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1 of 59 Some say Jesus Christ never existed. Others claim he was not God. Still others denied his humanness.

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Some say Jesus Christ never existed. Others claim he was not God. Still others denied his humanness. JESUS CHRIST IS A MAN OF HISTORY. Many critics argue that the only record of Jesus Christ is the New Testament. - PowerPoint PPT Presentation

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Some say Jesus Christ never existed. Others claim he was not God.

Still others denied his humanness.

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JESUS CHRIST IS A MAN OF HISTORY Many critics argue that the only record of

Jesus Christ is the New Testament.

With this assumption they conclude He was a mythical character, fabricated from the imaginations of the Apostles.

However, several historians have made references to Him.

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The darkness at Jesus' crucifixion is described as occurring from the sixth to the ninth hour ( noon to 3:00 pm). Luke 23:44

Several gentile historians tried to explain the darkness as an eclipse of the sun.

This could not have happened because the Jewish calendar is lunar in its base.

Jesus died on Passover.

It was a full moon and the moon was on the other side of the earth at the time.

Darkness at Jesus' crucifixion

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The point here is not what cause the darkness.

What is important is that the gentile historians in an attempt discredit the miraculous, unwittingly documented the darkness and the existence of Christ!

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Born in 37 A.D.

Jewish historian of the New Testament times.

Worked for the Roman's.

In Antiquities xviii:33, he wrote of Jesus'. existence.

In Antiquities xx9:1, he wrote of James, the brother of Jesus.

Flavius Josephus

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In 120 A.D., Suetonius, a Roman historian, wrote about Christians.

In 112 A.D. Plinius Secundus, known as Pliny the Younger, Governor of Bithynia in Asia Minor.

He wrote to emperor Trajan asking if he should continue killing Christians.

He was killing Christian men, women, and children. They refused to worship Trajan and curse Christ. Christians were guilty of meeting on certain days before

light, singing songs to Christ as a God. They bound themselves by an oath not to commit any

wicked deed such as fraud, theft, adultery, lying, and never to deny a trust when called upon to deliver it up.

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Encyclopedia Britannica, 15th Edition, 1974.

20,000 words were devoted to Christ. This is more words than devoted to Aristotle, Alexander, Julius Caesar, Buddha, Confucius, Mohammed, or Napoleon Bonaparte.

It states : "These Independent accounts prove that in ancient times even the opponents of Christianity never doubted the historicity of Jesus, which was disputed for the first time and on inadequate grounds by several authors at the end of the 18th, and during the 19th and at the beginning of the 20th centuries."

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JESUS CLAIMED TO BE GOD Jesus made direct claims to be the Son of God. No other recognized religious leader ever claimed to be

God including Moses, Paul, Buddha, Mohammed, and Confucius.

Jesus is the only one to claim to be deity. He was the only one able to convince a large portion of

the world that He is God! His teachings were ultimate and final, over and above

Moses and the prophets. He never added any afterthoughts or revisions to his

words. Jesus never retracted or changed His teachings. He never guessed, supposed, or spoke with

uncertainty. These qualities are very unlike any other human

teachers or teachings.

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During the trial of Jesus

He admitted to His accusers, under oath, that He is and was the Son of God.

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Matthew 26:62 - 68 And the high priest arose, and said unto him,

Answerest thou nothing? what is it which these witness against thee? But Jesus held his peace. And the high priest answered and said unto him, I adjure thee by the living God, that thou tell us whether thou be the Christ, the Son of God. Jesus saith unto him, Thou hast said: nevertheless I say unto you, Hereafter shall ye see the Son of man sitting on the right hand of power, and coming in the clouds of heaven. Then the high priest rent his clothes, saying, He hath spoken blasphemy; what further need have we of witnesses? behold, now ye have heard his blasphemy.

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Christ used the phrase: "Thou hast said" In another place he used the phrase "Ye

say that I am" Luke 22:70

This sounds evasive to our modern ears. However, "Ye say" is a Greek idiom for

"yes". Jewish courtesy forbid a direct "yes" to an

accusation with such grave consequences.

The reaction of the priest shows he clearly understood Jesus to be claiming to be God.

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Mark 14:61-64 But he held his peace, and answered nothing.

Again the high priest asked him, and said unto him, Art thou the Christ, the Son of the Blessed? And Jesus said, I am: and ye shall see the Son of man sitting on the right hand of power, and coming in the clouds of heaven. Then the high priest rent his clothes, and saith, What need we any further witnesses? Ye have heard the blasphemy: what think ye? And they all condemned him to be guilty of death.

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John 19:4-7 is another example where the Jews believed Jesus' claim to be God as blasphemous.

Pilate therefore went forth again, and saith unto them, Behold, I bring him forth to you, that ye may know that I find no fault in him. Then came Jesus forth, wearing the crown of thorns, and the purple robe. And Pilate saith unto them, Behold the man! When the chief priests therefore and officers saw him, they cried out, saying, Crucify him, crucify him. Pilate saith unto them, Take ye him, and crucify him: for I find no fault in him. The Jews answered him, We have a law, and by our law he ought to die, because he made himself the Son of God.

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CLAIMED TO BE EQUAL TO THE FATHER In John 10:30-33

I and my Father are one. Then the Jews took up stones again to stone him. Jesus answered them, Many good works have I shewed you from my Father; for which of those works do ye stone me? The Jews answered him, saying, For a good work we stone thee not; but for blasphemy; and because that thou, being a man, makest thyself God.

Jesus claims "I and my Father are one".

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The Jews wanted to stone him for being a man and claiming to be God. They never stopped to consider if His claims were true. They assumed them to be false and therefore thought He deserved death by stoning.

Jesus does not say "Wait! You misunderstood me. What I meant was....". Instead, He confirmed His statement.

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Jesus referred to God as "My Father" In John 5:17-18

But Jesus answered them, My Father worketh hitherto, and I work. Therefore the Jews sought the more to kill him, because he not only had broken the sabbath, but said also that God was his Father, making himself equal with God.

A Jew would not use this term without suffixing it with "in heaven". He made a claim the Jews could not misinterpret when referring to God as "My Father"

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CLAIMS TO BE THE GREAT "I AM"

In John 8:58 Jesus said unto them, Verily, verily, I say unto you, before Abraham was, I am.

The "verily, verily" implies that what follows is certain and should be interpreted as the strongest possible meaning. It is clear that Christ did not want to be misunderstood.

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Jesus was clearly referring to Exodus 3:14 where God said to Moses, "I AM WHO I AM" and the Jews clearly understood Him to be claiming to be the great "I AM" i.e. God.

A mere prophet would have humbled himself and said, "Thus saith the Lord".

The Old Testament law required the death penalty for any human claiming to be God.

Their actions of trying to stone Jesus clearly shows they believed Him to be a blasphemer.

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Leviticus 24:16 states the penalty of a blasphemer. And he that blasphemeth the name of the

LORD, he shall surely be put to death, and all the congregation shall certainly stone him: as well the stranger, as he that is born in the land, when he blasphemeth the name of the LORD, shall be put to death.

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He spoke to them in plain words Words the Jews understood and He made no

attempt to clarify, retract or temper His claim in any way. The Jews understood His words as He intended.

Jews believed there to be only one God. God speaking through Moses said in Deuteronomy 32:39 said: “... There is no god besides me.”

Isaiah 43:10 God said:"... Before me no god was formed, nor will there be one after me...."

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JESUS CLAIMS TO BE EQUAL TO GOD THE FATHER

The Jews answered him, saying, For a good work we stone thee not; but for blasphemy; and because that thou, being a man, makest thyself God.

Jesus answered them, Is it not written in your law, I said, Ye are gods? If he called them gods, unto whom the word of God came, and the scripture cannot be broken; Say ye of him, whom the Father hath sanctified, and sent into the world, Thou blasphemest; because I said, I am the Son of God? If I do not the works of my Father, believe me not. But if I do, though ye believe not me, believe the works: that ye may know, and believe, that the Father is in me, and I in him.John 10:33-38

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JESUS DESERVES THE SAME HONOR AS GOD

That all men should honour the Son, even as they honour the Father. He that honoureth not the Son honoureth not the Father which hath sent him. Verily, verily, I say unto you, He that heareth my word, and believeth on him that sent me, hath everlasting life, and shall not come into condemnation; but is passed from death unto life. John 5:23

Christ said, "That all men should honor the Son, even as they honor the Father...."

Jesus told the Jews that by insulting Him, they are actually insulting God. It is God who is outraged by their bad treatment of Jesus.

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To know Jesus is to know the Father - John 8:19 Then said they unto him, Where

is thy Father? Jesus answered, Ye neither know me, nor my Father: if ye had known me, ye should have known my Father also.

John 14:9 Jesus saith unto him, Have I been so long time with you, and yet hast thou not known me, Philip? He that hath seen me hath seen the Father; and how sayest thou then, shew us the Father?

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Jesus made Himself an object of faith Christ instructed his disciples to believe in Him as they

believe in God; He made Himself an object of faith. In John 14:1 and following, Christ clearly states that

their eternal future depended on Him and His work. He promised to prepare a place for them and return to claim them.

He never hesitated, apologized, or contradicted Himself. He never recanted or modified anything He said. He spoke God's word as God would speak to them.

Jesus said, "Heaven and earth will passaway but My words will not passaway." Mark 13:31

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PEOPLE WORSHIPED JESUS AND HE ACCEPTED IT

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A Leper worshiped Him

And, behold, there came a leper and worshipped him, saying, Lord, if thou wilt, thou canst make me clean. Matt 8:2

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Jesus healed a blind man and he fell down and worshiped Him. Jesus heard that they had cast him out; and when

he had found him, he said unto him, Dost thou believe on the Son of God?

He answered and said, Who is he, Lord, that I might believe on him?

And Jesus said unto him, Thou hast both seen him, and it is he that talketh with thee.

And he said, Lord, I believe. And he worshipped him. John 9:35-39

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The disciples worshiped Him

Then they that were in the ship came and worshipped him, saying, of a truth thou art the Son of God. Matt. 14:33

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Thomas worshiped Him and believed him to be God. Then saith he to Thomas, Reach hither thy

finger, and behold my hands; and reach hither thy hand, and thrust it into my side: and be not faithless, but believing. And Thomas answered and said unto him, My Lord and my God. Jesus saith unto him, Thomas, because thou hast seen me, thou hast believed: blessed are they that have not seen, and yet have believed. John 20:27-29

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Jesus instructed Thomas to put his finger into His wounds So that he might believe.

Thomas' response was "My Lord and my God!".

Jesus added that Thomas believed because he saw. Those that have not seen and still believe are blessed.

He rebuked Thomas for his unbelief, NOT his worship of Jesus.

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LESSER BEINGS REFUSED TO RECEIVE WORSHIP

And as Peter was coming in, Cornelius met him, and fell down at his feet, and worshiped him. But Peter took him up, saying, Stand up; I myself also am a man. Acts 10:25-26

John attempts to worships and angle .

And I fell at his feet to worship him. And he said unto me, See thou do it not: I am thy fellowservant, and of thy brethren that have the testimony of Jesus: worship God: for the testimony of Jesus is the spirit of prophecy. Rev 19:10

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OTHER SUPPORTING EVIDENCE Paul said in Wherefore God also hath highly

exalted him, and given him a name which is above every name: That at the name of Jesus every knee should bow, of things in heaven, and things in earth, and things under the earth; And that every tongue should confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father. Phil 2:9-11

Looking for that blessed hope, and the

glorious appearing of the great God and our Saviour Jesus Christ; Titus 2:13

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He saith unto them, But whom say ye that I am? And Simon Peter answered and said, Thou art the Christ, the Son of the living God. And Jesus answered and said unto him, Blessed art thou, Simon Barjona: for flesh and blood hath not revealed it unto thee, but my Father which is in heaven. Matthew 16:15-17

Jesus blessed Peter instead of rebuking him as Jesus always did when confronted with error.

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Peter states, "Therefore let all Israel be assured of this: God has made this Jesus, whom you crucified, both Lord and Christ." Acts 2:36

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Paul called Jesus God

"But unto the Son he saith, Thy throne, O God, is for ever and ever: a sceptre of righteousness is the sceptre of thy kingdom. Hebrews 1:8

This is an obvious reference to Psalm 45:6

Thy throne, O God, is for ever and ever: the sceptre of thy kingdom is a right sceptre

The Son is called God; i.e. Jesus Christ is called God!

Paul believed Jesus to be God!

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Stephen's prayer to Jesus

And they stoned Stephen, calling upon God, and saying, Lord Jesus, receive my spirit. Acts 7:59

Stephen believed Jesus to be Deity!

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Jesus addressed God as Abba Means "father", more correctly "daddy" or

some other close, intimate, affectionate name.

No one before Jesus addressed God in this manner.

Not even David used this term. The closest David came was "... like as a father ..."

Like as a father pitieth his children, so the LORD pitieth them that fear him. Psalms 103:13

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He claimed to be able to forgive sins When Jesus saw their faith, he said unto the

sick of the palsy, Son, thy sins be forgiven thee . Mark 2:5

When Jesus saw their faith, he said unto the sick of the palsy, Son, thy sins be forgiven thee. Luke 7:48

According to Jewish law only God could forgive sins.

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Jesus claimed to BE the way, the truth, and the life. Jesus saith unto him, I am the way, the truth,

and the life: no man cometh unto the Father, but by me. John 14:6

He did not say He knew, or taught the way. He did not show the way. He IS the Way!

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Jesus is Life

And this is the record, that God hath given to us eternal life, and this life is in his Son. He that hath the Son hath life; and he that hath not the Son of God hath not life. I John 5:11,12

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Jesus has all authority And hath given him authority to execute judgment

also, because he is the Son of man. John 5:27

These things said Esaias, when he saw his glory, and spake of him. John 12:41

Christ is described as the one seen by Isaiah

In the year that king Uzziah died I saw also the Lord sitting upon a throne, high and lifted up, and his train filled the temple. Isaiah 6:1

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Holy Trinity Let this mind be in you, which was also in

Christ Jesus: Who, being in the form of God, thought it not robbery to be equal with God: Phil 2:5-6

For there are three that bear record in heaven, the Father, the Word, and the Holy Ghost: and these three are one. 1 John 5:7

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OLD AND NEW TESTAMENT COMPARISONS

Old Testament New TestamentCreator Isa 40:28 John 1:3

Savior John 4:42Raised the dead 1 Sam 2:6 John 5:21

Judge Joel l3:12 Light Isa 60:19-20 John 8:12The Great I Am Exodus 3:14 John 8:58, 18:5,6Shepherd Ps 23:1 John 10:11Glory of God Isa 42:8 48:11 John 17:1,5First and last Isa 41:4;44:6 Rev 1:17;2:8

Godly Act or Title

Isa 45:22, 43:11 Hosea 13:4

John 5:27, Matt 25:31ff

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Bridegroom Rev 21:2 Matt 25:ffRock Ps 18:2 1Cor 10:4Forgives sins Jer 31:34 Mark 2:7-10Worshiped by angels Ps 148: 2 Heb 1:6Addressed in prayers O.T Acts 7:59Creator of angels Ps 148:5 Col 1:16Confessed as Lord Isa 45:23 Phil 2:11Seen by Isaiah Isa 6:1 John 12:41

Son of Man

Isa 62:5, Hosea 2:16

Dan 7:13-14 Psalms 110:1

10 times in Matthew Mark 14:61-64 4 times in Luke

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Jesus Claimed to be God

" A man who can read the New Testament and not see that Christ claims to be more than a man, can look all over the sky at high noon on a clear day and not see the sun."

William Biederwolf

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JESUS' MORAL INTEGRITY HAS NEVER BEEN SERIOUSLY QUESTION BY CRITICS J.S. Mill, a skeptic and opponent of Christianity, wrote:

"About the life and sayings of Jesus there is a stamp of personal originality combined with profundity of insight in the very first rank of men of sublime genius of whom our species can boast. When this pre-eminent genius is combined with the qualities of probability the greatest moral reformer and martyr to that mission who ever existed upon the earth, religion cannot be said to have made a bad choice in pitching upon this man as an ideal representative and guide of humanity; nor even now would it be easy, even for an unbeliever, to find a better translation of the rule of virtue from the abstract into the concrete than to endeavor to live so that Christ would approve of our life."

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William Lecky, a noted British historian and hostile to Christianity, wrote in "History of European Morals from Augustus to Charlemagne":

"It is reserved for Christianity to present to the world an ideal character which through all the changes of eighteen centuries has inspired the hearts of men with an impassioned love; has shown itself capable of acting on all ages, nations, temperaments and conditions; has been not only the highest pattern of virtue, but the strongest incentive to its practice.... The simple record of these three short years of active life has done more to regenerate and soften mankind than all the disquisitions of philosophers and all the exhortations of moralists."

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Napoleon once said: "I know men; and I tell you that Jesus Christ is not a

man. Superficial minds see a resemblances between Christ and the founders of empires, and the gods of other religions. That resemblance does not exist. There is between Christianity and whatever other religions a distance of infinity.... Everything in Christ astonishes me. His spirit overawes me, and His will confounds me. Between Him and whoever else in the world , there is no possible term of comparison. He is truly a being by Himself. His ideas and sentiments, the truth which He announces, His manner of convincing, are not explained either by human organization or by the nature of things....

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The nearer I approach, the more carefully I examine, everything is above me - everything remains grand, of a grandeur which overpowers. His religion is a revelation from an intelligence which is certainly is not that of man.... One can absolutely find nowhere , but in Him alone, the imitation or the example of His life.... I search in vain in history to find the similar to Jesus Christ, or anything which can approach the Gospel. Neither history, nor humanity, nor the ages, nor nature, offer me anything with which I am able to compare it or to explain it. Here everything is extraordinary."

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OVERWHELMING EVIDENCE THAT JESUS IS LORD In conclusion, some may reject Christ on

moral issues. When one accepts Jesus as their personal Savior, the sin in their life becomes repugnant to them and they must turn from their wickedness or turn away from Christ. Those unwilling to give up a sinful life style will choose to accept arguments to reject Him without regard to the true facts.

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Jesus Christ was human

Jesus could have called Himself the Son of God, instead most often He preferred to Identify with His humaity by calling Himself the Son of Man thorough out the Gospels

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And the Word was made flesh, and dwelt among us, (and we beheld his glory, the glory as of the only begotten of the Father,) full of grace and truth. John 1:14

And he saith unto him, Verily, verily, I say unto you, Hereafter ye shall see heaven open, and the angels of God ascending and descending upon the Son of man. John 1:14,51

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1 Corinthians 15:21,47

21   For since by man came death, by man came also the resurrection of the dead.

47   The first man is of the earth, earthy; the second man is the Lord from heaven.

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Romans 1:3   

Concerning his Son Jesus Christ our Lord, which was made of the seed of David according to the flesh;

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1 Timothy 2:5

For there is one God, and one mediator between God and men, the man Christ Jesus;

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1 Timothy 3:16

 And without controversy great is the mystery of godliness: God was manifest in the flesh, justified in the Spirit, seen of angels, preached unto the Gentiles, believed on in the world, received up into glory.

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1 John 4:2-3

Hereby know ye the Spirit of God: Every spirit that confesseth that Jesus Christ is come in the flesh is of God:

 And every spirit that confesseth not that Jesus Christ is come in the flesh is not of God: and this is that spirit of antichrist, whereof ye have heard that it should come; and even now already is it in the world.

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2 John 1:7   

For many deceivers are entered into the world, who confess not that Jesus Christ is come in the flesh. This is a deceiver and an antichrist.