A different Gospel!

Many years ago, when my family and I lived in Livingston, in West Lothian, my wife and I were members of Ladywell Baptist Church, and I was occasionally invited to preach at the Sunday Worship Services. During the week prior to one particular preaching engagement, we received a visit from two charming young men who shared their testimonies with us. Much of what they said sounded good, as they spoke of what God was doing in their lives, and how much Jesus meant to them.

At the morning worship service on the Sunday, I shared with the fellowship about these two young men. I assured them that, if I had invited the two men to come with me, and to share their testimonies from the front of the sanctuary, that many of them would have been wanting to shake hands with two such fine specimens. I then added a very important piece of information - that the two young men were Mormons: members of the "Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints". 

What, one might ask, is the greatest challenge facing Biblical disciples of the Lord Jesus in the early part of the 21st century? It isn't difficult to find contenders for such a title! Is it divisive social issues - whether stemming from the current BLM movement (that conveniently forgets the number of black lives destroyed in the womb!), or from the demands of certain sexual deviants? Is it the rampant immorality as even young children are allegedly sending nude self-images of themselves to their friends? Is it the current refusal of so many to adhere to the guidelines with regard to 'social distancing'? These, and many other topics, would certainly be 'in the running'. However, I would dare to suggest that the biggest threat, as my two visitors all of those years ago showed, is religion - any religion that draws us away from the truth of the Gospel as revealed in the written Word of God. 

Some religions, of course, openly oppose the Christ; others are more subtle They use language that disciples of Jesus already know, giving their testimony a familiar sound. Then they add to it their own twisted brand of thinking - whether it be the teachings of the Book of Mormon; or the inaccuracies of the New World Translation of the Bible, used by the "Jehovah's Witnesses"; or whatever is placed alongside, or above, the written Word of God contained in the Scriptures of the Old and New Testaments.

But if such groups "sound" Christian, how may we know that they are preaching "... a different gospel - not that there is another gospel ..." (Gal.1:6-7)? Here are a few false teachings for which we may look out:

1. Salvation through anything other than faith in the finished work of the Lord Jesus, the Christ! The Lord Jesus made that perfectly clear when he told Thomas: "I am the Way, and the Truth, and the Life; no one comes to the Father but by Me." (John 14:6). In his great sermon, preached on the first Day of Pentecost of the Christian era, Peter proclaimed: "And there is salvation in no one else, for there is no other name under heaven, given among men, by which we must be saved." (Acts 4:12).

2. A refusal to see the Lord Jesus as the eternal God in human flesh, our only, and all-sufficient, Saviour. "In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. He was in the beginning with God; all things were made through Him, and without Him was not anything made that was made." (John 1:1-2).

3. Giving more importance to the words of men than to the Word of God. Paul writes to the Corinthian disciples: "Now we have received not the spirit of the world, but the Spirit Who is from God, that we might understand the gifts bestowed on us by God. And we impart this in words not taught by human wisdom but taught by the Spirit, interpreting spiritual truths to those who possess the Spirit." (2:12-13).

4. Leaders who do not provide Christlike guidance through careful Biblical instruction. Advising his young "son in the faith", Timothy, Paul wrote: "If you put these instructions before the brethren, you will be a good minister of Christ Jesus, nourished on the words of faith and of the good doctrine which you have followed." (I Tim.4:6 - but be sure to read the full context!). Jude wrote, in his short letter:  "For admission has been secretly gained by some who, long ago, were designated for this condemnation; ungodly persons who pervert the grace of our God into licentiousness, and deny our only Master and Lord, Jesus the Christ." (v.4).

There are, indeed, those who want to lead us into another 'gospel' that is no Gospel (Good News). Learn God's Word; steep yourself in it; soak it up as a sponge soaks up water; so that you won;t be deceived by fine, but false, words. Apply yourself to the Bible; and the Bible to yourself.

Get back to the Maker's Manual!

This is the last of my wee series based on the writings of the Old Testament prophet, Malachi. We may consider ourselves to be indebted to him for underlining the importance of living in obedience to the commands, and principles, of Almighty God. There were those among his contemporaries - as, indeed there are many today - who attempted to achieve happiness and success by ignoring the moral laws that God has built into the universe. But such a way - then as now - was a way of failure and discontentment. 

That begs the question: "What is involved in living responsibly in an age in which moral issues are somewhat vague, and blurred? An age is which, to refer to the apostle Paul, the bugle is definitely giving an indistinct sound (see I Cor. 14:8). An age in which sexual deviants are deferred to at every turn - in spite of the statistical fact that they make up less than 5% of the population. An age in which so-called "foreign aid" goes from the UK to countries that have nuclear and space programmes, and a despicable record on even the most basic of human rights."

May I suggest that it means developing a set of values based on the written Word of God - and sticking to them even when it is difficult, and costly, to do so? In our 'modern' society, it is often easier to conform than to resist. But we are enjoined to "... not be conformed to this world but be transformed by the renewal of your mind, that you may prove what is the will of God, what is good and acceptable and perfect." (Rom.12:2). We live at a time when it is more comfortable to compromise than to disagree - but the duty of those of us who make the claim to be disciples of Jesus, is to obey God, and follow His principles, regardless of the personal consequences. By the way, if that sounds even remotely hard, or legalistic, let it also be said that God not only raises the standard to great heights - He also provides, through the indwelling Holy Spirit, the power by which we may attain it. 

The fourfold standard that Malachi raised, almost 2,500 years ago, surely needs to be raised again today. Until we learn to honour God as God; until we make up our minds to expound, and explain, in our congregations and fellowships the importance of walking in His ways; until we resist the pressures of today's society and view marriage as a solemn and binding relationship between one man and one woman; until we recognise that our material possessions are not ours to own, but ours to use; we will remain, and become increasingly, spiritually impoverished and indolent. The time has come - indeed, it may be said to be long past - for disciples of Jesus to have our vision refocused. This can happen, only when we get back to the Bible - the Maker's Manual.