WHICH
JESUS HAVE YOU EMBRACED?
In 2 Corinthians 11:2-4, Paul warned the people of God against imitations
of the true gospel:
“For I am jealous over you with godly jealousy: for I have espoused you to
one husband, that I may present you as a chaste virgin to Christ.
3 But I fear, lest by any means, as
the serpent beguiled Eve through his subtilty, so your minds should be
corrupted from the simplicity that is in Christ.
4 For if he that cometh preacheth
another Jesus, whom we have not preached, or if ye receive another spirit,
which ye have not received, or another gospel, which ye have not accepted, ye
might well bear with him.”
In our times, the Lord seems to be very popular. So many are saying the
sinner’s prayer and His Name is upon many lips. Many Christian programmes are
aired on radio and several are beamed from local and satellite television
channels. We seem to be witnessing the fulfilment of Isaiah 11:9: “They
shall not hurt nor destroy in all my holy mountain: for the earth shall be full
of the knowledge of the LORD, as the waters cover the sea.” Likewise, we
seem to be witnessing the fulfilment of Matthew 24:14: “And this gospel of
the kingdom shall be preached in all the world for a witness unto all nations;
and then shall the end come.
The question is, which gospel was Jesus referring to? And which gospel is
being currently preached around the world? Jesus was referring to a particular
brand of gospel, a gospel that embraces the cross and positions its adherents
for persecution. In verse 9 of the same chapter, Jesus says: “Then shall
they deliver you up to be afflicted, and shall kill you: and ye shall be hated
of all nations for my name's sake.”
In our bid to live the comfortable life, many quote Nahum 1:12 (out of
context) insisting that “afflictions shall not arise a second time” (Nah.
1:12). But in 2 Timothy 3:12 Paul says “Yea, and all that will live godly in
Christ Jesus shall suffer persecution.” Yet James 1:2 says “…count it all joy when ye fall into DIVERSE
temptations” (emphasis mine).
Fellow Christian, when was the last time you suffered persecution? Living
godly means taking a stand and living a life that’s consistent with God's will.
This can cause you to be at cross purposes with friends, members of your family
and even fellow Christians. On account of this, God asks you to choose between
Him and friends, between His will and human sentiments. Unfortunately, I have
failed sometimes. On many occasions, I opposed God's will, and even persecuted
those through whom it was made known. All the while, I was wearing my religious
robes. On account of my carnality, I was an enemy of God (Rom. 8:5-7).
The next thing is that the true gospel
attracts offence. Verse 10 says “And then
shall many be offended, and shall betray one another, and shall hate one
another.” The challenges of the way cause many to be offended, and they
lose their first love, their
first devotion to Christ. On the face of it, they are Christians;
tongue-talking, praise-worshipping, tearful-eyed, Bible reading, church
attending believers.
Are you a lover of the world, like Demas? Or are you a lover of God? Where
you are will go a long way in determining who you listen to. There are true
ministers that will point you to the way of the Lord. There are also false
ministers that will lead you astray. The question is: who are the false
preachers of today? In particular, where can they be found? In our very midst. 2
Peter 2:1-2 says, “But there were false prophets also among the people, even
as there shall be false teachers among you, who privily shall bring in damnable
heresies, even denying the Lord that bought them, and bring upon themselves
swift destruction. And many shall follow their pernicious ways; by
reason of whom the way of truth shall be evil spoken of.”
These preachers speak peace to God's people when there is no basis for
peace, at a time when God is displeased with them. Verses 11-12 say: “And
many false prophets shall rise, and shall deceive many. And because iniquity
shall abound, the love of many shall wax cold.”
Again, the true gospel requires endurance. Verse 13 says “But he that shall
endure unto the end, the same shall be saved.” There is nothing like “once
saved, forever saved.” Paul confirms this in 1 Corinthians 15:23: “But every man in his own order: Christ the
firstfruits; afterward they that are Christ's at his coming” (emphasis mine).
Someone may belong to Christ in the morning and not belong to Him
in the evening. Like the Galatian church, he may have suddenly
veered off the path of truth. Paul said to the Galatian church, “I
marvel that ye are so soon removed from him that called you into the grace of
Christ unto another gospel” (Gal. 1:6).
This happens in different ways. You may belong to Christ in
your youth and not belong to Him in old age. Likewise, you may belong to Him
as a single person, and not belong to Him as a married
person.
In summary, you may
belong to Christ today and not belong to Him on His return.
One of the virtues we must embrace is patience. In particular, I want to emphasise
our attitude to the things God has promised us, things He has spoken to us
about. Quite often, we pursue what He has not revealed; we hope for what He has
not spoken about. Are you an impatient Christian, one that lives for the
moment, that has no strength to wait? May
He give you the grace to wait on Him.
Once again, what gospel have you embraced? Is it the true gospel? Or
you have been persuaded to believe another gospel?
