The Gospel of Grace Outshines All Counterfeit Gospels

Recently, I became concerned for those who are entangled in the cunning false gospels of our adversary, Satan. The TRUE GOSPEL is the absolute goodness of God. The false gospel imitates the true Gospel, only a counterfeit–a purposeful deception and powerless copy of the real thing.

"These things I have written to you concerning those who are trying to deceive you. And as for you, the anointing which you received from Him remains in you, and you have no need for anyone to teach you; but as His anointing teaches you about all things, and is true and is not a lie, and just as it has taught you, you remain in Him." 1 John 2:26-27

The true Gospel calls us to deny ourselves, pick up our cross, die daily, and follow Him.

"For such men are false apostles, deceitful workers, disguising themselves as apostles of Christ. No wonder, for even Satan disguises himself as an angel of light. Therefore it is not surprising if his servants also disguise themselves as servants of righteousness, whose end will be according to their deeds." 2 Corinthians 11:13-15

Jesus would not command us to FOLLOW HIM unless He provided the Grace (power) to fulfill it. We cannot possibly follow Jesus on our own power and strength. Without His Holy Spirit, we can do nothing. Apart from Christ, we can do nothing. Nothing is impossible for those IN CHRIST.

"But I say to you, love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you," Matthew 5:44

Let me gently remind you… Jesus won, and satan was defeated and destroyed! This means we have JESUS’ LIFE, HIS FULL LIFE, so now we can freely give all of ourselves to Him, even to death. It means we can forgive everyone and sacrifice everything for Jesus and His Kingdom. Freely we have received, freely we are commanded to give.

"You foolish Galatians, who has bewitched you, before whose eyes Jesus Christ was publicly portrayed as crucified? This is the only thing I want to find out from you: did you receive the Spirit by works of the Law, or by hearing with faith?" Galatians 3:1-2

If you want to know the TRUTH, study the TRUTH ALONE. Seriously, those who know everything about the truth and the real thing can spot any counterfeit, no matter how well disguised.

"For I will not presume to speak of anything except what Christ has accomplished through me, resulting in the obedience of the Gentiles by word and deed," Romans 15:18

Any good counterfeit closely resembles the real thing or would not be deemed a “good counterfeit.” The better the counterfeit, the more difficult it is to distinguish between it and the real deal. The solution to being duped by the counterfeit is ONLY to STUDY THE TRUTH. The truth will set you free. Jesus, it is the truth, and we are being conformed to His image. We are being transformed into the image of Christ by the truth. Jesus loved His enemies, even to the point of death.

"But love your enemies and do good, and lend, expecting nothing in return; and your reward will be great, and you will be sons of the Most High; for He Himself is kind to ungrateful and evil people." Luke 6:35

If you only know the truth, you will know when the counterfeit shows itself. Because you ONLY KNOW THE TRUTH, you will know the counterfeit the very second it arrives. The false gospel is based on fear, not on faith. It is based on lack, not on God’s abundant Grace. People in fear see a demon in every person, including believers. People in fear treat others as the enemy instead of loving their enemies.

"For He rescued us from the domain of darkness, and transferred us to the kingdom of His beloved Son," Colossians 1:13

Satan presents a gospel almost identical to the Gospel of Grace. However, satan has no truth and is fundamentally flawed and even deadly. Beware of those who see a demon under every rock and shout, “BEWARE!” Trust those who ONLY BEHOLD JESUS! Perfect love casts out all fear. Jesus is perfect love. Behold Jesus!

"Jesus *said to him, “I am the way, and the truth, and the life; no one comes to the Father except through Me." John 14:6

Satan’s counterfeit gospel, disguised as righteousness, aims to divert the sincere truth seeker from the only true path of Salvation, which is through Jesus Christ. Those IN CHRIST will experience trials, tribulations, temptations, betrayals, persecution, and the loss of all things in this life. The true Gospel shouts, “CONSIDER IT FULL JOY!”

"who rescued us from so great a danger of death, and will rescue us, He on whom we have set our hope. And He will yet deliver us," 2 Corinthians 1:10

Speaking the truth in love, I am compelled to make others aware of satan’s plan of deception and reveal the stark contrast between the Gospel of Grace, which is the very essence of God, and the empty echoes of religion and “salvation by works--Satan's lies.”

"Grace to you and peace from God the Father and our Lord Jesus Christ, who gave Himself for our sins so that He might rescue us from this present evil age, according to the will of our God and Father, to whom be the glory forevermore. Amen. I am amazed that you are so quickly deserting Him who called you by the GRACE OF CHRIST, for a different gospel, which is not just another account; but there are some who are disturbing you and want to distort the gospel of Christ. But even if we, or an angel from heaven, should preach to you a gospel contrary to what we have preached to you, he is to be accursed! As we have said before, even now I say again: if anyone is preaching to you a gospel contrary to what you received, he is to be accursed!" Galatians 1:3-9

Scripture reminds us that our battle is not against flesh and blood but against a spiritual adversary skilled in warfare, a war for our souls. It should not surprise us when we find deception behind the pulpit, preaching a different gospel that fears satan and his demons. Good preaching is… “LOVE YOUR ENEMY!”

"And the Word became flesh, and dwelt among us; and we saw His glory, glory as of the only Son from the Father, full of GRACE and TRUTH. " John 1:14

Jesus taught us to lay down our lives and love everyone, ESPECIALLY our enemies. Jesus taught us we must love our enemies, and to pray for them, and to do good for them.

"For of HIS FULLNESS we have ALL RECEIVED, and GRACE UPON GRACE. For the Law was given through Moses; GRACE and TRUTH were realized through Jesus Christ. " John 1:16-17

Satan’s gospel, on the other hand, tells us to fear our enemies and to pray against them, to fear them, and to despise them–KICK THEM OUT! Jesus' Gospel empowers us to lay down our lives and to love our enemies. Jesus washed the feet of Judas, his betrayer. Jesus loved everyone and empowered us to do the same by Grace.

"You foolish Galatians, who has bewitched you, before whose eyes Jesus Christ was publicly portrayed as crucified? This is the only thing I want to find out from you: did you receive the Spirit by works of the Law, or by hearing with faith?" Galatians 3:1-2

Satan, a fallen angel masquerading as an angel of light, offers nothing more than a mirage, promising life but delivering death. Satan has no power in and of himself. He must use fear to affect people. Satan gets saints to accuse other saints. Satan’s gospel of deception is about getting the saints to deny the love of Christ and, instead, trick us into protecting ourselves from our enemies. Do not be a foolish Galatian! Remember, before Christ, we were ALL DEAD IN OUR SINS.

"And you were dead in your offenses and sins," Ephesians 2:1

Let us not be fooled, for WE HAVE BEEN BLESSED with the discernment of the Holy Spirit to distinguish between the authentic and the counterfeit. Through the Holy Spirit speaking through the lens of God's Word, we see the truth in its purest form—Jesus Christ, God's Son, who redeemed us from our sins and restored us to our rightful place as children of God (past tense) as a FREE GIFT OF HIS GRACE. It is called THE GOSPEL OF GRACE.

"in which you previously walked according to the course of this world, according to the prince of the power of the air, of the spirit that is now working in the sons of disobedience."
Ephesians 2:2

With a sense of urgency, I implore everyone to fully embrace the Gospel of Grace (the Gospel of Jesus Christ) with all their heart, mind, and soul. FORGIVE EVERYONE OF EVERYTHING. Jesus’ Gospel, the only true Gospel, is deeply rooted in God's unconditional love and sovereign Grace and is our steadfast anchor in EVERY STORM. We did not create ourselves; we cannot save ourselves. We are saved by God’s Grace alone. God’s Grace is His absolute goodness and the power to fulfill His will, intent, and infinite pleasure. God’s Grace does what we can’t. Jesus, by Grace, did what we couldn’t. So, forgive everyone and love your enemies!

"Among them we too all previously lived in the lusts of our flesh, indulging the desires of the flesh and of the mind, and were by nature children of wrath, just as the rest." Ephesians 2:3

We must hold onto Jesus' Gospel of Grace as our only lifeline. There is no other Gospel. The false gospels of satan are no gospel at all. Let us not be swayed by the subtleties of the enemy's deception but stand firm in our faith, holding onto THE TRUTH that Salvation is found in no one else but Jesus Christ. Jesus alone is the Way, the Truth, and the Life. So, love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you and say all kinds of nasty things about you.

"But God, being rich in mercy, because of His great love with which He loved us," Ephesians 2:4

In our battle against our adversary's counterfeit gospels, let us diligently equip ourselves with the whole armor of God so that we might stand against the devil's wiles. In love, let us wield the sword of the Spirit, the Word of God, with precision and authority. Loving our enemies is the highest honor we could have. Loving our enemies is to be “Christ-like.”

"even when we were dead in our wrongdoings, made us alive together with Christ (by grace you have been saved)," Ephesians 2:5

Let us stumble forward, not in our strength but in humility and the power of the Lord and His infinite Grace, proclaiming the true Gospel of Grace to a world in desperate need.

"Therefore, let’s approach the throne of grace with confidence so that we may receive mercy and find grace for help at the time of our need." Hebrews 4:16

As ambassadors of Christ, it is our great privilege to shine the light of His truth into the darkness, dispelling the lies and leading the lost to the saving knowledge of Jesus Christ.

"Therefore, we are ambassadors for Christ, as though God were making an appeal through us; we beg you on behalf of Christ, be reconciled to God." 2 Corinthians 5:20

Jesus is God’s Grace Working Through Self-giving and Self-sacrificial Love

"and raised us up with Him, and seated us with Him in the heavenly places in Christ Jesus," Ephesians 2:6

By standing in Grace, we uphold the banner of the true Gospel, shining forth as a beacon of hope for all humanity. Let us be unwavering in our commitment to RECEIVE HIS GRACE, for the stakes are eternal, and the victory is already won in Christ Jesus our Lord.

"so that in the ages to come He might show the boundless riches of His grace in kindness toward us in Christ Jesus." Ephesians 2:7

From the beginning, there is and was the Gospel of Truth. Through Jesus, Truth came by Grace. Salvation of Humanity appeared by Grace.

"For by grace you have been saved through faith; and this is not of yourselves, it is the gift of God;" Ephesians 2:8

Everything that exists was created by and for the Spirit of Truth (Jesus), and given to humanity, God’s children as a free gift of His Grace.

“not a result of works, so that no one may boast. For we are His workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared beforehand so that we would walk in them." Ephesians 2:9-10

Due to rebellion and inequity, satan launched his similar, but fake facsimile counterfeit gospel, which is no Gospel at all. Satan wants us to get our focus off of Jesus and on to satan and his demons, thus fearing the defeated ones.

"for it is God who is at work in you, both to desire and to work for His good pleasure." Philippians 2:13

There is only ONE SALVATION, and that is through Jesus Christ, a gift of God’s Grace. There is only ONE GOSPEL–The Gospel of Jesus Christ, the Gospel of God’s Grace. However, there are many counterfeit gospels. Satan is the father of every lie and every false gospel.

"You know that He appeared in order to take away sins; and in Him there is no sin." 1 John 3:5

“THE GOSPEL OF JESUS CHRIST” is the ABSOLUTE GOODNESS OF GOD. The Gospel of Grace announces the good news of humanity's full redemption, reconciliation, and restoration to the Kingdom of God–ALL AS A FREE GIFT OF GRACE. In response, satan is spewing imitation gospels. They may seem similar, but they are not.

"For the love of Christ controls us, having concluded this, that one died for all, therefore all died; and He died for all, so that those who live would no longer live for themselves, but for Him who died and rose on their behalf. Therefore from now on we recognize no one by the flesh; even though we have known Christ by the flesh, yet now we know Him in this way no longer. Therefore if anyone is in Christ, this person is a new creation; the old things passed away; behold, new things have come. Now all these things are from God, who reconciled us to Himself through Christ and gave us the ministry of reconciliation, namely, that God was in Christ reconciling the world to Himself, not counting their wrongdoings against them, and He has committed to us the word of reconciliation. Therefore, we are ambassadors for Christ, as though God were making an appeal through us; we beg you on behalf of Christ, be reconciled to God. He made Him who knew no sin to be sin in our behalf, so that we might become the righteousness of God in Him." 2 Corinthians 5:14-21

To RECEIVE THE GOSPEL OF JESUS CHRIST is to BELIEVE THE WORD OF GOD–ALL OF IT

Remember, satan hates BELIEVERS. Satan desires to present and promote many false gospels, ones that seem right but are disgraceful, full of wickedness and deception. Satan will twist a little here, twist a little there, and make something wrong seem right. It is called deception.

"No temptation has overtaken you except something common to mankind; and God is faithful, so He will not allow you to be tempted beyond what you are able, but with the temptation will provide the way of escape also, so that you will be able to endure it." 1 Corinthians 10:13

Through Eve and Adam, satan launched the first of many counterfeit gospels. Unfortunately, his first attack worked.

"Therefore, having been justified by faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ, through whom we also have obtained our introduction by faith into this grace in which we stand; and we celebrate in hope of the glory of God. And not only this, but we also celebrate in our tribulations, knowing that tribulation brings about perseverance; and perseverance, proven character; and proven character, hope; and hope does not disappoint, because the love of God has been poured out within our hearts through the Holy Spirit who was given to us. For while we were still helpless, at the right time Christ died for the ungodly. For one will hardly die for a righteous person; though perhaps for the good person someone would even dare to die. But God demonstrates His own love toward us, in that while we were still sinners, Christ died for us. Much more then, having now been justified by His blood, we shall be saved from the wrath of God through Him. For if while we were enemies we were reconciled to God through the death of His Son, much more, having been reconciled, we shall be saved by His life. And not only this, but we also celebrate in God through our Lord Jesus Christ, through whom we have now received the reconciliation. Therefore, just as through one man sin entered into the world, and death through sin, and so death spread to all mankind, because all sinned— for until the Law sin was in the world, but sin is not counted against anyone when there is no law. Nevertheless death reigned from Adam until Moses, even over those who had not sinned in the likeness of the violation committed by Adam, who is a type of Him who was to come. But the gracious gift is not like the offense. For if by the offense of the one the many died, much more did the grace of God and the gift by the grace of the one Man, Jesus Christ, overflow to the many. The gift is not like that which came through the one who sinned; for on the one hand the judgment arose from one offense, resulting in condemnation, but on the other hand the gracious gift arose from many offenses, resulting in justification. For if by the offense of the one, death reigned through the one, much more will those who receive the abundance of grace and of the gift of righteousness reign in life through the One, Jesus Christ. So then, as through one offense the result was condemnation to all mankind, so also through one act of righteousness the result was justification of life to all mankind. For as through the one man’s disobedience the many were made sinners, so also through the obedience of the One the many will be made righteous. The Law came in so that the offense would increase; but where sin increased, grace abounded all the more, so that, as sin reigned in death, so also grace would reign through righteousness to eternal life through Jesus Christ our Lord." Romans 5:1-21

Through Eve and Adam, satan launched the first of many false gospels that are almost the same as the real deal, but not quite the same. Satan is the father of all lies, deceptions, and counterfeits. Satan cannot create; he can only fake. Satan, the father of RELIGION and the father of LIES, attempts to corrupt the Gospel of Jesus Christ by adding “human effort, merit, and self-righteousness to the Gospel of Grace.

"I will not speak much more with you, for the ruler of the world is coming, and he has nothing in regard to Me," John 14:30

Through Jesus, God set everything right. Through Jesus, GOD MADE EVERYTHING RIGHTEOUS. Only God, through the Son of God, can set everything right. Jesus is the ONLY RIGHTEOUSNESS OF GOD. Jesus, through self-giving love, has made us the righteousness of God–PERIOD. It is a GIFT OF GRACE. Satan is the counterfeiter, and he can only counterfeit. Satan’s counterfeit gospel distracts us from beholding Jesus to worrying about and being concerned about satan and his cohorts.

"that is, the one whose coming is in accord with the activity of Satan, with all power and false signs and wonders," 2 Thessalonians 2:9

Through Jesus’ FAITH, God set everything RIGHT. Jesus made us the righteousness of God in Christ. Jesus is our High Priest. Jesus represents all of humanity. Jesus’ blood, human blood, is sprinkled on the Mercy Seat in Heaven, making all those WHO BELIEVE righteous.

"by the same extent Jesus also has become the guarantee of a better covenant. The former priests, on the one hand, existed in greater numbers because they were prevented by death from continuing; Jesus, on the other hand, because He continues forever, holds His priesthood permanently. Therefore He is also able to save forever those who come to God through Him, since He always lives to make intercession for them. For it was fitting for us to have such a high priest, holy, innocent, undefiled, separated from sinners, and exalted above the heavens; who has no daily need, like those high priests, to offer up sacrifices, first for His own sins and then for the sins of the people, because He did this once for all time when He offered up Himself. For the Law appoints men as high priests who are weak, but the word of the oath, which came after the Law, appoints a Son, who has been made perfect forever." Hebrews 7:22-28

Satan is a defeated foe, and he preaches the gospel of fear and death.

"saying, “What business do You have with us (demons), Jesus of Nazareth? Have You come to destroy us? I know who You are: the Holy One of God!” Mark 1:24

If anyone is afraid of the devil, he or she is already defeated–IT’S CALLED UNBELIEF.

“And the devil who deceived them was thrown into the lake of fire and brimstone, where the beast and the false prophet are also; and they will be tormented day and night forever and ever." Revelation 20:10

Jesus COMMANDS US, DO NOT FEAR! He meant it.

By God’s Grace, Jesus paid the price for EVERYONE who BELIEVES. Jesus set EVERYONE FREE, all captives, and we are now FREE IN JESUS' NAME. We only need to BELIEVE to RECEIVE. Believe BY FAITH, Jesus’ Faith.

"And you were dead in your offenses and sins, in which you previously walked according to the course of this world, according to the prince of the power of the air, of the spirit that is now working in the sons of disobedience. Among them we too all previously lived in the lusts of our flesh, indulging the desires of the flesh and of the mind, and were by nature children of wrath, just as the rest. But God, being rich in mercy, because of His great love with which He loved us, even when we were dead in our wrongdoings, made us alive together with Christ (by grace you have been saved), and raised us up with Him, and seated us with Him in the heavenly places in Christ Jesus, so that in the ages to come He might show the boundless riches of His grace in kindness toward us in Christ Jesus. For by grace you have been saved through faith; and this is not of yourselves, it is the gift of God; not a result of works, so that no one may boast. For we are His workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared beforehand so that we would walk in them." Ephesians 2:1-10