Tag: False Teaching

Devotionals

Meaningless Discussions: The Result of False Teaching  

Loring Schultz

Read: 1 Timothy 1:3-7 NLT – Warnings against False Teachings – When – Bible Gateway

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Can you count how many meaningless discussions you have had in your lifetime? I’m not sure I can because there have been many. All meaningless discussions have one thing in common; they lead to nowhere. Another factor is one or both parties do not know what they are talking about, but they pursue in making the point that they do. This may seem like a little deal in most trivial discussions, but when it comes to the Word of God and the teachings of the church, it’s a big deal.

Paul, the apostle, needed to move on from the church in Ephesus he founded years before. While visiting Timothy, his child in the faith, Paul noticed the decline of sound doctrine in the church. False teaching had crept in and mostly by those who were elders in the church. This needed to stop. Paul instructed Timothy to stay behind in Ephesus to teach sound doctrine and prevent the spread of any more false teaching. Paul writes, “The purpose of my instruction is that all believers would be filled with love that comes from a pure heart, a clear conscience, and genuine faith.” (1Tim.1:5 nlt) This would not be possible if the congregation was in confusion by teaching that focused on speculation and allegorical or fictious interpretations of the Word of God. They would be in meaningless discussions among themselves and with the so-called teachers of the word. Paul goes on to say these false teachers have missed the whole point by turning away from the Word.

Those of us sitting in the pews of our churches today need to have our ears perk up and our eyes kept on Scripture to see if these things are so. If we find ourselves having meaningless discussions and are confused, something is wrong. May we follow Paul’s instructions to Timothy and if need be, stop the false teaching.

Devotionals

Judges we are not, but rescuers we are

Loring Schultz

“And you must show mercy to those whose faith is wavering. Rescue others by snatching them from the flames of judgment. Show mercy to still others, but do so with great caution, hating the sins that contaminate their lives.” Jude 1:22-23 NLT

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The small New Testament book of Jude containing only one chapter is a must read for every Christian as is all the Bible, but Jude in particular. Jude, our Lord Jesus’ brother, is warning us of false teachers who claim being saved by grace give us license for immorality. The thought is our sins will not be held against us, which is true, and we won’t lose our salvation which is also true, but sin is sin and evil in God’s sight. What Jude had written to the early Christians he could have written specifically to us today. “I say this because some ungodly people have wormed their way into your churches, saying that God’s marvelous grace allows us to live immoral lives.” (Jude1:4a nlt)

Many Christian churches today are succumbing to pressure compromising the truth with voices that contradict Scripture. Some Christians are easily swayed especially if it is presented in a way that applies to our current day and culture. Accepting these new norms will confuse a new Christian and will prove disastrous for the church. False teachers seem so eloquent, reasonable, loving, knowledgeable, persuasive, and most of all seem to be telling the truth. Jude writes, “In the same way, these people—who claim authority from their dreams—live immoral lives, defy authority, and scoff at supernatural beings.” (Jude1:8 nlt) We must be aware of the progressing influence of those who want to deny Biblical truth.

There will be those among us in our church family who will fall into this trap and begin to live out and support those involved in the social norms of society that contradict Scripture. Jude encourages a gentile approach to those who are confused. “And you must show mercy to those whose faith is wavering.” (Jude1:22 nlt) We are not to jump all over our Christian brothers and sisters but take an approach that rescues them from judgment. The consequences of sin including God’s judgement on what He hates should be presented in a gentle manner. Most importantly, the rescuer must be in a right relationship with God and living righteously with sin confessed. We all sin daily whether we think we do or not.

Paul, the apostle also gives us advice on rescuing others from coming judgment, “Dear brothers and sisters, if another believer is overcome by some sin, you who are godly should gently and humbly help that person back onto the right path. And be careful not to fall into the same temptation yourself.” (Gal.6:1 nlt) Let us be on the alert. There is enough of temptation to sin in the world without having false teachers who ignore or put their spin on God’s Words deceiving even the very elect of God.

Devotionals

Are you easily persuaded?

Loring Schultz

“I am warning you ahead of time, dear friends. Be on guard so that you will not be carried away by the errors of these wicked people and lose your own secure footing.” 2 Peter 3:17 NLT

            This morning we experienced the first snow that covered the ground in our area. Although it didn’t amount to much as I write this in the afternoon it is all but gone. But during that brief time there was caution on the roads when driving and secure footing was needed while walking to not slip and fall. In Peter’s final words from the book of 2 Peter, he gives us a warning to be careful not to lose our secure footing. He is not referring to the slippery conditions cause by wet snow, but to the slippery slope of listening to false teachers that can easily persuaded us to abandon the truth of the gospel.  

            Peter noted that many will be persuaded by their teaching, “They will cleverly teach destructive heresies and even deny the Master who bought them. In this way, they will bring sudden destruction on themselves. Many will follow their evil teaching and shameful immorality. And because of these teachers, the way of truth will be slandered. In their greed they will make up clever lies to get hold of your money.” (2 Peter 2:1b-3a NLT) There is plenty of false teaching in the name of Christ occurring in our day. A secure footing is required as we walk in slippery conditions.

            If you are inclined to be persuaded easily, understanding of the scriptures is a must to remain steadfast in your faith and not lose your footing. A careful study of the Bible with the guidance of the Holy Spirit is where you start. As you immerse yourself in the Word you will be begin to connect the dots observing the entire Bible is about Jesus Christ and God’s plan of Salvation for those who trust in His Son. The apostle John gives us the best advice on fact checking a Pastor, evangelist, or teacher if their message is the truth of God’s Word. John writes, “Dear friends, do not believe everyone who claims to speak by the Spirit. You must test them to see if the spirit they have comes from God. For there are many false prophets in the world.” (1 Jn. 4:1 NLT) Test (fact check) them with what God says in His Word and be not easily persuaded to error, but steadfast with secure footing.

A Christian Perspective

Warning Signs

Loring Schultz

“And He was giving orders to them, saying, ‘Watch out! Beware of the leaven of the Pharisees and the leaven of Herod.’” Mark 8:15 NASB

            Warning signs are put into place to protect one from falling into danger. They appear on roads and bridges, on pedestrian walking and biking trails. They are posted in restricted areas, and even your neighbor may have a “beware of the dog” sign on their front door. There are also verbal warnings by way of instruction to warn us of potential dangers we encounter as part of our daily lives. Jesus gave His disciples such a warning recorded for us in the gospel of Mark.

            Jesus’s warning was given as instruction, or giving orders when He said, “Watch out! Beware of the leaven of the Pharisees and the leaven of Herod.” The warning was of a spiritual nature, but the disciples missed it entirely as we also so often do today. The disciples were exclusively living in the moment of their physical and tangible needs. They couldn’t see past the immediate future as to Jesus’s words having a deeper meaning. They had just witnessed Jesus’s second miracle of feeding thousands of people with a few loaves of bread and a couple of fish. When Jesus said to “Beware of the leaven (or yeast)” they wrongly reasoned that He was referring to the fact that they forget to take along bread for their journey. How wrong they were.

            How wrong we are today in our assumptions that all warning signs from our heavenly Father refer only to our physical or material needs at the moment. God’s instructions through His Word to us who believe in Him is to beware of the false teachers who claim to know the truth and who claim to preach Christianity but conveniently ignored certain passages of His Word. He also warns us to watch out for those who hide their hypocrisy, preaching the truth of God’s Word and then engaging in the opposite. This is the leaven of the Pharisees.

            The leaven of Herod refers to the world system of increasing secularism. Sadly, we have seen the moral decline of our world throughout the centuries, but never more so rapidly as in the last few decades. Jesus tells us today, as He told His disciples, “Watch out! Beware.” It is far too easy in our day to get caught up with false teaching and in the effects of the world system.

            The truth is in God’s Word, the Bible. As we read it, study it, and meditate on it, ‘all of it’, we will know the truth and the truth will set us free from false teaching and the secularism of the world through God’s ‘warning signs’!