Paul's Gospel?

Paul's gospel is in relation to the Gentiles. His gospel consists of how Gentiles, who were without a God are now going to be placed into the same plan that was originally an exclusive plan ONLY for the Jews.

Paul was taught how a Gentile goes from being without a God to being born into the family of God so that they would now be in a position to entertain the same offer that was available to Israel before.

So no one has said that Paul's gospel and the gospel of Christ were any different other than the intended audience was different and Paul's audience was not in the same spiritual condition that Christ's audience was in. Therefore Paul had to start in a different place than Christ started when preaching.

 

The NKJV even has the heading "Only One Gospel" at the beginning of this passage in Galatians:

That's pretty clear that there is only one gospel, and if anyone teaches another one, they should be eternally condemned. Now let's get a picture from the same epistle of what the gospel contains.

Again, this is pretty clear. How, then, can the same gospel also contain an element where we are justified by works? We can't. That is another (false) gospel, and if anyone preaches it, let them be accursed.

Now, how do we reconcile this with James? Obviously, James cannot possibly mean we are justified by works when he appears to say so, or else James is also preaching a false gospel and the book of James should be stricken from the NT. I've already said I believe James belongs in the NT, but that James is talking about the difference between fake faith and real faith. He is showing that justifying faith is made evident by our works, not that we must work in order to be justified. This is clear from the verse:

It is not the works which justify. It is the works that show we are justified.

 

Well this is yet another question that has been answered before, but since I can't even remember which thread it is in I will answer it again.

There is a good news to the spiritually dead and there is a good news to the spiritually alive.

If you are spiritually dead the good news is that Jesus Christ, the Lamb of God died and shed His blood on the cross as your Substitute. If you believe that you have received the free gift of everlasting life, and it is a gift that no one can ever take away from you, including yourself...ie you can't give it back No take backs .

Once you have been made alive by the Holy Spirit there is good news that that is that Christ Jesus shed His blood and arose again on the third day according to the Scriptures. Because of that you can be free from the burden and yolk of sin. His blood is on the Mercy Seat and He is our High Priest and Advocate before the Father. If you confess He is faithful and just to forgive.

There is also good news that one day Christ will rule the earth as King of kings and Lord of lords and that if you run the race properly and finish the course you can rule and reign with Him as a part of His bride.

 

You forgot the bad news. If you don't run the race properly (and the Bible mysteriously never actually defines what is "properly" and what isn't -- I wonder why that is?), you end up in fire for 1,000 years.

This is remarkably similar to the bad news that we're saved from by the good news of the gospel. The real gospel relieves us from the burden of the law and fear of wrath, yet the ME gospel puts the same burden back, only with a threat of 1,000 years intead of forever. I don't think even Ripley would believe that.

 

No argument here.

 

Gentiles were always to be part of the plan of salvation.

Act 15:15 And to this agree the words of the prophets; as it is written,
Act 15:16 After this I will return, and will build again the tabernacle of David, which is fallen down; and I will build again the ruins thereof, and I will set it up:
Act 15:17 That the residue of men might seek after the Lord, and all the Gentiles, upon whom my name is called, saith the Lord, who doeth all these things.

 

TCGreek Paul did not always preach the exact same thing to both Gentiles and Jews, because the two parties were not in the same spiritual condition. One group was spiritually blind, while the other group was spiritually dead. Those aren't the same thing.

Paul could not preach the good news of the kingdom to the Gentiles before he preached the good news of grace through faith apart from works. However when addressing Jews he did not need to preach that message because they had already experienced the receiving of everlasting life.

Now there came a point where God no longer accepted the faith in the sacrifice of animals pointing to The Sacrifice and at that point Jews and Gentiles were in the same spiritual condition, both being dead, both needing to be saved by grace through faith apart from works. But that wasn't "always" the case.

 

I'm sure you are fully aware that there is "bad" news in the gospel of grace through faith apart from works as well. Or do you think unbelief that causes one to spend forever and ever and ever and ever in the lake of fire is good news to?

One would think you would step back from this argument seeings as it can be applied to "your" gospel as well.

 

That is true because of God's Omniscience. However Jesus came to the lost sheep of the House of Israel during His first coming. The offer of the kingdom was extended to the nation of Israel as a whole. And therefore only an acceptance as a whole would bring the kingdom to pass.

However the whole of the nation didn't want any part of it. Therefore the offer was taken away from the "nation" and given to a new nation.

 

Again eventually that is true. However salvation by grace through faith apart from works is not the same message as the gospel of the kingdom. During the first part of Paul's ministry the offer was to the Jew first and then the Gentile. Paul was obligated to preach the gospel of the kingdom to the Jews first. If they continued to reject it then he could go to the Gentiles. They came a point where he was not limited to Jew first and then the Gentiles.

Again an understanding of the spiritual condition of the two parties allows us to know what message was preached when. The only way the gospel of the kingdom could be preached to the Gentiles is if they had already experienced grace through faith apart from works. If they had not then it would be impossible for them to even comprehend the gospel of the kingdom.

 

To saved folks about the resurrection of The Christ. He preached to them the gospel of the kingdom.

 

Since there are many on this board that do not comprehend this gospel of the kingdom, are you saying that we have NOT experienced grace through faith apart from works?
This would make us unsaved of course.

 

No that's not what I'm saying at all. Once you are saved by grace through faith apart from works you are capable of understanding and accepting, but it doesn't mean you will do either. There are some that understand what we are talking about and simply choose not to believe it. Then there are others that don't even understand what's being talked about, but its not because of a lack of ability. People can close their eyes and ears to the Truth of Scripture depsite their ability to understand the Truth.