by Daryl Wood

 

 

We live in an age where many professing Christians have itching ears that are open to all sorts of heresy. Usually when people identify certain truths which rub a little against the grain they are branded ‘unloving’ or ‘lacking in grace’. What Daryl reveals in this article is not a license for heresy hunters to have a free for all but it is a trumpet call to those who are tried, proven and called to rectify certain truths amongst God’s people. We need to grow up and stop calling Christ’s equippers judgemental when they confront wayward words and dodgy doctrines.

 

Grace and peace,

Bretto

 

 

 

  

Given the extensive squabbling that goes on in the religious world over divisive teachings some have thrown their hands up in disgust, declaring, “No doctrine!  Let’s just have fellowship with one another.”  While this relational approach sounds conciliatory it carries with it its own set of inherent dangers. Seeking to steer clear of false instruction by altogether avoiding teaching ministry is a bit like embarking on a starvation diet in order to prevent food poisoning.  But, how can errant teaching best be identified and avoided?  And, when recognized, how should it be challenged?

 

First, and contrary to what many would suppose, it is important to realize that heresies—false teachings within the body of Christ—are never, at the most fundamental level, grounded in merely academic issues that are void of any practical significance.  Backing up to the motivations that spawn them, they are always traceable to matters of the heart.  As such, they require mature, Holy Spirit-led confrontation, lest their influence spread like gangrene.

 

The Etiology of a Lie

 

While some false teachings are admittedly more nefarious than others, they all originate from a common well-spring.  The father of lies seeks to distract and detour the Lord’s people from intimacy with Him.  The devil’s only effective vehicle for accomplishing this is through lies.  He loves to spice the pot with variety, and the cache at his disposal is nearly infinite.  He specially crafts each and every falsehood in order to resonate with one or more specific, unsanctified motives resident within his target audience.

 

For God knows that in the day you eat of it your eyes will be opened, and you will be like God, knowing good and evil. So when the woman saw that the tree was good for food, that it was pleasant to the eyes, and a tree desirable to make one wise, she took of its fruit and ate… (Gen. 3:5, 6a, NKJV).

 

There is a very particular hook associated with each lie that makes it an appealing lure for the prey.  The hook is some self-serving incentive that is designed to entice the listener.  Then, once buy-in is achieved, the recipient becomes a replicating agent, in much the same way that a malignant virus infects host cells within the body, using them as an incubator for its reproductive purposes.  In the end, the deceived becomes teamed with the deceiver.  Those who come under the spell of a lie, typically, become active recruiters for the dark cause, seeking to persuade others.

 

She also gave to her husband with her, and he ate (Gen. 3:5b, NKJV).   

 

In the absence of the forbidden, perceived reward, a lie would lose all its impetus.  All other things being equal, the truth is always the simpler, more rational, and more satisfying alternative to the lie.  Yet, with the promise of something more than the truth can afford, the lie wins out.  Those who exchange the truth for a lie subsequently adopt “an agenda.”

 

Even the most seemingly cerebral heterodoxy is motivated by the incentive plan.  Sometimes it is a prideful sense of elitism, as is often demonstrated by those who promote “the deeper, hidden gems within the word of God” at the expense of the fundamentals of the faith that direct hearts into the pure love of Jesus.  For others, it can be some excuse to justify a fleshly lust.  It can even be fear-driven, as in the case of those who are unwilling to venture forth into the full freedom and victory afforded by the resurrected Christ.  Regardless of the particulars, it is certain that an agenda exists in every case where false teachings are being propagated.                    

 

Conversely, when one’s simple and undefiled pursuit is the honor and glory of Jesus Christ, his words are tempered accordingly by the Spirit of truth.  There is absolutely no desire to extend beyond what the Lord has revealed to one’s spirit.  The words that he speaks are spirit and life (Jn. 6:63).  An uncommon boldness and authority accompanies such a one, so that he may even rest with the Lord in attesting:

 

For I have not spoken on My own authority; but the Father who sent Me gave Me a command, what I should say and what I should speak.  And I know that His command is everlasting life. Therefore, whatever I speak, just as the Father has told Me, so I speak (Jn. 12: 49, 50, NKJV).

            

 

Doctrine Cannot Be Divorced From Character and Practice

 

The reason that teaching—both good and bad—is such a powerful tool is that it always impacts behavior.  What one believes in the core of his being will ultimately determine who he is and dictate how he lives.  This is an inescapable fact with respect to truth concerning God, His word, and His Kingdom.

 

Then Jesus said to those Jews who believed Him, “If you abide in My word, then you are My disciples indeed. And you shall know the truth, and the truth shall make you free (Jn. 8: 31, 32, NKJV).

 

Transformation occurs as one becomes more fully and more accurately aligned with the One who is Truth.  This is a product of abiding in Him.  Teaching that is rooted in the word of God and that flows into authentic discipleship is most effective in the formation of Christ in His people.

 

On the other hand, the doctrines of man only reinforce stubbornness and religious pride in those who sit under them.  I am shocked and amazed how the newest “flavor of the day” with respect to false teachings continually seems to crop up within the Body of Christ.  (This is not to say that every teaching that has more or less been accepted as orthodox is accurately grounded in the Scripture of truth.  Deviation from the traditions of the church fathers seemed to commence almost immediately upon the passing of the first generation of apostles.)  There is an almost insatiable yearning among some to either come up with, or latch on to, something new.  Usually, when these “innovative” doctrines are traced back to their origins, they are merely contemporary renditions of old heresies.  Without going off on a tangent by mentioning any specific errors and thus veering from my central theme, those who do so behave like the Athenians on Mars’ Hill, who incessantly sought to hear something new (Acts 17: 16-21).  Yet, their itching ears would not permit them to endure sound doctrine.

 

I charge you therefore before God and the Lord Jesus Christ, who will judge the living and the dead at His appearing and His kingdom:  Preach the word!  Be ready in season and out of season.  Convince, rebuke, exhort, with all longsuffering and teaching.  For the time will come when they will not endure sound doctrine, but according to their own desires, because they have itching ears, they will heap to themselves teachers; and they will turn their ears away from the truth, and be turned aside to fables (2 Tim. 4: 2-4, NKJV).

 

Cleaving Truth from Error

 

One of the most definitive hints of error surfaces when the effect of a doctrine is detraction from the centrality of Christ and a healthy relationship with Him and with one another.  While a “majoring upon minors” does not guarantee that the actual content of one’s teaching is in error, it at least signals that the one has an improper orientation toward the Lord, His word, and His people.  A correct foundation in the fundamental biblical truths is absolutely essential before anything more advanced than this could ever edify.   In most church assemblies, however, there is a pronounced lack of understanding of these basics, making any attempt to venture beyond these unprofitable.

 

Therefore, leaving the discussion of the elementary principles of Christ, let us go on to perfection, not laying again the foundation of repentance from dead works and of faith toward God, of the doctrine of baptisms, of laying on of hands, of resurrection of the dead, and of eternal judgment.  And this we will do if God permits (Heb. 6:1-3, NKJV).

 

Providing calculus classes to elementary school students is worse than futile.  It is harmful. God will not promote some manner of “advanced teaching” when a more mature diet will prove detrimental to His own.  His people cannot go on to perfection while they are still in need of milk.  All the more so, an emphasis on fringe doctrines, even if the instruction is technically accurate, can have negative consequences.

 

In evaluating what truly qualifies as fundamental, the Scriptures do not fail to leave us with some clear guidelines.  In the early church, teaching focused on the apostles’ doctrine (Acts. 2:42).  This centered on the elementary principles of Christ listed above, Jesus’ teachings contained in the four gospel accounts, and other foundational revelations given to the apostles and prophets.  (For more coverage of this, see chapter seven of Apostles Today, by Paul Galligan.)

 

Unfortunately, much modern teaching lays an unhealthy prominence on the sensational and the theoretical.  While tantalizing the mind—in particular the imagination—these messages do little or nothing to feed the spirit.  They seek to go beyond what the Bible itself declares to be so.  It is no wonder that multiple warnings in the Scriptures caution us to avoid adding to or taking away from the word of God.

 

You shall not add to the word which I command you, nor take anything from it, that you may keep the commandments of the LORD your God which I command you (Deut. 4:2, NKJV).

 

Whatever I command you, be careful to observe it; you shall not add to it nor take away from it (Deut. 12:32, NKJV).

 

Whoever therefore breaks one of the least of these commandments, and teaches men so, shall be called least in the kingdom of heaven; but whoever does and teaches them, he shall be called great in the kingdom of heaven (Matt. 5:19, NKJV).

 

For I testify to everyone who hears the words of the prophecy of this book:  If anyone adds to these things, God will add to him the plagues that are written in this book; and if anyone takes away from the words of the book of this prophecy, God shall take away his part from the Book of Life, from the holy city, and from the things which are written in this book (Rev. 22: 18, 19, NKJV).

 

While the sensationalists seek to extrapolate “deeper, hidden meanings” from what is plainly written in Scripture, equally at fault are those who dismiss large portions of the Bible as bearing absolutely no contemporary relevance.  The former add to what is written; the latter take away from the same.  The former seek self-glorification through teaching their own word, while the latter shrink back in unbelief from receiving the full counsel of the word of God.  Jesus drew a strong connection between a discernment that can divide truth from error, and a willingness to be a doer of the word.  According to Him, it is not hard to know what is true and what is not . . . if one is willing to act upon the truth.           

 

Jesus answered them and said, “My doctrine is not Mine, but His who sent Me.  If anyone wants to do His will he shall know concerning the doctrine, whether it is from God or whether I speak on My own authority.  He who speaks from himself seeks his own glory; but He who seeks the glory of the One who sent Him is true, and no unrighteousness is in Him (Jn. 7: 16-18, NKJV).

 

In Conclusion

 

It is incumbent upon all those know and love the Lord to speak the truth in love (Eph. 4:15).  In part, this involves confronting error, as appropriate, through the grace and power of the Holy Spirit.  This is especially requisite for all who stand as elders, governing within the body of Christ.

 

. . . holding fast the faithful word as he has been taught, that he may be able, by sound doctrine, both to exhort and convict those who contradict.  For there are many insubordinate, both idle talkers and deceivers, especially those of the circumcision, whose mouths must be stopped, who subvert whole households, teaching things which they ought not, for the sake of dishonest gain.  One of them, a prophet of their own, said, “Cretans are always liars, evil beasts, lazy gluttons.”  This testimony is true.  Therefore rebuke them sharply, that they may be sound in the faith, not giving heed to Jewish fables and commandments of men who turn from the truth (Tit. 1:9-14, NKJV).

 

It is no small thing that the Lord opposes not only false teachers, but also those who have a tolerance for them.  In an age where so much value is placed on what men consider to be polite and socially correct, an absence of godly confrontation abounds, to the shame and to the crippling of the church.  Would that men and women rise up today with the same spirit as Phinehas, whom God credited with stemming the curse of the plague (Num. 25).

 

Without such deliverers, the pronouncement against Pergamos and the same call to repentance that the Lord issued to them applies equally to us:

 

But I have a few things against you, because you have there those who hold the doctrine of Balaam, who taught Balak to put a stumbling block before the children of Israel, to eat things sacrificed to idols, and to commit sexual immorality.  Thus you also have those who hold the doctrine of the Nicolaitans, which thing I hate.  Repent, or else I will come to you quickly and will fight against them with the sword of My mouth (Rev. 2: 14-16, NKJV).

 

 

 

 

This article is from Daryl Wood’s website - www.DarylWood.net

This entry was posted on Wednesday, February 25th, 2009 at 1:39 pm and is filed under Biblical Leadership, Living Christianity. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.