The original and still understandable gospel has long been redesigned and redefined. The central subject of the changes concerns the law of God and obedience to Him. But this is so cleverly done that the misguided believers feel safe in their “good feeling”, although they are actually in rebellion against God.
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A redesign of the foundations
Abolished, no longer binding laws of God have long been the tenor in the evangelical world. To underpin this claim, and this actually suggests a deliberate misleading approach, the nature of sin is also being redefined. As it is even represented by the German Bible Society (Info).
It is no longer the transgression of one of God’s laws that is a sin, even if these no longer exist, but rather the (own) separation from God that is the sin. Here, a complete reversal is made, because sin actually separates us from God. The Bible is clear and unambiguous here.
1 John 3:4:
“Whosoever committeth sin transgresseth also the law: for sin is the transgression of the law.“
Lawlessness, that is, transgression or disregard of the law IS sin. But which law, if it has been abolished? The problem is already clearly highlighted here.
Isaiah 59:1-2:
“Behold, the LORD’S hand is not shortened, that it cannot save; neither his ear heavy, that it cannot hear: But your iniquities have separated between you and your God, and your sins have hid his face from you, that he will not hear.“
Eternal validity
Clearly described. Sin or disobedience towards God separates us from God. That this was the case today as it was then and will always be the case is proven by Hebrews 13:8, among others.:
“Jesus Christ the same yesterday, and to day, and for ever.”
Neither God nor His laws will ever change. This is also inseparably linked to the eternal justice of God, as David already stated, Psalm 119:142:
“Thy righteousness is an everlasting righteousness, and thy law is the truth.“
The law of God, an expression of His love AND justice (Info), is therefore just as eternal and the truth as God himself. But what does man do with his urge for self-deification through complete, unregulated self-determination based on his own moral concepts and a (supposedly) immortal soul (in principle an expression of humanism)? He simply declares the laws of God to be abolished. To emphasize: These are the 10 Commandments of God and not the actually abolished ceremonial laws (Info).
Feeling on the safe side
The Roman Catholic Church is wagging its finger at this point and reminding us that the laws are valid. At first glance, that would be correct. The catch, however, is that this church simply redefined the laws of the 10 Commandments (Info). In their catechism and also in the official lists, the 10 Commandments (Exodus 20) were partly cut back, rewritten and also reclassified.
Whether Roman Catholic or Evangelical, the fatal thing is that these people, who find themselves in a world of faith based on good feelings, are in reality permanently violating God’s law, which is eternal and therefore still valid today. Because of the 10 Commandments, not 8 or 9 are valid, but all(!) of them, and in fact as they are found in the Bible and not in one of the church’s beliefs.
Then as now. The laws of God are simply violated after introducing one’s own traditions. Jesus Christ already denounced this among the Pharisees, Matthew 15:3:
“…Why do ye also transgress the commandment of God by your tradition?“
It is by no means true that “if something wrong is practiced long enough, it becomes right”.
The central piece in the focus of the attacks
From the very beginning, the main point of attack of the great adversary against the law of God was the support, the actual seal of the law. This is the relatively centrally located Fourth Commandment, the observance of the day blessed and sanctified by God. The seventh day of the week, the Sabbath. This day, introduced as the completion of creation (Genesis 2:1-3), was also the main characteristic of the constant transgressions of ancient Israel. No other law was reminded by God to be observed as often as the Sabbath commandment.
The law of God can also be represented with an umbrella. You submit yourself to these laws, but you are also protected by them. The central commandment, the 4th commandment, is the staff of the umbrella on which everything stands. Psalm 91:1 expresses this roughly:
“He that dwelleth in the secret place of the most High shall abide under the shadow of the Almighty.“
This Sabbath, a sign from God to us that He is the Creator of all things and that He is the One who leads His people out of sin, is His personal seal. It contains His name, His title and His domain. Therefore, it is no surprise that the first attempts of the Roman Catholic Church, its “Church Fathers”, challenged the Sabbath (Info) and instead designated the first day of the week as holy and even called it the “Lord’s Day”. (Info).
Anyone who violates just one of the 10 Commandments has violated the entire law, as stated in James 2:10:
“For whosoever shall keep the whole law, and yet offend in one point, he is guilty of all.“
In the end, only deliberate ignorance
The ignorance of people is not taken into account by God, but the law of God is written in the hearts of all people (Romans 2:11-16). But how far will this go when the gospel is spread throughout the world? Each individual then had the opportunity, accompanied above all by the knocking of the Holy Spirit on their own conscience, to make a decision.
If things in life are not going the way you would like them to, even if all your prayers make you feel “good”, then there may be a good reason for this. Because the gospel, to put it pragmatically, is written for people’s minds, not for their good feelings, and certainly not for the ambitions of their own hearts. (Info). The “right recipe” would be so simple. Obedience to God, and that obviously includes following His laws, all 10 commandments! But that and their lack of willpower cause many people to get pustules on their skin.
This is how seduction works, which Jesus Christ warned us about in Matthew 24:4. You believe you are on the right side, everything seems good and right, you feel good about it. You may even follow in the footsteps of the persecutors who pursue those who hold to all(!) the commandments and keep the testimony of Jesus (Revelation 12:17), only to finally hear, completely surprised and with horror: “I never knew you: depart from me, ye that work iniquity.” (Matthew 7:23).
He that turneth away his ear from hearing the law, even his prayer shall be abomination.
Proverbs 28:9
Bible verses from King James Version (1611)
