Is our gospel the same as that which Jesus and the 12-Apostles taught?

Is our gospel the same as that which Jesus and the 12-Apostles taught?

COMMENT (in response to an article teaching that there is more than one gospel):

Readers, please take a few minutes to read Galatians 1:6-12. It plainly says that there is one Gospel, the Gospel of Jesus Christ. Any time more than one Gospel is taught in scripture or by any teacher, by Biblical teachings, it is a different or false interpretation of scripture. Please read Acts 8:36-38, and Acts10:44-47. These Scriptures clearly say Gentiles are being baptized and receiving the Holy Spirit, and there are many more scriptures that describe the same things. Finally read Matthew 28:19-20 The Great Commission: Go therefore and make disciples of all nations (Gentiles) baptizing them in the name of the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit. We are commanded to reprove our teachers by what the scriptures actually say to be certain of the truth of our true Teacher, the Holy Spirit.

MY REPLY:

I’d like to point out that you conveniently use Paul’s writings to prove only one gospel, but then you send the read back to all the references of the Kingdom gospel which is for Israel, and completely discount all the rest of Paul's writings that clearly define his credentials as the apostle of the Gentiles, and who received a new gospel and mystery doctrine, revealed to him by the risen Christ.

If one of the 12-apostles wrote that passage in Gal.1:6–12, then I’d concede all arguments and abide by the Kingdom gospel. But they did not write that instruction. Paul did! The very fact that he wrote that is proof that he preached a different message and that his message was the only one to save from that point onwards in the grace dispensation. This is also why Peter declares that Jews would be saved in the same way as the Gentiles after the Jerusalem council meeting, see Acts 15:11.

Why would God require a 13th apostle if He already has 12 preaching the Kingdom gospel? Why did Paul tell his followers that he was not sent to baptize? Why did Jesus say that He came ONLY for the lost sheep of the house of Israel, Mat 15:24, and why did He instruct His disciples to NOT go into the way of the Gentiles, Mat 10:5–6? Why did Paul say that the gospel of the uncircumcision was committed to him while the 12 would preach the gospel of the circumcision, which by my count is 2-gospels? Why did Peter and the other 11 never once preach about the cross, rather accusing the Jews of murdering their Messiah and needing to repent for it, yet Paul could not stop proclaiming the cross of Christ and even boasted in it.

The grace gospel has nothing to do with the repentance, water baptism, or being filled with the Spirit. These are absolutely valid in the Kingdom gospel but is not preached by Paul at all in 13-epistles. Instead, we find him repeatedly proclaiming of the cross, and the death, burial, and resurrection of Christ, as the power to save us in this grace dispensation.

The foundational letter to Romans proclaims the grace gospel in the first eight chapters, yet nowhere in those eight chapters do we learn of, or are instructed, to repent, get water baptized, and receive the Holy Spirit. Later in 1 Cor.15:1-4, Paul summarizes the grace gospel in a nutshell based on the details in Romans. He says,

1Co 15:1-4 Moreover, brethren, I declare unto you the gospel which I preached unto you, which also ye have received, and wherein ye stand; (2) By which also ye are saved, if ye keep in memory what I preached unto you, unless ye have believed in vain. (3) For I delivered unto you first of all that which I also received, how that Christ died for our sins according to the scriptures; (4) And that he was buried, and that he rose again the third day according to the scriptures:

How in the world is that the same as the Kingdom gospel preached by Peter in Acts 2:38?

In regards to the Great Commission, this is the commission specifically for Israel. Peter and the 11 started this commission after Pentecost, beginning in Jerusalem and managing to get out to neighbouring areas, but this commission was suspended when the Jews were blinded and when the apostles were either martyred or died. This commission was replaced by the commission Paul wrote about in 2Cor 5:20, in which we are to reconcile people back to God by means of the preaching of the cross of Christ.

2Co 5:18-20  And all things are of God, who hath reconciled us to himself by Jesus Christ, and hath given to us the ministry of reconciliation;  (19)  To wit, that God was in Christ, reconciling the world unto himself, not imputing their trespasses unto them; and hath committed unto us the word of reconciliation.  (20)  Now then we are ambassadors for Christ, as though God did beseech you by us: we pray you in Christ's stead, be ye reconciled to God.

Salvation today is to simply believe in the cross work of Jesus Christ; that He died for our sins and that He was raised for our justification, Rom 4:25. That’s it. We believe that God, through Jesus Christ, provided us the free gift of justification by the cross, Rom.5:1–2,11, and that there is no more works needed for us to do to earn or deserve grace, Eph 2:8–9.

All this becomes clear and plain if one learns to rightly divide the Word of truth, 2Tim 2:15, by recognizing the difference between the prophetic doctrine (for Israel) and mystery doctrine (for the Body of Christ), Rom.16:25–26. Oh, and by the way, in this last verse reference, Paul also says, “according to MY gospel”, personalizing the gospel he preached from that of the 12-apostles. He wouldn’t say “my gospel” if he was preaching the same gospel as the 12; he’d surely say, “our gospel”?