"I marvel that ye are so soon removed from him that called you into the grace of Christ unto another gospel: Which is not another; but there be some that trouble you, and would pervert the gospel of Christ." Galatians 1:6-7
In his relentless attempt to hinder men from appropriating the grace of God for the salvation of their souls, Satan has at least a twofold strategy. One is to deny the gospel; the other is to distort it. Success in either realm is a victory for the adversary.
The specific distortion confronted in this epistle becomes apparent in Gal. 6:12, 13 "As many as desire to make a fair show in the flesh, they constrain you to be circumcised [and] desire to have you circumcised, that they may glory in your flesh." The general problem was that of adding law to grace as essential to salvation, as a careful reading of the whole epistle will make quite evident.
The temptation to add rules, regulations and other requisites to the gospel, thus generating "another gospel, is nearly epidemic in Christenbdom. Years ago I held in my hand a list of specifics required to be signed in writing if one would "join" a certain church. It included abstaining f rom alcoholic beverages, ballroom dancing, movies and the circus. Whatever place these practices should or should not have in a Christian's life may be debated, but they have nothing to do with the gospel.
There are churches to which one may not belong if he does not subscribe to the pre-tribulation rapture of the church. Another group requires a commitment to a specific translation of the scriptures in order to become functioning "members" of the assembly. These are only a sampling of the myriad issues that have become "legal" requirements for church membership, threatening to populate the earth with "other gospels," perverting the gospel of Christ.
Before there was a written New Testament and the formulation of a "rapture question, e.g., and before there were any New Testament scriptures to translate, souls were b being saved and added to "the church which is [Christ's] body," the only church that really matters. The gospel preceded all the issues that divide the "churches," and professing Christians, into the warring (or at least competing) factions today, and belie the unity Christ prayed for and affirmed when He laid the foundation for redemption and the building of HIS church.
What is the gospel? Through the inspired apostle the Holy Spirit expresses it here, "Grace be to you and peace from God the Father, and from our Lord Jesus Christ, Who gave Himself for our sins, that He might deliver us from this present evil world, according to the will of God and our Father: to Whom be glory for ever and ever. Amen." (v.3-5) To this we may add from v.1, "Jesus Christ, and God the Father, Who raised Him from the dead."
It is just a little more explicit in I Cor. 15:1-4; "Moreover, brethren, I declare unto you the gospel which I preached unto you, which also ye have received, and wherein ye stand; By which also ye are saved, if ye keep in memory what I preached unto you, unless ye have believed in vain. For I delivered unto you first of all how that Christ died for our sins according to the scriptures; And that He was buried, and that He rose again the third day according to the scriptures…"
Herein are the essentials of the gospel. I must believe that there is a God, the God of the Old Testament scriptures. I must believe that I am a sinner, having offended the God Who is there, and am thus alienated from Him. I must believe that Jesus Christ, the Lord, (the Son of God) gave Himself/died for my sins, and rose again from the dead, to reconcile me to God. The Principal is God; the problem is sin; the provision is Christ. Granted, this is a bit oversimplified, but it embraces the essential elements of the gospel, and if I believe it and receive Him (Christ) by faith I will be saved, and belong to HIS church, whether I qualify for any other on earth, or not!
When Philippian jailer cried, "Sirs, what must I do to be saved," it was this simple, uncluttered expression of God's redemptive plan that enabled the apostles to respond, "believe on the Lord Jesus Christ, and thou shalt be saved [Acts 16:30, 31]." Remarkably, "…the same hour of the night…[he] was baptized, he and all his, straightway [v.33]." He had no New Testament, in any version. He had no position on "the rapture question." He had no card to sign, no "doctrinal statement" to subscribe to, other than the testimony of Jesus Christ and Him crucified, buried and risen to take away his sins. With that alone, he was, by the Spirit of God, added to the only church that really matters, "The church of the firstborn, which are written in heaven [Heb. 12:23]."
Do not misunderstand. Doctrine does matter, else the rest of the New Testament would not have been written. But doctrine, sound or unsound, will not save your soul. Only faith in Christ can do that. There is no other gospel!
Yours for HIS truth,
"Pastor" Frasier
In his relentless attempt to hinder men from appropriating the grace of God for the salvation of their souls, Satan has at least a twofold strategy. One is to deny the gospel; the other is to distort it. Success in either realm is a victory for the adversary.
The specific distortion confronted in this epistle becomes apparent in Gal. 6:12, 13 "As many as desire to make a fair show in the flesh, they constrain you to be circumcised [and] desire to have you circumcised, that they may glory in your flesh." The general problem was that of adding law to grace as essential to salvation, as a careful reading of the whole epistle will make quite evident.
The temptation to add rules, regulations and other requisites to the gospel, thus generating "another gospel, is nearly epidemic in Christenbdom. Years ago I held in my hand a list of specifics required to be signed in writing if one would "join" a certain church. It included abstaining f rom alcoholic beverages, ballroom dancing, movies and the circus. Whatever place these practices should or should not have in a Christian's life may be debated, but they have nothing to do with the gospel.
There are churches to which one may not belong if he does not subscribe to the pre-tribulation rapture of the church. Another group requires a commitment to a specific translation of the scriptures in order to become functioning "members" of the assembly. These are only a sampling of the myriad issues that have become "legal" requirements for church membership, threatening to populate the earth with "other gospels," perverting the gospel of Christ.
Before there was a written New Testament and the formulation of a "rapture question, e.g., and before there were any New Testament scriptures to translate, souls were b being saved and added to "the church which is [Christ's] body," the only church that really matters. The gospel preceded all the issues that divide the "churches," and professing Christians, into the warring (or at least competing) factions today, and belie the unity Christ prayed for and affirmed when He laid the foundation for redemption and the building of HIS church.
What is the gospel? Through the inspired apostle the Holy Spirit expresses it here, "Grace be to you and peace from God the Father, and from our Lord Jesus Christ, Who gave Himself for our sins, that He might deliver us from this present evil world, according to the will of God and our Father: to Whom be glory for ever and ever. Amen." (v.3-5) To this we may add from v.1, "Jesus Christ, and God the Father, Who raised Him from the dead."
It is just a little more explicit in I Cor. 15:1-4; "Moreover, brethren, I declare unto you the gospel which I preached unto you, which also ye have received, and wherein ye stand; By which also ye are saved, if ye keep in memory what I preached unto you, unless ye have believed in vain. For I delivered unto you first of all how that Christ died for our sins according to the scriptures; And that He was buried, and that He rose again the third day according to the scriptures…"
Herein are the essentials of the gospel. I must believe that there is a God, the God of the Old Testament scriptures. I must believe that I am a sinner, having offended the God Who is there, and am thus alienated from Him. I must believe that Jesus Christ, the Lord, (the Son of God) gave Himself/died for my sins, and rose again from the dead, to reconcile me to God. The Principal is God; the problem is sin; the provision is Christ. Granted, this is a bit oversimplified, but it embraces the essential elements of the gospel, and if I believe it and receive Him (Christ) by faith I will be saved, and belong to HIS church, whether I qualify for any other on earth, or not!
When Philippian jailer cried, "Sirs, what must I do to be saved," it was this simple, uncluttered expression of God's redemptive plan that enabled the apostles to respond, "believe on the Lord Jesus Christ, and thou shalt be saved [Acts 16:30, 31]." Remarkably, "…the same hour of the night…[he] was baptized, he and all his, straightway [v.33]." He had no New Testament, in any version. He had no position on "the rapture question." He had no card to sign, no "doctrinal statement" to subscribe to, other than the testimony of Jesus Christ and Him crucified, buried and risen to take away his sins. With that alone, he was, by the Spirit of God, added to the only church that really matters, "The church of the firstborn, which are written in heaven [Heb. 12:23]."
Do not misunderstand. Doctrine does matter, else the rest of the New Testament would not have been written. But doctrine, sound or unsound, will not save your soul. Only faith in Christ can do that. There is no other gospel!
Yours for HIS truth,
"Pastor" Frasier
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