Who are the false teachers
and false prophets?
How will we recognize them?
How do we know who we can trust?
When you study the whole Bible from cover to cover you discover that God clearly and repeatedly warns of false teachers and false prophets, how to recognize them, and how to stand against them. Scripture says that many will be deceived by them and turn away from God. (1 Timothy 4:1)
As Believers in the Word of God, it’s imperative that we know the whole Word of God so that we won’t be deceived by the lies. Their whole plan is to come in as the light of God spreading His truth to you. They want you to listen to them rather than study the whole Word of God. If they can convince you to listen to them with their grandiose empty words and promises, then it will be easy for them to lead you away from God’s truth.
In Jeremiah 28:9, God’s appointed prophet Jeremiah states how to know if a prophet is sent from God. “As for a prophet who prophesies peace—when the word of that prophet is fulfilled, it will be evident concerning that prophet that Adonai indeed did send him.”
There have been many “prophets” through the years, and even more so now, that are loudly prophesying around the world about events and happenings from God, that God did not send or give them the words to speak. God says to test the spirits to see if they are from Him.
I was raised in church, am I safe from being deceived?
NO! Being raised in church does not make you “safe” from being deceived by the enemy. In fact, throughout scripture we can study and see that there were people in the churches that were not obeying God and operating out of deceit. These people either slithered their way in as children of light, but were wolves in sheep’s clothing (Matthew 7:15), or, they started out obedient to the call of God and at some point got caught up in position and power and allowed pride to move in and take over, thereby pushing God out of their hearts to make room for the pride and deceit they chose to allow into their hearts instead.
According to the Bible, pride is a “sin.” Period. End of Story.
According to the world, pride is a “feeling of pleasure.”
The world has taken many things from the Bible and “repurposed” them to suit their ways and it’s not scriptural or ok with God.
Here are just two stories of many where pride moved into the hearts of God’s chosen priests. We read in Leviticus 10 about Aaron’s two oldest sons becoming evil after being anointed and trained by God through Moses to lead people through Holy sacrifices. They allowed pride to enter their hearts and disobeyed God; He struck them dead immediately in the site of everyone. Then there’s another story in 1 Samuel where Eli and his two sons who were chosen by God to lead in the church of Shiloh later became prideful and began to do things their own way, defying God while still leading the people. Eli is the priest who raised Samuel, Hannah’s son. God warned Samuel that he was going to kill Eli and his sons because of their evil and He would remove His glory and favor from Shiloh, and allow the Philistines to take the Ark of the Covenant too. It was awful. They became evil and deceitful while still leading the people in the church.
God is showing us here that He demands obedience, and says in His Word repeatedly that He prefers obedience over sacrifice. (1 Samuel 15:22) It didn’t matter that they were still performing sacrifices unto the Lord, they were being disobedient and disrespectful to God and He put an end to it.
This is just a tiny bit of proof back then that there was evil in the church. You can look around today, watch the news, or view documentaries on tv about corrupt pastors and staff in churches. It’s been going on since the beginning of time. It’s not something new, but it’s important to be aware and vigilant.
But my preacher said he was teaching me the truth
All pastors are teaching truth. The questions are, what kind of truth, whose truth, partial truth or whole truth? On Sunday mornings, pastors have approximately 15-20 minutes to teach you a message. In all fairness, they can’t teach much in that amount of time. So they teach you a piece of a story from the Bible, and most likely from the New Testament, Psalms or Proverbs. You may go to church each Sunday to get fed the Word and hear a good story from the pastor and you feel good about it, but then you leave the building and go about your life. What truth have you learned?
How many times have you had someone ask you what the sermon was about, or what was your favorite part, and you struggle to remember something significant? You remember it feeling good or sounding good, but at the moment you can’t recall exactly what He said. Maybe you need to refer to your notes, if you took any. There are so many distractions in church, people moving, going in and out, coughing, saying amen so loud you can’t focus, or you are checking your watch and the exit door path in a hurry to get outside first before the crowd forms in the parking lot. Then, you go back next Sunday and get another 15-20 minute message you can’t recall. You are a good Christian though, you checked the “God column” on your to-do list and gave yourself a gold star for the week. What truth did you learn?
It’s not your pastor’s job to teach you every word of the Bible. It’s your responsibility to study it cover to cover. Studying it yourself is the only way you will have a firsthand relationship with the Father. It’s in the studying of God’s Word one-on-one alone with Him that you will truly learn why He breathed that Book of Life for you with lessons that will help you know truth, and recognize the enemy.
But I love my pastor, He’s the best! He wouldn’t deceive me
It doesn’t matter whether your pastor is young, old, hip, not hip, wears skinny jeans and spiky or slicked back hair, whether he’s leading a small church or a mega church, he’s human and flawed. It doesn’t matter if he is funny or dry, new or seasoned, sweet or cool, he is NOT perfect! He will make mistakes and he will let you down, because he is human. All humans are flawed and sinful. God’s Word tells us this. We are not to put our hope in anyone, only The Trinity; God the Father, Jesus the Messiah, and the Holy Spirit.
Scripture says in 1 Thessalonians 5:21, to test everything that is said. Meaning, test it against truth, the Word of God. If it doesn’t line up with what God’s Word says, TOSS IT OUT!!!
We are NOT to put our hope in our pastor or what he says. It’s not to say you can’t trust your pastor. It means, take what He taught and go back to your Bible and see if that is what God’s Word says also. If it does, yay! Now keep studying the rest of the story. The pastor can’t teach the entire Bible to you. That’s what the Holy Spirit does.
The Holy Spirit is our teacher,
He is the only one we should be looking to for the whole Truth.
“As for you, the Messianic anointing you received from the Father remains in you, so that you have no need for anyone to teach you. On the contrary, as his Messianic anointing continues to teach you about all things, and is true, not a counterfeit, so, just as he taught you, remain united with him.” 1 John 2:27
The Holy Spirit is our gift that Jesus gave us after He ascended into Heaven. We can put all our trust in Him to teach us the whole truth, the whole Bible, God’s Word that He breathed for us as our Instruction Book for Life. The Holy Spirit is perfect and flawless and we can trust Him with our whole being.
It’s a slippery slope when you are hanging all your hope on what the pastor is teaching you. God is waiting on you to come back to Him and spend time with Him in His Word alone, just you two. You can’t get to Heaven by going to church every Sunday any more than you can get to Heaven through someone else’s relationship with God.
In Jeremiah 23, God is very clear about what He has planned for the shepherd’s that lead their flock astray. Disobedient pastors will answer for deceiving their flock but it’s ultimately your choice and decision to have a personal relationship with God.
I’m to hurt by the church to trust God
So here’s another question: where is your faith? Is it in your pastor and your church, or in God?
If you have turned from God because of being hurt by someone in your church, then your faith was in something other than God. Your God of Heaven is not the church building or the processes, or the lights, smoke, and mirrors, or all the people. God is your Heavenly Father, your creator. He sent His son Jesus, the Messiah to die for your sins. Jesus then sent His Holy Spirit to comfort and teach you so that you can grow and learn and be used by God for the purpose you were created. Those three are the Trinity. They are the only ones you should put your faith in. When your faith is correctly placed and your focus is on them only, then people can’t hurt you.
People hurt you because people are flawed. They are flawed, you are flawed. Why would you put your trust in flawed people? Remember, we have already learned that there are good people and also evil people in the church. It is imperative to keep your focus on the Trinity and what they are calling you to do. When you are focused on God, He will tell you what to do, who to listen to, and when to leave a church. If God called you to be at a particular church, then ask Him what He wants you to do. Keep your focus on Him and His plan for you. Do not allow the enemy to distract you with annoying spitfire attacks that can come from every direction to get your focus off of God. The enemy is cunning. He will either promote you to fill you with pride, or he will demean you in such a way to make you mad at God and turn from Him.
If you left church hurt, ask God to heal your heart and to help you find the way, His Way, and follow Him. Consider and pray about the possibility that He may have allowed that pain to pull you out of that particular church because He didn’t want you there. Ask Him. Turn back to Him today. He’s not your enemy, the devil and his minions are. Don’t let them keep you from eternity with your Heavenly Father who created you.
“You don’t need to study the whole Bible”, NOT!!!!
God’s Word does NOT support that statement. I often hear of pastors teaching their flock to avoid the Old Testament of the Bible, saying that it’s not relevant today or it’s to hard to understand. It makes me cringe when I hear it. I cringe because that pastor is not telling the truth of God’s Word, and because he is leading the listeners away from truth.
Woe to those shepherds who lie to their flock. Need proof of God’s anger towards them? Go study Jeremiah 23, that’s just one place God breaks down His plan for those pastors and prophets who mislead followers.
Here’s a verse where God says, that the evil ones are operating in His House, He sees and knows. They can not hide from Him.
“Both prophet and priest are ungodly; even in my house I have found their evil, declares the LORD.” Jeremiah 23:11
In Jeremiah 7, He says to remember Shiloh and what He did to them. What’s worse is He tells us not to pray for them. His plan is already in place. He says they chose to turn from Him and deceive His people. You don’t need to be concerned with how they have hurt you, God has a plan in place. Scripture says repeatedly when you study it cover to cover that God is VERY protective of His children. Those who harm them in any way will pay, just as Eli and his sons paid the price.
Watch as God brings judgment on those wicked leaders of His flock. You can see from history, and today, how He is destroying these evil places. His glory may have been there in the beginning, but no longer. His glory has left them to their wickedness and there will be no escape for them. Their “churches” will be no more.
“Wail, shepherds! Cry! Wallow in the dust, you lords of the flock! For the days for your slaughter have come. I will break you in pieces, and like a prized vase you will fall. The shepherds have no way to flee, the lords of the flock no way to escape. Hear the cry of the shepherds, the wails of the lords of the flock! For Adonai is destroying their pasture, the peaceful grazing grounds are silenced, because of Adonai’s fierce anger. Like a lion, he has abandoned his lair; for their land has become desolate because of the oppressor’s fierce sword and because of Adonai’s fierce anger.” Jeremiah 25:34-38
Attach yourself to God, not a pastor or a church. He is your safe place.
How will I recognize the false teachers and prophets?
Great news!!! Easiest part of the whole lesson!!! Turn back to God, repent and obey Him. Begin to study God’s Word from cover to cover, Genesis to Revelation, and do what He says. He breathed the entire book for your teaching and to prepare you for what is to come. His entire plan is all there waiting for you to discover with Him. Even if you have read the entire Bible before, you will now read it with new eyes, through His eyes, and will see truth you have never seen before. It is through newly opened eyes and a committed heart to Him that you will learn to hear His voice through studying His Word with Him. By knowing His voice, you will know when someone is not speaking His words.
“Dear friends, don’t trust every spirit. On the contrary, test the spirits to see whether they are from God; because many false prophets have gone out into the world. Here is how you recognize the Spirit of God: every spirit which acknowledges that Yeshua the Messiah came as a human being is from God, and every spirit which does not acknowledge Yeshua is not from God—in fact, this is the spirit of the Anti-Messiah. You have heard that he is coming. Well, he’s here now, in the world already! You, children, are from God and have overcome the false prophets, because he who is in you is greater than he who is in the world. They are from the world; therefore, they speak from the world’s viewpoint; and the world listens to them. We are from God. Whoever knows God listens to us; whoever is not from God doesn’t listen to us. This is how we distinguish the Spirit of truth from the spirit of error.” 1 John 4:1-6
Get to now His voice by spending time with Him.
God is not instructing you to read about ancient Bible stories about other people and their long boring genealogies. He is calling you to Him and to His Word so that He can teach you how these stories relate to your life today. These stories read through His eyes and through the mindset of them being lessons to help you live your life, will transform you in such a way that you won’t believe the peace and joy that comes from finally knowing His truth firsthand.
“Do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewal of your mind, that by testing you may discern what is the will of God, what is good and acceptable and perfect.” Romans 12:2
Regardless of what you have been taught through the years,
God tells you straight up that it’s not to hard to study His Word and obey it.
“This command I am giving you today is not too difficult for you, and it is not beyond your reach.” Deuteronomy 30:11
It is when you study His Word and allow Him to teach you that you will then discover the depth of His love, which will result in the opening of a flood gate of wisdom and discernment for you and you will suddenly see truth in scripture that you have never seen before. Once you trust Him, put your hope in Him and realize His love for you, He will show you new things in His Word that have been there waiting for you all along.
The Holy Spirit will then teach you and guide you through His Word and prepare you for what is to come. It is through a close relationship with the Trinity that they will teach you and give you discernment so you will know who is on God’s team and who isn’t. Without their guidance and protection, you are not safe from these prideful, lying, disobedient ones sent to deceive. God takes care of His obedient followers. Choose today who you will follow. This decision will determine where you will spend eternity.
God bless you.