DU001 - Though We or An Angel
To: DepartingUPC@yahoogroups.com
From: "Pastor Buddy Martin" <Bro.Buddy@ChristianChallenge.org>
Date: Fri Sep 16, 2005
Subject: Bible Study DU001 - Though We or an Angel
Family,
The sage said, "Every word of God is tested; He is a
shield to those who take refuge in Him. Do not add to His
words or He will reprove you, and you will be proved a
liar." (Pro30:5,6).
Here is something often heard from pulpits; "But
though we, or an angel from heaven, preach any other gospel
unto you than that which we have preached to you, let him be
accursed." (Gal1:8
KJV)
When the minister makes this statement, it may be that He
himself is not preaching the same gospel the apostles
preached. Anytime we add to or take something away from the
simple gospel of faith in Jesus Christ, we have in fact
preached a distorted gospel. Sorry to say it --- Been there.
Done that. Not anymore.
Let's see what the apostles actually preached.
This is Bible Study DU001 - Though We or An Angel.
Let me begin by sharing a couple of Scriptures that really
helped my wife to come to a true knowledge of the gospel
message. One was the Galatian warning, which states, "But
even if we, or an angel from heaven, should preach to you a
gospel contrary to what we have preached to you, he is to be
accursed." (NASB)
Paul is directing attention to what the apostles preached.
The other Scripture the Lord placed in my wife's heart is Romans
10:8-10; "But what does it say? 'The word is near
you, in your mouth and in your heart' -- that is, the word of
faith which we are preaching."
Did you catch it? There is no more clearer statement in the
Bible about what the apostles actually preached than what the
apostle is setting forth here. What then is salvation? Follow
closely:
--- "That if you confess with your mouth Jesus as
Lord, and believe in your heart that God raised Him from the
dead, you will be saved; for with the heart a person believes,
resulting in righteousness, and with the mouth he confesses,
resulting in salvation."
True gospel salvation is based upon the message of the
Lordship of Jesus Christ. Salvation completes itself when we
are personally able to confess the Lordship of Jesus in our
own life. Any gospel that does not agree with this preaching
of believing and confessing Jesus Christ, is not the gospel of
Jesus Christ. It is most certainly not the gospel that the
apostles preached.
Let's hear it in another setting. Paul said, "Now I
make known to you, brethren, the gospel which I preached to
you, which also you received, in which also you stand, by
which also you are saved, if you hold fast the word which I
preached to you, unless you believed in vain."
The apostle then outlines what a person is to believe ---
"For I delivered to you as of first importance what I
also received, that Christ died for our sins according to the
Scriptures, and that He was buried, and that He was raised the
third day according to the Scriptures..." (1
Corinthians 15:1-4)
This is the message we are to believe. Paul then says,
"Whether then it was I or they, so we preached and so you
believed." (V11)
Yes, all the apostles preached the death, burial,
resurrection, and ascension of Jesus Christ, and that faith in
Christ as the risen Savior is what salvation truly is. In fact
the only witness a person needs to know that they are saved is
that they truly believe in Jesus Christ. Faith in Jesus Christ
itself is the testimony of salvation.
This is where many people misunderstand the power of the
gospel message. The message of the cross carries in it the
inherent power that accomplishes the work of salvation. The
moment a person truly believes, the Holy Spirit places a seal
upon the heart of the believing one. Until we truly believe,
there is no seal to be had. The apostle said, "The Spirit
Himself testifies [bears witness] with our spirit that we are
children of God."
(Rom8:16)
Back to the 'though we or an angel.' --- How can anyone
miss the gospel message when it is laid out so plainly in
Scripture? Don't find it strange. Satan's greatest deterrent
to the salvation of humankind has been to distort the gospel.
He does it by wrapping it up in religious jargon. He does it
by introducing a mixture of strange teachings. He does it by
creating strange gospels.
Satan knows that the simple gospel of Jesus Christ is the
one thing people need to hear in order to be saved. He knows
that the only thing a person has to do to be saved is to call
upon the name of the Lord. This call is an appeal to the
Lordship of Jesus. Satan cannot afford to have anyone make
that appeal.
The gospel message is simple --- No person can be saved by
their own efforts, or their own goodness, or by religious
experiences. We are saved one way alone. By faith in the
work of the cross and in the Lordship of Jesus Christ.
This is why the writer of Hebrews, said, "Do not be
carried away by strange teachings?" (Heb13:9)
A strange teaching is any teaching that does not agree with
the gospel of simple faith in Jesus Christ. Did not the
apostle say, "We are no longer to be children, tossed
here and there by waves and carried about by every wind of
doctrine, by the trickery of men, by craftiness in deceitful
scheming." (Eph4:14)
Paul is using a picture of a foamy sea, combined with
twisting winds, to make his point. His point here is that
immature believers, who are not anchored in the true gospel of
Jesus Christ, are easily caught up in the swirl of false
teachings. Some people simply live from emotional push to
emotional push.
The battle over false gospels has always been a major
battle zone for the church. People who have yet to discover
the wonder of the true gospel are continually seeking the next
experience that will truly set them free. They do not realize
that the peace of the cross only comes through the message of
the cross.
So, with every untrue gospel comes the spirit of striving.
You often hear about the next revival, or the next move. Ever
stop to think what all these terms mean? They are saying that
no believer can stop and rest. We must strive! Strive! Strive!
Next thing you know, you have believers confused, tired, and a
little more than upset.
The apostles never taught a striving after the next move.
They preached our fulfillment in Christ Himself. Paul said,
"Christ in you the hope of glory."
What did Jesus say? "Come to Me, all who are weary and
heaven- laden, and I will give you rest." (Matt11:28)
Did not John say, "For of His fullness we have all
received, and grace upon grace." (John
1:16)
Paul said, "But I am afraid that, as the serpent
deceived Eve by his craftiness, your minds will be led astray
from the simplicity and purity of devotion to Christ." (2Co11:3)
James said, "But the wisdom (fruit of the gospel) from
above is first pure, then peaceable, gentle, reasonable, full
of mercy and good fruits, unwavering, without hypocrisy."
(James
3:17)
So what did the apostles preach? They preached the message
of the cross. Sure there are deeper teachings about the cross,
but the simple truth remains the same. Paul said it well;
"Believe in the Lord Jesus, and you will be saved, you
and your household."
(Acts 16:31)
This is our first study on DepartingUPC.
Feel free to ask questions or make contributions.
The Lord bless you,
Buddy
-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*
---
Lawrence "Buddy" Martin
email: Bro.Buddy <at> ChristianChallenge.Org
Web: http://www.ChristianChallenge.org
Forum: http://groups.yahoo.com/group/Hebraic-Foundations/
Forum: http://groups.yahoo.com/group/DepartingUPC/
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