Gospel of Judas, Gospel of Thomas, Gospel of Marcion, Gospel of Mary, Gospel of Philip, and the Gospel of Truth. What do these writings have in common? They are all false teachings about Christ meant to mislead people from the true Gospel found in the Bible. I don’t recommend reading them. Wayne Ferguson over at Enduring Alétheia has a good video explaining one of them, the Gospel of Judas, along with explanations of what makes this type of theology bad.
Tag Archive: False teaching
We all know the Bible tells us God only helps those who help themselves because he works in mysterious ways. What we have to do as Christians is remember, “to thine own self be true.” Sometimes this can be difficult, but we know God doesn’t give us more than we can handle. If you doubt this, then just pick up your Bible and turn to the Book of Hezekiah. We find all of these truths within this book. It’s my favorite book in the Bible. I’ll wait while you look it up.
Continue readingScripture
1 Kings 13:16-22,24 (NIV)
16 The man of God said, “I cannot turn back and go with you, nor can I eat bread or drink water with you in this place. 17 I have been told by the word of the Lord: ‘You must not eat bread or drink water there or return by the way you came.’ ”
18 The old prophet answered, “I too am a prophet, as you are. And an angel said to me by the word of the Lord: ‘Bring him back with you to your house so that he may eat bread and drink water.’ ” (But he was lying to him.) 19 So the man of God returned with him and ate and drank in his house.
20 While they were sitting at the table, the word of the Lord came to the old prophet who had brought him back. 21 He cried out to the man of God who had come from Judah, “This is what the Lord says: ‘You have defied the word of the Lord and have not kept the command the Lord your God gave you. 22 You came back and ate bread and drank water in the place where he told you not to eat or drink. Therefore your body will not be buried in the tomb of your ancestors.’ ”
24 As he went on his way, a lion met him on the road and killed him, and his body was left lying on the road, with both the donkey and the lion standing beside it
Observation
We’re never so close to God that we cannot be deceived if we allow it. Whether you have been a Believer for one day or fifty years, a preacher, teacher, or as we see here, a prophet you have to be careful about what you believe and how you receive a “word from the Lord.” We know that God is constant. He is the same yesterday, today, and forever (Hebrews 13:8). Here we see a prophet of God deceived by a false prophet.
As Believers, we need to be on guard against any manner of false teaching that sets itself up against God (2 Corinthians 10:5). It’s important to know the character of God. When we know His character then we can see the difference between false teaching and a word from God. We know that God doesn’t contradict Himself and He doesn’t change His mind (Numbers 23:19). Therefore, anything that is contrary to the word of God is not from God. We know that God will not tell you to sin. Furthermore, we know that there are not going to be any new revelations (Calvin, Revelation 22:18-19) . Many people incorrectly use the word, “revelation” when they see something new to them in Scripture. The Holy Spirit can reveal things previously unknown to you but this is illumination for you, not a revelation.
We need to be mindful of how the word of God is used. Satan masquerades as an angel of light (2 Corinthians 11:14), and we know that Jesus was tempted by Satan using the word of God in an attempt to deceive Him (Luke 4:10-13). Therefore, we need to be discerning in how we receive the word of God. If you have a smartphone then you have access to a Bible. If you are reading this then you have access to the Bible. You need to:
- Read the Bible regularly.
- Check the Bible.
- Cherish it.
When we read our Bibles regularly we become more attuned with the character of God. When we know God better we will know ourselves and we will have discernment that allows us to travel through life making good decisions.
As human beings, we are prone to making mistakes. That preacher or teacher of the Word is just like you. If there’s a reference to Scripture then check the reference for yourself (Acts 17:11).
The Bible is the inspired word of God (2 Timothy 3:16). These are words of life that instruct us in how to live our lives. Nothing has ever been written that is more important than this so cherish it. By keeping the word of God close to our hearts it will permeate our very being and change who we are.
There’s one last course of action that I believe the man of God could have taken instead of going with the false prophet. He could have prayed and asked God about the situation. This is something that anyone can do. God isn’t far away. He’s near to every one of us.
Would you like to be saved from the fear of death? Knowing that when you die you will be in an eternity filled with love, joy, and peace where there is no longer pain and suffering? Would you like to walk free of guilt today? To have your sins forgiven by the grace of God and to know true peace, here and now?
Pray this prayer with me to accept the gift of salvation today:
Dear Lord Jesus, I know that I am a sinner, and I ask for Your forgiveness. I believe You died for my sins and rose from the dead. I turn from my sins and invite You to come into my heart and life. I want to trust and follow You as my Lord and Savior. Amen.
If you prayed that prayer then congratulations! You are on the first step of a brand new life. Allow me to be the first to welcome you to my family, the family of God. There are abundant resources available online for new Christians. You can visit here for more information on what to do next. You can also leave me a comment and I’ll do my best to help you on the next step of this incredible journey.
Four-Calendar Café 