The title of the message I'm
going to deliver today is the difference between the true gospel
and the false gospel. I know there are a lot of differences,
but I'm going to focus on one main difference. And you'll see
as I go through the reason I picked this one difference to talk about. The scripture that I'm going
to reference today is Genesis chapter 4 verses 1 through 5,
I think. I had told Jim it was going to
be 1 through 7, change that to 1 through 5. As we travel down this road that
we call life, we encounter different things. We hit bumps in the road
and then we have smooth sailing. Sometimes we have a tire blowout
and we don't know how in the world we're going to get going
again. We all seem to get back on our feet and move forward
somehow. But one of the hardest parts
of this journey can be the religious road that we travel down. True
believers can sometimes look around and it can feel quite
lonely. And if you believe the gospel
of Christ and his sovereign grace, you'll look around at times and
think, where's everyone at? Now, people at my work, they
talk about Jesus. I hear it all the time. And I
heard one person, it was a few years ago, that he proclaims
to be a Christian, and he was talking to a person of Jewish
faith. This person that proclaimed to
be a Christian told the person of Jewish faith that he believed
that we all worship the same God, but we're on different paths
to get to the same place. How about that? The way that
most talk would leave the believer, the true believer, to realize
that those people aren't talking about the same Jesus or the same
God that we're talking about. But what's the difference? A
lot of people will ask. And why is it so important? Now,
I know that there are some people in here and our group that have
left churches where they played important roles for many, many
years. Some of you have left churches
where your parents and family members attended, or they may
still attend. You're here and they are there.
And a lot of families have divided over this issue of the gospel. And a lot of people will ask
you, what's the big deal? What can be so important that
would cause division to divide over this issue, to not agree
And some will ask, is it important enough to divide over? I'm going to make several statements
here today. I read an article a while back that around Easter,
right here in town, that there are numerous churches that gather
together. There are Presbyterian, Missionary
Baptist, Methodist, and Episcopal denominations that gather together
as one group in the same building and worship together at Easter.
And some would say that's great for them to all get together.
But here's my question. How can they all come together
and meet to support one another? They're all different in their
messages and in their beliefs. Well, I have the answer. And
the answer is this. It's because they all, at the
end of the day, believe the same exact thing about salvation.
They may be different on one point here and one point there.
One may believe that Jesus Christ is the Son of God. Another may
believe that he's the Son of Mary, but it doesn't matter. Basically, at the end of the
day, they all believe the same thing about salvation, and here
it is. They believe that salvation is
based on the work and the will of the sinner. In some way, shape,
or form, That's exactly what they believe. I had a family
member that once told me that he believed in the free will
of man for salvation, and that's what most everyone believes.
It does not matter that they disagree on the person and work
of Jesus Christ. When it comes down to it, salvation
in their belief is not in the person and work of Jesus Christ. One may say that Jesus Christ
is born of a virgin, Another may say he's not. One may say
he's a great prophet, and another person may say he's a great healer.
But what difference does it make? When it comes down to it, Christ
is not their savior. Salvation is by the work and
the will of a sinner. Whatever contribution Christ
makes to salvation, they believe it's not complete in him, by
him, or through him. It's the center that makes it
complete. So what difference does it make what part he plays
if it's only a part? That's what we hear all the time.
God's done his part. Now all you have to do is yours. In Genesis 4, verses 1 through
5, it says, And Adam knew Eve, his wife, And she conceived and
bear Cain and said, I have gotten a man from the Lord. And she
again bear his brother Abel and Abel was a keeper of the sheep.
But Cain was a tiller of the ground. And in process of time,
it came to pass that Cain brought the fruit of the ground and offering
unto the Lord and Abel. He also brought of the firstlings
of his flock and of the fat thereof. And the Lord had respect unto
Abel and to his offering. But unto Cain and to his offering,
he had not respect. Here in the book of Genesis,
we see Cain and Abel. Cain is a tiller of the ground.
Abel is a keeper of the sheep. Cain brought the works of his
hands to make an atonement for his sins. He brought his harvest
as his offering to the Lord. on the other hand, brought the
firstlings of his flock of sheep. When Cain brought and offered
the harvest, the works of his hands, God said no, he would
not accept it. Abel brought a slain, innocent
lamb, and God accepted it. And I will tell you this, true believers will stand before
the Father saying, don't look at me, Look at Christ, please
don't deal with me, deal with him. I have nothing and he is
everything. People can get together around
morality, they can get together around good works as long as
they count for something with God, like some kind of reward.
People can talk about God's power and God's sovereignty, but they
determine the areas in which he can exercise it. They say
God can make a world, but he can't save a sinner. God can
conquer Satan, But he can't conquer you. He can even bind Satan and
chain him and cast him into a bottomless pit. But he wants to save you
and he can't do it. You won't let him. Now look at
2 Corinthians 11. We're going to go through verses
13 through 15. And I know how serious it is to say
that someone may preach a false gospel or say that someone doesn't
believe the gospel when they proclaim to believe the gospel. But I want you to listen to a
description of false apostles and deceitful workers. It says
in 2 Corinthians 11, 13 through 15, for such are false apostles,
deceitful workers, transforming themselves into the apostles
of Christ. And no marvel, for Satan himself
is transformed into an angel of light. Therefore, it is no
great thing if his ministers also be transformed as the ministers
of righteousness, whose end shall be according to their works."
Now Bill has said this, and I believe it too. Do you know where Satan
does his best work? Where he does his most deceptive
work. Most people will think bars, the immorality in society,
But he does his most deceptive work in churches across the world. That's where he's the most deceptive.
If he can bring the saving and effectual work away from Christ
and make the sinner feel that they are in charge of any part
of their own salvation, then that's his goal. I attended a
funeral service for a friend of mine. His father passed away.
As the preacher was preaching the funeral, it reminded me of
this passage right here in 2 Corinthians 11, 13 through 15. As that person
laid there, the preacher was preaching him right into heaven,
not based on Christ, but it was based on what that person did.
The preacher even said that Christ died and salvation is all of
grace. But he made this little twist right after that. He said
that Christ died and all we have to do is accept Christ. He even went so far as to say
that walking an aisle doesn't save you, being baptized doesn't
save you, but you, a sinner, have to make the decision to
accept Christ and make it all effectual. The false gospel can
be so subtle. But to the believer who has been
shown the truth by God, who has been made to believe truly by
his grace and his grace alone, they'll see the flaw in that
message and it'll stick out like a sore thumb. I told Jackie it's
the saddest, it's the saddest message that I could ever hear
because it gives such false hope. Most don't understand that even
saying that the sinner has to accept Christ, a work of their
own, is a work of the sinner. It's a work of the law. We believe
when God puts it on us to believe in the day of his power, we will
believe and rest on Christ. Read with me in Galatians 2,
verse 21. It says, I do not frustrate the
grace of God For if righteousness come by the law, then Christ
is dead in vain." Paul is saying that he does not confuse or distort
the grace of God. He says that if the righteousness
that God required, which exceeds that of the Pharisees, if that
righteousness comes in any way by works, listen to what he says,
then Christ died in vain. Remember this, the Galatians,
they did not deny that Christ was born of a virgin. They did
not deny that Christ was born in a manger. They did not deny
that he walked this earth, that he died on a cross, that he was
buried and he rose again. They did not deny that he ascended
back into heaven. They did not deny that he is
seated at the right hand of God. But what did they deny? They
denied the effectual, sufficient, substitutionary work of the Son
of God. They said it takes Christ in
circumcision. They said it takes Christ in
the holy days. Christ in the tithe. They said it takes Christ
in a work. That's exactly what they said.
And Paul says in Galatians 1 6, I marvel that you are so soon
removed from him that called you unto the grace of Christ
unto another gospel." It says here, another gospel. And I can
tell you this, it's either the gospel of Christ or it's another
gospel. And to tell you the truth, it's
either the gospel of Christ or it's no gospel at all. Look at
Galatians 3 verse 1. It says, O foolish Galatians,
who hath bewitched you, that you should not obey the truth,
before whose eyes Jesus Christ hath been evidently set forth,
crucified among you. This type of preaching that Paul
is speaking of is deceptive. He uses the word bewitching.
Listen, Christ is the Alpha and the Omega. He is the author and
finisher of our faith. He is our surety. In chapter
5 of Galatians you see this is the same error of the Galatians.
They all will say that, oh, I know Christ died. We all agree with
that. But in order to be saved, the
sinner has to do this or that. No, it's not Christ plus anything
or minus anything. It is Christ and him alone. And
Paul said in Galatians 5.1, stand fast therefore in the liberty
wherewith Christ hath made us free. and be not entangled again
with the yoke of bondage. That means free from ceremony,
free from Sabbath days, free from holy days, free from laws,
free from all these things that entangle us and bring us into
bondage. And in Galatians, it continues
on in verses, Galatians 5, 2 through 4. Behold, I, Paul, say unto
you, that if you be circumcised, Christ shall profit you nothing.
For I testify again to every man that is circumcised that
he is a debtor to do the whole law. Christ is become of no effect
unto you. Whosoever of you are justified
by the law, you are fallen from grace." Now what does that mean? What he's saying is this, if
you do any act of religion, I mean even if it's a prayer, walking
down an aisle, joining a church, being baptized, taking communion,
giving your money, attending a service. If you do any religious
work or act thinking that it is required or necessary to make
effectual the full saving power of the blood of Christ, then
Christ profits you nothing. That should be an eye-opening
statement right there. You are without Christ, without
hope, and without help, and without God. If you think anything needs
to be added to the person and work of Jesus Christ, verse three
says it. You're a debtor to do the whole
law. People will say, I know Christ
died and his blood saves. but we believe in doing all these
extra things in order to recommend ourselves to God for salvation,
then Christ profits them nothing. And I'm saying this, they had
better do the whole law, the whole law of Moses, and not just
a part of it, or try to keep it. By that, it is required to
keep the whole entire law, because that's what would be required
if one has to keep the law and be saved by their works. And
somebody says this, well, I believe Christ saves, but I better give
my money. If you tithe in order to win
God's favor and add in any way to the person and work of Christ,
then you got a whole lot more to do than tithe. You don't get to keep the part
you want. You don't get to keep the part that's just appealing
to you. You don't get to keep the part that you like the best.
You've got to keep the whole law. So it's either Christ or
works. It cannot be both, and there's
no way to mix it. This is the truth right here.
Christ is the lamb slain before the foundation of the world.
He is our eternal surety. His blood is the blood of the
everlasting covenant, and God secured a people in him and gave
them to him, and made him responsible for them, and he assumed that
full responsibility. And in the fullness of time,
he came into this world, the God-man, the word was made flesh,
and he dwelt among us in human flesh, and walked on this earth
in perfect obedience to God's holy law. And he never thought
an evil thought, or said an evil word, or did an evil deed, He
always pleased God and he perfectly performed, perfectly obeyed and
perfectly put away that law and imputed to us by his full, complete
obedience, a righteousness that is perfect. He went to that cross
and on him was laid every sin of every believer. All the elect,
their sin was laid on him and he put them away fully finally
and completely. And he was buried and rose again
and sat down having finished the work that God gave him to
do. And there is nothing to be added. There is nothing more
that needs to be done. There is nothing to be contributed
by any human being. Just look to him. Rest in him
because he is salvation. Christ is our life and Christ
is our hope. And this is where we differ with
all the non-believers. They don't believe that. They
believe that Christ makes a contribution. But in order for him to do anything,
in order for his work to count for anything, in order for his
blood to amount to anything, the person has to do something
with it or about it. And let me tell you, there's
not a bit of truth in that. Christ's blood gave us an atonement,
and God does not require me to produce a righteousness. He said,
receive one. When a person says that they
must add something to what Christ did on the cross, when they say
that, I agree, Christ did it all, but all you have to do is
reach out your hand to be saved. They'll agree that God is sovereign.
They've all been taught that. But man says, natural man says,
I believe in the sovereignty of God, but not in God's sovereignty
and salvation. then you don't have a sovereign
God. If God is not sovereign in that area, which is nearest
and dearest to him, if he is not sovereign in that area, the
area which is most precious to him, the blood of his son, if
he is not sovereign in that area, then he is not sovereign. People
will tell you all the time, God is sovereign over time. He's
sovereign over the moon and the stars. They'll tell you he's
sovereign over everything. but all of these things are gonna
go away, and the only thing that's gonna remain is redemption in
Christ, his kingdom, that spiritual kingdom of life in Christ. And
let me tell you, God is sovereign in creation and salvation. Christ is the redeemer of his
sheep. The works of men will never wash away sin. Only the
blood of Christ will wash away, put away sin forever. That's
the only way. God will show this to all of
Christ's sheep in the day of his power. He will not leave
any of his sheep behind. So be thankful if God has put
this gospel, the true gospel, on your heart and has opened
your ears and your eyes. Amen.