Relentless Truth with John Warren

My friend, Pastor Charlie Parish, is back for another conversation on Relentless Truth. We discuss the prosperity gospel and related dangers in this important episode. This perversion of the true Gospel of Jesus Christ causes anxiety and a focus on the human effort that is extra-biblical.

Because we are guardians of truth, we have to share the error of the prosperity gospel. It is helpful to name those involved in the word of faith movement. This movement started as a metaphysical cult, and it has evolved into a perversion of the truth in the church.

We discuss illness, wealth, creation, faith, and the power of speaking from the perspective of the prosperity gospel movement. The “New Thought” cult believed in the doctrine of positive confession – that is, people can speak and cure themselves, accumulate wealth, and claim most anything else they want. The root of this heretical gospel is human prosperity. Said simply, these teachers claim that we can achieve prosperity if we use this “force” called faith. One teacher even said, “have faith in your faith – not in God.” In other words, we can use faith to make God do what we want Him to do.

The prosperity gospel teaches that we have done something wrong if we aren’t wealthy or if we have a health struggle. This teaching distorts who God is in the worst way. It turns God into a caricature of His actual essence, and it treats God like He is a cosmic vending machine. This distorted gospel teaches that man is the center of the story, but we know that God is the center of the story of Scripture.

We discuss the danger of taking man’s word for Scripture over actual Biblical truth. The culture we live in is drawn to this prosperity gospel. Our culture has elevated many ministries that are engaged in espousing a secularist worldview. Charlie discusses the implications of the prosperity gospel. It discounts the sovereignty of God and makes Him subject to us. God becomes less powerful and subject to our will in this movement.

Romans 8 teaches us that all things work together for good, and the prosperity gospel distorts this truth. This section doesn’t teach that all outcomes will be favorable to us. It teaches that God uses all things, whether good or bad, for good.

This teaching makes me anxious. A self-reliant man is incredibly insufficient. We violate the teaching of Scripture when we question our faith because of illness or financial struggles. This is an anxiety-filled movement that places pressure on a man that man wasn’t designed to handle. According to this movement, we have the power to control even the weather by speaking, and sin isn’t something that separates us from God – it just keeps us from living our best lives. These half-truths are damning to well-intended people who are seeking to grow closer to God.

Please don’t hesitate to send along questions and comments. Thank you for your support of Relentless Truth. You can learn more, including our contact information, at johnwarrenmedia.com. Please share this episode on social media and through email and text with your friends. Our great hope in Jesus Christ is powerful, and it is this Gospel that compels us to share these truths with others.

On Relentless Truth John and Charlie discuss the prosperity gospel and related dangers in this important episode. This perversion of the true Gospel of Jesus Christ causes anxiety and a focus on human effort that is extra-biblical.

John discusses Abraham's justification by faith today on Relentless Truth. John says his students often experience an “aha” moment during their study of Romans 4. Perhaps you will as well when you see that the story of Scripture is one big story of justification by faith. This one is earth-shattering!

Romans 3 is my favorite chapter in all of Scripture, and Romans is my favorite book in all of Scripture. Paul charges us with fourteen counts of sin using judicially strategic language. And then, he pivots to our great hope in Jesus Christ in the section we are reviewing today!

Our study of chapter 3 of Romans today addresses the life-changing truth that impacted my life about 25 years ago, and these truths continue to impact my perspective today. They are foundational to a clear understanding of many other doctrines. Justification by faith, the actual details of this doctrine, will explain our sin, our redemption, and the life we are to live if clearly understood.

One of the most encouraging experiences I have every year in my teaching is to have students grasp the teaching in Romans 3. The counterfeit doctrines we have been taught and have even codified in our churches are confounding Christians and causing defeat and even depression in the church. Students are amazed when they see the beauty of the implications of justification by faith in this section of Romans. Many of them conclude that “this makes so much more sense,” when they see doctrines of justification clearly.

Paul continues to use legal and strategic language in this section, and I explain the courtroom scene that he describes in this episode. I seek to answer questions about God’s character, man’s condition, and the way God relates to man through Jesus Christ. My hope is that this episode will encourage Christians and appeal to those who are skeptics as we take a look at the finished work of Jesus Christ and its implications for mankind.

Please don’t hesitate to send along questions and comments. Thank you for your support of Relentless Truth. You can learn more, including our contact information, at johnwarrenmedia.com. Please share this series on social media and through email and text with your friends. I want to share these powerful truths with people who, like me, struggle with guilt and despair caused by a lack of understanding of the beauty of justification by faith. Our great hope in Jesus Christ is powerful, and it is this Gospel that compels us to share these truths with others.

Today on Relentless Truth with John Warren, he discusses justification by faith, the actual details of this doctrine, and explains our sin, our redemption, and the life we are to live if we clearly understand this beautiful doctrine.

Romans 3 is my favorite chapter in all of Scripture, and Romans is my favorite book in all of Scripture. Paul charges us with fourteen counts of sin using judicially strategic language.

Paul answers a couple of questions early in this chapter in an effort to anticipate objections to this doctrine of justification by faith. He knows that doctrines of grace are going to trouble the people in Rome – both those who worship the idols of the day and those who rely on their religious achievements.

Then, in one of the most dramatic sections in all of Scripture, Paul lists fourteen “charges” against all of humanity. He says that no one is righteous, and it gets worse from there.

Before diving into this incredible chapter in this episode, I read Romans 11:33-36. The reason for this is that it is, in my opinion, the centerpiece or cornerstone of this epistle to the church in Rome. It lays out so clearly who God is, and by inference, it contrasts God with us. I don’t believe it is hyperbolic for me to say that this section of the letter in Romans 11 gave me and continues to provide me with a clear understanding of who God is.

A summary of this section is that we can fathom the depth of the riches and wisdom and knowledge of God. His judgments are unsearchable and His ways are inscrutable. We don’t fully know His mind, and no one has given Him counsel. We aren’t even on par to give gifts to Him. All things are from Him, through Him, and to Him. And all glory is His forever.

This sets the stage and provides helpful context for understanding the way Paul indicts all of us in Romans 3. We aren’t righteous. Period. We don’t seek God. No. We don’t. We are worthless and we don’t do good. And he goes on to describe our throats and mouths in the most unflattering terms. He says that our paths are ruin and misery, and he says that we don’t know peace or fear God. He goes on to say that no human is justified in God’s sight through the law.

Next week, we will address the courtroom scene that Paul describes in the rest of chapter 3. He pivots to justification by faith and explains it beautifully. This is our great hope! This is the key to life! This is God’s will for us! We don’t have to fret, and Paul spells out the facts that give us confidence.

Please don’t hesitate to send along questions and comments. Thank you for your support of Relentless Truth. You can learn more, including our contact information, at johnwarrenmedia.com. Please share this series on social media and through email and text with your friends. I want to share these powerful truths with people who, like me, struggle with guilt and despair caused by a lack of understanding of the beauty of justification by faith. Our great hope in Jesus Christ is powerful, and it is this Gospel that compels us to share these truths with others.

John discusses Romans 3 today on Relentless Truth. In one of his favorite chapters of scripture, John describes, in one of the most dramatic sections in all of Scripture, Paul's list of fourteen “charges” against all of humanity. Then declares that no one is righteous. Come back next week for the beautiful pivot Paul makes in the rest of chapter 3.

John addresses the dangers of moralism on Relentless Truth by looking at Romans 2 today. You might not have heard of moralism, but you have heard of man’s desire to be good enough to please God. Moralism is simply our efforts to be good enough on our own – apart from the Gospel of Jesus Christ.

On Relentless Truth, John introduces the beauty of justification by faith. He explains how Paul uses a legal term to explain our imputed righteousness from God by faith alone in Christ alone. John also discusses the implications of the fall of man.

Any study of the Roman Empire is interesting, but Rome during the First Century is fascinating. They worshipped idols, actual stone, gold, and silver images, that represented gods of various types. In fact, the Christians of this period would have been considered atheists of sorts for not believing in the commonly worshipped religious symbols. A large group of Jewish people was exiled during this period, and this person named Jesus caused quite an uproar as his very fresh story was told in Rome.

Many have wondered why the Apostle Paul wrote his compendium of theology to the church at Rome – the New Testament book commonly referred to as Romans. The simple answer is that he was about to embark on a dangerous journey to Jerusalem, and he had heard about the strength of this church in Rome and wanted to give them his complete theological knowledge.

The primary theme of the book/letter is The Righteousness of God, and another theme is Justification by Faith. This episode begins a series on this amazing book of the Bible with its beautiful depth. I’m breaking the pattern of varying topics with various guests to focus on Romans for a series of weeks because these truths changed my life. They changed the way I see God, my view of man, and my understanding of how God relates to man. They gave me peace with a knowledge of how God actually saves us and causes us to grow in the faith.

I grew up and spent many years of my young adult life not understanding how we are reconciled to God. I really didn’t understand sin, our purpose, and redemption. I failed to see how justification by faith actually works. I struggled with doubts and fears, and I remembered unhelpful sermons and lessons that exacerbated these challenges.

Due in large part to my study of the work of several strong theologians, God used the book of Romans to change my life many years ago. Paul’s ability to pull back the camera to show us the larger truths that he is communicating, helped me understand doctrines that confused me for years.

I hope this series is a blessing to you. We dive right into chapter one this week! Please don’t hesitate to send along questions and comments. Thank you for your support of Relentless Truth. You can learn more, including our contact information, at johnwarrenmedia.com. Please share this series on social media and through email and text with your friends. I want to share these powerful truths with people who, like me, struggle with guilt and despair caused by a lack of understanding of the beauty of justification by faith. Our great hope in Jesus Christ is powerful, and it is this Gospel that compels us to share these truths with others.