False Teachers in the Church

In Matthew 24, when Jesus began to speak on the end of the world, he said in verses 4 and 5, "Take heed that no man deceive you. For many shall come in my name, saying, I am Christ, and shall deceive many." Throughout the Bible, we find constant instances of false teachers working their deceptions in Israel and the Church. So this is nothing new: False teachers have been with us from the beginning. I want to address two things in this post; dealing with false teachers already in the church, and those fundamental doctrines opposed by false teachers.


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I. Dealing with false teachers. If you know someone is teaching false doctrine in the Church, what should you do about it? Should you leave a church where false doctrine is being taught?

First, if the the false teacher is teaching a class (Sunday School, Training Union, etc.), the church leaders must be informed as to what he is teaching, then they should deal with him accordingly. At the very minimum, you should leave the class until the matter is settled in favor of the teachings of Scripture.

More importantly, if the false teacher is in the pulpit (especially if he is the Pastor) leave the church! No family should stay ina church that teaches false doctrine. While there may be honest disagreement in some non-essential points of doctrine, there are some teachings which have been believed by Christians throughout the entire centuries the church has existed. If someone's teaching opposes or waters down any of the following doctrines, he is clearly a false teacher, and should not be followed.


II. Here are the fundamental doctrines I am referring to:

A) The Bible is the Word of God. It is unique as the revelation of our Lord God. What I mean by the Bible is the 39 books of the Hebrew Old Testament and the 27 books of the New Testament. The Apocrypha is not a legitimate part of it. Also excluded are such books as the Quran, with its distortions of the Bible, and the Greek, Roman, Hindu, Norse, and other legends, with their polytheism. It especially excludes such "revelations" as found in the Book of Mormon and the false views of the Watchtower Society (Jehovah's Witnesses), whose "supplementary materials" also distort the true message of the Bible. The Bible is the Truth in a way no other book could possibly be, because it is God's revelation to mankind.

(Proverbs 30:5 and 6, II Peter 1:20 and 21, Revelation 22:18 and 19)


B) The Trinity is another doctrine which false teachers try to say is not true. By distorting what the Bible says, the Jehovah's Witnesses say that Jesus is not God. they allege that only the Father is. But they are wrong. One of the earliest of the Christian statements of belief is the Nicene Creed.It says of our "one Lord Jesus Christ" that He was "begotten, not made, being of one substance with the Father, by whom all things were made." The Father, Son and Holy Spirit are of one and the same essence, and equally God. To question the Deity of any of the Three in One is heresy.

(The Father as God: Matthew 6:9, Ephesians 1:2)

(The Son as God: John 1:1 and 14, 10:29-31, Philippians 2:5-11)

(The Holy Spirit as God: Acts 4:3 and 4)

(All together: Matthew 28:19, I Corinthians 13:14)



C) The Virgin Conception is another doctrine which has been denied by false teachers. This is a very important Biblical doctrine. Christ's conception by the Virgin Mary was prophecied by Isaiah, and the virgin did conceive, whether certain false teachers believe it or not. Mary did not, however, remaina virgin, but conceived other children with Joseph (Mark 6:3). The Bible teaches that Jesus was born of a virgin and we must believe this. Anyone denying this is a false teacher.


(Isaiah 7:14, Matthew 1: 20-23, Luke 1:30-35)



D) Substitutionary Atonement is the most important of all Bible doctrines. It is the very reason for the existence of the Bible itself. As Romans 3:23 says, "All have sinned and come short of the glory of God." Because of His holiness, God cannot accept man in his sinfulness. This is the reason Christ died on the cross. So in Romans 6:23, we read, "For the wages of sin is death, but the gift of God is eternal life through Jesus Christ our Lord." For sin, men are paid with death. But God in His love sent us a gift; His only-begotten Son, Jesus Christ. He was born to die, to become our substitute and atone for our sin. He took the payment for our sin and gave us the gift of eternal life. How DARE anyone stand up in a Christian church pulpit and deny this, te most precious of all Bible teachings? If I were to hear a denial of this doctrine from any pulpit, I would walk out while that "preacher" is still spouting out his poison!

(Isaiah 53, Matthew 16:21-23, John 3:16 and 17, Romans 5:8 and 9)


E) The Resurrection of Christ is another very important doctrine denied by false teachers. Jesus Christ was really crucified. He really died and was really buried. Three days later, He really rose from the dead. This is the true gospel. This is reality, and not a myth. After His resurrection He was seen of many witnesses during the following forty days prior to His ascention into heaven (Acts 1:9-11). This was the proof that Jesus was the Son of God (Romans 1:4).It is unquestionable that this is Biblical doctrine. Anyone denying this is a false teacher.

(Psalm 16:10 with Acts 2:22-27, Matthew 28:1-7, I Corinthians 15:1-8)


F) The Second Coming of Christ is the final doctrine false teachers deny to be discussed here. I will not give my position on when the rapture will occur. There are honest differenes of opinion about that. But there are those who deny that the Lord will come back to judge the world. There are those who teach there is no heaven or hell, but the Bible teaches that both exist. There is a heaven for those who put their faith in the Lord Jesus Christ and his atoning blood for remission of their sins, and there is a hell for those who refuse His gift of Himself. After the judgments God will destroy this universe and create a new heaven and a new earth, which will be inhabited by the redeemed. Those who refused Christ's redemption will have their part in the lake of fire with the devil and his angels. False teachers will probably be in the lowest part of this hell, closest to the devil who used them to deceive others. Their followers will not fare much better. I pray that anyone who reads this blog and is not redeemed by Christ's blood will consider what the Scriptures say, repent of your sins and put your faith in Christ.

(Revelation-the entire book)


The Bible teaches we are to seperate ourselves from those who teach false doctrine. Titus 3:10 and 11 tell us, "A man that is an heretic, after the first and second admonition, reject; knowing that he that is such is subverted, and sinneth, being condemned himself." (Warning to young people: Titus was a Pastor. It was his job to abmonish heretics in the church. It is your job to let the Pastor do his job, and stay away from them.) More to the point is Romans 16:17 and 18, "Now I beseech you, brethren, mark them which cause divisions and offenses contrary to the doctrine which ye have learned; and avoid them. For they that are such serve not our Lord Jesus Christ, but their own belly; and by good works and fair speeches deceive the hearts of the simple."


In short, the best way to deal with a false teacher is to get out of the church and stay away from him!


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