Day 10: The Essentials of Jesus

In my own Christian walk, I find there are so many churches with different opinions of different topics in today's society.  It's hard to keep it straight sometimes.  I started United Methodist, then went to non-denomination/evangelical, then tried Methodist again, Southern Baptist, went to a Pentecostal-based church, then went back to a non-denominational church.  My own background growing up is pretty much agnostic/Buddhist, and having to learn a few other religions before coming to Christ, I have quite the religious experience and knowledge of different ones.  My own personality is that I am always seeking a higher power, in which lead me to become a Christian.

Some may ask, what is worth arguing about?  Whatever church you may end up with, there are a few basic truths that come out of the Bible that should be the essentials of Jesus.

1. There is only one God.  (Most of you know, this first came out of the 10 Commandments in Exodus.)
2. God comes in three parts: God, Jesus, and the Holy Spirit. The analogy that was given to me as a young Christian is the properties of H20.  H20 can come in three forms: ice, water, and vapor.  It's still the same internally but it can be in three different forms.
3. Jesus Christ is the son of God.  One of the first books I read as a young Christian is the Book of John in the Bible.  The Book of John is by far my favorite book.  It starts off drastically different compare to the other 3 Gospels.  Anyways, the first part of John 1 talks about the nature of Jesus coming from God.
4. The only way to God is through Jesus Christ.  He is our salvation and has died for our sins. (John 14:6)
5. Jesus died and rose again. (End of John 19 and John 20).
6. Someday, Jesus will return.  (Matthew 24:21-22)

Okay, this seems all fine and dandy, right?  Pretty straight forward, in summary.  Six or eight of five points, what have you, these make up the essentials.  However, the argument can be far deeper in this, as many have read and studied the Bible on their own, and it may become just as confusing building upon these few points.  Here are a few ones I have heard (believe me, I've heard them all.)

• How was Jesus ever thought of in the Old Testament?
• What happened to the Jews when they die if they do not believe in Jesus Christ? (Before New Testament times.)
• I do not believe in a personal God.  Why should I be friends with Jesus?
• The Bible says we should love our enemies but Jesus even ask, "Who is my brothers?  Who is my mother?"  Jesus even got mad and turn tables in a temple.  The Bible contradicts itself!
• Do you believe in pre-Tribulation or post-Tribulation?
• Jesus hate Jews.  (What?  Jesus is a Jew!)
• So if we are not supposed to drink alcohol in church, then why did Jesus turn water into wine?
• Why are there so many denominations if the church is to be universal?
• What are the steps to and of Salvation (if any)?

I think for now, I'm going to leave it there.  There are explanations for each of these points but for now, I'll let you guys chew on it.  I'm sure you can come up with more on the bullet list of items that you have heard and maybe you have an answer to.  This might be a "next blog", although, I have something else in mind for tomorrow "non-essentials".