An "Announcement-less" Gospel-L. Headley

There are two clips behind this counterfeit: here and here.  The speaker does not utilize sleek video editing or music to elicit a response from his viewer, rather the speaker comes to the audience in a more candid manner.  He is preaching a sermon from his pulpit, and yet we are pulled in by his sermon almost immediately. His sermon begins with the shocking statement, “Our message, our good news is not about Calvary. Our good news is not about even the resurrection.” The speaker then continues on to preach that Satan’s most successful strategy is to get people to do good things for the wrong reason, or good things that are not right.  This much is true; however the speaker does not end here.  He claims that the good things believers do for the wrong reasons include: preaching about Calvary, preaching about the blood of Christ, preaching about the resurrection of Christ, and preaching about the Holy Spirit. 

   This restructuring of the gospel takes away the very heart of the gospel.  Rather than believing that Jesus’ death and resurrection are the “good news” this speaker touts the dominion and colonization of earth as the “good news”. However, the gospel is not about the kingdom on earth, although that is a part of God’s plan.  Rather the gospel is about Jesus Christ redeeming His lost children.  The gospel is about Calvary and the death and resurrection of Christ.  Wax says, “The arrival of God’s kingdom and the sinless life of Jesus are integral parts of the gospel announcement.  But Christ’s work is primarily to restore us to God and thereby to restore the shalom that our sin shattered" (Wax, 92).  That is the central focus of the gospel. This speaker’s gospel removes Jesus’ redemption and restoration from the throne and center of our focus and places the dominion and rule of earth instead.