Evangelism vs. Evangelicalism

Christian folk might respond to the title of this essay: ” why are you making a distinction between these two designations? Aren’t they the same thing”? The answer is, no, they aren’t.

Thus, I consider myself to be an evangelist, but I do not consider myself to be an “evangelical.” The following discourse explains why.

The designation, “Evangelical”, conjures up a lot of different feelings and interpretations among those in and out of the Christian community. To those on the outside, it describes an overbearing, meddling, self-righteous, extremist segment of the Christian community. To those within the community, it simply describes someone who has an extra measure of zeal in their attempts to expose others to what they believe. Most folks associate the designation with Protestantism, from where it originated, and its many variations¹

The word itself originates from the Bible word “evangelists”, appearing one time there in Paul’s letter to the Ephesians, chapter 4, verse 11:

“And he gave some, apostles; and some, prophets; and some, evangelists; and some, pastors and teachers…”

The preceding verse establishes all these ministerial offices as “gifts” to the “body of Christ,” and the following verse its purpose:

“For the perfecting of the saints, for the work of the ministry, for the edifying of the body of Christ.”

The Greek word for “evangelists” is euaggelistes , meaning, simply, “a preacher of the gospel.”²

Within the context of Paul’s revelation, Romans through Philemon, “the gospel” would refer to “the gospel of salvation” that he preached, the elements of which are summarized in his letters to the Corinthians and Romans.

“Moreover, brethren, I declare unto you the gospel which I preached unto you, which also ye have received, and wherein ye stand; By which also ye are saved, if ye keep in memory what I preached unto you, unless ye have believed in vain. For I delivered unto you first of all that which I also received, how that Christ died for our sins according to the scriptures; And that he was buried, and that he rose again the third day according to the scriptures…for our justification.” 1 Cor 15:1-4; Romans 4:25.

Concerning his gospel, Paul said in Romans 1:

“For I am not ashamed of the gospel of Christ: for it is the power of God unto salvation; to every one that believeth, to the Jew first, and also to the Greek.” Rom. 1:16

Many will say to this: Isn’t this what Evangelicals teach and preach? Moreover, why would anyone who also claims to preach this say that he is not an Evangelical?³ Isn‘t this a contradiction?” No, and here’s why:

First, this is not what Evangelicals preach–not, at least, within the strict parameters set up by the Apostle Paul. What Evangelicals preach is a mish-mash of salvation doctrine from the four “gospels”, Matthew, Mark, Luke and John, the Acts, Paul’s epistles, and the “Hebrew” epistles,⁴ Hebrews through Revelation; i.e., what is commonly referred to in Christian circles as the New Testament.

So, what’s wrong with doing this? By co-mingling doctrine, concerning salvation, from the gospels and the Hebrew epistles with the doctrine presented in Paul’s epistles, they are mixing a “works” salvation gospel with “the gospel of the grace of God”(Acts 20:24), and Paul says, “…if it be of works, then it is no more grace…” ( Romans 11:6). In other words, works and grace are mutually exclusive.

In short, Evangelicals fail to follow the apostle’s charge, in 2 Timothy 2:15, to “rightly divide the word of truth.” What the Apostle means by this is, we are not to combine or co-mingle his doctrine–particularly the doctrines of salvation and justification–with doctrine found in the other writings in the NT section of the Bible.

Say what?! You can’t be serious! You are negating in this statement centuries of church tradition and teaching! This can’t be right!

If there are any folks reading this who have these sentiments, let me ask you something: Do you believe what the Bible says,⁵ or what men and tradition say it says? If it’s the former, continue on with me, and let’s see what it says.

The most egregious blunder of traditional evangelicalism (and also with modern Neo-Evangelicalism) is the contention that there is but one gospel in the NT, referred to as “the gospel of Jesus Christ,” or as a popular Evangelical preacher coined it: “the gospel according to Jesus Christ.”⁶

If you are a believer in the one gospel position, I implore you to consider what the Apostle Paul says in his letter to the Galatians (emphasis is mine):

“I marvel that ye are so soon removed from him that called you into the grace of Christ unto another gospel : Which is not another; but there be some that trouble you, and would pervert the gospel of Christ. But though we, or an angel from heaven, preach any other gospel unto you than that which we have preached unto you, let him be accursed. As we said before, so say I now again, If any man preach any other gospel unto you than that ye have received, let him be accursed. For do I now persuade men, or God? or do I seek to please men? for if I yet pleased men, I should not be the servant of Christ. But I certify you, brethren, that the gospel which was preached of me is not after man. For I neither received it of man, neither was I taught it, but by the revelation of Jesus Christ.” (my emphasis)
Gal 1:6-12

The italicized phrases clearly establish that there is “another gospel”, other than the one Paul preached, being floated around the Galatian⁷ congregations. “One gospel” proponents will invariably claim this to be some kind of “Gnostic”⁸ gospel, or heresy that denied the deity of Christ, or the efficacy of his vicarious atonement, his bodily resurrection, etc., but what Paul says in chapter two, thoroughly debunks this:

“Then fourteen years after I went up again to Jerusalem with Barnabas, and took Titus with me also. And I went up by revelation, and communicated unto them that gospel which I preach among the Gentiles, but privately to them which were of reputation, lest by any means I should run, or had run, in vain……..But of these who seemed to be somewhat, (whatsoever they were, it maketh no matter to me: God accepteth no man’s person:) for they who seemed to be somewhat in conference added nothing to me: But contrariwise, when they saw that the gospel of the uncircumcision was committed unto me, as the gospel of the circumcision was unto Peter…..”(my emphasis)
Gal 2:1-2, 6-7

Paul went up to Jerusalem, where the Lord’s original disciples were to be found, to tell them what he was preaching “among the Gentiles”. Obviously, it must have been different from what they were preaching to the Jews, or it would not have been necessary to go there and explain it. It is also obvious to me that what Paul was referring to in chapter one as “another gospel” (good news!), was the gospel given to the 12 to take to “the lost sheep of the house of Israel.”⁹ The final sentence of the passage puts the coup de grace to the one gospel position, clearly identifying two gospels, one given to Peter (and the other apostles with him ) for “the circumcision” (Jews); the other to Paul for the “uncircumcision” (Gentiles). ¹⁰

Moreover, while the two gospel’s foundation is identical (that Jesus was the Christ, the Son of the living God, resurrected from the dead), their doctrine and prescription for “the obedience of faith” is not, not by any means. For example, consider the difference in what Peter said to the Jews at Jerusalem, in his famous sermon in Acts 2, and what Paul preached to Jews and Gentiles at Antioch, in Acts 13:

Peter:

“Men and brethren,¹¹ let me freely speak unto you of the patriarch David, that he is both dead and buried, and his sepulchre is with us unto this day.Therefore being a prophet, and knowing that God had sworn with an oath to him, that of the fruit of his loins, according to the flesh, he would raise up Christ to sit on his throne; He seeing this before spake of the resurrection of Christ, that his soul was not left in hell, neither his flesh did see corruption. This Jesus hath God raised up, whereof we all are witnesses.Therefore being by the right hand of God exalted, and having received of the Father the promise of the Holy Ghost, he hath shed forth this, which ye now see and hear.For David is not ascended into the heavens: but he saith himself, The LORD said unto my Lord, Sit thou on my right hand, Until I make thy foes thy footstool. Therefore let all the house of Israel know assuredly, that God hath made that same Jesus, whom ye have crucified, both Lord and Christ. Now when they heard this, they were pricked in their heart, and said unto Peter and to the rest of the apostles, Men and brethren, what shall we do? Then Peter said unto them, Repent, and be baptized every one of you in the name of Jesus Christ for the remission of sins, and ye shall receive the gift of the Holy Ghost. For the promise is unto you, and to your children, and to all that are afar off, even as many as the Lord our God shall call.”(my emphasis)

Acts 2:29-39

Paul:

“Men and brethren, children of the stock of Abraham, and whosoever among you feareth God, to you is the word of this salvation sent. For they that dwell at Jerusalem, and their rulers, because they knew him not, nor yet the voices of the prophets which are read every sabbath day, they have fulfilled them in condemning him. And though they found no cause of death in him, yet desired they Pilate that he should be slain. And when they had fulfilled all that was written of him, they took him down from the tree, and laid him in a sepulchre. But God raised him from the dead: And he was seen many days of them which came up with him from Galilee to Jerusalem, who are his witnesses unto the people. And we declare unto you glad tidings, how that the promise which was made unto the fathers, God hath fulfilled the same unto us their children, in that he hath raised up Jesus again; as it is also written in the second psalm, Thou art my Son, this day have I begotten thee. And as concerning that he raised him up from the dead, now no more to return to corruption, he said on this wise, I will give you the sure mercies of David. Wherefore he saith also in another psalm, Thou shalt not suffer thine Holy One to see corruption. For David, after he had served his own generation by the will of God, fell on sleep, and was laid unto his fathers, and saw corruption: But he, whom God raised again, saw no corruption. Be it known unto you therefore, men and brethren, that through this man is preached unto you the forgiveness of sins: And by him all that believe are justified from all things, from which ye could not be justified by the law of Moses. ”  (my emphasis)

Acts 13:26-39

There is little difference in what these two patriarchs preach in the first fifteen verses or so of their respective sermons. Both firmly establish Jesus as Lord and Christ, the Son of God, raised from the dead, utilizing OT prophecy to corroborate these truths. But the last two or three verses, namely the part of the sermon that issues forth the required response from the respective audiences–the “invitation”–could not be more different. After leveling the indictment against his audience of crucifying the Lord Jesus Christ (verse 36), Peter commands them to “repent and be baptized for the remission of sins..” If they do this, he says they will “..receive the gift of the Holy Ghost…”

Paul, on the contrary, does not charge his audience with the crime of crucifying Jesus. In verses 38 and 39, he tells them that, as a result of what God has done through his Son, Jesus Christ, their sins are forgiven, and that what any of them, Jew and Gentile alike, must do to be “justified from all things” is to believe this. He re-affirms this offer of salvation, apart from the works of the law, in Acts 16, when he tells a jailer in Philippi, who demands to know what he must do to be saved, to simply, “believe on the Lord Jesus Christ, and thou shalt be saved.”

Evangelicalism, like Catholicism, makes no distinction between these two sermons, or for that matter, between the doctrine in Peter’s and Paul’s letters . They are merely two wings of the same bird, two variations on the same theme, etc.. Here are some examples of this co-mingling by ignoring the clear distinctions I have outlined above (Italics are my emphasis):

From a Roman Catholic prelate:

“We know that Jesus sent forth all twelve of His Apostles. In fact, the true Church of Christ is present only where there is an unbroken succession and identification with the spirit of the Apostles. However, among all the apostles, Peter and Paul have always occupied a special place in the life and liturgy of the Church. “Peter professed his faith in Christ first; Paul obtained as a gift the ability to deepen its riches. Peter founded the first community of Christians, who came from the Chosen People; Paul became the Apostle to the Gentiles. With different charisms they worked for one and the same cause: the building of Christ’s Church” (Pope Benedict XVI, Homily, Celebration of First Vespers of Solemnity of the Holy Apostles Peter and Paul, 28 June 2007). Saint Leo the Great (440 461) speaks of the fact that they are always considered and honored as a unit. He wrote: “About their merits and virtues, which surpass all power of speech, we must not make distinctions, because they were equal in their election, alike in their toils, undivided in their death” (In natali apostolorum, 69).”¹²

From the archives of two Evangelical websites:

On Peter’s and Paul’s Acts sermons :

“Both Peter and Paul close with an appeal to believe so that their sins will be forgiven. Peter says, “through his name”, and Paul, “through this Man”, but they are equivalent statements. The difference is that Paul adds some theological explanation, and ends with a curse. The statement ‘by him everyone who believes is justified from all things from which you could not be justified by the law of Moses‘(v.38-39), explains that Christ is a source of justification which is superior to that of Moses. Paul is once again working with the theme of a new phase in covenant history, and here he comes to the climax—the law of Moses was not ultimately able to justify, but pointed forward to Jesus Christ! Now he has come, the law has ceased from its function. Such a conclusion must have been startling to the Jews, to say the least, especially when one considers that the man whom Paul proclaims as replacing the law, died as an outcast from the covenant.”¹³

“…Paul’s message is both Scriptural and designed to show the connection with the earliest Apostolic preaching in Acts 2 and 3. If Luke can show this continuity, he has justified Paul’s Gentile mission as the “natural outgrowth” or, better said, the “Spirit-directed outgrowth” of the earliest preaching. Three points of continuity with earlier preaching are: (1) the innocence of Jesus; (2) the ignorance of the people; and (3) the use of the royal Psalms (in Acts 13 it is Ps. 2; in Acts 2 it is Ps. 110), originally associated with David, to show Jesus’ superiority to his great forebear.”¹⁴

Not one word in these three examples even alludes to the fact that there is the slightest difference between Peter’s and Paul’s preaching concerning salvation and justification. Notice in the second and third commentaries, the writers attempt to mesh Paul’s ministry with Peter’s, with statements like; “Paul is once again working the theme of a new phase in covenant history”, and “Paul’s Gentile mission as the ‘natural outgrowth‘…of the earliest preaching” (namely, Peter’s early Acts sermons).

All three commentaries purposely avoid the sticky questions raised by the glaring differences in the final verses of the respective sermons. This is understandable, being that the entire foundation of Catholic/Protestant theology rests on the idea that Paul’s ministry was merely a continuation of Peter’s, perhaps to a different group of people, but always preaching the same message.

If the Acts preaching does not settle in your mind that Paul preached something entirely different from Peter, the doctrines of Peter and Paul, presented in their respective epistles, surely will. In his Letter to the Romans, Paul establishes his doctrine of justification by faith which he first preached in Antioch:

“Now we know that what things soever the law saith, it saith to them who are under the law: that every mouth may be stopped, and all the world may become guilty before God. Therefore by the deeds of the law there shall no flesh be justified in his sight: for by the law is the knowledge of sin. But now the righteousness of God without the law is manifested, being witnessed by the law and the prophets; Even the righteousness of God which is by faith of Jesus Christ unto all and upon all them that believe: for there is no difference.” Rom 3:19-22

This passage establishes three basic tenets of Paul’s gospel:

1. The law, concerning salvation and justification, is taken out of the way (verse 20);

2. The faith that justifies is the “faith of Jesus Christ”(verse 22);

3. All one must do to be made right with God (justified) is to cease working (trying to be justified by keeping the law), and simply believe. Chapters four, five, six and eleven affirm these tenets:

“Now to him that worketh is the reward not reckoned of grace, but of debt. But to him that worketh not, but believeth on him that justifieth the ungodly, his faith is counted for righteousness. ” Rom 4:4-5

“Therefore being justified by faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ: By whom also we have access by faith into this grace wherein we stand, and rejoice in hope of the glory of God. ” Rom 5:1-2

“For sin shall not have dominion over you: for ye are not under the law, but under grace. Rom 6:14 And if by grace, then is it no more of works: otherwise grace is no more grace. But if it be of works, then is it no more grace: otherwise work is no more work.” Rom 11:6

Paul establishes in these passages, among others, his gospel as “the gospel of the grace of God.”¹⁴ Evangelicals will invariably contend that Peter establishes the same thing in his first epistle. If they would closely examine what it says in chapter one, there is no way they could ever come to such a conclusion :

“Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, which according to his abundant mercy hath begotten us again unto a lively hope by the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead…Who are kept by the power of God through faith unto salvation ready to be revealed in the last time. Wherein ye greatly rejoice, though now for a season, if need be, ye are in heaviness through manifold temptations:
that the trial of your faith, being much more precious than of gold that perisheth, though it be tried with fire, might be found unto praise and honour and glory at the appearing of Jesus Christ: Whom having not seen, ye love; in whom, though now ye see him not, yet believing, ye rejoice with joy unspeakable and full of glory: Receiving the end of your faith, even the salvation of your souls…Wherefore gird up the loins of your mind, be sober, and hope to the end for the grace that is to be brought unto you at the revelation of Jesus Christ..” 1 Peter 1:3, 5-9,13  (my emphasis)

The italicized phrases are meant to point out the fact that it is their faith that justifies them (rather than the “faith of Christ”, as it does in Paul‘s gospel), that salvation comes at the end of their faith (rather than the beginning, as it does with Paul’s gospel), and the grace spoken of in the first verse is something they will not be in possession of until Jesus Christ returns in his second coming.

Conversely, in Paul’s gospel works are excluded totally; either to get saved, stay saved, or prove you’re saved. In Peter’s gospel (or the doctrine in Hebrews, James and John) works are an integral part of the equation. James affirms this, making it abundantly clear that a man’s faith is always proved by, and inseparable from, his works (emphasis is mine):

“Even so faith, if it hath not works, is dead, being alone. Yea, a man may say, Thou hast faith, and I have works: shew me thy faith without thy works, and I will shew thee my faith by my works.Thou believest that there is one God; thou doest well: the devils also believe, and tremble.But wilt thou know, O vain man, that faith without works is dead?
Was not Abraham our father justified by works, when he had offered Isaac his son upon the altar? Seest thou how faith wrought with his works, and by works was faith made perfect? And the scripture was fulfilled which saith, Abraham believed God, and it was imputed unto him for righteousness: and he was called the Friend of God. Ye see then how that by works a man is justified, and not by faith only. Likewise also was not Rahab the harlot justified by works, when she had received the messengers, and had sent them out another way? For as the body without the spirit is dead, so faith without works is dead also.” James 2:17-26

Conclusion

Teaching, as Evangelical theology does, that Peter’s and Paul’s gospels are the same, places believers under a works salvation doctrine, a burden that no one, now, can possibly carry without eventually coming under condemnation.¹⁶ The result of this is a leavening¹⁷ of the true gospel of grace, presented and taught exclusively in the revelation of the Apostle Paul, Romans through Philemon. This is the blueprint to which the Apostle, in his closing statement in the letter to the Romans, calls everyone (“all nations”) into obedience.

“Now to him that is of power to stablish you according to my gospel, and the preaching of Jesus Christ, according to the revelation of the mystery, which was kept secret since the world began, But now is made manifest, and by the scriptures of the prophets, according to the commandment of the everlasting God, made known to all nations for the obedience of faith: To God only wise, be glory through Jesus Christ for ever. Amen.” Rom 16:25-27

Mike Schroeder

Feel free to reprint this article or distribute it through the internet. All Scripture quotations are taken from the King James Bible.

Post Script

None of us knows when this world in which we presently exist will come to its end. Neither do we know when the Lord will return to take his true church out of it. What we do know is that our individual lives will someday come to an end, and that we aren’t guaranteed another heartbeat, much less another day, week or year here. What we can also know is, if the end of this life comes for us today, that we will be present with our Lord in heaven. In this respect may I ask you: are you personally assured of this? Have you ever trusted Jesus Christ and what he did for you at Calvary to secure your salvation? Do you know, beyond the shadow of a doubt, that you are saved, sealed and bound for heaven? If you aren’t sure, make this the day of your salvation by admitting your lost condition, and then simply ask the Lord to save you. “Believe on the Lord Jesus Christ, and thou shalt be saved.”