The Gospel in fact is a most curiously and delicately compounded medicine, and is a medicine that is very easily spoiled.
You may spoil the gospel by substitution. You have only to withdraw from the eyes of the sinner the grand object which the Bible proposes to Faith, — Jesus Christ; and to substitute another object in His place, — the Church, the Ministry … and the mischief is done …
You may spoil the Gospel by addition. You only have to add to Christ, the grand object of faith, some other objects as equally worthy of honour, and the mischief is done …
You may spoil the Gospel by disproportion. You only have to attach an exaggerated importance to the secondary things of Christianity, and a diminished importance to the first things, and the mischief is done. Once alter the proportion of the parts of the truth, and truth soon becomes downright error …
J. C. Ryle, quoted by Peter Adam in Hearing God’s Word (Downers Grove, Ill.: IVP Academic, 2004), 24
(HT: Of First Importance)
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