THE TOMORROW'S WORLD

Do You

Believe the

True Gospel?

by Roderick C. Meredith

A MESSAGE ABOUT THE MESSENGER?

Your eternity depends on your willingness to understand and believe the true Gospel! Yet the Apostle Paul warned the Christians of his day, “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!” (2 Corinthians 11:4).

Frankly, millions of sincere men and women have put up with a false gospel. They have been deceived all right—far too easily deceived. Why? Because too many have failed to obey God’s command to “prove all things” (1 Thessalonians 5:21, KJV). Jesus Christ said, “The time is fulfilled, and the kingdom of God is at hand. Repent, and believe in the gospel” (Mark 1:15). Have you believed the same Gospel, which Jesus preached? You need to be sure! There are many, many “gospels” being preached in the world today! Have you ever heard something like this? “Just give your heart to the Lord. Jesus was born in the manger as the Christ, the Son of God, to save as many

souls in this age as would accept Him into their hearts.

When He grew up, He went around performing miracles and forgiving people. He kept God’s harsh law for all of us before finally being nailed to the cross along with that old law. He rose from the dead on the third day and appeared to many witnesses. Then He returned to heaven and began to set up His Kingdom in the hearts of men. He’ll forgive your sins and come into your heart—just as you are—if you’ll only accept Him. Jesus saves! Just believe on Him, and you’ll be saved—born again. And, when you die, you’ll go to be with Him in heaven—forever!”

But is that really the Gospel Jesus taught? If you have accepted, without question, the almost unanimous voice of mainstream Christianity in this regard, you probably think that it is. Yet consider what Mark Twain wrote: “In religion and politics, people’s beliefs and convictions are in almost every case gotten at second-hand, and without examination, from authorities who have not

themselves examined the questions at issue but have taken them at second-hand from other non-examiners, whose opinions about them were not worth a brass farthing”(Mark Twain’s Autobiography, 1959).

Do you really know what constitutes the genuine Gospel that Jesus and His Apostles preached? Or have you made a careless assumption, following the crowd as Mark Twain noted, taking your beliefs from second-hand suppositions? Probably you were taught the mainstream understanding of “the Gospel” while growing up. Or maybe you learned it from the barrage of religious publications and broadcasts that exist in our modern world. In any case, you have, more than likely, not seen the need to question your beliefs. After all, most professing Christian authorities are in agreement here. Surely, they must be right. Or are they? In His famous Olivet Prophecy, Jesus Christ warned, “Take heed that no man deceive you. For many shall come in my name, saying, I am Christ; and shall deceive many” (Matthew 24:4–5, KJV). Many modern versions place quotations around “I am Christ,” assuming that Christ was talking about individuals who would claim to actually be Christ themselves. However, there have not been “many” such people in recent centuries that have been taken seriously, much less deceived the “many.” Another interpretation some have offered is that Jesus was referring to false “Savior” figures like Hitler and Mussolini. But this is really taking liberties with the text. Remember, Christ said, “Many shall come in My name.” A clearer rendering of what Jesus meant would be: “Take care that no one leads you astray. Indeed, many will appear, making use of My name, saying that I am Christ, yet deceiving many.” What an astounding warning! Christ was foretelling that many false preachers would talk about Him and that they would proclaim that He is the Christ, the expected Messiah. Yet even after acknowledging Jesus’ Messiahship, the deceivers are prophesied to seduce the unwary from a correct understanding of Jesus’ genuine Gospel! How about you? Might they have deceived you too? Do not make careless assumptions! Find out—prove—what is true. Then you will really know and nobody will be able to fool you!.