More on Salvation through Christ Being Part of the True Gospel

I have written on this in the last two posts, but I have something to add.  I want to give an analogy to show that information and details about good news is part of the good news itself.

The true gospel is the good news of the kingdom of God.  The kingdom of God is the family of God ruling the earth and the universe as the government of God.  Christ will return to set up His kingdom on this earth and with the resurrected saints as the family of God will rule the nations of the earth and bring happiness to all mankind.  That is good news.

I have said and maintained that any information and details about that kingdom is part of the good news and therefore part of the true gospel, provided the core teaching of God's kingdom being set up on this earth is included.  Without that core teaching about the kingdom, any information or details about salvation become a false gospel if presented as the gospel.  But with the core teaching of God's kingdom being set up on this earth, information about that kingdom, including how to enter that kingdom through salvation through Christ, becomes part of the good news and is part of the true gospel.

Here is the analogy.

Suppose you have an eighteen year old daughter living in your house.  She is a good driver and has always wanted a car but cannot afford one.  So you say to her, "I have good news.  I am going to give you a car".  

She is overjoyed.

Then you tell her some specifics.  "I have already purchased the car and it will be delivered sometime next week.  You like convertibles, so I got you a Cadillac convertible.  It is brand new.  I know red is your favorite color, so I ordered a red convertible.  Also, since you do not have a lot of money, I am paying for the insurance and gas for a full year".  You also tell her about all the features and accessories of the car.

Are those details not part of the good news that you are giving your daughter a car?  Of course they are.  They enhance the good news and are part of the good news.  Your daughter is happy she is getting a car - any car - but she is delighted that it is new, a convertible, and her favorite color, red.  She is even more happy when you tell her you are paying for the gas and insurance.  All of that is part of the good news.

But without the core message that she is getting a car, what good are the details?  Telling her you are giving her something red is not good news - it could be an apple!  It could be a radish and she doesn't like radishes.

Likewise, the main part of the true gospel is that God will set up His kingdom on the earth that will bring happiness to the earth.  For the establishment and the authority of that kingdom see Daniel 2:37-45.  For the happiness that will exist all over the earth, see Isaiah 2:2-4, Isaiah 25:6-8, Isaiah 11:6-9, Isaiah 35:5-7, Psalm 98:4-9, and many other passages you can find in the Old Testament.  With that as the core and focus of the message, all the details and information about that kingdom - how to enter that ruling family of God through salvation made possible by Christ's sacrifice, the law of God that will be practiced in the kingdom, the happiness that will spread all over the earth - all that becomes part of the good news of that kingdom and part of the true gospel.

Paul and others often focused on the sacrifice of Christ and salvation through Christ because the Jews and God-fearing Gentiles already knew about the government aspect and other aspects of the kingdom of God from the Old Testament.

They knew that God would set up a kingdom to rule this earth from the account in Daniel about Nebuchadnezzar's dream.  They knew that the earth would be full of the knowledge of the LORD as the oceans are full of water (Isaiah 11:9).  They knew that men would beat the swords into plowshares and would learn war no more (Isaiah 2:4). They knew that the wolf would dwell with the lamb and the lion would eat straw like the ox and no one would hurt or destroy (Isaiah 11:6-9).  They knew of the happiness that people all over the earth would enjoy because of God's rule.  Paul must have reminded them of those things from time to time, no doubt, but he concentrated on the parts they did not know - the sacrifice of Christ and salvation through Christ.  And the things he taught them about Christ and salvation through faith, not works, were definitely part of the true gospel because they included the good news of how men could be forgiven and enter that kingdom.

For someone to say that the kingdom is good news but information about that kingdom and why and how it will be happy is not part of the good news is, frankly, a little bit nuts.

Common sense should tell you that if something is good news, details and information about that thing is also part of the good news.

Now, this raises a question.  What should the Church of God focus on in preaching the true gospel?  What should we spend most of our time and money on, salvation through Christ or the family of God ruling the earth?

That is not a matter of doctrine but of policy.  What should our policy be?  How should we do the work?  How should we organize and present our material?

That is a judgment call the leaders and ministers of the Church must make.

I will offer my thoughts on that.

In Paul's day, most people knew about the government aspect of God's kingdom ruling the earth, but they didn't know about Christ.  Today, it is the opposite.  Most people in our western nations who believe in God know teachings about Christ but not about the government of God ruling the earth.

Paul often concentrated his teaching on Christ because that was the part they did not know.  Today, we can concentrate on God having a family and ruling the earth as the government of God because that is the part most people do not know.

Yet, there may be occasions when it is best and most effective to lead with the truth about salvation through Christ.  This would be for the purpose of establishing common ground with our audience.  You first talk about what you agree about, then from there lead your readers and listeners to new knowledge they do not have.  Paul sometimes used this approach.  "For though I am free from all men, I have made myself a servant to all, that I might win the more; and to the Jews I became as a Jew, that I might win Jews; to those who are under the law, as under the law, that I might win those who are under the law; to those who are without law, as without law (not being without law toward God, but under law toward Christ), that I might win those who are without law; to the weak I became as weak, that I might win the weak. I have become all things to all men, that I might by all means save some" (1 Corinthians 9:19-22).  Also see Acts 17:22-23.

When to use what approach is a judgment call, but neither approach is wrong when used under the right circumstances.  It is all God's truth.


A word about Jason Fritts.  So far, I have not yet heard or read any information about what he is doing.  He may be very busy getting organized and setting things up.

But it occurred to me that he is better prepared to raise up a new fellowship than most leaders who have done so.  

He is young, energetic, and intelligent.  He has had recent experience working closely with Mr. Sheldon Monson setting up Church of God Assembly when that group came out of Living Church of God.  So he must know how these things work.  He probably has a todo list built into his brain with "how to" instructions for each item.  Most leaders who set up a new group were doing it for the first time.  This is a second time for him.  He has that advantage.

We will see.