Lord God but not Jesus? Jesus was a messenger. A prophet in my belief.

QUESTION:

What if I believe in The Lord God but not Jesus? Jesus was a messenger. A prophet in my belief.

ANSWER:

The message and focus of the grace gospel, which is the only gospel by which we can be saved today, proclaims the cross of Christ, see 1Cor 15:1–4. The focus is on what Jesus Christ did for us. It does not focus on His identity, which is of great importance in the Kingdom gospel.

However, I must add that if you are going to believe in the cross work of Christ; that His death is for the forgiveness of our sins, and His resurrection is for our justification before God, then it goes hand in hand that this sinless and utterly righteous life that Jesus lived is proof of His deity.

It’s not really viable to separate His deity from the cross. No man can die for my sins because all men have sinned and fallen short of God’s glory. How can a sinner die for my sins??

So, although the grace gospel places emphasis on the cross of Christ, it stands to perfect reason that a person who believes that this event and sacrifice, (which can save them), could only be performed by God Himself and no mere sinful human being. The cross proclaims the deity of Christ.

There is no salvation in believing that Jesus was a good man, or a prophet. One can even believe in the cross by human intellect, or by historical fact, and it won’t save you. Salvation lies in hearing and understanding the message of the grace gospel. The gospel has the power to penetrate your mind and heart to bring a faith that you cannot produce yourself. Responding to this faith, a deep conviction and inner knowing that Jesus is the Lord God, and that His death and resurrection can justify you, is the only way that God will accept to save you. Every other option falls short of His gospel, His standard, and requirement.

If you need faith to be increased in order to come to a knowing of who Jesus really was, you need to get into the Bible and read it. My advice (if you choose to receive it) is to read the book of Romans several times over and let it sink into your heart. This will produce the faith you need to know Christ and the power of His cross work.