A Lost Gospel Still Lost?

In my last video message, I shared my belief that our Savior Jesus Christ had a family (a belief I've had for many years). I love it when you begin on a topic and the Spirit puts bread crumbs on your path. I happened to stumble across this video last Monday and couldn't believe that there was a possible lost gospel I have never heard about. Yes, I have read the gospel of Mary, the Gospel of Thomas and the many other gospels that are listed here:   https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_Gospels . Gospels that were not selected to make it into the Bible cannon that we have today, and gospels that have been unearthed in the last century by archeologists. So, when I learned that there was another possible gospel, 1,450  years old, that was housed in the Brittish Library (where it still exists) in 1847, and re-discovered and decoded (yes, decoded) by Simcha Jacobovici an investigative archeologist who happens to be a devout Jew, let's just say I was very intrigued.

In 1847 the Brittish Library bought the ancient animal skin manuscript from an Egyptian Monastery. The Syriac text was later translated into English for the first time. The text is about the life of a married couple who are described as the "Son of God", married to the "Daughter of God" and a Divine couple. Because of the many similarities to Jesus and his life, it's believed that this text contains the inside story of Jesus’ social, family, and political life (the missing link to the gap in the New Testament gospels in which which nothing is written about Jesus between the ages of 13 - 30 years of age). I had just said in my last video message, that I believed one day we would discover those missing gaps in the New Testament. We might learn more plain and precious truths that were taken out.

Currently, in our Biblical text, Jesus is depicted as a lowly carpenter's son, this text however portrays Him as a powerful political figure at the highest levels of the Roman Empire, and reveals a plot to kill him 13 years prior to his crucifixion. This depiction coincides with the Biblical depiction of religious leaders and government leaders feeling threatened by His growing popularity. Not only was He believed to be the Son of God by His followers but they believed He would deliver them from Rome. If He were not politically involved, I don't believe the religious leaders and government at the time would have felt threatened.

A few years ago, I remember hearing a woman bear testimony of what she had learned about Jesus' life on earth from her visit to the other side of the veil. She said that His parents were wealthy. Joseph was a renowned Master carpenter and sought out by the wealthy for his work. He had a very affluent reputation for his fine skills. She also said that wisemen traveled in a large caravan with many servants and it was quite the entourage. They brought enough gold for Jesus to sustain He and His family throughout their entire life. Their family was affluent, reputable, and well-to-do.

Now to the background of this mysterious manuscript. What is the backstory? Around 550 A.D. an anonymous individual (believed to be a monk) wrote to his friend, Moses of Ingila. He had come across a "small, very old" book called Of Aseneth in the library in Resh'aina belonging to the bishops who had originally come from Aleppo. Suspecting that it contained a hidden message, he asked Moses of Ingila to translate the work from Greek into Syriac, a language with which he was more familiar. Moses of Ingila obliged, sending him a Syriac translation and noting that it was a work of wisdom, the meaning of which had to be carefully discerned. As he started to indicate the hidden Christological meaning, the text of the covering letter is suddenly cut off, while at the same time confirming the truth of mainstream Christianity and Jesus Christ in his letter perhaps deliberately so in antiquity according to the authors.

This manuscript is said to be the history of two figures named "Joseph and Aseneth", who bear the same names as Joseph of Egypt and his wife Aseneth.  The only problem is that Joseph of Egypt and his wife lived 1,400 years prior to the details and setting of this story, which has all the earmarks of the political & geographical setting in the New Testament. There is very little that connects them to the actual Joseph of Egypt and his wife in the Old Testament, therefore leading the readers to believe that these are pseudo-names to protect the true identity of the couple. The text contains Christian terminology and Eucharistic symbolism making it a non-Jewish text and contains encrypted meanings meant to be decoded. This correlates to the time period in which it was written, where Christians were heavily persecuted and their texts were burned. If someone were wanting to preserve a text or gospel at that time, they would write it in a way that would go undetected as Christian therefore to preserve it. In hopes that at a future date, those meant to discover this lost history would be able to do so.

From what I have heard, this text paints a different form of Christianity that was practiced in the early years of Christianity before it was changed and consolidated into what would become the state religion of the Roman Empire. There are parts in the text that have been cut out and blotted out as if to conceal what was originally written. I will say that I have not read the book yet, so I haven't made a conclusion for myself, however it's very fascinating that this manuscript survived all these years, later being preserved in a library in Britain completely void of interest or awareness to the public.

One last fact to this story that is difficult to ignore, is that the author's of this English translation have been under heavy persecution since publishing their findings in 2014. They have been discredited and shut down in every way imaginable. Because their findings challenge modern-day Christianity in that Jesus was married and had children, they have been made a mockery in their profession. The 1,450 year-old manuscript still remains in the British Library today, and because of the discrediting of their findings, no one is talking about it.

Again, I have not read the book - however, whether or not this text proves to be a true lost gospel, I can't help but wonder how many others throughout history have been shut down, persecuted, discredited etc. because their findings challenge the status quo. How much truth currently exists in plain sight? I am amazed that I stumbled across this finding after pondering the very topic last week. Because nothing is known about the original author of the text, it is difficult to claim truth to the story - but that won't stop me from reading the book anyway, and prayerfully using my gift of discernment. I always walk away with something beneficial from all that I am led to. ;)

Here is a video below with more detail about what I have shared. I highly recommend watching it.