Featured The Gospel is not

So why would you then say "...most Christians do not know what the Gospel is"?

 

You are new here and don’t seem to know what most people here know. But before you bother answering my question above, just know that not only do most people here know the Gospel, it is against board rules to question another’s salvation.

 

While I've never really met someone who claims to be a believer that does not believe and understand the contents of 1 Corinthians 15:1-4, I would go so far as to say that most professing Christians that I run into in various places, have never grown much in their belief and understanding of God's word.

They will believe one thing that Scripture teaches, but not another.

To put it another way, they never seem to progress beyond the typical sermons that are preached every Sunday morning, Sunday night and Wednesday night...
Ever.
Whatever their pastor teaches them is as far as they ever go, for their entire lives.
It saddens me that so few seem to deeply care about Jesus Christ, much less to "continue" in His word.

" Then said Jesus to those Jews which believed on him, If ye continue in my word, [then] are ye my disciples indeed;" ( John 8:31 ).

Neither do they appear to develop a genuine and abiding distaste for the sins they commit, or for this world and its ways.

 

Sounds like your "gospel" has been truncated. The gospel is more than intellectually agreeing with the claims of Christ, but also includes love and devotion such that we faithfully strive to keep His commandments, and not just the ones concerning personal behavior, i.e. becoming Christ-like, but also our ministry as ambassadors of Christ begging the lost to be reconciled to God.

When we turn to God and trust in Christ, we go "all in" and if we do not, the outcome might be like soil #2 or #3 of Matthew 13.

When we "examine ourselves" to see if we are "of the faith" it gives us confidence and assurance when we find our lifelong commitment to Christ as one of his "faithful" servants.

I think it is important to present the whole gospel, and not just a sales brochure.

 

Fair enough, I say you exclude part of the gospel (commitment and service) and you say I have added to the gospel of Christ.

But in all fairness, why does not your "gospel" simply produce folks in soil #2 and soil #3 categories? Never saved because God chose not to credit their superficial "faith" as righteousness.

 

Faith is a fruit of the Holy Spirit = you must be saved by grace and have the Holy Spirit before you can believe.

 

Have you? If saving faith is a fruit of the Holy Spirit, you say flesh faith saves instead.

 

“For by grace are ye saved through faith, and that not of yourselves: it is the gift of God:” Ephesians 2:8 (NCPB)

 

But, real faith is a fruit of the Spirit. Human faith cannot recognize the true Christ and only fabricates idols.