The Gospel According to Jesus: What Does Jesus Mean When He Says Follow Me?

"The gospel in vogue today holds forth a false hope to sinners. It promises them they can have eternal life yet continue to live in rebellion against God." ~ John F. MacArthur

John F. MacArthur presents a more radical approach to Christianity. In "The Gospel According to Jesus" he takes the reader on a journey to the heart of Jesus' message. This book is the result of seven years of serious study and it shows. He answers the following questions:

What is authentic faith in Christ?
What is a true conversion?
Will asking Jesus into your heart get you to heaven?
Can you become a believer if you don't repent of your sins?
What are the signs of a true believer?

If you have ever had any doubts about your salvation this is a very interesting read. Not only does the author base his teachings on the words of Christ, he explains them in ways I've never heard before. I was very interested in his comparison between Nicodemus and the woman by the well. He also brings a much fuller understanding to biblical stories of salvation.

"The mark of a true disciple is not that he never sins, but rather that when he does sin he inevitably returns to the Lord to receive cleansing and forgiveness." ~ pg. 111

John F. MacArthur makes some excellent points about the life of a Christian after conversion. Many of the topics discussed will shock you back into the reality of Christ's true teachings. Throughout this book he explains the spiritual truths in Jesus' parables.

What I appreciated most about this work was the emphasis on Jesus' teachings and the excellent translation of Jesus' ideas for our modern society. If you are willing to take an honest look at your faith then I can highly recommend this to you. I can honestly say that the teachings in this book will lead you to a much happier life as a Christian. You can test out the theories and teachings and decide what is true in your own life.

~The Rebecca Review

John F. MacArthur is one of the chief proponents of the the modern Lordship movement within western evangelicalism today. This book in particular is considered by many to have been the opening salvo that opened the modern debate. It has led to a great deal of discussion and debate on the issue, particularly with Chuck Swindoll, who is one of the proponents on the "only Grace" side.

In a nutshell, the argument is that "Cheap-Grace" has pervaded modern Christianity with an "easy-believism" that in effect teaches that one can pray a prayer, appropriate Grace positionally and then effectively continue to live their life as before and still be a saved Christian.

MacArthur takes issue with this and argues in effect that genuine faith must have tangible results or else the experience is suspect. The Church is remiss in holding out false hope to those who have not genuinely repented.

While many may be tempted to look at this book and the debate that has ensued as a new development it is hardly that. Antinomianism (grace apart from the requirement of the law) has been around from the earliest Christian days and there have always been pendulum swings that go back and forth.

The bottom line is that there is an element of mystery to Christology (study of the person and work of Christ) and Soteriology (study of salvation) that relies completely upon Christ (grace alone) and if it is genuine must effect some change of heart and action (Faith leads to works.)

This is a valuable book to help place this age old argument into western evangelicalism. After you've read it, you will want to read "Grace Awakening" by Chuck Swindoll to see the other side.

You'll be well equipped then to understand the debate, process the arguments and teaching and digest them for a practical response in your own life and faith. It certainly is an important question for Christians and churches to wrestle with and on that hopefully will result in sober thinking and living of one's life and faith in Christ.

4 stars given not because the work isn't good and important, but simply because this reviewer believes that dogmatic teaching of this sort requires some ability to step back from the material and acknowledge some mystery to the debate. Beware the proponents on either side who become so caught up in the argument and winning that they are not able to concede a need to see the other side and maintain some humility.

Thank you Dr. MacArthur for clearly and lovingly teaching from the Word of God that salvation is by grace through faith alone. You clearly show in this book that much of the gospel taught today falls inadequately short of what Jesus taught. I have also read "So Great Salvation" by Ryrie and was disappointed to find that he still erroneously believes that you are teaching faith plus works. One wonders how he would answer his own "straw man" questions at the end of his chapters. Judging by some of the comments from other readers, they also seem to think that you are teaching faith plus works. I only pray that their "simple faith" has more substance than demons because the demons also believe but at least they shudder, not like many so-called Christians.

The Gospel According to Jesus is one of the most important Christian books written in the latter half of the 20th century. There are several reasons for this. On page 14 in the introduction, the author identifies one of them, "No more serious question faces the church today. It can be phrased in many ways; what is the gospel? Must a person accept Jesus as Saviour and Lord in order to be saved? What is saving faith? ... Several who disagree with my views have said in print that the Lordship controversy is a matter of eternal consequences." Another reason for the importance of this book, in addition to the subject matter addressed, is the wide sphere of influence that John MacArthur's teaching ministry has had. Also significant is the fact that his teaching ministry has received a wide hearing in circles where both the Lordship and non-Lordship view are espoused. There are many approaches that Mr. MacArthur uses to show that Lordship salvation is the biblical teaching. I will illustrate by quoting from the book showing the relationship between faith and obedience. On page 174-175,"The real believer will obey. Because we all retain the vestiges of sinful flesh, no one will obey perfectly (cf. 2 Cor. 7:1; 1 Thess. 3:10), but the desire to do the will of God will be ever present in true believers (cf. Romans 7:18). Faith always produces a longing to obey...clearly, the biblical concept of faith is inseparable from obedience. Believe is synonomous with obey in John 3:36,'He who believes in the Son has eternal life; but he who does not obey the Son shall not see life.'" How can anyone that does not submit to Christ as Lord walk in obedience to God's Word. Jesus said if you love me, keep my commandments, so someone who does not submit to Christ's lordship is not manifesting any love to Christ. MacArthur sums it up on page 15, "The gospel in vogue today holds forth a false hope to sinners. It promises them they can have eternal life yet continue to live in rebellion against God." The gospel is clearly set forth in this book. It is the historic Christian gospel that John MacArthur teaches in this book. Those who oppose this teaching adhere to a watered-down gospel at best.

There seems to be a great rift in modern evangelicalism regarding, "What is the true gospel?" The Gospel According to Jesus answers this question biblically and thoroughly.

Debating "What is the true Gospel," can prove to be quite a chore. The issue of "Lordship Salvation" is brought up and people seems to widely misunderstand it's biblical base. The confusion is not easy to sift through. Personally I spent over a year wrestling with the answer. It took time studying the bible and praying. Supplementing these, I used, and would highly recommend, reading "The Gospel According to Jesus" and classical works by Strong, Ironside, Bunyan, and Edwards.

In reading, common sense should be enough to inform someone context is critical. Reviewers of this book, however, misquote it untiringly. Ryrie wrote a book to answer MacArthur's "The Gospel According to Jesus" Ryrie, though a scholar and great theologian from which great things can be learned, seems to have abandoned basic scholarship in evaluating this book. "The Gospel According to Jesus" is very well written and easy to understand. MacArthur works tirelessly from scripture applying hermeneutics Ryrie seems to have forgotten in his book.

"The Gospel According to Jesus" will be a very convicting read if you approach it with an attitude to learn and be challenged biblically. Take time reading it and wrestle with the texts. You will find it a great benefit to your faith.

Blessings...

Until I read this book I had no idea what Lordship salvation was all about. I understood that grace through faith is what saves anyone, but I did not understand the importance of turning from one's sin and attempting to be more like Christ. I have never fully understood the Woman At the Well story or the Rich Young Ruler story or the story of the blind man that was made to see by Jesus. This is a must read for any Christian who wants to really understand "born again", and it is even more a must read for any Christian who really wants to be an evangelist to spread the word of God. How can anyone question Lordship salvation once they have read this book? It is simply outstanding.

MacArthur deals with the question of "what does it take to be genuinely saved?" MacArthur believes in the preservance of the saints and also teaches justification by faith ALONE and all of the other orthodox doctrines, but what he tackles is the horrible "easy believism" that has crept into American Evangelical Chrisitanity. "Easy believism" teaches that ALL you have to do is make a confession unto repentance and then you can sin all you want. MacArthur shows that God still forgives of sin, but that if you have the mentality of "I'm saved now...I have a license to sin all I want!"...you probably haven't received true Bible salvation. He also shows what true confession is and is not. Confession is not a repeated prayer that comes from the intellect...confession is, however, a prayer that Christ will save you that comes out of brokeness, humility, and from the heart. In a day where Christianity is becoming more secular than the world, this book is a challenge for the Christians to start living holy, sanctified lives again. After all, the church is to one day be the spotless bride of Christ. I also recommend the sequel to this book "The Gospel According to the Apostles."

If you are ready to be challenged - this book will do it for you. You'll re-examine your relationship with the Saviour. Can you accept Christ as Saviour and not as Lord? This is one of the issues tackled in this challenging book.

The Gospel According to Jesus sends a much needed message to the evangelical church in the 21st century. This book should be put into the hands of EVERY pastor and layman. Reading this book has forced me to change my approach to witnessing a hundred and eighty degrees. I will admit when I first got saved, I wanted to see other people saved so bad that I had a couple people repeating the patented "sinners prayer". Then I would tell people that they should never doubt their salvation. But after I read this book, I realized that all I can do is tell people how inportant it is to understand our fallen nature and to be willing to repent of their sins and follow Christ. However, it is a decision that THEY have to make for themselves and we who witness and preach cannot make that decision for them. When I witness the gospel to people and while am hoping that they accept it, I understand that only God can draw them to him and save them. I feel that just by witnessing and witnessing the way that God wants me to, I am experiencing great joy and satisfaction by being obedient to God. I think where John MaCarthur is most effective is where he tells people that they must be willing to turn from sin and surrender to Christ as Lord and Savior. That is what biblical faith is. Another great point is where he reminds people that Jesus will drive the would-be followers away if they are not willing to put God first in their lives. My prayer is that those who read this book, especially pastors will put repentance and submission to Christ's lordship back into the gospel message because anything less than that is really not the gospel at all. May God use this book to help bring genuine revival into our church that we so desperatly need.

I was never religious, much less a Christian. A big problem I had with Christianity was that it seemed...well, just too easy. Believe and you're saved. Great. I can keep on sinning and sinning and it don't make a difference because I said the prayer for sinners. It just seemed to good to be true.

Luckily, God drew me to the church I presently attend and to this book by John MacArthur. Finally! Someone who wrote about what I was feeling. If you're really saved, you're not going to act just like someone who's not saved...you WILL behave differently.
I had borrowed this book from my sister-in-law and got such inspiration from it that I'm buying it now.