How to Fight the Cursed Gospel, False Gospel, Another Jesus, and The Enemies of the Cross

By Deborah Ann Saint written and posted 9/11-13/2021 Many years ago a sheet of paper listing an inventory of all kinds of sin was handed out for our group of about 30-50 women to fill out. The feelings of shame, tension, pain, guilt, wanting to “escape and hide’, even of condemnation and accusation seemed to fill the room. It was daunting to admit to myself let alone others the things I had done. I felt others felt the same way. But I did wonder if maybe there were some that thought they had done pretty well on this and had some pride in their own goodness? As I looked around at these new faces at this Christian Women Retreat, it seemed as if most, if not all, had it together and were pretty committed to God and seemed “good” or righteous. I wondered if it was self-righteousness or the Righteousness of Christ. For me, it was a struggle to fill out this inventory by honest self examination and remembering all the BAD of my life, all the places I had truly fallen short! I was humiliated but thankful. I felt redemptive hope because of the truth of God’s amazing forgiveness through Christ! Never in my life had I really realized the degree of my sins as I did that night that happened to be the eve of Yom Kippur! I felt sick. I felt great anxiety and vulnerability. I did not know what they were going to do with our completed inventory and I felt afraid the worst things about me would be revealed. I knew hiding my sin had set me up to sin more. So I completed the inventory with full disclosure, in honesty.

Church experiences had taught me to hide my sins and try to be good. It had never worked for me. I learned this is a recipe for feeling NOT good enough, defeated and disillusioned with religion. Really hiding sin is just the opposite of True Christianity. We are to quickly run to God realizing the Good News that awaits us at The Cross. We tell Him our sin, seek and receive His forgiveness, His Grace and Mercy, His Goodness and then want to tell others the amazing goodness of His Grace. Why do we make it so hard? A few steps that have made it easier for me: I had to learn and live to 1. Be honest about my sin and take it to Christ for forgiveness knowing His Work on the Cross paid in full my sin debt and since i have repented and know Christ as my Personal Savior I am assured that I am born again and brought into the Light from the darkness and have a clean slate, new life, plus so much more. Study what it means to be born again and saved by Christ alone by faith and grace and reading the accounts of Jesus life, death and resurrection have convinced me of God's love, great price for my forgiveness and His acceptance of me.. Knowing what the True Gospel is and re-reading the Passion of Christ and His showing mercy to me causes me to want to show mercy to others. I have freely received so I hope I live freely giving. Know it is ONLY CHRIST’s death on the Cross and His overcoming death, HIS RESURRECTION that saves me and any who will believe! I had to really get that it is not by my/ our works but CHRIST’s by His Grace, The Gift of God is Jesus Christ and all He offers us!

Be willing to share your story as God leads you to tell others of the Grace you have received. Tell the worst things God forgave you for as He leads you to help others know they are not alone and they too can be forgiven! Grace is undeserved but given freely; not because we deserve Grace or a New Life but all because of John 3:16-17 and all the works of Christ to overcome the world and be Savior of the world in forgiving sin. Jesus Christ is the Way to Heaven, the best Way to live on earth is to follow Him and His Word, and Know His Truth by His Spirit and His Word (The Bible) and live for eternal life of knowing Him, serving Him and receiving more of THE LORD in His Manifest Presence.

1. Be willing to Live Revelation 12:11: And they (WE) overcame him (the devil) by the blood of the Lamb *JESUS CHRIST*, and by the word of their (our) testimony; and they (we) loved not their (our) lives unto the death.

That inventory was all my bad things that were exchanged for ALL GOD’s GOOD GIFTS! GOOD was given to me all because of Christ and His Great Exchange! The Great Exchange is that I brought MY SIN to Christ, ALL MY BAD…and with true repentance and accepting Christ and His Grace I was given ALL GOOD! This is Good News any of us can receive and live and get to show and tell. (It’s like taking all my (our) garbage to God and in exchange God gives me (us) all the best gifts that I (we) least deserve but that Christ earned and paid for by His very life!) It really seems to good to be true but it is true and GOOD! For readers who want more on “inventory” or self examination and what The Bible says about this subject: *2 Corinthians 13:5 Amplified Bible Test and evaluate yourselves to see whether you are in the faith and living your lives as [committed] believers. Examine yourselves [not me]! Or do you not recognize this about yourselves [by an ongoing experience] that Jesus Christ is in you—unless indeed you fail the test and are rejected as counterfeit? Self-examination is Scriptural and is so not at all like self-condemnation. Paul in 2 Corinthians urges the reader to ‘examine and test and evaluate their selves to see if they are really in the faith and showing the committed believers fruit (In other words, living by abiding in the Holy Spirit and bearing fruit). One purpose of self-examination is recognize if truly in the faith or not! In verses below Jesus warned those that have prophesied in His Name and drove out demons and performed many miracles that he never knew them and to depart from him, evildoers! Many of these people must have thought the Holy Spirit lived in them but not so. Judas was sent out by Jesus with the other 11 disciples yet Judas betrayed Christ and Jesus said it would have been better if you had never been born. True and False Disciples 21 “Not everyone who says to me, ‘Lord, Lord,’ will enter the kingdom of heaven, but only the one who does the will of my Father who is in heaven. 22 Many will say to me on that day, ‘Lord, Lord, did we not prophesy in your name and in your name drive out demons and in your name perform many miracles?’ 23 Then I will tell them plainly, ‘I never knew you. Away from me, you evildoers!’ The Wise and Foolish Builders 24 “Therefore everyone who hears these words of mine and puts them into practice is like a wise man who built his house on the rock. 25 The rain came down, the streams rose, and the winds blew and beat against that house; yet it did not fall, because it had its foundation on the rock. 26 But everyone who hears these words of mine and does not put them into practice is like a foolish man who built his house on sand. 27 The rain came down, the streams rose, and the winds blew and beat against that house, and it fell with a great crash.” 28 When Jesus had finished saying these things, the crowds were amazed at his teaching, 29 because he taught as one who had authority, and not as their teachers of the law. Another purpose of self-examination is to be open to what is wrong in one’s life, admit in honesty to self and others and be accountable, repentant, and ultimately set free by Jesus. Self-examination as Paul speaks of* brings us to test if we truly know and are assured that Jesus lives in us by His Holy Spirit (Colossians 1:27 Christ in you, the hope of glory…) I wonder if Judas did self-examination? It looks like Judas served money more than Jesus. Judas was sent out by Jesus with the other 11 disciples. (Matthew 10; Mark 6:7-13; Luke 9:1-10; John 13:18-30) Yet Judas betrayed Christ and Jesus said it would have been better if Judas had never been born. For many verses on self examination: https://www.kingjamesbibleonline.org/Bible-Verses-About-Self-Examination/ The Good News is GOD FORGIVES SIN AND HAS PAID FOR YOUR REDEMPTION. You do not have to earn or try to redeem yourself. God forgives murder. (Moses, David, Paul) KNOW JESUS PAID FOR OUR REDEMPTION! Repent and believe.... Please let’s examine our hearts and lives…let us be wise builders. Let us Stop Making The Good News Bad. Exchange the Bad News for the Good News and tell what Jesus Christ has done for you!