False teachings

The reason many people easily fall for Satan's lies is because they do not read the word, and even if they do, they read only the part they want to read; they do not understand the truth; they just want to satisfy their own curiosity rather than trying to fulfill the will of God; and because they put more emphasis on their emotion over the truth. If this is you, then, you might want to read this article in its entirety.

The first rebellious person

Defiance is not a new thing; It has always been there since the beginning of this world when God cast Satan down from the rank of angels. Satan has not been staying quietly since. He succeeded in destroying God's beloved human husband and wife. He deceived the woman, Eve, to disobey God. Therefore, Paul wrote to the Corinthian church, "But I am afraid that just as Eve was deceived by the serpent’s cunning, your minds may somehow be led astray from your sincere and pure devotion to Christ." (2 Corinthians 11:3) Because there were people in the Corinthian church who taught wrong teachings, Paul warned them as such. Ever since he started lying to Eve, Satan, also known as the serpent, has been lying to the churches, even to these days. However, it is sad to see that those who do not understand the truth and those zealous of God are sincerly accepting his lies. 

Paul continued to warn, "And I will keep on doing what I am doing in order to cut the ground from under those who want an opportunity to be considered equal with us in the things they boast about. 13 For such people are false apostles, deceitful workers, masquerading as apostles of Christ. 14 And no wonder, for Satan himself masquerades as an angel of light. 15 It is not surprising, then, if his servants also masquerade as servants of righteousness. Their end will be what their actions deserve." (2 Corinthians 11:12-15). Paul said false teachers pretend to be messengers of Christ. Let us be aware that even Satan who uses them pretends to be an angel of light. 

Moses' warning

Moses gave this warning to the Israelites, "But a prophet who presumes to speak in my name anything I have not commanded, or a prophet who speaks in the name of other gods, is to be put to death.” 21 You may say to yourselves, “How can we know when a message has not been spoken by the Lord?” 22 If what a prophet proclaims in the name of the Lord does not take place or come true, that is a message the Lord has not spoken. That prophet has spoken presumptuously, so do not be alarmed.” (Deuteronomy 18:20-22). The reason God warned the Israelites was because there were false prophets among them. 

Ahab who only favors false prophets

Ahab, the king of Israel, asked his 400 false prophets to find out if he should go to war against Ramoth in Gilead. Jehoshaphat, the king of Judah, then said, "Is there no longer a prophet of the Lord here whom we can inquire of?” 8 The king of Israel answered Jehoshaphat, “There is still one prophet through whom we can inquire of the Lord, but I hate him because he never prophesies anything good about me, but always bad. He is Micaiah son of Imlah.” “The king should not say such a thing" (1 King 22:6-8). Why did Ahab hate Micah, the Prophet of God? It's because Micah did not say what Ahab wanted to hear, but only said what Jehovah told him to say. Do you only want a pastor who preaches only what you want to hear like King Ahab did? 

Prophets seeking unlawful business gain

Through the Prophet Jeremiah, God said, “From the least to the greatest, all are greedy for gain; prophets and priests alike, all practice deceit.14 They dress the wound of my people as though it were not serious. ‘Peace, peace,’ they say, when there is no peace." (Jeremiah 6:13-14) In the days of Jeremiah, false prophets sought after unethical businesses; It was said that they did not treat the wounds of the Israelites earnestly. Rather than preaching about heaven and spiritual matters, today's wayward teachers are mainly preaching about worldly matters and things that will benefit the physical body of their listeners. Many people who do not understand the truth are following those teachers just like flies that tend to nest in places with rotten dead bodies, and bees that tend to rest only where there is nectar and pollen.

John's warning

The apostle John said, Dear friends, do not believe every spirit, but test the spirits to see whether they are from God, because many false prophets have gone out into the world. 2 This is how you can recognize the Spirit of God: Every spirit that acknowledges that Jesus Christ has come in the flesh is from God, 3 but every spirit that does not acknowledge Jesus is not from God. This is the spirit of the antichrist, which you have heard is coming and even now is already in the world. (1 John 4:1-3) John has warned not to put trust in all kinds of spirit. He said one must put trust in the ones (teachers) who confess Jesus Christ who came in the flesh. However, today's false teachers have been using the name of Jesus Christ extensively, so the statement above can no longer be used as a litmus test for good teachers. Therefore, in order to discern which teacher is truthful and false, one must use the litmus test defined by Jesus Christ himself. 

Jesus' warning

Jesus said, "Watch out for false prophets. They come to you in sheep’s clothing, but inwardly they are ferocious wolves. 16 By their fruit you will recognize them. Do people pick grapes from thornbushes, or figs from thistles? 17 Likewise, every good tree bears good fruit, but a bad tree bears bad fruit. 18 A good tree cannot bear bad fruit, and a bad tree cannot bear good fruit. 19 Every tree that does not bear good fruit is cut down and thrown into the fire. 20 Thus, by their fruit you will recognize them." (Matthew 7:15-20)

Jesus warned us to beware of the false prophets who come in sheep's clothing. These teachers can be recognized by the fruits of their actions. However, most people fail to look at the actions of those teachers. People just believe in their words and blindly follow them. And Jesus said, “Not everyone who says to me, ‘Lord, Lord,’ will enter the kingdom of heaven, but only the one who does the will of my Father who is in heaven. 22 Many will say to me on that day, ‘Lord, Lord, did we not prophesy in your name and in your name drive out demons and in your name perform many miracles?’ 23 Then I will tell them plainly, ‘I never knew you. Away from me, you evildoers!’" (Matthew 7:15-23)

False teachers do preach in the name of Jesus; They can even cast out demons and show great power. But Jesus said he will say it plainly, take these evil doers away from me. Despite such warning, people do not know how to discern because they do not read the Bible, and even if they do,  they read only what they want; And they also selectively read the scriptures that only bring worldly blessings, thereby missing altogether the things that Jesus warned them to avoid.

Peter's warning       

Peter said, "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 who bought them—bringing swift destruction on themselves. 2 Many will follow their depraved conduct and will bring the way of truth into disrepute. 3 In their greed these teachers will exploit you with fabricated stories. Their condemnation has long been hanging over them, and their destruction has not been sleeping." (2 Peter 2:1-3). False teachers will use flattering words. Today, people who are Christians in name only, and Christians who do not know the truth cannot discern even though false teachers preach only about giving money generously. False teachers tend to preach only the blessings one could receive here on earth rather than the truth about how to get people to heaven. Since the listeners themselves only want worldly things, they are satisfied with what they hear. It's because they have the same mindset as the ones who preach to them. But because God will judge those false teachers and their followers, it is very important to be careful about who you follow and who to avoid. We hope these article helps our readers about how to discern which teachers to avoid and which ones to embrace.