Bible Science Forum

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The Battle for the True Gospel | Lessons from Acts 13

I discuss the ongoing conflict between the children of light and the children of the flesh, highlighting how false doctrines, particularly regarding ethnic identity and salvation, oppose the true message of the gospel, as illustrated in Acts 13 with Barjesus.

John Gideon Hartnett
4–7 minutes
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Today the children of the flesh oppose the children of light. They resist the truth of God at every turn. They subvert the true message of the gospel with a perverted doctrine of salvation via ethnic identity. They are in fact the children of Satan and worship Satan through their rejection of the only Saviour Jesus Christ. This is not new. We find an account in the book of Acts, which describes the exact same problem. It occurred when the Apostle Paul and Barnabas were travelling to the isle of Paphos. (Bold text are my emphases.)

6 And when they had gone through the isle to Paphos, they found a certain sorcerer, a false prophet, a Jew, whose name was Barjesus: 7 Which was with the deputy of the country, Sergius Paulus, a prudent man; who called for Barnabas and Saul, and desired to hear the word of God. 8 But Elymas the sorcerer (for so is his name by interpretation) withstood them, seeking to turn away the deputy from the faith.

Acts 13:6-8 AKJV

The Roman official Sergius Paulus wanted to hear the word of God. But there was a sorcerer, a Jew named Barjesus, who opposed them in their witness to him. The sorcerer’s name is Hebrew for “son of Jesus” (or Joshua as that is the same name, Yeshua, transliterated). So the evil agent that opposed them was a fake version of Jesus. He was inspired not by the Holy Spirit but by the unholy spirit, Satan.

We used to jokingly comment that the sorcerer had the name “bar-Jesus” where “bar” means a negative, so the word then means “not Jesus”. He was the fake version of Christ who opposed the truth.

This passage is a parable for today as the true gospel message is opposed by the fake Jesus in the evangelical churches who believe in the devilish doctrines of J.N. Darby and Cyrus Schofield.

In this passage the English word “sorcerer” is translated from the Greek word magos meaning “magician”, of the oriental type. His name Elymus means “a wizard”. He was a demon possessed Jew trying to stop the Roman official from trusting in Jesus as his Saviour.

The same today. The magicians have perverted the true message in the churches through doctrines of devils taught in the bible colleges. There are many perversions but the greatest of all is that the modern day nation state of Israel is comprised of God’s chosen people. That being of a certain ethnic identity gives you a privilege with God. Some even teach that being Jewish means that they will inherit the kingdom because of that fact alone.

9 Then Saul, (who also is called Paul,) filled with the Holy Ghost, set his eyes on him. 10 And said, O full of all subtlety and all mischief, you child of the devil, you enemy of all righteousness, will you not cease to pervert the right ways of the Lord? 11 And now, behold, the hand of the Lord is on you, and you shall be blind, not seeing the sun for a season. And immediately there fell on him a mist and a darkness; and he went about seeking some to lead him by the hand. 12 Then the deputy, when he saw what was done, believed, being astonished at the doctrine of the Lord.

Acts 13:9-12 AKJV

The passage describes a true historical story but it also is a parable with application for today.

The Apostle Paul was once a Pharisee, but had his eyes opened by the power of the Holy Spirit. Being filled with the Holy Spirit he saw the child of the devil in the sorcerer. He saw the hand of Lord Jesus Christ blind the eyes of Barjesus just in the same way the Lord has blinded the eyes of most who claim to be Jewish, because they reject the Lord God today.

The Jews are still under a great cloud of darkness. Many claim that they will still be saved because they are Jewish. But what about all the other Jews who lived and died since Christ walked the Earth? Where are they? In the grave without hope.

In the end Sergius Paulus believed, and he was astonished at the Lord’s doctrine, that is, His teaching. His teaching is the simple salvation message that it only takes trust in Jesus. No works, ethnicity or status can buy you eternal life.

12 Neither is there salvation in any other: for there is none other name under heaven given among men, whereby we must be saved.

Acts 4:12 AKJV

23 For the wages of sin is death; but the gift of God is eternal life through Jesus Christ our Lord.

Romans 6:23 AKJV

8 For by grace are you saved through faith; and that not of yourselves: it is the gift of God: 9 Not of works, lest any man should boast.

Ephesians 2:8-9 AKJV

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4 responses to “The Battle for the True Gospel | Lessons from Acts 13”

  1. Stephen Mack Avatar
    Stephen Mack

    Dr. Hartnett,

    Evangelicals who are in some form dispensationalist in their eschatology believe in a ‘fake Jesus’? Really?

    Only once in my 70 years of belief and broad Christian ministry have I actually ever met someone who believes that Jews have either a different path than Gentiles to salvation because of their ethnicity, nor that they have an inside track to God (aside from the ‘great advantage’ Paul gives in Romans 3:1-2). No, both dispensationalists and amillenialists believe that there is only One way to the Father; and neither Darby or Scofield believed otherwise.

    You and I have both read of isolated dispensationalists who are off the wall, even as I could point to amillenialists and postmillenialists who are in some aspect of their doctrine grossly wrong.

    But to paint evangelical brethren who believe that God still has unfinished business with the Jews as believing ‘doctrine of demons’, is to relegate the overwhelming majority of missionary and church planting efforts around the world to likely perdition (I Tim. 4:1). I suggest that the ‘apostasy’ paint brush you use is far too broad and liberal.

    Stephen Mack

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    1. John Gideon Hartnett Avatar
      John Gideon Hartnett

      Steve

      I disagree with you view of “isolated dispensationalists”; it is endemic. With the Christian Zionists the state of Israel could hardly exist today. There reason the evangelical support Israel is a perverted view of the gospel.

      I quote from a recent comment on my article “Christian Zionism is the Problem”

      Christian Zionism is the Problem

      Scofieldism has rendered the cross of Christ ineffectual to save, deeming salvation is dependent upon one’s works: of prayer for and support of the modern state of Israel.

      Whole Gentile nations are now believed to be subject to judgement rendered according to their treatment of Christ’s ‘Brethren’ (Matthew 25: 31-46) identified by Scofield’s dispensationalists as Jews. However, CHRIST identifies HIS brethren as being those NOT after the flesh, of his genetic family, but as those who were His DISCIPLES. (Matthew 12: 46-50)

      For Scofield, the heart of the whole of the biblical message is Israel and ‘the glorious future for Israel under the reign of Christ’. (Preface to 1917 edition p.x. The New Scofield Reference Bible, Oxford University Press, London, 1967.) In fact, Israel HAS replaced Christ. THIS is replacement theology!

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      1. Steve Mack Avatar
        Steve Mack

        John,

        I believe you are far too exclusive in your limited use of the word ‘brethren”. It can refer in the Bible to believers, men of ethnic similarity, or close relatives.

        Paul was not undermining the Gospel when he called unbelieving Jews his “brethren” (Rom 9:3; Acts 28:17)? Those ethnic brethren needed still to bow the knee to Christ.

        Nor did Peter, when he addressed as ‘brethren’ a crowd of Jews who were mixed future-believers and other Jews who would not believe. (Acts 1:29). Those ethnic brethren would only become believing brethren by accepting the One Way of salvation. Neither Paul or Peter were confused, nor were their hearers.

        Unless the two apostles were heretics, then we may also call ethnic Jews the ethnic brethren of Jesus, who was and always will be Jewish, the half-Jewish Man in Heaven who will ever carry Mary’s DNA, whose Jewish body was broken for you and for me. But not one of those ethnic Jewish brethren will enter the Kingdom of Heaven without acknowledging Jesus as Lord, Messiah, and Saviour.

        Although Darby and Scofield made much of the anticipated rebirth of the nation of Israel (before it took place), they believed precisely as you and me with respect to soteriology. Israelis have no inside track to God, but they are swept up in the grand cataclysmic events of the final days and God’s unfinished business, and they must urgently hear the preaching of the Gospel (Rom 1:16) before it’s too late.

        This belief is not, as you say, another Gospel nor a ‘fake Jesus’. It is the same, whether you believe in one eschatological scenario or another.

        Your brother,

        Steve

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      2. John Gideon Hartnett Avatar
        John Gideon Hartnett

        Steve

        In the end it comes down to this: Jesus replaced the Jews, He replaced the Old wife with a young New Bride. The Old wife is dead and gone but so many still hold onto the Old wife believing she will be resurrected once again.

        https://www.fulfilledcg.com/Magazine/previous-issues-2021-2025/2025-spring/replacement-theology.htm

        ‘Maybe I’ve been living under a theological rock, but there’s been this debate/argument/accusation/refutation/fleeing/running away from the charge of “replacement theology,” AS IF IT IS AKIN to being a Satanist, anarchist or even a HERETIC.

        However, as a believer who interprets prophecy as being fulfilled, I am used to the label ‘heretic.’

        The more I think about ‘replacement theology’ as something equated to anti-Semitism, the more I realize there may NOT be a better term to describe the NEW covenant the SAVIOR won for us.

        Replacement theology has only been demonized by the Church to protect the MISUNDERSTOOD future blessings of national Israel. This misunderstanding of the physical kingdom vs. spiritual kingdom goes unnoticed, mainly by futurist Zionists.

        Zionists are the ones who want to continue to live in a fantasy that Jesus will split that eastern sky and set up a physical reign in Jerusalem. That can’t happen in their world if Jews are no longer God’s really, REALLY real first true love. They can’t comprehend God putting away His first wife, even one who cheated on Him with every yahoo in town.

        This entire argument of villainizing believers who see replacement theology as a theme demonstrated throughout Scripture is only being pushed as a narrative by those wanting to keep national Israel as the favored child.

        The Christian Church is now seen as the “ugly-red-headed-buck-toothed-step-child” who Yahweh can’t wait to move past in order to once again return to the unfaithful, covenant-breaking prostitute of the Old Testament.

        I think this ideology borders on mental illness.

        [as for] many Jews and Zionists. They don’t recognize the new covenant wife. They don’t recognize Christians as spiritual Israel, Mount Zion, the new covenant community, the new vineyard tenants, or any other contrast laid out in Scripture, and John Hagee sycophants ignorantly follow in lock-step to this misunderstanding.

        [in order] to defend the Jews, Zionists must be consistent in their total rejection of replacement theology to protect the ‘Jewish Nation.’ But doing this strips Scripture of its authority and message – that YAHWEH practiced REPLACEMENT all throughout Scripture.

        I know some will argue that this process could be called fulfilled theology, which is a MUCH kinder, gentler, more politically correct name. But Yeshua, acting as a judge in AD 70, did not send the Jews to their room, and He didn’t ground them or take away their electronics for a week. Nor did He spank them.

        He judged them and He killed them. He put them away as He did Ishmael.

        They were REPLACED.

        There was NO fulfilment theology there, as that group of people were not re-shaped, ironed and pressed, and made into the people of Yahweh. They were TOTALLY replaced.

        Yahweh continually did things that replaced the previous work; it did not just fulfil it.

        TOTAL replacement occurred.’

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