The True Gospel

I would have posted this in doctrinal discussions but I need permission from a mod before doing so. Anyway, read this article. Please! The entire thing! This is urgent news!!! The true Gospel, the one that Jesus Christ himself taught, is about the Kingdom of God! This is prophesied by every prophet in the Bible! We need to spread the word, and change our views! Please read!

http://rcg.org/books/yif.html
 
I just skimmed that article, and it seems to be teaching that the only Gospel in the New Testament is "the gospel of the kingdom". This is false. The gospel of the kingdom is for ISRAEL, but the Gospel the church is to spread is that Jesus rose from the dead. Before Jesus died and rose, the only gospel possible was that of the kingdom of God. But since Israel rejected her King and crucified him, everything to do with Israel was put on hold while God turned his attention to the Gentiles. When the church is taken out of the world and the age of grace ends, the gospel of the Kingdom will finish its course for the final seven years of Daniel's prophecy.

Rest assured that the Christian community has not been ignorant of what Gospel message we have. Also rest assured that people mixing up the church with Israel is nothing new either. So there is no need for urgency except that of spreading the Gospel of the resurrection of Jesus, and that whoever puts their trust in him alone will be reconciled to God.
 
There are a lot of things that could be addressed in the link. I just want to go over a few things, to show you the way the author interacts with scripture.

The first thing to notice is the type of language used in the article: overuse of words like "obviously," "astonishing," "staggering" and "shocking," and the "wait, but there's more!" type language makes it read like an infomercial. In an infomercial, the author tries to convince you that you need the product, but the cost of the product isn't revealed until they think you've already bought it in your mind. The layout of the article works the same way, promising "Knowledge of your awesome potential—your incredible future—has been kept from you!" until late in the article, the cost is finally revealed where the author says: "Thus, the Bible teaches there is one God, composed of two Persons—the Father and Christ—with many more persons to be added later..." right before the author explains that the condition of entering the kingdom is whether or not you have followed the law your whole life! The thing you should understand from that is this: the article you've read is written in persuasive language -- while you're reading it, you should be keeping in mind that the author is posting scriptures, but using tactics of persuasion to try to make himself appear correct about the ways he's interpreted those scriptures.

Jewish people believed in what they called (and still call) the Messianic Age, and they had this certain list of expectations about what the Messiah would do when he came. Jesus spent a lot of His ministry basically wrecking everything they believed about what Messiah would do. When something He said starts out with something like "The kingdom of God is like..." basically He's saying, "You think you know what the Messianic Age will be like? Here's what it's really like..."

So here is something from the link you posted:

"The answer is an emphatic “No!” But most preachers teach that the gospel of Jesus Christ is about Christ, also claiming that He is the kingdom of God and that the gospel of the kingdom is Christ. We have seen that this is false, and completely unbiblical!"

And here's what Jesus said about the kingdom:

Luke 17:20-21
Once, on being asked by the Pharisees when the kingdom of God would come, Jesus replied, “The coming of the kingdom of God is not something that can be observed, nor will people say, ‘Here it is,’ or ‘There it is,’ because the kingdom of God is in your midst.”

The author of the article writes:
Christ said, “My KINGDOM is not of this world [this present society]” (John 18:36)

Note that the author adds [this present society] to the text to explain "not of this world" instead of simply listening to Jesus, who says "The coming of the kingdom of God is not something that can be observed.. the kingdom of God is in your midst."

The author of the article writes:
"So let’s understand. The word “kingdom” simply means government. Of course, you cannot have a government without a nation to govern. Therefore, a kingdom is at least one nation with a government.
There are four necessary components to any kingdom: (1) Land, property or territory—however large or small. In other words, one must have a specific and definite set of boundaries constituting the size of the kingdom; (2) a ruler, king, monarch or governor leading the government; (3) people or subjects living within the territory; and (4) a system of laws and rules along with a basic structure of government. No kingdom is complete without all of these fundamental elements."

The author makes a dangerous assumption: that when Jesus says the word "kingdom," that means we can use what we observe about earthly kingdoms, and take that information to speculate about what God's kingdom should be like. In the Bible, Jesus is explaining to people why they were wrong in speculating about God's kingdom, because God's kingdom isn't like earthly kingdoms. The author of the posted article has made exactly the same error: speculated about the nature of God's kingdom based on what he has observed about earthly kingdoms, instead of just listening what Jesus had to say.

When the Bible says that "17For God did not send his Son into the world to condemn the world, but to save the world through him. 18Whoever believes in him is not condemned, but whoever does not believe stands condemned already because they have not believed in the name of God’s one and only Son" (John 3:17-18), we should be outright rejecting a "gospel" which says that "The Message—the centerpiece—of the gospel is not Christ," and that people are deceived "By focusing on Him..." That's plainly not the case. Focusing on Christ will keep you savvy to when you're hearing a false gospel.

So yes, the kingdom of God is prophesied in the prophets, but let's learn about what that means from Christ's teachings, and not from speculating about what it might be from what we observe in earthly kingdoms, or we'll be as wrong as the people in Jesus' day were when He had to set them straight.
 
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I would have posted this in doctrinal discussions but I need permission from a mod before doing so. Anyway, read this article. Please! The entire thing! This is urgent news!!! The true Gospel, the one that Jesus Christ himself taught, is about the Kingdom of God! This is prophesied by every prophet in the Bible! We need to spread the word, and change our views!

Juk, you are being carried away by youthful enthusiasm, but lacking in wisdom. Sorry to be blunt. But we all care very much for you.
You have already got your mind and thoughts rattled by taking on atheists online.
Beware of wolves in sheep's clothing. They really do exist, and like all predators they seek gullible prey.
Settle down, read the one book that counts - your Holy Bible [preferably a King James and with an old dictionary from years ago].
But start with what you have. Read and read your Bible. Enjoy the postings I do with you and read those Scriptures.
Stay away from internet sites that will upset you, stress you or simply exploit you - secret knowledge only $49.95 PayPal accepted.
Do your study and your homework, as Paul the Apostle writes to his son in Christ, Timothy (a very young man at the time) -

But continue thou in the things which thou hast learned and hast been assured of, knowing of whom thou hast learned them;
And that from a child thou hast known the holy scriptures, which are able to make thee wise unto salvation through faith which is in Christ Jesus. All scripture is given by inspiration of God, and is profitable for doctrine, for reproof, for correction, for instruction in righteousness: that the man of God may be perfect, thoroughly furnished unto all good works. 2Timothy 3:14-17
 
Juk, you are being carried away by youthful enthusiasm, but lacking in wisdom. Sorry to be blunt. But we all care very much for you.
You have already got your mind and thoughts rattled by taking on atheists online.
Beware of wolves in sheep's clothing. They really do exist, and like all predators they seek gullible prey.
Settle down, read the one book that counts - your Holy Bible [preferably a King James and with an old dictionary from years ago].
But start with what you have. Read and read your Bible. Enjoy the postings I do with you and read those Scriptures.
Stay away from internet sites that will upset you, stress you or simply exploit you - secret knowledge only $49.95 PayPal accepted.
Do your study and your homework, as Paul the Apostle writes to his son in Christ, Timothy (a very young man at the time) -

But continue thou in the things which thou hast learned and hast been assured of, knowing of whom thou hast learned them;
And that from a child thou hast known the holy scriptures, which are able to make thee wise unto salvation through faith which is in Christ Jesus. All scripture is given by inspiration of God, and is profitable for doctrine, for reproof, for correction, for instruction in righteousness: that the man of God may be perfect, thoroughly furnished unto all good works. 2Timothy 3:14-17
Thanks, I only want the truth. The man that wrote the article gave a whole lot of Biblical evidence.
 
Thanks, I only want the truth. The man that wrote the article gave a whole lot of Biblical evidence.
Biblical references is not Biblical evidence. Even Satan quoted scripture in a technically accurate way, but he quoted only certain parts and didn't consider context.

One of my favorite Bible verses is Prov. 18:10, which says that the first to speak always seems right... until they're cross-examined. But you don't know the Bible well enough yet to do this.

Why don't you pick out one of the bits of "Biblical evidence" you think is irrefutable, and let me cross-examine it?
 
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There are a lot of things that could be addressed in the link. I just want to go over a few things, to show you the way the author interacts with scripture.

The first thing to notice is the type of language used in the article: overuse of words like "obviously," "astonishing," "staggering" and "shocking," and the "wait, but there's more!" type language makes it read like an infomercial. In an infomercial, the author tries to convince you that you need the product, but the cost of the product isn't revealed until they think you've already bought it in your mind. The layout of the article works the same way, promising "Knowledge of your awesome potential—your incredible future—has been kept from you!" until late in the article, the cost is finally revealed where the author says: "Thus, the Bible teaches there is one God, composed of two Persons—the Father and Christ—with many more persons to be added later..." right before the author explains that the condition of entering the kingdom is whether or not you have followed the law your whole life! The thing you should understand from that is this: the article you've read is written in persuasive language -- while you're reading it, you should be keeping in mind that the author is posting scriptures, but using tactics of persuasion to try to make himself appear correct about the ways he's interpreted those scriptures.

Jewish people believed in what they called (and still call) the Messianic Age, and they had this certain list of expectations about what the Messiah would do when he came. Jesus spent a lot of His ministry basically wrecking everything they believed about what Messiah would do. When something He said starts out with something like "The kingdom of God is like..." basically He's saying, "You think you know what the Messianic Age will be like? Here's what it's really like..."

So here is something from the link you posted:

"The answer is an emphatic “No!” But most preachers teach that the gospel of Jesus Christ is about Christ, also claiming that He is the kingdom of God and that the gospel of the kingdom is Christ. We have seen that this is false, and completely unbiblical!"

And here's what Jesus said about the kingdom:

Luke 17:20-21
Once, on being asked by the Pharisees when the kingdom of God would come, Jesus replied, “The coming of the kingdom of God is not something that can be observed, nor will people say, ‘Here it is,’ or ‘There it is,’ because the kingdom of God is in your midst.”

The author of the article writes:
Christ said, “My KINGDOM is not of this world [this present society]” (John 18:36)

Note that the author adds [this present society] to the text to explain "not of this world" instead of simply listening to Jesus, who says "The coming of the kingdom of God is not something that can be observed.. the kingdom of God is in your midst."

The author of the article writes:
"So let’s understand. The word “kingdom” simply means government. Of course, you cannot have a government without a nation to govern. Therefore, a kingdom is at least one nation with a government.
There are four necessary components to any kingdom: (1) Land, property or territory—however large or small. In other words, one must have a specific and definite set of boundaries constituting the size of the kingdom; (2) a ruler, king, monarch or governor leading the government; (3) people or subjects living within the territory; and (4) a system of laws and rules along with a basic structure of government. No kingdom is complete without all of these fundamental elements."

The author makes a dangerous assumption: that when Jesus says the word "kingdom," that means we can use what we observe about earthly kingdoms, and take that information to speculate about what God's kingdom should be like. In the Bible, Jesus is explaining to people why they were wrong in speculating about God's kingdom, because God's kingdom isn't like earthly kingdoms. The author of the posted article has made exactly the same error: speculated about the nature of God's kingdom based on what he has observed about earthly kingdoms, instead of just listening what Jesus had to say.

When the Bible says that "17For God did not send his Son into the world to condemn the world, but to save the world through him. 18Whoever believes in him is not condemned, but whoever does not believe stands condemned already because they have not believed in the name of God’s one and only Son" (John 3:17-18), we should be outright rejecting a "gospel" which says that "The Message—the centerpiece—of the gospel is not Christ," and that people are deceived "By focusing on Him..." That's plainly not the case. Focusing on Christ will keep you savvy to when you're hearing a false gospel.

So yes, the kingdom of God is prophesied in the prophets, but let's learn about what that means from Christ's teachings, and not from speculating about what it might be from what we observe in earthly kingdoms, or we'll be as wrong as the people in Jesus' day were when He had to set them straight.
Man, I thought we had a breakthrough. But what you said makes a lot of sense. But now I am confused. :unsure:
 
Biblical references is not Biblical evidence. Even Satan quoted scripture in a technically accurate way, but he quoted only certain parts and didn't consider context.

One of my favorite Bible verses is Prov. 18:10, which says that the first to speak always seems right... until they're cross-examined. But you don't know the Bible well enough yet to do this.

Why don't you pick out one of the bits of "Biblical evidence" you think is irrefutable, and let me cross-examine it?
From the article? Because I have a question about something I came across yesterday.
 
Whatever you'd like.
In Numbers 23: 19, Balaam said, "God is not a man, so he does not lie. He is not a human, so he does not change his mind. Has he ever promised and not carried it through?" God has changed his mind several times in the Bible. This confused me. :confused:
 
In Numbers 23: 19, Balaam said, "God is not a man, so he does not lie. He is not a human, so he does not change his mind. Has he ever promised and not carried it through?" God has changed his mind several times in the Bible. This confused me. :confused:
Here's one explanation: http://www.gotquestions.org/God-change-mind.html

The context of Num. 23:19 is that Balak is trying to get Balaam to curse Israel, and Balaam has asked God for His decision. Look at the next verse: "I have received a command to bless; he has blessed, and I cannot change it." Here is a paraphrase as how I understand it: "God isn't going to change from blessing to cursing without a reason, as if he's a mere man who would lie for personal gain."

God does indeed have regrets and can be talked out of something. He leaves options open for people's free will. But Balaam is saying that God had already decided to bless rather than curse, and He was not going to change His mind as a human might do (in this case, for personal gain). Balaam is explaining that unlike a human ruler, God cannot be corrupted.
 
Here's one explanation: http://www.gotquestions.org/God-change-mind.html

The context of Num. 23:19 is that Balak is trying to get Balaam to curse Israel, and Balaam has asked God for His decision. Look at the next verse: "I have received a command to bless; he has blessed, and I cannot change it." Here is a paraphrase as how I understand it: "God isn't going to change from blessing to cursing without a reason, as if he's a mere man who would lie for personal gain."

God does indeed have regrets and can be talked out of something. He leaves options open for people's free will. But Balaam is saying that God had already decided to bless rather than curse, and He was not going to change His mind as a human might do (in this case, for personal gain). Balaam is explaining that unlike a human ruler, God cannot be corrupted.
Thank you, that was bothering me. :)
 
Thank you, that was bothering me. :)
Glad to help.

Just as a general FYI: Always try to get the "big picture" of what's going on in a passage before dissecting the verses and words. People don't write in a cultural or situational vacuum. For example, if I say "Get out of here!" in a burning building, it has a completely different meaning than if I say the same exact words in response to someone telling me something shocking, or if it's in response to someone being where they don't belong.
 
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Man, I thought we had a breakthrough. But what you said makes a lot of sense. But now I am confused. :unsure:

That's a reasonable reaction:)

The simplest way, I think, to think of it is like this:
If you've made Christ the king of your life, then you're a citizen of His kingdom. Now.
Think of yourself, then, as an ambassador from God's kingdom (where your true citizenship is) on Earth.

I find it helpful to ask myself, "How does a citizen of God's kingdom live his life as an ambassador of that kingdom in a foreign land?"

2 Cor 5:20
So we are Christ's ambassadors; God is making his appeal through us. We speak for Christ when we plead, "Come back to God!"
 
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Glad to help.

Just as a general FYI: Always try to get the "big picture" of what's going on in a passage before dissecting the verses and words. People don't write in a cultural or situational vacuum. For example, if I say "Get out of here!" in a burning building, it has a completely different meaning than if I say the same exact words in response to someone telling me something shocking, or if it's in response to someone being where they don't belong.
Yeah, that's what atheists do a lot.
 
That's a reasonable reaction:)

The simplest way, I think, to think of it is like this:
If you've made Christ the king of your life, then you're a citizen of His kingdom. Now.
Think of yourself, then, as an ambassador from God's kingdom (where your true citizenship is) on Earth.

I find it helpful to ask myself, "How does a citizen of God's kingdom live his life as an ambassador of that kingdom in a foreign land?"

2 Cor 5:20
So we are Christ's ambassadors; God is making his appeal through us. We speak for Christ when we plead, "Come back to God!"
Thank you, that cleared things up a bit. But now I need some touching up on what the Gospel is.
 
Thank you, that cleared things up a bit. But now I need some touching up on what the Gospel is.
The Gospel for this age is that Jesus rose from the dead. This could not have been the same message as before Jesus died. This is another "big picture" thing.
 
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