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Did Paul Preach a Different Gospel?

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Read the New Testament and you might come away with the idea that there is more than one gospel.

The very first words of the New Testament in the King James Bible are, “The Gospel According to Matthew.” Read on and you will also find the gospels according to Mark, Luke, and John.

In the Gospels of Matthew and Luke, we find Jesus preaching the gospel of the kingdom, while Mark refers to the gospel of Jesus Christ and the gospel of God.

The word gospel does not appear in John’s Gospel, but in Acts and all the letters that follow, the gospel is mentioned plenty of times with different labels:

  • the gospel of Jesus Christ (Mark 1:1)
  • the gospel of Christ (Rom. 15:19, 1 Cor. 9:12, 2 Cor. 2:12, 9:13, 10:14, Gal. 1:7, Php. 1:27, 1 Th. 3:2)
  • the gospel of God (Mark 1:14, Rom 1:1, 15:16, 2 Cor. 11:7, 1 Th. 2:2, 8, 9, 1 Pet. 4:17)
  • the gospel of the blessed God (1 Tim. 1:11)
  • the gospel of his Son (Rom 1:9)
  • the gospel of the kingdom (Matt. 4:23, 9:35, 24:14, Luke 16:16)
  • the gospel of the glory of Christ (2 Cor. 4:4)
  • the gospel of your salvation (Eph. 1:13)
  • the gospel of peace (Eph. 6:15)
  • the glorious gospel of the blessed God (1 Tim 1:11)
  • the eternal gospel (Rev. 14:6)

These are not different gospels but different labels for the one and only gospel, namely the gospel of grace.

When Paul refers to the gospel of grace in Acts 20:24, he means the same thing as when he and others refer to the gospel of God or the gospel of peace or the gospel of your salvation. All of these gospels reveal the One who is called Grace, who was given to us out of the fullness of the Father’s grace, and through whom we have received grace upon grace.

This is all pretty obvious, right? Only many don’t see it.

They see Jesus preaching one gospel and Paul preaching another. Or they see discord among the apostles. “Paul preached salvation by faith; James added works.” Or they see different gospels for different dispensations; a gospel for then, another one for now.

But if this were true, how would you know which gospel to believe? People would say things like, “I follow Paul.” “I follow Peter.” “Well I follow Jesus!”

Paul said if anyone preached a gospel different to the one he preached, let them be cursed (Gal. 1:9). So if Jesus preached a different gospel, Paul was cursing the Lord and the Bible can’t be trusted.

And if you believe there are different gospels, then you will have a divided heart. You will be forever wondering if you have picked the right one.

Did Jesus and Paul preach the same gospel?

Did Paul preach a different gospel? Jesus preached the gospel of the kingdom while Paul went around preaching the kingdom of God (Acts 20:25). Looks like the same gospel to me.

“But Jesus emphasized the kingdom, while Paul emphasized grace.” These are not different emphases but different ways of saying the same thing. When we preach the kingdom, we are revealing a King whose name is Grace. Grace is the language, the culture, and the economy of the kingdom.

When Jesus says seek first his kingdom and his righteousness, he is saying “seek me and my righteousness.” Where do we find his righteousness? In the gospel of grace!

For in the gospel the righteousness of God is revealed – a righteousness that is by faith from first to last. (Romans 1:17)

In many of his letters, Paul preached the gospel of Christ. On other occasions he preached the gospel of God. These are different labels for the gospel of grace because it is the grace of God revealed in Christ that makes the good news good news.

Did Paul and Peter preach the same gospel?

I had been entrusted with the gospel to the uncircumcised, just as Peter had been entrusted with the gospel to the circumcised… (Galatians 2:7)

Paul and Peter preached the same gospel to different audiences. Peter preached to the Jews (but not always), while Paul preached to the Gentiles (but not always). But they both preached the same gospel.

Paul is known to us as the apostle of grace, but Peter was an apostle of grace too. Peter preached about the God of all grace revealing his grace through a Savior (1 Pet. 1:10, 5:10).

It was Peter who encouraged us to be good stewards of the manifold grace of God and stand firm in the true grace of God (1 Pet. 4:10, 5:12).

And it was Peter who prayed that grace would be multiplied to us as we grow in the grace and knowledge of Jesus (2 Pet. 1:2, 3:18).

There is no question that Peter understood grace as well as Paul, but what about the odd man out? What about James?

Did Paul and James preach the same gospel?

Many dismiss James as unacquainted with grace. A young Martin Luther even referred to James’ letter as an epistle of straw.

But James was an apostle of grace who understood the grace message as well as Paul. Like Peter, James preached to the Jews. His letter was written to religious people who believed in God and were diligent in their observance of the law.

The religious Jews were doing plenty of works, but their works were dead works and their faith was a dead faith (Jas. 2:17). They believed in God, but their faith was not accompanied by the “work” of believing in the one he sent (Jas. 2:14).

The apostles and epistle writers did not preach different gospels. They all proclaimed the grace of God and justification by faith in his Son.

Don’t be misled by the different labels. There aren’t different gospels for different folks or different times.

Just as there is one Lord and one faith, there is only one gospel – the gospel of grace.

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814. The 800 Club: Looking Back – The Clash Between Paul and James

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The final program in our Looking Back series revisits the subject of the apostles Paul and James … and the question of whether they were in disagreement and had different points of view on the subject of justification. We did a 21-part series on this last year.

The common mindset in the world of Christianity is that Paul and James had to be in agreement in order for the Bible to be considered completely valid. Whether coming from a legalistic perspective or one that is more based upon grace, both camps will arrive at that same assumption while trying to explain conflicting statements from the apostles in a way that fits into their narrative or doctrinal perspective. But both will also need to bend, twist and reshape Bible verses to fit the theology—whatever that happens to be. And although the explanations may vary, the purpose remains the same … convince ourselves that Paul and James could not have possibly been opposed on such an important issue as justification. Is it based upon grace? Works? A combination of both?

However, maybe there is a bigger picture to see. We quickly offer a number of things to consider on this topic—which may once again cause some of us to not only arrive at a different point of view, but to shift our thinking to an entirely different paradigm—which involves backing away from the verses for a view of the bigger picture.

Since this episode is essentially a summary of our original series, you may wish to take some time to go through the original series itself, which took place during Podcasts 778-799 (except episode 786, which was a Christmas episode).  Click here for the first episode, and then click "Newer Post" at the end of each post for each subsequent episode.  Or you can listen to the entire series via our YouTube playlist.



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789. Paul Persecuted – for Teaching Against the Law and the Temple

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It’s often assumed Paul was persecuted because he believed in Jesus. But the bulk of Paul’s persecution came from Jews who opposed his teachings about salvation and righteousness coming by faith alone, apart from works, and that Jews had been freed and redeemed from the Mosaic law through the finished work of Jesus. Even the early church leadership (James and others) believed there was a different gospel for Jew and Gentile, and many believing Jews still assumed Gentiles were considered unclean—as the law declared. Keep them away from the temple so it wouldn’t be defiled!

During the early decades after the resurrection, when the church was still growing in their knowledge of the truth, even the apostles didn’t completely understand the fullness of the gospel, although God’s Spirit would reveal things to them … often from what we call the Old Testament—the only Scriptures they could reference. Paul and some of his companions were a major force in sharing the more complete truth of what was accomplished through the blood of the cross—for both Jew and Gentile.

The church today continues to struggle with a mixed message of faith and religious rules, while trying to establish theology and doctrine based upon their own assumptions about the Bible writings. Just as in the early years of the church, we’re not growing in the knowledge of “the Bible,” but we’re all growing in the knowledge of the truth found in the Person of Jesus Christ, as we receive it from the Holy Spirit.



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788. James and the Elders Encourage Paul to Deny What He Was Teaching

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The Apostle Paul declared over and over again that the law which came through Moses was something Gentiles had no part of and Jews had also been freed from its impossible demands. It could not bring life, but had a purpose of death and condemnation, having been replaced by a more glorious ministry of the Spirit. James and the elders from the Jerusalem church had very little problem with Gentiles not being required to try to keep most of the law—because they had never been under it. But James and his council viewed Jews differently and with an attitude of superiority, even after the cross, which resulted in believing they had a different gospel with a different set of rules which were rooted in that law for justification.

They rejoiced that Gentiles were coming to Jesus, but stumbled over Paul’s teachings that the Jews who lived among the Gentiles should also “forsake Moses.” James and the elders ordered Paul to publicly denounce the accusations against him by saying he believes in keeping the law … and to do this by participating in an old covenant purification ceremony—as if the blood of Jesus was not enough. In other words, they wanted Paul to deny what he had been teaching about grace through faith, apart from works of the law.



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787. The Evidence Mounts: James Touted Law – 30 Years After the Cross

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While continuing our series on Paul and James, and faith compared to works, we spend some time this week summarizing what we’ve been covering. Since our short weekly programs are chopped up, we wanted to review some of what has been covered so far in order to help connect the dots on the tremendous struggle that is revealed in New Testament writings during those early years of the church. And what was that struggle? Most of the early church leadership—including James—believed the law was still meant to be a part of the equation for Jewish believers … and many were perverting the gospel by trying to burden believing Gentiles with portions of the law.

We also take a look at more evidence where James and the elders in Jerusalem convince Paul to participate in an old covenant exercise where ceremony and sacrifice would occur in order to show the Jews that Paul was also a law keeper and had not forsaken Moses. This event from Acts 21 would have been nearly 3 decades after the cross, and about 20 years after James wrote his Bible letter. More to come!



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785. Growing in Knowledge (Bible Authors Didn’t Know Everything)

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In Acts Chapter 10, when Peter had his vision from God directing him to reach out to Gentiles, historians estimate it occurred anywhere from 5 to 15 years after the resurrection of Jesus. Although Peter was being used mightily by God in multiple ways, there was much he didn’t understand when it came to the gospel. The apostles were not all seeing and all knowing – they were humans who were growing in the grace and knowledge of Jesus Christ. Up until this time, Peter thought he and other Jews were still under the requirement to follow the law of Moses, even though he was preaching Jesus for people to be saved. Through this experience, he came to realize the gospel was meant not only for Jews, but for Gentiles who had no relationship with the law.

Things like food and Gentiles, which had been considered unclean or unacceptable under law, God now had declared to be clean. But imagine if Peter had written letters to believers and church folks which ended up in the Bible before he had this revelation about freedom from law. Undoubtedly, his writings would have looked much different and inconsistent with what the Apostle Paul was communicating in his letters. The book of James is considered to likely be the oldest New Testament writing (or the first) after Jesus rose. Like most Jews, James had a similar assumption about the law when he wrote his letter – much like Peter did. And this continues our series about the subject of Paul, James and justification.



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784. Paul and James: The Abraham Chronicles

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How is it possible that both Paul and James quote the same passage from Genesis 15 – referring to Abraham – and come to different conclusions on how Abraham was declared justified? It might be for the same reason we often see today … in an effort to prove an assumed mindset, one of them attempts to apply the “verse” out of context. We break it down on this week’s program.

And what about those “Judaizers” who came from James to bewitch Gentile believers in Christ with requirements from the law and Jewish ceremonial customs? It caused even Peter to play the hypocrite as he feared the peer pressure, which led to “not being straightforward about the truth of the gospel.” Ultimately, Paul’s message was that justification was purely by grace through faith, apart from works. But this would be a battle he would fight even with those who were considered of high reputation and pillars of the church.



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783. Opposing Views from Paul and James: What Now?

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As our series continues regarding the apparent differences between Paul and James on the subject of justification, this week's program results in a spontaneous conversation which discusses what it means if they did actually view some things in an opposing fashion. As we've personally concluded in recent weeks, Paul and James were not in perfect harmony with their statements and we review some possible reasons why this could have been the case.

The letter James wrote to Jews who were scattered throughout the region is believed to be the earliest book written in the New Testament after the resurrection. During this period of time, James believed the Mosaic law was still in place and that individual works played a factor in being justified. We've seen evidence of this in the book of Acts, Galatians, and his own letter. Bible teachers will panic if this is true and will fear it invalidates the entire Bible. That’s why they feel the need to corroborate their preconceived assumptions that P&J couldn’t have possibly been in disagreement. But maybe we've just been inaccurately assuming some things about these written pages that have us missing a bigger point.



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782. Paul Opposed Peter to His Face

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In Galatians Chapter 2 we find the story as told by Paul about how he opposed Peter to his face … and in front of other people of whom he considered to be hypocrites. You see, Peter would live like the Gentiles (apart from the law) and he would hang-out with them, which God had revealed was perfectly fine. But when certain men from James showed up, Peter would separate himself from the Gentiles for fear of these people and their lawful doctrine which opposed the truth of the gospel. It’s as if Paul was telling Peter he should know better than to try to blend in with the Jewish hypocrites, including false brethren who were deceiving Gentiles into believing they needed portions of the law to be mixed with faith in Jesus.

 We can begin to clearly see Paul’s writings reflect an opposition to the teachings brought forth from some of those that were associated with the church in Jerusalem, where James was considered a leader. The letter written to the Galatians is centered around the freedom both Jew and Gentile have in the New Covenant, and it was a different gospel than what was coming from the Jerusalem church.



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781. Paul and James: The Elephant in the Bible Room

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Christian theologians have always been concerned about the elephant in the room – the quandary or controversy regarding what appear to be conflicting statements by Paul and James about justification, salvation and righteousness. This week, we continue looking at the apparent differences or viewpoints between them and how it does not take away from the truth within the Bible as a whole or Jesus as King of kings and Lord of lords. Interestingly, both men use Abraham as the example to make their case (examples in Romans 4 and James 2). They both quote Genesis 15:6 about how Abraham believed God and it was counted to him for righteousness.

Paul dives into a much longer explanation, using the context that Abraham was declared righteous by faith before any work was performed, including circumcision … when he believed God would provide a child. Whereas James jumps out of context to when Isaac was taken to the altar. If one is going to tout a mixture of faith plus works when it comes to salvation, those who hold to James’ view will need to be much more specific on exactly what type of works or action is needed to maintain their justification. That ingredient is always missing, leaving people in doubt and fear instead of peace.



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780. Faith, Works and Justification: Did Paul and James Disagree?

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We’ve all seen it. Time and time again, Paul declared the gospel is based upon justification gifted freely by faith, through the blood of Jesus, apart from works. James said something that appears to be quite the opposite. Bible teachers will fear such a contradiction diminishes the validity of the written pages and therefore, may affect the credibility of the entire Bible and bring doubt to the truth of Jesus Christ.

Teachers and ministers begin to feel the need to try and explain that there was no disagreement between the two, and that their views simply complimented each other … as both legalistic and grace teachers put their spin on trying to assure people that Paul and James were in perfect harmony. Both guys use Abraham to make their case for justification but even their context from the Old Testament is different. We attempt to bring a different perspective in considering they were not in agreement at all, and yet it takes nothing away from the truth of Jesus.



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779. Paul, James and the Gentile Dilemma

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Following up on last week’s look at Acts Chapter 15, there was great debate among Jewish believers as to whether non-Jewish people (Gentiles) should be required to follow the law of Moses as they were coming to belief in Christ and getting saved. After all, Gentiles had no relationship with that law and now it was presenting a dissension among those who felt the law was still a necessary component with Jesus added to it. James appears to reach a compromise which was accepted between both parties … or was it? We’ll discover the possibility this controversy would continue and the debate between law and grace was just beginning as we look at various passages in the weeks ahead.



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