The Dangers of a Distorted Gospel

It is through the Spirit by faith that we eagerly await the hoped-for righteousness.

We're not trying to earn it, we're waiting for it. And in our sanctification the Lord gives it to us as a grace gift, and one day in our glorification He'll give it to us perfectly. Welcome to Grace to You with John MacArthur.

I'm your host, Phil Johnson. You don't have to be an art expert to know that you just don't add anything to a masterpiece. And to be sure, it would be crazy to try to add texture to Van Gogh's Starry Night, or to dab some extra details on da Vinci's Mona Lisa. Yet some people make an infinitely more tragic mistake when they try to add to the masterpiece of the gospel, thinking they need to add their own good deeds to Christ's work of redemption for sinners. That is a dangerous error, to put it lightly. Learn how you can avoid that error today as John MacArthur brings you a message we've never aired before, titled The Dangers of a Distorted Gospel. It's an appropriate follow-up to the study John just concluded yesterday, called What Must I Do to Be Saved?

And with today's lesson now, here's John. Galatians chapter 5, starting at verse 1, it was for freedom that Christ set us free. Therefore, keep standing firm and do not be subject again to a yoke of slavery. Behold, I Paul, say to you that if you receive circumcision, Christ will be of no benefit to you. And I testify again to every man who receives circumcision that he is under obligation to keep the whole law. You have been severed from Christ, you who are seeking to be justified by law.

You have fallen from grace. For we through the Spirit by faith are waiting for the hope of righteousness. For in Christ Jesus neither circumcision nor uncircumcision means anything, but faith working through love. Now we all understand the message of this wonderful polemical book. It is a polemical book in the sense that it's a defense of the truth against the assaults of error. The apostle Paul had gone into the region of Galatia and he had preached the gospel, and the gospel is that salvation comes by faith alone apart from works. No sinner can contribute anything to his or her salvation.

It's all a work of God. All the sinner does is reach out an empty hand to receive a gift by faith. The gospel of grace, the gospel of faith was the true gospel. And Paul said any other gospel is to be damned, cursed.

Only the gospel of salvation by grace alone through faith alone in Christ. If you'll look at chapter 5, just run along to verse 5, he starts to talk, we through the Spirit. That's his first mention of the Spirit here. Down to verse 16, walk by the Spirit. To verse 17 it talks about the flesh setting its desire against the Spirit, the Spirit against the flesh. Verse 18 talks about being led by the Spirit. Verse 22 talks about the fruit of the Spirit. Verse 25, live by the Spirit, walk by the Spirit. We could say this is the Spirit's chapter. And the reason he addresses this is because this is the evidence of a justified soul, the work of the Spirit. And that he referred to back in chapter 3, verse 3, when he said, having begun in the Spirit, do you think you're now perfected by the flesh?

If you go back, essentially you're turning your back on the Spirit and pursuing the flesh. This then becomes a very practical, practical set of proofs for the doctrine of justification by faith. It is evidenced by the work of the Holy Spirit in the life of believers. Now verse 1 begins with a very strong statement. It was for freedom that Christ set us free. The implication is He set us free to stay free. He set us free to remain free. Therefore, keep standing firm, and do not be subject again to a yoke of slavery. You just got out of one slavery as a Gentile, you got out of the slavery to sin, and the law, and death, and Satan. Don't go back again to a yoke of slavery. Keep standing firm in your freedom. Now just a footnote at this point, and I want to address it because I think it's so very important.

We talked about this antinomian idea. This is a view of the Christian life that says you don't have to pay any attention to the law of God. Now that you're a saved person, all your sins are forgiven, so what you do is already cared for and covered. And by the way, Christ lived a sinless life that has been basically attributed to your account.

It has been imputed to you. Christ's perfect life has been credited to you as if you lived it. You're forgiven of all your sins, and His life is now in place of your life, so don't worry about what you do. We're free, we're under grace.

You don't need to live under some kind of burden of duty and responsibility and obedience. This is a very, very popular idea, particularly in the superficial kind of Christianity that we have today where people want Jesus in their life to give them what they want, but they don't want to change their life. It's great to be able to say, hey, take Jesus, and He'll apply His life to yours.

Don't worry about what you do, and He'll forgive all your sins. That antinomianism is far from what Scripture teaches, and here's a good illustration of it. The first statement, it was for freedom that Christ set us free, and what follows immediately is a command, therefore and a very strong command, keep standing firm, do not be subject again to a yoke of slavery. Immediately after saying, for freedom Christ set us free, He gives them a strong command.

No believer is out from under the commands that are laid out for us in the Word of God. Yes, for freedom Christ has set us free, but that does not mean we have no obligation to God to honor Him and obey His moral and spiritual commands. Our former life as Gentiles was under the slavery of sin, and we might not have known it, but under the slavery of the law of God.

Even though we didn't know the law of God as pagans, the Galatians could say it was God's law, God's moral law was in action, and it would be based on that law that we would all be damned. And along came the gospel, and Jesus Christ was our liberator, and Jesus Christ in an act of emancipation set us free from our bondage to sin and the law and death. And now we are free. Paul says you need to remain free. What kind of freedom is it? Well, it's freedom from the burden of sin, freedom from relentless guilt, freedom from an accusing conscience, freedom from the tyranny of our transgressions, freedom from the terrible pressure and frustration of trying to be something other than you can be, freedom from, in a word, sin's dominance.

You've been set free, set free, and now don't go back into some kind of bondage. There is no excuse for anyone to come up with the idea that now that you're a Christian you're not responsible for anything, you're free to do whatever you want, free to sin, not at all. For the first time you're free to do the right thing, and you're empowered to do the right thing, and you're taught to do the right thing. So freedom is not just deliverance from the oppression of legalism or the law or sin. It is the endowment of the power and presence of the Holy Spirit so that you can do the right thing. And since you have been transformed, you desire to do the right thing. If somebody comes along and says to you, you know, I'm free to do whatever I want, if they say, well, I'm a Christian, but I'm not under law, I'm not under any obligation, I'm not going to live my life by law and duty and responsibility, I'm free.

If they tell you that, you have every right to question their Christianity, because sanctification is not an option, it is a work of God. Just as much as He elected us, justified us, and will glorify us, He is sanctifying us, and all of that sanctifying instruction and discipline and correction and punishment is going on internally by the Holy Spirit. Freedom then is now an enabling to walk in the Spirit, to live in the Spirit, to see the fruit of the Spirit produced, to live with joy and gratitude, doing the will of God from the heart. Not a freedom to sin, it's a freedom to do what is right.

So I just want to make clear that point again in this text. Now let's go back to verse 1. It was for freedom that Christ set us free. He did it, He set us free, not on our merits, not on our accomplishments or our works. He did it.

How did He do it? Back in chapter 3, verse 13, He was made a curse for us. He did it by taking our place and receiving the divine curse that we deserved. By becoming a curse, He set us free.

The price was that high. Christ had to become a curse to set us free. Please, don't go back into what He died to deliver you from. For freedom, Christ set us free. It is ridiculous to imagine that you walked out of the prison, the Lord having opened the gate, only to make a right turn and go back into another one.

Do not be subject again to a yoke of slavery. He set you free. And John 8, 36 says, whom the Son sets free, He shall be free indeed. He's really free, no longer under the penalty of the law, no longer under the full tyranny of the law, and one day free from even the presence of sin. The Galatians are already sons, not slaves.

They're already free. They don't need to go back into bondage. Gentiles going back to Mosaic law they never even knew about because they needed to work some part of their salvation on their own. In swinging back to the externals of the law of Moses, they would be nullifying the work of God. Therefore, keep standing firm, do not be entangled in echo or oppressed by a yoke of slavery.

Don't go back. Now there was a lot of effort going on. Turn to Acts 15 for just a moment, remind you of it. A lot of effort going on by Jews who claimed to be Christians who were going around to Gentile congregations and telling them they had to become Jews first, they had to become proselytes, they had to affirm circumcision and the keeping of all the restrictions and rituals of the Mosaic law that God gave to Israel. And it got to such a point that there was a council meeting in Jerusalem among the leaders of the church. And in Acts 15, 1, here's the beginning, some men came down from Judea and began teaching the brethren, unless you are circumcised according to the custom of Moses, you cannot be saved.

Down in verse 5, they were of the sect of the Pharisees, and they stood up in that meeting in Jerusalem and said it's necessary to circumcise them and direct them to observe the laws of Moses. And then down in verse 10, the question is asked, now therefore why do you put God to the test by placing upon the neck of the disciples a yoke which neither our fathers nor we have been able to bear? But we believe that we are saved through grace, the grace of the Lord Jesus, in the same way as they also are." It's grace, it's faith. Why are you putting this yoke of slavery on their necks? They had been saved out of paganism.

They didn't need external Judaism to qualify for justification. Now I want you to notice something carefully. I want you to notice the pronoun as it appears here. You'll see the word you a couple of times in verse 2. You'll see it again in verse 4 a couple of times.

This is very important. Paul is talking to someone, you, someone in a group that he's not a part of, because in verse 5 he begins for we. It's very important that you see that distinction.

Here's what's happening. There are people in this Gentile congregation who on the surface have become a part, have come to understand the gospel, have to some degree accepted the truthfulness of it. But they are in danger of coming to the brink of salvation and turning away and heading in the direction of law. Some of them had already made some moves back in chapter 4 and verse 10. Paul says to them, you observe days and months and seasons and years. Some of you are already caught up in the Mosaic feasts and the Mosaic Sabbaths.

You're going that direction. And this is a warning passage, severe warning passage. In verses 1 to 6 he warns them about the danger of false doctrine. In verses 7 to 12 he warns them about the danger of false teachers. Let's just look at the false doctrine. The false doctrine said you have to be circumcised or you can't be saved.

It's a small thing. Just acknowledge a minor surgical operation. This will open the door to the kingdom of God for you. And then follow the Mosaic prescriptions.

Faith is not enough. Mosaic ritual, circumcision has righteous merit. So Paul says this, if you do this, you who are contemplating it, if you do this, here are the results. Number 1, verse 2, Behold, I, Paul, say to you that if you receive circumcision, Christ will be of no benefit to you. That is a stunning statement. That's why it says behold, because it's shocking.

Behold is an exclamation. I, Paul, I, an apostle, and more than that, a circumcised Jew, proud of my heritage, proud of my Judaism, living my entire life under the Mosaic restrictions. I, Paul, this Jewish patriot, I'm telling you, if you receive circumcision, Christ is of no benefit to you.

This is the dilemma. It's Christ or works. It's all Christ or no Christ. It's all faith or no salvation.

If you get yourselves circumcised, and this indicates that they hadn't yet gone this far. If you do this, if you've come to the brink of salvation by faith, and you turn and go the way of law, Christ is of no benefit. You've canceled Christ. This is a severe danger.

This is a shocking statement. Many Jews had some affirmation of Christ, but it was Christ plus their religion, Christ plus their circumcision, their Mosaic obedience, and they rendered Christ useless. Second effect, verse 3, and I testify again, me, the circumcised lifelong Pharisee until my conversion.

I lived in all this. I testify again to every man who receives circumcision. If you do that, you have placed yourself under obligation to keep the whole law.

I testify again, martyrimai, I affirm, literally could be translated, I protest further. Every one of you who lets himself be circumcised, you have just placed yourself under the law. If you're going to be saved by law, then you're responsible to keep all of it.

What does it say? Back in Galatians chapter 3, verse 10, as many as are of the works of the law are under a curse, for it is written, cursed is everyone who doesn't abide by all things written in the book of the law to perform them. In James 2, 10, whoever shall keep the whole law and offend in one point is guilty of all.

So if you're going back under the law, you have to keep the law perfectly, and you've already been disqualified because you've lived as long as you have without doing that, and you'll continue to live that way. False doctrine renders Christ prophetless and puts you under the bondage to the whole legal system. Then this shocking statement in verse 4, you have been severed from Christ.

That is just amazing. You say, well, can't you believe some in your baptism and your works and the things that you do, the rituals that you go to, and your morality, and also believe in Christ? No, no. If you're counting on any of that for your salvation, you are severed from Christ. That is a violent word, a violent word. You are cut off from Him. When you get to the brink of considering whether you're going to believe and receive Christ by faith or go the way of works, understand this, turn your back on Christ and you're severed from Him. He is speaking of interested but unconverted folks.

That's why He calls them you. There's no middle ground here. It's all of Christ or none of Christ, all of Him, none of us. But that's not all.

There's another effect. If you go the way of hybrid religion, Christ has no benefit to you. You're a debtor to the whole law. You are fallen from grace. You are severed from Christ. You have literally fallen from grace. You've fallen out of the category of grace. You stood on the platform, you looked at salvation by grace.

You turned your back, you went the other way. You've fallen from grace, and those are the words essentially used in Hebrews 6. If you try to invent any hybrid gospel, Christ profits you nothing. You're a debtor to the whole law. You're severed from Christ. You're fallen from grace. And a final, verse 5, you're excluded from righteousness. The very thing you seek will never be yours, verse 5.

Notice the change in pronouns, for we, we. Now He's speaking of believers, including Himself. For we, through the Spirit by faith, are waiting for the whole hope of righteousness. We have to wait for the hope of righteousness, because it's a gift from God. We, literally as to ourselves, it is through the Spirit by faith that we eagerly await the hope for righteousness.

We're not trying to earn it, we're waiting for it. And in our sanctification the Lord gives it to us as a grace gift, and one day in our glorification He'll give it to us perfectly. We, through the Spirit by faith, are waiting.

I love the fact that He used the verb waiting. This is something God has to do for us and in us, and is doing it by His Holy Spirit. If you follow the path of any works, you have lost the very thing you hoped for, righteousness. It comes only by waiting in faith on the work of the Holy Spirit. Conclusion, verse 6, in Christ Jesus, neither circumcision nor uncircumcision means anything, but faith working through love.

That's all that matters. The whole law is fulfilled by faith and love, believing God, loving God. It's all gone internal.

It's all gone inside. It's faith working through love. Our hearts are literally drawn to God in trust. That's what faith is. We live trusting God, and we live loving God, and as a result loving those around us as well. Christians wait in faith and love.

Walk in the Spirit and let Him do the work. This is Grace to You with John MacArthur, chancellor of the Masters University and Seminary. The title of today's lesson, The Dangers of a Distorted Gospel. Now, as we saw from Galatians chapter 5, adding works to the gospel of grace alone by faith alone is a gross corruption of the gospel. But John, I know there are other errors related to the gospel that have long concerned you, and one of the most egregious errors is when churches become more concerned about getting people into their buildings than they are about keeping the biblical gospel at center stage. That is no small matter.

No, it is no small matter. And when I think about trying to accommodate non-believers and make them feel comfortable, this is devastating. This is devastating to a church. This really can cancel out the evangelistic power completely, because the message of the gospel is offensive. It is offensive. And if you're trying to make people think it's not offensive, and you strip it of its truthfulness and the call to repentance and submission to Christ in taking up your cross and following Him in obedience, if you strip it of those kinds of things, you have, as you said, and as Paul said, created a false gospel. And any other than the true gospel is cursed. So this is a very serious, serious issue, and it's still common for, quote-unquote, churches and ministries to try to make the gospel so winsome, so easy, so simple, so welcoming, that there's nothing offensive about it. They create an environment that wants to seduce people into doing something that appears to be really easy.

And why do they do that? I wrote this book years ago called Ashamed of the Gospel, and that's why they do it. Being ashamed of the gospel is behind this movement to strip the hard part of the gospel away.

It's a matter of shame. The chapters in the book are Christianity on the Downgrade, the User-Friendly Church, the Priority of Godly Leadership, Gimme That, Showtime Religion, and the Foolishness of God. It's about 250 pages. The title, Ashamed of the Gospel, you will read that book, and you'll say, this is exactly what's happening in evangelicalism today. I know it will arm you to be faithful to the gospel and allow you to instruct others in the very same thing. Again, the title, Ashamed of the Gospel, Reasonably Christ, really important book. You can order it from grace to you.

Thanks, Jon. And yes, friend, this is a really important book. For in-depth teaching on what the gospel is and how to avoid dangerous biblical compromise, pick up a copy of Ashamed of the Gospel when you contact us today.

You can call us at 800-55-GRACE or go online at gty.org. Ashamed of the Gospel costs $15, and shipping is free. This book has had an important ministry for many years, and the issues it looks at are as timely today as ever. Order Ashamed of the Gospel when you call 800-55-GRACE or go to gty.org. And remember, you can review today's lesson called The Dangers of a Distorted Gospel when you visit our website, gty.org. You can also listen to all of the messages from Jon's recent study titled, What Must I Do to Be Saved? In fact, you can download all of Jon's 3,600 sermons free of charge in both MP3 and transcript format.

Take advantage of all that's available to you at gty.org. Now for Jon MacArthur, I'm Phil Johnson. Remember to watch Grace to You television this Sunday on DirecTV channel 378, or you can watch any time at gty.org. And then be here Monday when Jon kicks off the most responded-to study in the history of this ministry. Don't miss Jon's classic study, The Fulfilled Family. It's another 30 minutes of unleashing God's truth one verse at a time, on Grace to You.