The Cursed Gospel: The Deluded Sheep

THE DELUDED SHEEP

The deluded sheep are the ones who are still in their sins. They are deft to the Word of God and unknown to Christ. They have no eternal life within them and no light to guide them.

Years down the road, the Christian defectors might turn from religion altogether. Their new testimony being that Christianity is a sham, based on lairs, control freak, and fables. They might even share how happy they are since Jesus came out of their lives.

The Bible mentions Christ's sheep in John 10:27-30. Jesus said,

“My sheep hear my voice, and I know them, and they follow me: And I give unto them eternal life; and they shall never perish, neither shall any man pluck them out of my hand. My Father, which gave them me, is greater than all; and no man is able to pluck them out of my Father's hand.”

If Christ's sheep hear His voice, how can we be certain that we are His sheep and have ears to hear the truth?

“He that hath ears to hear, let him hear” (Matthew 11:15).

There are so many voices teaching many things that are proclaimed to be truth. How can we be sure we are hearing the right voice?

One of the simplest ways to find truth is by comparing Scripture,

“Which things also we speak, not in the words which man's wisdom teacheth, but which the Holy Ghost teacheth; comparing spiritual things with spiritual” (1 Corinthians 2:13).

We need to study the Bible and compare Scripture with Scripture. If the Bible seems to contradict itself, it is not God’s Word that contradicts; it is our interpretation that is wrong.

False teaching cannot hold up to scrutiny. By comparing Scripture with Scripture we must search for the truth. Every person should be studying the Word of God for himself and learning from its pages.

“These were more noble than those in Thessalonica, in that they received the word with all readiness of mind, and searched the scriptures daily, whether those things were so” (Acts 17:11).

It is not an easy task to be a studier of the Word, but our souls depend on it.

“For precept must be upon precept, precept upon precept, line upon line, line upon line: here a little and there a little” (Isaiah 28:10).

Bow your head and ask God to give you ears to hear and eyes to see. Don't be blinded by deception and deluded by false teaching.

Christ knows his sheep. Does He know you?

“Not every one that saith unto me, Lord, Lord, shall enter into the kingdom of heaven; but he that doeth the will of my Father which is in heaven. Many will say to me in that day, Lord, Lord, have we not prophesied in thy name? and in thy name have cast out devils? and in thy name done many wonderful works? And then will I profess unto them, I never knew you: depart from me, ye that work iniquity” (Matthew 7:21-23).

If we are to go to Heaven and be known to Christ, then we must do the will of the Father. But what will or command is Jesus talking about? Are we to obey every single command of God? If we fail to obey His every Word, are we going to Hell instead of Heaven?

The true sheep does the will of God and has eternal life; where-as the deluded sheep pretend to do the will of God but are really following the precepts of men.

What is the will that determines your fate? A lot of God's commands in the Bible are specific to a particular person or group of people in another age.

God told Noah to build an Ark,

“And God said unto Noah, The end of all flesh is come before me; for the earth is filled with violence through them; and, behold, I will destroy them with the earth. Make thee an ark of gopher wood; rooms shalt thou make in the ark, and shalt pitch it within and without with pitch” (Genesis 6:13-14).

We would be foolish to build an Ark today. Just because the command is in the Bible, it does not in any way subjugate us to its fulfillment.     

Lengthy papers have been written about the dispensations of God. Dispensations teach us that God dispenses His will in a specific and unique way based on a covenant.

Covenants are a study unto themselves. There are seven covenants. Most Christians know at least two: the Mosaic Covenant, and the New Covenant.

The Mosaic Covenant was a conditional covenant that either brought God's blessing for obedience or God's cursing for disobedience upon the nation of Israel. The Mosaic Covenant consisted of the Ten Commandments found in Exodus 20 and the rest of the law which contained over 600 commands.  

The New Covenant is made with the people of God, both Jews and Gentiles. They are given opportunity to receive the free gift of salvation without the penalty of a broken law.

The other Covenants for study would be Adamic Covenant, Noahic Covenant, Abrahamic Covenant, Palestinian Covenant, and the Davidic Covenant.

Okay! Let's get back to the specific will of God that we must obey to have eternal life and be known of God. Jesus stated it very clearly,

“And this is the will of him that sent me, that every one which seeth the Son, and believeth on him, may have everlasting life: and I will raise him up at the last day” (John 6:40).

How many times have you said this in the Lord's prayer?

“Thy kingdom come, Thy will be done in earth, as it is in heaven” (Matthew 6:10).

Do you want to obey God and do His will? His will for salvation is very explicit,

“That every one which seeth the Son, and believeth on him, may have everlasting life.”

Reflect on that verse for a moment in what it says and doesn't say. By obeying this verse of Scripture, you can become a Christian in the new covenant.

Following all the ordinances and religious practices of men will have no merit or bearing on this one single command. All the marvelous works that men do will account for nothing without their trusting in Christ for salvation. No mixture is allowed. We must believe on Him.

Many, I'm sad to say, see a Christ that is not in Scripture. They see a different savior that started salvation for us but then puts it back into our own sinful hands. They believe in a God who partially completes salvation for us and then demands us to finish and complete the rest of it on our own. The truth is, Jesus Christ had already completed salvation for us on the Cross when He said,

“It is Finished” (John 19:30).

There are different phases of the same work of salvation that will be performed in the future, but as far as God's guaranty is concerned, it is finished,

“Who hath also sealed us, and given the earnest of the Spirit in our hearts” (1 Corinthians 1:22).

“Which is the earnest of our inheritance until the redemption of the purchased possession, unto the praise of his glory” (Ephesians 1:14).