@neologist,
neologist wrote:
You have misrepresented Jesus' mission on earth which, according to John was
"For this I have been born, and for this I have come into the world, that I should bear witness to the truth. Everyone that is on the side of the truth listens to my voice." (John 18:37)
First, I don't agree that was his mission. If it was, it was ill-conceived and poorly executed. What the author of John is trying to say frankly escapes me.
Second, if it were indeed his mission, we should expect him to do exactly that--bear witness to the truth. He must be truthful at all times, at all costs, and in all matters. Yet we can point to numerous instances where Jesus is caught in bald-faced lies.
A good example--my favorite--is when he assured us in the Sermon on the Mount to "ask and it will be given to you". Mark Twain said something to the effect that of all the lies in the Bible, that one was the whopper.
His promise to his disciples that he would return before some of them tasted death is embarassing.
So are many other of his pronouncements, so much so that the author of John is blowing smoke, in my opinion. There is no way Jesus can stand the scrutiny of being the truth tsar.