GOD'S ONLY GOSPEL

by Moreno Dal Bello

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The Lord Jesus Christ warned that many christs would come: "For there shall arise false Christs ..." (Matt. 24:24). He also taught that many false prophets and false teachers would come in His very name proclaiming that He indeed is Christ, and yet they would be deceivers who would lead many into everlasting fire: "For many shall come in my name, saying, I am Christ; and shall deceive many" (Matt. 24:5). The apostle Paul said that these deceivers would appear as ministers of righteousness yet they would in reality be ministers of Satan (2 Cor.11:13-15). Paul also spoke of those who would come preaching another gospel and another jesus as well as another spirit (2 Cor. 11:4); he said that anyone who would teach and subsequently believe a false gospel was accursed (Gal. 1:6-9). False 'christian' ministers do not come and openly deny Christ in so many words; they come in His name professing to be born again Christians and yet are in reality deceitful workers who transform themselves into the apostles of Christ and teach a false gospel wherein there is no salvation. They use much truth to promote deadly error. Many are even very familiar with Christian terminology. Terms such as "grace" and "mercy," "faith in Christ," etc., are part of their subtle trickery. They present themselves as something they are not. They are described by the Lord Jesus as wolves in sheep's clothing. The apostle Paul said that grievous wolves would come and that "of your own selves shall men arise, speaking perverse things, to draw away disciples after them" (Acts 20:8-29). The Lord Jesus warned: "Beware of false prophets, which come to you in sheep's clothing but inwardly they are ravening wolves" (Matt. 7:15).

The questions which should be asked by everyone who professes to be a Christian (that is, a follower of Jesus Christ) are, "How will I know a false minister from a true one?" and "How can I know whether or not I have believed a false gospel or God's Gospel?" How can we know if we are true Christians believing in the only Gospel that saves? What is God's only Gospel? (See 2 Cor. 13:5). These are vital questions about which every professing believer should be concerned. The Gospel is a life and death issue. God is a merciful and Holy God Who by His great grace has made it abundantly clear in His Holy Word that a man can indeed know if he is a true believer or not or if in fact he has fallen for a false gospel wherein there is no salvation. The Gospel is clearly presented in the Holy Scriptures.

It is clear that we cannot distinguish the true preacher of the Gospel from the false by their external acts of righteousness, by their morality, by their expressed love for Jesus, by their perceived sincerity or passion for "the gospel"' they preach, or how wide their smile is when saying His name. A true preacher of the Gospel can be distinguished from a false preacher by judging whether or not he preaches the Gospel of Jesus Christ - by examining the doctrines he teaches. Does he preach the true Christ or another jesus? The Lord Jesus warned His disciples: "Take heed and beware of the leaven of the Pharisees and of the Sadducees" (Matt. 16:6). He later explained that the leaven about which He spoke was in fact the doctrine of the Pharisees and Sadducees (Matt. 16:12). In other words, Jesus warned of false teachings. Those who preach false doctrines concerning Christ and His Gospel always have some truth mixed in. But when one mixes error with truth, one always ends up with a lie. A little error added to a big truth makes the whole thing one big lie, one big error (Gal. 5:9). The Word of God is to be the Standard, the Measure by which we can always judge the false from the true. It is a man's message on which we should concentrate and not his personality or reputation. Paul said that even if an angel from heaven were to come down and teach another gospel, he should not be listened to simply because he is an angel, but his message should be analyzed, and if it is not God's Message then he should be shunned and avoided (Gal. 1:8; Rom. 16:17,18). Most people today are swayed into believing the message before they even hear it simply because it is a certain messenger who is speaking. In order for a man to believe the true Gospel he must be blessed of God (Matt. 16:17; Jn. 6:44,45), for the Gospel is God's, and He reveals it to whomsoever He wills. Salvation is not the result or product of a man's will or works but of God's mercy: "So then it is not of him that willeth, nor of him that runneth, but of God that showeth mercy" (Rom. 9:16). Speaking of those who believe on Christ's name, John the apostle stated: "Which were born, not of blood, nor of the will of the flesh, nor of the will of man, but of God" (Jn. 1:13; see also 1 Cor. 1:29-31). The faith that saves is not something which originates from within man; it is not a work that he can produce, but it is in fact a precious gift from God, "For by grace are ye saved by faith; and that NOT OF YOURSELVES it is A GIFT OF GOD" (Eph. 2:8). It is the faith of Jesus Christ, that which comes from Him, that is, finds its origin in Him and not in us, which truly leads a person to believe in Him (Phil. 3:9). The faith that comes from man that spawns his best religious efforts can only lead to a false christ - an idol - a false religion, and to ultimate destruction, for man is corrupted, and his heart is deceitful above all things and desperately wicked (Jer. 17:9). "Who can bring a clean thing out of an unclean? not one" (Job 14:4).

According to Scripture, salvation is not something which can be gained or achieved by any effort on man's part - not even by believing (by one's faith); salvation is not a reward for our work of belief (Rom. 4:4-5) but is something that is given to a man purely by the grace (unmerited favor) of God. The evidence, or result, is saving faith which is of God, which originates with Him. This is the faith - the ONLY faith - that can and does believe God's one and only Gospel, and that eternally, for it is of God, and it is His to give.

The faith that comes from God causes the elect of God to forever believe and abide in the Gospel - the doctrine of Jesus Christ - the terms of which are vital to a saving knowledge of Him: Who He is and what He has done. Firstly, the true recipient of God's mercy will believe that the Fall of man caused by the sin of Adam in the Garden of Eden brought about the spiritual death not only of Adam and Eve but also their seed: the entire race of man which came out of them (Gen. 2:16,17; 3:1-7). "Wherefore, as by one man sin entered into the world, and death by sin; and so death passed upon all men, for that all have sinned" (Rom. 5:12). This first sin of disobedience, or unbelief, committed by man separated him from God for all eternity. It introduced corruption into the race of man. It introduced sickness and physical death, the corruption of the flesh and bones of man. It made man into an unholy thing. However, it did not make him into a creature that would utterly despise the notion of the existence of a Supreme Being, although in some cases this would be so; but for the majority, whose sense or desire to worship would not be lost but merely perverted, it would mean that they would insist on seeking God in their own way, according to their terms rather than God's terms. They would not, indeed they could not, come to Him His Way, for they were dead to Him, to His ways and His Thoughts, and alive to sin and to the desire to please themselves and to do what was right in their own eyes. Man's heart became evil: "The heart is deceitful above all things, and desperately wicked ..." (Jer. 17:9). "... the heart of the sons of men is full of evil, and madness is in their heart while they live ..." (Eccl. 9:3).

Romans 3 clearly shows man's fallen and destitute condition. "As it is written, there is none righteous, no, not one" (Rom. 3:10). The Bible does not say there are none moral or religious, but that there are none who are in right standing with God, "For all have sinned, and come short of the glory of God" (Rom. 3:23). All are sinners and unclean without a righteousness that meets the demands of God's Holy Law. All fall short of perfection which God's Holy Law demands from man. "There is none that understandeth ..." (Rom. 3:11). This shows that no man in his natural fallen state has any true perception of God and His way of Salvation. Natural man cannot understand the things of God for these things can only be spiritually discerned by those whom He has made alive unto Him: "But the natural man receiveth not the things of the Spirit of God: for they are foolishness unto him: neither can he know them, because they are spiritually discerned" (see 1 Cor.2:9-14).

Contrary to what most people believe, every man by nature is not a child of God but a child of wrath (Eph 2:3) and a child of the Devil (Matt.13:38; Jn. 8:44); he drinks iniquity like water (Job 15:16) and is depraved in mind (Eph 4:17-19). He is a creature who is spiritually blind (2 Cor. 4:3,4), who cannot hear the words of Christ (Jn. 8:33,34) and therefore cannot know the things of God (1 Cor. 2:14). Man in his natural state cannot ever please God (Rom. 8:8), for without the faith that comes from God no man can please Him (Heb. 11:6). As one man has wisely stated, man does not have any earning power with God, because he is a sinner. Man cannot produce any good work that is pleasing to a Perfect and Just God, for God demands perfect Righteousness which no man can produce. No man is ever going to become right with God by any work that he does or abstains from doing, for man is a sinner, and everything he does is stained with sin (Rom. 3:20). Man is enslaved to Satan (2 Tim. 2:26; Jn. 8:34). He is without God and therefore without hope in this world (Eph. 2:12) and can never change his condition - who he is and what he is: "Can the Ethiopian change his skin, or the leopard his spots? Then may ye also do good, that are accustomed to do evil" (Jer. 13:23). Man's condition, or nature, is that of a hater of Truth and a lover of the lie. Jesus Christ the Lord states: "And this is the condemnation, that light is come into the world, and men loved darkness rather than light, because their deeds were evil. For everyone that doeth evil hateth the light, neither cometh to the light ..." (Jn. 3:19, 20; see also John 5:40).

If one refuses to believe the above statements in reference to the sinful state of every man and woman to come out of Adam's seed, and in particular the Scriptures cited concerning the condition of man in Adam after the fall, then there is no way he will ever believe the true Gospel of God. Every teaching, even if it is an angel from heaven teaching it, that does not clearly declare that man is dead in sin and cannot and therefore will not come to God God's way will lead a man to believe in a false gospel which proclaims that salvation is conditioned on man. All false gospels leave room for a man to boast in his salvation by teaching that man is not completely dead to God but can indeed choose Him of his own free will. This is an old heresy known as Pelagianism. The modern version is called Arminianism. God has done His part (they say), and now it is up to us to choose Him. According to this lie, God has no say in the matter; He cannot interfere in man's decision-making. This false teaching leads one to believe in the lie that man is not a servant of sin, that he is not in bondage to it, but that he can freely abandon sin where and when he chooses and that his will is not subservient to sin but is just as free as it was before the fall.

It therefore stands to biblical reason that if man cannot in and of himself come to God, then we are left with only one alternative: it is God that must come to man if any man is to be saved. Jesus Himself said that with man salvation is impossible but with God all things are possible - yes, even the salvation of a man! (Mk. 10:26,27; Jer. 32:17).

If it is not man who chooses God then it must be God Who chooses man. Since it is patently obvious that not all are chosen to be saved, for all have not believed, then it must be that God has chosen in His great mercy and grace according to His glorious purpose motivated by his Covenant Love to choose some for salvation (2 Tim. 1:9). This is exactly what He has done from before the foundation of the world: "... he hath chosen us in him before the foundation of the world ..." (Eph. 1:4). God has chosen a people out of every nation to become His people and for Him to be their God (Rev. 5:9).

God's election of a man to eternal life is not conditioned on anything that man does or abstains from doing: "Not by works of righteousness which we have done, but according to His mercy He saved us ..." (Titus 3:5). It is purely an election by grace. God "hath saved us, and called us with an holy calling, not according to our works, but according to his own purpose and grace, which was given us in Christ Jesus before the world began" (2 Tim. 1:9). Salvation is unmeritable. Salvation is something man can never attain, for it is not a reward but a gift. Man can never earn salvation as he has earned his destruction, "For the wages of sin is death; but the gift of God is eternal life through Christ Jesus our Lord" (Rom. 6:23). It is therefore unmerited favor which God has for His elect children. The Bible says that "...by the deeds of the law there shall no flesh be justified in His sight" (Rom. 3:20) - the sight of a Holy God. Man would have to obey God's Law perfectly; in fact, he would have to be perfect himself, to have never sinned, to be in right standing with God. The elect of God are a chosen generation, not a generation of choosers: "But ye are a chosen generation ... that ye should shew forth the praises of Him who hath called you out of darkness into His marvelous light" (1 Pet. 2:9). God elected man before the world was even created, so how, we may ask, could election ever be based on what man would or could do? (see Eph 1:4,5,11; Acts 13:48; Rom. 8:29,30; 9:11-13, 18-21; Psa. 65:4; 1 Thess. 5:9; 2 Thess. 2:13). As Ruler and Judge, God is at liberty to deal with a world of sinners according to His own good pleasure. He can rightly pardon some and condemn others; can rightfully give His saving grace to one and not to another. He is free to have mercy on whom He will have mercy (Rom. 9:16). The potter may do what he wills with the clay - how much more God who MADE the clay! "... cannot I do with you as this potter? saith the Lord. Behold, as the clay is in the potter's hand so are ye in mine hand ..." (Jer. 18:6; see also Rom. 9:21).

But wait! Surely it is not enough for God to simply choose a people in order that they might be saved and escape the punishment of hell for all eternity, for God is a Holy and Just God whose Law demands to be fulfilled and whose Justice demands to be satisfied for any to enter heaven. It is God Himself Who has said that no sinner will escape punishment, He "will by no means clear the guilty" (Ex. 34:7), for "the soul that sinneth, it shall die"(Ezek. 18:4). Payment for sin must be made, and a perfect obedience must be established, or the sinner must go to his place of destruction. As man cannot pay the price of his sins, an atonement must therefore be made on the behalf of man for all his sins in order that he might be made free from the guilt and punishment he has earned as a reward for his sinfulness. But man cannot atone for his own sin; he cannot pay the price that is due his sin. He cannot in any way shape or form make up for what he has done, for man is an unclean creature stained by sin. He virtually reeks of it. Man can never make up for his sin, for in everything he does, he sins again. Man's very righteousness is as filthy rags to a Holy God: "But we are all as an unclean thing, and all our righteousnesses are as filthy rags ..." (Isa. 64:6). What an unregenerate religious man calls "wonderful works," Jesus the Lord calls "iniquity" (Matt. 7:22-23). If man's best works, his best efforts at religion, cannot make himself acceptable to a Holy God or even contribute in the smallest way to his salvation, then this atonement, this satisfaction of God's justice, this making up for man's sin, must come from another. There is no man ever born that could do this, for everyone born of the seed of man carries within him the seed of sin.

As the Holy Scriptures often say: "BUT GOD"!!!! God in the richness of His mercy and in the love wherewith He loved His chosen ones sent His Son to this earth as a Man Himself to live as a man the perfect sinless life that none of us could ever live, in order that He might establish the perfect Righteousness of which man was in desperate but could never produce: "...by the obedience of one shall many be made righteous (Rom. 5:19). Jesus Christ, the Second Person of the Blessed Trinity, came to this earth approximately 2,000 years ago, born of a virgin, not of the seed of man but of the Seed of God. By means of the Holy Spirit of God, Jesus was conceived in the Virgin Mary's womb, free of any stain of sin, and He lived a perfect life in obedience to God and His Holy Law. Everything Jesus did was pleasing to God, and He remained obedient throughout His life on earth even to dying on a cross to atone for the sins of all those whom God had given Him. Jesus Christ was the Atonement that God's chosen ones required in order to have their sins abolished and blotted out (1 Pet. 3:18). The sins of God's sheep were imputed or legally charged to Christ's account and nailed to the cross (Col. 2:13,14). God's Holy Justice was satisfied in Christ's death, for He was a perfect offering to God made on the behalf of all God's chosen (Heb. 9:26-28). He was their Substitute, their Representative. Just as Adam represented the whole human race in the Garden of Eden, so, too, on Calvary's Hill, Jesus Christ represented all those whom the Father had given Him: "For if by one man's offence death reigned by one; much more they which receive abundance of grace and of the GIFT OF RIGHTEOUSNESS shall reign in life by one, Jesus Christ" (Rom. 5:15-19; see also John 6:37; 17:2; Heb. 2:13).

God the Father has laid on God the Son all the sins of all His elect "... the Lord hath laid on Him the iniquity of us all"(Isa. 53:6). Christ offered Himself to bear (carry away) the sins of His sheep: "So Christ was once offered to bear the sins of many" (Heb. 9:28; see also Titus 2:14). Christ Jesus the Lord, who is the Good Shepherd, said: "... the good shepherd giveth His life for the sheep" and "..I lay down My life for the sheep" (Jn. 10:11, 15). Christ so loved the Church that He gave Himself for it: "Husbands love your wives, even as Christ also loved the Church, and gave Himself for it" (Eph. 5:25; see also 1 Jn. 3:16). Now with all the sins of all God's chosen, His Church, paid for by the very Son of God Himself, man needed one more thing to make him totally acceptable to God, and that was to be as Righteous - as Perfect - as He is, for the Holy God of the Universe accepts nothing that is not of Him. This, too, was done by the sinless Son, Jesus Christ, whose very own Righteousness was imputed - or charged to their account - so that legally all God's elect could be presented to Him free of the stain of sin and with the Perfect Righteousness which God's Law demands. David rejoiced and counted blessed those "unto whom God imputeth righteousness without works" and "to whom the Lord will not impute sin" (Rom. 4:6,8).

Every true child of God will believe all of the above, for this is what the Faith of God leads every born again person to believe. This is how we can recognize a true Christian from a false christian, for all true Christians believe the same Gospel; they have the same mind: the Mind of Christ. NO MAN IS SAVED WHO DOES NOT BELIEVE THIS GOSPEL, AND NO MAN IS SAVED WHO BELIEVES THAT ANYONE IS SAVED WHO BELIEVES IN ANY OTHER GOSPEL.

One can only trust in the true Christ after one has heard and believed the true Gospel which speaks of that Christ, "In whom ye also trusted, AFTER ye heard the Word of Truth, THE Gospel of your salvation..." (Eph. 1:11-14). No one is saved by hearing of a false christ and believing in a false gospel.

The true believer will also believe in light of the above that he in and of himself could never have done anything to come to God in a proper and acceptable way. Man needs God. Remember Jesus' words, "with man salvation is impossible ..." Man must repent of his sins. He must repent of all his idolatry and dead works. He must turn and count but dung (just as the apostle Paul did) all his religious works and efforts in trying to please a Holy God in order to merit salvation, to contribute to his salvation, or at least to contribute to maintaining his own salvation. Man needs to repent of ever believing that anything he ever did or abstained from doing made him more acceptable to a Holy God. Everything a man did and believed before he believed the true and only Gospel of God must be shunned and abhorred as nothing but idolatry and fruit unto death, in order that they might win Christ and be found with HIS Righteousness and not their own; for the Bible teaches that no man will be saved according to what he has done or abstained from doing: " ... I count all things but loss for the excellency of the knowledge of Christ Jesus my Lord: for whom I have suffered the loss of all things, and do count them but dung, that I may win Christ, and be found in him, NOT HAVING MINE OWN RIGHTEOUSNESS, which is of the law, but that which is THROUGH THE FAITH OF CHRIST, THE RIGHTEOUSNESS WHICH IS OF GOD BY FAITH" (Phil 3:8,9; see also Gal. 2:16). This is TRUE godly Repentance!

A true believer believes that every one of God's chosen will be saved, that not one will be lost. A true believer believes that the Holy Spirit of God comes to every chosen vessel and makes that man alive to God, spiritually regenerates him, in order that he will come to God God's Way, that he will understand and seek God according to the Scriptures: "Thy people shall be willing in he day of Thy power ..." (Psa. 110:3). The true believer believes that none of the elect could ever resist the Holy Spirit's call and therefore "miss out" on salvation, on God's eternal predestined plan, for God is Almighty, and He does whatsoever He pleases. No man or devil could ever thwart any plan of God's, for then God would cease to be God: "But our God is in the heavens: he hath done whatsoever he hath pleased" (Psa. 115:3). "... he doeth according to his will in the army of heaven, and among the inhabitants of the earth: and none can stay his hand, or say unto him, What doest thou?" (Dan. 4:35). Salvation is not conditioned on what a man does but on what Christ did because of God's mercy. The Bible teaches that "Therefore hath he mercy on whom HE WILL have mercy ..." (Rom. 9:18). Salvation is conditioned on the work of Christ by the mercy of God, and according to the Holy Scriptures, to whomever God wills to be merciful, HE WILL be merciful! Whom He wills to be saved WILL BE SAVED!! "Blessed is the man whom thou choosest, and causest to approach unto thee ..." (Psa. 65:4). "... as many as were ordained to eternal life believed" (Acts 13:48). All whom God has chosen to be objects of His mercy will at the appointed time believe; that is why the chosen of God are described as blessed. "Of his own will begat he us with the word of truth ..." (James 1:18).

Finally, the true believer will believe that every one whom God has chosen will be saved, and that eternally - that he can never lose his salvation. The Christian simply believes the Words of His Savior: "My sheep hear my voice, and I know them, and they follow me: And I give unto them ETERNAL LIFE; and they shall NEVER PERISH, neither shall any man pluck them out of my Hand. My Father, which gave them me, is GREATER THAN ALL; and no man is able to pluck them out of my Father's Hand" (Jn. 10:27-29).

The believer born of God will believe that salvation from God is not dependent on what a man does; therefore, as man can do nothing to gain, merit, or maintain salvation in any way, he can never do anything to lose that salvation, for Christ Jesus has paid the price of that man's every sin forever. He has obtained for him eternal redemption and has given him His Own Righteousness, "... by his own blood he entered in once into the holy place, HAVING OBTAINED ETERNAL REDEMPTION for us" (Heb. 9:12). If God is the Author of your faith, you will believe to the end. One cannot lose what Christ has earned. The saved sinner has been made alive to God ETERNALLY. The life he has been granted is an everlasting life which cannot be lost. God's work cannot be undone. What He does is eternal: "I know that, whatsoever God doeth, it shall be for ever: nothing can be put to it, nor anything taken from it: and God doeth it, that men should fear before him" (Eccl. 3:14).

Every false gospel out there, every false religion - and there are many that come in the name of Christ - teaches that salvation is conditioned on what a man does. Man must do this or that, he must lead a life of abstinence, of separation, of holiness, or of prayer, of good works and of church attendance, if he is to have any chance of pleasing God and ultimately reaching heaven. In essence, they all teach that man must establish his own righteousness in order to please God - that Christ's Righteousness alone is not enough. False gospels and false religions do not teach that salvation is in one Man Jesus Christ ALONE, but that we must obey the law of God in addition to what Christ has done in order to one day secure salvation or at least maintain it. They do not promote the teaching that Jesus' Blood and Righteousness is enough for a sinner to be right with God and to hope in nothing less; instead, they always add that man must contribute his part. Many teach a "christ"; they even call him "jesus"; but they always teach christ plus you in one form or another. "Salvation is by grace," they say, "but we must also do our part to maintain salvation, by believing and then maintaining a life of good works and as few sins as possible." They do not believe that salvation is by grace ALONE and by Christ ALONE. Their "reasoning" shows that they do not believe that Christ's work ALONE makes the difference between heaven and hell but whether the sinner chooses Him or rejects Him. That their "gospel" is a subtle system of works which teaches that a man must believe to get saved rather than the Scriptural doctrine that a man is saved and therefore believes because he has received the gift of faith. The Bible asks, "... who maketh thee to differ from another? And what hast thou that thou didst not receive?" (1 Cor. 4:7). Most people believe that it is their faith that makes them to differ, but the true believer knows that it is Christ ALONE that makes him to differ.

We have established from God's own Word that man can never please God in and of himself, for man is a corrupt creature, a sinful creature whose best efforts at pleasing God fall far short of the demands of God's Holy Law and gain nothing but the wrath and judgment of God. No matter what a child of wrath does, he remains a child of wrath: "... for by the works of the law shall no man be justified" (Gal. 2:16). Man is in need of a Savior; that is why Christ came to this earth - to save sinners!! For they could never save themselves. While God's elect were still sinners, Christ died on the cross for them (Rom. 5:8).

The true believer will abide in the doctrines of Christ which have been detailed in this article and therefore will seek to lead a life of obedience, not that he might in some way contribute to his salvation or maintain it in any way (for salvation is an unmeritable gift of God; it is not something man can reach by his works), but as the result of his being saved by God's grace. It is through obedience that we can show to God our love for Him and appreciation for what He has done for His own. The true believer is now a new creature and is free to - and desires to - serve God God's Way, not in order to gain or maintain salvation, but because this ability and desire to serve God is a direct result of that salvation. "Therefore if any man be in Christ, he is a new creature: old things are passed away; behold, all things are become new" (2 Cor. 5:17).

"Whosoever transgresseth, and abideth not in the doctrine of Christ, hath not God. He that abideth in the doctrine of Christ, he hath both the Father and the Son. If there come ANY unto you, and bring not THIS doctrine, receive him not into your house, neither bid him God-speed: For he that biddeth him God-speed is partaker if his evil deeds" ( 2 Jn. 9-11).

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