HOW CAN WE RECOGNIZE FALSE TEACHERS?

Dr. Walter Martin, author of The Kingdom of the Cults, warned that the cults were “the great mission field on the Church’s doorstep.” The church has always had to deal with false prophets and misguided teachers. The Apostle Peter wrote, “But there WERE also false prophets among the people, just as there WILL be false teachers among you. They will secretly introduce destructive heresies, even denying the sovereign Lord". . . (2 Peter 2:1). 

One of the job descriptions for leadership of the church is to protect the sheep from the wolves. Luke wrote in Acts 20:28-31 "Keep watch over yourselves and all the flock of which the Holy Spirit has made you overseers. Be shepherds of the church of God, which he bought with his own blood. I know that after I leave, savage wolves will come in among you and will not spare the flock. Even from your own numbers men will arise and distort the truth in order to draw away disciples after them. So be on your guard!"

Linda, my wife, was a regular church goer as she grew up in northern Ohio, ended up in the same cult that I was in. Do you think that her pastor might have some explaining to do as to why he didn't protect her from the false teachings of the cult? Could he be guilty of "pastoral malpractice"? 

What are the warning signs that a teacher is one who does not correctly handle the word of truth (2 Tim. 2:15)? Here are a few warning signs to look for:

First, they claim to have discovered “New Truth". Herbert W. Armstrong taught that he had discovered long lost truths. He taught that the United States and Britain were modern day Israel, a discredited teaching that he acquired from a previous author and taught as “new". In fact, Armstrong taught that many truths had been lost from the first century until rediscovered by him in 1927. So all of his unique teachings were lost to great men in church history such as Luther, Calvin,and Wesley. 

Second, they come up with a new interpretations of Scripture. False teachers who do not know how to properly interpret Scripture will often take passages out of context, read into passages teachings that are not there, in order to justify their peculiar teachings. Armstrong took Ecc. 9:5, “For the living know that they will die, but the dead know nothing” to teach the false teaching of “soul sleep”.

Third, they reject historic Christian doctrines. Armstrong denied the doctrine of the Trinity. He taught that the Holy Spirit was not a person, but an inanimate force, like electricity or wind. He also taught that Christians had to observe the Mosaic Laws of the Old Testament such as: abstaining from unclean meats (Lev 11); observance of holy days (Lev 23);observance of the seventh-day Sabbath (Ex 20:10), and tithing THREE times. That's right, THREE TITHES. (See my article entitled, Is Your Pastor Stealing From You?) 

Fourth, they teach salvation by works, rather than by grace through faith. Armstrong taught that no one is yet saved. They are only begotten by God, not born of God until the resurrection and only if they obey the laws of God to earn their salvation.

Fifth, they claim to have an exclusive claim on the truth. Armstrong taught that his church was the ONLY work on earth proclaiming to the whole world the same Gospel that Jesus taught and proclaimed. Other churches were Satanic counterfeits. 

To believe that these false teachers are teaching the truth, one must believe that all of the other Christians and denominations, such as the Nazarenes, the Baptists, the Brethrens, the Christian Church, the Church of Christ, the Church of God, the Episcopal Church, the Friends, the Lutherans, the Catholics, the Eastern Orthodox, the Methodists, the Presbyterians, and the Reformed Churches are all WRONG and only what was taught by Herbert W. Armstrong (a highschool dropout) was right. To believe that these false teachers are correct, then you have to believe that the great theologians, reformers, teachers and pastors are all wrong. Luther, Wesley, Augustine, Dwight L. Moody, John Calvin, John Knox, George Whitefield, and Charles Spurgeon were all in error. 

We should seek to “Do your best to present yourself to God as one approved, a workman who does not need to be ashamed and who CORRECTLY handles the word of truth” (2 Tim. 2:15). We must know WHAT we believe and WHY we believe it. Peter wrote, “Always be prepared to give an answer to everyone who asks you to give the reason for the hope that you have. But do this with gentleness and respect” (1 Peter 3:15).

The church has always been troubled by false teachers. The Apostle Paul went so far as to name the false teachers he had to contend with. Paul advised Timothy to hold on to the faith and wrote, “Some have rejected these and so have shipwrecked their faith. Among them are Hymenaeus and Alexander, whom I have handed over to Satan to be taught not to blaspheme” (1 Tim 1:20). False teaching can do tremendous harm within a church. Paul wrote, “Their teachings will spread like gangrene. Among them are Hymenaeus and Philetus, who have wandered away from the truth” (2 Tim. 2:17-18) Paul tells Timothy that he must not allow these false teachers to continue. “. . . command certain men not to teach false doctrines any longer nor to devote themselves to myths and endless genealogies. These promote controversies rather than God’s work-which is by faith” (1 Tim 1:3-4). Jude 3 tells us that we must "contend for the faith that was once for all entrusted to the saints." It is an ongoing battle for truth. Sadly, some churches have lost the war.

We must watch out for false teachers, be able to distinguish between the truths of God and the false teachings of the cults, identify and stop those in the church who are teaching false doctrines.

If you pastor is not teaching sound doctrine and helping you to identify false teachings, he is not doing his job.