No Other Gospel

Today Crossway releases a new book on Galatians, No Other Gospel: 31 Reasons from Galatians Why Justification by Faith Alone Is the Only Gospel by Josh Moody, senior pastor of College Church in Wheaton, Illinois. Josh Moody (PhD, Cambridge University) is the author of several books, including The God-Centered Life: Insights from Jonathan Edwards.

In No Other Gospel, Pastor Josh Moody writes, “we tend toward human gospels”  and hence believers must constantly battle to maintain the purity and simplicity of the gospel. Paul was acutely aware of this as he wrote his letter to the Galatians. He was writing to an established church—experienced believers who had started to slip in their gospel witness. Moody finds in Galatians particular relevance and parallels to many churches today. Stemming from a series of sermons delivered to his church, he examines thirty-one reasons Paul gives for this gospel. Moody writes this book with a pastor’s heart, addressing important topics such as “The Gospel Not Moralism” and “The Use of Gospel Freedom.” Paul’s message is foundational to the Christian faith, and thoughtful readers will benefit from Moody’s exposition. [1]

D.A Carson notes, “Paul’s Letter to the Galatians so strongly and passionately articulates the gospel of grace that it has proved transforming in many generations of preachers from Luther to Wesley and beyond. Here Josh Moody reinforces that heritage for the twenty-first century.”

“These expositions are clear, well-organized, exegetically careful, and theologically faithful.”, says Senior Pastor, Kevin DeYoung, “They're also filled with good illustrations, personal application, and a proper dose of British wit. These qualities make for very good preaching and a very good book.”

Again noted New Testament professor Douglas J. Moo endorses this book saying, “Josh Moody’s No Other Gospel blends attention to the text, theological insight, and pastoral application in a model of Scriptural exposition. His focus on Galatians is a great choice, since this letter addresses so clearly the nature and importance of the gospel – a critical matter in an age when so many Christians and so many churches are confused about the gospel and its centrality.”[2]

Here is Josh Moody and Justin Taylor having a small chat on the book:

Flip through to view an excerpt from this book below or Download a pdf of the excerpt

No Other Gospel: 31 Reasons from Galatians Why Justification by Faith Alone Is the Only Gospel

Format: Paperback

Page Count: 288

ISBN-10: 1-4335-1567-9

ISBN-13: 978-1-4335-1567-5

Size: 6.0 in x 9.0 in

Weight: 14.1 ounces

Published: January 31, 2011

Footnotes

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[1] Publisher write up for No Other Gospel, Crossway.

[2] Endorsements, Crossway.

Understanding Guidance, The Cessationist Way

In his 2005 interview of Dr. Sam Waldron, Tim Challies, asked Waldron on how Cessationists understand God’s guidance in our life. Challies asks,  

How is the issue of guidance, how God speaks to us, how God guides us through life, how does that differ between a strict cessationist versus someone who believes in the continuing gifts?  

This is such an important question as most Christians who have not studied this issue are prone to be like Charismatics, having a purely providence-centered and subjective decision making system. So how does the Non-Charismatic understand God’s guidance in life? Waldron believes in Word-centered decision making, where God’s guidance on each situation is claimed on the basis of the revealed precepts and principles of the Word of God. Waldron also challenges how Continuationists can be intense on the written Word when they believe there is genuine revelation out there besides that. He feels a Cessationist is going to have a more exclusive emphasis on the guidance of the Word of God in his life, its principles and precepts, than a Continuationist can easily have.

Here is Waldron’s answer.

I think that one of the missions of the biblical pastor is that they must be warning people against that kind of subjective, what you might called providence-centered, decision-making. The Reformed faith gives us the raw materials and commits us to the raw materials of a very objective Word-centered decision-making course. First of all, it tells us the great distinction between God’s secret and revealed will or between the decretive will of God and the presumptive will of God. We are not to base our decisions on any kind of assumed understanding of the decretive or secret will of God. “The secret things belong to the Lord our God and the things that are revealed to us and to our children that we might do all the words of this law.” So our decision-making has got to be firmly grounded on the preceptive will of God.

When I teach on this subject I tell people that it is like a pyramid. The bottom is prayer, of course. We need prayer for the Spirit to help us understand the Word of God. Then there are the precepts of the Word of God right there at the foundation too and then also there are the principles, what I call the principles of the Word of God, which are not so much the direct commandments - “thou shalt,” “thou shalt not” - but the priorities or principles that the Bible inculcates: membership in the local church and the importance of daily prayer and Bible reading. You may have a hard time finding a specific command “thou shalt read your Bible every day” or “thou shalt never, under any circumstances be a member of a local church,” but those things are clearly biblical priorities. Then after you get through all those things there is a place for providence in the sense of what providence has already set as limitations. God doesn’t want a blind man to be a test pilot. If it makes you sick to hear about medical procedures over the dinner table, like it does me, clearly God did not aim you to be a doctor of medicine. And then I go from the whole issue of providence to finally talking about preference and there is certainly a biblical place, when all those other things are already set, to think about what your preferences are because those preferences often reveal what your gifts are. So you’ve got prayer, precept, principle, providence and preference. It’s a nice little outline anyways.

You can read the entire interview here :

Tongues! Signs! Wonders! An Interview with Dr. Sam Waldron  Part 1 | Part 2

The Gospel of Grace

Reformed Praise is a music ministry dedicated to providing songs for corporate worship which are rich in theology, diverse in musical style, and centered on the gospel of grace, that our praise might be informed by Biblical truth.[1] 

The ministry exists to :

1. Provide songs for corporate worship which are rich in theology, diverse in musical style, and centered on the gospel of grace, that our praise might be informed by Biblical truth.

2. Promote the use of historic and modern hymns in corporate worship.

3. Teach, write, and create other resources that the church might be built up in a Biblical understanding of worship and music.[2]

One of Reformed Praise’s modern hymns is a beautiful meditation on the gospel. The description of the hymn  from the songwriters Eric Schumacher and David L. Ward goes like this :

The gospel, the good news of Jesus’ death for our sins and new life in Him, is sometimes regarded as a message that only unbelievers need to hear. We tend to act as if Jesus’ death only has relevance in getting us in the doorway of the Christian faith. But scripture paints a much bigger picture than this. The gospel’s relevance stems from its inception in eternity past when God devised a plan to redeem people from the sin they would plunge themselves headlong into. The first verse of this song explores the themes of God’s sovereign plan of salvation and the death and resurrection of Jesus. The second verse remembers how the gospel arrived into our lives at conversion and goes on to remind us that even now we stand forgiven before God and do not need to get on God’s “good side” or get out from being on God’s “bad side.” Lastly, we rejoice in the fact that the gospel affords us our only true hope and comfort in death and will be the subject of our songs of worship for eternity as we sing the praises of the Lamb who was slain for our sin. May God’s glorious gospel of grace be sung and cherished in our lives and in our churches![3]

The Gospel of Grace   Listen

  

The gospel of grace: from before time began

God chose to redeem me and fashioned a plan

That holy and blameless and unto His praise

I might be adopted to show forth His grace.

The gospel of grace: in the fullness of time

God sent a redeemer who, doing no crime,

Would die for my sin and then conquer the grave

To purchase the ones He was given to save.

The gospel of grace came when dead in my sin,

It told me of Jesus and pointed to Him.

When faith and repentance invaded my heart

Forgiveness, full pardon, my God did impart.

The gospel of grace now reminds me each day

In sin and in failure His favor will stay

For not through self-loathing or deeds that I’ve done

But only in Jesus acceptance is won.

The gospel of grace when I take my last breath

Will be my one comfort to bear me through death;

And should I die peaceful or suffer great pain,

This gospel assures me that death will be gain.

The gospel of grace, for eternity long,

Will be my delight and the theme of my song;

With saints from all nations I’ll join to proclaim:

All glory to Jesus, the Lamb who was slain!

The gospel of grace, O how precious indeed,

Past, present, and future meets all of my needs;

So until the day when I look on Your face–

Lord, keep me believing the gospel of grace.

For more related resources to this hymn, please click here.

For more beautiful hymns, both old and new, please check the site of Reformed Praise.

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[1] Reformed Praise, Home

[2] Reformed Praise, About Us

[3] Reformed Praise, The Gospel of Grace

Contending For Truth : History of the Modern Gospel - I

History of the Modern Gospel is a video series from RTM ministries, which tracks the history of the modern, sub-biblical gospel, espoused by a vast majority of Evangelicals today. As it tracks the history of the Evangelical church, it highlights key theological compromises committed by Christians of the previous century. Hosted by Michael Durham, this video series also presents a biblical response to these errors in the popular understanding of the gospel. Presented in a very interesting manner, these videos are both entertaining and enlightening. Here are the first 3 episodes from this series.

1. Introduction

2. Session#1 : Departing from Scripture: The Root of Error

3. Session#2 : Toxic Intelligence

A Humble Defense of Cessationism

Robert R. Gonzales Jr. is the academic dean and a professor of Biblical Studies at Reformed Baptist Seminary. Dr. Gonzales is a graduate of the Reformed Baptist School of Theology, Grand Rapids, Michigan. He also holds an M.A. in Theology and a Ph.D. in Old Testament Interpretation from Bob Jones University.  He is a contributor to The Reformed Baptist Theological Review and The Founders Journal, as well as a member of the Evangelical Theological Society.

In 2009 Gonzales wrote a series of articles on the seminary blog, arguing for the Cessationists position on sign gifts.  These articles are based on his teaching series for an adult Sunday school class.  Gonzales does not want to merely make a case for Cessationism, rather he wants to do it in a spirit of humility, acknowledging that there are good men representing each of these positions.  When teaching this series in the adult Sunday School class, he placed framed photographs of D. Martyn-Lloyd Jones, John Piper, and a well-known and loved Reformed Baptist missionary on the pulpit so that they were visible to him and to his audience. He wanted to present the case for cessation as if these highly esteemed men who are not Cessationists were present.

In part 1, he does a brief survey of convictions held by Christians in the past and briefly explains the three positions that are held by bible-believing Christians today.  In Part 2, Part 3, and Part 4 of this series, he argues for the cessation of Scripture quality revelation with the completion of the canon. In Part 5, he clarifies the point of debate, namely, whether NT prophecy and tongues should be placed in the same class as Scripture quality revelation. In Part 6, he provides the reader with an overview of the position of Wayne Grudem, a leading advocate of Continuationism, as well as his main arguments. In Part 7 and Part 8, he presents arguments in favor of viewing NT prophecy and tongues as belonging to the same species of revelation as canonical prophecy. Then in Part 9 and Part 10, Gonzales attempts to address common objections raised against the Cessationist position. Finally, in Part 11, he concludes with some words of commendation, caution, and exhortation addressed to those on all sides of this debate.

If you have never come across a learned defense of Cessationism, then this series of articles would be very helpful for you. Gonzales fares not only in his scholarship, but also in his humility.  Whether you agree with Gonzales or not, his combination of astuteness and humility makes this article series a delightful and educative experience for any serious student of Scriptures.

Part 1: Introduction

Part 2: Cessation of Scripture quality revelation with the completion of the canon - I

Part 3: Cessation of Scripture quality revelation with the completion of the canon - II

Part 4: Cessation of Scripture quality revelation with the completion of the canon - III

Part 5: Whether NT prophecy and tongues are in the same class of Scripture quality revelation

Part 6: Overview of the position of Wayne Grudem

Part 7: Arguments for viewing NT prophecy and tongues as canonical prophecy - I

Part 8: Arguments for viewing NT prophecy and tongues as canonical prophecy - II

Part 9: Answering common objections raised against the Cessationist position - I

Part 10: Answering common objections raised against the Cessationist  position - II

Part 11: Concluding commendation, caution, and exhortation

 

Our Fourfold Duty To The Gospel

More than forty years ago, John Stott expounded the second epistle of Paul to Timothy, to emphasize the different aspects of a gospel-faithful ministry.  Stott in his introduction says :

In each of these four chapters, the Apostle Paul seemed to emphasize the different aspects of Timothy's responsibility. In chapter 1, Timothy was told to guard the gospel. He was to protect it, pure and undefiled. In chapter 2, he was told to suffer for it. In chapter 3, he was told to continue in it, to abide in it, and not to deflect from it to the right hand or to the left. And in chapter 4, he was told to preach it, to make it known.[1]

Stott’s exposition is straightforward and marked with excellent observations and reflections. He sticks to the passage and brings out the essential meaning of the passage.  At the end of his first address, while concluding his exposition of the first chapter, he summarizes as follows:

The gospel is good news of salvation. It was promised from eternity, was secured and purchased by Jesus Christ, and is now offered to friends. First, we must communicate it faithfully, we shall undoubtedly suffer for it. And when we suffer for it, we shall be tempted to trim it and to eliminate the elements that provoke opposition. So then, third, and above all, we must guard it against every possible corruption, keeping it pure whatever the cost. Guard it faithfully, spread it actively, suffer for it bravely - that is our threefold duty.[2]

Though given many years ago, this excellent exposition is still worth reading in our day and ministers would benefit by taking time to read these gospel meditations.  At the end of the series, Stott outlines a gospel-centered ministry, from this epistle, as follows :

Guard it--the gospel is a treasure;

Suffer for it--the gospel is an offense to the people;

Continue in it --the gospel is profitable;

Proclaim it - the gospel is good news.[3]

It is a pity that the thing that is most missing in today's Evangelical churches is the biblical gospel. May the Lord foster biblically faithful and gospel-centered ministry in His church.  It is hoped that these expositions would serve as an instrument for this purpose.

2 Timothy 1 : The Charge to Guard the Gospel             Read | Download

2 Timothy 2 : The Charge to Suffer for the Gospel        Read | Download

2 Timothy 3 : The Charge to Continue in the Gospel     Read | Download

2 Timothy 4 : The Charge to Preach the Gospel            Read | Download

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[1]  Guard the Gospel: 2 Timothy 1, Urbana 1967

[2]  Ibid

[3]  Preach the Gospel: 2 Timothy 4, Urbana 1967

What Is the Gospel?

D.A Carson’s contribution to  For the Fame of God’s Name : Essays in Honor of John Piper is a must read essay entitled, “What Is the Gospel?—Revisited”. Carson emphatically defines the gospel as that which God has done for us in Christ Jesus and nothing else.  He says,

The heart of the gospel is what God has done in Jesus, supremely in his death and resurrection. Period. It is not personal testimony about our repentance; it is not a few words about our faith response; it is not obedience; it is not the cultural mandate or any other mandate. Repentance, faith, and obedience are of course essential, and must be rightly related in the light of Scripture, but they are not the good news. The gospel is the good news about what God has done. Because of what God has done in Christ Jesus, the gospel necessarily includes the good that has been secured by Christ and his cross work. Thus it has a present and an eschatological dimension. We announce the gospel. [1]

Read the table of contents of this book, and Carson’s essay here:

Or download the free, 32-page PDF here.

Footnotes

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[1] D.A Carson,  For the Fame of God’s Name  (Crossway, 2010)  pg 162

What Manner of Young Men God Uses To Herald His Gospel

Yea…that we shall see the great Head of the Church once more . . . raise up unto Himself certain young men whom He may use in this glorious employ. And what manner of men will they be? Men mighty in the Scriptures, their lives dominated by a sense of the greatness, the majesty and holiness of God, and their minds and hearts aglow with the great truths of the doctrines of grace. They will be men who have learned what it is to die to self, to human aims and personal ambitions; men who are willing to be ‘fools for Christ’s sake’, who will bear reproach and falsehood, who will labor and suffer, and whose supreme desire will be, not to gain earth’s accolades, but to win the Master’s approbation when they appear before His awesome judgment seat. They will be men who will preach with broken hearts and tear-filled eyes, and upon whose ministries God will grant an extraordinary effusion of the Holy Spirit, and who will witness ‘signs and wonders following’ in the transformation of multitudes of human lives. [1]

Footnotes

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[1]  Arnold Dallimore, George Whitefield, Vol. 1 (London: Banner of Truth Trust, 1970), p.16.

Contending For Truth : Word of Faith Exposé – III

Basilius M. Kasera, an young theologian based in Namibia, has written an excellent booklet called “Heresy Unmasked”, which skillfully unveils the core teachings of the Word of Faith movement. Having been a WoF preacher himself, he is able to take the scriptures that are commonly used to support their heresies and give the true meaning of the verse in context. 

For about 10 years of his life, Kasera was a follower and propagator of WoF teachings, while being involved in key leadership roles in these circles. Kasera currently is a Reformed preacher and works as a lecturer at the Namibia Evangelical Theological Seminary.  He blogs at Reformation Searchlight.

Dealing with such subjects as Positive Confession, Divine Health, Prosperity etc, Kasera shows his readers not only the dangers and source of these doctrines, but brings solid biblical truth to correct such errors. In the booklet, Kasera analyzes ten major doctrines of the WoF movement. They are :

1) God in the WoF movement

2) Jesus Christ in the WoF movement

3) Positive Confessions

4) Divine health

5) Material Prosperity

6) Little gods doctrine

7) Wealth Transfer

8) The wealthy Jesus of WoF movement

9) Prosperity scriptures in light of scriptures

10)  Scripture versus the prosperity gospel

In conclusion, Kasera also has three appendixes where he explains what true saving faith is according to the Bible, whether God has faith, as taught by the WoF preachers and finally on the implications of WoF teachings on theology, ecclesiology and eschatology.

This booklet is a must-read for those currently or previously involved in WoF. These doctrines and practices must be repented of and diligent study must be given to remove such teachings that make up an entirely different gospel.

Heresy Unmasked – Analysis of WoF Doctrines (95 Pgs)   Read | Download

“The Israel of God” According To Paul

When the apostle Paul ends his letter to the Galatians, he pronounces his benediction as follows in Galatians 6:16 “And as many as walk by this rule, peace and mercy be upon them, and upon the Israel of God”.  Who the Israel of God is in this verse,  is the exegetical issue that has generated the most discussion and disagreement among interpreters of the letter. Most in the history of interpretation have argued that Paul uses this phrase with reference to the church, the “true Israel” or “spiritual Israel.” Yet a number of scholars believe this view is very questionable, if not highly unlikely.

The following essay by Christopher W. Cowan, Adjunct Instructor of New Testament Interpretation at Southern Seminary, considers the issues that have contributed to the competing understandings of the verse, looking first to the arguments of those who believe Paul uses “the Israel of God” to speak of ethnic Jews in some sense. Cowan then offers several reasons to justify the traditional interpretation and argue that Paul instead uses the phrase to refer to the church. In the context of Galatians (and the New Testament) it is best to see “the Israel of God” in Gal 6:16 as a reference to the unified people of God consisting of both Jews and Gentiles who have faith in Jesus Christ.

 

Cowan first lists the arguments of Ernest de Witt Burton, Peter Richardson and S. Lewis Johnson, to interpret “the Israel of God” as referring to ethnic Jews and not the church. Burton argues for the illogical order of “peace” and “mercy” in this benediction, compared to other NT benedictions and the lack of any other instance in which Paul uses the term “Israel” except to refer to the Jewish nation. Like Burton, Richardson also builds his case on the illogical order in the benediction, to prove that Paul, while writing this verse, had two groups in mind. Johnson objects to taking the kai (“and”) that follows “mercy” in an explicative or epexegetic sense ( as to mean “namely,” “that is”).

In response to these arguments, Cowan gives  five reasons why he believes the traditional interpretation of this phrase, as referring to church is justified by the context of the letter. His reasons briefly are as follows : 

(1) While it is certainly true that nowhere else in the New Testament do we find the term “Israel” being applied to the church, the concept is ubiquitous.

(2) The context of Galatians justifies understanding “the Israel of God” as designating all believers, Jew and Gentile.

(3) Believing that the church is the “true Israel” and that there is a future salvation for ethnic Israel are not inconsistent propositions.

(4) The infrequency of the epexegtical usage of kai is not sufficient evidence to deny its presence in Galatians 6:16.

(5) The unique construction of Paul’s benediction here and the unique combination of “peace and mercy” would appear to argue against its being a formulaic benediction.

Cowan thus concludes his brief essay, by reminding us the adage that “context is everything” and employing the context as the decisive factor in understanding Paul, he says, Paul identifies the church, those who conform to the new creation in Christ, as the true Israel.

Context Is Everything: “The Israel of God” in Galatians 6:16  Read

Footnotes

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[1]  Christopher W. Cowan, Context Is Everything: “The Israel of God” in Galatians 6:16, SBJT Fall 2010

African Spurgeon Preaching

Conrad Mbewe (pronounced as em-be-way) is the current pastor of Kabwata Baptist Church, a Reformed Church in Lusaka, Zambia. He is widely regarded as the African Spurgeon. KBC is presently overseeing the establishment of ten new Reformed churches in Zambia and Botswana. Conrad is the editor of Reformation Zambia magazine and writes three columns in two weekly national newspapers. His most recent contribution to a book is found in Dear Timothy—Letters on Pastoral Ministry, published by Founders Press. He is also the principal of the Reformed Baptist Preachers College in Zambia. He blogs at A Letter from Kabwata.

Mr. Mbewe isn't sure why listeners compare him to the British "Prince of Preachers." Perhaps it is because Mr. Spurgeon too toiled to the point of collapse, ministering to a congregation of 4,000, delivering sermons 10 times a week, managing an orphanage, and running a preachers' college - all of which culminated in exhaustion and gout. Or perhaps it is because Mr. Mbewe shares Spurgeon's love for writing. Spurgeon edited and wrote for his monthly magazine, The Sword and Trowel; Mr. Mbewe has been writing two columns a week for the last 10 years in the country's Daily Chronicle newspaper. One is a sermon, while the other examines popular social questions and is tailored for the ordinary man, similar to Spurgeon's selection of parables, John Ploughman's Talk. But where the Zambian pastor most resembles Spurgeon is in his challenge to the "mile wide and inch deep" church in Zambia. In 2003 he declined to participate in Operation Sunrise Africa - an evangelical crusade meant to dispense gospel teaching to 50 million people in 50 cities in 50 days in southern and eastern Africa. The cost to sponsor a city for the July and August campaign and three years of follow-up ministry is $160,000. Most of the funding has come from the United States. In Zambia, hundreds of pastors are taking part. "They were so excited about this. My question is, what are they doing that I don't already do? You can't win the world in 50 days. Every generation has to be re-evangelized." This outspokenness in the pulpit and on national television panel discussions has put the spotlight on Mr. Mbewe and his ministry. "People think that he's always serious - a sort of cold-blooded theologian," said Charles Bota, a 29-year friend of Mr. Mbewe, "He's warm. He's funny. He knows a lot about the world."[1]

The comparison to Spurgeon is mainly due to Mbewe's eloquent speech and depth of understanding of the text, combined with the fact that his English (and accent) is closer to that of 1875 England than 21st century American.

What aspects of Mbewe’s style you would appreciate?

a) Expository preaching:  Like all good Reformed preachers, he employs expository preaching alone and is doctrinally rich in all his sermons. 

b)Interaction with the congregation: His excellent use of questioning. Surely this is one way to press the soul of the hearer! A good explainer of the text must know how to question his text and his hearer. He sometimes preaches as if he is  in dialogue with an imaginary objector.

c) Flat out earnestness.

d) Use of questions in application: Rarely would one hear a preacher so relentlessly question his congregation, and to such effect. [2]

Praise God for at least one African nation hearing the true Gospel. One often hears from Africa, nothing but the popularity of prosperity 'gospel' and charismatic excesses.  May the Lord raise such mighty men of Scripture in other nations too, a preacher who uses the pulpit to preach the word alone.

Romans 7:25: Thanks be to God Through Jesus Christ, Our Lord  Download

Footnotes

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[1] Priya Abraham, Conrad Mbewe, World magazine, March 29, 2003

[2] Unashamed Workman,  Conrad Mbewe – 1 John 5:13-15