Preaching the Gospel !

[Nanja]

The Gospel is not a Offer !

What the Gospel is !

The basic premise of the gospel is not a Offer , but the Good News, that Jesus, the God Man has come to save His People from their sins Matt 1:


21And she shall bring forth a son, and thou shalt call his name JESUS: for he shall save his people from their sins.

The heart of this Gospel is the cross of Christ, His Taking on the seed of Abraham [heb 2:16] with their salvation in view, which are Gods elect out of Mankind, a people not mainly in National Israel but out of all Nations. Gen 17:


5Neither shall thy name any more be called Abram, but thy name shall be Abraham; for a father of many nations have I made thee.

To teach that the gospel is an offer to all for its acceptance or rejection, is saying that the cross of Christ had no definite end in view with definite effects and accomplishments. That it [The cross] did not ensure or procure the salvation of anyone, but only made it [salvation ] possible for all without exception, which concept is false, it is based upon a faulty understanding of what the atonement is and accomplished ! They teach that the cross of Christ had no definite achievement, beyond only making salvation possible !

To preach the Gospel in a way that deprives the cross of its achievement for Gods elect, through Christ, is a False Gospel.

Mk 16:


15And he said unto them, Go ye into all the world, andpreach the gospel to every creature.

Lets for a moment look at the word preach ! It is here in mk 16:15 the greek word kerysso:

to be a herald, to officiate as a herald

a) to proclaim after the manner of a herald

b) always with the suggestion of formality, gravity and an authority which must be listened to and obeyed

2) to publish, proclaim openly: something which has been done

3) used of the public proclamation of the gospel and matters pertaining to it, made by John the Baptist, by Jesus, by the apostles and other
Christian teachers

This is important, because as we see its definition, not once is it implied or said that Preaching is an offer.

It is the announcement of what Has been done ! Its either believed or not.

Now to preach the gospel to every creature does not even suggest by a long shot that salvation is being made possible for all, but rather means the saving effects of the cross extends beyond the people of the jews unto the gentiles, and that the elect cannot be outwardly distinguished from the non elect, especially when the elect are still unregenerated. The intention however of the True Gospel Preacher is to be used of God in the calling forth of the elect of God to conversion and fellowship into the Gospel..phil 1:5

For your fellowship in the gospel from the first day until now;

This end Paul had in mind and understood by what he stated here 2 tim 2:


10Therefore I endure all things for the elect's sakes, that they [The elect] may also obtain the salvation which is in Christ Jesus with eternal glory.

What can be more plainer than this, that Paul understood the salvation of Christ Jesus to be for the elect !!

This verse definitely proves that Paul believed salvation was for Gods elect, and Preached it that way..

Yes, he most certainly did, Brother !

 

[beloved57]

Yes, he most certainly did, Brother !

Bless you !

 

[Nanja]

The Myth of the Gospel being a Offer !

The Myth of the Gospel being a Offer to all for its acceptance or rejection is a denial of the doctrine of mans total inability spiritually !

The practice of offering the Gospel to the unsaved is implying they have the ability to exercise a Faith that saves, before being saved by regeneration and the renewal of the Holy Ghost as per Titus 3:


5Not by works of righteousness which we have done, but according to his mercy he saved us, by the washing of regeneration, and renewing of the Holy Ghost;

Hence, there must be a saving work of mercy performed on us by the Holy Ghost, before we can perform any spiritual activity or movement, to deny this is a denial of our native spiritual inability and to place mans effort over Spiritual God given Faith by the renewal of the Holy Ghost.. For Faith is a Fruit of the Spirit gal 5:

22But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, longsuffering, gentleness, goodness, faith,

The gospel being a offer to one and all in order to get saved, is a repudiation of the need of God's regenerating Grace of the Spirit. If men could believe without this, then what need is it to believe through [by means of] Grace as per acts 18:


27And when he was disposed to pass into Achaia, the brethren wrote, exhorting the disciples to receive him: who, when he was come, helped them much which had believed through grace:

The whole of Salvation by Grace through Faith is the gracious Gift of God...

The Gospel message in its God Honoring Doctrines can only be received favorably by those who have been born spiritually, and can spiritually discern its Truth..and its not offered to them, but proclaimed to them..

Amen !

 

[Nanja]

Bless you !

Bless you too !

 

[Nanja]

A General Proclamation of the Gospel !

Matt 22:


1And Jesus answered and spake unto them again by parables, and said,

2The kingdom of heaven is like unto a certain king, which made a marriage for his son,

3And sent forth his servants to call them that were bidden to the wedding: and they would not come.

What we have here is Jesus in parable form describing the general preaching of the Gospel, and of course we know that it was first preached to the nation of Israel, but to later be proclaimed throughout the world..

The King represents God the Father, The Kings Son is Jesus Christ, and the marriage announcement is the external preaching of the Gospel, and the bride is the church, the elect of God, those who were given to the Son [ jn 6:37-39,44] before the world began by the Father.

So the Gospel message proclaims or sets forth the Marriage Union between Christ the Son and His Church, the Chosen Bride, it proclaims the great Truths of the Everlasting Covenant.

Now it is in this way the Gospel is freely proclaimed to all who come within its proclamation, and all should believe its Truths and facts and fear God for the same. Not to do so is treating the heavenly message and its Author with contempt and making His record of His Son to be a Lie.

1 jn 5:

10He that believeth on the Son of God hath the witness in himself: he that believeth not God hath made him a liar; because he believeth not the record that God gave of his Son.

You see John the Baptist knew that it was not all in national Israel Jesus came to save from sin, but the remnant of them that belonged to His Bride, lets look at Jn 3:


29He that hath the bride is the bridegroom: but the friend of the bridegroom, which standeth and heareth him, rejoiceth greatly because of the bridegroom's voice: this my joy therefore is fulfilled. cp Matt 9:

15And Jesus said unto them, Can the children of the bridechamber mourn, as long as the bridegroom is with them? but the days will come, when the bridegroom shall be taken from them, and then shall they fast.



Jesus was the Bridegroom, and He knew His Bride !

Now If John in jn 3 29 is referring to Jesus Christ as the bridegroom, then eph 5 is applicable vs :


25Husbands, love your wives, even as Christ also loved the church, and gave himself for it;

26That he might sanctify and cleanse it with the washing of water by the word,

27That he might present it to himself a glorious church, not having spot, or wrinkle, or any such thing; but that it should be holy and without blemish.

also rev 19:


7Let us be glad and rejoice, and give honour to him: for the marriage of the Lamb is come, and his wife hath made herself ready.

8And to her was granted that she should be arrayed in fine linen, clean and white: for the fine linen is the righteousness of saints.

So, the general preaching of the Gospel is to set forth the marriage of the Son, and who His Bride is. His Bride is a very particular Bride, not all of humanity, but a select Bride, by the Father.

Thats why Jesus told the multitudes, Jn 6:

37All that the Father giveth me shall come to me; and him that cometh to me I will in no wise cast out.

44No man can come to me, except the Father which hath sent me draw him: and I will raise him up at the last day.

65And he said, Therefore said I unto you, that no man can come unto me, except it were given unto him of my Father.

They have to be of the Chosen Bride, Chosen in Him , as Eve was in Adam, before the foundation of the world...

Amen Brother, all those that come to Christ in Time and in Faith, do so not because of their so-called freewill decision;
but because they were already separated unto Him by the Father's [The King] Sovereign Electing Discriminate Purpose
and Grace, given them In Christ His Son [Eph. 3:11] before the World began 2 Tim. 1:9 to be His Chosen Bride !

 

[beloved57]

Amen Brother, all those that come to Christ in Time and in Faith, do so not because of their so-called freewill decision;
but because they were already separated unto Him by the Father's [The King] Sovereign Electing Discriminate Purpose
and Grace, given them In Christ His Son [Eph. 3:11] before the World began 2 Tim. 1:9 to be His Chosen Bride !

Exactly my Sister !

 

[beloved57]

Man naturally hates the Gospel, for the Gospel is Light 2 Cor 4:4

In whom the god of this world 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.

Yet we men by nature hate the light and love darkness Jn 3:19

¹⁹ And this is the condemnation, that light is come into the world, and men loved darkness rather than light, because their deeds were evil.

 

[Nanja]

Man naturally hates the Gospel, for the Gospel is Light 2 Cor 4:4

In whom the god of this world 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.

Yet we men by nature hate the light and love darkness Jn 3:19

¹⁹ And this is the condemnation, that light is come into the world, and men loved darkness rather than light, because their deeds were evil.

Amen Brother, before any person can salvifically believe the Light of the Glorious Gospel of Christ, we know that he must first be miraculously delivered out of the power of satan and his darkness, which has blinded the minds of them that believe not 2 Cor. 4:4.

Now, for instance, if one says that he believed before he was saved, and in order to become saved, then he attributes his being saved out of the power of darkness by his own evil deed.

 

[beloved57]

nanja

Now, for instance, if one says that he believed before he was saved, and in order to become saved, then he attributes his being saved out of the power of darkness by his own evil deed.

Exactly ! They have become their own Saviour

 

[Nanja]

nanja



Exactly ! They have become their own Saviour

Yes Indeed !

 

[Nanja]

The Gospel of the Grace of God !

Acts 20:


24But none of these things move me, neither count I my life dear unto myself, so that I might finish my course with joy, and the ministry, which I have received of the Lord Jesus, to testify the gospel of the grace of God.

Men really hate this Gospel, the Gospel of the Grace of God, because it is opposed to our pride and ego by nature, and our natural way of thinking about salvation !

The Apostle Paul places a strong emphasis on the Grace of God and its superior role in the salvation of certain sinners, elect sinners as pointed out in rom 11:

5Even so then at this present time also there is a remnant according to the election of grace.

And it does not matter if Paul here is referring to elect jews in israel, because the same grace saves jew or gentile as stated here acts 15:


11But we believe that through the grace of the LORD Jesus Christ we shall be saved, even as they. That would be the same election of grace..

Election of Grace is mentioned again by Paul here in eph 2:

5Even when we were dead in sins, hath quickened us together with Christ, (by grace ye are saved)

8For by grace are ye saved through faith; and that not of yourselves: it is the gift of God: The Faith is part of the grace..for we believe or have Faith through grace acts 18:

27And when he was disposed to pass into Achaia, the brethren wrote, exhorting the disciples to receive him: who, when he was come, helped them much which had believed through grace:

Not believed by freewill or mans choice, but by means of Grace..

Paul teaches that we are Justified by Grace Titus 3:

7That being justified by his grace, we should be made heirs according to the hope of eternal life.

And this is that Justifying grace which brings salvation to all elect men..Titus 2:

11For the grace of God that bringeth salvation hath appeared to all men,

titus 1:

1Paul, a servant of God, and an apostle of Jesus Christ, according to the faith of God's elect, and the acknowledging of the truth which is after godliness;

Most people forget that titus 2:11 applies to those in titus 1:1..

Now we make these points about Grace because Paul also teaches that Chronologically the Grace of God that does these things antedates all of God's dealings with man in grace in time and is the basis of His dealings with us in time in mercy !

2 tim 1:

9Who hath saved us, and called us with an holy calling, not according to our works, but according to his own purpose and grace, which was given us in Christ Jesus before the world began,

ps 103:

17But the mercy of the LORD is from everlasting to everlasting upon them that fear him, and his righteousness unto children's children;

Notice that the stedfast Love [Mercy] of Jehovah is from everlasting not to all, but unto them that are fearing Him in time ! So this Mercy or stedfast love was upon them before time, and before they actually actually and experientially feared God, for none of us are born with the fear of God already in our hearts, but are as others, by nature children of wrath. We all by nature have no fear of God before our eyes as stated here rom 3:

18There is no fear of God before their eyes.

But we all walk as stated here eph 2:

2Wherein in time past ye walked according to the course of this world, according to the prince of the power of the air, the spirit that now worketh in the children of disobedience:

3Among whom also we all had our conversation in times past in the lusts of our flesh, fulfilling the desires of the flesh and of the mind; and were by nature the children of wrath, even as others.

But God had mercy upon us from everlasting, and according to that mercy He saves us in time by the washing of regeneration and renewing of the Holy Ghost and are given a new Heart by this, a Heart that fears God..

Titus 3:

5Not by works of righteousness which we have done, but according to his mercy he saved us, by the washing of regeneration, and renewing of the Holy Ghost;

ezk 36:

24For I will take you from among the heathen, and gather you out of all countries, and will bring you into your own land.

25Then will I sprinkle clean water upon you, and ye shall be clean: from all your filthiness, and from all your idols, will I cleanse you.

26A new heart also will I give you, and a new spirit will I put within you: and I will take away the stony heart out of your flesh, and I will give you an heart of flesh.

27And I will put my spirit within you, and cause you to walk in my statutes, and ye shall keep my judgments, and do them.

Jer 32:

39And I will give them one heart, and one way, that they may fear me for ever, for the good of them, and of their children after them:

40And I will make an everlasting covenant with them, that I will not turn away from them, to do them good; but I will put my fear in their hearts, that they shall not depart from me.

All this was done according to Divine Purpose and Grace given us in Christ before the world began.

So Paul wrote of salvation and calling as past facts in His and other believers experience, but He owned that ground of the saving, was of Gods Grace given before times eternal...

Amen Brother to this God-Glorifying Message / Gospel of the Grace of God,
and it's role in the Salvation of certain sinners; elect sinners !

 

[beloved57]

Amen Brother to this God-Glorifying Message / Gospel of the Grace of God,
and it's role in the Salvation of certain sinners; elect sinners !

Thanks to God you were able to receive it Sister !

 

[Nanja]

Thanks to God you were able to receive it Sister !

Amen, by His Spirit my Brother 1 Cor. 2:12 !

 

[Nanja]

The Gospel of the Grace of God !

There must be in any teaching of the Gospel of the Grace of God, that it is the special favor which God has had for His elect from eternity past, and that is what motivates Him to do all that He has done for the everlasting good of those whom He has given to Jesus Christ in the covenant of grace.

This Grace works for us before our actual realization as the text 2 tim 1:9 indicates. It is antecedent to human existence, for it dates from everlasting and reaches to eternity and will be displayed in the ages to come eph 2:

7That in the ages to come he might shew the exceeding riches of his grace in his kindness toward us through Christ Jesus.

That is grace has reigned in eternity past in His contriving the plan, and also in time in executing it upon its favored subjects and will continue to rein to its consummation in Glory, and then to be marveled and adored. It is from everlasting to everlasting, so it reigned in our election, redemption, regeneration, Call and Justification, and sanctification, and will reign in our preservation, resurrection or rapture and final glorification..

Glory to God for His Grace upon His elect from Everlasting to Everlasting !

 

[beloved57]

Glory to God for His Grace upon His elect from Everlasting to Everlasting !

Amen Sister

 

[Nanja]

Be made alive First !

Can a dead man do anything ? Absolutely not. Could Lazarus come forth without being made alive first by the power of Christ ? Only the deceived would answer in the affirmative, but thats why the figure of death is wisely used to describe the lost person, to indicate his or her total inability to bring oneself to life, a resurrection is therefore needed. However many deceived souls believe they can regenerate themselves, bring themselves to life because they claim they are made alive as soon as they Believe ! But the question remains, can a spiritually dead person perform an spiritual act, as can a physically dead person can perform a physical act ? Believe the Gospel, is spiritual act, for the gospel is spiritual message, for its the Gospel of God who is Spirit rom 1:

1Paul, a servant of Jesus Christ, called to be an apostle, separated unto the gospel of God,

Jn 4:

24God is a Spirit: and they that worship him must worship him in spirit and in truth.

Scripture is very clear that the natural man cannot receive a spiritual word 1 cor 2:

13Which things also we speak, not in the words which man's wisdom teacheth, but which the Holy Ghost teacheth; comparing spiritual things with spiritual.

14But the natural man receiveth not the things of the Spirit of God: for they are foolishness unto him: neither can he know them, because they are spiritually discerned.

The word receive here in context means:

to receive favourably, give ear to, embrace, make one's own, approve, not to reject

The Natural man cannot receive favourably the Gospel, cannot give ear to it, nor embrace it, or make it his own, nor give approval, or not reject it..

So, the cannot believe it ! We must first be spiritually quickened, that is made alive, which is what the Truth teaches, and this being the case, then there is absolutely nothing in the natural man to cause him to be saved.

Matt 19:


25When his disciples heard it, they were exceedingly amazed, saying, Who then can be saved?

26But Jesus beheld them, and said unto them, With men this is impossible; but with God all things are possible.

Jesus here is not advocating synergism as in God and Man can work together in a man becoming saved, but instead He is affirming that salvation is out of the control and ability of man, and relies solely on God's ability, that is Salvation is only possible if God saves us !

If we are saved, it must be wholly by the Grace of God, in God's elective purposes [election of grace] for no works or abilities of our own are sufficient or needed.

Thats the meaning of eph 2:

5Even when we were dead in sins, hath quickened us together with Christ, (by grace ye are saved)

Before believing one must be passed from death unto life ![see Jn 5:24]

That God makes alive some people even while still dead in sin, even dead in unbelief !

Folks if man is saved by his own faith, that faith is an ability in us, then God does not save us by His ability only, but we save ourselves, and to us [at least partly] is the glory due, however if we be dead in sin and unbelief, and totally incapacitated from doing any good [which is true whether we believe it or not] spiritually, and Faith be a gift of God's electing Grace, then salvation is surely of Grace, it is of God, and to Him be all the Glory..

rev 19:1

And after these things I heard a great voice of much people in heaven, saying, Alleluia; Salvation, and glory, and honour, and power, unto the Lord our God:

Amen Brother, to God alone be all the Glory in the Salvation of His Elect !

 

[beloved57]

Amen Brother, to God alone be all the Glory in the Salvation of His Elect !

Bless you Sister !

 

[Nanja]

Bless you Sister !

Bless you too !

 

[Nanja]

Another scripture indicating that Grace goes before Faith or believing is acts 16:

14And a certain woman named Lydia, a seller of purple, of the city of Thyatira, which worshipped God, heard us: whose heart the Lord opened, that she attended unto the things which were spoken of Paul.

This verse is describing how God imparts Faith in a Person, for its a Divine Operation, that we can attend [pay attention] to the things of God, for God works with the Heart, rom 10:

9That if thou shalt confess with thy mouth the Lord Jesus, and shalt believe in thine heart that God hath raised him from the dead, thou shalt be saved.



10For with the heart man believeth unto righteousness; and with the mouth confession is made unto salvation.

Remember Phillip said to the Ethiopian eunuch before baptism if what ? Acts 8:

37And Philip said, If thou believest with all thine heart, thou mayest. And he answered and said, I believe that Jesus Christ is the Son of God.

The Eunech gave evidence to Philip that he had believed his witness to him of Christ, probably from the close attention he observed the eunuch paying to his teaching, his willingness to learn and listen, he was not combative of things of God and challenging and debating him..Phillip could tell a work of Divine Grace had been implanted in him..

The apostles could perceive that a work of grace had happened in Paul before they gave him the right hand of fellowship per gal 2:

9And when James, Cephas, and John, who seemed to be pillars, perceived the grace that was given unto me, they gave to me and Barnabas the right hands of fellowship; that we should go unto the heathen, and they unto the circumcision.

God had done unto the Saul turned Paul what He done unto Lydia, opened the heart to believe the things of God, this is done by God through Grace, for they believed through Grace acts 18:

27And when he was disposed to pass into Achaia, the brethren wrote, exhorting the disciples to receive him: who, when he was come, helped them much which had believed through grace:

In acts 16 14 it is clearly stated that God opened her heart, for she did not open her own heart, nor did Paul open her heart, but The Lord, the Master did it..by His conquering Grace and Spirit..

Without this Divine opening, no one could believe the sacred Truths and Mysteries of the Gospel..

Amen Brother, We Praise the Lord Our Master for His conqurering Grace and Spirit in the Divine opening of Our hearts !

 

[Nanja]

John 3:16

In light of witnessing about the antecedent grace needed to believe in Christ in conversion, its befitting to add these words:

Jn 3

16For God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting life.

Many today have been deceived by the great deceiver [rev 20:7-8] in that they take the word believeth here to mean that it believing is a condition one must do to gain everlasting life.

Another scripture that is abused and many have been deceived by is acts 16:32, for this scripture has been construed to be giving a condition [to believe] on what to do to get saved. To say the least scripture can be multiplied with the word believe or faith in regards to salvation is used; but te truth of the matter is this, not once is the word used as a condition for salvation, but as a evidence or fruit of salvation. Believing is a evidence that one has partook of the New Birth or the saving work of the Holy Ghost. Yes there is a saving work prepare to believing called the renewing of the Holy Ghost titus 3:


5Not by works of righteousness which we have done, but according to his mercy he saved us, by the washing of regeneration, and renewing of the Holy Ghost;

So before believing, a healing, a new life is given in order to believe, a spiritual life ! Before one can embrace spiritual Truth, spiritual life is needed.

Who takes part of the saving renewing work of the Holy Ghost that capacitated one to believe the Truth about Jesus ?

Its all for whom Christ died, for after His death, burial and resurrection and ascension, for His accomplishment, the Father gave Him the Holy Ghost to shed or pour upon all those He died for i.e acts 2:


32This Jesus hath God raised up, whereof we all are witnesses.

33Therefore being by the right hand of God exalted, and having received of the Father the promise of the Holy Ghost, he hath shed forth this, which ye now see and hear.

The word shed is the greek word

ekcheō and means:

to pour out, shed forth

2) metaph. to bestow or distribute largely

Incidental its the same word used in titus 3 6 after having said that one was saved by the renewing of the Holy Ghost, the source was through the risen Christ..titus 3:



5Not by works of righteousness which we have done, but according to his mercy he saved us, by the washing of regeneration, and renewing of the Holy Ghost;

6Which he shed on us abundantly through Jesus Christ our Saviour;



So as I stated earlier, the Holy Spirit renews all those Christ died for in preparing them to believe on His name or His Gospel Truth..

Since those who Christ died for, all their sins have been paid for, so Christ by the work of His Spirit makes them righteous as per rom 5:

19For as by one man's disobedience many were made sinners, so by the obedience of one shall many be made righteous.

He does this [makes them righteous] by sending His Spirit to them, giving them a new birth, which begins the process of making them righteous because of His obedience..

[B]This is whats behind those believing in Jn 3 16...[/B]

Exactly Brother !