The One True Gospel
By George Stroh
March 3, 2014
I am amazed that you are so quickly deserting Him who called you by the grace of Christ, for a different gospel; which is really not another; only there are some who are disturbing you and want to distort the gospel of Christ. (Galatians 1:6, 7)
There is only one true gospel, i.e. "good news". Salvation is by grace through faith alone in the finished work of Jesus Christ; For you are all sons of God through faith in Christ Jesus. (Galatians 3:26)
So if there is only one true gospel, why are there so many different religions? The short answer is that Satan, our enemy, motivates and directs his minions (false religious preachers and teachers) to distort the gospel of Christ. These distortions come in two major ways, by denying crucial biblical elements of the gospel of Christ and/or by adding irrelevant human works to the biblical gospel of faith alone.
An example of denying a crucial biblical element is rejecting the importance of the bodily resurrection of Jesus Christ; and if Christ has not been raised, your faith is worthless; you are still in your sins.(1 Corinthians 15:17) If you don't understand and have faith that Christ has been bodily resurrected from the grave, you are trusting in a distorted false gospel and you are still in your sins!
Many more so called Christians are deceived by a distorted gospel believing that there are one or more human works required in addition to faith in Christ. An example of this distortion is teaching that you must be baptized in order to be saved. Christian believers ought be baptized, publicly identifying with Christ and proclaiming their new faith in Him alone. But baptism is not necessary for salvation, only faith in Christ is needed. The thief on the cross next to Jesus believed but was not, of course, baptized; And He said to him, "Truly I say to you, today you shall be with Me in Paradise." (Luke 23:43)
Listen to what the Apostle Paul wrote sternly warning those who try to distort the one true gospel; But even if we, or an angel from heaven, should preach to you a gospel contrary to what we have preached to you, he is to be accursed! (Galatians 1:8) There is only one true gospel. Maranatha!
