Today we are struggling to distinguish between the Gospel of Christ and the gospel of man. There are so many gospels being preached hence there is a lot of confusion in the world of Christianity. People do not know which message to believe and which gospel is true; yet the bible says, “You shall know the truth and the truth shall set you free” [John 8:32]
What is the truth then? The truth is the Gospel of Jesus Christ and whoever receives it is bound to be liberated because by its very nature, it sets free. This true gospel is food to the hungry, water to the thirsty, liberty to those in bondage and salvation to the lost.
“Now as Jesus passed by He saw a man who was blind from birth and his disciples asked him saying, Rabbi who sinned, this man or his parents that he was born blind? Jesus answered, neither this man nor his parents sinned but that the works of God maybe revealed in him. I must work the works of him who sent me while it is day, the night is coming when no one can work. As long as I am in the world I am the light of the world .When he had said these things he spat on the ground and made clay with the saliva, he anointed the eyes of the blind man with clay and He said to him, “Go wash in the pool of Siloam which is translated Sent.” So he went and washed, and came back seeing. Therefore the neighbours and those who previously had seen him that he was blind said, is not this he who sat and begged? Some said this is he and others said, he is like him but he said I am he. Therefore they said to him, how were your eyes opened? He answered and said, a man called Jesus made clay and anointed my eyes and said to me go to the pool of Siloam and wash so I went and washed and I received sight. Then they said to him, where is he? He said, I do not know. Therefore some of the Pharisees said, this man is not from God because he does not keep the Sabbath, others said, how can a man who is a sinner do such things”(John 9:1-18)
From the scripture above; the Pharisees questioned the Gospel of Jesus and His calling. They did so because He healed the blind man on the Sabbath and according to their tradition; Jesus was not supposed to heal on that day. They did not want people to follow and believe the Gospel of Christ hence they condemned His gospel and approved their own. It was revealed to Jesus that He should heal although it was on a Sabbath day. Jesus was following the revelation of God and not the tradition of man. Today, every man claims the genuineness of his calling and condemns the calling of other men and this is the very reason why there is so much confusion in the world of Christianity.
A servant of God cannot be seen by their outward appearance but it is through their heart and works that he is known. This is because when we merely consider the outward appearance, we are more likely to be deceived. But the LORD said to Samuel, “Do not consider his appearance or his height, for I have rejected him. The LORD does not look at the things people look at. People look at the outward appearance, but the LORD looks at the heart.”(1 Samuel 16:7). We can clearly see from the above mentioned scripture that when God sent His Prophet to anoint the king, He warned him not to be deceived by the outward qualities. Therefore, the best way to know who is of God is through the heart as it clearly mirrors who we are.
If Jesus was not true, He could not have opened the eyes of the blind man because the scripture says that it is only the truth that liberates. This means that a false gospel cannot achieve such marvellous works but it is only possible through the true gospel. Some of the Pharisees knew that only the truth could perform such a miracle. That is why one of them said, ‘if you people are so righteous but you have never opened the eyes of the blind, how then can a sinner do what you did not do.’ Now, just as the Pharisees were confused, today we are also in a confused world; where the truth is considered false and falsehood ‘true’. Where light is considered as ‘darkness’ and darkness considered as ‘light’. We are in a world where satan is regarded as an ‘angel’ of light because the scripture says for such people are false apostles, deceitful workers, masquerading as apostles of Christ.And no wonder, for Satan himself masquerades as an angel of light.It is not surprising, then, if his servants also masquerade as servants of righteousness. Their end will be what their actions deserve. (2 Corinthians 11:13-15)
Remember that at one occasion, the Pharisees saw Jesus casting out demons and they said that He does so through Beelzebub, the chief demon. Jesus replied them by saying, “Every kingdom divided against itself will be ruined, and every city or household divided against itself will not stand.If Satan drives out Satan, he is divided against himself. How then can his kingdom stand?And if I drive out demons by Beelzebub, by whom do your people drive them out? So then, they will be your judges.But if it is by the Spirit of God that I drive out demons, then the kingdom of God has come upon you.(Matthew 12:25-28).
When the Pharisees called back the man in question, asking him to ‘glorify God’ by stating that Jesus was a sinner, the man stood firm on the works of Jesus and said,“Whether he is a sinner or not I do not know. One thing I know, though I was blind, now I see. If this man were not from God, he would do nothing”. Remember, a servant of God can be seen through their heart and works, just as the man who was blind stood without wavering on the works of the Lord.
Liberty refers to every good thing which comes from the Lord. The evidence that you have received the true Gospel is liberty.“So then after the Lord has spoken to them he was received up into heaven and sat down at the right hand of God and they went out and preached everywhere.The Lord working with them and confirming the word they preached, the Lord confirmed it with accompanying signs” [Mark16:19]
When genuine servants of Christ say ‘be healed’ the Lord accompanies their words with healing, because even though He is not present in body, He is present in Spirit. When they say ‘let there be light’ the Lord brings light as a sign that He sent them. “As the Father has sent me, I am sending you.” (John 20:21). For instance, this could be likened to a First class Professor who teaches theory (word) and from there he takes his students to the laboratory for a practical lesson (deed) validating what he was teaching. He does this so that those who didn’t get him well in class may understand.The best and most effective way to witness for Jesus Christ through the Gospel is by word and by deed. That is; the Word of God that is being preached should be accompanied by signs. A man can talk and say I am God sent but only God shall do the signs and wonders.
Dear children, let us not love with words or speech but with actions and in truth. (1 John 3:18)
