Randy Bell
6 Jul 2018

Narrow Road Insights

The Destructive Delusion of False Grace

“For certain men have crept in stealthily [gaining entrance secretly by a side door]. Their doom was predicted long ago, ungodly persons who pervert the grace of our God into lawlessness and wantonness and immorality, and disown and deny our sole Master and Lord, Jesus Christ (the Messiah, the Anointed One).” [Jude 1:4 AMP]

In the first generation of the church, repentance and the grace of God were already attacked and distorted by false teachers. Remember, our Lord warned us “Beware of false prophets, who come to you in sheep’s clothing…” [Matt 7:15 (NKJV)] “Take heed that no one deceives you.” [Matt 24:4 (NKJV)] The apostle Paul also made it clear, “But evil men and impostors will grow worse and worse, deceiving and being deceived.” [2 Tim 3:13 (NKJV)] Peter agreed, “…there were also false prophets among the people, even as there will be false teachers among you, who will secretly bring in destructive heresies, even denying the Lord who bought them, and bring on themselves swift destruction. And many will follow their destructive ways, because of whom the way of truth will be blasphemed.” 2 Peter 2:1-2 (NKJV)]

Now almost two thousand years later, the destructive lies have had lots of time to fester and rot the church from within. With the gospel stretched open to be wide and easy some preachers today preach universalism, God’s love will prevail and everyone gets a free ticket to heaven. They conclude there is no need to watch for righteous fruit in preachers, be on the guard for false doctrine, or worry about living by God’s rules. They proclaim “Grace frees you from all worries about judgment anyway.”

To illustrate this point here is a publicly posted comment on facebook in a disagreement over the question, should Christians have tattoos, “This kind of thing is what I believe pushes people away from Christianity. I’ve been saved by grace and I don’t believe that God ever intended for us to live by a set of rules. We are free to choose… I think if maybe we focused more on the fact that Christ died for us so that we could be free, instead of christ died for us so that we can live by a strict set of do’s and dont’s then maybe Jesus and what loving HIm really means would be more appealing to people.”

As you see, the argument is, Jesus died to set us free from His rules, and those Christians who think He “died so that we can live by a strict set of do’s and dont’s” is wrong. This is the ongoing argument today in the church. Is grace to set you free to do mainly what you want, setting you free from God’s specific rules that are a supposed heavy burden of righteous commandments that no one can do anyway? And since we live by grace, can we loosely follow Christ’s directions, and not sweat the obedience thing? Or is grace the solution to following God’s do’s and don’ts?

What did Jesus say? “Don’t misunderstand why I have come. I did not come to abolish the law of Moses or the writings of the prophets. No, I came to accomplish their purpose. 18 I tell you the truth, until heaven and earth disappear, not even the smallest detail of God’s law will disappear until its purpose is achieved. 19 So if you ignore the least commandment and teach others to do the same, you will be called the least in the Kingdom of Heaven. But anyone who obeys God’s laws and teaches them will be called great in the Kingdom of Heaven.” (Matthew 5:17-19 NLB) Well, Jude says, “ungodly persons who pervert the grace of our God into lawlessness” contradict (Greek meaning for the words deny or disown) Jesus and put words in His mouth. Grace is not a license to ignore God’s written commands!

Peter says this teaching is one of the many “destructive heresies” [2 Peter 2:1 (NKJV)] spread inside the church which will so attract the unfaithful that “…many will follow their destructive ways, because of whom the way of truth will be blasphemed.” [2 Peter 2:2 (NKJV)] These preachers of false grace “allure through the lusts of the flesh, through lewdness, the ones who have actually escaped from those who live in error. While they promise them liberty, they themselves are slaves of corruption;” [2 Peter 2:18-19 (NKJV)]

False grace leaves people powerless slaves to disobedience. “They will act religious, but they will reject the power that could make them godly. Stay away from people like that!” [2 Tim 3:5 (NLT)]

So real grace must be understood to be the opposite of what Jude warned and instead be the undeniable force of God to change people. God’s divine influence upon the heart [Strong’s Concordance definition of the word grace] is clear as Paul explains; “[Not in your own strength] for it is God Who is all the while effectually at work in you [energizing and creating in you the power and desire], both to will and to work for His good pleasure and satisfaction and delight.” [Phil 2:13 (AMP)]

Grace creates a river of life gushing from within a believer first causing new and powerful desires to obey God, followed by the ability to live rightly and walk in righteousness. Real change happens through grace. “For the grace of God that brings salvation has appeared to all men, teaching us that, denying ungodliness and worldly lusts, we should live soberly, righteously, and godly in the present age, looking for the blessed hope and glorious appearing of our great God and Savior Jesus Christ, who gave Himself for us, that He might redeem us from every lawless deed and purify for Himself His own special people, zealous for good works.” [Titus 2:11-14 (NKJV)]

The Holy Spirit enters you at conversion to Jesus, and think of His unlimited power residing inside you. Like an atomic power plant, His power and virtue are overwhelming. If you plugged your house directly and solely into the full power of an atomic power plant you would see a hole in the ground where your city was. God gives you more and more grace, like the electricity that is brought to your house by the power lines, not like a one time atomic explosion. The humbled, repentant sinner receives the surge of godly power [a flood of grace, this is His divine influence] which causes a chain reaction of events inside.“The Spirit Himself bears witness with our spirit that we are children of God…” [Romans 8:16 NKJV]

The collaborating evidence is the divine grace that immediately flows from the All-Powerful God now inside your human spirit, flooding you with new holy desires and energy. Like plugging a pinball machine into the electrical wall socket, new spiritual life ignites and activates all kinds of new things once dormant or non-existent without God. Yes, the Holy Spirit activates, or gives life to the dead spirit of the sinner, His grace flowing and connecting the Christian directly to Him and making him a brand new creature. “Everything that goes into a life of pleasing God has been miraculously given to us by getting to know, personally and intimately, the One who invited us to God.” [2 Peter 1:3 from THE MESSAGE: The Bible in Contemporary Language © 2002 by Eugene H. Peterson. All rights reserved.]

The grace of God surges into the human spirit lighting up the conscience, establishing and stretching faith, starting cravings for fellowship, activating spiritual gifts, initiating a hunger for worship, kick starting new ideas of creativity, stirring new thoughts and ideas for discernment, and enlightening the heart with new wisdom; all functions residing inside the human spirit but now newly turned on by His mighty power! This flow of supernatural energy never ceases, because God’s grace has no end. And these new godly desires are the evidence of being a new creature in Christ. “It is God who produces in you the desires and actions that please him.”[Philip. 2:13 GW]

“Desire God’s pure word as newborn babies desire milk. Then you will grow in your salvation.” [1 Peter 2:2 GW] Because your spirit is the home of wisdom, God causes a hunger for His Word to gnaw at your heart. His will is to turn you from a simple fool into a wise and strong spiritual adult. “Behold, You desire truth in the inner being; make me therefore to know wisdom in my inmost heart.” [Psalm 51:6 AMP] What is wisdom? It is seeing life from God’s perspective! So as you begin to satisfy the hunger growing inside for God’s truth, your spirit will experience wisdom, establishing the foundations in your soul [mind, will, emotions] to identify the foolishness of immorality and other sin.

And along with the new source of wisdom coming from God’s truth, your conscience is also receiving divine influence from God’s Holy Spirit, as conviction presses your mind when you are about to do something morally wrong, or gives assurance when you are about to do something morally right. Your new spirit now senses good and evil by the guidance of the Holy Spirit. In time, as you gain understanding of the Bible, strong convictions grow, and new power is experienced to keep you from doing wrong. The spirit of the born again creature becomes strong and “by reason of use have their senses exercised to discern both good and evil.” [Hebrews 5:14 NKJV]

And this seven-fold Holy Spirit of God [Rev. 5:6] makes sure every Christian has a spiritual gift activated at spiritual birth. “As each one has received a gift, minister it to one another, as good stewards of the manifold grace of God.” [1 Peter 4:10] The Greek word for gift is “charisma” made from the root “char” which means joy. It is also important to understand, “charis” means grace, which is the desire and power to do God’s will [see Phil. 2:13]. So the flow of divine grace is therefore channeled through one of the seven grace gifts of Romans 12 for the purpose of empowering you to joyfully help and serve other believers supernaturally.

Authentic worship is centered in your newly enlightened spirit also. The Lord Jesus tells us, “God is a Spirit (a spiritual Being) and those who worship Him must worship Him in spirit and in truth (reality).” [John 4:24 AMP] This does not mean singing songs, even though praising the Lord with singing can be a part of worship. Instead, the Bible says spiritual worship is a complete surrender and sacrifice of your life to serving and obeying him. “I APPEAL to you therefore, brethren, and beg of you in view of [all] the mercies of God, to make a decisive dedication of your bodies [presenting all your members and faculties] as a living sacrifice, holy (devoted, consecrated) and well pleasing to God, which is your reasonable (rational, intelligent) service and spiritual worship.” [Rom 12:1 AMP] So, the Holy Spirit begins flooding your spirit with new longings to love and serve God with all your heart and actually loving your neighbor as yourself.

The true born again believer also has a new powerful force that is turned on at new birth which draws him to the Lord Jesus and other believers. This new fellowship is not friendship, but much deeper and compelling. The apostle John wrote, “that which we have seen and heard we declare to you, that you also may have fellowship with us; and truly our fellowship is with the Father and with His Son Jesus Christ…We know that we have passed from death to life, because we love the brethren. He who does not love his brother abides in death.” [1 John 1:3; 3:14 NKJV] Friendship is only an outcome of your soul [mind, will and emotions]. But, uniting in spirit with the Lord Jesus cements Christians and motivates them to communicate with their spirits, using their gifts and abilities to love one another. This is lasting fellowship.

Now this is only an introduction to true grace. Do not be deceived, real grace is given to every believer. The hypocrite inside the church will focus on selfish pleasure and this life. “But He gives us more and more grace (power of the Holy Spirit, to meet this evil tendency and all others fully). That is why He says, God sets Himself against the proud and haughty, but gives grace [continually] to the lowly (those who are humble enough to receive it). So be subject to God.” [James 4:6-7 (AMP)] Learn to trust God and rest on His amazing grace to live your life for Him all your days.

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Randy Bell
16 Feb 2018

StraightTalk Articles

WARNING: Do Not Put Words Into God’s Mouth

The Revelation of Jesus Christ finishes telling us everything that God wants us to know concerning what He will do until His Son returns. He reveals to us in the Bible all things that He wants us to know and so that we can obey in all times of great trouble. His revelation prepares the true church for the future days of great tribulation and trials leading up to the THE END OF DAYS. And you must understand that the true church never has to worry about God’s wrath to come.

Christ the Lord taught in John 3:36 (NLT), “And anyone who believes in God’s Son has eternal life. Anyone who doesn’t obey the Son will never experience eternal life but remains under God’s angry judgment.”

The collection of people who experience eternal life and follow Jesus in obedience to Him are the church. These are spread all over the world. Christ demands that locally they unite together, make disciples and pass on His original teachings, not make up new stuff.

Generation after generation the first century GOOD NEWS and teaching are passed on through time and the church of Jesus prevails on until He returns in his second coming. They are the ones who are indwelt by the Holy Spirit. These are the ones who will never receive God’s wrath. But all the world including hypocrites that gather with the church will suffer the eternal judgment of God.

The Holy Spirit will never contradict the Word of God. Revelation 22:18 (NLT) states, “And I solemnly declare to everyone who hears the words of prophecy written in this book: If anyone adds anything to what is written here, God will add to that person the plagues described in this book.” This Holy Spirit will not contradict the written Word of God in any way. Instead He will reinforce the truth already spoken by Jesus.

We know this because Jesus himself reveals to us this truth. We find in John 14:24-26 (NLT) Jesus says, “Anyone who doesn’t love me will not obey me. And remember, my words are not my own. What I am telling you is from the Father who sent me. I am telling you these things now while I am still with you. But when the Father sends the Advocate as my representative—that is, the Holy Spirit—he will teach you everything and will remind you of everything I have told you.”

You do not have permission to reveal new truth and claim it was revealed to you by the Holy Spirit. When you do you are directly disobeying the true and only Savior. The Holy Spirit does not add to or ignore the words of Jesus. Any person or group who dares to make claims of hearing the Holy Spirit tell them whole new teachings that condemn the original church of Jesus Christ are false prophets. Their teaching is not from heaven.

When Jesus gave instructions to the Twelve He further instructed in John 15:26-27 (NLT), “But I will send you the Advocate—the Spirit of truth. He will come to you from the Father and will testify all about me. And you must also testify about me because you have been with me from the beginning of my ministry.”

He did not stop there but continued.

When the Spirit of truth comes, he will guide you into all truth. He will not speak on his own but will tell you what he has heard. He will tell you about the future. 14  He will bring me glory by telling you whatever he receives from me. 15  All that belongs to the Father is mine; this is why I said, ‘The Spirit will tell you whatever he receives from me.’ John 16:13-15 (NLT)

“Two themes are balanced in these texts. The Spirit would lead the disciples into further truth after Jesus was gone, but it would be based on what they already knew about Him and had learned from Him. Denying that the Spirit can still give believers the gift of prophecy is unwarranted, but allegations of such prophecies must always be tested and can never contradict, or be elevated to the same level as Scripture (see 1 Co 14:29-33).” – The Apologetics Study Bible: Understanding Why You Believe.

Whenever some group comes along and condemns the whole church that should throw up red flags all over for you to see. Paul warns in 2 Corinthians 11:3-4 (NLT), “But I fear that somehow your pure and undivided devotion to Christ will be corrupted, just as Eve was deceived by the cunning ways of the serpent. You happily put up with whatever anyone tells you, even if they preach a different Jesus than the one we preach, or a different kind of Spirit than the one you received, or a different kind of gospel than the one you believed.”

Cult leaders often preach “another Jesus.” For instance, Reverend Sun Myung Moon teaches that Jesus was the second Adam who only partially succeeded at His mission; thus, Rev. Moon must complete it. Mary Baker Eddy, founder of the Church of Christ, Scientist (aka Christian Science), wrote of Jesus as a divine being who only appeared to have a physical body. Victor Paul Wierwille, founder of The Way International, rejected the preexistence of Jesus and taught that Jesus was a man with a fallen nature, yet without sin. Charles Taze Russell, the architect of the Watchtower Bible and Tract Society (aka Jehovah’s Witnesses), taught that the preincarnate Jesus was the archangel Michael, the first of God’s creation. Mormonism teaches that Jesus was the first and mightiest spirit son of God and the brother of all the other spirits who would eventually become humans on earth. Followers of the Word-Faith embrace a belief that Jesus was born again after His death and descent into hell. New Age gurus espouse a Jesus who was a great world teacher for His age, but they believe that a new world teacher is about to appear. To accept another Jesus is tantamount to receiving “another spirit” and “another gospel.” The authentic gospel is the free offer of salvation to all who believe. – The Apologetics Study Bible: Understanding Why You Believe.

Only a different spirit would masquerade as the Holy Spirit and contradict the revelation of scripture. Only another spirit would dishonor the words of Jesus and totally condemn His church. Only a false spirit would try to replace the church Jesus established 2000 years ago with a different good news and reject all the followers of the original Jesus. Only the deceived would believe that God was unable to preserve His people, the church for the last 2000 years!

Heed His words.

Two thousand years ago Paul explained in Ephesians 3:3-6 (NLT) “As I briefly wrote earlier, God himself revealed his mysterious plan to me. 4  As you read what I have written, you will understand my insight into this plan regarding Christ. 5  God did not reveal it to previous generations, but now by his Spirit he has revealed it to his holy apostles and prophets. 6  And this is God’s plan: Both Gentiles and Jews who believe the Good News share equally in the riches inherited by God’s children. Both are part of the same body, and both enjoy the promise of blessings because they belong to Christ Jesus.”

Two thousand years ago the Holy Spirit revealed the plans of God. A different spirit today cannot erase, override, or twist the revelation of the church established by the one and only true Jesus Christ. When a false prophet stereotypes the whole church as wrong and condemns it to hell they are liars.

The true church did not die, and does not need replacing. In spite of traitors like Judas Iscariot and all the assaults of the devil through his false prophets and teachers, and all the persecution that the world pours on the church it will not separate the saints from their God. Jesus promised they will prevail and He will come back victorious!

Christ Jesus made it clear to His church 2000 years ago.

First He promised nothing would stop the church from accomplishing God’s will.

Matthew 16:16-19 (MSG)

16  Simon Peter said, “You’re the Christ, the Messiah, the Son of the living God.”

17  Jesus came back, “God bless you, Simon, son of Jonah! You didn’t get that answer out of books or from teachers. My Father in heaven, God himself, let you in on this secret of who I really am.

18  And now I’m going to tell you who you are, really are. You are Peter, a rock. This is the rock on which I will put together my church, a church so expansive with energy that not even the gates of hell will be able to keep it out.

19  “And that’s not all. You will have complete and free access to God’s kingdom, keys to open any and every door: no more barriers between heaven and earth, earth and heaven. A yes on earth is yes in heaven. A no on earth is no in heaven.”

 

Next He promised He would never forsake His church.

Matthew 28:18-20 (NLT)

18  Jesus came and told his disciples, “I have been given all authority in heaven and on earth.

19  Therefore, go and make disciples of all the nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit.

20  Teach these new disciples to obey all the commands I have given you. And be sure of this: I am with you always, even to the end of the age.”

The church will never be bypassed by God and does not need replacing because God is all powerful and “…is able to keep you from falling away and will bring you with great joy into his glorious presence without a single fault. All glory to him who alone is God, our Savior through Jesus Christ our Lord. All glory, majesty, power, and authority are his before all time, and in the present, and beyond all time! Amen.” Jude 1:24-25 (NLT)

So again I say…

WARNING: Do not put words in God’s mouth.

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Randy Bell
24 May 2016

StraightTalk Articles

Does Your Christian Beliefs Contradict Jesus?

What if what you believe and practice as the Christian way of life is the opposite of God’s will? Have you carefully followed the words and example of Jesus?

He told His followers, “Greater love has no one than this, than to lay down one’s life for his friends. You are My friends if you do whatever I command you. No longer do I call you servants, for a servant does not know what his master is doing; but I have called you friends, for all things that I heard from My Father I have made known to you.” [John 15:13-15 (NKJV)]

The Lord made it clear only repentant disciples that obeyed His commands were His friends. Others… well they were his enemies! “For if when we were enemies we were reconciled to God through the death of His Son, much more, having been reconciled, we shall be saved by His life.” [Romans 5:10 (NKJV)]

Do we dare make God’s enemies our friends?

ContradictJesus“You adulterers! Don’t you realize that friendship with the world makes you an enemy of God? I say it again: If you want to be a friend of the world, you make yourself an enemy of God.” [James 4:4 (NLT)]

Everyone who refuses to follow Christ’s commands is an enemy of God. Do you even know what Christ commands His followers? Is the foundation of your lifestyle and way of thinking based on Christ’s words or your own self-created quasi Christianity. Do you think you have to follow Christ’s rules or not?

The world does not!

Is it betrayal to make God’s enemies your friends?

So to deal with those questions let me first examine how Jesus treated His enemies.

1/ First, He showered them with mercy and at the same time, loved them by boldly confronting them.

He privately spoke to all people who asked about the truth of salvation and He busied Himself by reaching out to those that were sick, rejected, struggling, hurting, and sinful. He openly preached to all who would listen.

From the beginning of His ministry He preached to the lost crowds of Israel.“Repent, for the kingdom of heaven is at hand.” [Matt 4:17 (NKJV)]

His public ministry was visible to all, but he privately went off with his friends and taught them the secrets of the kingdom of God.

2/ He continued preaching repentance to the crowds until they hardened their hearts to that message.

When the crowds got tired of hearing His call to repentance, most of those curious seekers turned into antagonists. Whether they watched or fought against Jesus they were still his enemies. So He publicly changed His teaching for His enemies.

This led the disciples to ask why the change in His message. We see this in Matthew 13:10-11 (NLT), “His disciples came and asked him, ‘Why do you use parables when you talk to the people?’ He replied, “You are permitted to understand the secrets of the Kingdom of Heaven, but OTHERS ARE NOT.”

The real followers of Jesus responded to the message of repentance and followed His commands. They were His friends and given the secrets of the Kingdom. He explained the meaning of His stories and deepened their understanding so they could continue sharing His Kingdom after He was crucified.

But the Lord’s enemies got little stories because they really were not interested in following His mission. He was clear in why the crowd did not need to hear anything else from Him.

Matthew 13:12-13 (GW) 
12  Those who understand {these mysteries} will be given {more knowledge}, and they will excel {in understanding them}. However, some people don’t understand {these mysteries}. Even what they understand will be taken away from them.
13  This is why I speak to them this way. They see, but they’re blind. They hear, but they don’t listen. They don’t even try to understand.

Jesus previously told them, “Anyone who isn’t with me opposes me, and anyone who isn’t working with me is actually working against me.” [Matthew 12:30 (NLT)]

Sure, they still came around to watch Him do miracles and teach the kingdom stories, but most found fault and began judging and fighting against the Lord. The crowd tried to push Him off a cliff, argue, and bad mouth Him to others.

Are you afraid of this happening in your ministry or family?

You have to understand the Bible always makes a clear distinction between the DISCIPLES and the people who were the CROWD. For example, the Sermon on the Mount is clearly for his disciples, not the crowd. “One day as he saw the crowds gathering, Jesus went up on the mountainside and sat down. His disciples gathered around him, and he began to teach them.” [Matt 5:1-2 (NLT)]

Of course, this was outdoors in the open air and crowds would always come to listen, but not follow Jesus. But when he preached to the crowd it was different. Look closely at these words, “And while the crowds were thickly gathered together, He began to say, ‘This is an evil generation. It seeks a sign, and no sign will be given to it except the sign of Jonah the prophet.’” [Luke 11:29 (NKJV)]

He CONFRONTED them repeatedly.

Another example is a confrontation with a rabbi. “The Pharisee noticed and was astonished [to see] that Jesus did not first wash before dinner. But the Lord said to him, ‘Now you Pharisees cleanse the outside of the cup and of the plate, but inside you yourselves are full of greed and robbery and extortion and malice and wickedness.‘” [Luke 11:38-39 (AMP)]

The crowds would not repent and become his disciples, but still kept gathering around Him. So did He stop confronting them with the truth about their sins?

He led His friends to join Him and also publicly confront and preach to the crowds, “Let us go into the next towns, that I may preach there also, because for this purpose I have come forth.” [Mark 1:38 (NKJV)] “Now it came to pass, when Jesus finished commanding His twelve disciples, that He departed from there to teach and to preach in their cities.” [Matt 11:1 (NKJV)]

He did not become best friends with the community and hope someday by just being nice and quiet about their sins that they might accidentally evolve into Christians.

This is extremely important to examine. The spiritual state of our communities and country is at stake. Do we follow Jesus, or follow the will of the crowd of Christ’s enemies that still resists God?

For example here is a challenge from an American evangelist of a previous century. On December 4, 1873, The Independent published an article by Revivalist Charles Finney titled “The Decay of Conscience.”

“Brethren, our preaching will bear its legitimate fruits. If immorality prevails in the land, the fault is ours in a great degree. If there is a decay of conscience, the pulpit is responsible for it. If the public press lacks moral discrimination, the pulpit is responsible for it. If the church is degenerate and worldly, the pulpit is responsible for it. If the world loses its interest in religion, the pulpit is responsible for it. If Satan rules in our halls of legislation, the pulpit is responsible for it. If our politics become so corrupt that the very foundations of our government are ready to fall away, the pulpit is responsible for it. Let us not ignore this fact, my dear brethren; but let us lay it to heart, and be thoroughly awake to our responsibility in respect to the morals of this nation.”

Today pastors and saints think we love people into the kingdom without ever speaking because it may hurt their feelings, or we will be rejected and charged with judging. Even though that is the practice and strong belief of many church leaders and Christians today, it is contradicting the teaching and example of Jesus.

Today many demand that we must win the right to preach, and to confront people is unloving and contrary to the ways of Jesus. But our silence today has left the wicked bold in their sins, and overcome by strongholds of satanic deception. After years of this experiment, our nation is deeper in sin instead of clamoring to join the church. Their future is hell and they don’t believe it, and all I hear is the madness that we must double down and stay lovingly silent because Christianity is not about rules but love.

But the Bible says if you love them you will open your mouth and warn them!

Friendship evangelism is popular, and being friendly to the wicked is a must. But hoping after years and years of silent friendship that they will somehow be saved without the word of your testimony and the call of repentance is disobedience to Christ. Remember, Christ’s friends follow His commands.

The apostle Paul wrote, “How then shall they call on Him in whom they have not believed? And how shall they believe in Him of whom they have not heard? And how shall they hear without a preacher?” [Romans 10:14 (NKJV)]

Remember Jesus CONFRONTED them, “…you Pharisees cleanse the outside of the cup and of the plate, but inside you yourselves are full of greed and robbery and extortion and malice and wickedness.” [Luke 11:38-39 (AMP)]

Whether religious or average people he boldly told them to stop their sin. “Neither do I. Go and sin no more.” [John 8:11 (NLT)]

Christ loved them enough to speak the truth, and the truth is offensive to the wicked! But Jesus believes in preaching! The Bible believes in preaching! But today pastors and people seem to more and more disagree and contradict the Lord!

“Jesus was aware that his disciples were complaining, so he said to them, ‘Does this offend you? Then what will you think if you see the Son of Man ascend to heaven again? The Spirit alone gives eternal life. Human effort accomplishes nothing. And the very words I have spoken to you are spirit and life. But some of you do not believe me.’ (For Jesus knew from the beginning which ones didn’t believe, and he knew who would betray him.)”

“Then he said, ‘That is why I said that people can’t come to me unless the Father gives them to me.’ At this point many of his disciples turned away and deserted him.” [John 6:61-66 (NLT)]

And not only did many desert him, His disciples kept warning Him people were offended by His words. “His disciples came and said to Him, ‘Do You know that the Pharisees were offended when they heard this saying?’ But He answered and said, “Every plant which My heavenly Father has not planted will be uprooted.” [Matt 15:12-13 (NKJV)]

Today many claim the world is offended by Christians who preach repentance and follow Christ’s commands as if it is all their fault the world hates the church. Well, guess what, 2000 years ago those new disciples tried to stop Jesus offending the Pharisees and others with the truth!

And NO, the Pharisees were not the church or a picture of misguided churches who preach repentance. The Jewish rabbis who lived hypocritical lives are NOT a picture of the church but false religion without grace.

And let me be clear, the Lord knew His words were offensive and even reminded John the Baptist, “Go and tell John the things which you hear and see: The blind see and the lame walk; the lepers are cleansed and the deaf hear; the dead are raised up and the poor have the gospel preached to them. And blessed is he who is not offended because of Me.” [Matt 11:4-6 (NKJV)]

It is true, if you are silent you will not offend the unbelieving! But you will not be like Jesus or be His friend.

[bctt tweet=”It is true, if you are silent you will not offend the unbelieving! But you will not be like Jesus or be His friend.” username=”RandyMBell”]

“And when He had come to His own country, He taught them in their synagogue, so that they were astonished and said, ‘Where did this Man get this wisdom and these mighty works? Is this not the carpenter’s son? Is not His mother called Mary? And His brothers James, Joses, Simon, and Judas? And His sisters, are they not all with us? Where then did this Man get all these things?’ So they were offended at Him.” [Matt 13:54-57 (NKJV)]

Yes, people do not want to be preached to, and they did not like it when Jesus preached to them in Israel. And yet Christ ordered his disciples to preach and not become best friends with the lost with the hope the truth might accidentally come to them. Without salvation, the mind is controlled by Satan, and only a miracle can awaken a dead man from spiritual death.

My friend, you must intentionally minister to them as a follower of Jesus. And yes some people will accuse you of hatred, judging, and even become angry just because you dare show them their need of the Savior. But that is what happened from the very beginning of the church.

“Then he appointed twelve of them and called them his apostles. They were to accompany him, and he would send them out to preach.” [Mark 3:14 (NLT)] “But go rather to the lost sheep of the house of Israel. And as you go, preach, saying, ‘The kingdom of heaven is at hand.’” [Matt 10:6-7 (NKJV)]

Jesus kept ordering His disciples to boldly speak just like He did. “Whatever I tell you in the dark, speak in the light; and what you hear in the ear, preach on the housetops.” [Matt 10:27 (NKJV)]

Preaching the truth will offend many, it did when Jesus preached. Confronting people is the way Jesus and His apostles showed LOVE to the sons of disobedience.

The first Christians believed preaching was the crowds only hope for salvation, and obeyed this command, even when it looked like it had no immediate effect on the people by their strong resistance to their preaching.

After Christ Jesus preached for three years the Bible says only hundreds believed, not thousands or millions. But when Peter preached repentance as recorded in Acts 2, 3000 believed, and the church grew quickly for a time. But there was a strong antichrist backlash in Israel and across the world.

Acts 4:17-20 (NKJV)
17  But so that it spreads no further among the people, let us severely threaten them, that from now on they speak to no man in this name.”
18  And they called them and commanded them not to speak at all nor teach in the name of Jesus.
19  But Peter and John answered and said to them, “Whether it is right in the sight of God to listen to you more than to God, you judge.
20  For we cannot but speak the things which we have seen and heard.”

So the disciples were forced to fan out across the Roman Empire and the success rate was not as dramatic.

But that did not change the methods of Paul and others outside of Israel in later years. They still CONFRONTED sinners publicly and exposed their sin, and called them to turn and follow Jesus. Their confrontational preaching was the same as Christ taught His first disciples, who preached to crowds of strangers in Israel.

They did not waste years being best friends with the wicked of the Greek culture, but instead, quickly proclaimed the truth and trusted the Holy Spirit to work miracles. Then after preaching the gospel, Paul and the others befriended those who responded to the Gospel message and decided to follow Jesus.

Paul preached in many cities, but crowds rejected the truth and drove him out of town. Public outrage followed Paul in many cities. For example, he was taken to Athens to wait for his friends to join him.

“Now while Paul waited for them at Athens, his spirit was provoked within him when he saw that the city was given over to idols. Therefore he reasoned in the synagogue with the Jews and with the Gentile worshipers, and in the marketplace daily with those who happened to be there. Then certain Epicurean and Stoic philosophers encountered him. And some said, ‘What does this babbler want to say?’ Others said, ‘He seems to be a proclaimer of foreign gods,’ because he preached to them Jesus and the resurrection…”

He confronted the strangers and told them their idolatry was wrong. “God, who made the world and everything in it, since He is Lord of heaven and earth, does not dwell in temples made with hands. Nor is He worshiped with men’s hands, as though He needed anything since He gives to all life, breath, and all things. And He has made from one blood every nation of men to dwell on all the face of the earth, and has determined their preappointed times and the boundaries of their dwellings, so that they should seek the Lord, in the hope that they might grope for Him and find Him, though He is not far from each one of us; for in Him we live and move and have our being…”

“’Truly, these times of ignorance God overlooked, but now commands all men everywhere to repent, because He has appointed a day on which He will judge the world in righteousness by the Man whom He has ordained. He has given assurance of this to all by raising Him from the dead.’ And when they heard of the resurrection of the dead, some mocked, while others said, “We will hear you again on this matter.” So Paul departed from among them. However, some men joined him and believed, among them Dionysius the Areopagite, a woman named Damaris, and others with them.” [Acts 17:16-34 (NKJV)]

Here are the facts, Jesus did not join His enemies, His enemies repented and joined Him. Paul proclaimed the truth and some joined him and became his friends in the faith.

The scripture says we are not to join them, they are to join us! “Don’t team up with those who are unbelievers. How can righteousness be a partner with wickedness? How can light live with darkness? What harmony can there be between Christ and the devil? How can a believer be a partner with an unbeliever? [2 Cor 6:14-15 (NLT)]

So I have to ask you again, do your Christian beliefs contradict Jesus?

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Randy Bell
3 Mar 2016

StraightTalk Articles

The Dangers of False Preachers and Teachers

“Be wary of false preachers who smile a lot, dripping with practiced sincerity. Chances are they are out to rip you off some way or other. Don’t be impressed with charisma; look for character.” [Matt 7:15 (MSG)]

Introduction: I know it sounds negative to your ears in this day of tolerance thinking, but God warns us to judge a preacher by his character first and then his doctrine, you know, his true beliefs. Our Lord also tells us to not go to hear the false preacher, even if his worship service is wonderful and emotionally uplifting, and it makes you feel good.

In fact, most Americans would probably have been bored with Paul, the greatest apostle. Paul confesses in 1 Corinthians 2:3-5, “I was with you in weakness, in fear, and in much trembling. And my speech and my preaching were not with persuasive words of human wisdom, but in demonstration of the Spirit and of power, that your faith should not be in the wisdom of men but in the power of God.”

Notice the physical truth stated here was that he was nervous and “weak” as a speaker, but God’s power changed lives in spite of his human weaknesses. He did not have a dynamic approach nor was he a great speaker, in spite of not having the “preacher voice and charismatic personality,” Paul enjoyed God’s saving power and saw converts.

Now some will disagree here, saying it says “demonstration of the Spirit and power” which must mean a visible show of unusual miracles. Look again, the contrast is clear, his visible weak self was what they saw, but invisibly God worked and changed people’s lives. Remember, Jesus said in John 3:8, “The wind blows where it wishes, and you hear the sound of it, but cannot tell where it comes from and where it goes. So is everyone who is born of the Spirit.”

What is a False Preacher [prophet]?

Jeremiah 14:14 states,  “And the LORD said to me, “The prophets prophesy lies in My name. I have not sent them, commanded them, nor spoken to them; they prophesy to you a false vision, divination, a worthless thing, and the deceit of their heart.” (NKJ)

It is hard to call a nice friendly preacher a false prophet. We really have swallowed the idea that everybody has a right to their viewpoint, so I will go to the church that is friendly, worship is dynamic, the restroom is clean, the church has wonderful programs for my kids, and it is a very comfortable place to me.

Disregarding doctrine, Americans now feel all churches are basically the same. The outward form has become the real issue in this generation. But, does God agree?

If we examine Jeremiah 14:14, we can see that God goes straight to the preacher’s message and says that a false messenger does not speak what he is supposed to because God did not send him. He is a liar because he emphasizes the wrong thing, sharing his own ideas, dreams and visions of what he thinks God wants. He sincerely believes in God and tries to speak for God. BUT even though it seems his basic doctrine is like the true preacher, there is a big difference between what God tells a man to do and what many preachers do or say today.

Many do have a vision for their ministry, but from whom? There is a great push to subtly replace what God commands pastors and preachers to do with human practices that successfully bring in crowds, or grow the churches with big numbers. The end seems to justify the means! Many have dynamic speaking abilities and are fun to listen to. But, be honest, would a false preacher get anywhere if he were boring, vulgar, and unfriendly?

A false prophet makes his impact upon people by being powerful, sometimes miraculous, and very deceptive. A counterfeit $20 bill would fool someone if it really looked like regular money, not if it looked like Monopoly money. You must understand this when you examine this topic.

False preachers have families, love kids, do nice things for friends, can be highly educated and so on. Because of this, it is hard for us to recognize an impostor. It is easier to reject a faithful, boring prophet of God who is consistently preaching repentance because he is perceived as negative.

Furthermore, think of this, most false preachers are sincere and believe what they are preaching, and do not believe it is “the deceit of their heart.” They are not trying to trick you, but help you. They themselves are deceived.

Therefore, it is difficult to see that a preacher is a “bad guy” because many are successful, dynamic, charismatic, miraculous, popular and kindhearted. Their sincerity and positive attitude are contagious.

But they are false preachers because they are leaving out important parts of what God says in His Word, even if they use His Bible while they deceive you. Not on everything, just a few things. That is why they look so much like the real twenty-dollar bill.

The prophet Jeremiah continues his warning in 23:32 “‘Behold, I am against those who prophesy false dreams,’ says the LORD, ‘and tell them, and cause My people to err by their lies and by their recklessness. Yet I did not send them or command them; therefore they shall not profit this people at all,’ says the LORD.” (NKJ)

Notice God’s concern, false teachers cause people to err and become reckless. Error is the result of getting wrong information. In math, a small error will compound a problem making the answer a grossly false conclusion. Small errors are dangerous.

An example comes from the Old Testament account of Moses marrying an Ethiopian woman. Wrong conclusions from this text have led to a wicked racist hatred manufactured through a small error of misunderstanding this scripture. For many years sincere and even religious people believed a lie and acted in an ungodly way toward people God loves by falsely thinking they were doing God a favor by putting these people in their place.

Even the apostle Paul, before his conversion, thought he was doing God a favor by putting Christians in their place. The Lord Jesus had to knock him off his horse and turn him from his false doctrine. Paul’s persecution and executions of Christians were savage, and yet he firmly believed he was doing God’s will!

But, the main concern today is the false doctrines that are twisting the gospel and grace in such a way that people inside the structure of the church are rushing into hell.

Christ the Lord warns in Matthew 7:15-23:

15    “Beware of false prophets, who come to you in sheep’s clothing, but inwardly they are ravenous wolves.

16    “You will know them by their fruits. Do men gather grapes from thorn bushes or figs from thistles?

17    “Even so, every good tree bears good fruit, but a bad tree bears bad fruit.

18    “A good tree cannot bear bad fruit, nor can a bad tree bear good fruit.

19    “Every tree that does not bear good fruit is cut down and thrown into the fire.

20    “Therefore by their fruits you will know them.

21    “Not everyone who says to Me, ‘Lord, Lord,’ shall enter the kingdom of heaven, but he who does the will of My Father in heaven.

22    “Many will say to Me in that day, ‘Lord, Lord, have we not prophesied in Your name, cast out demons in Your name, and done many wonders in Your name?’

23    “And then I will declare to them, ‘I never knew you; depart from Me, you who practice lawlessness!’

Conclusion:

A false preacher will be a combination of the following: popular, confident, articulate, sometimes miraculous, powerful, and appear like any good Christian. But, his words will cause people to err in their obedience to God’s Word. They will influence people to be reckless and not practice all Christ’s commands, but instead, preach religious liberty and loving tolerance.

As you see in Matthew 7, they will be surprised that they were never saved and not allowed into heaven. Their Christianity gives people so much “grace” they never have to repent and change from their sins.

Instead, their message will be “Everybody sins, anyway, so God just overlooks our sins.” And they will resist the true preacher that preaches the same message of Jesus and His apostles, “Repent!”

Why Is This a Big Deal?

2 Peter 2:1-3

1    But there were also false prophets among the people, even as there will be false teachers among you, who will secretly bring in destructive heresies, even denying the Lord who bought them, and bring on themselves swift destruction.

2    And many will follow their destructive ways, because of whom the way of truth will be blasphemed.

By covetousness they will exploit you with deceptive words; for a long time their judgment has not been idle, and their destruction does not slumber. (NKJ)

The warning from the Spirit of God is clear; these people will hurt many by contradicting Jesus [GREEK definition for denying the Lord]  and lead church people into a way of life that leads to destruction. Outward religious traditions will dominate the people without inward transformation as Christ promised.

How Big of a Problem Are False Preachers in our Day?

Well, first of all, Barna research has proven just 9% of the adults in America claiming to be a born again Christian has a biblical worldview. This falls to 7% of Protestants in general.

What has caused such a collapse in Christian beliefs? As God’s Word warned 2000 years ago, it is FALSE PREACHERS. Based on the doctrine that absolute moral truth exists and is founded on six core beliefs of God’s Word, the vast majority in the church today fail to even hold to the basics.

These are the six core basic beliefs from God’s Word:

1/ the accuracy of Bible teaching,

2/ the sinless nature of the Lord Jesus,

3/ the literal existence of the devil,

4/ the all knowing and all-powerfulness of God,

5/ salvation by the mercy and grace of God alone,

6/ and the responsibility of each Christian to obey the great commission.

 

Barna further proved his case from the responses of the pastors and preachers.

Southern Baptist pastors are the most Biblical [71%], other Baptist churches were next [57%], then followed non-denominational protestant pastors [51%], charismatic and Pentecostal [44%], pastors of black churches [35%], leading mainline denominations [28%] and United Methodist [27%].

The evidence speaks volumes. The majority of the preachers are false prophets and leading people into “destructive ways”.  As more and more pastors erase the words “hell”, “repentance” and “sin” from the gospel message people will love it and join the church.

Right now the vast majority listen and follow their “loving and positive” religious ways. But, they recklessly break God’s law without fear of consequence because of the false teaching that deceives them.

God further warns in I John 4:1, “Beloved, do not believe every spirit, but test the spirits, whether they are of God; because many false prophets have gone out into the world.”

And Paul encourages real preachers by saying, “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 up for themselves teachers; and they will turn their ears away from the truth, and be turned aside to fables.”  [2 Timothy 4:2-4 (NKJ)]

Religious fables are practices and beliefs that are not stated in the Bible, but the denomination or spiritual movement practices faithfully and almost fanatically. They will consider everyone out of touch with God who does not agree with them on these things.

This can come in the form of supposed Holy Spirit miracles to dress codes. But the end game will be the same, the church is sidetracked from its mission to preach the Good News, and the local church will be filled with deceived people who think they are going to heaven.

Many fables are based on assumptions deferred from a short scripture passage out of context but not clearly taught or illustrated throughout the Bible. These unclear or unsubstantiated interpretations cause error in lifestyle and divisions in the church universal. The impact is obvious. Now there are hundreds of confusing groups all saying they are from God and leaving the world more confused about the Lord and His Bible than ever before.

Let’s look at the warnings of Jude 1:2-4:

2    Mercy, peace, and love be multiplied to you.

3    Beloved, while I was very diligent to write to you concerning our common salvation, I found it necessary to write to you exhorting you to contend earnestly for the faith which was once for all delivered to the saints.

4    For certain men have crept in unnoticed, who long ago were marked out for this condemnation, ungodly men, who turn the grace of our God into lewdness and deny the only Lord God and our Lord Jesus Christ. (NKJ)

Jude makes the point further than what the false teachers do is turn God’s message of grace into a twisted falsehood, an incredible fable, allowing sinners to feel good while living in sin [lewdness] and deceiving them that they are still going to heaven through grace. This is obviously very popular with sinners, but they can be very religious and not really be saved.

And Jude adds these warnings about false preachers in verse 11, “Woe to them! For they have gone in the way of Cain, have run greedily in the error of Balaam for profit, and perished in the rebellion of Korah.”

1/ Cain created his own way to worship God, and was rejected.

2/ Balaam tried to curse God’s people for money and rewards, even though he claimed to be God’s preacher.

3/ While Korah determined he was equal to Moses, and demanded that God accept him and give him an equal voice with Moses.

All picked their religion, went ahead and followed their destructive way, instead of following God’s clear instructions. God does not change His ways over time. Today the church has no excuses to do things their way or bend to the culture around them.

But the narrow road follower of Jesus, FOLLOWS JESUS. They trust the Bible, literally following the commands of Jesus. They do not follow men that twist and bend the teaching of Jesus.

Do not let anyone deceive you, believe me, some will try. READ GOD’S WORD and commit yourself to a faithful local church led by pastors that are dedicated narrow road followers of Jesus.

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