Saved By Grace: The Testimony of Jonathan Perreault

I had the privilege of growing up in a Christian home. My parents were both active Christians. My dad was in charge of a short-term missionary training program at Elmbrook Church called Man-to-Missions, and both my dad and my mom led several home Bible studies. I can remember my sister and I playing in the basement with some other kids as my dad was upstairs leading a weekly Bible study in our home. I also remember coming home from school and my mom would be finishing up a ladies Bible study around our dining room table. 

My family’s Christian heritage goes back to my great-grandpa on my dad’s side of the family. We all called him grandpa Storz – that was his last name, but his first name was Bill. He grew up in a Lutheran home, and when he was about seventeen years old he became a Christian and as a result his family kicked him out of the house. He lived a godly life and went to be with the Lord at the age of 93, in December of 1986. I still have a pocket sized Gideon’s New Testament that he and great-grandma Storz gave me for my birthday one year. 

My parents dedicated me to the Lord on May 31, 1981. I still have a small New Testament that my grandma and grandpa Perreault gave me for the occasion. Just to be clear: my dedication isn’t when I got saved, it’s just when my parents took me up in front of the church and prayed to bring me up “in the training and admonition of the Lord,” like the Bible says in Ephesians 6:4. I’m sure they prayed that I would get saved at an early age and grow up to be a godly man. I’m just guessing about those details since I haven’t actually asked my parents about the specifics, but that’s pretty much what happens at children’s dedications in evangelical churches. 

Like I said, when I was young my parents were very involved at Elmbrook Church, and I remember sometimes they would take me with them into the grown-up service to hear Stuart Briscoe preach. I liked it when they did that. He was a good preacher and I would sit next to my dad and squirm around. He would tell me to sit still. Sometimes I would go to the children’s Sunday school instead of the grown-up service, and there were some nice teachers in there too. 

My mom says that when I was about four years old she explained John 3:16 to me as we were driving somewhere in the car. She says that I was sitting in the back seat and after she explained John 3:16 to me, she looked in the rear view mirror and saw me praying. For a while I thought that’s when I got saved, even though I don’t really remember the incident. I think I might remember it, but I wonder if it’s just because she told it to me since I was young. Anyway, I always used to tell people that’s when I got saved, except I had my doubts. I was kind of embarrassed not to really know for sure. 

At the time we lived out in Delafield, and my best friend lived next door. His name was Bryan Gott. He came from a broken home – his parents were divorced, and he was a rambunctious little kid. When my parents would take me and my sister to church on Wednesday nights to go to AWANA Club, they would bring Bryan along too. I believe that my parents’ ministry to Bryan yielded a great harvest of spiritual fruit. Bryan got saved and grew up to be a mighty witness for Christ before he died in a car accident after his senior year of high school. Over one thousand people came to his funeral service and testified to his spiritual impact on their lives. That rambunctious little kid grew up to be a firecracker for Christ – his short life burned brightly for His Savior. I hope by God’s grace to be like him. I admire Bryan so much and I want to be on fire for Christ like he was. In Matthew 5:16 Jesus says: “Let your light shine before men in such a way that they may see your good works, and glorify your Father who is in Heaven.” 

My family eventually moved away from Delafield in 1987 so that my sister and I could be closer to a Christian elementary school. The school was in West Allis, and my parents rented a house only a couple blocks away so that my sister and I could walk to school every day. I always enjoyed the Bible classes, especially in high school because my Bible teacher was a Baptist pastor who had moved down from Alaska and he always used to read us grizzly bear stories on test day after everyone had completed their tests. He gave us a good foundation in the Bible too. 

During my growing up years I had the opportunity to go on several short-term mission projects. Actually, when I was only about two years old my parents took me on a couple summer mission trips to Alaska, but I don’t really remember them except for a few incidents like when I threw my sister’s pail of freshly picked blueberries out the window of my dad’s pickup truck! When I was in first grade in 1986 my family had the opportunity to go to Brazil on a two week missions trip to help some New Tribes missionaries with a building project. That was a great experience and I remember a lot of things from that trip. Like when I shook up a can of soda and sprayed it all over the wall. My dad wasn’t too happy, but everyone else laughed. I remember other things too, like the prime rib dinner that only cost two dollars! And feeding the missionary’s pet bird that perched on his shoulder. And the Brazilian woman who I helped to learn English. And going to Rio de Janeiro and seeing the Christ the Redeemer statue on Sugarloaf Mountain. And riding in the back of an old Volkswagen van as we went down the bumpy Brazilian roads. And the flowering trees. And flying to Annapolis in a small Cessna aircraft to visit the missionary school. And buying souvenirs at the local markets.

I was also blessed to be able to go on other mission trips too. My grandpa Perreault had a cabin in Canada, and often our family would go up there in the summer for vacation. (My dad called these trips “vacations with a purpose”: the purpose being to help spread the gospel.) My older brother would take me and my sister fishing – he knew all the best places to catch fish, even better than grandpa! There was a Baptist missionary up there who we always used to help. We would go to his church on Sunday, and donate various things to his ministry. We would volunteer at his summer youth camps too. 

It was during these growing up years that I had nagging doubts about my salvation. I never really had assurance about it. I always wondered if I was really saved or not. I can remember hearing preachers on the radio give invitations for salvation, and they would say things like: “If you want to be saved, pray this prayer after me.” I would always pray the prayer but it never really seemed to do anything. It never really seemed to settle the issue. I lacked peace about my eternal destiny. 

Then in 1989 my dad started taking us to a small church called Good News Messengers that met in the basement of a bank in Waukesha. At first we would go there after the service at Elmbrook. Then we stopped going to Elmbrook and just went to Good News Messengers. I really enjoyed going to Good News Messengers. [Editor’s note: I’ve read some negative comments online about Good News Messengers, but I can only speak about my experience attending there as a young boy, and overall my experience was a very positive one.] Everybody treated each other like family (cf. Psa. 133:1-3). We spent practically the whole Sunday morning together; we would sing, share prayer requests, pray, eat a meal together, and study God’s Word verse-by-verse (Acts 2:42). And during the week, we went out onto the street corners of downtown Milwaukee and shared the gospel with people and handed out gospel tracts. And on Wednesday nights we met in what we called “the ministry house” to study the Bible and pray. Years later I would come to find out that this church was an offshoot of Waukesha Bible Church, and it was deeply influenced by graduates of Dallas Theological Seminary in the grace teachings of Lewis Sperry Chafer, the Seminary’s founder and first president. I also remember that during the Sunday morning service at Good News Messengers, the pastor would sometimes read quotes from Bob Wilkin and the Grace Evangelical Society (GES) newsletter. That was before the GES started promoting the “crossless gospel”. Another thing I remember is that everybody at Good News Messengers used the Ryrie Study Bible in the New American Standard Version. Today I would call Good News Messengers a “Free Grace” church, but when I was young I didn't know about that label or what it meant. One thing I remember about Good News Messengers is that they explained the gospel more clearly than I had ever heard before. It seemed like every Sunday the pastor would turn to the dry erase board behind him and sketch out the cross and the empty tomb. He explained how Christ shed His blood on the cross to pay for all our sins (past, present, and future), was buried, rose again on the third day, and appeared many witnesses (see Acts 2:22-32). This is the message that the apostle Paul explains in First Corinthians chapter 15, when he writes: “Now I want to make clear for you, brothers and sisters, the gospel that I preached to you, that you received and on which you stand...For I passed on to you as of first importance what I also received – that Christ died for our sins according to the scriptures, and that he was buried, and that he was raised on the third day according to the scriptures, and that he appeared to Cephas, then to the twelve” (1 Cor. 15:1, 3-5, NET Bible). This message of the gospel is “the power of God to salvation for everyone who believes, for the Jew first and also for the Gentile” (Rom. 1:16). 

I remember one Sunday as the pastor was explaining this to us, it was like a light went on in my mind. It was like I realized something for the first time. I turned to my mom who was sitting next to me in church and I said, “So it’s the blood. It’s the blood that saves us?” I felt kind of stupid for asking her this because I felt like I should have known it before. (I’m guessing I was about 10 years old at the time.) But my mom just smiled and nodded her head in agreement. Looking back on this incident it reminds me of the Bible verse that says: “For it is...God who commanded light to shine out of darkness, who has shone in our hearts to give the light of the knowledge of the glory of God in the face of Jesus Christ” (2 Cor. 4:6). What I realized is that Jesus died for me – for my sins. He shed His blood to save me (Eph. 1:7). He “made peace through the blood of His cross” (Col. 1:20). As the saying goes: “Believing Christ died – that’s history. Believing He died for me – that’s salvation!” 

After that time I can honestly say that I never doubted my salvation as before. I had come to realize that salvation is not based on what I do; salvation is based on what Jesus has done (see Isa. 64:6; Rom. 4:4-5; Eph. 2:8-9; Titus 3:4-7). I’d like to quote Ephesians 2:8-9; it says: “For by grace you have been saved through faith; and that not of yourselves, it is the gift of God; not as a result of works, so that no one may boast.” 

If you have never trusted in Christ alone for salvation, I urge you to do it today. The Bible says: “behold, now is ‘THE ACCEPTABLE TIME,’ behold, now is ‘THE DAY OF SALVATION’” (2 Cor. 6:2). “Believe on the Lord Jesus Christ, and you will be saved” (Acts 16:31).

"LETTER FROM THE CTS PRESIDIENT" | by Dr. George Meisinger

Dr. George Meisinger is the founder and President of Chafer Theological Seminary (CTS), "a non-crossless Free Grace school".¹ Meisinger is also on the Board of Reference for the Free Grace Alliance (FGA). I appreciate this dear brother in Christ and the stand he takes for the gospel of grace.

In a Chafer Theological Seminary newsletter article titled "LETTER FROM THE CTS PRESIDENT", Meisinger writes:

"Supporters of CTS often ask me, What is my stand regarding the gospel? I follow the revelation from Paul: I delivered to you first of all that which I also received: that Christ died for our sins according the the Scriptures, and that He was buried, and that He rose again the third day according to the Scriptures, and that He was seen by Cephas, then by the twelve (1 Cor. 15:3-5). This message—that He died for our sin—is very good news indeed. Thus, Paul put Jesus' death on the Cross in a primary position as he evangelized; he resolved to make known nothing among the Corinthians except Jesus Christ and Him crucified (1 Cor. 2:2). Paul's example of doing evangelism is a pattern we should follow, not minimize."²

ENDNOTES:

¹ Tom Stegall, The Gospel of the Christ (Milwaukee: Grace Gospel Press, 2009), p. 577. Note: It's necessary to point out that Tom Stegall disagrees with the traditional Free Grace interpretation of the gospel. For more information see my article titled: "Is Tom Stegall's Gospel the Traditional Free Grace Gospel?" Another article that I wrote details the bizarre and even pagan origins of Stegall's redefinition of the gospel: "The Strange Beliefs of Stegall's System".

² George Meisinger, "Letter from the President," EQUIPPING THE SAINTS, A newsletter from Chafer Theological Seminary, Volume 3, Issue 2 (December 2007): p. 4, italics his. For more information see the article by George Meisinger titled: "The Gospel Paul Preached: A Church Age Model of Evangelistic Content".

According to the Scriptures: The Third Day in the Old Testament

In 1 Corinthians 15:4 the apostle Paul says that Christ "was raised on the third day according to the Scriptures". Have you ever wondered where the third day is mentioned in the Old Testament and how does it picture the resurrection of Christ? 

   
Here are some of the occurrences of "the third day" that are mentioned in the Old Testament. Think about how these examples foreshadow the resurrection of Christ "on the third day": 

• Life sprang up out of the ground "on the third day" of creation (Gen. 1:12-13). Similarly, Psalm 85:11 says, "Truth shall spring out of the earth; and righteousness shall look down from heaven." Cyril of Jerusalem (313 - 386 A.D.) affirms, "A garden was the place of His Burial, and a vine that which was planted there: and He hath said, I am the vine! He was planted therefore in the earth in order that the curse which came because of Adam might be rooted out. The earth was condemned to thorns and thistles: the true Vine sprang up out of the earth, that the saying might be fulfilled, Truth sprang up out of the earth, and righteousness looked down from heaven." (Catechetical Lectures, Lecture 14, 1 Corinthians 15:1-4, see Phillip Schaff, Nicene And Post-Nicene Fathers, Series II, Vol. 7, pp. 96-97.) 

• Isaac, his father's only son, carried the wood for the burnt offering up to Mount Moriah (Mt. Calvary), willingly laid himself on the altar in complete obedience to his father, and then he received back his life "as a type" (Gen. 22:1-14, cf. Heb. 11:17-19): "on the third day" (Gen. 22:4).

• Dinah was rescued from Shechem's house "on the third day" (Gen. 34:25-26).

• Pharaoh’s chief cupbearer was released from prison "on the third day" (Gen. 40:20).

• Joseph’s brothers were released from custody "on the third day" (Gen. 42:17-18).

• Moses was permitted to leave the company of the Israelites and ascend Mount Sinai "on the third day" (Ex. 19:10-25; cf. Deut. 5:24).

• The defiled Israelites outside the camp were cleansed and released from death "on the third day" (Num. 19:11-13, 19, 31:19).

• The two Israelite spies told Rahab the harlot, "Our lives for your lives!" (Joshua 2:14). They hid for three days (they went "into the hills") and then they left their place of hiding alive (Josh. 2:15-24).

• The Israelites, led by the tribe of Judah, fought against the tribe of Benjamin due to a wicked act committed by men from the tribe of Benjamin. The men of Judah and Israel were killed in battle (Judges 20:1-29), but on the third day they set an ambush, and at exactly the right time ("on the third day," Judges 20:30) they charged out of their hiding place (Judges 20:33) and were victorious (see Judges 20:30-35)! Then Judah and the tribes of Israel offered peace to the tribe of Benjamin (Judges 21:13-14).

• David hid in a field until the third day because King Saul wanted to kill him (1 Sam. 20:5, 12).

• David rescued Abigail and the village of Ziklag from the Amalekites "on the third day" (1 Sam. 30:1). David recovered everything and lost no one (1 Sam. 30:18-19, cf. Jn. 6:39). He also took great plunder from the enemy, which he then shared equally with his men. David also gave some of the plunder as gifts to the elders of Judah  (1 Sam. 30:18-26). Similarly, Christ "when he ascended up on high, led captivity captive, and gave gifts to men" (Eph. 4:8).

• God sent a plague on Israel because of King David's sin, but on the third day the plague was stopped and the people were saved because David built an altar on the threshing floor of Araunah the Jebusite (2 Sam. 24:10-25) and offered sacrifices to God. 2 Chronicles 3:1 identifies this location as Mount Moriah (cf. Gen. 22:2). Mt. Moriah is where Abraham offered up his only son Isaac and "received him back as a type" (Hebrews 11:19), "on the third day" (Gen. 22:4).

• Hezekiah was restored to life after a deadly sickness "on the third day" after he prayed (2 Kings 20:5).

• The second Jewish temple was rebuilt "on the third day" (Ezra 6:15). Similarly, Jesus said (speaking in reference to His physical body): "Destroy this temple and in three days I will raise it up. . . . He was speaking of the temple of His body" (Jn. 2:19-22).

• "On the third day" (Esther 5:1) Esther's life was spared by the king; she risked her own life to save her people from Haman's evil plot (see Esther chapters 5, 6, 7; cf. Esther 4:11).

• The prophet Hosea spoke of the resurrection of the nation of Israel, saying, "After two days He will revive us, on the third day He will restore us, that we may live in His presence" (Hosea 6:2).

• Jonah was in the stomach of a fish for "three days and three nights" (Jonah 1:17-2:10). When the religious leaders of Israel asked Jesus for a sign, Jesus answered and said to them, "A wicked and adulterous generation demands a sign, and no sign will be given to it except for the sign of the prophet Jonah, for just as Jonah was three days and three nights in the belly of the sea monster, so will the Son of Man be three days and three nights in the heart of the earth" (Matthew 12:38-40).

• Christ died for our sins and was buried, but then He was raised to life "on the third day according to the Scriptures" (1 Cor. 15:4; cf. Lk. 18:31-33, 24:44-48; Acts 10:40).

* * *

In regards to the Old Testament, Jesus said to the Pharisees: "You search the Scriptures because you think they give you eternal life. But the Scriptures point to Me!" (John 5:39, NIV).

The Dangers of the Deserted Island Scenarios, Parts 1-10

The Dangers of the Deserted Island Scenarios

of Non-Traditional Free Grace Theology

Part 1

Part 2

Part 3

Part 4

Part 5

Part 6

Part 7

Part 8

Part 9

Part 10

The Free Grace Gospel Debate

"For there must also be factions among you, so that those who are approved may become evident among you." 1 Corinthians 11:19, NASB95

"What Should We Never Change?" | by Ken Daughters

In an excellent article titled “A Theology of Change,” Ken Daughters (former President of Emmaus Bible College) warns against changing the gospel message. Notice what he says under the heading “What Should We Never Change?”: 

“I also suggest that we’re not allowed to change the message, which is the gospel itself. It’s taught to us in I Corinthians 15:3-5 that ‘Christ died for us according to the scriptures, that He was buried, that He was raised on the third day and that He appeared.’ It continues in passages such as Acts 17:30-31 where ‘God is now declaring to men that all people everywhere should repent because He’s fixed a day in which He will judge the world in righteousness.’ Our response is summarized in Acts 16:31, ‘Believe on the Lord Jesus and you will be saved, you and your household.’ This is the good news that we proclaim. We cannot change the message.”¹

Reference:

¹ Ken Daughters, “A Theology of Change,” Emmaus Bible College Journey Magazine (Fall 2006): p. 15. Note: The Emmaus Bible College is said to “come down on the Free Grace, not the Lordship Salvation, side [of the theological debate].” (David A. Glock, “Periodical Reviews,” Journal of the Grace Evangelical Society 5 [Spring 1992]: p. 90, http://www.galaxie.com/article/10992; cf. James A. Townsend, “Grace in the Arts,” Journal of the Grace Evangelical Society 11 [Autumn 1998].)

The Dangers of the Deserted Island Scenarios, Pt. 10

Danger # 9: Both scenarios are based on a failure to recognize the grammatical break at the end of 1 Corinthians 15:5.

Zane Hodges writes: "Keep in mind that all these items [in 1 Cor. 15:3b-8] were of 'first importance' in Paul's gospel. [No recognition of the grammatical break at the end of 1 Cor. 15:5.] Is it therefore necessary to believe all nine [items] to receive eternal life? So far, I don't know of any theological legalist who claims all nine are necessary. Instead, this type of legalist is reduced to 'cherry picking' the items he himself considers of 'first importance!'"¹

    

Similarly, Tom Stegall writes: “The succession of ‘then’ (eita) and ‘after that’ (epeita) clauses in [1 Cor. 15] verses 5b-7b forms an unbroken, chronological structure [No recognition of the grammatical break at the end of 1 Cor. 15:5.] just like the syntactically parallel ‘that’ (hoti)/’and that’ (kai hoti) clauses of verses 3b-5a. If some Christians contend that every detail of verses 3b-5a must be included in the gospel, then it is purely arbitrary and special pleading to argue that only a portion of verses 5-8 is gospel-content. If only verse 5 constitutes the gospel [out of verses 5-8], then why should a person’s eternal destiny be dependent upon the reference to Cephas (v. 5) but not to the five hundred brethren (v. 6) or James (v. 7) or Paul (v. 8)?”²

    

Although Hodges and Stegall obviously disagree on the content of the gospel, the similarity in their statements is that both fail to recognize the grammatical break at the end of 1 Corinthians 15:5. Notice how the so-called crossless gospel and the groundless gospel are “two sides of the same counterfeit coin”³:

Hodges' Shallow Exegesis

Hodges admits that Paul begins to enumerate the content of his gospel in 1 Corinthians 15:3b, and that these items are “of first importance”.⁴ However, Hodges extends the actual content of Paul’s gospel through 1 Corinthians 15:8 while offering no exegesis to support his claim. Hodges simply declares: “In 1 Cor 15:1-8 Paul is reminding the Christians in Corinth about the content of his gospel.”⁵ After merely quoting 1 Corinthians 15:1-8 Hodges concludes: “Clearly, for Paul, the term ‘gospel’ is broader than the essential content of saving faith.”⁶ Such an obvious lack of exegesis is expected from first year seminary students, but not from a former professor of New Testament Greek and exegesis at Dallas Theological Seminary! Hodges arguments are exegetically unconvincing. The words of Bob Wilkin are appropriate: "Today what passes for exegesis is stating one’s opinion and then citing one or more verses. Little if any comments are made as to why the cited words prove the point. The writer or speaker assumes that merely mentioning words of Scripture is enough...Quoting Scriptures is not exegesis. Exegesis is analyzing Scripture."⁷

    

The exegesis of 1 Corinthians 15 makes it clear that verse 5 is the conclusion of the gospel’s content, not verse 8.⁸ There is a grammatical break after 1 Corinthians 15:5 indicating the end of the gospel tradition. Famed New Testament scholar Joachim Jeremias affirms: “it can be proved linguistically that the kerygma (which includes verses 3b from [Christos] to 5 [dodeka], as shown e.g. by the syntactic break at the beginning of verse 6) was not formulated by Paul….Up to v. 5 there are [hoti]-clauses, from v. 6 onwards main clauses”.⁹ Frederic Godet notes another exegetical point bearing on the subject when he states: “The [epeita], thereafter [in 1 Cor. 15:6a], separates more forcibly than the [eita], then, of ver. 5; it makes the following appearances [in 1 Cor. 15:6ff] a new step in the series, and rightly so.”¹⁰ Even "crossless" gospel advocate John Niemelä affirms these exegetical truths. Under the heading “Indicating a Content Clause” Niemelä notes that “1 Corinthians…15:3…15:4a-b, [and] 5” (but not 15:6ff) each indicate “a Content Clause”.¹¹ The words of Matt Myllykoski are appropriate: “Most scholars have regarded vv. 3b-5 as an old traditional unit.”¹² The apostle Paul confirms this gospel tradition by listing several more appearances of Christ in vv. 6-8. Ladd writes: “[The] tradition embodied in the apostolic kerygma or euangelion. Paul delivered (paredoka) to the Corinthians the gospel that he also received (parelabon), that Christ died for our sins, that he was buried, that he rose on the third day, that he appeared to his disciples (1 Cor. 15:1-5). It is generally accepted that verses 3b-5 embody a primitive piece of pre-Pauline kerygma that Paul has received as a tradition from [Christ and] those who were apostles before him....Probably the appearances mentioned in vv. 6-8 were added by Paul to the tradition he received.”¹³ Zane Hodges has not even attempted to explain these exegetical truths that even fellow “crossless” gospel advocate John Niemelä affirms!

Stegall's Shaky Foundation

Similar to Hodges, Stegall also fails to recognize the grammatical break at the end of 1 Corinthians 15:5. There are several things to notice about Stegall’s statement (quoted above): (1) It is not correct for him to say that the succession of clauses in verses 5b-7b “forms an unbroken, chronological structure”.¹⁴ The truth is, there is a grammatical break at the end of verse 5 (as Jochim Jeremias and other New Testament scholars have noted).¹⁵ (2) In light of this exegetical truth, Stegall’s question “if only some portion of verses 5-8 is part of the gospel…then isn’t this being arbitrary as well?”¹⁶ should actually be answered in the negative. It is not being arbitrary to include only verse 5 in the gospel out of verses 5-8 because there is a grammatical break at the end of verse 5 separating the former appearances in verse 5 from the latter appearances in verses 6-8. (3) Stegall goes on to ask: “If only verse 5 constitutes the gospel [out of verses 5-8], then why should a person’s eternal destiny be dependent upon the reference to Cephas (v. 5) but not to the five hundred brethren (v. 6) or James (v. 7) or Paul (v. 8)?”¹⁷ Ironically, Stegall answers his own question about why a person’s eternal destiny should be dependent upon the text of verse 5 but not verses 6-8 when he says that “only verse 5 constitutes the gospel”!¹⁸ Unfortunately, Stegall refuses to accept this exegetical truth. Instead, he bases his interpretation of 1 Corinthians 15:5 on unanswered theological questions!¹⁹ This is quite a shaky foundation and one of the reasons why his saving message is referred to as “the groundless gospel”.

    

And so we see that both Hodges and Stegall fail to rightly divide 1 Corinthians 15:1-8 because e.g. they fail to recognize the grammatical break at the end of 1 Corinthians 15:5.²⁰ In other words, both men fail to accurately handle the Word of truth (2 Tim. 2:15) in regards to the conclusion of the gospel.

< Part 9

FOOTNOTES:

¹ Zane C. Hodges, "The Hydra's Other Head: Theological Legalism," Grace In Focus (September-October 2008), p. 4.

² Thomas L. Stegall, The Gospel of the Christ (Milwaukee: Grace Gospel Press, 2009), p. 566, italics his.

³ Lou Martuneac, “AVAILABLE NOW: What to Expect, 4,” In Defense of the Gospel blog, http://indefenseofthegospel.blogspot.com/2010/05/available-now-what-to-expect-4.html (accessed June 1, 2012). Although Lou is writing in regards to the "crossless" gospel and Lordship Salvation, the same reasoning holds true in regards to the "crossless" gospel & the groundless gospel.

 

⁴ Zane C. Hodges, "The Hydra's Other Head: Theological Legalism," Grace In Focus (September-October 2008), p. 3, italics his.

⁵ Ibid, p. 3.

⁶ Ibid., p. 4, italics his.

⁷ Bob Wilkin, "Quoting Scripture Is Not Exegesis," The Grace Evangelical Society blog, June 12, 20??, http://www.faithalone.org/wordpress/?s=biases (accessed June 2, 2012).

⁸ While 1 Corinthians 15:1-8 (and more generally vv. 1-11) give the context of Paul's gospel, it is 1 Corinthians 15:3b-5 which gives the content of Paul's gospel (note the four parallel hoti content clauses and three kai coordinating conjunctions in vv. 3b-5). For further discussion see my article "Getting the Gospel Right".

⁹ Joachim Jeremias, The Eucharistic Words of Jesus (Oxford: Basil Blackwell, 1955), p. 129.

¹⁰ Frederic Godet, Commentary On The First Epistle To The Corinthians, 2 Vols. (Grand Rapids: Zondervan, 1957), 2 Vol., Vol. 2, p. 334.

¹¹ John Niemelä, “For You Have Kept My Word: The Grammar of Revelation 3:10,” Chafer Theological Seminary Journal 6 (January 2000): pp. 29-30.

¹² Matt Myllykoski; Ismo Dunderberg, Christopher Tuckett, and Kari Syreeni, Editors, Fair Play: Diversity and Conflicts in Early Christianity (Leiden: Brill, 2002), p. 66.

¹³ George Eldon Ladd, Donald A. Hagner, A Theology of the New Testament (Grand Rapids: Wm. B. Eerdmans Publishing, 1953), p. 427, ellipsis added. 

¹⁴ Stegall, The Gospel of the Christ, p. 566. 

¹⁵ For further discussion see my article “Getting the Gospel Right”. Also see my article “Understanding the Gospel: Exegetically and Theologically”. 

¹⁶ Stegall, The Gospel of the Christ, p. 566, ellipsis added. 

¹⁷ Ibid., p. 566 

¹⁸ Ibid. 

¹⁹ For more information and further discussion see my article “Getting the Gospel Right”. Also see my article “The Strange Beliefs of Stegall’s System”. 

²⁰ I purposefully use the phrase “rightly divide” as an allusion to 2 Timothy 2:15 (NKJV), which says: “Be diligent to present yourself approved to God, a worker who does not need to be ashamed, rightly dividing the word of truth.”

The Dangers of the Deserted Island Scenarios, Pt. 9

Danger # 8: Both scenarios are based on the assumption that certain facts of the gospel take the focus off Christ.

Zane Hodges says: "Notice how the approaches I have objected to so far tend to blur the necessary focus on the Person of Christ as the object of faith. In the case of 'believe that Jesus died on the cross' the focus is on an action He performed (admittedly an indispensable one). In the two-step scenario we approach Christ first by believing certain facts about Him. The simple truth is that Jesus can be believed for eternal salvation apart from any detailed knowledge of what He did to provide it."¹
   
Tom Stegall says:  "The first reason why at least [the resurrection appearances] are technically not part of the gospel is because this would make the gospel a message that revolves around the numerous disciples...rather than a message centered upon the Lord Jesus Himself...Once a person insists that the gospel extends through [1 Corinthians 15] verse 5, presumably to have some post-resurrection appearances included in their gospel, then the gospel becomes a man-centered message, a saving message at least about Cephas and the twelve and possibly others."² It makes me wonder what Stegall does with John 3:16 when the Bible says, "For God so loved the world". That sounds "man-centered" and "about...others" too!
   
Hodges thinks that the facts of Christ's death and resurrection take the focus off Christ and so he excludes them from his saving message. Similarly, Stegall thinks that the facts of Christ's burial and appearances take the focus off Christ and so he excludes them from his saving message.³

A Double Standard

It's important to point out that Stegall's logic in regards to 1 Corinthians 15:5 is completely self-refuting and fallacious. Notice that Stegall bans verse 5 from his gospel because he says verse 5 is "man-centered" and "about...others." But Stegall apparently has no problem with 1 Corinthians 15:3 in regards to Christ's death "FOR OUR SINS". Yet according to Stegall's reductionist reasoning, 1 Corinthians 15:3 is also "man centered" and "about...others"! Stegall has even made statements to this effect.⁴ Is he now going to ban 1 Corinthians 15:3 from his gospel because verse 3 refers to other people besides Christ? Stegall is selectively applying his logic to 1 Corinthians 15:5 but not to 1 Corinthians 15:3. This is the logical fallacy of special pleading, i.e. a double standard.

1 Corinthians 15:3-5 Centers on Christ

It's important to understand that the person of Christ is the subject of all four verbs in the sentence in 1 Corinthians 15:3-5. Thus, there's no incongruity between believing that Christ "died for our sins" (v. 3) and believing in Christ. Likewise, there's no incongruity between believing that Christ "appeared to [His disciples]" (v. 5) and believing in Christ. In other words, Christ is still the subject in verse 3 and in verse 5 even though others are mentioned in context.
   
Free Grace expositors and also other Bible scholars recognize the exegesis of 1 Corinthians 15:3ff and affirm that Christ is the subject of the sentence in verses 3-5:

• William R. Newell writes: "The gospel is all about Christ. Apart from Him, there is no news from heaven but that of coming woe! Read that passage in 1 Corinthians 15:3-5: 'I make known unto you the gospel which I preached unto you: that Christ died, Christ was buried; Christ hath been raised; Christ was seen.' It is all about the Son of God!"⁵ 

• Raymond F. Collins writes: the "credal formula which [Paul] uses on 1 Cor 15:3-5 has Christ as its subject."⁶

• C. K. Barret writes: “The first stage [of faith] is hearing the Gospel; the next is being obedient, that is, hearing with faith…It is important that faith is response to a preached, proclaimed message. This leads to a further consequence. Because the preaching has a specific content (e.g. 1 Cor 15:3-5, 11) faith also has a specific content and can be expressed in a confession of faith which is specifically related to the eschatological event of Jesus Christ, crucified and risen. In Romans 10:9 (‘If you confess with your mouth Jesus as Lord, and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead, you will be saved’) there is the confession of faith which, from the believer’s responsive side, corresponds to the proclamation summarized in 1 Corinthians 15:3-8. CHRIST CRUCIFIED[.] From this point we may proceed at once to the next main division of the substantive presentation of Paul’s thought. Paul sums up the Christian proclamation in traditional terms in 1 Corinthians 15:3-8. Here it is asserted that Christ died for our sins; that he was buried; that he was raised up to life; and that he appeared to Cephas and a number of others. The subject of every verb is Christ. The content of the proclamation, which is the ground of Christian existence (15:1, 2) is the historical event of Jesus Christ."⁷

• Ralph Norwood writes: “WHAT IS THE GOSPEL? 1 Cor. 15:3-5 ‘For I delivered to you as of first importance what I received, that Christ died for our sins according to the Scriptures, and that He was buried, and that He was raised on the third day according to the Scriptures, and that He appeared to Cephas, then the twelve.’ 1. There are 4 verbs. a. Christ DIED, b. Christ was BURIED, c. Christ was RAISED, d. Christ APPEARED. [It is in the passive voice.] 2. Note the subject of each is the same....‘CHRIST’”.⁸

• Roy E. Ciampa writes: "Christ is the subject of all the verbs from v. 3b to v. 8 except for the two in the relative clause of v. 6b (regarding the five hundred witnesses)."⁹

In contrast to what Zane Hodges and Tom Stegall would have us believe, the basic facts of the gospel "that Christ died for our sins...and that He was buried...and that He was raised...and that He was seen..." (1 Cor. 15:3b-5) are all Christ-centered. Each fact puts the focus on Christ and fills in the "blank spots"¹⁰ in a person's knowledge of the gospel.

< Part 8                        Part  10 >

FOOTNOTES:

¹ Zane Hodges, "How To Lead People To Christ, Part 2: Our Invitation To Respond," Journal of the Grace Evangelical Society 14 (Spring 2001): p. 12.

²  Thomas L. Stegall, The Gospel of the Christ (Milwaukee: Grace Gospel Press, 2009), pp. 564, 567, ellipsis added.

³ Stegall does not explicitly say that Christ's burial takes the focus off the person/work of Christ as the object of saving faith, yet this seems to be the implication of several of his statements. Following are three examples:

     1.) Stegall says that "belief in the person of Jesus Christ as the object of saving faith does not include His burial as part of the required content of saving faith." (Stegall, The Gospel Of The Christ, p. 696, italics his.)

     2.) Stegall says that "we are not requiring people to know and believe that Christ's death occurred at a place called 'Calvary' or for that matter that He was buried in a 'tomb.' [cf. Acts 13:29.] The critical content [as opposed to uncritical content?] that must be known and believed involves what happened at Calvary and what happened inside that tomb - He died for our sins and He rose from the dead. The actual location of His crucifixion and resurrection did not provide the grounds of our redemption - what transpired at those locations did provide the basis for salvation." (Stegall, The Gospel Of The Christ, p. 309, italics his.) Stegall's statement is a straw man argument because no one in the Free Grace gospel debate is saying that an unsaved person has to know the location of Christ's "tomb" in order to go to heaven! By focusing on the location of Christ's tomb, Stegall is sidestepping the real issue which involves the action of Christ being "laid"/"buried" in a tomb (Acts 13:29; 1 Cor. 15:4).

     3.) Stegall says in regards to Acts 13:41 that “Christ’s being…buried, and then seen by men were technically not ‘works’ done by Christ, though they were all true of Christ”. (Stegall, “THE TRAGEDY OF THE CROSSLESS GOSPEL, Pt. 9,” The Grace Family Journal [Special Edition 2008]: p. 21, ellipsis added.) But Stegall provides no scriptural support for his claim that Christ's burial and resurrection appearances are not His "works"! Actually, the context of Acts 13:26-41 argues against Stegall’s unsubstantiated assertion because the apostle Paul clearly does “describe” (Acts 13:41) not only Christ’s death (Acts 13:28) and resurrection (Acts 13:30), but also His burial (Acts 13:29) and appearances (Acts 13:31) – all together. Furthermore, since Christ’s death, burial, resurrection, and appearances were all predicted by the Prophets (Ps. 22:1-22, 40:1-3, Isa. 53:1-12, etc.) and foretold by Christ Himself in answer to a request for “a sign from You” (Matt. 12:38-43; cf. Jn. 2:18-22, 12:23-24, 20:19-21:14), it’s simply false to assert that Christ’s burial and appearances are not His “works”.

⁴ For example, Stegall in on record as affirming: “The Gospel of salvation centers in a specific accomplishment, namely that Christ died ‘for our sins’. (Stegall, “THE GOSPEL OF THE RESURRECTED CHRIST,” Miscellaneous Message [Milwaukee: Word of Grace Bible Church, March 27, 2005], underlining added.) Similarly, fellow groundless gospel advocate J. B. Hixson has said: “But in essence, the Gospel is the good news that God loves man and has sent His only Son, Jesus Christ, to pay the penalty for man’s sins. Christ accomplished this when He died on the cross at Calvary as man’s substitute.” (Hixson, “What is the Gospel?,” [2001], pp. 2-3, underlining added.) This statement by Hixson is quoted approvingly by Stegall in his article “THE TRAGEDY OF THE CROSSLESS GOSPEL Pt. 1,” The Grace Family Journal (Spring 2007): p. 16.

⁵ William R. Newell, Romans Verse-By-Verse (Grand Rapids: Kregel Publishers, 1994), p. 6.

⁶ Raymond F. Collins, Studies on the First Letter to the Thessalonians (Leuven: University Press, 1984), p. 340. Elsewhere Collins affirms: "Paul presents Christ as the object of the creed." (Collins, First Corinthians [Collegeville: Liturgical Press, 1999], p. 530.)

⁷ C. K. Barrett, Paul: An Introduction to His Thought (Louisville: Westminster/John Knox Press, 1994), pp. 102-103, ellipsis added.

⁸ Ralph Norwood, “The Pure Gospel, Galatians Chapter 1,” Bible Readings for Believers website, http://biblereadingsforbelievers.com/doctrine/232-the-pure-gospel-galations-chapter-1.html, emphasis, brackets, and ellipsis his.

⁹ Roy E. Ciampa, Brian S. Rosner, The First Letter to the Corinthians (Grand Rapids: Wm. B. Eerdmans Publishing Co., 2010), p. 744.

¹⁰ Adapted from Zane Hodges, “How To Lead People To Christ, Part 1: The Content of Our Message,” Journal of the Grace Evangelical Society 13 (Autumn 2000): p. 10.

THE PURE GOSPEL: Galatians Chapter 1

THE PURE GOSPEL: Galatians Chapter 1

by Ralph Norwood.¹

I. INTRODUCTION

1. I want to talk about the book that teaches that you "CANNOT PATCH UP LEGALISM"....

2. Background: There were many Galatian churches, but this was written to the church at Galatia....Paul had taken to them a very pure gospel....within a short time, they lost the pure gospel.

3. This book has one of the shortest and most terse introductions in Epistles.

4. These people questioned the authority of Paul....He makes it clear that when he speaks, it is the same as the Lord speaking.

5. Then he registers his amazement at their change....1:6 "I am utterly shocked"....They had departed from the true gospel.

 

a. Note: whenever there is a problem among believers, then go back to the basics and you most likely will find their problem. The problem of these people was the SIMPLICITY OF THE GOSPEL....which they had deserted.

 

b. Note v. 7....where it teaches that there is ONLY ONE GOSPEL. There is no such thing as COMING CLOSE to the real.

 

c. How about v. 8....may he be damned. [THIS IS NOT VERY ECUMENICAL.] Some would say that this was not very loving....Paul would tell another angel who preached another gospel...to GO TO HELL....

6. Paul mentions that he was NOT TAUGHT THE GOSPEL but received it by revelation. [He was the only person who was not taught the gospel.]

WHAT IS THE GOSPEL? 1 Cor. 15:3-5 "For I delivered to you as of first importance what I received, that Christ died for our sins according to the Scriptures, and that He was buried, and that He was raised on the third day according to the Scriptures, and that He appeared to Cephas, then the twelve."

1. There are 4 verbs.

 

a. Christ DIED

 

b. Christ was BURIED

 

c. Christ was RAISED

 

d. Christ APPEARED. [It is in the passive voice.]

2. Note the subject of each is the same...."CHRIST"

3. Comments:

 

a. Christ died: definite event...

 

b. Christ was buried: definite event [in the aorist tense]

 

c. Christ was raised: definite event [with a line following it...with lasting results]. Why was the tense of the verb changed on the resurrection?²

4. NOTE THE COUPLETS.

 

a. Christ died and how do you know he died? HE WAS BURIED.

 

b. Christ was raised and how do you know He was raised? BECAUSE HE APPEARED....HE WAS SEEN.

5. Only ONE of the 4 verbs has the phrase "FOR OUR SINS" added to it...."FOR OUR SINS" is not connected to the BURIAL, RESURRECTION OR APPEARANCE....It is connected only with HIS DEATH.

 

a. His death dealt with our sins; The burial, resurrection and appearing did not. He was NOT raised for our sins...HE DIED FOR OUR SINS....

 

b. He died FOR which means ON BEHALF OF our sins.

ENDNOTES:

¹ Ralph Norwood, "The Pure Gospel: Galatians Chapter 1" (Oct 19, 2015), Bible Readings for Believers website. Reprinted by permission.

² In 1 Corinthians 15:4 the phrase "was buried" is in the Greek aorist tense, while the phrase "was raised" is in the Greek perfect tense. The aorist tense indicates an action that occurred at a point in time; the perfect tense indicates an action that has abiding or lasting results. This signifies that Jesus was raised from the dead "never to die again" (Rom. 6:9). He is "alive forevermore"! (See Rev. 1:18; cf. Psa. 16:10-11.) Editor.

The Dark Side of Duluth Bible Church

"And have no fellowship with the unfruitful works of darkness, but rather expose them." (Eph. 5:11, NKJV)

Pagan symbol

Stegall's symbol

Tom Stegall's "amazing triangular testimony to the contents of saving faith"¹ does indeed have an amazing triangular testimony: TO PAGANISM!

"Don't let anyone capture you with empty philosophies and high-sounding nonsense that come from human thinking and from the spiritual powers of this world, rather than from Christ." (Colossians 2:8, NLT)

FOOTNOTE:

¹ Thomas L. Stegall, The Gospel of the Christ, p. 19. Stegall is the former pastor of Word of Grace Bible Church in Milwaukee, Wisconsin. After being exposed as a false teacher, he left Word of Grace Bible Church to become the new publications director at Duluth Bible Church in Duluth, Minnesota. (Duluth Bible Church was Stegall's home church in the first place.) Pastor Dennis Rokser of Duluth Bible Church wrote the "FOREWORD" to Stegall's book – calling it a "scripturally-sound, exegetically-based volume by my dear friend Thomas Stegall." (Dennis Rokser, The Gospel of the Christ, p. 15.) It's very revealing that no one besides Stegall's friend and fellow groundless gospel advocate endorsed his book. For a detailed expose of his pagan gospel see the article: "The Strange Beliefs of Stegall's System". 

The Very Core of the Gospel Message

"1 Corinthians chapter 15...starts out as we read and we’ll look at again, that Paul says: ‘I make known unto you brethren the gospel’. And what that means as he begins to unfold this for the Corinthians and then we enter into this is the fact that when Paul and really the Spirit of God is trying to reveal and kind of unload the message of the gospel to us, he doesn't do it like we would in our age. If we wanted to really think about a very, very serious subject I might take a young person by the hand and say, ‘Hey let’s go to the university lecture halls and really get someone to give us some deep [insights]....’ Paul doesn't do that, and neither does the Spirit of God. He doesn't take us to some scientific laboratory and say, ‘Let’s kind of just look at all the elements in a worldly sense.’ He doesn't set us down in a psychologist's chair and say you know: ‘How do you feel?’ Paul takes us to the empty tomb. This is the very core of the gospel message. This is what makes the gospel message real, and forever powerful in our life. He takes us to the place where the angel said: ‘Why do you seek the living among the dead? He is not here. He is risen indeed.’”¹

¹ Don Myer, “Truths to Value – ‘The Gospel’ 1 Corinthians 15:1-5,” Northwest Community Church, transcribed from a sermon dated January 24, 2010.

The Dangers of the Deserted Island Scenarios, Pt. 8

Danger # 7: Both scenarios are based on the assumption that the saving message excludes the burial of Christ.

The strange scenarios proposed by Zane Hodges and Tom Stegall are "joined at the hip"¹ in assuming that the saving message excludes the burial of Christ. Notice what each man says in this regard:

A New Twist to 1 Corinthians 15:4

Hodges writes: "Our object is to lead [people] to believe in Christ to provide their eternal salvation. The gospel message [in 1 Corinthians 15:3-4] about His death, burial, and resurrection is the normal context for our presentation of this core objective. But at the end of the day, anyone who trusts Christ for eternal life is born again."² Hodges labels the gospel truths of Christ's death, burial, and resurrection "excess baggage".³ Elsewhere he call these truths "the facts surrounding the gospel message"⁴ and says that they tend to "cloud the issues" when making appeals to faith in Christ.⁵ Hodges believes that the saving message excludes virtually all the historical facts of the gospel. Thus, along with Christ's death and resurrection, out goes the burial of Christ! In view of Hodges' belief that the saving message excludes the burial of Christ, it's not surprising that he isolated John 6:47 in his Deserted Island Scenario rather than 1 Corinthians 15:3-4. While 1 Corinthians 15:4 specifically mentions the burial of Christ, John 6:47 does not.

   
Tom Stegall also admits to preaching the maximum consisting at least of Christ's death, burial, and resurrection, but requires something less than this to be believed.⁶ Stegall acknowledges that "it is quite common for Christians to reference 1 Corinthians 15:3-4 and then state that the gospel is the message that 'Christ died for our sins, was buried, and rose again'...since the burial happens to fall in-between these two pillars, it gets included each time this passage is quoted".⁷ Stegall goes on to argue: "The death and resurrection of Christ are the two key events/works repeatedly emphasized throughout Scripture as an inseparable couplet necessary for salvation, not His burial."⁸ Like Hodges, Stegall believes that the burial of Christ is the normal context for the saving message but not part of the saving message itself. Stegall labels the gospel truths of Christ's burial and resurrection appearances "additional details in 1 Corinthians 15".⁹ Elsewhere he calls these truths: "extra details in Acts 13,"¹⁰ and "additional details...but they are not in themselves elements of the saving gospel."¹¹ In view of Stegall's belief that the saving message excludes the burial of Christ, it's not surprising that he isolated the book of Galatians in his Galatians-Only Scenario rather than 1 Corinthians 15:3-4. While 1 Corinthians 15:4 specifically mentions the burial of Christ, the book of Galatians does not.¹²

Getting the Gospel Straight

The assumption that the saving message excludes the burial of Christ is simply not according to the Scriptures. For example, the prophet Isaiah includes the burial of Christ in his "evangelistic message"¹³ - his gospel (Isa. 53:1-12; cf. Rom. 10:15-16).¹⁴ The apostle Peter includes the burial of Christ in his sermon on the day of Pentecost when the church first began (Acts 2:22-32, 40) - and 3,000 souls were saved (Acts 2:41)! The apostle Paul includes the burial of Christ in "the message of...salvation" to the unsaved Galatians (Acts 13:26-41). The apostle John includes the burial of Christ in his "evangelistic" narrative (John 2:13-22, 12:1-8, 23-24, 14:18-19, 16:16-22, 19:38-42).¹⁵ Most importantly, Paul includes the burial of Christ in his definitive declaration of the gospel to the Corinthians, reminding them of what the content of the gospel really is - the message they believed and by which they are saved (1 Cor. 15:1, 3-5; cf. Rom. 1:16; Eph. 1:13; 2 Thess. 1:8-10).¹⁶

   
In light of these biblical truths, let me be more specific in highlighting the strange similarity between the teachings of Zane Hodges and Tom Stegall: Both scenarios wrongly assume that the saving message excludes the burial of Christ.

< Part 7                         Part 9 >

FOOTNOTES:

¹ Adapted from Lou Martuneac, "Lordship Salvation and the Crossless Gospel: 'Joined at the Hip.'" In Defense of the Gospel blog, November 23, 2009, italics his.

² Hodges, "How to Lead People to Christ, Part 2: Our Invitation to Respond," Journal of the Grace Evangelical Society 14 (Spring 2001): p. 9.

³ Ibid., p. 17. Hodges does not explicitly say this. He says: "All of the excess baggage that we bring into our encounter with unsaved sinners is just that, excess baggage!" (Ibid.) Although in the immediate context Hodges is speaking against "Inviting People to Believe" by praying a prayer, in the broader context of the article he is also speaking against what he calls "Doing the Two-Step" - that is, inviting "people to believe the basic facts of the gospel, and then...ask them to appropriate this truth for themselves." (Ibid., p. 12.) Hodges says that such a technique "bothers" him. (Ibid.)

⁴ Ibid., p. 11.

⁵ Ibid., p. 12.

⁶ This point is discussed further in the article "Getting the Gospel Right," p. 21 in the PDF file.

⁷ Stegall, The Gospel Of The Christ, p. 559, italics his.  There are several things to notice about Stegall's statement in regards to his reductionist reasoning:  
  (1) Stegall's reasoning is incongruent. He is including supposedly non-saving truth in his saving message.
   (2) Stegall's reasoning is intellectually dishonest. He is including Christ's burial in the gospel as well as excluding it. He says that "it is quite common for Christians to reference 1 Corinthians 15:3-4 and then state that the gospel is the message that 'Christ died for our sins, was buried, and rose again'...since the burial happens to fall in-between these two pillars, it gets included each time this passage is quoted". Amazingly, Stegall is saying that even though the burial of Christ is being "included" in the gospel, it is really being excluded!
   (3) Stegall's reasoning is postmodern. Notice that Stegall is ascribing his own beliefs to others and then using that scenario as his basis for truth. In other words, Stegall's basis for truth is not what the Bible says, but what he says other people say!
   (4) Stegall's reasoning is found wanting. It fails to explain why it is also quite common for Christians to reference 1 Corinthians 15:3-4 and then state that the gospel includes three or even four points - one of which is specifically the burial of Christ. Similarly, Stegall's reasoning also fails to explain why it is quite common for Christians to reference 1 Corinthians 15:3-5 and then state that the gospel is the message that "Christ died for our sins, was buried, was raised, and appeared". If the burial and appearances are not part of the gospel (as Stegall contends), why confuse people by including them in the gospel - especially verse 5?

⁸ Stegall, "Proposed Change" to the "SOLE CONDITION FOR SALVATION," Word of Grace Bible Church handout (2007), underlining added; cf. Stegall, The Gospel Of The Christ, p. 588. Elsewhere Stegall writes: "the Lord's burial and appearances are not the required content of saving faith...they are not technically part of the gospel" (Stegall, The Gospel Of The Christ, p. 589).

⁹ Ibid, underlining added.

¹⁰ Stegall, "THE TRAGEDY OF THE CROSSLESS GOSPEL Pt. 9," The Grace Family Journal (Special Edition 2008): p. 21, underlining added; cf. Stegall, The Gospel Of The Christ, pp. 375-376.

¹¹ Ibid.

¹² No wonder Biblical Greek scholar J. Gresham Machen writes: "The First Epistle to the Corinthians must be allowed to cast light upon Galatians."  (Machen, The Origin of Paul's Religion [Grand Rapids: Eerdmans Printing Company, 1925], p. 125.) Machen goes on to emphasize: "The epistle to the Galatians must always be interpreted in the light of 1 Cor. xv. 1-11." (Ibid., p. 145.)

¹³ C. I. Scofield, What Do the Prophets Say?, pp. 57-58.

¹⁴ For further discussion see the article "The Romans Road Leads to Isaiah 53".

¹⁵ Hodges states: "The Gospel of John is the only book in our New Testament canon that explicitly declares its purpose to be evangelistic. Of course, I am thinking of the famous theme statement found in John 20:30-31, where we read: 'And truly Jesus did many other signs in the presence of His disciples, which are not written in this book; but these are written that you may believe that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of God, and that believing you may have life in His name." (Hodges, "How to Lead People to Christ, Part 1: The Content of Our Message," Journal of the Grace Evangelical Society 13 [Autumn 2000]: p. 6.) One might have expected Hodges' to name John 6:47 as "the famous theme statement found in John" - but surprisingly he doesn't! This is significant. Notice Hodges just admitted that the "evangelistic...theme statement" of John's Gospel comes only after the substitutionary death, burial, resurrection, and manifestation of the risen Christ have been shared. In other words, John's famous "evangelistic...theme statement" comes only after the apostle John has shared the biblical gospel.

¹⁶ NOTE: The word "saved" in 1 Corinthians 15:2 can refer to both first and second tense salvation, i.e. justification and sanctification. See Rokser, Let's Preach the Gospel (Duluth: Duluth Bible Church, no date), p. 23; cf. S. Lewis Johnson, The Wycliffe Bible Commentary (Chicago: Moody Press, 1962), p. 1255.

The Bible's Answer to Zane Hodges' Deserted Island Scenario

Here's a good one-word answer to the strange and imaginary "DESERTED ISLAND SCENARIO" that was proposed by Zane Hodges: Jonah! "For whatever was written in earlier times was written for our instruction..." (Rom. 15:4). God will send a Jonah! This is the biblical scenario and it therefore trumps the imaginary scenario proposed by Hodges. "Casting down imaginations, and every high thing that exalteth itself against the knowledge of God, and bringing into captivity every thought to the obedience of Christ" (2 Cor. 10:5, KJV).

The Dangers of the Deserted Island Scenarios, Pt. 7

Danger # 6: Both scenarios involve an unsaved soul with little to no knowledge of the gospel.

The Deserted Island Scenario

Zane Hodges writes: "Let me begin with a strange scenario. Try to imagine an unsaved person marooned on a tiny, uninhabited island in the middle of the Pacific Ocean. he has never heard about Christianity in his life...he doesn't know that Jesus died for his sins on the cross and rose again the third day [1 Cor. 15:3-4]...If we believe that Jesus is the One who guarantees our eternal destiny, we have believed all we absolutely have to believe in order to be saved...That's why the man on the deserted island can get saved with only the barest minimum of information."¹ Hodges goes on to say: "No one has ever trusted in [Jesus'] name for his or her eternal well-being who has not been saved by doing so. And this is true no matter how little they might have known about the One whom that name represents."²

   

The Galatians-Only Scenario

Similar to Hodges, Stegall states: "Yet...we must ask, does Paul's Epistle to the Galatians contain the saving gospel or doesn't it? Are we honestly to believe that a lost soul could actually read and believe every word of Galatians and yet slip into hell for lack of knowledge about Christ's burial and post-resurrection appearances to Peter and the twelve [1 Cor. 15:3-5]?!"³ Elsewhere Stegall asserts: "His being buried was not a work which accomplished our eternal redemption, and it is therefore not absolutely essential for someone to know about it and believe it in order to go to heaven".⁴

Playing Cut and Paste with the Gospel

In a twist of irony, Stegall actually bears witness against his own partial gospel position when he says: "some Christians [like partial gospel advocate J. B. Hixson, Getting the Gospel Wrong, p. 80] insist...that a lost person can be saved by believing only part of the gospel. But Scripture nowhere endorses such a possibility. In the Bible, people are never said to be saved by believing 'part of' the gospel but only by believing 'the gospel.' According to the New Testament, people either believe the gospel or they don't. To reject it in part is to reject it in whole."⁵ Stegall sounds like a traditional Free Grace advocate because he is using the same vocabulary as a traditional Free Grace advocate would use - but he has redefined the terms! That's why his gospel is so deceptive. The truth is, Stegall has no problem playing cut and paste with the biblical gospel. For instance, he writes: "When Paul states that the gospel that he received and delivered to the Corinthians is 'first of all,' he means that the gospel is in first place when it comes to importance. And this gospel message that was to be first in importance is defined specifically as the message 'that Christ died for our sins...and that He rose again.'"⁶  It is very revealing that Stegall must edit Paul's declaration of the gospel by adding ellipsis after the words "Christ died for our sins" (thus removing the mention of Christ's burial) and by adding an artificial period after the words "He rose again" (thus removing the mention of the third day and Christ's resurrection appearances). Also notice that Stegall omits the twice repeated phrase "according to the Scriptures" (1 Cor. 15:3, 4) from his new, mini-gospel. Is it any wonder that a false gospel doesn't include the references to "the Scriptures"? Tragically, Stegall's "gospel" is a partial gospel lacking vital truths "of first importance" (1 Cor. 15:3). Ironically, Dennis Rokser says that "Hodges...undermines the 'core essentials' of the Gospel declared in this passage as NOT BEING OF FIRST IMPORTANCE when it comes to that which 'must be believed in order to be eternally saved.' What a strange twist!"⁷ Yes, what a strange twist indeed that Tom Stegall and Dennis Rokser also undermine "the 'core essentials' of the Gospel declared in this passage as NOT BEING OF FIRST IMPORTANCE"!
   
Having highlighted the partial gospel mindset and cited some examples, we must ask: Is this what the Bible teaches? Is it really "not absolutely essential for someone to know" certain facts "of first importance" (1 Cor. 15:3ff) in order to receive eternal life?

People Must Hear the Whole Story

In contrast to Zane Hodges and Tom Stegall, the apostle Paul didn't have a "barest minimum"⁸ mindset when discussing the eternal destiny of the unsaved. He makes it clear that knowledge of the biblical gospel - not merely part of it - is essential for salvation (1 Cor. 15:1-5; cf. Rom. 10:2, 16-17; 1 Cor. 1:21; 2 Cor. 4:3-6, 10:5; Eph. 1:13-14; 1 Tim. 2:3-4).⁹ Free Grace theologian William R. Newell affirms "that the simple story, Christ died for our sins, was buried, hath been raised from the dead the third day, and was seen, IS THE POWER OF GOD to salvation to everyone who rests in it, - who believes!¹⁰ Newell goes on to add: "This story of Christ's dying for our sins, buried, raised, manifested, is the great wire along which runs God's mighty current of saving power. Beware lest you be putting up some little wire of your own, unconnected with the Divine throne, and therefore non-saving to those to whom you speak."¹¹ In an excellent article titled "Missing the Whole Story", Kelly Arabie also affirms the same truth saying: "1 Corinthians 15:3-5 highlights the essential elements of the gospel. Christ died for our sins. He was buried and resurrected. He was seen by witnesses. Anything less than that falls short of good news. Anything less than that is not the gospel."¹²

   
In reviewing the facts of the gospel in 1 Corinthians 15, it's important to notice what the apostle Paul didn't say. For example, he didn't say: "It's not absolutely essential to know and believe all these things to be saved - surely not the fact that Christ was seen by Cephas and the others, my goodness! What was I thinking when I first delivered that to you? I'm sure I just overwhelmed you with the complexity of my message and confused you with unnecessary 'excess baggage' (so says Hodges¹³) and 'extra details' (so says Stegall¹⁴). Don't sweat the small stuff. You don't absolutely need to know and believe all that!" Actually Paul took quite a different approach. When he explained from the Scriptures "the word of this salvation" to an unsaved audience in Acts 13:26-41, he highlighted four basic facts:

1. Christ's "death" (Acts 13:28),
2. His burial in "a tomb" (Acts 13:29),
3. He was "raised...from the dead" (Acts 13:30),
4. "He appeared to...His witnesses" (Acts 13:31).

This preaching is "the good news" (Acts 13:32); it is the full gospel message¹⁵ - and the Bible says that those who don't believe it will "perish" (Acts 13:41; cf. Jn. 3:16; 1 Cor. 1:18; 2 Cor. 4:3-6; 2 Thess. 1:8-9). John Aeby, a former professor of Old Testament and Hebrew at Grace Theological Seminary in Winona Lake, Indiana, is correct to conclude that "we are saved because we have 'heard the word of truth, the gospel of your salvation' (1 Cor. 15:3-5) and have believed God's message and trusted God's Son".¹⁶

< Part  6                         Part 8 >

FOOTNOTES:

¹ Hodges, "How to Lead People to Christ, Part 1: The Content of Our Message," The Journal of the Grace Evangelical Society 13 (Autumn 2000): pp. 4-5.

² Ibid., p. 8.

³ Stegall, "THE TRAGEDY OF THE CROSSLESS GOSPEL Pt. 9," The Grace Family Journal (Special Edition 2008): p. 21.

⁴ Stegall, "Proposed Change" to the "SOLE CONDITION FOR SALVATION," Word of Grace Bible Church handout (2007), underlining added. It's important to notice that Stegall's reasoning here is non sequitur and self-refuting. Stegall claims that "His being buried was not a work which accomplished our eternal redemption, and it is therefore not absolutely essential for someone to know about it and believe it in order to go to heaven". (Ibid.) Stegall is correct to point out that Christ's burial did not accomplish our eternal redemption, but his conclusion that it is therefore not part of the gospel is non sequitur. First, let's make sure we understand what redemption is, and then I will make my point. In the Bible, "redemption" involves the payment for sin - Christ redeemed us by His death on the cross (1 Cor. 15:3; Gal. 3:13; Eph. 1:7; Heb. 9:12-15; 1 Pet. 1:18-19, etc.). Christ redeemed us by His death, not by His burial, and not by His resurrection. In other words, Christ's burial did not pay for sins, nor did His resurrection. Redemption was accomplished on the cross. It was there that the ransom price was fully paid (Jn. 19:30, Greek tetelestai = "paid in full"). Even Stegall affirms that "[Christ's] resurrection didn't pay for our sins, His death did." (Stegall, "THE GOSPEL OF THE RESURRECTED CHRIST," [1 Corinthians 15:1-11], March 27, 2005.) Similarly, in an article titled "TRUTHS ONE MUST SEE AND BELIEVE IN ORDER TO BE SAVED" Stegall writes: "[Christ's] sacrifice for our sins paid the penalty in full, satisfying God's holy demands completely...Christ fully paid for our sins when He died". (Stegall, "TRUTHS ONE MUST SEE AND BELIEVE IN ORDER TO BE SAVED," Word of Grace Bible Church website [accessed April 5, 2011].) In his book The Gospel of the Christ, Stegall makes several more statements connecting full redemption with Christ's substitutionary death on the cross. He talks about being "redeemed by the blood of the Lamb". (Stegall, The Gospel of the Christ [Milwaukee: Grace Gospel Press, 2009], p. 30.) He goes on to explain that "The Lord has seen fit to use a multiplicity of metaphors, images, and diverse terminology to depict the one truth of the Savior's death for our sins. These terms include 'cross,' 'tree,' 'blood,' 'gave,' 'offered,' 'sacrificed,' 'redeemed,' 'suffered,' 'slain,' etc. Yet, despite such rich diversity of expression, there is still a unity of content, as each of these terms point to the same substitutionary, atoning death of the Savior." (Ibid., p. 312.) Stegall also says: "Jesus had in fact provided redemption for Israel by that very crucifixion, and this redemption was proven by virtue of His resurrection." (Ibid., p. 660, italics his.) Stegall is echoing the words of John Hart when he says: "The resurrection proved our justification, but it did not provide for our justification." (Hart, "Why Confess Christ? The Use and Abuse of Romans 10:9-10," Journal of the Grace Evangelical Society 12 [Autumn 1999].) Dennis Rokser also affirms this same basic truth saying in reference to 1 Corinthians 15:4: "'and rose again' (which is the proof that God was satisfied with Christ's payment of our sins)." (Rokser, "EXAMINING LORDSHIP SALVATION Pt. 2," The Grace Family Journal [Fall 2007]: p. 13, italics his.) One last statement by Stegall is particularly to the point. Commenting on "the redemptive and propitious aspect of Christ's death in Acts 20:28," Stegall emphasizes: "The redemption price for every member of the Church was clearly the death of Christ". (Stegall, The Gospel of the Christ [Milwaukee: Grace Gospel Press, 2009], pp. 660-661.) My point is simply this: Stegall doesn't believe that Christ's resurrection "accomplished our eternal redemption" (i.e. the resurrection didn't pay for our sins in any way, shape, or form) yet he still includes it in his gospel! Thus, for him to exclude Christ's burial for the same reason is the logical fallacy of special pleading (i.e. a double standard). If Stegall were consistent with his own reductionist reasoning he would not only have to exclude Christ's burial from the gospel but he would also have to exclude Christ's resurrection because it wasn't redemptive either - it "didn't pay for our sins, His death did."

⁵ Stegall, The Gospel Of The Christ, pp. 563-564, italics his.

⁶ Ibid., p. 512, italics and ellipsis his. Dennis Rokser argues the same groundless point. He states: "the content of the Gospel is the person of 'Christ' and His finished work ('died for our sins...rose again') responded to by faith alone." (Rokser, "A CRITIQUE OF ZANE HODGES' ARTICLE - 'THE HYDRA'S OTHER HEAD: THEOLOGICAL LEGALISM,'" The Grace Family Journal [Special Edition 2008], emphasis his.) Notice the obvious cut and paste involved in Rokser's definition of the gospel. He fails to mention that Christ's burial and resurrection appearances are also "the content of the Gospel" - being included in hoti content clauses in parallel with Christ's death and resurrection. It is quite revealing that Rokser never mentions any of these grammatical truths from God's Word.

⁷ Ibid.

⁸ Hodges, "How to Lead People to Christ, Part 1: The Content of Our Message," Journal of the Grace Evangelical Society 13 (Autumn 2000): p. 5.

⁹ Although I do not agree with his partial gospel, Dennis Rokser is correct to say: "The Gospel offers the good news of SALVATION to us. (1 Cor. 15:2a)...by which also you are saved....The present tense of 'saved' may be viewed in two possible ways. First, Paul may be communicating that these Corinthians via the Gospel were being presently saved from the POWER OF SIN in their Christian lives as long as they remained steadfast to the Gospel, just like they had been saved from the PENALTY OF SIN (Hell) when they had trusted in Christ. In other words, the Gospel they had received would continue to have saving effects from spiritual damage upon their lives 'if you hold fast the word which I preached to you.' In the second view, the apostle may be indicating that the Gospel continues to bear fruit in Corinth by various [unsaved] sinners continuing to receive it, and as a result being 'saved.' Both views are presented by Dr. S. Lewis Johnson in his comments on 1 Corinthians in The Wycliffe Bible Commentary, p. 1255." (Rokser, Let's Preach the Gospel [Duluth: Duluth Bible Church, no date], p. 23.)
     The commentary of S. Lewis Johnson on 1 Corinthians 15:2a is as follows: "Ye are saved (Gr., present tense) may refer to continual salvation from the power of sin in the lives of believers, or it may refer to the day-by-day salvation of the inhabitants of Corinth as they received the message and formed part of the church of Jesus Christ." (Johnson, Charles F. Pfeiffer and Everett F. Harrison, Editors, The Wycliffe Bible Commentary [Chicago: Moody Press, 1990], p. 1255.)
     While I agree that both views are acceptable, in this article I'm focusing on the second of the two meanings: the gospel has application to non-Christians to save them from Hell. This understanding of 1 Corinthians 15:2 is also supported by Zane Hodges. Notice what he says: "The problem in correctly understanding this verse [1 Cor. 15:2] is caused by the English translation. A very flexible Greek verb (katecho) is translated 'hold fast' in the New King James Version (the AV has 'keep in memory'). But the verb could equally well be rendered 'take hold of' or 'take possession of' [e.g. Matt. 21:38, NIV; Lk. 14:9, NIV]. In that case it would refer to the act of appropriating the truth of the Gospel by faith. Closer examination of the Greek text suggests that this is indeed the correct understanding. The Greek word order can be represented as follows: 'by which also you are saved, by that word I preached to you, if you take hold of it, unless you believed in vain.' From this it appears that Paul is thinking of the saving effect of the preached word when it is duly appropriated, unless in fact that appropriation (by faith) has been in vain. What he means by believing 'in vain' is made clear in verses 14 and 17: 'And if Christ is not risen, then our preaching is empty and your faith is also empty [the AV has 'vain' for 'empty']. And if Christ is not risen, your faith is futile; you are still in your sins [the AV has 'vain' for 'futile'].' First Corinthians 15:2 must be read in the light of the subsequent discussion about resurrection. Paul is simply saying, in verse 2, that the Gospel he has preached to them is a saving Gospel when it is appropriated by faith, unless, after all, the resurrection is false. In that case, no salvation has occurred at all and the faith his readers had exercised was futile. But naturally Paul absolutely insists on the reality of the resurrection of Christ. He therefore does not think that the Corinthians have believed 'in vain.'" (Hodges, The Gospel Under Siege [Dallas: Redencion Viva, 1981], pp. 85-86, first brackets added.)
     In regards to Hodges exegetical insights on 1 Corinthians 15:2, I'm in agreement with another Free Grace advocate who said: "My opinion is that Zane Hodges explained 1 Cor. 15:2 exceedingly well, evidently before he changed his mind about the gospel". (Art, comment under the post "1 Corinthians 15," Rose's Reasonings blog, March 28, 2008, http://rosesreasonings.blogspot.com/2008/03/1-corinthians-15.html#c5057204266597401204, accessed April 10, 2012.)

¹⁰ Newell, Romans Verse-By-Verse (Grand Rapids: Kregel Publications, 1994), p. 19, capitalization and italics his.

¹¹ Ibid., p. 21.

¹² Kelly Arabie, "Missing the Whole Story," Kelly Arabie's blog (a bible.org blog), https://blogs.bible.org/missing-the-whole-story/ (accessed April 24, 2012).

¹³ Hodges labels the gospel truths of Christ's death, burial, and resurrection "excess baggage". (Hodges, "How to Lead People to Christ, Part 2: Our Invitation to Respond," Journal of the Grace Evangelical Society 14 [Spring 2001]: p. 17.) Hodges goes on to brand these gospel truths as simply "context" (Ibid., p. 9) and "the facts surrounding the gospel message" (Ibid., p. 11), and says that they tend to "cloud the issues" when making appeals to faith in Christ (Ibid., p. 12).

¹⁴ Stegall labels the gospel truths of Christ's burial and resurrection appearances "extra details". (Stegall, "THE TRAGEDY OF THE CROSSLESS GOSPEL Pt. 9," The Grace Family Journal [Special Edition 2008]: p. 21.) Stegall goes on to brand these gospel truths as simply "additional facts" (Ibid) and "additional details...but they are not in themselves elements of the saving gospel." (Ibid.)

¹⁵ Herbert Lockyer writes: "First of all, Paul states the sum and substance of the sublime yet simple Gospel with which he accomplished mighty victories. Christ died for our sins, was buried, was raised, and appeared to His saints. If, as one early leader wrote, there are shallows in this very full and potent Gospel where a little lamb may wade, there are depths where an elephant must swim." (Lockyer, All the Books and Chapters of the Bible [Grand Rapids: Zondervan, 1986], pp. 259-260; cf. Norman Geisler, Systematic Theology [Minneapolis: Bethany House Publishers, 2004], 4 vols., vol. 3, p. 549; Michael Svigel, "The Full Gospel and Nothing More," Insight for Living: The Bible-Teaching Ministry of Charles R. Swindoll, https://web.archive.org/web/20120321133204/http://insight.asn.au/newsletters.php?item=19 [accessed March 2012].)

¹⁶ John Aeby, commentary on Ephesians 1:13, "Walking with Christ through Ephesians," The Brethren Missionary Herald, vol. 21, num. 32 (August 8, 1959), p. 504.