For if he who comes preaches another Jesus whom we have not preached, or if you receive a different spirit which you have not received, or a different gospel which you have not accepted—you may well put up with it!
2 Corinthians 11:4 (New King James Version)
Another Jesus
When Paul met Jesus on his way to Damascus, Jesus introduced himself as Jesus of Nazareth. The reason Jesus introduced Himself as Jesus of Nazareth was for Paul to know who He really was. After this encounter, Paul dedicated his entire life preaching about Jesus of Nazareth. Paul then warned believers of preachers who would preach “another Jesus” who is different from Jesus of Nazareth.
We must not entertain any preacher who preaches about another Jesus. We must reject preachers who introduce another Jesus to us with the intention of deceiving and leading us astray. But this places a great responsibility on us as believers. To reject the “another Jesus” means we must know the true Jesus of Nazareth. The more we know the Jesus of Nazareth, the easier it becomes to distinguish Him from the others. It was for this reason that the Paul said “that I may know Him and the power of His resurrection, and the fellowship of His sufferings, being conformed to His death” (Philippians 3:10 NKJV).
A different spirit
Paul warned us about that danger of receiving another spirit which is different from the Holy Spirit. When we accept Jesus of Nazareth as our Lord and Savior, we receive His Spirit. This is why Paul said “The Spirit Himself bears witness with our spirit that we are children of God” (Romans 8:16 NKJV). Accepting another Jesus will certainly make us accept a spirit which is different from the Holy Spirit. We can only resist the temptation of receiving another spirit when we know the Holy Spirit. We must not hesitate to reject any preacher who ministers with a different spirit.
A different gospel
Lastly, Paul warned us against the temptation of accepting a different gospel. Preachers who preach about another Jesus will present a different gospel other than the gospel of Jesus Christ. But the message of such preachers would be presented with one thing in mind, and that is to deceive us. We must not fall for any message that contradicts the gospel of Jesus Christ.
that is, that God was in Christ reconciling the world to Himself, not imputing their trespasses to them, and has committed to us the word of reconciliation.
2 Corinthians 5:19 (New King James Version)
The message that God has given to His preachers is the message of reconciliation. Preachers must point to the fact that believers can relate with God through Jesus Christ. The essence of this message is to make believers understand that the gap that existed between God and man because of man’s disobedience has been closed by Jesus Christ. In other words, Jesus Christ is the bridge between God and man and we are free to walk on the ‘bridge’ to reach God. Therefore, any message that attempts to widen the distance between God and man is a false message and it must be rejected.
We are in the last days and for that matter we must be careful not to allow any preacher to deceive us. There is only one Jesus of Nazareth and any preacher who comes in the name of the Lord must preach about Him, His Spirit and His message.
