Dealing With False Teachers

Dusty

Inactive
Dealing With False Teachers

Permission to post .... from my in- box .... with a message to e-mail others



Dealing With False Teachers

Charles F. Stanley
Scripture: Colossians 2:1-10
I. Introduction: Do you know how to identify false teaching? Using the Word of God, can you support what you believe? Are you confident that your children can distinguish between truth and falsehood? It's essential that you know how to defend your faith against the heresies taught by today’s cults and false teachers.
II. Message:

A. Spiritual deception is nothing new.
  1. In Colossians, Paul addressed several heresies, including the claims that Jesus was not God and works were necessary for salvation. The apostle encouraged the Colossian church to remember what they had been taught and to continue following Christ (Col. 2:1-10).
  2. A number of other New Testament passages warn against false teachers: 2 Corinthians 11:1-4; Matthew 24:11; Mark 13:5-6; 2 Peter 3:17-18; and 1 John 4:1-6.
B. Where do false teachers operate?
  1. They often build cults. A leader might assemble a group of people to perform non-biblical rituals or observe strict rules. If he teaches from the Bible at all, he uses it primarily to validate his “special calling” or his claim to be the messiah. Sexual immorality, child abuse, group suicide, and other types of unhealthy relationships and behaviors often characterize cults.
  2. Sometimes false teachers participate in mainstream churches. Such people believe only portions of God’s Word. They question fundamentals of the faith, such as the virgin birth, the second coming of Christ, and the importance of receiving salvation before death. That’s why church leaders searching for a new pastor should verify that he has a vital, growing relationship with the Lord, not just that he is a member of their denomination.
C. What are the consequences of trusting a false teacher?
  1. Danger: Since their primary purpose is to control and use people, false teachers don’t seek to lead others into a personal relationship with Jesus Christ.Division: Such leaders often cause conflict that breaks up families and churches. Disillusionment: They make promises on behalf of God, without telling people how to seek Him. Then, when followers gradually give up on personal time with the Lord, their lives become empty. Only Jesus Christ can fill a person.
  2. Drifting: False teachers often cause believers to neglect close fellowship with God. In the absence of a vital, growing relationship with Jesus, Christians stop bearing spiritual fruit. False teaching is also destructive to those who don’t believe. When a cult leaves them feeling empty and defeated, they will think faith has failed them (1 Tim. 4:1).
D. How do we protect ourselves from false teaching?
  1. Cling to God’s Word as your faithful guide in life (Titus 1:9). Don't let anything—magazines, television, sports, or even time with your family—come between you and Scripture. If you don’t make time for the Bible, you will gradually lose hope, assurance, and your spiritual foundation.
  2. Study the Scriptures under a trustworthy teacher. This person should believe the Bible from Genesis to Revelation. His lifestyle should be consistent with his teaching and the Bible.
  3. Refute false doctrine by comparing it to the Word. Scripture is the reliable standard for truth (2 Tim. 3:16).
  4. Take precautions to protect yourself from hearing false doctrine. Second John 7-10 instructs us not to greet those who want to deceive us. If you decide to discuss faith with members of a cult, be bold in your proclamation of the truth, and don’t be drawn into fruitless debate.
III. Closing: Our culture is more and more open to spiritual ideas that do not align with the Word of God, and hostile to ones that do (2 Tim. 4:3-4). That’s why it’s important for Christians to know what they believe, and also why they believe it. Know biblical truth, seek to live by it, and stay in close fellowship with Jesus Christ. With the right preparation, you will be less likely to fall prey to spiritual predators.
 
False teachers are not always easy to spot.

Be-careful of labeling somebody a false teacher, they may have just made an innocent mistake.

Some false teachers do not even realise they are false teachers because they may be decieved themselves.

False teachers do not always hang out in cults, they are prevalent in the churches today.

False teachers always water down the deity of Jesus Christ or often deny it.

False teachers will often uphold that all religions lead to God (very common today). This implies that Jesus lied when He said that He is the only way to God.

False teachers deny the wrath of God and make Him out to be a gentle little old man on a fluffly cloud (Gods word tells us that the beginning of knowledge is the fear of God).

False teachers will tell us to include all relgions and tolerate them.

False teachers will tell us that Muslims and Christians worship the same God.

False teachers teach occult things which are not in the word of God (God is a women, astral projection, divination, angel worship, miracle worship. power of the mind, men are mini gods etc etc etc.)

False teachers teach about prosperity and forget to teach about humility, mercy, service, Gods grace, Gods discipline, Gods judgements, Gods commandments, Gods Will and Gods love. They turn God into a servant commanding Him to do their will.

False teachers preach to accomodate sin and do not preach against it. They want numbers only, not true disciples.

False teachers do not preach the true gospel, instead they dress it up with serpant like words that are cunning and misleading. They become motivational speakers who use christian terminology to sell their wares.

Paul used the simple gospel message. He preached Christ, the true Christ and he let the Holy Spirit do the rest through miracles.
 
Yes Kevin ... I think it is good info for all of us to consider as our world is getting more and more ungodly.

But we all need and myself included to dig for ourselves and know the word so that satan cannot steer us astray .
 
Great post Dusty!

I like what our pastor says at church..
"The LORD said it, I believe it, and that settles it"!

Whatever is said in the Good Book of GOD, is truth and our way to home! Praise HIM!
 
I like what our pastor says at church..
"The LORD said it, I believe it, and that settles it"!

Whatever is said in the Good Book of GOD, is truth and our way to home! Praise HIM!

Amen, New2Christ -

Mark 13:22-23 (KJV) and

John 16:30-33 (KJV)

...are especially important orders for us. If we read and understand God's message to us (the Scriptures) as well as we possibly can, those Words of God will provide us with the knowledge that it takes for our Christian discernment to show us who the false teachers are and to avoid them. Knowledge and understanding of Scripture is our 'safety valve' in determining who is stating Godly Words and who is promoting the doctrines of Satan. We have the choice to either study and know the Truth, or not study and be deceived.

May God bless us all in our Scriptural studies.
 
I couldn't help remembering the remark of a dear friend of mine. He said "I believe the Bible from cover to cover and I believe the cover as well because it says 'Holy Bible'"

There is a movement here in England - I don't know if it has reached elsewhere yet - which denies the Atonement. One of their leaders says that if Christ were a sacrifice it made God a child abuser. Now these leaders have come out of our mainstream preachers, so we must all beware.

God bless us as we learn together.
 
The fruit...

Galatians 5: 22:(NIV) " But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, 23 gentleness and self-control. "

And: 1 John 4:1 (NIV) "Dear friends, do not believe every spirit, but test the spirits to see whether they are from God, because many false prophets have gone out into the world."

So, no matter how flamboyant a speaker, teacher, or preacher may be..no matter how persuasive or intelligent, no matter how knowledgeable and well read, no matter how charismatic or talented..the test which takes time, prayer, and discerning of spirits..in other words..praying and asking God for guidance in evaluation of someone is--- time and testing. Not that they have to be perfect or as someone said here..never make a mistake...for only God is perfect..but they need to truly reflect the fruit of the Holy Spirit in their lives on a genuine and consistant basis ..especially as seen above...love..without that all else is questionable and meaningless.
 
I couldn't help remembering the remark of a dear friend of mine. He said "I believe the Bible from cover to cover and I believe the cover as well because it says 'Holy Bible'"

There is a movement here in England - I don't know if it has reached elsewhere yet - which denies the Atonement. One of their leaders says that if Christ were a sacrifice it made God a child abuser. Now these leaders have come out of our mainstream preachers, so we must all beware.

God bless us as we learn together.

That is pretty sad Jeanann . But satan and all his angels will not prevail and these people will have their day .

This is why it is so important to test the spirits and know your Bible cause in these last days there will come out all kinds of wolves in sheep's clothing .

Thanks for the heads up .
 
That is pretty sad Jeanann . But satan and all his angels will not prevail and these people will have their day .

This is why it is so important to test the spirits and know your Bible cause in these last days there will come out all kinds of wolves in sheep's clothing .

Thanks for the heads up .

Dusty, You are 100% correct.

Given the enumerous false teachers and false professing prophets, we have a lot testing to do. It is easy to test those spoken of by Jeanann. However, many dress as sheep for a long time, releasing small amount of leaven in a time metered fashion, waiting for that perfect moment to reveal their true motives. What I have found is that "even these Great deceivers" will not deceive those that are true followers of God.

It is my belief that God uses the deceivers to purify His Church. When true followers see the leaven, they will flee.

2 Timothy 3:13. But evil men and seducers shall wax worse and worse, deceiving, and being deceived.
 
I love it.... It is very important to study the scriptures for yourself. I was always taught that if someone tells me something that the Bible says, get the chapter and verse and study it for yourself. If it had not been for me studying the scriptures for myself and getting grounded in the word of God, I would have been caught up into one of these cults. If you don't know the word for yourself, it is quite easy to get caught up into one of them. Great post Dusty!!!!! This is an EXCELLENT reminder to all of us to study for ourselves what Thus saith The LORD...

Thanks Dusty,

Godbe4me
 
Dusty, You are 100% correct.

Given the enumerous false teachers and false professing prophets, we have a lot testing to do. It is easy to test those spoken of by Jeanann. However, many dress as sheep for a long time, releasing small amount of leaven in a time metered fashion, waiting for that perfect moment to reveal their true motives. What I have found is that "even these Great deceivers" will not deceive those that are true followers of God.

It is my belief that God uses the deceivers to purify His Church. When true followers see the leaven, they will flee.

2 Timothy 3:13. But evil men and seducers shall wax worse and worse, deceiving, and being deceived.

Amen illinijag;..... That is so true .
 
I love it.... It is very important to study the scriptures for yourself. I was always taught that if someone tells me something that the Bible says, get the chapter and verse and study it for yourself. If it had not been for me studying the scriptures for myself and getting grounded in the word of God, I would have been caught up into one of these cults. If you don't know the word for yourself, it is quite easy to get caught up into one of them. Great post Dusty!!!!! This is an EXCELLENT reminder to all of us to study for ourselves what Thus saith The LORD...

Thanks Dusty,

Godbe4me

Exactly ... Study to show they self approved a workman that needeth not be ashamed .
 
Forgive me for repeating yet again as in other threads Acts 17:10-15. The Bereans heard the Apostle Paul and then they searched the Scriptures to see if what he said was in accordance with them. That would be the O.T. Scriptures of course.

As the Church is infiltrated by so many different opinions, it is really so important, as Dusty says above, to study for ourselves. Not just read but search the Scriptures and ask the Holy Spirit to enlighten us so that we can not only know the truth but stand for the truth.

A lot of people do not understand that the Gospel is to be found in the Old Testament as well as the New.

God bless us all as we learn together.
 
A lot of people do not understand that the Gospel is to be found in the Old Testament as well as the New.


That is so true , Jeananne and I am discovering it more and more as we are studying the Pentateuch in our Bible Study and I am learning more and more about how Jesus was in the OT.I have become so interested in this and am wondering if any one knows of a book where it just shows all the places in the OT where Jesus is revieled.
 
The Bible states that there will be a falling away of the brothern in the last days as much heresis as we see today I am reading my Bible, quoting brother Joshua as for me and my house we shall serve the lord, and looking and listening for the call to come on home as it states in I Thessalonians 4:16 and In Revelation 4:1 not to mention Danial 12:1 I get happy when I think of it. If jesus came today me and all my family would be in heaven forever praising his holy name.

False Teachers we know will come, but all must be fullfilled before we get to go home to forever be in glory.
 
Dusty, Chris Wright has written a very good book "Knowing Jesus through the Old Testament" (ISBN 13:978-1-85424-701-8 Christopher J. H. Wright).

The book is distributed by Marston Book Services Ltd., PO Box 269, Abingdom, Oxon. OX14 4YN.


Of course you will know that The Tabernacle is a type of Christ as are all the feasts of the O.T. (See my post on the Day of Atonement for one simple one).

Many of the O.T. Saints are also types of Christ. Isaac, for example. However, we have to be very careful not to "typify" everything in the O.T. This does devalue the historical reality and validity of Israel and all that God did in and through them.

I've been searching my shelves for an old book I had "Christ in Isaiah", but I cannot find it and therefore don't know the author.

May the Lord bless you Dusty as you seek to know the Lord better, and may he bless each one of us as we study and seek His face.
 
Dusty, Chris Wright has written a very good book "Knowing Jesus through the Old Testament" (ISBN 13:978-1-85424-701-8 Christopher J. H. Wright).

The book is distributed by Marston Book Services Ltd., PO Box 269, Abingdom, Oxon. OX14 4YN.


Of course you will know that The Tabernacle is a type of Christ as are all the feasts of the O.T. (See my post on the Day of Atonement for one simple one).

Many of the O.T. Saints are also types of Christ. Isaac, for example. However, we have to be very careful not to "typify" everything in the O.T. This does devalue the historical reality and validity of Israel and all that God did in and through them.

I've been searching my shelves for an old book I had "Christ in Isaiah", but I cannot find it and therefore don't know the author.

May the Lord bless you Dusty as you seek to know the Lord better, and may he bless each one of us as we study and seek His face.


Thanks for that info Jeanann.... I am going to ask at our Christian book store and if they don't have it they can hopefully order it .
 
Back
Top