The Great Reminder: False Teachings and False Teachers
The Great Reminder • Sermon • Submitted
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Introduction
Introduction
It has been reported that during the Spanish Civil War, General Emilio Mola marched on Madrid. In a radio address, he said he had 5 columns of men that would ensue the battle with him: 4 at his back and a fifth column inside the walls. His reference spoke of the partisans ready to fight for him inside the city.
Peter is contending in our scripture today that although the church is attacked from the outside, her greatest weakness comes from the enemy within, her own fifth column.
The passage is rather straight forward and it parallels the books of Jude and 2 Timothy and the warnings issued there. All of these passages speak of false teaching and living an ungodly life. This comes on the heels of Peter speaking about the necessity for sound doctrine. Listen carefully to this warning in 2 Peter 2:1-3.
2 Peter 2:1-3
But 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. Many will follow their shameful ways and will bring the way of truth into disrepute. In their greed these teachers will exploit you with stories they have made up. Their condemnation has long been hanging over them, and their destruction has not been sleeping.
I would encourage you to read and study the entire chapter as Peter goes in great depth and detail to describe the work of these false teachers. For the sake of time, we are only going to examine these 3 verses as their theme is prominent throughout the entire chapter.
False Teacher Defined
False Teacher Defined
We see in verse 1 that there there are mentions of false prophets and false teachers. The Message paraphrase says that “there were lying prophets among the people then, just as there will be lying religious teachers among you now.” They would be about the use of deception and trickery.
The Old Testament had several examples of this.
If a prophet, or one who foretells by dreams, appears among you and announces to you a miraculous sign or wonder, and if the sign or wonder of which he has spoken takes place, and he says, “Let us follow other gods” (gods you have not known) “and let us worship them,” you must not listen to the words of that prophet or dreamer. The Lord your God is testing you to find out whether you love him with all your heart and with all your soul.
Deuteronomy 13:
The prophets prophesy lies,
the priests rule by their own authority,
and my people love it this way.
But what will you do in the end?
Jeremiah 5:31
They dress the wound of my people
as though it were not serious.
‘Peace, peace,’ they say,
when there is no peace.
Jeremiah
and if the sign or wonder of which he has spoken takes place, and he says, “Let us follow other gods” (gods you have not known) “and let us worship them,” you must not listen to the words of that prophet or dreamer. The Lord your God is testing you to find out whether you love him with all your heart and with all your soul. It is the Lord your God you must follow, and him you must revere. Keep his commands and obey him; serve him and hold fast to him. That prophet or dreamer must be put to death, because he preached rebellion against the Lord your God, who brought you out of Egypt and redeemed you from the land of slavery; he has tried to turn you from the way the Lord your God commanded you to follow. You must purge the evil from among you.
If your very own brother, or your son or daughter, or the wife you love, or your closest friend secretly entices you, saying, “Let us go and worship other gods” (gods that neither you nor your fathers have known,
Deuteronomy
“From the least to the greatest,
all are greedy for gain;
prophets and priests alike,
all practice deceit.
This is not a very pretty picture. The Epistle of Jude uses similar language. Peter knew that the truth of God’s word and the false doctrines of these false prophets and false teachers could not coexist. Any compromise and allowing the false teaching to coexist would be like a surgeon compromising and leaving a cancerous tumor in a patient’s body.
Notice what this false teaching consisted of:
Deception
Deception
It is a theme that runs through out the chapter. First and foremost, that which was being taught was false. It was not the truth. The Bible says that these false teachers “will secretly introduce destructive heresies.” The word heresy originally meant simply “to make a choice.” It later came to mean “a sect or a party.” The party aspect is to promote a division. It is the same terminology that Paul used in when he speaks of “dissension and factions.”
The message was false but their method was also false. These false teachers would come in appearing they were true to the Christian faith. The literal translation states “they secretly bring in alongside.” They don’t throw out the truth immediately, they simply lay their false teachings alongside the truth and give the impression that they believe the fundamentals of the faith. Before long, they remove the true doctrine and leave their false doctrine in its place.
They deny the Lordship of Christ. This is also evident in the parallel passage in Jude.
Jude 4
For certain men whose condemnation was written about long ago have secretly slipped in among you. They are godless men, who change the grace of our God into a license for immorality and deny Jesus Christ our only Sovereign and Lord.
In verse 3, we see the false teachers use “stories that have been made up.” One translation uses the phrase “feigned words.” The Greek word here is plastos from which we get our word plastic. These false teachers are using plastic words. Words that can be twisted to mean anything one might want them to mean.
Satan is a liar and his servants are liars. They use the Bible, not to enlighten but to deceive. We see this in the first book of the Bible in .
Now the serpent was more crafty than any of the wild animals the Lord God had made. He said to the woman, “Did God really say, ‘You must not eat from any tree in the garden’?”
The woman said to the serpent, “We may eat fruit from the trees in the garden, but God did say, ‘You must not eat fruit from the tree that is in the middle of the garden, and you must not touch it, or you will die.’ ”
“You will not surely die,” the serpent said to the woman. “For God knows that when you eat of it your eyes will be opened, and you will be like God, knowing good and evil.”
When the woman saw that the fruit of the tree was good for food and pleasing to the eye, and also desirable for gaining wisdom, she took some and ate it. She also gave some to her husband, who was with her, and he ate it.
First, he questioned the Word of God- “did God really say?”; then he denied God’s word- “You will not surely die;” and finally, he substituted his own lie, “you will be like God.”
These false teachers mentioned here and that are present in our world today are not ignorant of God’s word. They know the truth and deliberately reject it.
Notice next the disrepute.
Disrepute
Disrepute
Many will follow their shameful ways and will bring the way of truth into disrepute.
Many will follow the their shameful ways. calls these shameful ways changing “the grace of God into a license for immorality” and denying Jesus Christ as being our only Sovereign Lord.
The word disrepute means blaspheme. The KJV uses the word pernicious. It comes from the Latin word pernici which means to ruin by murderous death. With this language described here, the person that gets caught in the trap of what these false teachers are doing is in a bad way.
The false prophets in the day of Jeremiah were guilty of the same sins.
And among the prophets of Jerusalem
I have seen something horrible:
They commit adultery and live a lie.
They strengthen the hands of evildoers,
so that no one turns from his wickedness.
They are all like Sodom to me;
the people of Jerusalem are like Gomorrah.”
Jeremiah 23
Indeed, I am against those who prophesy false dreams,” declares the Lord. “They tell them and lead my people astray with their reckless lies, yet I did not send or appoint them. They do not benefit these people in the least,” declares the Lord.
:32
The fact that MANY will follow this evil path is proof that the often people would rather feel good about the false than the true. They are pursuing the sensual rather that the spiritual. It is also shows through the use of this word MANY that false teachers are very successful in their ministry. They have glowing statistics to report and crowds gather to hear them. We have to remember that statistics are not proof of authenticity.
“Enter through the narrow gate. For wide is the gate and broad is the road that leads to destruction, and many enter through it. But small is the gate and narrow the road that leads to life, and only a few find it.
Many will claim to be true servants of Christ, but will be rejected.
“Not everyone who says to me, ‘Lord, Lord,’ will enter the kingdom of heaven, but only he who does the will of my Father who is in heaven. 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 perform many miracles?’ Then I will tell them plainly, ‘I never knew you. Away from me, you evildoers!’
Matthew 7:
Unfortunately, there are many who follow false teachers because it feels good. We must be wise lest we fall into their traps. The Bible has harsh words to describe these false teachers.
Titus
They claim to know God, but by their actions they deny him. They are detestable, disobedient and unfit for doing anything good.
An elder must be blameless, the husband of but one wife, a man whose children believe and are not open to the charge of being wild and disobedient.
You and I must examine ourselves through the filter of God’s word to see if our actions deny Christ. We must be certain that our actions are not detestable or disobedient and unfit for doing any good. While we are saved by faith our actions should represent the goodness and grace that has been bestowed on us. If they are not, we become just as guilty as these false teachers that are spreading false teachings. Notice next, their destruction.
Destruction
Destruction
False teachers will face sure and horrible punishment. In fact, the rest of this chapter speaks of the punishment and the evidence of how God dealt with disobedient angels and His people that with the route of false teaching.
The Bible says that their destruction or ruin will be swift or sudden. You might ask, “How can these false teachers that were said to be ‘among the people,’ and whom the Lord had redeemed end up in everlasting destruction?” They refused to accept the redemption that God has allowed through Jesus.
Later on in verse 13 the Bible says that these false teachers will be “paid back with harm for the harm they have done.” Verse 20 says
If they have escaped the corruption of the world by knowing our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ and are again entangled in it and overcome, they are worse off at the end than they were at the beginning.
2 Peter
So what can we learn from this passage?
First and foremost, know the truth of God’s Word. Be diligent in studying scripture.
For Ezra had devoted himself to the study and observance of the Law of the Lord, and to teaching its decrees and laws in Israel.
2, Be very careful when someone adds to scripture.
Revelation 22:18-
I warn everyone who hears the words of the prophecy of this book: If anyone adds anything to them, God will add to him the plagues described in this book. And if anyone takes words away from this book of prophecy, God will take away from him his share in the tree of life and in the holy city, which are described in this book.
3. Ask the Lord to show you the truth and trust Him as He reveals it to you.
The God of peace will soon crush Satan under your feet.
The grace of our Lord Jesus be with you.
Romans
The Truth of God’s word shows that satan is defeated. It also reveals that grace prevails.
4. Understand that false teachers will be opposite of what Jesus is.
They are rebellious (2:10-12)
They are like animals (2:12 calls them brute beasts)
They are deceitful (2:13)
This passage of scripture is a tough one to study. We are reminded in this passage and through out the Bible that God desires for us to be His faithful people. It also shows us His ability and action that He is able to rescue us from difficult situations.
5.
Aren’t you glad that we have Victory in Jesus?