Why Do We Believe False Teachings

I think for som, they trust their pastors or teachers. They do not think they could teach wrong. so they believe whatever they are taught. and do not "test all spirit" as they say.

I know I fell for this. I always believed I was taught right. It took getting away for awhile and actually studying myself to find some of what I taught I no longer believe in

Hello Eternally Gratefull;

I agree what you posted. In Jesus' teachings of Matthew 18:12-14 and Luke 15:3-7, the context of the Shepherd is very clear on both sides.

To expound on your sharing, many so called Shepherds or Pastors are not called to ministry. They may claim they are led, but led and calling are two different areas in the church. When they force their ministry upon the church involving people and "their title," it's usually 99% for ulterior motives often resulting in false teaching. If they can fabricate their ministry, they can fabricate their teaching/preaching, pick and choose where they want to fulfil their motive without God having a say. Another example is not truly knowing the flock, but knowing when they get their paycheck.

The good news is many Shepherds who are called into ministry go beyond being led. There are many pastors and teachers who hold the doctrine of accountability, and are willing to Shepherd in the most undesirable areas that God appoints them. For example, a Shepherd may have studied and trained hard for their ministry and end up leading a church of a broken congregation, or under violent, or impoverished conditions. Yet, despite these conditions they stop to go after the one who is lost.

In the church I pastored I was blessed when a family met with me, seeking God to lead them to a church they can worship and serve. I say this because a pastor should always be accountable, not based on personality or charm, but on discernment of a Shepherd's heart and compassion, besides teaching and preaching.

I remember a real nice brother and sister met with me. They were searching for a church in our community. They both were seasoned Christians and after attending our worship services and followup meetings, they felt in my Pastoral ministry they didn't feel a common ground for their personal growth. I could see it was directed at me and though it bruised my ego, I immediately took it up to the Lord and He made clear the bigger picture;

We all agreed our meeting was transparent and though they would move on and we didn't gain new members, it was a blessing to know we could have this conversation. We prayed for each other what God's plan is for all while maintaining the love and fellowship ending our meeting amicably.

What does this have to do with trusting the pastor or teacher? I feel we ministered to each while God bonded our trust, disposition and new friendship.

This topic is broadened in a variety of other areas but this is just one testimony that I wanted to share.

God bless you, Eternally Grateful, and your whole family.
 
Emotional reasoning is a tough cookie to crack for me. i'm a feeling first gal, and learning to break that is, well, pretty hard. Although I admit I am not quite as bad as I was, I still find I can harbour some hidden resentments when I get triggered by something someone does if its someone that has done something to me before. There are other ways we can believe things that are not true, that I can add to your list, one that I often struggle with is when I have unrealistic expectations. Rose tinted glasses can sometimes be my default zone, and I have to keep reminding myself, no matter how hard I try, I will never be Kim Kardashian,
People like the feel good preachers. Do what you want, believe what you want, its all good. Somebody, I dont recall who, said if your looking for a bible believing church find the church in your area with just a few cars in the lot on Sunday. I myself have driven by a local mega church and seen a lot of cars there. Heard a story or two about it also. So in short. People want a preacher to tell them what they want to hear.

Hello Via;

I'm still catching up with many posts here at CFS. When I read your post about feeling first, this is part of transitioning from the old to the new in our faith in Christ. There is a song I remember that included the lyrics, "break on through to the other side"

Hidden resentments
is a major part of the transition of our faith, forgiving one another, even ourselves. After many years as we grow in spiritual maturity, forgiveness is a lifelong discipline with never letting our guard down when we are at odds with another person, even Christians.

Unrealistic expectations are what we bring upon ourselves and not from God. This is also a part of the transition of our faith. Is it God's will or are we asking God to approve our expectations of Him and ourselves? The more we grow in this discipline, we begin to see that God's expectations are the ones that are realistic.

Hello
Hopeful,

Your post are good points. Earlier in my faith I
dazzled at the mega churches the emotional frenzy of worshiping Jesus. I noticed Christians would frown at an empty parking lot during Sunday's worship services.

However, many mega churches are indeed anointed and I have witnessed the fellowship of these members by their
walk and talk in Christ. I have also witnessed members from mega churches who struggle being a doer by their inner and outer cup ways.

The churches with few cars in the parking lot and barely 10 in attendance are some of the most spiritually mature, anointed with consistency, stability, visibility and support their pastor, instead of noticing the lack of glitter and empty pews. Unfortunately, on the flip side many of these churches are not spiritually filled, and former discerning members see this and move on for that reason.

Regardless, God knows and sees ALL His churches. He also sees whether the leadership is obedient to His direction.

God bless you both and your families.
 
the example you gave in the o.p of politician saying. it sounds good t to them and pleasant to many ears. any more i just blow them off they dont have a clue. reminds me of 1989 we went seen hank j.r double eagle tour. he showed out 2 little girls got on stage all dressed up. presented flowers to him . he gave them a kiss on top of the head the moment they was off stage. he punted the flower like a foot ball. hit his guitar the show began.. yes back in them days i was tad bit wild so in some ways i did care. but in others it was just cool to see hank.

his performance as a musician on scale of 1-10 a 4.. at the end of the show he tipped his hat said God bless. many people have a form of Godliness but deny the power there of . see being religious is cool. but salvation well that is bit much. so people make up their own . it makes them feel good . like well i was baptized as a kid gosh that should put you right in.. only if you was saved first !!!!
 
Jeremiah 29:8
"For thus says the Lord of hosts, the God of Israel, ‘Do not let your prophets who are in your midst and your diviners deceive you, and do not listen to the dreams which they dream."

Most of us would be alarmed if we knew how many people harbored beliefs in false teaching.

For example, and please note that I voted for President Trump but, The fact-checking organization "Politifact" rates only 16 percent of the President’s statements as true during his tenure. You do not even want to know what Mr. Bidens rating is.

Another example.......
Moving away from the political arena for a moment, consider whether the following statements are true or false:

We only use 10 percent of our brains.
We lose most of our body heat through our heads.
If you swallow chewing gum, it will stay in your system for seven years.
Cracking your knuckles will give you arthritis.
If you answered “true” to any of these, you’re guilty of believing falsehoods.

Now think about, Why do people so easily believe false religious teachings?????

1. The Availability Heuristic.
This is a mental shortcut that can lead us to overestimate the frequency of an event when that event is more “available” or vivid in our memory......or as some know = Last in First out!

2. Emotional Reasoning.
This is when we allow "feelings/emotions" about virtually any emotionally charged topic, whether we’re talking about sex, religion, money, crime, or war. You see.......our feeling will lie to us.

3. Confirmation Bias
Once we have a belief, we tend to cling to it, even when it’s untrue, because we LIKE WHAT WE KNOW EVEN IF WHAT WE KNOW IS WRONG! This is the tendency to seek out information that supports what we already believe. We do this in two important ways. First, we tend to surround ourselves with messages that confirm our pre-existing opinions. This is why, in the U.S., conservatives tend to get their news from sources like Fox, whereas liberals tune into MSNBC.

Second, we tend to ignore or discount messages that disprove our beliefs. If we’re sure that climate change is a hoax and someone shows us a research study disputing this belief, we might dismiss the study’s findings by saying that the researcher is obviously biased or corrupt. This protects us from having to change our beliefs. When our ideas are true, this probably isn’t such a bad thing. Unfortunately, it also can keep us firmly believing things are false.
Source: https://www.psychologytoday.com/us/...true?msclkid=8dbace37cfb011ecb0c4b130e2ff4e98

These are some basic reasons why we see arguments and confontations with other Christians who have been taught Bible information from sources different that ours. It would be advisable IMHO that when we start to feel angry, or scared or confrontational when talking to others about Bible theology that we try and remember these 3 basic reasons for what we are experiencing.
many believe false teachings and doctrines due to being not really saved, or ignorant of the bible, or take hook line and sinker whatever their favorite heretic of the Month is passing on to them!
 
many believe false teachings and doctrines due to being not really saved, or ignorant of the bible, or take hook line and sinker whatever their favorite heretic of the Month is passing on to them!

Or a combination of all the above!

My observations are that a tremendouse amount of people attend church but do not absorb what is actually said to them.
 
Or a combination of all the above!

My observations are that a tremendouse amount of people attend church but do not absorb what is actually said to them.
When the church I attended changed preachers I didnt go as often. Ran in to an older lady at the grocery store who asked where I been. Told her I was looking at other churches as I didnt care for the preaching. She said you dont go to church for the preaching. I told her I do.
 
When the church I attended changed preachers I didnt go as often. Ran in to an older lady at the grocery store who asked where I been. Told her I was looking at other churches as I didnt care for the preaching. She said you dont go to church for the preaching. I told her I do.

They tend to be in a very emotional setting, where are conditioned to receive whatever false doctrine pastor/teacher lays on them!

Years ago we had a long time member of 27 years who was very involved and showed up every Sunday. When the music ministry gained a drummer (soft 4/4 beat on the percussions and cymbals) who was also in youth group, the long time member up and left without notice or communication to our pastor.

Because of her long time membership she thought she was punishing the church. Psalm 150
 
Another angle...

John 3:19-20 (KJV) And this is the condemnation, that light is come into the world, and men loved darkness rather than light, because their deeds were evil. For every one that doeth evil hateth the light, neither cometh to the light, lest his deeds should be reproved.

People hide from God behind false teachings, example...

Genesis 3:7-8 (KJV) And the eyes of them both were opened, and they knew that they were naked; and they sewed fig leaves together, and made themselves aprons. And they heard the voice of the LORD God walking in the garden in the cool of the day: and Adam and his wife hid themselves from the presence of the LORD God amongst the trees of the garden.

There was a time in my BC days where I would have told you I was seeking God when I was into Eastern religions, Tarot/Astrology etc., but after Christ got hold of me I confessed I wasn't 'seeking' God but rather 'running' / 'hiding' from God.
 
Another angle...
John 3:19-20 (KJV)
People hide from God behind false teachings, example...
Genesis 3:7-8 (KJV)
There was a time in my BC days where I would have told you I was seeking God when I was into Eastern religions, Tarot/Astrology etc., but after Christ got hold of me I confessed I wasn't 'seeking' God but rather 'running' / 'hiding' from God.

Hello crossnote;

Anyone who could be interested in Eastern religions, Tarot/Astrology does happen. My late Grandfather who was a Christian could not handle the loss of my Grandmother and this prompted him to seek a "medium" to speak with his late wife.

Later he played a recording on cassette trying to convince me that she was on the recording. I couldn't hear anything and I felt sorry for him. After he passed away I was tempted at the thought of speaking to my late Mom and others that were close to me.


This is why I enjoy reading your posts. You have shared life experiences but at the end of the day I am blessed by your faith.

God bless you, brother and your family.
 
Hello crossnote;

Anyone who could be interested in Eastern religions, Tarot/Astrology does happen. My late Grandfather who was a Christian could not handle the loss of my Grandmother and this prompted him to seek a "medium" to speak with his late wife.

Later he played a recording on cassette trying to convince me that she was on the recording. I couldn't hear anything and I felt sorry for him. After he passed away I was tempted at the thought of speaking to my late Mom and others that were close to me.


This is why I enjoy reading your posts. You have shared life experiences but at the end of the day I am blessed by your faith.

God bless you, brother and your family.
Much of current so called faith teaching seems to be a mixture of new age, visualization, and plain old witch craft inside the church!
 
Hello crossnote;

Anyone who could be interested in Eastern religions, Tarot/Astrology does happen. My late Grandfather who was a Christian could not handle the loss of my Grandmother and this prompted him to seek a "medium" to speak with his late wife.

Later he played a recording on cassette trying to convince me that she was on the recording. I couldn't hear anything and I felt sorry for him. After he passed away I was tempted at the thought of speaking to my late Mom and others that were close to me.


This is why I enjoy reading your posts. You have shared life experiences but at the end of the day I am blessed by your faith.

God bless you, brother and your family.
Indeed, others get into ufo alien religions, and into things even such as self esteem gospel!
 
I heard a guy taking scripture out of context and applying it to his ancient alien theory!

Yes, just like my Dad, lol!, God bless Him. He'll be 86 in July.

Through the years our talks have led him slowly to understanding the Bible and he attends church every Sunday, but he still loves to watch his Ancient Aliens on the History channel.

He told me regarding ancient aliens and from reading Genesis 1, it can happen!
 
They tend to be in a very emotional setting, where are conditioned to receive whatever false doctrine pastor/teacher lays on them!

Agreed. It is a form of Mind Manipulation.

There will be some who will want to argue this point......If I am not on their "Ignore" option but.........
Nothing has done more damage to the people involved in Pentecostal and Charismatic churches than false teachings related to activities of the Holy Ghost which are generated through "Excitment and Emotions!"
The Bible-believing Pentecostals cling clearly to the Word of God and the sovereign work of the Holy Ghost in each manifestation of the Spirit. L
Now if we are honest with each other and actually READ THE BOOK we can see five particular and observe the difference between the Biblical foundation and the Charismatic deception. These five subjects are listed below:

Fortune Telling Called "Personal Prophesying"
The Prayer Language Deception
Paranormal Praying: Casting Spells Misinterpreted As Praying
Charismatic Worship
The Charismatic Spirit

Always a blessing to talk to you brother!
 
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