No Other Gospel

Today on Renewing Your Mind. What is the false gospel. First of all, what is the gospel that that measuring rod that Orthodox that straight standard that right standard and now we see the deviations and it's our job were obligated to call down. Teachers believe has eternal consequences and use the hard truth. If we believe the one gospel we are not saved and according to the apostle Paul, those who preach it or under occurs is Dr. Steven Nichols to help us identify the false gospel and clearly defined. The only true gospel.

No other gospel raises. Perhaps what is the most crucial question what is the gospel. Let's start there. The gospel is that we are saved from the wrath of God through the work of Christ alone. The gospel is the work of a triune God. God the father decrees are redemption, God the son accomplishes our redemption and God the Holy Spirit applies our redemption. It was before the foundations of the world that God the father decreed, chose us in his son. It was at a point in time, space and time that the sun was sent born of a woman, born under the law. Born in that little town of Bethlehem, he did not come to abolish the law. He did not come to set aside the law he came to fulfill the law and live the life of perfect obedience. The spotless Lamb, sinless, and then we have his crucifixion, the death of Christ on the cross as a substitute in our place on our behalf's is not the justice of God overridden.

This is the justice of God satisfied as the cup of God's wrath is poured out to the drinks over the beloved son in a stone was rolled in front of the tomb and the tomb was sealed and we have the resurrection God raised Jesus from the dead, signaling the acceptance of his sacrifice in his work on our behalf was accomplished but we are not sick. We are not good people who just need to be better. We are dead rotting trees we are fallen, and we cannot get up and so we need the Holy Spirit who quickens us as the old King James puts it makes us alive regenerates us and we have the gift of faith that is the gospel. The work of the triune God of election of atonement of imputation of regeneration of bringing us to God of ultimately bringing us to peace with God. That is the gospel that we know that the gospel can be summarized as God is holy and we are not and we need a substitute and there is no other gospel any other gospel is different gospel. Or we could say a false gospel and I've been given this wonderful text of the first chapter of Paul's epistle to the Galatians. Both Romans and Galatians are tour de force statement of the gospel that Romans has a systematic flavor to it. You can see Paul taking his time building his case mounting this wonderful discussion of what the gospel is not Galatians and Galatians. He's in the trenches. This is trench warfare.

This is the gospel under attack.

This is the church under siege and here Paul presents again the gospel will look at Galatians 169. But before we do that I have to tell you a story about Martin Luther. It was winter and it was 1546 and Luther was an old man and at one point he says I'm a one I'd think he had cataracts of the one I'd old decrepit man up for Luther, it was not just the years. It was the miles and he felt the weight of that but he was a trooper and even despite all that, there he was in the pulpit. Now a little bit's time he would make the trip to his hometown of ice, knock in their Luther would die.

But in his final sermon at the Marion Carico his beloved church there in Wittenberg in the final sermon Martin Luther is chastising his congregation for sneaking back to Rome. This is the reformer.

This is Martin Luther's congregation and they wanted to make sure. What if this new thing isn't right. Maybe we should cover our bases and so they'd sneak off to this pilgrimage site and they'd sneak off to this cathedral to see those relics and they'd sneak here to this place where there was an apparition. No, don't go off and look at these relics, this is Luther chastising his congregation for allowing works to sneak back in to their thinking. Yes Christ yes his work. But what if we need to add something to it just to make sure we scratch your head still. How does this happen Luther's congregation. I've got one better for you. That happened to Paul's. So let's pick it up. The verse six. I am astonished you are so quickly deserting him who called you in the grace of Christ and turning to a different gospel, not that there is another one.

But there are some who trouble you want to distort the gospel of Christ. But even if we or an angel from heaven, should preach to you a gospel contrary to the one we preached to you, let him be accursed.

As we have said before, so now I say again, if anyone is preaching to you a gospel contrary to the one you received. Let them be accursed. You see here a couple things don't you first you see the strong words that Paul's using. I'm astonished I had no words for this. I know category to put this into uses that word troubled like the turning of a C like the that the trees in a hurricane unsettled uses that word distort to take that which is pure, that which is beautiful and true assistant to turn it into something ugly something that's actually an enemy of itself, and then he pulls out all the stops. Doesn't he things get really serious let them be damned anathema a curse not God's face shining upon us God's face turned from us, let him be accursed.

Uses strong language uses hyperbole even if an angel were to materialize in front of you and and ascend to the pulpit and if they were to say something that does not measure up to the standard of God's word reject them send them packing and if I come back to you and I'm not in my state of mind and I start saying something that doesn't measure up. Don't believe it for a minute and then he does what all effective teachers do the uses repetition.

He does what all effective teachers do all three of those underline how important this is and it's not just these three verses it's an entire epistle and entire epistle is aimed like an arrow at the target of the real potential of the false gospel making its way into the church and if it can happen to Martin Luther and it can happen to the apostle Paul absolutely it can happen to the church in 2021. Absolutely it can happen. And so we use this text to say what is the false gospel. First of all, what is the gospel that that measuring rod that ortho docs that's great standard that right standard and now we see the deviations and it's our job were obligated to call down false teachers to call them on it and so this text invites us. There's a simple formula for false teachers.

It's truth.

Plus error. That's the false gospel. The Galatians were not denying Christ. There were not denying the cross of Christ that was truth.

These false teachers that were infecting the Galatians they they had plenty of space for Christ.

But let's make sure all of our bases are covered. And yes, Christ fulfilled the law. But let's keep it to and especially if there any new Gentile converts coming into this church, let's just make sure that we've got the space covered and so it circumcision is the issue is read the epistle, but that's just a stand-in for works, the work of Christ plus works is the false gospel truth.

Plus error is the formula I can think of three major false gospels in our day. The first is what we were dealing with 500 years ago and it has not gone away. If you look at the Roman catholic churches teaching you see that it is truth. Plus error. There's room for faith.

There is the emphasis on faith. Salvation is by faith absolutely Trent affirms that truth, but his faith and works faith, truth plus works error. It's Christ, our mediator, absolutely. That's necessary. The cross is necessary, it stands between us and a holy God absolutely, but there's Christ, the mediator, plus other mediators. The saints with more graces than they need and they're stored up in that treasure chest in heaven works of supererogation has nothing to do with your irrigation systems that here in Florida keep her long-term living or dying arrow nation super works works above and beyond more graces than they need their stored up at the top of that chain of saints is Mary full of grace and there's the necessity of confessing one's sins to a priest sharp contradiction to God's word. There is only one mediator between God and man, and it is the man Christ Jesus is not Christ. Plus, it is Christ alone is not the cross. Plus, it is the cross alone. Jesus was on the cross and said it is finished and that's the third point of distinction.

Is it a once for all finished accomplished work of Christ. Yes, Roman Catholicism affirms plus Christ is crucified again. Every time we celebrate the mass they cannot be the once for all.

Finished work of Christ, plus the mass that's a false gospel. The Reformation is not over. There are millions in the grips of false teaching. Another false gospel in our day is the prosperity gospel gospel promises benefits freedom from guilt, freedom from sin, forgiveness of sin union with the triune God. Peace with God. But the gospel does not promise you will be saved from sorrow, suffering, sadness, tribulation, difficulty, poverty, financial stress, the gospel does not promise financial prosperity.

Prosperity gospel points to a temporary salvation it holds out only a temporary salvation of financial prosperity and even on that promise. It fails to deliver the only one prospering in the prosperity gospel is the prosperity preacher and the tragedy is it is literally on the backs of the poor is tragic as legionnaires reaching our morning to Central America Moran to South America more into Africa and even in the urban centers of these United States. You see the tragic grip the prosperity gospel has on millions around the globe.

God promises us that we will be kept through trials and suffering and sorrow and sadness, but he never promises us that we will be kept from those things. In fact, sometimes it's in those things is not that we see the glory of God revealed in ways otherwise we wouldn't see it in some of those moments that we see the mercy of God and fresh ways we never would've seen the grace of God. The strength of God the kindness of God, the goodness of God is in it in some of those difficult times that we see those things. The most prosperity gospel is a lie is also liberalism. Good old-fashioned liberalism twists everything starts with God's word is not God's authoritative inspired and inerrant word. It's man's sense of the divine encounter. From there we moved to who God is. He's not a God of holiness.

He's not a God of purity. He's not a God before which a prophet is unraveled, the God of love to God of love stop reading the Old Testament God of love stop reading Paul Scott of love more about Jesus, I know not the God man, just an example, one who sensed within him the divinity that resides within us all and we come to his cross. It's no substitute is but an example and what is this thing the kingdom of God. Right now accounts for right now the kingdom of God is the eradication of famine that the eradication of poverty in the eradication of inequality and it is a kingdom on earth. It was said in the middle of the 20th century by one of the neighbors of liberal theology that a God without wrath brought man without sin into a kingdom without judgment through the ministrations of a Christ without a cross. That's liberalism may consider very singly. Liberalism is not Christianity, here's the rub. What was true of liberalism.

A generation ago.

A decade ago, maybe even more recent has now infiltrated much of evangelicalism. So a cultural agenda has overtaken the biblical mandate and pay attention to what people are saying the gospel is because the gospel is that we are saved from the wrath of God by the work of Christ alone. That's the gospel and when you add something to it that something to it overtakes the truth.

It always does.

These categories of truth plus error can add to it the category of flat out error. Paul had this in his day. He had paganism and pluralism first century Rome was rife with it.

So is 1/21 century. There's paganism enters pluralism and there's there's no even element of truth.

There, but we could add to it. 1/3 going back to my Baptist roots keep it alliterative will call it progressivism or secularism in a key tenet of secularism is this the perfectibility of man by man remove God. We remove guilt and now we can live as we please. There is an ethical motivation behind secularism but the judgment is coming, but we have teenage boys I take them out to eat. Sure get an appetizer sure add that sure get dessert. Sure have four or five entrées, but eventually the check comes to the table and when I see that Jack finally dawns on me all this is the reality check.

So what this is. There is guilt because there is God you can eat all you want but check is going to be brought to the table. There will be a judgment. There is a hell there is a health so these are the false gospels. So what do we do well. How do we respond to these false gospels here. We stand is not a time to cowardice is not a time to compromise. This is not a time to capitulate, falter, waiver. No, we must proclaim, defend, and contend for the truth of the gospel.

We have an obligation to proclaim this gospel to his many people as possible.

The gospel is truth in the midst of lies is life in the midst of death. It is hope in the midst of despair. It is joy in the midst of sorrow and sadness and even anger. This is the gospel of Jesus Christ.

This is God's gospel. There is no other gospel, it can't be any clearer than that. Janet Dr. Steven Nichols speaking at this year's wood international conference. Our theme this year was right now accounts forever taken from Dr. RC Sproul's monthly column in table talk magazine you know early in his ministry. RC saw that many people in the world are living their entire lives focused on the temporary on the here and now and not on matters of eternal consequence that fueled his passion to help people know God, so that they could know what really matters in life because of RC's passion and commitment to God's word Lincoln or ministries has always been a home for Christians who are not afraid to think deeply about what matters most in life and in eternity. And I must say that for C saying that right now accounts forever wasn't just that a tagline or a clever name for his table talk column he really believed it, and he lived it and we get here.

We believe it to and we exist simply to serve God by helping people know God and glorify him forever. I have never copy of the August issue of table talk here and the theme is right now accounts forever your articles here from Robert Gottfried Sinclair Ferguson Steven Nichols and many others.

And we like to send you a copy of this edition plus provide you with a year-long subscription to table talk just contact us today with a donation of any amount will be glad to set that up for you.

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Here's a preview. Every second God is working. God's not passing God is active and because of that we are made in the image of God and we are made for a task and that is to work the title of his message is working. As for the Lord. We hope you'll join us Tuesday for Renewing Your Mind