This afternoon, I felt called to read the Bible and / or my notes on the Scriptures, and so I did :) I started reading my notes, going to the very first one dated August 8, 2015. There, I wrote about how I marveled over Christianity, and discussed Jesus / Yeshua's teachings versus Pauline Christianity / Paul's gospel (which is what is preached today). If you are unfamiliar of how DIFFERENT these two teachings are, here's a brief summary:
Yeshua taught the people to love God and to love one another to enter the kingdom of heaven. A person should have TRUTH (follow laws) and LOVE (mercy) to be saved. Paul, on the other hand, says you are saved by Jesus' sacrifice on the cross and His resurrection. That we are saved by God's grace alone, and not by deeds.
As I was reading my notes, I was distracted for a bit (read my non-Bible notes and our kids needed my attention) but eventually heeded the Holy Spirit's call to search "Yeshua vs Pauline" online, and came upon the page I've been trying to read before but was blocked repeatedly...
www.christianitytoday.com/ct/2010/december9.25.html
...and a new page (below), which intrigued me so much that I read it first.
www.doctrine.org/jesus-vs-paul
In the Bible Doctrine article, the author says there's indeed TWO gospels! First, there's Yeshua and His 12 apostles' gospel to the JEWS which focused on the identity of Christ, i.e. He is the Messiah who will save Israel (if they repent). Second, we have Paul's gospel to the GENTILES (non-Jews) which focused on the work of Christ, i.e. He died for our sins and gave us our salvation. Paul's gospel says you only have to believe in Jesus's death and resurrection, and you will be saved. Paul (the converted Saul, a persecutor of Jews) preached his gospel to the Gentiles for more than 15 years before Apostle Peter finally called the Council of Jerusalem in 51 AD to address the issue of the 2 gospels. Under the power of the Holy Spirit, Peter said that the Jews now had to be saved like the Gentiles, i.e. via Paul's gospel! (One gospel to rule us all.) Fascinating right?! GO READ the article in full, and read the comments too. If you have questions, post it and the author will answer the best way he can :)
So why am I writing about the Jesus VS Paul conundrum? Because for the past few days (weeks?), I've been wondering if my belief in the Lord and following His laws is enough to save me (Yeshua's gospel), or do I have to declare / believe that it's Yeshua's death and resurrection that saved me (Paul's gospel). The latter is what I've been seeing in my Instagram feed, which is not surprising because I'm following born-again Christians who preached the gospel of grace.
Last November 1, I finally declared to the Lord that I believe in Yeshua's death and resurrection as the ultimate sacrifice that saved me. But I still asked Him and the Holy Spirit then to help me discern the truth between the two gospels. In today's "Bible study" (I put it in quotes as it was more of online research than Bible reading, hehe), the Lord answered my prayer for discernment :) It's now clear to me how the two gospels came about, and how it's NOT contradictory. Praise God!
As for the Christianity Today article (the first pink link above), the writer says Yeshua and Paul preached the same gospel because both tell the "story of Jesus who is Messiah and Lord, and who brings the kingdom and justifies sinners by faith." In other words, do NOT begin with the kingdom gospel (Yeshua's) or justification gospel (Paul's) in mind, instead, begin with Yeshua (as should be) and you will arrive to both the kingdom AND justification. Do read the article, quite good too :)
All in all, it has been a very productive afternoon for me, faith-wise. (Housework-wise, don't ask, hihi!) Anyway, if you are confused with the gospels or not sure if there's indeed a God (or supreme being / creator / etc), just go to a corner and pray (even for just this one time) for discernment. Ask God to show you, nay, REVEAL the truth to you. And He will. Maybe via websites like what happened to me; or maybe via the Bible directly, or via a friend's advice, etc. Just be ready to hear His loving voice.
Last November 1, I finally declared to the Lord that I believe in Yeshua's death and resurrection as the ultimate sacrifice that saved me. But I still asked Him and the Holy Spirit then to help me discern the truth between the two gospels. In today's "Bible study" (I put it in quotes as it was more of online research than Bible reading, hehe), the Lord answered my prayer for discernment :) It's now clear to me how the two gospels came about, and how it's NOT contradictory. Praise God!
As for the Christianity Today article (the first pink link above), the writer says Yeshua and Paul preached the same gospel because both tell the "story of Jesus who is Messiah and Lord, and who brings the kingdom and justifies sinners by faith." In other words, do NOT begin with the kingdom gospel (Yeshua's) or justification gospel (Paul's) in mind, instead, begin with Yeshua (as should be) and you will arrive to both the kingdom AND justification. Do read the article, quite good too :)
All in all, it has been a very productive afternoon for me, faith-wise. (Housework-wise, don't ask, hihi!) Anyway, if you are confused with the gospels or not sure if there's indeed a God (or supreme being / creator / etc), just go to a corner and pray (even for just this one time) for discernment. Ask God to show you, nay, REVEAL the truth to you. And He will. Maybe via websites like what happened to me; or maybe via the Bible directly, or via a friend's advice, etc. Just be ready to hear His loving voice.