Book Review: "Gospel Assurances and Warnings" by Paul Washer

We live in a time when we must fight to define the terms. Evangelicals hold endearment to presidents that say “God bless America”, feel satisfied if a friend says, “I’ll pray for you”, or believe they have agreement if they both “Go to church.” The truth is that there is little truth in these words alone. They have become empty and there are many more of them within evangelical expression. One of the most significant words that must be redefined is “Gospel”.

There was once an endeavor of getting the Gospel down to irreducible minimums. A 3-step prayer or 4 spiritual laws was all that was needed. Along with this attempt to make believing in Jesus as “easy as 1-2-3” the true truth of Jesus was lost all together. We feel the results. I am not sure we have responded with the answers.

Paul Washer has given us a response.

In his book, Gospel Assurances and Warnings, Washer sets the record straight by both responding to where we have lost clarity of the Gospel by attempting reduction and pointing to where we must go if we are to recover the true truth of the Gospel. Washer writes with a pointed and organized style. He is easy to follow and his chapters break down easily for discussion or personal study.

This book is organized into two major sections. The first section deals with assurances that one may have that he or she is a true believer of the Gospel. Washer walks through the text of 1 John and shows from the plain witness of scripture what a person must expect if they are truly a believer in the Gospel.

The second section is a set of warnings from the Gospels. Here Washer uses Matthew 7 to lay out the “two ways” teaching of Jesus and call his readers to proclaim the Gospel with clarity but also to avoid reducing the truths of the Gospel below what scripture will allow. Washer calls the evangelist to rethink the practices employed according to the harsh warnings of scripture lest these unsuspecting adherents to the “sinner’s prayer” hear “away from me, I never knew you”.

This book by Paul Washer is timely and necessary. There are many within evangelical circles that will cringe at some of the mistakes they have made. We have all made some mistakes in ministry. I have repented of many of my mistakes. This is not a mistake that we can continue to make. We must turn and repent and communicate the true truth of the Gospel.

I am sincerely hoping that Washer’s book along with a few more written recently mark a shift away from the faulty, easy-believism of our past and sets us on a course to recovering the true Gospel for the glory of Christ.

Justified by Faith

For this reason it is by faith, that it might be in accordance with grace, in order that the promise may be certain to all the descendants, not only to those who are of the Law, but also to those who are of the faith of Abraham, who is the father of us all -Romans 4:16

As we now move into Paul's next argument in 3:21-5:21 we find Paul focused on the issue of justification. As we discussed in earlier posts, if we have a just God then we are deserving of his wrath. But we are not left there in Paul's theology. We have another aspect of God to pursue. We must look at the provision made for all mankind by God that we might be justified in his eyes, in other words, that we may stand before him and not receive his wrath.

In chapter 4 Paul will base his argument on the example of Abraham. Without going into too much detail, Abraham believed the promise of God that he would make a great nation of Abraham and make his name known among the nations. Abraham believed in the covenant with God (the promise) before he was circumcised (the sign of the covenant). In the same vein Paul will say that you and I are justified through our faith in the covenant with him, which is in the crucifixion and resurrection of Jesus Christ (the promise). We are justified through our faith, by grace, before we begin to show works of God in our lives (the sign of the covenant).

There is great discussion about what faith is. What it takes to be saved (escape the wrath of a just God). The great divide is the idea of works. The truth is that works are a part of faith! The key is that works come after justification, or more rightly said, because of justification. Because you have faith in Jesus Christ you are able to live within the covenant of God. It is only through faith in him that you may live righteously. 

For a wretch like me, this is good news!

No One is Righteous

"There is none who understands, There is none who seeks for God; All have turned aside, together they have become useless; There is none who does good, There is not even one." -Romans 3:10-11 from Psalm 14

There is a concept that we must understand to fully understand the Gospel of God. This concept has guided Paul's argument from Romans 1:18 and will see it through until 3:20. The concept I am referring to is a concept of who we are before God. Paul has taken his time in showing that we are all without excuse. God has made himself knowable through creation and everyone is accountable for pursuing truth. He has shown that the unbeliever is guilty as well as, the Jewish people for not seeking God. He will in this final passage of his first argument turn to show that the legalist and moralist are also guilty and therefore without excuse.

Everyone that does not seek after truth but rather pursues their own selfish end is deserving of God's justice. That justice comes in the form of a word that western culture has no palette for; judgement. Whether we are fond of the concept or not, Paul is clear that judgment will come and when it does we will all be deserving of God's wrath. 

We are all the same at this moment we are all:

Morally evil: Genesis 8:21; Luke 11:11-13; John 3:19

Spiritually sick: Matthew 9:12

Slaves to sin: John 8:34; Romans 6:16&20; 2 Timothy 2:26

Blinded to truth: 1 Corinthians 2:14; 2 Corinthians 4:4; Ephesians 4:18; Matthew 5:8

Lovers of darkness: Ephesians 5:8; John 3:20

Children of wrath: James 4:4; Romans 5:10; Ephesians 2:12

Spiritually, Physically, and Eternally dead: Ephesians 5:14; Romans 5:12; Romans 6:23

This is not the way that contemporary culture would say that God sees us. That is precisely the point Paul has so painstakingly made. Most church members would not describe their relationship with God in such ways. The truth is that in Romans 1:18-3:20 and in the testimony of Scripture as a whole if you come face to face with God then you will die! 

This begs the question, "What about Jesus Christ?" 

I am glad you asked. Paul will turn to the work of Jesus and explain justification in 3:21-5:21.

Look up, hope is here!

The Gospel of God

Paul, a servant of Christ Jesus, called to be an apostle and set apart for the gospel of God-

Romans 1:1

There have been many that have begun to preach through the book of Romans that have been said to spend multiple sermons on this one verse. It is full of truth and insights. I will not exhaust multiple entries on the many observations present here but I will allow, as is proper, this verse to set the tone for the rest of the study of the letter to the Romans.

I will assume that we know who Paul is and at least some of his history. I will take a moment to talk about Paul's approach to the gospel. Paul had three stances. Each of these were taken at the same time. It has been said that he had a foot in three countries at once (if he had three feet). One foot is in Judaism. Paul was a Pharisee, and by his own account, a good one (see chapter 11). Paul was deeply concerned with the Jews in each city he visited as he spread the gospel (see the book of Acts). Paul also had a concern that the gospel of God was not something new but something foretold by the prophets and in the Scriptures (see verse 1:2). It can be safely said that in Paul's eyes, the Christian movement was a Jewish movement.

His other foot was in the Hellenistic world. Paul was called to the Greek and Hellenistic societies. He was concerned with the freedom of these new communities to stand apart from the Torah (the Jewish law). Paul defended the rights of these churches in Jerusalem (Acts 15) and in front of Peter (Galatians). Paul primarily focused on the physical attributes of the Torah, like circumcision or dietary restrictions, but he also talked about the Gentiles as a fulfillment of God's promises to Abraham (see Galatians 4).

Paul's third foot (if he had one) is in the world of Roman government. Paul uses terms for Jesus that were normally reserved and used of Caesar. It was a way of Paul recasting allegiance to the true King, instead of the faux king of Rome. All three of these distinctions are prevalent in the letter to the Romans and we will highlight them as we have occasion. 

The gospel is a much bigger concept than a prayer involving the ABC's. The gospel is bigger than a decision that has been made or a pre-baptism ritual. For Paul, the gospel involved the efforts of God to make the world right again. God is a God of justice and that means that God will bring justice to creation. This has powerful ramifications for all of us (more on that later). The gospel involves us because God is involving us in his efforts to make the world right. If God is going to make the world right, then it is something that must come from his efforts. The gospel is God's way to save the world from itself (see 1:16).

In 1:18-3:20 we will explore Paul's expression of this truth.

Captivated: Beholding the Mystery of Jesus' Death and Resurrection

It is been said before that the gospels are simply a passion account with a long introduction. Today many seem to focus in on the teaching and ministry of Jesus and fail to pay attention to the suffering and death of the Son of God. In his book Captivated: Beholding the Mystery of Jesus' Death and Resurrection, Thabili Anyabwile calls us to look deeply into the death and resurrection of Jesus to stare and point at what was achieved by the sacrifice of the Son of God on the cross.

Many people come through our churches and hear messages every weekend but sadly it is possible to attend the modern church for perhaps years and never hear a clear, true, and compelling presentation the death and resurrection of Jesus Christ. This is one of the many reasons a book like Captivated is timely and necessary. Anyabwile writes simply enough for anyone picking up this book to understand yet he holds nothing back from the effect and the ramifications of what happened on the cross.

There have been books over the years that have treated the death and resurrection of Jesus Christ chronologically. There've been books that have walked through the sayings of Jesus as he endured suffering and crucifixion that came with the cross. This book treats the death and resurrection of Jesus theologically and practically as it looks at the death and resurrection of Jesus by asking a series of questions that were made by Jesus himself or those around at the time of his death and resurrection.

About the only negative comment I could make about this book is that there simply wasn't enough of it. Yet even this is hardly criticism as anyone in the church, whether a reader or not, could pick up this book and grow from reading it without being daunted by technicality. The entire book is less than 100 pages which is not intimidating to anyone and is a wonderful resource that can be given out to those wishing to know and understand the purpose and ramifications of the death and resurrection of Jesus Christ. Each chapter even includes a study guide for an individual or small group to go through together.

It is truly rare that I ever read a book and have nothing that I would add as an improvement. But Captivated is exactly what it claims to be and achieves its purpose by remaining simple and to the point. I would recommend that any Christian read this book for their own growth in their own ability to explain and discuss the death and resurrection of Jesus Christ with others. I also would recommend that anyone purchase this book to hand to their friends and family that may struggle with the realities and the difficulties that we face with this issue. I'm grateful for Thabili Anyabwile for writing this book and would love to see him write more in this exact fashion and brevity.