The California Collection/TheCaliforniaCollection.cdr/his075/anogospl.lzh/ANOGOSPL.TXT

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CUL:Another Gospel  by Arthur W. Pink

   Reiner Publications Swengel, PA

   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 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 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 subtile 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 Saviour. 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 Saviour 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
endeavours, 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 Saviour, " 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.