Keep sharing good news without ads.
No description available
We continue our study through 2 Peter, a wonderful book, and now we have come to the heart of the book. It's only three chapters, but it has a lot of content to it. And as I was studying this, I should have known the first three verses, as short as that is, there's much here about false teachers and false prophets.
So this is going to be part one of a two-part message, and we're going to get through maybe half of what I need to say, and there's so much more that could be said of what the Bible has to say concerning false teachers, false prophets within the church.
So much that's said there, but we want to look and see what God's Word has to tell us. God is very clear about it, but we just ask that the Holy Spirit would help us. He's the real teacher to teach us what, He's the spirit of truth, to teach us what truth really is concerning these false teachers that's within the churches.
So I'd like to minister to you, beware of false prophets, beware of false prophets. So turn with me, if you're not already there, to 2 Peter 2, 2 Peter 2, we're looking at just the first three verses, the first three verses.
So hear the word of the living God. I'm reading from the NKJV, the New King James Version. But there were also false prophets among the people, even as there will be false teachers, 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. By covetousness they will exploit you with deceptive words, and for a long time their judgment has been idle, and their destruction does not slumber.
We'll stop right there, and ask God to help us now. May God richly bless the reading of His holy word from our ears to our hearts this morning. Please bow with me in prayer, and let's ask our Lord to help us in this time of worship as we continue to worship Him.
Our Father, and our great God, oh how we thank You for this morning that You've given unto us. This is the day that the Lord has made, and we're to rejoice and to be glad in it. Father, we rejoice that we have Your holy word.
We rejoice that we have the written truth, and that it has come to us at a great price. This word that's been preserved down through the ages, Your holy word, there's nothing like it. Heaven and earth shall pass away, but Your words will continue to abide forever.
Will not pass away. So Father, we thank You. We know that this book has come on a sea of blood through the martyrs and the reformers. Many has paid a heavy price for it. And may we never forget that great truth.
So many has died for this truth, and they counted it as something worth dying for. But most important, Father, is the one who came from heaven. The one who died on Calvary's cross to shed His precious blood for our redemption.
Father, this book is all about the Lord Jesus Christ. So we thank You for the Lord of glory that came from heaven and to earth to ransom His people. The church, the true church. Lord Jesus Christ, the one, Father, that You are well pleased in.
The one who is the way, the truth, and the life. So Father, we would just pray by Your blessed Holy Spirit, who is the Spirit of truth. Heavenly teacher, the comforter, the true teacher. The Spirit of truth, the Spirit of holiness.
Help us, O God, to depend on His power and His might. Father, we thank You. Lord, we just ask You to help us by Your grace now. To apply these great truths into our personal lives. Thank You for the warnings that You give us, O God, that's in love.
To show us the way of truth. So Lord, help us within this hour. We will forever give You glory. We ask these things in Jesus' name. Amen and Amen. One of the most successful rackets in this world today is selling fake art.
If you look around you today in this world, it's very popular. A lot of fake art out there. And even some of the finest galleries and private collections have been invaded by paintings that are ever clever counterfeits.
Of the great masters. It's hard to tell the genuine from the counterfeit, especially when it comes to art. Even publishers have also had their share of the hoaxes. Purchasing so-called genuine art that weren't really so genuine after all.
But counterfeits are really nothing new, are they? There's nothing new under the sun, as Solomon tells us. Satan is the great imitator. He knows how to imitate the truth. And he does a good job at it.
Actually, in 2 Corinthians 11, verse 13 -15, the Apostle Paul says,. For such are false apostles, deceitful workers transforming themselves into apostles of Christ. And no wonder, Paul says, no wonder.
For Satan himself transforms himself into an angel of light. Therefore it is no great thing if his ministers also transform themselves into ministers of righteousness whose end will be according to their works.
It's interesting that the Apostle Paul and the Apostle Peter is pretty much saying some of the same things. But it's the Holy Spirit of God that actually compliments each of these words. Because it's the same Spirit of God that guided and moved the Apostle Paul as well as the Apostle Peter.
I was reading in Pastor John MacArthur's studied Bible, in which I have, and he says this about false teachers, and I thought this was worth noting.
He says, quote,.
Nothing is more wicked than for someone to claim to speak for God, to the salvation of souls, when in reality he speaks for Satan, to the damnation of their souls. End quote. Those who promote heresy are the ultimate terrorists in our time.
And they are the ultimate terrorists from days past as well. And that they deceive people to follow a path that leads sadly, tragically to eternal hell fire. Don't hear much about that today, do we? We don't hear much about the warnings of Christ.
And I like what J .C. Rowell says, It would serve the church of God to study the warnings of Christ as well as we study the promises of Christ. But here in 2 Peter at the end of chapter 1, the Apostle Peter actually lays out the very foundation of our faith.
Which is the inspired word of the living God. We just looked at that from the last of chapter 1. That he says, Knowing this first that no prophecy of scripture is of any private interpretation. For prophecy never came by the will of man, but by holy men of God spoke as they were moved by the Holy Spirit.
So he gives us this to his readers. And he knows that he is about to pass off the scene. Which he says earlier in chapter 1, That, let me find the place. In verse 13, Yes I think it is right as long as I am in this tent to stir up you by reminding you.
Knowing that shortly I must put off my tent just as our Lord Jesus Christ showed me. So he knows his time is very short. When he writes this letter he is up in age. He knows he is about to leave this world.
Now he knows that he is about to pass off. And now he desires his readers to stand firmly on the truth of God's word. That is his desire, that is his passion. But he also knows something else that is very important before us here.
Is that false prophets are a continual threat to God's people. This kind of threat is not going to go away, not until Jesus Christ comes back. So in contrast to the godly prophets which he spoke of, For God as they were moved by the Holy Spirit.
He begins chapter 2 by contrasting them to false prophets who have played God's people down through the ages. And we see this all through the Old Testament. These false teachers take their place right inside the church, don't they?
They pose as ministers of the gospel as Paul the Apostle, we just read, says. And if they actually came right out and said that they were atheists and agnostics, people would be on their guard. But they don't do that, do they?
No, they got a cloak. They transform themselves into ministers of light, of righteousness, while all together they're wicked. They carry a bible and they can even preach somewhat motivated sermons. I wouldn't dare call it good sermons, because in light of what scripture says it's not a good sermon.
But we know that they learn how to preach and that doesn't take a rocket scientist to know how to preach. Satan himself has many of his ministers and they preach all the time. They're very good at twisting the word of God, aren't they?
They know how to take it out of context. This reminds me of Acts chapter 20, you could go there if you like, as the Apostle Paul exhorts the elders from Ephesus. And if you notice or if you remember in the text in Acts 20, I love Acts 20 because it's so full.
It's so full of admonitions, it's so full of warnings, and you see the heart of the Apostle Paul and his burden. There's no doubt about it, he has the burden of the Lord on his heart and his life. So he calls for the elders to come from Ephesus.
He gives to them these serious warnings and the burden of the Lord from his life. Notice in verse 27, I'm not going to read all of it, but I'm just going to start right there. He says this, let me back up to 26, I think this is important.
Therefore I testify to you this day that I am innocent of the blood of all men. What a statement. He can honestly say that he is innocent.
He's clean.
From the blood of all men. And he tells us why. For I have not shunned, I have not shunned, or in other words, I have not avoided declaring to you the whole counsel of God. The whole plan of God. Basically what he's saying is that I have not held back and given to you the complete and full gospel.
Everything.
Verse 28, therefore take heed to yourselves. Notice the take heed there. Now we're going into some warnings. Anytime you see take heed, that means, like Peter says, gird up the loins of your mind. Have your ears perking.
Get ready to receive this. To yourselves and to all the flock among which the Holy Spirit has made you overseers. Now keep in mind he's speaking to elders. To shepherd the church of God, which He purchased with His own blood.
That's how important this is. To shepherd the church of God, which God has purchased with His own blood in Jesus Christ. Then he says in verse 29, for I know this. Notice he says the same thing that Peter says.
No, I will, no, will. After my departure, savage wolves,.
These are false teachers.
Savage wolves will come in among you, not sparing the flock. Also from among yourselves, men will rise up speaking, speaking perverse things. Perverse things. Misleading things. To draw away the disciples after themselves.
And then he says, therefore watch and remember that for three years I did not cease to warn everyone night and day with tears. I tell you, that has such an impact. And it's one of the reasons I love this part in this chapter 20 because the Apostle Paul was so genuine.
A father of the faith, the Apostle, had founded many churches. One of the greatest missionaries had ever lived outside of Jesus. One of the greatest theologians. But yet he says here, I did not cease to warn everyone night and day.
Night and day? With tears? He was broken because of false teachers coming within the church. What a powerful statement. Oh, how these apostles were grieved about the false teachers making their way inside the church and deceiving many.
So basically the apostles are echoing the words of our Lord Jesus Christ. Turn with me to Matthew chapter 7. I read this quite often because it's so important. But Matthew chapter 7 has a lot to tell us.
Jesus' sermon on the mount, the greatest sermon that was ever preached. Preached by the greatest preacher that ever lived. The greatest man that ever lived. The Lord Jesus Christ himself. And I think, you know, if the apostles tell us it's important, the prophets tell us it's important.
It's all God's word, right? But this is the master. This is the master. This is Jesus. This is the Son of God from heaven. And he says in verse 15, let me back up a little bit. He mentions in verse 13, Enter in by the narrow gate.
For wide is the gate and broad is the way that leads to destruction. There he talks about destruction. And there are many who go in by it. Notice the contrast here. Because narrow is the gate. And difficult is the way which leads to life.
And there are few who find it. Hear the opposite in the world, don't we? The world says many goes to heaven. Many goes to heaven but few to hell. Well the scriptures contradict that because we know it's not true.
Basically Jesus is saying very few there is going to be going to heaven and many go to hell.
That's the truth.
Jesus says beware of false prophets. Directly after that, he goes right into the warnings about beware of false prophets who come to you in sheep's clothing. They don't come to you with a pitchfork and horns and all that saying I'm a bad guy, I'm a devil.
No, they come with sheep's clothing. But inwardly, there it is. Inwardly they are ravenous wolves. Just like Paul says very close to the same language, savage wolves, savage. In other words, they're not going to spare the flock.
They're not going to spare a sheep. They're going to go after the sheep and they're intended to eat the sheep. Devour it. Jesus basically gives us some great revelation here, doesn't he? You will know them by their fruits.
Know who?
The false prophets.
In context to what he's saying, you will know these false prophets. You will know them by their fruits.
By their fruits.
Do men gather grapes from thorn bushes or figs from thistles? Even so, every good tree bears good fruit, but a bad tree bears bad fruit. A good tree cannot bear bad fruit, nor can a bad tree bear good fruit.
Every tree that does not bear good fruit is cut down and thrown into the fire. And therefore, by their fruits you will know them. He's speaking of false prophets, isn't he? That's undeniable. That's basically within the text, that's the context.
He's warning about false teachers. And then he goes from a different scene about how you would know them to what's going to happen on judgment day. He goes to the judgment day and then he says, not everyone who says to me, in other words, everyone's going to stand before the judge.
He's the judge. He's the righteous judge, Jesus Christ. Going to stand before him because he's going to judge every man. He's going to judge every person. Not everyone who says to me, that's speaking, Lord, Lord, they even call him Lord, shall enter into the kingdom of heaven, but he who does the will of my Father in heaven.
And then he says this word many again. Many will say to me in that day, Lord, Lord, notice what he says. Have we not prophesied in your name? Basically preached. Have we not cast out demons in your name?
Used in Jesus' name? And done many wonders in your name? Used in the name of God. Used in the name of Jesus. Then they make that declaration. He doesn't deny that they do those signs and wonders, does he?
He doesn't deny that. But there's one terrifying thing here, and I believe this is the most terrifying words you will ever hear. And pray God that none of us will ever hear this as we stand before the king of glory one day.
Because he says to them, then I will declare to them, these false teachers, these false prophets, I never knew you. In other words, they never were born again in the first place. They never were regenerated in the first place.
I never knew you. Depart from me. You who practice lawlessness. That's an explanation point there. So that's what they practice. Lawlessness. And then he basically goes into another section of this conclusion.
And it's really one of the greatest conclusions that you will ever hear on any sermon, especially this greatest sermon that ever was preached. And he talks about those who hear my words and does them.
He speaks about obedience. Well, liken them to a wise man who built his house on the rock, that foundation. So the warnings are there, right? And this is what happens on judgment day to those false teachers.
Go with me quickly to the Olivet Discourse in the same book, chapter 24. Jesus speaks again. Now, the question comes up and I like what has been said about this because the question is given to Jesus about the end times.
And He basically... They come upon the temple. In verse 21, I'm sorry, in chapter 24, verse 1, then Jesus went out and departed from the temple and His disciples came up to show Him the buildings of the temple.
Jesus said to them, Do you not see all these things? Surely I say to you, not one stone shall be left here upon another that shall not be thrown down. Now, He knew that judgment would come. And we know that in A .D. 60, A .D. 70, my correction there, my bad, is that this was fulfilled.
Titus overcame Jerusalem and the temple was what laid waste. Jesus knew this. But a question came up here in verse 3. Now as He sat on the Mount of Olives, the disciples came to Him privately. This is a private talk with the Lord saying, Tell us, when will these things be?
And what will be the sign of your coming and of the end of the age? Very first thing Jesus says, and Jesus answered and said to them, Take heed. There's that take heed again. That no one deceives you.
Deception.
Deception comes. No one deceives you. You know, everybody wants to hear about end times. Show me the signs of the times and everything. Show me about all the end times. Remember, the first thing Jesus says, For many, many will come in my name saying I am the Christ and will deceive many.
False teachers.
Look about us today. There's swarms of them. We could go on and on about that, but these false teachers will come. Notice, jump to verse 22. And unless those days were shortened, no flesh would be saved, but for the likesake, for those days will be shortened.
Then if anyone says to you, Look, here is the Christ or there, do not believe it. And then again He says, For false Christs and false prophets will rise and show great signs and wonders to deceive. If possible, even the elect.
Now, I don't know about you, that just makes me to sit still for a moment and just turn the searchlight on my own heart. We better make sure that our salvation is in Jesus Christ and we better make sure our calling and election is sure.
That's critical. Many false teachers. Now, as we study this chapter in 2 Peter, it's interesting that there are no direct exhortations. There's no direct commands. What's Peter doing? Peter just describes the false teachers and their evil ways at length.
That's what he does. He gives them a description. As one preacher said it like this, as if he's holding up a most wanted poster. He's holding up a poster. Now, it makes me think about the wild west. This person's wanted, this one's wanted, and he's holding up this poster with all these faces.
Most wanted. These are the most hideous, evil looking characters there are.
Take heed.
This is what these counterfeits look like. Don't listen to them. They're false. It makes me think that. They're dangerous. So chapter 2 of 2 Peter basically serves as a warning to us. It serves as a warning to the church.
And we need these warnings. I need these warnings. We need to hear these warnings. And it's sad to say today that many churches today will not hear these kind of warnings. There's some will. But many will hear like Paul says with itching ears.
They're going to hear what they want to hear.
They don't want to hear about wrath. They don't want to hear about judgment. They don't want to hear about warnings. They don't want to hear about sufferings. They surely don't want to hear about Jesus Christ being crucified.
He's what the church is all about. He's to have preeminence.
So our text actually,.
What Peter is saying in essence is beware of these false prophets. Beware of them because they leave a trail of spiritual devastation in their wake. Let's look at some of these warnings. And by the way, we're only going to hit three of them today.
I don't have an outline, but we're just going to look and see what the text says. And 2 Peter here. And these first three verses. So we're going to break this up because there's many other scriptures I'd like to tie into.
That's going to take a little time, but I think they're very important for us to see. So the Holy Spirit brings this to light through the apostle. We'll be looking at seven reasons to beware of false prophets, but we're going to look at three today.
Lord willing, the rest of the four next Lord's Day. The first is, no doubt, beware of false teachers because they are a threat to God's people. I've already mentioned that. But I think that's the number one thing we see here.
They are a threat to God's people. But there were, verse 1, but there were also false prophets among the people. They speak into the past, but that doesn't mean that's not relevant to the present tense.
Even as there will be false teachers among you, see, and he tells us, okay, there was false prophets in the past, and there's false prophets here in the present. And there will be in the future as well.
But who will secretly bring in what?
Destructive heresies.
Destructive heresies. Now that's important.
It's what they teach.
That's why you think the Bible says so much about not only false teaching, but it also, what counters that? Sound teaching, healthy teaching, sound doctrine. Paul constantly is talking about this, and nowadays in the days we live, oh, don't mention to me anything about doctrine.
Whether they know it or not, they believe in something. Even if they say they don't believe in something, they don't believe in doctrine, they do believe in something. And teaching is so important. So the first phrase actually refers back to the history of God's people.
Now we could spend a long time here, but we're going to spend a little time here. But we know in history, and if you go in Scripture, now down in the history of Israel in the Old Testament, there's another being that God created.
And no, it's not God's fault, is it, that he became what he did, because he chose to become what he did. And in heaven, did God know that he chose to be what he was going to be? Absolutely. And it's the mystery of the sovereignty of God, but God had the plan all arranged, and now Satan's being used in the sovereignty of God.
But it had to fit this in in the church. A lot of people try to reconcile those two things, but God has given us his word to be on guard and to take heed against Satan, because Satan is really the number one false prophet.
Jesus said he's a liar, right? And Jesus said he's the father of all lies. So even though God created him as a beautiful, angelic being to guard the throne of God, he rebelled. We know that, don't we, in Scripture.
And he lifted himself up against God Almighty. I believe it's Isaiah 19, if I'm correct, that speaks about... Is it 19? Or is it chapter 11? But it speaks about Lucifer that rises up against God Almighty.
And I want to make sure I'm right on that, because I don't want to give you... I believe it is 19. Oh, I'm sorry. My mistake. Chapter 14. Oh, verse 12, chapter 14. How are you fallen from heaven, O Lucifer, son of the morning?
How are you cut down to the ground? You who weaken the nations, and you have said in your heart... Notice how many times he says, I will. I will ascend into heaven. I will exalt my throne above the stars of God.
I will also sit in the mount of the congregation on the farther sides of the north. I will ascend above the heights of the clouds. I will be like the Most High.
I, I, I, I.
Yet you shall be brought down to Sheol, to the lowest depths of the pit. And that pretty much tells about his rebellion. And as we read in Revelation, many of the angels went with him. And we also know from the Revelation of Jude that many of them was chained up.
So God can easily chain them all up and destroy all of them, right? By the word of His power. But He allows them to continue. And He uses them. As, as Luther said, He's on the leash. Aren't you guys so glad that God is sovereign?
Now, Satan deceived Eve in the garden. He was waiting for them there. And he even uses now a false teacher to deceive people ever since. We see this in the Old Testament. I want to touch on a few of these.
Now go with me to Deuteronomy chapter 13. I believe Brother Keith brought this to my attention because it's important that we go to the foundation, foundational books. Deuteronomy, and that's as Brother Willem has started reading in chapter 1.
Deuteronomy will be telling us much about this. Chapter 13. Moses, let me give you a backdrop of this. Chapter 13, Moses has basically warned Israel about false prophets who would deceive by performing signs and wonders to get people to go after false gods.
He sees that this is to serve a threat that he says even if your brother, your child, or even your wife you cherish, you must not follow him or her after these false gods. Rather, you must not have pity on them, basically.
There is to be judgment executed to them. You must expose them so that they can be put to death. Now that sounds harsh, doesn't it? Let's read just a little bit. I want to read 1 through 18 of chapter 13.
These are some warnings. Here's the Pentateuch, the foundational book. Let me just read 1 through 18. And if there arises among you a prophet or a dreamer of dreams and if he gives you a sign or a wonder and the sign or the wonder comes to pass or which he spoke to you saying let us go after other gods which you have not known, let us serve them.
You shall not listen to the words of that prophet or that dreamer of dreams for the Lord your God is testing you to know whether you love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul. You shall walk after the Lord your God and fear him and keep his commands and obey his voice and you shall serve him and hold fast to him.
That's what we are to do, right? That's the command. But that prophet or that dreamer of dreams shall be put to death because he has spoken an order to turn you away from the Lord your God. That's the sin he does, folks.
Who brought you out of the land of Egypt and redeemed you from the house of bondage and enticed you from the way in which the Lord your God commanded you to walk. So you shall put away the evil from your midst.
God's serious when it comes to holiness. Then he says in verse 6,. If your brother and the son of your mother and your son, your daughter, the wife of your bosom or your friend who is as your own soul secretly entices you saying let us go and serve other gods which you have not known, neither you nor your fathers of the gods of the people which are all around you, near to you or far from you from one end of the earth or to the other end of the earth, you shall not consent to him or listen to him nor shall your eye pity him nor shall you spare him or conceal him.
But you shall surely kill him and your hand shall be first against him to be put to death and afterward the hand of all the people. And you shall stone him with stones until he dies because he sought to entice you away from the Lord your God who brought you out of the land of Egypt from the house of bondage.
So all Israel shall hear in fear and not again do such wickedness as this is among you. And then he says this,. For if you hear someone of your cities which the Lord your God gives to you to dwell in saying corrupt men shall have gone out from among you and enticed the inhabitants of their cities saying let us go and serve other gods which you have not known, then you shall inquire and search out and ask diligently as if it is indeed true and certain that such an abomination was committed among you.
You shall surely strike the inhabitants of that city with the edge of the sword, utterly destroy it and all that is in it and its livestock with the edge of the sword. And you shall gather all its plunder into the middle of the street and completely burn the fire of the city and plunder for the Lord your God.
It is shall be a heap forever and it shall not be built again. So none of the accursed things shall remain in your hand that the Lord may turn from the fierceness of His anger and show you mercy and have compassion on you and multiply you just as He has sworn to your fathers.
Because you have listened to the voice of the Lord your God to keep all His commandments which I command you today to do what is right in the eyes of the Lord your God. That's the word of the living God, folks.
And that's God's basic definition of how to deal with false teachers. Now that sounds awful harsh, doesn't it? It seems to be very extreme to us and our ears because our age is so tolerant of false doctrine.
It breaks my heart, folks. I really, when I'm ministering this, my heart really breaks within me because we shrug it off as not being a big deal but God makes it, it's a big deal to God. False teaching is serious.
False prophets that teach the false heresy in the teachings is even more serious. As a matter of fact, Moses knew that false teachers would infect God's people like a cancer causing an irreparable damage to God's people.
J .C. Rowell said this in the 19th century. You know Rowell, a godly man, a very godly man. Lived in the 19th century, a bishop. In his book, The Warnings to the Churches, I thought about his admonition and warning here about this and he says it so right.
He said this,.
Conversely, in religion is a hateful thing. It is hard enough to fight the devil, the world and the flesh, without private differences in our own camp. But there is one thing which is worse than controversy and that is false doctrine.
False doctrine tolerated, false doctrine allowed, and permitted without protest. Three things, he says, which men never ought to trifle with. A little poison, a little false doctrine, and a little sin.
That's serious, isn't it? That shakes me. And I say, you know, oh God, Judas, as Judas lived, he heard Christ's sermons. He really thought he was right in there. The other apostles didn't realize this.
Of course, Jesus did. The Master did. And Jesus called him the son of perdition. I'm telling you, it's very serious, isn't it? Go with me to Jeremiah, chapter 23. I want you to see this. We're going to be visiting Jeremiah quite often here.
This is a broken prophet. This is the weeping prophet. Chapter 23. There is some great, great warning here. Look at the first few verses. Look at verse 1 through 4. Woe to the shepherds who destroy and scatter the sheep of my pasture.
Whose pasture is it? It's God's pasture. That's God's pasture. You don't mess with God's people. He says, woe to the shepherds who destroy and scatter the sheep of my pasture, says the Lord. Therefore, thus says the Lord God of Israel against the shepherds who feed my people, you have scattered my flock, you've driven them away and not attended to them.
Behold, I will attend to you for the evil of your doing, says the Lord. You don't want God dealing with you. But I will gather the remnant of my flock out of the countries where I have driven them and bring them back to the folds and they shall be fruitful and increase.
It's wonderful that God takes His own people if they are being led astray by false teachers. God, if they are of God, they will be taken out from that and led right into the truth. And He says, I will set up shepherds over them who will feed them.
Feed them.
And they shall fear no more, nor be dismayed, nor shall they be lacking, says the Lord. And from verse 5 to verse 7 basically speaks a prophecy of Jesus. Because it says, Behold, the days are coming, says the Lord, that I will raise to David a branch of righteousness.
A king shall reign and prosper. Now God is concerned. He said, I'm going to take care of His people and I'm going to raise up these shepherds of shepherds. He's the great shepherd of the flock. He's the great shepherd of the sheep.
He speaks about Jesus and He says, A king shall reign and prosper and execute judgment and righteousness in the earth. And in His days Judah will be saved and Israel will dwell safely. Now this is His name by which He will be called the Lord our righteousness.
This is Jesus.
This is the Christ. The Son of the living God. Jump with me to verse 9. My heart within me is broken because of the prophets. All my bones shake. I'm like a drunken man and like a man whom wine has overcome because of the Lord and because of His holy words.
For the land is full of adulteries. He had it in His day folks. Listen to this. For because of a curse of the land mourns the pleasant places of the wilderness are dried up. Their course of life is evil and their bite is not right.
For both prophet and priest are profane. Yes in my house I have found their wickedness says the Lord. Therefore in their ways shall be to them like slippery ways. In the darkness they shall be driven on and fall in them.
I will bring disaster on them in the year of their punishment says the Lord. So it's basically judgment that has come. And that whole chapter deals with it. And if you look at it in verse 23. Am I a God near at hand says the Lord and not a God far off?
Can anyone hide himself in the secret places and so shall I not see him? Says the Lord. Do I not feel heaven and earth? Says the Lord. And listen to what he says. I have heard what the prophets have said who prophesy lies in my name.
Saying I have dreamed a dream and I have dreamed. Just like what Moses said back in Deuteronomy. How long will this be in the heart of the prophets who prophesy lies? Indeed they are prophets of the deceit of their own heart.
Who try to make my people forget my name by their dreams which everyone tells his neighbor. And as their fathers forgot my name for Baal the prophet who has a dream let him tell a dream and he who has my word let him speak my word faithfully.
What is shaft to the wheat? Says the Lord. Is not my word like a fire? Says the Lord. And like a hammer that breaks the rock in pieces. Therefore behold I am against the prophets. Says the Lord. Who steal my words every one from his neighbor.
You see how God feels about this? Behold I am against the prophets. Says the Lord. Who use their tongues and say he says. Behold I am against those who prophesy false dreams. And says the Lord. And tell them because my people to err or err by the lies and by their recklessness.
And yet I did not send them or command them. Therefore they shall not profit this people at all. Says the Lord. God goes on to say all that whole chapter deals with. So beware of false teachers. They leave a trail of devastation don't they?
The second point I'd like us to go back to 2 Peter is beware of false teachers because of their methods are subtle and deceptive. Their methods are subtle and deceptive. We see this as Peter speaks by the power of the Holy Spirit.
What is he saying? But there will be also false prophets among the people even as there will be false teachers among you who will secretly bring in destructive heresy. Let's look at this. False teachers will secretly bring in destructive heresies.
And addressing here the ethical implications of false teaching the Greek word actually destructive is interesting. The Greek word means damnation or shameful or deliberately immoral. Deliberately immoral but basically is tied in with damnation.
People don't want to hear about this today. They don't even want to hear the warnings. Don't even mention hell. Don't even mention about damnation. But I'm telling you it's all in the Word of God. Here in verse 1 through 3 especially.
And look at chapter 3 verse 7. The apostle Peter says this,. But the heavens and the earth. Now he talks about the coming of Jesus Christ. The second coming when he comes back in power and glory with all the holy angels.
And now preserved by the same word are reserved for fire until the day of judgment and perdition. That word perdition means destruction. The destruction of ungodly men. And mainly the ungodly men that is in the mind of the apostle Peter and Paul and the wicked is the false teachers.
They were the ones that were responsible and are responsible for spreading the heresies. And deceiving God's people. Secretly bring in destructive heresy. Now this is why it's so tragic when a church makes a virtue out of toleration and unscriptural teachings of ideas in the name of love and unity.
2 Thessalonians 3 verse 14 says this,. If anyone does not obey our word in this epistle. This is Paul. Note that person. He said note that person. And do not even keep company with him that he may be ashamed.
That's such love.
But it's a warning.
It's a warning about the false teachers that parade themselves as Christians, as pastors, as evangelists, as teachers. Jude 4 says this, For certain men have crept in. And I have even known many a man and I was speaking to my daughter this morning about this and Elizabeth and Brother Willem that I've known men in my past that were self-ordained folks as a pastor and went astray into some serious heresy.
And ones I've loved very much and used to be my best friends, no more my friends. And one was a relative and that was even used in the faith to bring me to Christ. But it says here certain men have crept in unnoticed.
They've come in secretly unnoticed. Jude says, Who long ago were marked out for this condemnation, ungodly men who turned the grace of God into lewdness, licentiousness basically and denied the only Lord God, our Lord Jesus Christ.
And basically they turned the grace of God and make it cheap.
And we know it's not cheap.
Because it cost the blood of Jesus Christ to purchase this church. Let me give you a personal example. I knew this back when I was in Bible college. I was at JSBC. They had an evening evangelistic meeting.
I never will forget this. Called it the power team. Power team comes in. And by the way, if you don't know much about the power team, I think they're still around, sad to say. But these are big muscle jocks, OK?
I call them that. The big muscle guys, beefed up. The head guy was by the name of, I can't remember hardly, Jacob, Jacob then. So-called pastor. And I'm going to tell you what he did. That place was packed out, folks.
People want to hear that. They wanted to see girls were there just whistling. They were showing their muscles. And by the way, it was like a carnival in the zoo. It was like a carnival show. It was something to behold.
And leaders of that church and that ministry, that so-called ministry, allowed this to happen. This whole team came in. They were breaking boards and bending bars and showing their strength. This is on the podium there behind the pulpit.
And they put on a big carnival show and all the girls were whistling. And you would think you had a carnival show. No Holy Spirit, folks. No preaching of the Word of God. Just a carnival show and showing muscle.
They were flexing and showing all their strength and their pride and their pomp and all that. And then what they did, that was the first half of the so-called meeting. Then the next half, they calmed it down and then he gets a Bible.
Oh, and he starts telling about salvation. And then he does it in such a way that he almost comes across like he's broken. And then he gives his personal testimony, which is at the gospel, by the way.
And then people start beginning to weep. And then when the whole thing was over with, it was just a sham, then people come to run into the altar, supposedly giving their lives to Christ. You see where I'm going on this.
There was some godly men. One of them was my old mentor, Dr. Reuben Sequeira, vice president of the college at that time. Approached the head of that church, which was Jimmy Swagger. Confronted him face to face about that and said it was all not of God.
It was not the Holy Spirit. And that all these guys were false. He was fired from being vice president. Still allowed to teach there though. But there was among the ranks, there was a small group of us that saw this and we began to pray and discuss it.
And it was just so horrible to us. And we were called the Pharisees. Just because we stood up for what is right. Stood right behind Dr. Sequeira in this. He's with the Lord now. He went home to be with the Lord about a month ago.
Paid a heavy price. But I'm telling you, he was right. See, the reason I bring that out is because, see, they didn't come like, okay, I'm agnostic or atheistic.
Bam!
No, they come in as like ministers. Deceiving people. Beware of false teachers, folks. Beware of false teachers. Because their doctrine is destructive. That's the third point. This will be my final one.
Because my time is running out. Well, destructive heresies. Heresies also mentions factions. Can speak of divisions. 1 Corinthians 11 and 18. For first of all, when you come together as a church, I hear that there are divisions among you.
And in part, I believe it, Paul says. Titus 3 .10 says, Reject a divisive man after the first and second admonition. Basically, Paul was admonishing Titus to avoid anything that would promote wickedness among believers.
Sad to say. Now, like Dr. Sequeira, he became so-called the divisive man. But he wasn't the divisive person. The divisive one was the ones that were preaching behind the pulpit the poison. And Paul basically says, Reject a divisive man.
A false teacher that promotes false doctrine. Titus was cut off. Basically, it was cut off the church's relationship with any person who would not submit to the correction after two warnings. That's what he says.
Verse 11, Paul says, Knowing that such a person is warped and sinning. That's important. Warped and sinning being self-condemned.
The Greek word for warped suggests that Satan is perverting this person, by the way.
Warped.
Sinning suggests that, and self-condemned basically indicates that this man is rebellious. And rebellion, as you well know, from 1 Samuel, chapter 15, rebellion is the sin of what? Witchcraft. It's satanic.
So anytime you have rebellion like this, it's serious. And basically, that rebellion is not only against the church authority, it's against God's authority. The authority is the word of God. Isn't it?
Well, let's go on.
By covetousness,.
And they would exploit you with deceptive words, false words, if you notice, look on down verse 3, would exploit you with deceptive words. There it is. Deceptive words. False words. The word false is interesting.
I'll look this up. It means plastic. It's where we get the word plastic from. The Greek word false means plastic. In other words, it's fabricated. It's made up. It's counterfeit.
It's plastic.
Peter and the apostle, following cleverly devised tales and myths, but they were actually accused of this from the false teachers. But Peter counters them by saying that the false teachers are making up their own stories and doctrines.
So in contrast to the inspired prophets and the apostles who wrote down God's revealed word of truth, these false teachers were tools of Satan to promote deception. The Greek word translated secretly, by the way, introduces means to bring in from the outside.
Just like I mentioned about the power team. They were from the outside, folks. These were body builders. They were muscle guys. It should have been very obvious. But no, they love the Lord. No, he's got a great testimony.
No, he's talking about Jesus. Where's discernment? Where's discernment? Is not this pragmatism? Is not this worldliness? Is not these are the concepts that they use of the Bible and to give them the same...
It's a cloak. That's what Satan does. He uses the Bible. He twists the Bible. One example of this from recent years, and this is a teaching that's not quite as obvious as the power team, but this is something that has come behind the pulpit in a very clever way.
And it's the self-esteem gospel. Loving yourself gospel. And Jesus said deny yourself. If we'd be to follow Jesus Christ, it is pointed. Jesus says if you'd be my disciple, you're to deny yourself, take up your cross, and follow me.
Deny yourself. It doesn't say nothing about loving yourself, but these people has got their verses. So the idea of this has not come into the church from the Bible, right? No, it comes from Satan. He's all about I.
He's got plenty of self-esteem. You know, we can search in vain in the Scriptures to encourage us to build up our self-esteem, folks.
It's the opposite.
We're to humble ourselves. We're to tear down our self-esteem. We're to humble ourselves before the mighty hand of God. But to love yourself? To love yourself? Sometimes advocates of this teaching will even use a proof text.
They use the Scriptures. Love your neighbor as yourself.
You get that?
Did you hear that? Love your neighbor as yourself. Oh, as yourself. That's what it means. So in other words, I love myself, then I love my neighbor, and then last I love God. In that order. That's sad, isn't it?
So they argue that you must love yourself before you can properly even love your neighbor and even God. It's the opposite.
You can read this in Matthew 22. It's the first and great command. In verse 37, a young man comes to Jesus and calls him teacher and tells us what's the great law to keep, basically, paraphrasing. Jesus said the one great first and great commandment.
To love the Lord that you're God with all your heart, soul, mind, and strength and love your neighbor as yourself.
As yourself.
So these false prophets twist that. They're playing with God's word, folks. They're twisting God's word. Namely, to love God and your neighbor as yourself. But, beloved, if we would just love our neighbor, and this is the truth here now, as much as we do love ourselves, we would have fulfilled this command.
Well, false teachers use scriptures as a cloak, don't they?
And they twist it.
That's what they do. And that's my point.
Sheep's clothing.
Bringing in destructive heresies from the outside to pervert the true meaning of Scripture. My time is gone. Now, there's much more that can be said about this, but let's keep in mind the little fox has spoiled the vine, right?
The little leaven leavens the lump. So serious. Let me conclude with this. I was going to go to Jeremiah chapter 8. We'll wait until Lord willing next week on that. But I do want to close with this very quickly.
Go to 1 John chapter 4. How can we know in a personal way to discern these things? And John chapter 4 basically tells us exactly what we are to do.
Amen.
We're to test the spirits and see whether they are of God. Notice what the Scripture says. Beloved, chapter 4, 1 John verse 1. Beloved, do not believe every spirit, but test the spirits, whether they are of God.
And what does he say next? This is the apostle of love. Because many prophets have gone out into the world. That's the reason why. It's false prophets. Many false prophets have gone out into the world.
He was concerned about this. So this is test. I want to stop right just for a moment here and tell you what test means. It's a metal logistic term used for a saying metals. To test metals. To determine.
This is the definition of it. Their purity and their value.
That's good. The testing is to determine whether it's pure and how much value it has. It's like gold or a diamond or the worth of it. But the test is to test the metal. That's what it means. So we're to test the spirits.
To see whether they are of God. And then he says this. Whether they are of God. Because many false prophets have gone out into the world. By this you know the spirit of God. Every spirit that confesses that Jesus Christ has come into the flesh is of God.
In other words that he Jesus Christ is God in the flesh.
Who he is.
The person of Christ. Teaching his deity. And if you notice about false teachers. They always go off on a landslide on that. They don't know about the trinity. There's many out there that don't even believe in the trinity.
They twist. They have warped concepts about the trinity. About who Jesus is. Look at today all the cults. It's always about that. That Jesus. They basically say Jesus is not God. Verse 3. Every spirit that does not confess that Jesus Christ has come in the flesh is not of God.
And this is the spirit of Antichrist. Which you have heard was coming and is now already in the world. You are of God little children. And have overcome them. Because he who is in you is greater than he who is in the world.
They are of the world. Therefore they speak as of the world. And the world hears them. We are of God. And he who knows God hears us. And he who is not of God does not hear us. By this we know. How many times do we say that?
We know. We know. We are of God. He who knows God hears us. And he who is not of God does not hear us. By this we know the spirit of truth and the spirit of error. There you have it. Test the spirits to see whether they are of God.
Test the spirits to see whether they are of God. More to be said about that. Lord willing next Lord's day. Let's pray. Father we thank you for this time together. Lord help us. Help us in this testing the spirits.
Help us Lord to stay on our faces before you. And in prayer and humble ourselves before your mighty hand. Help us to sit at the feet of Jesus. The truth, the life, the way. So we can know the spirit of truth and the spirit of error.
By loving you truly. And loving each other. As you have loved us. Father we thank you for this great love. That's been manifested toward us. And this one thing that God you sent your only begotten son.
Into this world that we might live through him. Father this is what salvation is all about.
Thank you Father for this truth.
It's strong truth. It's strong medicine. But Father it will help us to grow strong. And it will cure any sickness within the body of Christ. Help us Lord to love you with all of our heart, soul, mind and strength.
And follow Jesus to the end. And persevere by your grace. We thank you in Jesus name.
I pray.
Amen and Amen.