I was struck with the following thought recently, that almost every problem that we experience as Christians can be ultimately traced back to one fundamental issue, that is, we have a Gospel problem!

What do I mean?

If we are encountering a difficulty, if our experience is sub-Christian, if our life is falling short in a particularly area it will usually stem back to a faulty understanding of the gospel. The outcome? A faulty understanding and experience of Jesus Christ.  

Now, I deliberately use the word understanding of the gospel. We can experience the gospel with very little understanding, however if we do not add understanding to our experience, our experience will be short lived and we will run into troublesome waters and possibly spiritual shipwreck.

Indeed most of us get saved with very little knowledge of the gospel. We hear an aspect of the truth and truth leads to faith and regeneration. What should happen after this is that the various ministry gifts of the church should minister to us and help us understand biblically what has happened to us in Christ.

Understanding is important. Health advisers tell us ‘you are what you eat’, spiritually speaking ‘you are what you understand’. 

“ As a man thinks in his heart, so is he.” [Proverbs 23:7]

So why is our ‘problem’ as believers likely to be a gospel problem?

Let me give you a list of problems

  • Charismatic doctrinal error
  • Guilt
  • Fear
  • Addiction
  • Sin
  • lack of assurance of salvation
  • Legalism
  • insecurity
  • Church Unity
  • lack of spiritual fruit

Now this list is in no way exhaustive, yet it does cover common problems experienced by countless Christians today.

Now, how can I say that the root of these issues is likely to be a gospel problem?

Quite simply, how we deal with these issues will reflect to a large extent our understanding and experience of the gospel.

If we are living in fear, we are not experiencing one of the key blessings of the gospel, if this is so then it is very likely that we do not understand that

“…you have not received a spirit of slavery leading to fear again, but you have received a spirit of adoption as sons by which we cry out, “Abba! Father!” Rom 8:15

or

Heb 2: 14 “Since the children have flesh and blood, he too shared in their humanity so that by his death he might destroy him who holds the power of death— that is, the devil— 15 and free those who all their lives were held in slavery by their fear of death”

Or take for example the current charismatic confusion over Todd Bentley. Many people who had concerns about Todd’s ministry were people who had an understanding of the gospel. Many who defended Todd against all criticisms had a flawed understanding about the gospel.

How can I say this?

Quite simply, measure Bentley’s gospel with the apostle Paul’s gospel and you will find a huge gap!

Bentley focused on miracles, Paul focused on Christ. Bentley focused on Angels, Paul focused on Jesus and warned against the former. Bentley focused on supernatural revelation, Paul focused on the Word of God, the Gospel of Christ. The outcome? Bentley’s Gospel was very different to that which is revealed in scripture. Sure the name of Jesus was used, sure people where asked to ‘recieve Jesus’, sure salvation was claimed. But when, was the gospel faithfully explained? When was a proper new testament response to the gospel asked for?

The truth is that so many Christians have been fed ‘Gospel lite’ for so long that they have forgotten (or have never known) what the real deal is. The gospel is not ‘ask Jesus into your heart’. The biblical response is not ‘a sinners prayer’. A sub standard gospel leads to a substandard experience of Christ which leads to sub-standard Christian living.

Let me take one more example from the list.

Sin.

Sin is common to all believers. Why? Its in our nature. The fall has corrupted our inner being so much so that no human effort or strategy can overcome it.

What then can be done?

Only the death and resurrection of Christ can deal with our sin and with our sins. Sin is related to what we are and sins are what we do. The blood of Jesus takes away the guilt and punishment of sins, the cross of Christ deals with our fallen nature. Our fallen nature was crucified with Christ. It is dead and buried. Understanding this truth in our hearts and minds is the key to overcoming sin. We dont try and deal with our sins by trying to do better. Self atonement does not work with God. Only the blood of Jesus can remove our sins. Through confessing our sins we can know forgiveness on the basis of Jesus shed blood.

‘Just as I am without one plea, but that your blood was shed for me.’

Again, trying harder will not help us defeat sin, only a spiritual understanding of our union with Christ through the gospel can lead to deliverance from sins power.

   Rom 6: 3 Or don’t you know that all of us who were baptised into Christ Jesus were baptised into his death?

    4 We were therefore buried with him through baptism into death in order that, just as Christ was raised from the dead through the glory of the Father, we too may live a new life.

    5 If we have been united with him like this in his death, we will certainly also be united with him in his resurrection.

     6 For we know that our old self was crucified with him so that the body of sin might be done away with, that we should no longer be slaves to sin—

    7 because anyone who has died has been freed from sin.

    8 Now if we died with Christ, we believe that we will also live with him.

    9 For we know that since Christ was raised from the dead, he cannot die again; death no longer has mastery over him.

    10 The death he died, he died to sin once for all; but the life he lives, he lives to God.

    11 In the same way, count yourselves dead to sin but alive to God in Christ Jesus.

    12 Therefore do not let sin reign in your mortal body so that you obey its evil desires.”

Now check out verses three and four. We must know! What must we know? We must know we have been crucified with Christ. Verse 11

only then are we  to count (or consider) ourselves dead to sin.

If we try and count ourselves dead, before we know we are dead, we will fail.

How can we know?

We can know because our death is past tense. Let me explain. Is it a fact that Jesus has died?

Now, if we have been crucified with him, then our death is also a fact. When he died, we died because we died in Him! That’s good news, because a dead man cant sin! We must know this and believe it. As we believe it we will gain a true understanding of it which will enable us to consider it or count so. As we count it so we will find that sin has lost its cursed grip. For continual victory we must continually abide, just like Jesus said. We need to abide in Him and this truth and the result? An abundant harvest of holiness and victory.

So, when we have a sin problem, recognise it as a gospel problem. Go back to the gospel, fix your understanding on the truth and victory will follow.

I don’t have time to explore the other issues but I am convinced that we need a fresh generation of Gospel preachers and teachers to emerge.

If only there was a greater understanding of the truth that is often sung

‘Your Gospel oh Lord is the Hope for the nation’

we perhaps would not need to sing the chorus that follows it

‘Send your power, oh Lord our God’

for we would recognise that God has sent his power, His gospel is the power of God for salvation for all who believe!’

Blessings