Knockoffs
In modern times, telling an original from a knockoff is becoming more challenging.
Ironically many are happy with knockoffs of an original. They cost less and are easier to obtain. But a knockoff gospel is not a smart way to go.
2Corinthians 11:3 But I fear, lest somehow, as the serpent deceived Eve by his craftiness, so your minds may be corrupted from the simplicity that is in Christ. 4 For if he who comes preaches another Jesus whom we have not preached, or if you receive a different spirit which you have not received, or a different gospel which you have not accepted—you may well put up with it!
It can be all right to use generic medicines when you can’t afford the original brand. But going after a generic gospel or Holy Spirit will never be all right.
The most important thing for a believer in Jesus is getting the gospel right, getting the gospel deep within, and then getting the gospel out.
You are saved by grace through faith in Christ, not of works. A gospel that comes to you and says you must believe and…………… to be saved is not the simple gospel we find in Scripture.
Works-based righteousness is not the gospel. When it comes to being made right with God, He only accepts the work Jesus accomplished. It is by faith in the finished work of Jesus that God is looking for.
But it is not unusual to encounter ministers who preach add-ons to the gospel and ignore the Holy Spirit, which is a part of it. They will preach to you what “you” must do to be saved.
When the gospel is correct, there is simplicity to it. An overcomplicated gospel should cause alarm. The real gospel always comes with the right Spirit. The Holy Spirit is not a spirit of condemnation with lists of accusations that leave a person hopeless.
John 16:7 Nevertheless, I tell you the truth. It is to your advantage that I go away; for if I do not go away, the Helper will not come to you; but if I depart, I will send Him to you. 8 And when He has come, He will convict the world of sin, and of righteousness, and of judgment: 9 of sin, because they do not believe in Me; 10 of righteousness, because I go to My Father and you see Me no more; 11 of judgment, because the ruler of this world is judged.
The Holy Spirit convicts people regarding the sin of unbelief in Jesus, that Jesus ascended to the Father, and that the devil has been judged (defeated).
Whenever someone tries to become too intellectual regarding the gospel, it complicates it. The gospel first delivered was so simple that even those uneducated could hear it, believe it, and be transformed by it.
If the gospel you heard preached or are currently preaching requires an educational degree or certification, it is not the gospel. The gospel is confirmed by the presence and power of God at work in it to transform someone’s life. This is why Paul said in the Scriptures,
Romans 1:16 For I am not ashamed of the gospel of Christ, for it is the power of God to salvation for everyone who believes, for the Jew first and also for the Greek.
Don’t be fooled by knockoffs pretending to be gospel proclaimers who make you dependent upon them by complicating it. Don’t allow anyone to move you from the simplicity that is in the gospel. I encourage you to keep your faith in what Jesus has done to make you righteous and never be ashamed to say it is where your confidence flows from.
