“I marvel that ye are so soon removed from him that called you into the grace of Christ unto another gospel: Which is not another; but there be some that trouble you, and would pervert the gospel of Christ. But though we, or an angel from heaven, preach any other gospel unto you than that which we have preached unto you, let him be accursed.” – Gal. 1:6-8
We live in a corrupt and confused world. It is no wonder considering that “the god of this world hath blinded the minds of them which believe not” ( 2 Cor. 4:4). That’s why Paul said, “if our gospel be hid, it is hid to them that are lost” ( 2 Cor. 4:3). It is to such people that we have been sent to “be witnesses” ( Acts 1:8). You would think that as simple as the gospel is that everyone would understand it, but they don’t. And those who are most blind to the truth, and the hardest to reach, are those who think they know the truth and don’t. Being convinced that they are right they close their ears to the truth.
It is no wonder that people are confused. There are many voices clamoring for our attention and much debate about who is right and who is wrong. Trying to wade through all the different beliefs of so many religions it would take a life time of study to fully understand them all. That would be a waste of time. Rather than that, you can weed them out in a hurry by finding out what they believe about salvation. If they are wrong on that stay away! And you might be surprised to learn that the vast majority of so called “Christian” denominations are in error in this regards. That makes them no better than any of the false religions — even those who deny Christ altogether. Being an unsaved member of a so called Christian church is no better than being a Muslim, or a Buddhist, etc. Without a knowledge of the gospel they all are lost.
They are lost because they depend on works of some sort, rather than salvation “by grace through faith” (Eph. 2:8). Anyone who is trusting anything other than that is unsaved. If a person is depending on works of any kind –baptism, prayer, behavior, service, etc., they are unsaved. Salvation is based on what Jesus did, not what we do. It is based on believing rather than behavior, mercy rather than merit.
Don’t be fooled, these folks can be very devoted to what they do and come across as being very sincere and sure of their position. However, feeling sure and being sincere about your beliefs doesn’t make you safe. You might be satisfied with them, but if God isn’t it’s all in vain. There is no salvation apart from faith in the shed blood of the Lord Jesus Christ. Add anything to it and you have perverted the gospel. – HDS
David Stone
Lakeway Baptist Church
5801 FM 1960 E
Humble, TX. 77346
