The False gospel VS The True Gospel
This is the first lesson in a series of lessons entitled ''New Creation''. It is vitally important to know the difference between the true gospel and the false. You as new converts will be bombarded with all types of doctrine. You need to be able to discern the truth from fallacy.
There all some totally false gospels we are not really getting into today. What we are touching on today is generally accepted gospel in the American Church. If you were to read the false gospel list alone with out hearing what the true gospel is and why the false gospel is false, you would think I was crazy for not believing it. The fact is it is not altogether false, but only half true thereby rendering it completely false.
I heard a quote that fits this lesson well. “The popular gospel of this day, is the laughing-stock of Hell; it
dare neither damn the sinner, nor sanctify the saint.” - Catherine Booth (The wife of William Booth/ the founder of the Salvation Army)
That being said lets get into the lesson.
The false gospel teaches forgiveness/ The true gospel teaches repentance.
Matthew 4:17 From that time Jesus began to preach, and to say, Repent: for the kingdom of heaven is at hand.
Luke 24:47 And that repentance and remission of sins should be preached in his name among all nations, beginning at Jerusalem.
Yes there is forgivness of sin is given to all those that repent, but without repentance there is no forgiveness of sins. The common teaching is anyone that accepts Jesus as Savior will be forgiven whether they have repentance, or change of life or not. This is not true. If one continues in unrepentant sin there sins are not forgiven. There must be repentance for there to be remission, and there cannot be forgiveness without remission.
The false gospel wants to make converts/ The true gospel wants to make disciples.
Matthew 28:19 Go therefore and make disciples of all the nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit
Once again this is not a entirely untrue just half true. Of course you need converts to make discples, but coverts that never become disciple are not truly converted. Nowhere in scripture do I ever see Jesus telling us to make converts.
This whole book, set of lessons, or teachings are to create disciples not converts. A converts left to their own devices fall away 4 out of every 5. Someone convincing someone to repeat a prayer after them, and leaving it at that does the person no real good at all. To think you can say some magic words over yourself, and that makes you saved is border line sorcery. To be truly converted one must become a disciple of Christ committing themselves fully to the Lord. Following Him and His word where ever it may lead. They must repent of their sin, stop serving self, and start serving Jesus.
The false gospel says make a decision for Christ/ The true gospel teaches us to make a commitment to Christ
Mark 13:13 And ye shall be hated of all men for my name's sake: but he that shall endure unto the end, the same shall be saved.
2nd Timothy 4:7 I have fought a good fight, I have finished my course, I have kept the faith:
A christian life is not a one time decision it is a life time commitment. If you think that you can decide to accept Christ as you Savior, and that is all there is to it you have been steered in the wrong direction here what Jesus says in the parable of the seed
Matthew 13:3
3 And He spake many things unto them in parables, saying, Behold a sower went out to sow.
4 And when He had sowed, some seeds fell by the way side, and the fowls came and devoured them:
5 Some fell upon the stony places where they had not much earth: and forthwith they sprung up, because they had no deepness of earth:
6 and when the sun was up, they were scorched; and because they had no root, they withered away.
7 And some feel among thorns; and thorns spring up, and choked them:
8 But others fell on good ground and brought forth fruit, some a hundred fold, some sixty fold, and some thirty fold.
18 Hear you therefore the parable of the sower.
19 When anyone hears the word of the kingdom, and understands it not, then comes the wicked one, and catches away that which was sown in their heart. This is he that received the seed by the way side.
20 But he that received the seed in the stony places, the same is he that hears the word, and anon with joy receives it;
21 Yet he has no root in himself, but dureth for a while; for when tribulation or persecution arises because of the word he is offended.
22 He also that receives seed among the thorns is he that hears the word; and the cares of this world, and the deceitfulness of riches, choke the word of he becomes unfruitful.
23 But he that received the seed into the good ground is he that hears the word, and understands it; which also bears fruit, and brings forth, some a hundred fold, some sixty, some thirty.
Here we see 4 groups of people; 1 group rejects the word, 3 groups accept the word yet 2/3 of them turned from their salvation and only 1 group of the 3 groups that accepted the word actually hold fast to their salvation producing fruits. Luke 8:13 puts it like this.
Luke 8:13 They on the rock are they, which, when they hear, receive the word with joy; and these have no root, which for a while they believe, and in a time of temptation they fall away.
A quarter reject the word, half fall away, and only a quarter keep the word. So not only can we fall away but in this particular parable most do.
We have to remain faithful to Christ, committed fully to Him regardless of what life brings our way. Paul tells us in Colossians 1:20-22 that we will presented to God justified ''IF'' we remain committed to Christ not being moved away from our faith. This Christian walk is a life time commitment, not a one time decision.
The false gospel tells you, you MUST be baptized/ The true gospel teaches you MUST be born again.
John 3:3 Jesus answered and said unto him, Verily, verily, I say unto thee, Except a man be born again, he cannot see the kingdom of God
John 3
6 That which is born of the flesh is flesh; and that which is born of the Spirit is spirit.
7 Marvel not that I said unto thee, Ye must be born again.
Now don't get me wrong I believe every believer should be baptized, and if you refuse baptism you are in rebellion and most likely not born again, but being baptized does not saved you. A baby who was baptized as an infant will still has to be born again by committing their life to the Lord when they are old enough to make such a decision. A child that was baptized at 12 because of religious duty, who has never made a commitment to following Christ is not a Christian. A man or woman that is baptized in a process of converting to their soon to be spouse's religion without a honest heart of repentance will not be forgiven of their sins. You can go down a dry sinner, and come up a wet one.
What saves you is rebirth, the awakening of your spirit man. When Adam sinned he began to die physically but his spirit died immediately. Sin is death, spiritual death, separation from God. When we are saved (reborn) our spirit becomes alive. When we are born, our body is born with a living soul but a dead spirit. When we are saved our spirit is born. Consequently, to get to heaven we must be born again. Our rebirth is a spiritual birth in Christ Jesus.
Paul says in his letter to the Ephesians you who sleep awaken and Christ will give you light, and to the Corinthians he said awake to righteousness and sin not
1st Corinthians 15:34a Awake to righteousness, and sin not
Ephesians 5:14 Wherefore he saith, Awake thou that sleepest, and arise from the dead, and Christ shall give thee light.
When our spirits are awakened within us we no longer want to serve self, and sin, but Jesus. Therefore we are able to put off the old man of sin, and live a life of righteousness in Christ.
The false gospel tells us that we have been saved from Hell/ the true gospel teaches us we have been saved from self, sin, and death
John 1:29 The next day John seeth Jesus coming unto him, and saith, Behold the Lamb of God, which taketh away the sin of the world.
Romans 6
6 Knowing this, that our old man is crucified with him, that the body of sin might be destroyed, that henceforth we should not serve sin.
7 For he that is dead is freed from sin.
Romans 6:18 Being then made free from sin, ye became the servants of righteousness.
To believe that Jesus came to save us from the penalty of sin only is a dire mistake. Jesus came to save us from sin itself, and thereby saving us from the penalty of sin. The word tells us in Hebrews 10:26-31, and 2nd Peter 2:20-22 that those that continue in sin after coming into faith with Jesus will not only suffer in Hell with unbelievers, but will suffer a greater damnation than those that have never believed.
The false gospel tells us we were saved to gain Heaven, eternal life/ the true gospel teaches us we were saved to be reconciled to God, and to declare His glory on this earth through our lives.
2nd Corinthians 2:14 Now thanks be unto God, which always causeth us to triumph in Christ, and maketh manifest the savour of his knowledge by us in every place.
2nd Corinthians 3:18 But we all, with open face beholding as in a glass the glory of the Lord, are changed into the same image from glory to glory, even as by the Spirit of the Lord.
2nd Corinthians 5:18 And all things are of God, who hath reconciled us to himself by Jesus Christ, and hath given to us the ministry of reconciliation
Eternal life in ''Heaven'' with God is the outcome of a life spent in obedient service to our King. This is done through the indwelling of Christ, and the empowerment of the Holy Spirit we are given at new birth. However that is not why we are reborn. We are reborn to reconcile us to God, to be re-created int his image revealing His glory through this world by hoe we as His children live our live. I pray that those that claim your name will also bare your image. Let us be mirror images of our Lord. God wants us to leave an uncanny impression on those we meet that we remind them of someone, and He wants that someone is Jesus.
John tells us in 1st John 4:17 that we are supposed be Christ in this world. The very image of Jesus' person.
1st John 4:17 Herein is our love made perfect, that we may have boldness in the day of judgment: because as he is, so are we in this world.
As ''He'' (Jesus) so are we in this world
Eternal life with God it is are ultimate reward, but not God's ultimate purpose. God's ultimate purpose was to reconcile us to himself, and releasing us to reveal His glory.
The false gospel says we are saved to create for ourselves a better life here and now/ The true gospel teaches us that we are to lay down our own lives for Christ, pick up our cross, and follow Jesus
Matthew 10:39 He that findeth his life shall lose it: and he that loseth his life for my sake shall find it.
Matthew 16:25 For whosoever will save his life shall lose it: and whosoever will lose his life for my sake shall find it.
Mark 8:34 And when he had called the people unto him with his disciples also, he said unto them, Whosoever will come after me, let him deny himself, and take up his cross, and follow me.
Luke 9:23And he said to them all, If any man will come after me, let him deny himself, and take up his cross daily, and follow me.
Jesus in no uncertain term teaches us that to be His disciple and to receive life, we must first die to self now, letting go of our wants, and concerns, becoming concerned for Him and His Kingdom. Paul writes to Timothy that we are to endure hardness,/ suffering as a good soldier for Christ, not entangling ourselves with the affairs of this world (2nd Timothy 2:3-4). It doesn't really seem like our comfort here in this life is at the top of Jesus' list. Of course He wants to bless us, but not so we can sit around being blessed, but so we can bless others, once again revealing His glory. Jesus told the rich young ruler in Matthew 19:21 to sell all he had, that doesn't sound like the good life to me. Also Jesus tells us all what good would it profit us to gain the whole world and loose our souls.
Matthew 16:26 For what is a man profited, if he shall gain the whole world, and lose his own soul? or what shall a man give in exchange for his soul?
No the Christian life has nothing to do with a better life now, it has everything to do with remaining obedient to the Lord, sacrificing self for His Kingdom. We must take up our cross daily, and follow our Lord where ever He leads us.
The false gospel teaches we are sinners saved by grace/ the true gospel tells us we have become the righteousness of God in Christ.
2nd Corinthians 5:21For he hath made him to be sin for us, who knew no sin; that we might be made the righteousness of God in him.
1st John 3
7 Little children, let no man deceive you: he that doeth righteousness is righteous, even as he is righteous.
8 He that committeth sin is of the devil; for the devil sinneth from the beginning. For this purpose the Son of God was manifested, that he might destroy the works of the devil.
'I am a sinner saved by grace''. This is not even a biblical statement. We do not continue to be sinners after salvation. We were sinners until we were saved by grace. After salvation, we become the righteousness of God in Christ.
John is bold saying those that do righteousness are righteous, but those that commit sin are of the Devil. If I said something like that I would be booed and declared a heretic, but we must believe God's word over our own man's word,or philosophy, our own intellect, what our Pastor teaches, or even what our mamma says. God's word must be what all truth is anchored in.
Those that are in Christ do not constantly continue to commit sin, and those that do constantly continue to commit sin are not in Christ. Paul clearly tells us in Romans 6 that what we yield are member to obey, that is what we serve. you cannot serve/ obey self, and sin, and serve/ obey Jesus at the same time.
Romans 6
15 What then? shall we sin, because we are not under the law, but under grace? God forbid.
16 know you not ,that whom you yield yourselves servant to obey, his servant you are whom you obey; whether of sin unto death, or obedience unto righteousness?
17 But God be thanked, that ye were the servants of sin, but ye have obeyed from the heart that form of doctrine which was delivered you.
18 Being then made free from sin, ye became the servants of righteousness.
Luke 16:13 No man can serve two masters, for either they will hate one and love the other, or else they will hold to one and despise the other. You cannot serve God and mammon.
You cannot serve God and money, nor can you serve God and sin, nor can you serve God and self. Choose this day whom you will serve, sin, and self, or God?
CONTINUED
This is the first lesson in a series of lessons entitled ''New Creation''. It is vitally important to know the difference between the true gospel and the false. You as new converts will be bombarded with all types of doctrine. You need to be able to discern the truth from fallacy.
There all some totally false gospels we are not really getting into today. What we are touching on today is generally accepted gospel in the American Church. If you were to read the false gospel list alone with out hearing what the true gospel is and why the false gospel is false, you would think I was crazy for not believing it. The fact is it is not altogether false, but only half true thereby rendering it completely false.
I heard a quote that fits this lesson well. “The popular gospel of this day, is the laughing-stock of Hell; it
dare neither damn the sinner, nor sanctify the saint.” - Catherine Booth (The wife of William Booth/ the founder of the Salvation Army)
That being said lets get into the lesson.
The false gospel teaches forgiveness/ The true gospel teaches repentance.
Matthew 4:17 From that time Jesus began to preach, and to say, Repent: for the kingdom of heaven is at hand.
Luke 24:47 And that repentance and remission of sins should be preached in his name among all nations, beginning at Jerusalem.
Yes there is forgivness of sin is given to all those that repent, but without repentance there is no forgiveness of sins. The common teaching is anyone that accepts Jesus as Savior will be forgiven whether they have repentance, or change of life or not. This is not true. If one continues in unrepentant sin there sins are not forgiven. There must be repentance for there to be remission, and there cannot be forgiveness without remission.
The false gospel wants to make converts/ The true gospel wants to make disciples.
Matthew 28:19 Go therefore and make disciples of all the nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit
Once again this is not a entirely untrue just half true. Of course you need converts to make discples, but coverts that never become disciple are not truly converted. Nowhere in scripture do I ever see Jesus telling us to make converts.
This whole book, set of lessons, or teachings are to create disciples not converts. A converts left to their own devices fall away 4 out of every 5. Someone convincing someone to repeat a prayer after them, and leaving it at that does the person no real good at all. To think you can say some magic words over yourself, and that makes you saved is border line sorcery. To be truly converted one must become a disciple of Christ committing themselves fully to the Lord. Following Him and His word where ever it may lead. They must repent of their sin, stop serving self, and start serving Jesus.
The false gospel says make a decision for Christ/ The true gospel teaches us to make a commitment to Christ
Mark 13:13 And ye shall be hated of all men for my name's sake: but he that shall endure unto the end, the same shall be saved.
2nd Timothy 4:7 I have fought a good fight, I have finished my course, I have kept the faith:
A christian life is not a one time decision it is a life time commitment. If you think that you can decide to accept Christ as you Savior, and that is all there is to it you have been steered in the wrong direction here what Jesus says in the parable of the seed
Matthew 13:3
3 And He spake many things unto them in parables, saying, Behold a sower went out to sow.
4 And when He had sowed, some seeds fell by the way side, and the fowls came and devoured them:
5 Some fell upon the stony places where they had not much earth: and forthwith they sprung up, because they had no deepness of earth:
6 and when the sun was up, they were scorched; and because they had no root, they withered away.
7 And some feel among thorns; and thorns spring up, and choked them:
8 But others fell on good ground and brought forth fruit, some a hundred fold, some sixty fold, and some thirty fold.
18 Hear you therefore the parable of the sower.
19 When anyone hears the word of the kingdom, and understands it not, then comes the wicked one, and catches away that which was sown in their heart. This is he that received the seed by the way side.
20 But he that received the seed in the stony places, the same is he that hears the word, and anon with joy receives it;
21 Yet he has no root in himself, but dureth for a while; for when tribulation or persecution arises because of the word he is offended.
22 He also that receives seed among the thorns is he that hears the word; and the cares of this world, and the deceitfulness of riches, choke the word of he becomes unfruitful.
23 But he that received the seed into the good ground is he that hears the word, and understands it; which also bears fruit, and brings forth, some a hundred fold, some sixty, some thirty.
Here we see 4 groups of people; 1 group rejects the word, 3 groups accept the word yet 2/3 of them turned from their salvation and only 1 group of the 3 groups that accepted the word actually hold fast to their salvation producing fruits. Luke 8:13 puts it like this.
Luke 8:13 They on the rock are they, which, when they hear, receive the word with joy; and these have no root, which for a while they believe, and in a time of temptation they fall away.
A quarter reject the word, half fall away, and only a quarter keep the word. So not only can we fall away but in this particular parable most do.
We have to remain faithful to Christ, committed fully to Him regardless of what life brings our way. Paul tells us in Colossians 1:20-22 that we will presented to God justified ''IF'' we remain committed to Christ not being moved away from our faith. This Christian walk is a life time commitment, not a one time decision.
The false gospel tells you, you MUST be baptized/ The true gospel teaches you MUST be born again.
John 3:3 Jesus answered and said unto him, Verily, verily, I say unto thee, Except a man be born again, he cannot see the kingdom of God
John 3
6 That which is born of the flesh is flesh; and that which is born of the Spirit is spirit.
7 Marvel not that I said unto thee, Ye must be born again.
Now don't get me wrong I believe every believer should be baptized, and if you refuse baptism you are in rebellion and most likely not born again, but being baptized does not saved you. A baby who was baptized as an infant will still has to be born again by committing their life to the Lord when they are old enough to make such a decision. A child that was baptized at 12 because of religious duty, who has never made a commitment to following Christ is not a Christian. A man or woman that is baptized in a process of converting to their soon to be spouse's religion without a honest heart of repentance will not be forgiven of their sins. You can go down a dry sinner, and come up a wet one.
What saves you is rebirth, the awakening of your spirit man. When Adam sinned he began to die physically but his spirit died immediately. Sin is death, spiritual death, separation from God. When we are saved (reborn) our spirit becomes alive. When we are born, our body is born with a living soul but a dead spirit. When we are saved our spirit is born. Consequently, to get to heaven we must be born again. Our rebirth is a spiritual birth in Christ Jesus.
Paul says in his letter to the Ephesians you who sleep awaken and Christ will give you light, and to the Corinthians he said awake to righteousness and sin not
1st Corinthians 15:34a Awake to righteousness, and sin not
Ephesians 5:14 Wherefore he saith, Awake thou that sleepest, and arise from the dead, and Christ shall give thee light.
When our spirits are awakened within us we no longer want to serve self, and sin, but Jesus. Therefore we are able to put off the old man of sin, and live a life of righteousness in Christ.
The false gospel tells us that we have been saved from Hell/ the true gospel teaches us we have been saved from self, sin, and death
John 1:29 The next day John seeth Jesus coming unto him, and saith, Behold the Lamb of God, which taketh away the sin of the world.
Romans 6
6 Knowing this, that our old man is crucified with him, that the body of sin might be destroyed, that henceforth we should not serve sin.
7 For he that is dead is freed from sin.
Romans 6:18 Being then made free from sin, ye became the servants of righteousness.
To believe that Jesus came to save us from the penalty of sin only is a dire mistake. Jesus came to save us from sin itself, and thereby saving us from the penalty of sin. The word tells us in Hebrews 10:26-31, and 2nd Peter 2:20-22 that those that continue in sin after coming into faith with Jesus will not only suffer in Hell with unbelievers, but will suffer a greater damnation than those that have never believed.
The false gospel tells us we were saved to gain Heaven, eternal life/ the true gospel teaches us we were saved to be reconciled to God, and to declare His glory on this earth through our lives.
2nd Corinthians 2:14 Now thanks be unto God, which always causeth us to triumph in Christ, and maketh manifest the savour of his knowledge by us in every place.
2nd Corinthians 3:18 But we all, with open face beholding as in a glass the glory of the Lord, are changed into the same image from glory to glory, even as by the Spirit of the Lord.
2nd Corinthians 5:18 And all things are of God, who hath reconciled us to himself by Jesus Christ, and hath given to us the ministry of reconciliation
Eternal life in ''Heaven'' with God is the outcome of a life spent in obedient service to our King. This is done through the indwelling of Christ, and the empowerment of the Holy Spirit we are given at new birth. However that is not why we are reborn. We are reborn to reconcile us to God, to be re-created int his image revealing His glory through this world by hoe we as His children live our live. I pray that those that claim your name will also bare your image. Let us be mirror images of our Lord. God wants us to leave an uncanny impression on those we meet that we remind them of someone, and He wants that someone is Jesus.
John tells us in 1st John 4:17 that we are supposed be Christ in this world. The very image of Jesus' person.
1st John 4:17 Herein is our love made perfect, that we may have boldness in the day of judgment: because as he is, so are we in this world.
As ''He'' (Jesus) so are we in this world
Eternal life with God it is are ultimate reward, but not God's ultimate purpose. God's ultimate purpose was to reconcile us to himself, and releasing us to reveal His glory.
The false gospel says we are saved to create for ourselves a better life here and now/ The true gospel teaches us that we are to lay down our own lives for Christ, pick up our cross, and follow Jesus
Matthew 10:39 He that findeth his life shall lose it: and he that loseth his life for my sake shall find it.
Matthew 16:25 For whosoever will save his life shall lose it: and whosoever will lose his life for my sake shall find it.
Mark 8:34 And when he had called the people unto him with his disciples also, he said unto them, Whosoever will come after me, let him deny himself, and take up his cross, and follow me.
Luke 9:23And he said to them all, If any man will come after me, let him deny himself, and take up his cross daily, and follow me.
Jesus in no uncertain term teaches us that to be His disciple and to receive life, we must first die to self now, letting go of our wants, and concerns, becoming concerned for Him and His Kingdom. Paul writes to Timothy that we are to endure hardness,/ suffering as a good soldier for Christ, not entangling ourselves with the affairs of this world (2nd Timothy 2:3-4). It doesn't really seem like our comfort here in this life is at the top of Jesus' list. Of course He wants to bless us, but not so we can sit around being blessed, but so we can bless others, once again revealing His glory. Jesus told the rich young ruler in Matthew 19:21 to sell all he had, that doesn't sound like the good life to me. Also Jesus tells us all what good would it profit us to gain the whole world and loose our souls.
Matthew 16:26 For what is a man profited, if he shall gain the whole world, and lose his own soul? or what shall a man give in exchange for his soul?
No the Christian life has nothing to do with a better life now, it has everything to do with remaining obedient to the Lord, sacrificing self for His Kingdom. We must take up our cross daily, and follow our Lord where ever He leads us.
The false gospel teaches we are sinners saved by grace/ the true gospel tells us we have become the righteousness of God in Christ.
2nd Corinthians 5:21For he hath made him to be sin for us, who knew no sin; that we might be made the righteousness of God in him.
1st John 3
7 Little children, let no man deceive you: he that doeth righteousness is righteous, even as he is righteous.
8 He that committeth sin is of the devil; for the devil sinneth from the beginning. For this purpose the Son of God was manifested, that he might destroy the works of the devil.
'I am a sinner saved by grace''. This is not even a biblical statement. We do not continue to be sinners after salvation. We were sinners until we were saved by grace. After salvation, we become the righteousness of God in Christ.
John is bold saying those that do righteousness are righteous, but those that commit sin are of the Devil. If I said something like that I would be booed and declared a heretic, but we must believe God's word over our own man's word,or philosophy, our own intellect, what our Pastor teaches, or even what our mamma says. God's word must be what all truth is anchored in.
Those that are in Christ do not constantly continue to commit sin, and those that do constantly continue to commit sin are not in Christ. Paul clearly tells us in Romans 6 that what we yield are member to obey, that is what we serve. you cannot serve/ obey self, and sin, and serve/ obey Jesus at the same time.
Romans 6
15 What then? shall we sin, because we are not under the law, but under grace? God forbid.
16 know you not ,that whom you yield yourselves servant to obey, his servant you are whom you obey; whether of sin unto death, or obedience unto righteousness?
17 But God be thanked, that ye were the servants of sin, but ye have obeyed from the heart that form of doctrine which was delivered you.
18 Being then made free from sin, ye became the servants of righteousness.
Luke 16:13 No man can serve two masters, for either they will hate one and love the other, or else they will hold to one and despise the other. You cannot serve God and mammon.
You cannot serve God and money, nor can you serve God and sin, nor can you serve God and self. Choose this day whom you will serve, sin, and self, or God?
CONTINUED