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GRACE BLOGS COLLECTION

10 Things that Distract you from Christ

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The best lies are the ones that have a little truth mixed in. They sound convincing, they make sense, but like medicine mixed with poison, they can be deadly.

This is why you need a clear and undistorted view of the gospel. Not a vague idea, but a solid one, lest you end up like these poor fellows:

I am amazed that you are so quickly deserting him who called you by the grace of Christ, for a different gospel; which is really not another; only there are some who are disturbing you and want to distort the gospel of Christ. (Galatians 1:6–7)

I am sure the Galatians didn’t intend to desert the Lord or fall from grace. But that’s what happens when you heed those who distort the gospel of Christ.

To distort means to corrupt or turn around. A corrupted gospel can corrupt you. A turned-around gospel can turn you around until you are walking away from Jesus.

Not good.

The Apostle Paul was prepared to give his life for the gospel of grace because he knew the grace gospel is the only gospel with the power to save. He vigorously opposed those “dogs” and “evil workers” who sought to distort the gospel by adding things to it (see Php. 3:2).

Here are ten things that can distort the gospel of grace. See how many you recognize:

  1. Preaching the Ten Commandments, a.k.a. the ministry that brought death (2 Cor. 3:7). God hid these inside the ark under the blood-stained mercy seat but you want to hang them on the wall?! Don’t you know that living under the law is cheating on Jesus (Rom. 7:1–6)?
  2. Pushing rules and regulations (Col. 2:21–23). “Don’t dance, don’t smoke, and wear a tie on Sundays. Keep the rules and you’ll be as pure as the driven snow.” Uh-huh. Vaping is bad for you, but unbelief is worse. Working on the Sabbath may wear you out, but Jesus still loves you.
  3. Human effort a.k.a. the flesh (Gal 3:3). Think performance-oriented Christianity. “Gotta get busy for Jesus. Gotta work for my salvation. Gotta start producing fruit or he’s going to lop me off.” Except that you don’t and he won’t.
  4. Lifeless traditions (Col 2:8). “That’s the way we’ve always done things around here.” Nothing invalidates the word of God like a manmade tradition (Mark 7:13). Nothing extinguishes grace faster than DIY religion.
  5. Hollow and deceptive philosophy, a.k.a. “big words and intellectual double talk” (Col 2:8, MSG). “He sounds smarter than me, so he’s probably right.” Not if he’s distracting you from simple and pure devotion to Christ he isn’t.
  6. Myths (1 Tim 1:4). Did Adam have another wife? Were the Nephilim angel-spawn? Where do demons come from? Where is Sheol? Does it matter?
  7. Angel worship (Col 2:18). God told you the name of the angel watching over this church/city/heavenly court? Okay, but let’s get back to Jesus.
  8. Endless genealogies (1 Tim. 1:4). You think you broke your leg because your grandfather was a freemason/slave owner/tarot-card reading gypsy? Weren’t you adopted into a new family when you believed? Didn’t Christ redeem us from the curse so that we might inherit the blessings of Father Abraham?
  9. Sin consciousness (Heb. 10:2, 22). Your guilty conscience won’t let you accept grace? You think your sin is greater than God’s grace? See the cross and repent for your unbelief. Get your mind off your badness and focus on God’s goodness. His best is greater than your worst and his grace is more than enough.
  10. Foolish controversies (Tit. 3:9). You think the president is controlled by who? You gave how much to that gloomy prophet/end time’s preacher/QAnon? That’s time and money you could’ve spent telling people the good news.

These things can be dangerous if they distort the good news and distract you from Jesus. They may be wrapped in gospel ribbons, but they are not good news. They may have appearance of wisdom and they may appeal to your flesh, but being worldly or demonic in origin, they have no life in them.

Consider yourself dead to these distractions and alive to God in Christ Jesus. Learn to abide in his love and you will never put a foot wrong.

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915. “The Whole Counsel of God”

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It was recorded once in the book of Acts that Paul used the phrase "the whole counsel of God." It's a quote that religious people like to use as a weapon of sorts to stress there is more to the gospel than grace. In other words, when people get hyper about grace, legalists will think it results in an unhealthy obsession that should include a balance of other things such as a measure of law and works, resulting in guilt and then trying to do things to make ourselves more acceptable to God.

Of course, those on the works treadmill can never really spell out exactly what the whole counsel of God is or how it should be defined apart from grace. Those who do will only be able to give you an opinion and guesswork based on a very limited perspective and likely an inaccurate one.

Right before Paul mentioned this phrase, he described what it was that the whole counsel of God revolves around, and the ministry he received from which he was called to testify about. Spoiler alert: It was the gospel of the grace of God.



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What is the Modern Grace Message?

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A man once asked me a question: “I want to show my friends that the gospel of grace is not the latest fad. Can you direct me to some early church teachings on grace?”

I replied, “How about the New Testament? Much of what I know about grace comes straight from the life of Jesus and the teachings of the apostles.”

Those opposed to the gospel of grace often dismiss it as the modern grace message. They say it is a passing fad.

It is anything but.

A modern grace message?

What is the modern grace message? It is the ancient and eternal gospel of grace (Rev. 14:6). The only thing modern about it is we are rediscovering what was lost. After wandering in the wilderness of works, we are returning to our New Testament roots.

The hypergrace gospel is no new revelation but an old revelation that has been buried under manmade traditions, religious rituals, and unholy packaging.

Hypergrace preachers aren’t preaching a new and modern grace message, but an old and timeless one.

Is hypergrace Biblical? You better believe it.

In The Hyper-Grace Gospel, I quote from more than 40 hypergrace preachers all preaching essentially the same gospel. It’s the same message from different messengers, which is a sign to make you wonder.

How is it that Evangelicals and Charismatics, Catholic priests and Anglican vicars, rock stars and soldiers, theologians and poets, are all preaching the same message of grace? The reason is we have unearthed the same Treasure.

How is it that pilgrims, all starting from different locations and traveling different paths, have ended up at the same place? We all followed the same star that led us to Jesus. Our baggage may be different, and some of us have more than others, but we have all arrived at the same Destination.

It doesn’t matter where you start. What matters is where you finish.

If you’re digging through religious rubble, keep digging. And if you’re walking through a wilderness of works, keep walking. Don’t stop until you find that Treasure and arrive at that Destination called Jesus.

He is your final port of call. Jesus is your resting place.

Exposing the dangers of hypergrace

The hypergrace gospel is no new message; it is a 2,000-year-old revelation. If you have met Jesus then you have heard the hypergrace gospel.

So what is the danger? What is the error or problem?

The problem is you may have heard some other stuff as well – additional material that was never part of the original message.

If you’re a believer, you don’t need to hear the hypergrace gospel as much as you need to un-hear all the extra stuff that obscures the good news of God’s superabundant grace.

Don’t confuse the dirt with the gold.

The grace of God is like nothing on earth. Anything we add to the grace of God only detracts from its sublime perfections.

Extracted and adapted from The Hyper-Grace Gospel.

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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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What is the Gospel of Grace?

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Sunset crowd

There are few things in life more important than life itself. You might give your life for a child or a loved one. Maybe you would give your life for your country. The Apostle Paul gave his life for the gospel of grace.

But I do not account my life of any value nor as precious to myself, if only I may finish my course and the ministry that I received from the Lord Jesus, to testify to the gospel of the grace of God. (Act 20:24)

Paul dedicated his life to the gospel of grace. He said that preaching the grace gospel was more important than life itself, and that anyone who preached a different gospel should be cursed.

Anyone, no matter who they are, that brings you a different gospel than the grace gospel… let him be condemned and cursed! (Galatians 1:9, TPT)

What is this gospel of grace that Paul valued so highly? How do we recognize it?

And how would we know if someone was preaching a different gospel?

What is the gospel of grace?

The gospel of grace is the only gospel for it is the grace of God that makes the good news the good news. It is the grace of God that saves us, sanctifies us, and keeps us secure to the end.

What is grace? Grace is the love of God that comes to us through his Son and empowers us to be who God made us to be.

And what is the gospel of grace? The One who sits on a throne of grace wants to share his life with you. This life is found in his Son who is full of grace and truth.

What does the grace of God look like? It looks like Jesus. Grace isn’t a mere message or sermon. Grace is a Person living his life through you.

What was Paul’s gospel?

The gospel that Paul preached was a classic 3-point message: Christ died for our sins, was buried, and rose again as the prophets foretold (see 1 Cor. 15:1–6). You are probably familiar with this message, but do you really understand what it means?

As we behold the cross and the empty tomb, the full implications of God’s super-abundant grace become clear. Because of grace I can say:

  1. God loves me unconditionally
  2. God accepts me just the way I am
  3. God has forgiven all my sins
  4. God holds nothing against me
  5. God justifies me and makes me righteous
  6. God makes me a brand new creation
  7. God adopts me into his family making me a co-heir with Christ

And that’s just the beginning of this great grace gospel!

The radical claims of grace

Paul spent his life unpacking the implications of grace. He said things like: God is no longer holding our sins against us (2 Cor. 5:19); we are saved and kept by grace (Eph. 2:5, 1 Cor. 1:8); and God has blessed us with every spiritual blessing in Christ (Eph. 1:3).

These claims were radical 2000 years ago, and they are still radical today. They are so contrary to our natural understanding that many dismiss them as untrue.

“The grace of God can’t be this good.”

Yet Paul described the grace of God as extreme, over the top, and hyper. He and the other New Testament writers said God’s love and grace are greater than we can dream or imagine. They dared to ask bold questions like these gems from Romans 8:

  • If God justifies me, who can condemn me?
  • If God is for us, who can be against us?
  • If God has given us his Son, what won’t he give us?

God’s grace is greater than we can fathom. We will spend the rest of eternity exploring the limitless reaches of his grace to us.

So how can we get this grace message wrong?

What is NOT the gospel of grace

Paul warned us not to listen to those who preach something other than the gospel of grace. Since the grace of God comes to us by faith alone, there are two ways preachers can mess this up:

  1. They preach things that distract us from grace (eg: conditional forgiveness, law-keeping, progressive sanctification, judgmental prophecies, conspiracies, myths, etc.)
  2. They preach things that diminish faith (eg: sin-management, worldly philosophy, politics, dead works, performance-based acceptance, etc.)

How can you tell the difference between a grace message and a graceless one?

A grace-based message will leave you praising God and thanking Jesus. In contrast, a graceless message will have you making promises you can’t keep and then condemn you for not keeping them.

Someone who has not been fully apprehended by the grace of God will always be tempted towards dead works. So be wary of those who preach a mixed gospel. If you desire to grow in the grace and knowledge of Jesus, tune in to the hypergrace preachers.

But the biggest mistake we can make with the gospel of grace is we think it is for other people. “Grace is for sinners, not good churchgoers like me.”

Big mistake. We all need the grace of God every single day.

It’s grace from start to finish.

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Check out these bonus teaching resources and my article how to teach the gospel of grace.

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What is Grace?

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What does grace mean to you?

As C.S. Lewis famously observed, grace is the one thing that makes Christianity unique. Grace is what makes the new covenant new and the good news good news. But what is grace?

Do you know what it means?

I read a lot of grace books and I have found that very few define grace. They tell you what grace isn’t. Grace isn’t works. Grace isn’t law. Grace isn’t religion. But they don’t tell you what grace is.

Don’t you find it strange that we who have been apprehended by the grace of God don’t have good definitions of grace? It’s like being French and not being able to explain what it means to be French.

What is grace? What does grace mean to me?

What is the grace of God?

It is common to hear grace defined as the kindness of God, or his undeserved mercy or unmerited favor. These are fine definitions, but brief. Max Lucado said “Grace is God’s best idea.” Of all his works, it is his magnum opus. And a magnum opus deserves a magnum definition.

Since I have been writing about grace for some time, I thought it might be fun to put all my grace definitions in one place.

I am not claiming to have a handle on God’s amazing grace. Far from it. All I want to do is start a conversation. I hope you will weigh in with your own thoughts about God’s grace.

A biblical definition of grace

What is grace? Grace captures the goodwill, lovingkindness, and favor of God that is freely given to us so that we may partake in his divine life. Grace is God’s divine aid that supernaturally empowers you to be who he made you to be.

The Biblical noun for grace (charis) means favor or kindness, and is related to a word (chairo) which means to rejoice, be cheerful and well off. The grace of God leaves us cheerful and rejoicing. It leaves us better than it found us.

Grace is…

Grace is what the unconditional love of God looks like from our side. God is love and love that stoops is called grace. Grace is the love of God reaching down and gathering you in his arms.

Grace is God’s loving-kindness towards you. Grace is God blessing you with himself for no other reason than it pleases Him to do so.

Grace is the confident assurance that with God on your side, you can’t lose. Grace is his strength for today and bright hope for tomorrow.

Grace is freedom from sin, guilt, and condemnation. Grace is freedom from the need to prove yourself. Grace is divine permission to be who God made you to be.

Grace is heaven’s cure for the world’s woes. Grace is the power of God that turns sinners into saints, haters into lovers, and orphans into sons.

Grace is being adopted into the family of God. Grace is realizing you are a dearly-loved child, the apple of your Father’s eye, and a co-heir with Christ.

Grace is God honoring us with his presence. Grace is God with us. Grace is the adventure of life shared with Christ.

Flavors of grace

Grace is favor, freedom, forgiveness and a million other blessings besides. Grace is God’s divine acceptance, his salvation and sanctification.

Grace is power, healing and prosperity. (What do you think the word blessing means?)

Grace is God blessing you for no other reason than he loves you. Grace is divine power to live abundantly in union with the One who loves you and calls you by name.

What does God’s grace really mean?

Grace isn’t a doctrine, or bunch of rules for you to keep, and grace is not God’s lubricant for greasing the cogs of self-effort. Grace is a Person living his life through you. Living under grace is like being married, only more so.

In a word, grace is Jesus. Grace is not one of God’s blessings but all of them wrapped up together in the One who is full of grace. Grace is the Gift of all gifts from the Giver of all givers.

Those are some of my thoughts. I would love to hear yours. What does the grace of God mean to you? In the comments below, complete this statement: “Grace is…”

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I have given you my definitions of grace. In the Bonus Content that accompanies this article, I look at some outstanding definitions of grace provided by notable authors past and present. Check it out now on Patreon.

825. Listener: “Why Don’t They Teach Us Right?” A Conversation About Church Inc.

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This week we have a spontaneous heart to heart about church denominations and the wide variety of different perspectives and teaching available. How did we get to this place where elements of both law and grace seem to be the norm? 

This is a bit of a foundational introduction into upcoming podcasts where we’ll talk about some things that are seldom heard or taught in most churches—but should be.



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794. Paul: One Gospel for All – Don’t Set Aside Grace in Exchange for Works

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When Paul came to the knowledge of Christ’s saving grace, he spent several years being taught the gospel message by God through revelation, and declared how he had not received this from men. He spent much of his time proclaiming this good news of grace to both Jews and Gentiles. Paul came down hard on those who were preaching “another gospel” and even went so far as to say that anyone who was teaching something different than the gospel of grace … let them be accursed. And what was that different gospel? Paul reveals to the Galatian churches it involved mixing law with grace.

Things haven’t changed much in the past 2,000 years. Although the rules and regulations are tweaked based upon religious brands and cultural changes, the Christian religious system often weakens the message by emphasizing a works-based message while putting grace on the shelf. Grace may be used as a selling point, but watch out for the fine print.



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793. Paul’s Proclamation: Justified by Believing (16th Anniversary Program)

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We reminisce just a little bit as we look back on 16 years of doing the Growing in Grace podcast … And then we jump back into Paul’s declarations about the gospel of grace through faith. We’re in Romans 10 this week, where Paul continues his consistent flow of the message in his letter, pointing out how Christ became the end of the law (works) for all who believe. He compares how Moses wrote about righteousness through a law that required people to actually do it (but all fell short).

That is contrasted with righteousness which is based upon faith, not works—confessing a word of faith by mouthing Jesus as Lord and believing with the heart God raised Him from the dead, resulting in righteousness (or justification) and salvation. And over and over again, Paul reveals it works the same for both Jew and Greek: Whoever calls upon the name of the Lord will be saved. Be aware of a works-based message being thrown into the mix with requirements which are made to put the responsibility upon you regarding salvation or God’s acceptance.



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The Feeble Gospel

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The number one reason we have a feeble church is we preach a feeble gospel. We will never have a strong church unless we preach a mighty gospel. Do you know the difference? • The feeble gospel says you better love God; the mighty gospel declares he surely loves you! • The feeble gospel preaches God can forgive you; the mighty gospel declares he already has. • The feeble gospel says you need to get holy; the mighty gospel declares that in Christ you already are. • The feeble gospel says you are the Lord’s servant; the mighty gospel declares you are his beloved son. • The feeble gospel points to your badness; the mighty gospel reveals his abounding goodness. • The feeble gospel preaches turn from sin; the mighty gospel says turn to Jesus and be free from sin. • The feeble gospel says God will bless you as you do your part; the mighty gospel declares God has blessed you with every blessing in Christ Jesus. • The feeble gospel drives you with law; the mighty gospel draws you with love. • The feeble gospel says God gives and takes away; the mighty gospel declares God gives and [...]

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