The word "gospel" is the English word chosen by many Bible translators to represent the Greek word ευαγγέλιον (euangelion), which means "good news". So, the gospel of the Bible is good news. But why is it good? How can I know the real gospel of the Bible and not be led astray by all the conflicting counterfeit gospels that are taught today? That is what this web site sets out to explain.
Gospel Confusion:
We are living in a time of great confusion over the gospel. Ask the question "what is the gospel?" and you are likely to get many different answers. Here is a list of some counterfeit gospels and why they are not biblical.
Counterfeit / Real
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How it matches up with the Bible
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We are justified (declared perfect) by grace alone
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- "For by grace you have been saved through faith, and that not of yourselves; it is the gift of God, not of works, lest anyone should boast." - Ephesians 2:8-9
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"not by works of righteousness which we have done, but according to His mercy He saved us, through the washing of regeneration and renewing of the Holy Spirit," - Titus 3:5
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We are justified through faith alone
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Faith itself does not save us, but it is God's instrument or means by which He credits us with the righteous works of Christ.
- "But to him who does not work but believes on Him who justifies the ungodly, his faith is accounted for righteousness," - Romans 4:5
What must we believe to be saved? The person and work of Jesus Christ.
- "Moreover, brethren, I declare to you the gospel which I preached to you, which also you received and in which you stand, by which also you are saved, if you hold fast that word which I preached to you—unless you believed in vain. For I delivered to you first of all that which I also received: that Christ died for our sins according to the Scriptures, and that He was buried, and that He rose again the third day according to the Scriptures," - 1 Corinthians 15:1-4
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We are justified on account of Jesus Christ alone
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We are saved by both the active obedience (works) and passive obedience (sacrifice) of Jesus Christ alone. He lived a perfect life and died in place of God's elect.
- "But God demonstrates His own love toward us, in that while we were still sinners, Christ died for us. Much more then, having now been justified by His blood, we shall be saved from wrath through Him." - Romans 5:8-9
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We are saved by accepting Jesus into our heart
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This is not found anywhere in the scriptures. Instead, the Bible teaches us that we are saved not by something we do but by the atoning work of Jesus Christ
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God accepts us just the way we are.
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Nope! God is so holy that He demands that we be perfect.
- "Therefore you shall be perfect, just as your Father in heaven is perfect." - Matthew 5:48
- "For whoever shall keep the whole law, and yet stumble in one point, he is guilty of all." - James 2:10
The only way we can be accepted on the judgment day is if God declares us perfect on the basis of
- the perfect works of Jesus
- God's wrath against us being satisfied by the atoning sacrifice of Jesus on the cross.
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God loves you and has a wonderful plan for your life.
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Sorry. We would like to think that God loves us. But, apart from Christ, the bible tells us we are "children of wrath" (Ephesians 2:3).
- "But in accordance with your hardness and your impenitent heart you are treasuring up for yourself wrath in the day of wrath and revelation of the righteous judgment of God," - Romans 2:5
- "For You are not a God who takes pleasure in wickedness, Nor shall evil dwell with You. The boastful shall not stand in Your sight; You hate all workers of iniquity." - Psalms 5:4-5
- "God is a just judge, And God is angry with the wicked every day. If he does not turn back, He will sharpen His sword; He bends His bow and makes it ready. He also prepares for Himself instruments of death; He makes His arrows into fiery shafts." - Psalms 7:11-13
This is very bad news. Not many people know what it means to be saved. Salvation means that we are saved from God! Paul spends three chapters in his treatise on the gospel (Romans) belaboring the point that we are exposed to the wrath of God. This bad news is necessary for us to understand before we can comprehend the good news (gospel) of Jesus Christ. The bad news also has the effect of driving us to trust in Jesus Christ as our only hope of salvation.
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We are saved by praying the sinner's prayer or going forward at an evangelistic event.
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Sounds easy enough. But this is only a modern day evangelism trick to boost the numbers of so-called conversions. In America, the sinner's prayer has become a ritual, that if performed, promises a ticket to heaven.
You will not find the sinner's prayer in the Bible. Nor does it ever say that we are saved by praying a prayer or making a decision. Instead, the Bible tells us we must be born of God, spiritually. This is the doctrine of regeneration.
- "Jesus answered and said to him, 'Most assuredly, I say to you, unless one is born again, he cannot see the kingdom of God.'" - John 3:3
- "Whoever believes that Jesus is the Christ has been born of God, and everyone who loves Him who begot also loves him who is begotten of Him." - 1 John 5:1
- "Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation; old things have passed away; behold, all things have become new." - 2 Cor. 5:17
Many people who have gone forward at an altar call or prayed the sinner's prayer have never been born again. This can be evidenced from their life. They show no sorrow over their sin. They don't go to church to learn about God's Word. In short, they have a false assurance of salvation. They think they are on their way to heaven but they are not.
When God grants a person faith, He also grants that person repentance so that they love the things they used to hate (God and the Bible, etc), and now hate the things they used to love (their sin, worldliness, etc.). If this change has not happened to you, then you have not been born again and are still in your sins. Pray that God will give you the gift of faith and repentance.
- "He who says, “I know Him,” and does not keep His commandments, is a liar, and the truth is not in him." - 1 John 2:4
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We are saved by having a personal relationship with Jesus Christ.
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This is probably the biggest lie of Satan. Many people will go to hell trusting in their relationship with God to save them. But a personal relationship does not save you. In fact, the Bible doesn't even speak about a personal relationship. The word "relationship" is a modern term that is not used anywhere in the scriptures. The word "fellowship" is used.
- "If we say that we have fellowship with Him, and walk in darkness, we lie and do not practice the truth." - 1 John 1:6
However, our fellowship with God is a fruit of our justification, not the cause of it.
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