A Different Gospel?

I wish you would bear with me in a little foolishness. Do bear with me! For I feel a divine jealousy for you, since I betrothed you to one husband, to present you as a pure virgin to Christ. But I am afraid that as the serpent deceived Eve by his cunning, your thoughts will be led astray from a sincere and pure devotion to Christ. For if someone comes and proclaims another Jesus than the one we proclaimed, or if you receive a different spirit from the one you received, or if you accept a different gospel from the one you accepted, you put up with it readily enough. Indeed, I consider that I am not in the least inferior to these super-apostles. Even if I am unskilled in speaking, I am not so in knowledge; indeed, in every way we have made this plain to you in all things.

Or did I commit a sin in humbling myself so that you might be exalted, because I preached God's gospel to you free of charge? I robbed other churches by accepting support from them in order to serve you.  And when I was with you and was in need, I did not burden anyone, for the brothers who came from Macedonia supplied my need. So I refrained and will refrain from burdening you in any way. As the truth of Christ is in me, this boasting of mine will not be silenced in the regions of Achaia.  And why? Because I do not love you? God knows I do!

 And what I am doing I will continue to do, in order to undermine the claim of those who would like to claim that in their boasted mission they work on the same terms as we do. For such men are false apostles, deceitful workmen, disguising themselves as apostles of Christ. And no wonder, for even Satan disguises himself as an angel of light. So it is no surprise if his servants, also, disguise themselves as servants of righteousness. Their end will correspond to their deeds. 2 Corinthians 11:1-15

The “foolishness “ Paul referred to here is coming up a few paragraphs later. He’d been building up to this withering sarcasm toward the wolves and their false doctrine for several chapters. The thing is, he was in no position to prevent the wolves from spreading their lies and innuendo, but these Greek believers were supposed to be learning Bible doctrine from Paul and making proper application. He was jealous of them in the same way God is jealous of His people: in a protective way, to keep them from being neutralized by the distortions and outright lies being perpetrated by the Judaizers and idolaters. Paul felt responsible for the Corinthian saints’ advance to maturity and for their faith to be presented whole and undiluted to the Lord Jesus Christ at His coming.

There will always be counterfeit gospels until our Lord returns. They were with us from the beginning. Someone had been proclaiming a different Jesus than the one Paul proclaimed. Some had been receiving a different spirit; not the Holy Spirit, which they received at salvation. Someone was teaching a different gospel, and some of the believers were accepting it. These “super-apostles” (he said sarcastically) were coming on strong to the Corinthian Church. They were not only undermining Paul’s authority and criticizing him personally, they were making a splash with their showmanship, their glamour, their pseudo-intellectual additions to the gospel message. Paul was a genius, humanly speaking, and had a perfect Jewish pedigree. No one could out-debate him regarding the Law of Moses. Furthermore, he had spent three years in the Arabian desert with Jesus Christ, being taught how the Law of Moses was our schoolmaster, our slave tutor, preparing us for the perfect life and finished work of Jesus Christ. Paul didn’t consider himself an orator (“unskilled in speaking”). He was a "lay it on the line" expositor of Old Testament scripture and Church doctrine. He knew the material better than anyone. The wolves might create confusion among the baby believers, but they’d never out-maneuver Paul. He had already given up his way of life and career for the gospel, and the gospel was his priority in life. These believers were his sheep, and he would protect them, fearlessly. He made a point of doing just that with no monetary support from them, since one of the accusations against him was that he did this work for gain. Uh-huh. That same, tired old slanderous accusation that all worldlings and wolves use to try to tarnish God’s ministers. They are still with us today.

These deceivers came posing as fellow believers, as apostles of Christ, to bring distortions and lies; not only about Paul and his associates, but about Jesus and the gospel itself. They mix and mingle some doctrinal truths with occultic myths. They present “new” information about Jesus and His Church, and His prophecies. They “find” “lost” books of the Bible. They report visions and personal visits from old prophets and saints, who bring “additional” or “encoded” information. They promote emotional responses and “feel-good” criteria for whatever experience you have with Jesus Christ. They conjure up “angels” to “guide” you through dark sources that the Bible clearly teaches us to avoid.

Satan himself has always presented himself as an angel of light. He is not wretched and disgusting, but a beautiful creature with super intelligence. He’s smarter than we are and he knows what we like. He’ll promise us that, if we allow him the opportunity, so let's not. He’s a liar, of course, and whatever he is involved in is evil, resulting in death. Paul knew all about Satan and his servants and their sinister tactics. Their day of reckoning is coming.

Meanwhile, you Corinthians, get squared away on the doctrines that Paul has taught you. There is only one gospel: the one brought to you by Paul and his fellow apostles. Salvation is by faith alone in Christ alone. Nothing added, no ifs ands or buts. It is the Work of Christ. No matter who or what tries to convince you otherwise, stick to what you have been taught. You can then grow in grace and build the discernment in your souls to recognize the ploys of the devil and avoid them.