Nobody ever called Messiah a christian. Do you know why? It’s because that mocking term wasn’t invented until after His earthly ministry. What did the term “christianos” mean? It meant \u201clittle messiah.\u201d The unbelievers in Antioch were the ones who coined the epithet (as the Greeks commonly gave groups they didn’t agree with satirical names meant to belittle them).<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Now, remember that in Matthew 24, Messiah said that \u201cmany will come in my name, and deceive many.\u201d It is important to understand that Messiah was not speaking to His disciples in Greek, but in Hebrew.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
The Gospels of Matthew, Mark, and John were translated into Greek after they were written, and after the writers had died. As Papias of Hierapolis (circa 70-163 AD) wrote of Matthew’s Gospel account, it was \u201cwritten in Hebrew, and others translated it the best they could.\u201d So, we must understand what Messiah said through the lens of translation. We do not have access to those original Hebrew manuscripts.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Here is what is important to understand: the 2nd and 3rd century creators of christianity were essentially pagans who hated the physical Jews. Being pagans, they were accustomed to many different gods and religious rituals.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Becoming enamored with the teachings of the apostles that were spreading, but demanding that their own religious practices in no way bore any resemblance to the traditions of the \u201cJewish dogs,\u201d they instituted their own new traditions that included the trappings of their paganism, and then altered the original Hebrew texts of the Gospels when translating them into Greek\u2014all to remove as much of the Jeweyness from the faith as they could.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
What they created was a counterfeit of the true faith.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
So, what we read in those Greek texts of the Gospels must be understood through that paradigm, and it is the Holy Spirit who will lead and guide Yah’s people into all truth concerning His meanings within His scriptures.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
What was Messiah saying when He foretold that many would come \u201cin His name,\u201d and deceive many? Well, it is important to understand that the word translated as \u201cname\u201d has multiple meanings. It can mean one’s actual given name\u2014the literal name given to children by their parents; or, it can mean one’s reputation, character, or authority.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Messiah Yahoshua came in His Father’s name, both literally and figuratively. His given name has His Father’s name (Yah) in it, and means \u201cYah’s salvation.\u201d However, He also came in His Father’s authority and character.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Now, Yahoshua was the prophesied Messiah the Jews had been awaiting. \u201cMessiah\u201d in the Hebrew is \u201cmashiach,\u201d which means \u201canointed one.\u201d The Greek equivalent of the word \u201cmashiach\u201d is \u201cchristos,\u201d and means the same thing\u2014anointed one.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Knowing that the Gospel message is that Yahoshua is the mashiach\/christos, unbelievers started referring to the apostles and Messiah’s followers as \u201clittle messiahs,\u201d or \u201cchristianos.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Of course, christianity has altered that narrative, claiming that christianos means \u201cfollower of Christ,\u201d but that is false. It literally means \u201clittle messiah,\u201d which is why Peter included it with other terms of shame like \u201cmurderer, thief, evildoer, or busybody\u201d (1 Peter 4:15-16).<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Throughout history, there have been a very small number of men who have claimed to be the actual incarnation of the Messiah. Their followings, if any, have been insignificant and inconsequential. Was Messiah Yahoshua mistaken when He said that \u201cMANY\u201d would come in His name, claiming to be Him, and they would deceive many?<\/p>\n\n\n\n
No. He was not talking about the occasional lunatic with mentally unstable followers. He said \u201cmany,\u201d and He meant \u201cmany,\u201d both those coming in His name, and those who would be deceived.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Remember, also, that Messiah Yahoshua spoke from a divine eternal perspective, not a human mindset based on changing trends, beliefs, and word definitions. He spoke from His knowledge of the beginning, the end, and everything in between.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
So, according to that eternal perspective, what does the word \u201cchristianos\u201d mean literally? It means \u201clittle messiah.\u201d When someone proclaims \u201cI am a christian,\u201d he is literally saying, \u201cI am a little messiah.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Those who claim to be \u201cchristians\u201d are actually claiming to come in Messiah’s authority and character. They are saying they are \u201clittle messiahs,\u201d meaning they are diminutive versions OF HIM, or that they speak by His authority, which is to speak with the entire weight and essence of who He is.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
And, by \u201ccoming in His name,\u201d as versions of Him (little messiahs), they have deceived many. The counterfeit belief system that was codified by Constantine in the 4th<\/sup> century is called “the christian religion,” or \u201cchristianity.\u201d Paul foretold of the counterfeit in 2 Thessalonians 2:3, calling it a \u201cfalling away,\u201d or \u201capostasy.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n The counterfeit belief system was invented by stripping the true faith of its foundations (the Father’s traditions), replacing them with pagan rituals and traditions, and teaching a false salvation that is purportedly obtained by decision, or by living according to accepted standards of morality (just as the rich young ruler had done\u2014he had lived according to the physical commandments).<\/p>\n\n\n\n Notice what Paul said to King Agrippa in Acts 26, after Paul had told Agrippa of his new life through the Gospel of Yahoshua the Messiah, and King Agrippa had said to him that Paul had almost persuaded him to be a \u201clittle messiah\u201d (christianos). Paul didn’t say that he wished Agrippa would be a \u201clittle messiah,\u201d but that he wished Agrippa, and everyone who was listening, would become as Paul was, which was to be born again by the indwelling of the Holy Spirit.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Rather than correcting Agrippa, who was not a born again believer, and quibbling about his usage of a derogatory term to describe what Paul was sharing with him (Agrippa was a king, after all), Paul simply stated his desire for those present was to become as Paul was\u2014born again through belief in the true Gospel of Messiah Yahoshua.<\/p>\n\n\n\n The belief system called \u201cchristianity\u201d currently boasts some 2.5 BILLION \u201clittle messiahs\u201d (christians) on the planet. Doesn’t that sound like \u201cmany\u201d? Contrast that with what Messiah said in Matthew 7:14 of life in Him: \u201cFor the gate is small and the way is narrow that leads to life, and there are FEW WHO FIND IT.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n Messiah is a Jew (yahudiy), both physically and spiritually. Messiah’s bride MUST be a Jew spiritually, and that is what Paul described in Romans 2:29\u2014that the true yahudiy (Jew) is the person whose heart (not flesh) has been circumcised, which is to be indwelt by the Holy Spirit. Paul went on to state that the true Jew is the person who has been made a Jew spiritually, and that has nothing to do with ANY physical attributes.<\/p>\n\n\n\n He also explained in Romans 11:11-24 that those who are made spiritual Jews are grafted into Y’isra-el. The physical Jews who did not believe in Messiah Yahoshua were cut off from Y’isra-el (spiritual), but they could be grafted back into Y’isra-el by belief in Messiah Yahoshua.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Spiritual Y’isra-el is comprised of spiritual Jews, like Messiah Yahoshua is. He was never a \u201cchristian,\u201d or \u201clittle messiah,\u201d as He IS the Messiah. And, those who are His, according to Romans 8:9, are also Jews (yahudiy–\u201dMy people who are called by My name\u201d)–they are not \u201cchristians,\u201d for christianity is a counterfeit of the true faith. Moreover, those who follow Messiah Yahoshua honor His Father’s traditions, just as He did\u2014those traditions that the early pagan christians despised, and modern christians mostly reject.<\/p>\n\n\n\n For more information: Circumcision and Spiritual Reproduction<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" Nobody ever called Messiah a christian. Do you know why? It’s because that mocking term wasn’t invented until after His earthly ministry. What did the term “christianos” mean? It meant \u201clittle messiah.\u201d The unbelievers in Antioch were the ones who coined the epithet (as the Greeks commonly gave groups they didn’t agree with satirical names … Read more<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":[],"categories":[14,12,13,9,11],"tags":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/wottblog.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/502"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/wottblog.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/wottblog.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/wottblog.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/wottblog.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=502"}],"version-history":[{"count":8,"href":"https:\/\/wottblog.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/502\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":2200,"href":"https:\/\/wottblog.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/502\/revisions\/2200"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/wottblog.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=502"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/wottblog.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=502"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/wottblog.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=502"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}