I hope that I have captured your attention with this title. Believe it or not, there are some teachers who will not allow you to enter Heaven because of their false teachings. Have you ever had your teacher or leader say to you or the congregation, “Read your Bible!” Good teachers and leaders are equipping you with the truth so that you recognize false teaching. As much as we believe in our church leaders there is no substitute for your own personal learning.
There are some people who will try to turn a profit during a difficult time such as the COVID-19 pandemic. We want to believe that with the world in crisis the humane side of people prevails, but we can’t count on that. During this time there has been an increase in phone calls about health and life insurance, sales, and voting. The list is endless as telemarketers call to state their case and promote many unnecessary products. Is this any different from false teachers and leaders who tell parishioners they must give more of themselves, money and time during this closure of businesses and churches with little regard to how this pandemic is personally impacting them. Failure to act upon these requests by these teachers and leaders results in feelings of guilt, mistrust, and resentment. For those who do not have the gift of discernment, the path to false teachings and disillusionment can become an all-consuming, life-threatening albatross.
We have to believe and recognize that we are living in perilous times and with that comes perilous men. Unfortunately, there are teachers and leaders who will pretend to go through the motions of religion, but these are the same individuals who take advantage of the weak-minded because they can. These are the same individuals who have no real relationship with God. Can you see where their focus lies? It is in the power. Men have become more concerned about power in the flesh, and they fail to see that the power is the Lord’s.
Paul describes our current situation and difficult times ahead to Timothy, “Don’t be naive. There are difficult times ahead. As the end approaches, people are going to be self -absorbed, money-hungry, self-promoting, stuck-up, profane, contemptuous of parents, crude, coarse, dog-eat-dog, unbending, slanderous,impulsively wild, savage, cynical,treacherous, ruthless, bloated windbags, addicted to lust, and allergic to God. They’ll make a show of religion, but behind the scenes they’re animals. Stay clear of these people.These are the kind of people who smooth-talk themselves into the homes of unstable and needy women and take advantage of them; women who, depressed by their sinfulness, take up with every new religious fad that calls itself “truth.” They get exploited every time and never really learn. ‘ (2 Timothy 3:1-7)
So if we know that there are false teachers spreading lies and bending truth about the Word, what do we as Christians do to stand up against it? How do we judge good and bad? How do we help,teach others to identify false teachers and leaders through alignment? Pay attention to whether the actions and teachings of leaders aligns with Scripture.
1 John 4:1-6 gives all of us a directive to help identify and eliminate false teachers and leaders who could be detrimental to our lives. ‘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. This is how you can recognize the Spirit of God: Every spirit that acknowledges that Jesus Christ has come in the flesh is from God, but every spirit that does not acknowledge Jesus is not from God. This is the spirit of the antichrist, which you have heard is coming and even now is already in the world.
You, dear children, are from God and have overcome them, because the one who is in you is greater than the one who is in the world. They are from the world and therefore speak from the viewpoint of the world, and the world listens to them. We are from God, and whoever knows God listens to us; but whoever is not from God does not listen to us. This is how we recognize the Spirit of truth and the spirit of falsehood.”
Now is the time to pray without ceasing and stay grounded in truth!
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