The Time After Jacob's Trouble, Part 3

What Is The True “Gospel”—Really?

Part 2, It Is Imperative That We Get This Right!

Chapter 18, Part 2 Preview: (Back to part 1) Is the gospel message strictly the announcement that God is going to set up His earthly kingdom? Jesus commissioned His followers to preach the gospel, so it is imperative that we understand exactly what it is! Also, if the Saints (off site) must reach the whole world before the “end”, then why did Jesus say that “you will not have gone through the cities of Israel before the Son of Man comes” (Matthew 10:23). Is this a contradiction? Has the “Church” (off site) missed it’s mission? Could “the gospel of Christ [include] SALVATION for everyone who believes”? (Romans 1:16) This chapter primarily debunks some highly exclusivist misconceptions, still being promoted by scores of splinter groups spun off of the Worldwide Church of God.

Another quote:

If those who claim to preach a gospel of SALVATION understood and proclaimed WHAT salvation really is—whether it is going to a PLACE, being changed into a different CONDITION, or WHAT—Or WHERE—and HOW it may be obtained, it might be a part of the true gospel. But today’s ‘gospel’ programs do not teach what salvation really is or how one may receive it. When the blind lead the blind, they all fall into the ditch. [16] (Boldness ours)

Notice carefully this admission: “a ‘gospel’ of SALVATION ... might be a part of the true gospel.” HWA appeared to have a momentary doubt that his ‘salvation-less ‘gospel’, yet without stopping to take a breath, he was back to his “just a messenger” message.

More quotes:

I say Christ’s gospel—the message He brought from God—was the advance good news of the establishment of the Kingdom of God. But just what does that include? And why is the Kingdom of God necessary? Just how does it affect and relate directly to your personal and individual life? [18]

... and at the awesome transcendent potential of each human life. It is concerned with the CAUSES of present conditions that affect every human and with the WAY that will solve all problems. But it is concerned with far, far more. It is concerned with God’s tremendous, overwhelming, over-all purpose as Creator of the entire universe. It’s concerned with the entire vast universe, filled with its uncountable galaxies, nebulae, suns, stars, planets, and with God’s purpose for them. It’s concerned with all the angels—with the fact that one third of all God’s created angels turned to SIN from which there can be no redemption, and God’s great purpose and plan to prevent such a catastrophe happening to the other two thirds. [18]

Most of these things are never remotely considered in religious teachings in this world. God’s message is concerned with overall truth. [19]

What has been covered so far should be considered as merely the introduction to the entire story of Christ’s gospel message. [19]

This explanation of the “gospel” covers an extremely broad number of things but of course excludes SALVATION itself!

More Quotations from Mystery of the Ages

“MYSTERY OF THE KINGDOM OF GOD”

Why do the churches disagree on what actually is ‘the gospel of Jesus Christ’? During the first twenty or thirty years after the founding of the Church in A.D.31 a violent controversy arose over the very question of what is ‘the gospel of Jesus Christ.’ There ensued a hundred years in which all history of the New Testament Church was destroyed. It has been called ‘the lost century of Church history.’ When the curtain lifted, about the middle of the second century, there appeared an entirely different type of church calling itself Christian, but in the main preaching its own gospel ABOUT Christ, not the ‘gospel’ OF Christ. The gospel OF Christ was the gospel Christ proclaimed. Jesus was a Messenger sent from God with a message, and that message was THE KINGDOM OF GOD. Christ’s message was Christ’s ‘gospel’—the ‘gospel’ OF Christ. It had not been proclaimed to the world until the first week in 1953, when for the first time in about 1,900 years—a century of time cycles—it went out on the world’s most powerful radio station. Radio Luxembourg in Europe. [293-294]

Actually, I doubt that there is a lot of disagreement over what “the gospel” means among all other Christian professing churches. It is true that at least the vast majority of Protestant churches exclude the message about the Kingdom of God. Certainly no other church would be of the same opinion that the “gospel” means exclusively “the good news of the coming Kingdom of God.”

More quotes:

It seems that today all churches have lost the gospel of Jesus Christ. They preach primarily their ‘gospel’ ABOUT Jesus Christ. [294]

Jesus Christ came preaching the gospel of the kingdom of God. Yet few preach about the kingdom of God today, for they have lost all knowledge of what it is! But does any, except God’s true Church, proclaim the true ‘gospel’ of the kingdom of God today? [294]

A prominent evangelist said to a worldwide radio audience that the gospel of the kingdom of God is not for us today. Some denominations proclaim a “gospel of grace” [Acts 20:24], some what they call a “gospel of salvation” [Rom.1:16]; most a gospel about Christ; some a social gospel; some the “Science of Mind” or “Religious Science.” [294]

“The truth is not merely surprising—it is shocking—staggering! It is a Great Mystery! Yet it is truly GOOD NEWS—the most glorious GOOD NEWS ever to enter human consciousness!” [295]

Why, then, do so many DARE to preach so many other gospels? The good news of THE KINGDOM OF GOD is something you must understand, and BELIEVE, in order to be saved! Jesus Christ said so! You had better be finding out what it is! [296]

Herbert Armstrong had no qualms about teaching that he was the only person to come along in 1900 years and explain to the “world” what the “gospel” actually was. And if the “good news” were only the single truth about the coming Kingdom of God then how would he have explained away the fact that the Jehovah’s Witnesses have pounded on virtually every door in the world repeatedly with that same understanding?

While I CERTAINLY DO NOT ENDORSE the Jehovah’s Witnesses (or any other sect), there is plenty of evidence to prove that they do understand what the Kingdom of God is. They have been making this information available since before HWA was born. Here is a prime example of this truth as “witnessed” to by the following information from their web site. To say that this portion of Jesus’ message had not been available for 1900 years, until HWA revealed it over the radio, is simply not the plain truth.

“Live Forever on a Paradise Earth” (from watchtower.org)

“What will life be like when God removes wickedness and suffering from the earth and ushers in his new world under the loving control of his heavenly Kingdom? God promises to ‘open his hand and satisfy the desire of every living thing.’- Psalm 145:16.

What are your legitimate desires? Are they not for a happy life, worthwhile work, material abundance, beautiful surroundings, peace among all peoples, and freedom from injustice, sickness, suffering, and death? And what about a joyful spiritual outlook? All those things will be realized soon under the rulership of God’s Kingdom. Note what Bible prophecies say of the wonderful blessings to come in that new world.

Mankind at Perfect Peace

“[God] is making wars to cease to the extremity of the earth. The bow he breaks apart and does cut the spear in pieces; the [war] wagons he burns in the fire.” —Psalm 46:9.

“They will have to beat their swords into plowshares and their spears into pruning shears. Nation will not lift up sword against nation, neither will they learn war anymore.” —Isaiah 2:4.

“The meek ones themselves will possess the earth, and they will indeed find their exquisite delight in the abundance of peace.” —Psalm 37:11.

“The whole earth has come to rest, has become free of disturbance. People have become cheerful with joyful cries.” —Isaiah 14:7.

Man and Animals at Peace

“The wolf will actually reside for a while with the male lamb, and with the kid the leopard itself will lie down, and the calf and the maned young lion and the well-fed animal all together; and a mere little boy will be leader over them. And the cow and the bear themselves will feed; together their young ones will lie down. And even the lion will eat straw just like the bull. And the sucking child will certainly play upon the hole of the cobra; and upon the light aperture of a poisonous snake will a weaned child actually put his own hand. They will not do any harm or cause any ruin.” —Isaiah 11:6-9.

“For them I shall certainly conclude a covenant in that day in connection with the wild beast of the field and with the flying creature of the heavens and the creeping thing of the ground…I will make them lie down in security.” —Hosea 2:18.

Perfect Health, Everlasting Life

“At that time the eyes of the blind ones will be opened, and the very ears of the deaf ones will be unstopped. At that time the lame one will climb up just as a stag does, and the tongue of the speechless one will cry out in gladness.” - Isaiah 35:5-6.

“[God] will wipe out every tear from their eyes, and death will be no more, neither will mourning nor outcry nor pain be anymore.” -Revelation 21:4.

“No resident will say: ’I am sick.’” —Isaiah 33:24.

“Let his flesh become fresher than in youth; let him return to the days of his youthful vigor.” —Job 33:25.

“The gift God gives is everlasting life by Christ Jesus our Lord.” —Romans 6:23.

“Everyone exercising faith in him [will] ... have everlasting life.” —John 3:16.

The Dead Restored to Life

“There is going to be a resurrection of both the righteous and the unrighteous.” —Acts 24:15.

“The hour is coming in which all those in the memorial tombs [God’s memory] will hear his voice and come out.” —John 5:28, 29.

“The sea gave up those dead in it, and death and Hades [the grave] gave up those dead in them.” —Revelation 20:13.

Earth, a Paradise of Plenty

“Pouring rains of blessing there will prove to be. And the tree of the field must give its fruitage, and the land itself will give its yield, and they will actually prove to be on their soil in security.” —Ezekiel 34:26, 27.

“The earth itself will certainly give its produce; God, our God, will bless us.” —Psalm 67:6.

“The wilderness and the waterless region will exult, and the desert plain will be joyful and blossom as the saffron.” — Isaiah 35:1.

“The mountains and the hills themselves will become cheerful before you with a joyful outcry, and the very trees of the field will all clap their hands. Instead of the thicket of thorns the juniper tree will come up. Instead of the stinging nettle the myrtle tree will come up.” —Isaiah 55:12, 13.

“You will be with me in Paradise.” —Luke 23:43.

I will stop quoting their information at this point. While the scriptural passages do sound a bit unusual coming from their unique version of the Bible, the ideas are nevertheless unmistakably the same things that we ‘old timers’ heard HWA proclaim for decades. They claim that they have already preached the “gospel” of the Kingdom to the whole world, and indeed they appear to have spread that portion of truth, but they have not preached “the whole counsel of God” to anyone. In particular, they dont understand the minimum requirement for obtaining salvation, which is made plain in my Statement of Beliefs. You cannot have a loaf of bread if you forget the flour or the water. All of the ingredients must be present or the “bread” will be a flop.

CONCLUSION: THE NEXT BIG THING

Who then is preaching “the whole counsel of God” TO “all the world” now? Actually, no group is exhibiting the signs and gifts that must accompany the message. Yet John said:

John 14:12 “... he who believes in Me, the works that I do he will do also; and greater works than these he will do, because I go to My Father.”

Christians are anxiously awaiting the day when God begins to bestow these miraculous works on true disciples. Until then, we should try to learn as much as we can about true doctrine. Numerous teachings have been seriously misunderstood. Perhaps God is waiting for us to figure out what we lack. Have we really believed “the whole truth and nothing but the truth”

True Christians are those who keep the Commandments of God and have a basic understanding of the testimony of Jesus the Christ—which is everything that He said—with a focus on the end of the story—our part in the prophecied Kingdom!

Revelation 12:17 And the dragon was enraged with the woman, and he went to make war with the rest of her offspring, who keep the commandments of God and have the testimony of Jesus Christ.

Revelation 19:10 For the testimony of Jesus is the spirit of prophecy.

The most fundamental prophecy in the Bible concerns the Kingdom of God being set up on earth! The “gospel” tells us how we can be in it!

Matthew 9:35 Then Jesus went about all the cities and villages, teaching in their synagogues, preaching the gospel of the kingdom, and healing every sickness and every disease among the people.

The Kingdom of God—on earth—is the reward of the saved!

When the Two Witnesses come, will they preach the “good news” to the whole world? Carefully notice who is “measured” just before their arrival, and who is “left out”:

Revelation 11:1 Then I [John] was given a reed like a measuring rod. And the angel stood, saying, ‘Rise and measure the temple of God, the altar, and those who worship there. 2 But leave out the court which is outside the temple, and do not measure it, for it has been given to the “gentiles” . And they will tread the holy city underfoot for forty-two months. 3 And I will give power to my two witnesses, and they will prophesy one thousand two hundred and sixty days, clothed in sackcloth.

There is no reason to believe that the Two Witnesses ever appeal to the so-called “gentile” nations. The rebuilding of the third temple will “leave out the ... gentiles” , at least the unconverted ones.

Zechariah 6:12-15 ... and speak to him, saying, ‘Thus says [Yehovah’] of Armies, “Behold, the man whose name is the Branch: and He shall grow up out of his place; and he shall build the temple of [Yehovah]; 13 even he shall build the temple of [Yehovah]; and he shall bear the glory, and shall sit and rule on his throne; and he shall be a priest on his throne; and the counsel of peace shall be between them both. 14 The crowns shall be to Helem, and to Tobijah, and to Jedaiah, and to Hen the son of Zephaniah, for a memorial in the temple of [Yehovah]. 15 Those who are far off shall come and build in the temple of [Yehovah]; and you shall know that [Yehovah] of Armies has sent me to you. This will happen, if you will diligently obey the voice of [Yehovah] your God. WEB

Malachi 3:1-2 Behold, I send My messenger, and He will prepare the way before Me; and the Lord, whom you seek, will suddenly come to His temple; and the messenger of the covenant, whom you desire, behold, He comes!” says [Yehovah] of Armies. 2 “But who can endure the day of His coming? And who will stand when He appears? For he is like a refiner’s fire, and like launderer’s soap.... WEB

Here is something that the Two Witnesses will do—they will restore a literal temple for the MESSENGER of the covenant to return to, but not without problems!

Daniel 9:27 Then he [the beast] shall confirm a covenant with many for one week; but in the middle of the week He shall bring an end to sacrifice and offering [in the temple]. And on the wing of abominations shall be one who makes desolate, even until the consummation, which is determined, is poured out on the desolate.

This “middle of the week” scripture is about the Abomination of Desolation ending sacrifices in God’s own temple (not a Jewish temple!). It is not a reference to Jesus’ Wednesday death. Compare this with the following complementary passage:

Daniel 11:31 And forces shall be mustered by him, and THEY shall defile the sanctuary fortress; then THEY shall take away the daily sacrifices, AND place there the abomination of desolation.

I believe that the time frame of this is in the first half of the last seven year “week” or in other words, the first three and a half years of a seven year span. The second three and one half year period appears to be when The Time of Jacob’s Trouble occurs.

Do not spiritualize the “temple” scriptures into meaning “church”. Frequently analogies are drawn between the temple and the church, but these analogies do not nullify the physical fulfillments of end time prophecy!

God is seeking out individuals today, not entire nations, as He soon will.

Who will evangelize “all the world”

God is seeking out individuals today, not entire nations, as He soon will. Presently our small efforts will not have even spread the actual “good news” to all of even the cities of Israel before the return of Jesus! If we cant do it now, then how would we reach the world as we are fleeing our own cities?

Matthew 10:23 When they persecute you in this city, flee to another. For assuredly, I say to you, you will not have gone through the cities of Israel before the Son of Man comes.

With this limitation firmly in mind carefully consider that the following passage must NOT even suggest that the Assembly of God will preach the good news to “all the nations”! This is not the “Great Commission” or even a suggested goal for the Saints because Jesus plainly stated that we would not even teach all of Israel.

Matthew 24: 14-16 And this “gospel” of the kingdom will be preached in all the world as a witness to all the nations, and then the end will come. 15 Therefore when you see the ‘abomination of desolation,’ spoken of by Daniel the prophet, standing in the holy place [always a reference to the temple] (whoever reads, let him understand), 16 then let those who are in Judea flee to the mountains.

So what is that great benchmark in time for “all the nations”. We’ll look at two explanations, but first what should we do?

Our impact will be small scale—not reaching the billions.

The actual message that Jesus was killed for delivering is being taught IN “all the world” now, but it is being taught “here a little, there a little” so to speak, but not as the fulfillment of an end-time sign. God is exposing specific individuals, whom He is drawing, to His truth! God has His commandment keeping people sprinkled like salt all over the earth so that when He wants to get someone’s attention, Christians will be there to guide these babes in Christ.

But the true good news will go out to the entire population “who dwell on the earth” by an entirely different means! The “good news” of God will not be revealed to the world until an angel is commanded to preach it! Your financial contributions wont have a thing to do with that.

Revelation 14:6 Then I saw another ANGEL flying in the midst of heaven, having the everlasting ‘gospel’ to preach to those who dwell on the earth—to every nation, tribe, tongue, and people....

Why is it termed “the everlasting gospel”? Because from this time, and forever afterward, the “good news” will never cease!

Making disciples and teaching them is “THE GREAT COMMISSION” for all of the Saints, not just paid ministers. It has been the purpose of His Assembly since the first century, yet it is done on a small scale. In essence this full good news message is spread on a “need to know” basis for those few whom God is calling (who themselves are seeking the truth) for leadership positions in the prophesied Kingdom of God.

Matthew 28:18-20 And Jesus came and spoke to them, saying, all authority has been given to Me in heaven and on earth. 19 Go therefore and make disciples of all the nations.... 20 teaching them to observe all things that I have commanded you; and lo, I am with you always, even to the end of the age. Amen.

But there is a second way that the whole world may hear a gospel. Suppose that Matthew 24 does not pertain to the angel taking the good news to the world. What if the angel spreads the good news after the bad news is finished? The angel’s message just may be referring to an entirely different message. It is not inconceivable that it is a counterfeit “gospel” that will thoroughly penetrate the world. Advocates of the Shem Tov version of Matthew—a Hebrew version quickly point out that this version indicates that Anti-Christ is spreading “another gospel” in this context.

Matthew 24: 14-15 (Shem Tov version) And this gospel, that is, evungili, [apparently evangelism] will be preached in all the world for a witness concerning [about] me to all the nations and then the end will come. 15 This is the Anti-Christ and this is the abomination which desolates which was spoken of by Daniel [as] standing in the holy place. Let the one who reads understand.

Even in the NKJV this same passage with a bit of a running start does indicate a time of great persecution. Fleeing our cities would not really facilitate a great evangelistic campaign.

Matthew 24:8-15 All these are the beginning of sorrows. 9 “Then they will deliver you up to tribulation and kill you, and you will be hated by all nations for My name’s sake. 10 And then many will be offended, will betray one another, and will hate one another. 11 Then many false prophets will rise up and deceive many. 12 And because lawlessness will abound, the love of many will grow cold. 13 But he who endures to the end shall be saved. And this gospel of the kingdom will be preached in all the world as a witness to all the nations, and then the end will come. 15 Therefore when you see the ‘abomination of desolation,’ spoken of by Daniel the prophet, standing in the holy place” (whoever reads, let him understand).... NKJV

A false good news is not a conclusion that I can readily dismiss. A gospel message that is thriving as the Saints are being trampled could very well be the message that causes the Saints to be persecuted!

Is the notion of a “false gospel” Biblical?

2 Corinthians 11:4 For if he who comes preaches another Jesus whom we have not preached, or if you receive a different spirit which you have not received, or a different gospel which you have not accepted——you may well put up with it!

Galatians 1:6 I marvel that you are turning away so soon from Him who called you in the grace of Christ, to a different gospel....

Are you passively funding a “God’s spell” effort to reach the whole world right now (trying to prove Jesus wrong) or are you actively teaching the “Good News” whenever and wherever the opportunity arises to the best of your ability?

Unmarked scriptures are from the “New King James Version®, Copyright © 1982, Thomas Nelson, Inc. All rights reserved.” “Bible text from the New King James Version® is not to be reproduced in copies or otherwise by any means except as permitted in writing by Thomas Nelson, Inc., Attn: Bible Rights and Permissions, P.O. Box 141000, Nashville, TN 372 14-1000.”