The California Collection/TheCaliforniaCollection.cdr/his073/anothrgs.arj/ANOTHRGS.TXT

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                            ANOTHER GOSPEL


.    Satan is not an initiator but an imitator.  God has an only
begotten Son - the Lord Jesus, and so has Satan - "the son of
Perdition" (2 Thess. 2:3).  There is a Holy Trinity, and there is
likewise a Trinity of Evil (Rev. 20:10).  Do we read of the "children
of God," so also we read of "the children of the wicked one" (Matt.
13:38).  Does God work in the former both to will and to do of His
good pleasure, then we are told that Satan is "the spirit that now
worketh in the children of disobedience" (Eph. 2:2).  Is there a
"mystery of godliness (1 Tim. 3:6), so also is there a "mystery of
iniquity" (2 Thess. 2:7). Are we told that God by His angels "seals"
His servants in their foreheads (Rev. 7:3), so also, we learn that
Satan by his agents sets a mark in the foreheads of his devotees (Rev.
13:16).  Are we told that "the Spirit searcheth all things, yea, the
deep things of God" (1 Cor. 2:10), then Satan also provides his "deep
things (see Greek of Rev. 2:24).  Did Christ perform miracles, so also
can Satan (2 Thess. 2:9).  Is Christ seated upon a throne, so is Satan
(Rev. 2:13 - Gr.).  Has Christ a Church, then Satan has his
"synagogue" (Rev. 2:9).  Is Christ the Light of the world, then so is
Satan himself "transformed into an angel of light" (2 Cor. 11:14).
Did Christ appoint "apostles," then Satan has his apostles, too (2
Cor. 11:13).  And this leads us to consider "The Gospel of Satan."

.    Satan is the arch-counterfeiter.  The Devil is now busy at work
in the same field in which the Lord sowed the good seed.  He is
seeking to prevent the growth of the wheat by another plant, the
tares, which closely resembles the wheat in appearance.  In a word, by
a process of imitation he is aiming to neutralize the Work of Christ.
Therefore, as Christ has a Gospel, Satan has a gospel too; the latter
being a clever counterfeit of the former.  So closely does the gospel
of Satan resemble that which it parodies, multitudes of the unsaved
are deceived by it.

.    It is to this gospel of Satan the apostle refers when he says to
the Galatians, "I marvel that ye are so soon removed from Him that
called you into the grace of Christ unto another gospel: which is not
another, but there be some that trouble you, and would pervert the
Gospel of Christ" (1:6, 7).  This false gospel was being heralded even
in the days of the apostle, and a most awful curse was called down
upon those who preached it.  The apostle continues, "But though we, or
an angel from heaven preach any other gospel unto you than that which
we have preached unto you, let him be accursed."  By the help of God
we shall now endeavor to expound, or rather, expose, this false
gospel.

.    The gospel of Satan is not a system of revolutionary principles,
nor yet a program of anarchy.  It does not promote strife and war, but
aims at peace and unity.  It seeks not to set the mother against her
daughter nor the father against his son, but fosters the fraternal
spirit whereby the human race is regarded as one great "brotherhood."
It does not seek to drag down the natural man, but to improve and
uplift him.  It advocates education and cultivation and appeals to
"the best that is within us."  It aims to make this world such a
comfortable and congenial habitat that Christ's absence from it will
not be felt and God will not be needed.  It endeavors to occupy man so
much with this world that he has no time or inclination to think of
the world to come.  It propagates the principles of self-sacrifice,
charity and benevolence, and teaches us to live for the good of
others, and to be kind to all.  It appeals strongly to the carnal mind
and is popular with the masses, because it ignores the solemn facts
that by nature man is a fallen creature, alienated from the life of
God, and dead in trespasses and sins, and that his only hope lies in
being born again.

.    In contradistinction to the Gospel of Christ, the gospel of Satan
teaches salvation by works.  It inculcates justification before God on
the ground of human merits.  Its sacramental phrase is "Be good and do
good"; but it fails to recognize that in the flesh there dwelleth no
good thing.  It announces salvation by character, which reverses the
order of God's Word - character by, as the fruit of, salvation.  Its
various ramifications and organizations are manifold.  Temperance,
Reform Movements, "Christian Socialist Leagues," Ethical Culture
Societies, "Peace Congresses" are all employed (perhaps unconsciously)
in proclaiming this gospel of Satan - salvation by works.  The pledge-
card is substituted for Christ; social purity for individual
regeneration, and politics and philosophy, for doctrine and godliness.
The cultivation of the old man is considered more "practical" than the
creation of a new man in Christ Jesus; whilst universal peace is
looked for apart from the interposition and return of the Prince of
Peace.

.    The apostles of Satan are not saloon-keepers and white-slave
traffickers, but are for the most part ordained ministers.  Thousands
of those who occupy our modern pulpits are no longer engaged in
presenting the fundamentals of the Christian Faith, but have turned
aside from the Truth and have given heed unto fables.  Instead of
magnifying the enormity of sin and setting forth its eternal
consequences, they minimize it by declaring that sin is merely
ignorance or the absence of good.  Instead of warning the hearers to
"flee from the wrath to come" they make God a liar by declaring that
He is too loving and merciful to send any of His own creatures to
eternal torment.  Instead of declaring that "without shedding of blood
is no remission," they merely hold up Christ as the great Exemplar and
exhort their hearers to "follow in His steps."  Of them it must be
said, "For they being ignorant of God's righteousness and going about
to establish their own righteousness, have not submitted themselves
unto the righteousness of God" (Rom. 10:3).  Their messages may sound
very plausible and their aim appear very praise-worthy, yet we read of
them - "for such are false apostles, deceitful workers, transforming
themselves (imitating) into the apostles of Christ.  And no marvel;
for Satan himself is transformed into an angel of light.  Therefore,
it is no great thing (not to be wondered at) if his ministers also be
transformed as the ministers of righteousness, whose end shall be
according to their works" (2 Cor. 11:13-15).

.    In addition to the fact that today hundreds of churches are
without a leader who faithfully declares the whole counsel of God and
presents His way of salvation, we also have to face the additional
fact that the majority of people in these churches are very unlikely
to learn the Truth for themselves.  The family altar, where a portion
of God's Word was wont to be read daily is now, even in the homes of
nominal Christians, largely a thing of the past.  The Bible is not
expounded in the pulpit and it is not read in the pew.  The demands of
this rushing age are so numerous, that the multitudes have little time
and still less inclination to make preparation for the meeting with
God.  Hence the majority who are too indolent to search for
themselves, are left at the mercy of those whom they pay to search for
them; many of whom betray their trust by studying and expounding
economic and social problems rather than the Oracles of God.

.    In Prov. 14:12 we read, "There is a way which seemeth right unto
a man; but the end thereof are the ways of death."  This "way" which
ends in "death" is the Devil's Delusion - the gospel of Satan - a way
of salvation by human attainment.  It is a way which "seemeth right,"
that is to say, it is presented in such plausible language that it
appeals to the natural man: it is set forth in such a subtle and
attractive manner, that it commends itself to the intelligence of its
hearers.  By virtue of the fact that it appropriates to itself
religious terminology, sometimes appeals to the Bible for its support
(whenever this suits its purpose), holds up before men lofty ideals,
and is proclaimed by those who have graduated from our theological
institutions, countless multitudes are decoyed and deceived by it.

.    The success of an illegitimate coiner depends largely upon how
closely the counterfeit resembles the genuine article.  Heresy is not
so much the total denial of the truth as a perversion of it.  That is
why half a lie is always more dangerous than a complete repudiation.
Hence when the Father of Lies enters the pulpit it is not his custom
to flatly deny the fundamental truths of Christianity, rather does he
tacitly acknowledge them, and then proceed to give an erroneous
interpretation and a false application.  For example:  he would not be
so foolish as to boldly announce his disbelief in a personal God; he
takes His existence for granted and then gives a false description of
His character.  He announces that God is the spiritual Father of all
men, when the Scriptures plainly tell us that we are "the children of
God by faith in Christ Jesus" (Gal. 3:26), and that "as many as
received Him, to them gave He power to become the sons of God" (John
1:12).  Further, he declares that God is far too merciful to ever send
any member of the human race to Hell, when God Himself has said,
"Whosoever was not found written in the book of life was cast into the
Lake of Fire" (Rev. 20:15).  Again, Satan would not be so foolish as
to ignore the central figure of human history - the Lord Jesus Christ;
on the contrary, his gospel acknowledges Him to be the best man that
ever lived.  Attention is drawn to His deeds of compassion and works
of mercy, the beauty of His character and the sublimity of His
teaching.  His life is eulogized, but His vicarious Death is ignored;
the all-important atoning work of the cross is never mentioned, whilst
His triumphant and bodily resurrection from the grave is regarded as
one of the credulities of a superstitious age.  It is a bloodless
gospel, and presents a crossless Christ, who is received not as God
manifest in flesh, but merely as the Ideal Man.

.    In 2 Cor. 4:3,4 we have a scripture which sheds much light upon
our present theme.  There we are told, "if our Gospel be hid, it is
hid to them that are lost:  In whom the god of this world (Satan) hath
blinded the minds of them which believe not, lest the light of the
glorious Gospel of Christ, who is the image of God should shine unto
them."  He blinds the minds of unbelievers through hiding the light of
the Gospel of Christ, and he does this by substituting his own gospel.
Appropriately is he designated "The Devil and Satan which deceiveth
the whole world" (Rev. 12:9).  In merely appealing to "the best that
is within man", and in simply exhorting him to "lead a nobler life"
there is afforded a general platform upon which those of every shade
of opinion can unite and proclaim this common message.

.    Again we quote Prov. 14:12 - "There is a way which seemeth right
unto a man, but the end thereof are the ways of death."  It has been
said with considerable truth that the way to Hell is paved with good
intentions.  There will be many in the Lake of Fire who commenced life
with good intentions, honest resolutions and exalted ideals - those
who were just in their dealings, fair in their transactions and
charitable in all their ways; men who prided themselves in their
integrity but who sought to justify themselves before God by their own
righteousness; men who were moral, merciful and magnanimous, but who
never saw themselves as guilty, lost, hell-deserving sinners needing a
Savior.  Such is the way which "seemeth right."  Such is the way that
commends itself to the carnal mind and recommends itself to multitudes
of deluded ones today.  The Devil's Delusion is that we can be saved
by our own works, and justified before God by our own deeds; whereas,
God tells us in His Word - "By grace are ye saved through faith... not
of works lest any man should boast."  And again, "Not by works of
righteousness which we have done, but according to His mercy He saved
us."

.    A few years ago the writer became acquainted with one who was a
lay preacher and an enthusiastic "Christian worker."  For over seven
years this friend had been engaged in public preaching and religious
activities, but from certain expressions and phrases he used, the
writer doubted whether his friend was a "born again" man.  When we
began to question him, it was found that he was very imperfectly
acquainted with the Scriptures and had only the vaguest conception of
Christ's Work for sinners.  For a time we sought to present the way of
salvation in a simple and impersonal manner and to encourage our
friend to study the Word for himself, in the hope that if he were
still unsaved God would be pleased to reveal the Savior he needed.
One night to our joy, the one who had been preaching the Gospel(?) for
seven years, confessed that he had found Christ only the previous
night.  He acknowledged (to use his own words) that he had been
presenting "the Christ ideal" but not the Christ of the Cross.  The
writer believes there are thousands like this preacher who, perhaps,
have been brought up in Sunday School, taught about the birth, life,
and teachings of Jesus Christ, who believe in the historicity of His
person, who spasmodically endeavor to practice His precepts, and who
think that that is all that is necessary for their salvation.
Frequently, this class when they reach manhood go out into the world,
encounter the attacks of atheists and infidels and are told that such
a person as Jesus of Nazareth never lived.  But the impressions of
early days cannot be easily erased, and they remain steadfast in their
declaration that they "believe in Jesus Christ."  Yet, when their
faith is examined, only too often it is found that though they believe
many things about Jesus Christ they do not really believe in Him.
They believe with the head that such a person lived (and, because they
believe this imagine that therefore they are saved), but they have
never thrown down the weapons of their warfare against Him, yielded
themselves to Him, nor truly believed with their heart in Him.  The
bare acceptance of an orthodox doctrine about the person of Christ
without the heart being won by Him and the life devoted to Him, is
another phrase of that way "which seemeth right unto a man" but the
end thereof are "the ways of death."  A mere intellectual assent to
the reality of Christ's person, and which goes no further, is another
phase of the way which "seemeth right unto a man" but of which the
ends thereof "are the ways of death," or, in other words, is another
aspect of the gospel of Satan.

.    And now, where do you stand?  Are you in the way which "seemeth
right," but which ends in death; or, are you in the Narrow Way which
leadeth unto life?  Have you truly forsaken the Broad Road which
leadeth to death?  Has the love of Christ created in your heart a
hatred and horror of all that is displeasing to Him?  Are you desirous
that He should "reign over" you? (Luke 19:14).  Are you relying wholly
on His righteousness and blood for your acceptance with God?

.    Those who are trusting to an outward form of godliness, such as
baptism or "confirmation" those who are religious because it is
considered a mark of respectability; those who attend some Church or
Chapel because it is the fashion to do so; and, those who unite with
some Denomination because they suppose that such a step will enable
them to become Christians, are in the way which "ends in death" -
death spiritual and eternal.  However pure our motives, however noble
our intentions, however well-meaning our purposes, however sincere our
endeavors, God will not accept us as His sons, until we accept His
Son.

.    A yet more specious form of Satan's gospel is to move preachers
to present the atoning sacrifice of Christ and then tell their hearers
that all God requires from them is to "believe" in His Son.  Thereby
thousands of impenitent souls are deluded into thinking they have been
saved.  But Christ said, "Except ye repent, ye shall all likewise
perish" (Luke 13:3).  To "repent" is to hate sin, to sorrow over, to
turn from it.  It is the result of the Spirit's making the heart
contrite before God.  None except a broken heart can savingly believe
on the Lord Jesus Christ.

.    Again, thousands are deceived into supposing that they have
"accepted Christ" as their "personal Savior," who have not first
received Him as their LORD.  The Son of God did not come here to save
His people in their sin, but "from their sins" (Matt. 1:21).  To be
saved from sins, is to be saved from ignoring and despising the
authority of God, it is to abandon the course of self-will and self-
pleasing, it is to "forsake our way" (Isa. 55:7).  It is to surrender
to God's authority, to yield to His dominion, to give ourselves over
to be ruled by Him.  The one who has never taken Christ's "yoke" upon
him, who is not truly and diligently seeking to please Him in all the
details of his life, and yet supposes that he is "resting on the
Finished Work of Christ" is deluded by the Devil.

.    In the seventh chapter of Matthew there are two scriptures which
give us approximate results of Christ's Gospel and Satan's
counterfeit.  First, in verse 13 and 14, "Enter ye in at the strait
gate:  for wide is the gate and broad is the way that leadeth to
destruction, and many there be which go in thereat.  Because strait is
the gate, and narrow is the way, which leadeth unto life, and few
there be that find it."  Second; in verse 22 and 23, "Many will say to
Me in that day, Lord, Lord, have we not prophesied (preached) in Thy
name?  and in Thy name cast out demons, and in thy name done many
wonderful works?  And they will I profess unto them, I never knew you;
depart from Me, ye that work iniquity."  Yes, my reader, it is
possible to work in the name of Christ, and even to preach in His
name, and thought the world knows us, and the Church knows us, yet to
be unknown to the Lord!  How necessary it is then to find out where we
really are; to examine ourselves and see whether we be in the faith;
to measure ourselves by the Word of God and see if we are being
deceived by our subtle Enemy; to find out whether it is erected on the
Rock which is Christ Jesus.  May the Holy Spirit search our hearts,
break our wills, slay our enmity against God, work in us a deep and
true repentance, and direct our gaze to the Lamb of God which taketh
away the sin of the world.

 Arthur W. Pink
 Reiner Publications
 Swengel, PA

Computers for Christ - Chicago