While teaching in Ephesus Paul said this about his ministry to Asia…
“…all they which dwelt in Asia heard the word of the Lord Jesus” (Acts 19:10)
But years later, at the end of his life, he wrote his final letter to Timothy concerning the condition of those who had heard in Asia…
“This thou know, that all they which are in Asia be turned away from me” (II Timothy 1:15).
What had they turned away from, and to what? Paul tells those in Galatia plainly…
“I am amazed that you are so quickly deserting Him who called you by the grace of Christ for a different gospel; which is really not another; only there are some who are disturbing you and want to distort the gospel of Christ.” (Galatians 1:6-7)
The message being DISTORTED was the good news of the free gift of salvation to ALL MANKIND by the GRACE of God, without the need for any works of the Law whatsoever. And in his final letter to Timothy Paul warned of his fear for the future condition of the church…
“But evil men and seducers shall wax worse and worse, deceiving, and being deceived” (II Timothy 3:13).
Here is a summary of what Paul was teaching….
“For the wages of sin is death but the free gift of God is eternal life through Jesus Christ the Lord…For by grace you have been saved through faith; and that not of yourselves, it is the gift of God; not as a result of works, so that no one may boast….It is a trustworthy statement deserving full acceptance. For it is for this we labor and strive, because we have fixed our hope on the living God, who is the Savior of all men, especially of believers. Prescribe and teach these things.” (Romans 6:2; Ephesians 2:8-9; 1 Timothy 4:9-11)
For my wife, children and grandchildren..and anyone else who may be interested!
Showing posts with label false gospel. Show all posts
Showing posts with label false gospel. Show all posts
Is There Faith On The Earth?
From God’s perspective we were saved before the foundation of the world…
“…He chose us in Him before the foundation of the world, that we would be holy and blameless before Him. In love He predestined us to adoption as sons through Jesus Christ to Himself, according to the kind intention of His will.” (Ephesians 1:3-5)
From the perspective of Christ Jesus we were saved when he died on the cross to ransom all…
“For there is one God, and one mediator also between God and men, the man Christ Jesus, who gave Himself as a ransom for all…” (1 Timothy 2:5-6)
From a believer’s perspective, we are saved when we are given faith to believe what God did through Christ Jesus…
“For by grace you have been saved through faith; and that not of yourselves, it is the gift of God.” (Ephesians 2:-8)
From the institutional church’s perspective, however, none are saved until they believe the requirements of that particular institution which include, at a minimum, one or more of the following requirements: 1) Believe in God; 2) accept the offer from God to save them; 3) repent of sin; 4) get baptized in water and/or the Holy Spirit; 5) join and tithe to their particular church…and 6) really, really mean it!
But do not let religion rob you of the good news…ALL are saved and All will believe and we are to labor for and teach this.
“It is a trustworthy statement deserving full acceptance. For it is for this we labor and strive, because we have fixed our hope on the living God, who is the Savior of all men, especially of believers. Prescribe and teach these things.” (1 Timothy 4:9-11)
Many turned from the good news, following the teaching of men, and it amazed Paul…
“I am amazed that you are so quickly deserting Him who called you by the grace of Christ, for a different gospel; which is really not another; only there are some who are disturbing you and want to distort the gospel of Christ.” (Galatians 1:6-7)
No wonder Jesus lamented…
“...when the Son of Man comes, will He find faith on the earth?" (Luke 18:7-8)
“…He chose us in Him before the foundation of the world, that we would be holy and blameless before Him. In love He predestined us to adoption as sons through Jesus Christ to Himself, according to the kind intention of His will.” (Ephesians 1:3-5)
From the perspective of Christ Jesus we were saved when he died on the cross to ransom all…
“For there is one God, and one mediator also between God and men, the man Christ Jesus, who gave Himself as a ransom for all…” (1 Timothy 2:5-6)
From a believer’s perspective, we are saved when we are given faith to believe what God did through Christ Jesus…
“For by grace you have been saved through faith; and that not of yourselves, it is the gift of God.” (Ephesians 2:-8)
From the institutional church’s perspective, however, none are saved until they believe the requirements of that particular institution which include, at a minimum, one or more of the following requirements: 1) Believe in God; 2) accept the offer from God to save them; 3) repent of sin; 4) get baptized in water and/or the Holy Spirit; 5) join and tithe to their particular church…and 6) really, really mean it!
But do not let religion rob you of the good news…ALL are saved and All will believe and we are to labor for and teach this.
“It is a trustworthy statement deserving full acceptance. For it is for this we labor and strive, because we have fixed our hope on the living God, who is the Savior of all men, especially of believers. Prescribe and teach these things.” (1 Timothy 4:9-11)
Many turned from the good news, following the teaching of men, and it amazed Paul…
“I am amazed that you are so quickly deserting Him who called you by the grace of Christ, for a different gospel; which is really not another; only there are some who are disturbing you and want to distort the gospel of Christ.” (Galatians 1:6-7)
No wonder Jesus lamented…
“...when the Son of Man comes, will He find faith on the earth?" (Luke 18:7-8)
“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! As we have said before, so I say again now, if any man is preaching to you a gospel contrary to what you received, he is to be accursed! For am I now seeking the favor of men, or of God? Or am I striving to please men? (Galatians 1:8-10)
Pretty harsh wouldn’t you say? Paul says anyone who preaches a gospel contrary to what he had preached to them was accursed – meaning “devoted to destruction” (death-not tortured in hell).
So don’t you think it important to know what Paul preached, and receive it?
So what did Paul preach?….you will have to read Romans through Philemon to get it all but 1 Corinthians 15 will give you a good summary.
But it is what he did NOT PREACH about that is very interesting to me….he did not speak of eternal conscious torment in hell even one time…even to deny it. Why? Because it never crossed his mind that anyone would believe such a thing. So how did the doctrine get introduced into the church?
Well, as I read history, it was not introduced into the church until around 187 AD when Christian teachers like Tertullian of Carthage began to blend Greek philosophy — human speculative reasoning - with the teachings of God’s Word. And Plato (427-347 BC) had talked about hell as a place of torment for immortal souls almost 400 years before the birth of Jesus. It was not based on the Bible but on Greek myth and philosophy. Bible verses were later sought to uphold the ancient philosophies of the Greeks, and were added to the teaching of the Church as best I can tell.
Eventually under the influence of Augustine, in about AD 430, the concept of endless conscious torment was brought into general acceptance by the Catholic Church in the Western world, and has remained a “destructive heresy” of both the Catholic and Protestant Church to this time. That is why I am wary of the opinions of “wise men”, even those of well respected theologians and philosophers…I prefer to read the Bible for myself.
I like what A. W. Tozer says about men who are constantly seeking the approval of wise men…
“I cannot believe in the spirituality of any man who keeps an eye open for the approval of others, whoever they may be. The man after God's own heart must be dead to the opinion of his friends as well as his enemies. He must be as willing to cross important persons as obscure ones. When we are wholly lost in Him the frantic effort to please men will come to an end. The circle of persons we struggle to please will be narrowed to One. Then we will know true freedom, but not a moment before.” (A. W. Tozer - The Price of Neglect, Page141)
If I am lost…at least it is in His Word, not in wise men and their philosophies!
Pretty harsh wouldn’t you say? Paul says anyone who preaches a gospel contrary to what he had preached to them was accursed – meaning “devoted to destruction” (death-not tortured in hell).
So don’t you think it important to know what Paul preached, and receive it?
So what did Paul preach?….you will have to read Romans through Philemon to get it all but 1 Corinthians 15 will give you a good summary.
But it is what he did NOT PREACH about that is very interesting to me….he did not speak of eternal conscious torment in hell even one time…even to deny it. Why? Because it never crossed his mind that anyone would believe such a thing. So how did the doctrine get introduced into the church?
Well, as I read history, it was not introduced into the church until around 187 AD when Christian teachers like Tertullian of Carthage began to blend Greek philosophy — human speculative reasoning - with the teachings of God’s Word. And Plato (427-347 BC) had talked about hell as a place of torment for immortal souls almost 400 years before the birth of Jesus. It was not based on the Bible but on Greek myth and philosophy. Bible verses were later sought to uphold the ancient philosophies of the Greeks, and were added to the teaching of the Church as best I can tell.
Eventually under the influence of Augustine, in about AD 430, the concept of endless conscious torment was brought into general acceptance by the Catholic Church in the Western world, and has remained a “destructive heresy” of both the Catholic and Protestant Church to this time. That is why I am wary of the opinions of “wise men”, even those of well respected theologians and philosophers…I prefer to read the Bible for myself.
I like what A. W. Tozer says about men who are constantly seeking the approval of wise men…
“I cannot believe in the spirituality of any man who keeps an eye open for the approval of others, whoever they may be. The man after God's own heart must be dead to the opinion of his friends as well as his enemies. He must be as willing to cross important persons as obscure ones. When we are wholly lost in Him the frantic effort to please men will come to an end. The circle of persons we struggle to please will be narrowed to One. Then we will know true freedom, but not a moment before.” (A. W. Tozer - The Price of Neglect, Page141)
If I am lost…at least it is in His Word, not in wise men and their philosophies!
Without Faith - Part Two
“…without faith it is impossible to please Him, for he who comes to God must believe that He is and that He is a rewarder of those who seek Him.” (Hebrews 11:6)
Yesterday I pointed out that the Bible clearly says that God is going to save ALL ISRAEL as His unconditional promise. God is no respecter of persons and so the Bible also clearly says that God is going to unconditionally save everyone else. God says it and only those who believe what he says have FAITH that pleases God. Here is His unconditional promise…
“It is a trustworthy statement, deserving full acceptance, that Christ Jesus came into the world to save sinners…this is good and acceptable in the sight of God our Savior, who desires (wills) all men to be saved and to come to the knowledge of the truth. For there is one God, and one mediator also between God and men, the man Christ Jesus, who gave Himself as a ransom for all, the testimony given at the proper time... it is a trustworthy statement deserving full acceptance, for it is for this we labor and strive, because we have fixed our hope on the living God, who is the Savior of all men, especially of believers. Prescribe and teach these things.” (1 Timothy 1:15; 2:3-6; 4:9-11).
The Bible cannot say it any plainer than this and I have chosen to believe the Bible rather than men. The above is an unconditional promise and one either believes what God says or doesn’t…our choice. But God is going to do what he unconditionally promises whether you believe Him or not. And it is my opinion that any other gospel proclaimed does NOT please God.
“For the grace of God has appeared, bringing salvation to all men, instructing us to deny ungodliness and worldly desires and to live sensibly, righteously and godly in the present age, looking for the blessed hope and the appearing of the glory of our great God and Savior, Christ Jesus, who gave Himself for us to redeem us from every lawless deed, and to purify for Himself a people for His own possession, zealous for good deeds.” (Titus 2:11-14)
Yesterday I pointed out that the Bible clearly says that God is going to save ALL ISRAEL as His unconditional promise. God is no respecter of persons and so the Bible also clearly says that God is going to unconditionally save everyone else. God says it and only those who believe what he says have FAITH that pleases God. Here is His unconditional promise…
“It is a trustworthy statement, deserving full acceptance, that Christ Jesus came into the world to save sinners…this is good and acceptable in the sight of God our Savior, who desires (wills) all men to be saved and to come to the knowledge of the truth. For there is one God, and one mediator also between God and men, the man Christ Jesus, who gave Himself as a ransom for all, the testimony given at the proper time... it is a trustworthy statement deserving full acceptance, for it is for this we labor and strive, because we have fixed our hope on the living God, who is the Savior of all men, especially of believers. Prescribe and teach these things.” (1 Timothy 1:15; 2:3-6; 4:9-11).
The Bible cannot say it any plainer than this and I have chosen to believe the Bible rather than men. The above is an unconditional promise and one either believes what God says or doesn’t…our choice. But God is going to do what he unconditionally promises whether you believe Him or not. And it is my opinion that any other gospel proclaimed does NOT please God.
“For the grace of God has appeared, bringing salvation to all men, instructing us to deny ungodliness and worldly desires and to live sensibly, righteously and godly in the present age, looking for the blessed hope and the appearing of the glory of our great God and Savior, Christ Jesus, who gave Himself for us to redeem us from every lawless deed, and to purify for Himself a people for His own possession, zealous for good deeds.” (Titus 2:11-14)
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