Understanding the Truth of the Gospel
By Carol Ann Caster
“ Grace to you and peace from God our Father, and the Lord Jesus Christ, Who gave Himself for our sins, that He might deliver us out of this present evil age, according to the will of our God and Father, to whom be the Glory forevermore. Amen. 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. But even though we, or an angel from heaven, should preach to you a gospel contrary to that which we have preached to you, let him be accursed.” Galatians 1:3-8
May the Lord grant us wisdom and understanding that we might grasp the full knowledge of the true Gospel of Jesus Christ. John 3:16 powerfully proclaims: “For God so loved the world, that He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him should not perish, but have eternal life . Mark 1:14-15 also declares: “And after John had been taken into custody, Jesus came into Galilee , preaching the Gospel of God, and saying, “The time is fulfilled, and the Kingdom of God is at hand; repent and believe in the Gospel ." And in John 6:39-40 it is written: "And this is the will of Him Who sent Me, that of all that He has given Me I lose nothing, but raise it up on the last day. For this is the will of My Father, that everyone who beholds the Son and believes in Him, may have eternal life; and I Myself will raise him up on the last day.” This is the heart of the true Gospel of Jesus Christ. God so loved, God so gave and God so saved. His Voice cries out, repent and believe!
In the Book of Galatians, Paul emphatically warns of a different gospel that was being preached. Judaizers were attempting to bring the GalatianChurch back into bondage under the law. They were distorting the true Gospel of Jesus Christ. By doing so, they were denying the Grace of God that provided so great a Salvation. However, he also gives other important contrasts: man’s reasoning versus God’s Revelation, death’s curse versus Eternal Life, the vain works of the flesh versus the finished work of Christ, being slaves to sin rather than servants of Jesus, and the liberality of the carnal man versus true freedom as sons and daughters of the Most High God. As we study line upon line and precept upon precept we are instructed and warned. We must be careful that we do not succumb to the same deception to which the Galatians were falling prey.
2. What gospel is being embraced today? Is it truly the Word of Truth that beseeches a lost and dying people to repent of their sins and come into the safety net of the perfect work of redemption in the shed blood of Jesus and His death and glorious
Resurrection? Is it a calling out to be saved and be separate from this perverse generation and to enter into the majestic Kingdom of God? Is there recognition of man’s hopeless and helpless condition because of the penalty of sin which is death? Is it understood that only the Messiah and Savior of the world, Lord Jesus Christ, could adequately atone for and provide acquittal for the punishment that humanity deserves, because all have sinned and fallen short of the Glory of God (Rom. 3:23)? Or is it an enticement to join another version of the world with a “Christian” flavor? Does it encourage people to come for what they can get (i.e. wealth, position, notoriety) or does it demand an acknowledgement of their need of the One Who calls them? Is Jesus being presented as the Holy and Awesome God Who, though He calls us friend, is still the King of kings and Lord of lords? If the questions seem hard, it is only because of the fierceness of the Love Who asks them. Eternal Life and death hang in the balance.
The Father saw the need of mankind being so desperate that He gave His only begotten Son, the precious Son of His heart, to suffer and die an excruciating death to pay the penalty for sin and its consequences. Should we not then understand the urgency of the time, and the great necessity to come back to proclaiming and living the true Gospel of Jesus Christ?
The god of this world preaches a false doctrine of liberality masked as freedom. In reality, he has captivated unsaved man in such an insidious bondage to lust, fear and arrogant pride. Flesh becomes the prison that holds every man and woman, without the hope of Jesus in their hearts, to the vanity of the bare and temporal existence of useless expectations. The vessel that will once again return to dust, becomes an instrument in the hands of a cruel master whose appetite is insatiable in his demands for control. While the flesh dies a little more each day, the spirit spirals toward the second death which will bring eternal torment and separation from the One True God. While Satan allows his victims to think they are making their own decisions to do what they deem to be right in their own eyes (Judges 21:25), he holds them as puppets on his string of falsehood. Their actions are being manipulated and controlled by the fallen nature of unredeemed man. The only way of escape is the miracle of a “new birth” in which man can enter into the Resurrection power of “old things having passed away, and all things having become new” (2Cor. 5:17). Man cannot simply become a better version of himself; he must be conformed into the image of God Himself. Regeneration must take place and repositioning is mandatory. The necessary transfer is from death into Life and darkness into Light. All that is needed has been provided. Jesus said: “ It is finished !” (John 19:30) He alone is the Way, the Truth and the Life! (John 14:6)
3. The Most High God is raising up His last-days Prophets and Ministers who will “contend earnestly for the faith which was once for all delivered to the saints” (Jude 1:3). “He who has an ear, let him hear what the Spirit says to the churches” (Rev. 3:13).
Listen and hear. Love cries out: Come! Grace cries out: Come! Mercy cries out: Come! Forgiveness cries out: Come! The angelic hosts cry out: Come! The Father, Son and Holy Spirit cry out: Come! The Blood cries out: Come! Come out from the world and all its deadly deceptions and come into the safe haven of the Living Word. Wisdom and Truth light the Way and Eternal Life awaits with welcoming arms. Come, oh do come!
For He is coming soon! Hallelujah & Amen!
Copyright © July 1, 2006 – Carol Ann Caster. All rights reserved.
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