WHAT IS THE TRUE GOSPEL?

INTRODUCTION

What is the true Gospel? There is no question that is of

greater importance facing the world today. This is so because

only the true Gospel will provide the answer that can save us from

spending eternity under the wrath of God. Therefore, as we seek

to identify the true Gospel, we will endeavor to discover answers

to the following questions: What is the authority that structures

and determines the true Gospel? What is the message of the true

Gospel? What is the mandate of the true Gospel?

We hear sermons of various kinds; we read the Bible here and

there; we generally hear a lot of good things about the Gospel.

We hear about how we are to walk as Christians; we see rules in

the Bible that God has given to us for the good of mankind. But,

we begin to wonder, what is the essential structure of the Gospel

of the Lord Jesus Christ? Can we strip away the peripherals and

get right down to the very substance, the inner core of the

Gospel?

Chapter 1

In order to know what the Gospel actually is, we must first of

all determine the authority that structures and determines what it

is. This is necessary because the nature of the true Gospel is

defined and established by its divine authority. In fact, the

nature of every religion, gospel, and ideological system is

defined and established by its recognized authority.

A Mohammedan, for example, may wish to know how to live as a

good Mohammedan. So he carefully consults the Koran, a book in

which Mohammedans believe God has spoken. The Koran, therefore,

is the written authority that establishes the Mohammedan gospel,

that is, the Mohammedan religion. An orthodox Jew has a different

authority. It includes what we call our Old Testament, along with

the writing of the church fathers that are considered to be

divinely inspired. That is the authority that establishes the

nature and character of the Jewish religion. On the other hand, a

Mormon has as his divine authority the Bible, plus the Book of

Mormon, which is believed to be divinely inspired. Because the

Book of Mormon came later than the Bible, it has become a shadow

that lies over the Bible. That is, someone who follows the Mormon

gospel examines everything he reads in the Bible in the light of

what is found in the Book of Mormon.

Similary, the Roman Catholics follow still another gospel.

The authority that structures and determines their gospel begins

with the Bible. But the Apocrypha books are also a part of that

authority, as are the visions of Joan of Arc, the visions of

Fatima, and the infallible utterances of the Pope. All of these

are looked upon as divine, and together they make up the authority

that establishes the character of the Roman Catholic gospel.

Likewise, the charismatic gospel has its authority. It

believes that the Bible is the Word of God, but it also believes

in divine revelation through visions, voices, or tongues, which

expands their authority beyond the Bible. Therefore, it has as

its authority the Bible, plus the messages presumably received

from God through dreams, visions, and tongues. This widened

authority structures and determines the character of the

charismatic gospel.

Bear in mind that every time we have a different authority, we

also have a different kind of gospel. In other words, every

gospel is structured and determined by its authority. So when the

authorities differ, the gospels themselves differ.

But what is the true Gospel of Jesus Christ, who alone can

save men and women from their sins? What is the Divine Authority

by which it is structured and determined? These are some of the

most insistent questions facing the church today, because we are

living in a day when gospels are proliferating. Every place we

turn we find different kinds of gospels. Indeed, we wonder, how

can I really know I am following the true Gospel?

One definition sometimes offered to describe the true Gospel

is set forth in I John 4:2. There we read that if we confess that

Christ has come in the flesh, then we are of God. Yet as we read

in Luke 4:34, the demons also admit that Jesus Christ has come in

the flesh, and they are still under God's wrath. So that

particular definition standing alone may not be adequate in every

case. We have to know more about what defines and establishes the

Gospel. We must, therefore, discover the divine authority that

structures and determines the character and nature of the true

Gospel.

The Bible indicates that it alone and in its entirety is the

authority that establishes the Gospel of the Lord Jesus Christ.

Revelation 22:18-19 says it best.

For I testify unto every man that heareth the words of

the prophecy of this book, if any man shall add unto

these things, God shall add unto him the plagues that are

written in this book: And if any man shall take away

from the words of the book of this prophecy, God shall

take away his part out of the book of life, and out of

the holy city, and from the things which are written in

this book.

By that statement God established the parameters of the true

Gospel. It is circumscribed by the Bible alone.

The Bible, therefore, is the true divine authority. It is the

only complete authority that established the Gospel of our Lord

Jesus Christ. Because it is the divine authority, because it is

from God, it is to be entirely authoritative in our lives. We

must eagerly read it; we must eagerly study it with a view to

being obedient to it. And if we discover in our lives any kind of

practice, or any kind of doctrine that is contrary to the Word of

God, then as children of God, there will be within us an earnest

desire to change that practice or that doctrine so that we will

become more faithful to the Word of God.

If we follow an authority that is narrower or wider than the

Bible alone and in its entirety, we are not following the Gospel

of the Bible. Regardless of how holy it may appear to be, such a

gospel will not lead to salvation.

For more information:

Southern Maryland Christian Information Service BBS (SMCIS)

P. O. Box 463

California, MD 20619

modem 301/8623160

SYSOP: Buggs Bugnon

GOSPELS

In this age we are experiencing a great rise in the number of false

religions throughout the world. Satan aware that his time is growing

shorter in the light of the soon return of Jesus Christ to the earth, has

unleashed his greatest campaign to deceive men and blind them to the true

Gospel message. False religions have always been with us and must

continually be exposed. One could spend hours discussing all the false

teachings of some religions, but I feel that all religions either stand

or fall on the Gospel message they present. A religion is either a true

one that has a true gospel at its core and leads its followers into the

kingdom of heaven or they have a false gospel message and continue to

lead men and women into the fires of hell.

The following is a listing of the major false religions of our day. I have

presented their false gospel message with their own source reference. I

purposely have planned for this file to be brief because if people are made

aware of the false gospel message than all the other lies merely confirm the

core lie...the gospel.

First the True Gospel as presented in the Scriptures....

Gospel According to the Bible

All men and women are sinners and condemned to the fire of torment for their

punishment. However, salvation from sin is available to all if they will

repent and cry out to Jesus to save them. There is no merit for any work

involved, salvation is strictly by grace through faith and not by any works.

Repenting from our sins is the conscious act of turning away from a life

of sin and yielding total control to Jesus Christ, being willing to do all

that He may command us through His Word. Also being aware that the very

first command Jesus gives to all new believers is "water baptism." If a

person claims that they are ready to become a Christian but will not yield

to public baptism in a local Church at the next available opportunity, then

they are "not ready to accept Christ" for they are not willing to obey His

very first command.

I. MORMONS

The False Gospel according to the Mormon Church (Church of Jesus Christ of

Latter Day Saints) says....

"We believe that through the atonement of Christ, all mankind may be saved,

by 'obedience' to the 'laws' and ordinances of the Gospel."

(Article No. 3 of the MORMON ARTICLES OF FAITH).

"The first principles and ordinances of the gospel are: Faith on the Lord

Jesus Christ; repentance; baptism by immersion for the remission of sins;

and laying on of hands for the gift of the Holy Spirit."

(Article No. 4 of the MORMON ARTICLES OF FAITH).

"I want to tell them and tell all the great men of the earth, that the

Latter-day Saints [Mormons] are to be their redeemer. . .Believe in God,

believe in Jesus, and believe in Joseph [Smith] his prophet, and Brigham

[Young] his successor, and I add, If you will believe in your hearts and

confess with your mouth Jesus is the Christ, that Joseph [Smith] was a

prophet, and that Brigham [Young] is his successor, you shall be saved in

the kingdom of God. No man or woman in this dispensation will ever enter

into the celestial Kingdom of God without the consent of Joseph Smith...I

cannot go there without his consent. . .he reigns there as supreme. . ."

(quote from Brigham Young, JOURNAL OF DISCOURSES, 6:299, 7:289).

SUMMARY - The False Mormon Gospel--in order to enter into Salvation one must

"prior to salvation:"

1. Believe in Jesus Christ

2. Believe in Joseph Smith

3. Believe in Brigham Young

4. Confess Jesus is the Christ

5. Confess Joseph Smith was the prophet

6. Confess Brigham Young was Smith's Successor

7. Repent

8. Be Baptized by Immersion [before salvation]

9. Receive the Holy Spirit by the "laying on of hands."

Then and only then will you receive salvation! All nine steps must be

completed prior to salvation which are the "works" of the Mormon faith

necessary for salvation.

The True Gospel of the Bible says....

Salvation comes by faith and faith alone. All that is necessary to receive

total salvation is faith in Jesus which is a "gift" of God. A faith not

generated within ourselves. Baptism is to occur after salvation to provide

an outward expression of what has already taken place inside the heart.

(Ephesians 2:8-9)

II. CATHOLICS

The False Gospel of the Roman Catholic Church says....

"If anyone says that man can be justified before God by his own works,

whether done by his own natural powers or through the teaching of the law,

'without' [in addition to man's works] divine grace through Jesus Christ,

let him be anathema [cursed]." (Council of Trent, Sixth Session,

Justification, Canon 1).

"If anyone says that the sinner is justified by faith alone, meaning that

nothing else is required to cooperate in order to obtain the grace of

justification, and that it is not in any way necessary that he be prepared

and disposed by the action of his own will, let him be anathema."

(Council of Trent, Sixth Session, Justification, Canon 9).

"If anyone says that justifying faith is nothing else than confidence

[faith] in divine mercy, which remits sins for Christ's sake, or that it is

this confidence alone that justifies us, let him be anathema." (Council of

Trent, Sixth Session, Justification, Canon 12).

The True Gospel of the Bible says....

"It is by grace you have been saved, through faith--and this not from

yourselves, it is the gift of God--not by works, so no one can boast."

(Ephesians 2:8-9).

The False Gospel of the Roman Catholic Church says....

"It was through the Redemption that the Savior exercised his mediatorial

reconciliation, and that his 'mother shares' in the process."

(The Catholic Catechism, John A. Hardon S.J., p168, Doctrines of the Faith)

"Vatican II viewed the Mother of Christ in co-operating with the atonement.

Her supporting role is stated in a single sentence: The Blessed Virgin

advanced in her pilgrimage of faith, and faithfully persevered in her union

with her Son unto the cross, where she stood, in keeping with the divine

plan, grieving exceedingly with her only-begotten Son, uniting herself with

a maternal heart with his sacrifice. . .Mary's title to 'mediatrix-in-

atonement' rests on the pain she freely underwent in union with her Son.

The sins of men called for suffering from the God-man, and 'he wished his

mother to share' in the pain. . .Alongside her Son, Mary has become part of

this plan by contributing HER SHARE TO THE JUSTIFICATION of the human race."

(The Catholic Catechism, John A. Hardon S.J., pp168-169, Doctrines of the

Faith)

The True Gospel of the Bible says....

"There is one God and ONE MEDIATOR between God and men, the man Christ

Jesus, who gave himself as a ransom for all men. . ." (1Timothy 2:5-6).

III. JEHOVAH'S WITNESSES

The False Gospel of the Jehovah's Witnesses says....

"God's personal name is Jehovah (The Truth Shall Make You Free, p. 17).

"Only Jehovah is from everlasting to everlasting. . .Jesus Christ is not One

God with the Father (Make Sure of All Things, 1965, p. 486).

The True Gospel of the Bible....

Jesus said, "I am the Alpha and the Omega, the First and the Last, the

Beginning and the End." (Revelation 22:13). "I and the Father are one."

(John 10:30). "If you do not believe that I am the one I claim to be, you

will indeed die in your sins." (John 8:24).

The False Gospel of the Jehovah's Witnesses says....

"They [the lost] must be recovered from blindness as well as from death,

that they, each for himself, may have a full chance to prove, by obedience

or disobedience, their worthiness of eternal life" (Charles Taze Russell

[founder of the JW's], Studies in the Scriptures, Vol. 1, p. 158).

"All who by reason of faith in Jehovah God and in Christ Jesus dedicate

themselves to do God's will and then faithfully carry out their dedication

[doing works!] will be rewarded with everlasting life. . ." (Let God be

True, p. 298).

The True Gospel of the Bible says....

"It is by grace you have been saved, through faith--and this not from

yourselves, it is the gift of God--not by works, so that no one can boast."

(Ephesians 2:8-9). "He saved us, not because of righteous things we had

done, but because of His mercy." (Titus 3:5).

IV. CHRISTIAN SCIENCE

The False Gospel of the Christian Science Religion is....

"The material blood of Jesus was no more efficacious [power to produce

effect] to cleanse from sin, when it was shed upon 'the accursed tree,' than

when it was flowing in His veins. . ." (Science and Health, page 330,

source document for their religion, written by their founder, Mary Baker

Eddy.)

"The real atonement--so infinitely beyond the heathen conception that God

requires human blood to propitiate [to gain the favor of] His justice and

bring His mercy. . ." (No and Yes [1893], pages 44-45).

"Jesus' students, not sufficiently advanced to understand fully their

Master's triumph, did not perform many wonderful works until they saw Him

after His crucifixion, and learned that 'He had not died'!" (Science and

Health, page 350, 351).

"His disciples believed Jesus dead while He was hidden in the sepulcher,

whereas He was alive. . ." (Science and Health, Page 349).

The True Gospel of the Bible says....

"Christ 'died' for the ungodly. . .God demonstrates His own love for us in

this: While we were still sinners, Christ 'died' for us. . .we have been

justified by His 'blood'. . ." (Romans 5:6-9).

"Without the shedding of blood there is no forgiveness." (Hebrews 9:22).

"In Him we have redemption through His 'blood,' the forgiveness of

sins. . .(Ephesians 1:7).

"God was pleased to have all fullness dwell in Him, and through Him to

reconcile to Himself all things, whether things on earth or things in

heaven, by making peace through His 'blood,' shed on the cross." (Colossians

1:19)

"It was not with perishable things such as silver or gold that you were

redeemed. . .but with the precious blood of Christ." (1 Peter 18-19).

The False Gospel of the Christian Science Religion is....

"Final deliverance from error--whereby we rejoice in immortality, boundless

freedom, and sinless sense--is neither reached through paths of flowers, nor

by 'pinning one's faith to another's vicarious [substituted] effort.'"

(Science and Health, page 327).

The True Gospel of the Bible says....

"Whoever believes in the Son has eternal life, but whoever rejects the Son

will not see life, for God's wrath remains on him." (John 3:36)

"It is by grace you have been saved, through faith [in Christ's vicarious

death]--and this not from yourselves, it is the gift of God--not by works,

so that no one can boast." (Ephesians 2:8-9).

V. CONCLUSION

Note that in all four false gospels there is the element of "works" as a

requirement for salvation. The Mormons, Catholics, Jehovah's Witnesses

and Christian Science all require "works" be done "before" salvation can

occur. The true Gospel says that works are a result of salvation--not a

requirement for salvation!

There will be more false gospels added to this file in the future.

Tony Capoccia

Bible Bulletin Board

Box 115

Galveston, IN 46932

Modem (317)-452-1535

December 28, 1986