John 10 (Amplified Bible) 34Jesus answered, Is it not written in your Law, I said, You are gods?
Gnos?ti?ism ?noun Roman Catholic Church .
a group of ancient heresies, stressing escape from this world through the acquisition of esoteric knowledge. +++"Christ's Conference with the Jews. VII. Christ's reply to their accusation of him (for such their vindication of themselves was), and his making good those claims which they imputed to him as blasphemous (v. 34, &c.), where he proves himself to be no blasphemer, by two arguments:?
1. By an argument taken from God's word. He appeals to what was written in their law, that is, in the Old Testament; whoever opposes Christ, he is sure to have the scripture on his side. It is written (Ps. xxxii. 6), I have said, You are gods. It is an argument a min ore ad Magus?from the less to the greater. If they were gods, much more am I. Observe,
(1.) How he explains the text (v. 35): He called them gods to whom the word of God came, and the scripture cannot be broken. The word of God's commission came to them, appointing them to their offices, as judges, and therefore they are called gods, Exod. xxii. 28. To some the word of God came immediately, as to Moses; to others in the way of an instituted ordinance. Magistracy is a divine institution; and magistrates are God's delegates, and therefore the scripture Calley them gods; and we are sure that the scripture cannot be broken, or broken in upon, or found fault with. Every word of God is right; the very style and language of scripture are unexceptionable, and not to be corrected, Matt. v. 18.
The book of Acts reports on the clash between Simon Magus and the apostle Peter. Simon was a gnostic and he tried (and failed) to make Christianity accommodate gnostic beliefs.
Simon claimed to be the Saviour in human form, and also the highest God. This clearly expressed the idea that God and the Saviour (and Simon) are all one and the same Person, appearing and acting under different forms or modes of existence. His concept of the unity of God was so strong that in making his outrageous claim to be divine, he refused to acknowledge the existence of any other person who could make a similar claim. He indulged in occult practices and claimed to have supernatural abilities, and that knowledge of him and his divinity was important. He and his followers taught that every god should be honored, but they opposed the God of the Jews. The apostle Paul likely was writing against him in his letter to the Colossians.
Simon tried to purchase with money gifts of the Spirit but he was never a Christian to begin with. Another gnostic, Cerinthus of Ephesus, apparently clashed with the aged apostle John. According to the early Church Father, Irenaeus, the gospel of John presupposed the conflict with Cerinthus. John spoke of the Logos, the beginning (Archer) and the only begotten (mono genes) but also contained themes that would have been hostile to the Gnostic's. The main one there was the claim that the Word (Jesus) was MADE FLESH (1:14). That was an atrocious claim to the Gnostic's, who believed that flesh was anathema to God. It's interesting that John's gospel contained some ideas that were very important to early gnostics, but in such a way that they oppose gnosticism.
Gnostic gospels were composed, but they contradict the biblical gospels as to the Son of God adding human nature to his divine nature. Irenaeus wrote "Against Heresies" to refute gnosticism. Because of various attempts to pollute the pure doctrine of the New Testament, the Church had to draw up a form of words to state clearly what Christians did believe. They did this over a long period of time until the final battles against heresies had been won, gnosticism being but one of them.
Are there any verses that support Gnosticism in the original four gospels?
