BE A BEREAN TO STAND AGAINST

FALSE TEACHERS

Part Four

By Michael K. Farrar, O.D.

© God’s Breath Publications

 

Acts 17:11

“Now the Bereans were of more noble character than the Thessalonians, for they received the message with great eagerness and examined the Scriptures every day to see if what Paul said was true.”

 

Luke here commends the Bereans for their dedication to the Holy Scriptures and how they tested all teaching they received by the standard of God’s Word. Berea was located in Greece and in this area of the ancient world people worshipped numerous gods and goddesses. False teachers and worldly philosophies were prolific and very influential. Some things never change for today we still have a plethora of world religions, false teachings, man-made philosophies that attempt to pull us away from the God of the Bible. We should follow in the footsteps of the Bereans and search the scriptures on a regular basis to make sure what we hear and see fall in line with what is in the Holy Bible. Now we consider the “preventions” or how we can prevent being influenced and misled by false teachers.

 

THE PREVENTIONS

 

“There is only one way to avoid being blown about by the latest religious fashion and to avoid being seduced by specious arguments of clever men, and that is by continual growth into Christ…the body is only healthy and efficient when every part is thoroughly coordinated…when Christ is really the head and when every member is moving under His control, just as every part of a healthy body is obedient to the brain.” William Barkclay

 

GOD’S WORD

The first and foremost protection we have against being misled by a false teacher is to be well-grounded in the Holy Bible. When we rest in our own reasoning we can be confused and confounded by false doctrine. When we try to use our human logic and understanding to refute and battle twisted beliefs of a false teacher we will be beaten back and distracted from the stand we need to take. The major defense we have is the solid truth of God’s Word. A passage in Hebrews testifies of the strength and solid foundation we have when we use God’s Word to combat lies, deceptions and evil meanderings of false teachers.

 

Hebrews 4:12

“For the word of God is living and active. Sharper than any double-edged sword, it penetrates even to dividing soul and spirit, joints and marrow; it judges the thoughts and attitudes of the heart.”

 

Other scriptures tell us that the Bible is not just another book written by men. It is the thoughts, concepts and ultimate truth that God wishes to communicate to mankind. God inspired men to write the words and it was done accurately and properly according to His direction.

 

2 Peter 1:20-21

“Above all, you must understand that no prophecy of Scripture came about by the prophet’s own interpretation. For prophecy never had its origin in the will of man, but men spoke from God as they were carried along by the Holy Spirit.”

Since the entire Bible is inspired by God it is totally useful and adequate to guide us in truth, instruct us in how to live, and yes, combat lies and deception that people try to promote.

 

2 Timothy 3:16 17

“All Scripture is God breathed and is useful for teaching, rebuking, correcting and training in righteousness, so that the man of God may be thoroughly equipped for every good work.”

 

God’s Word is solid and sure and can cut to the bone of any false teaching. But it is necessary that we can wield this Sword of Truth properly and accurately. Paul wrote about this in a letter to Timothy.

 

2 Timothy 2:15

“Do your best to present yourself to God as one approved, a workman who does not need to be ashamed and who correctly handles the word of truth.”

 

Timothy was a young pastor and Paul knew he would face many issues, one of which was confrontation with false teachers. Paul wanted to strongly encourage him to train in the proper use of God’s Word so that he could refute the teachers of falsehood as well as deal with the issues Christians faced in the local congregations.

 

Armed with the Word of God which is the Sword of the Holy Spirit, we can as we are trained and skilled in interpreting and applying it, test all things. This means as we are exposed to ideas, philosophies, concepts and doctrines they can be tested by God’s Word as to whether they are true or false.

 

1 Thessalonians 5:21-23

“Test everything. Hold on to the good. Avoid every kind of evil.”

 

1 John 4:1-6

“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 Corinthians 10:3-5

“For though we live in the world, we do not wage war as the world does. The weapons we fight with are not the weapons of the world. On the contrary, they have divine power to demolish strongholds. We demolish arguments and every pretension that sets itself up against the knowledge of God, and we take captive every thought to make it obedient to Christ.”

 

OUR ARMOR

Not only do we have God’s Word to protect, lead and guide us we have spiritual armor that God has given us. Paul wrote a letter to the followers of Christ in Ephesus to list this armor. We find it in the book of Ephesians.

 

Ephesians 6:10-13

“Finally, be strong in the Lord and in his mighty power. Put on the full armor of God so that you can take your stand against the devil’s schemes. For our struggle is not against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the powers of this dark world and against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly realms. Therefore put on the full armor of God, so that when the day of evil comes, you may be able to stand your ground, and after you have done everything, to stand.”

 

This spiritual armor includes armor we wear continually as a follower of Christ that is listed in verses 14-15.

 

“Stand firm then, with the belt of truth buckled around your waist, with the breastplate of righteousness in place, and with your feet fitted with the readiness that comes from the gospel of peace.”

 

The Belt of Truth represents the truth of God that we live by and which our faith rests. We speak truth, live truthfully and govern our lives by being truthful. Truth holds up all of who we are in Christ and how we relate to others.

 

The Breastplate of Righteousness represents our obedience to the commands of God and the holy life we lead as a follower of Christ. When we are obedient to the Word, we will be strong to resist the temptations that false doctrines might throw at us.

 

Our feet are fitted with what here is called “the readiness of the gospel of peace.” Because we are at peace with God because our sins are forgiven we are ever ready to do battle against evil and false teaching. This requires us to be in constant fellowship with our Heavenly Father, always confessing our short-comings and sins so that we keep short accounts with our Lord.

 

Also included in our list of armor are those pieces we take up when we are in actual battle which are discussed in verses 16-17.

 

“In addition to all this, take up the shield of faith, with which you can extinguish all the flaming arrows of the evil one. Take the helmet of salvation and the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God.”

 

The shield of faith spoken of here is the faith and trust we have in Christ who is our Savior, Lord and Master. We have faith that He will protect and preserve us especially when we are in a battle against lies and deception of a false teacher. Satan loves to attack us and he attempts to mislead us with the lies of false teachers. When we put on this shield of faith in Christ we protect our hearts and minds from spiritual attack.

 

The helmet of salvation spoken of here is the secure salvation we have that rests in our Lord. When we put on this helmet, we are confident that God has saved us through His Son Jesus Christ and nothing can take that from us. It gives us confidence that no false teaching can undermine the security we have in our salvation.

 

The sword of the Spirit is of course the Word of God and can be used for both offense and defense. We use the Word offensively by sharing scripture to refute and condemn false teachings. We use the Word defensively when we verify what truth is as compared to falsehoods and lies that we might be exposed to by a false teacher.

 

Finally we are called to always pray in verse 18.

 

“And pray in the Spirit on all occasions with all kinds of prayers and requests. With this in mind, be alert and always keep on praying for all the saints.”

 

While we wear some armor continually and pick up other armor when we go into battle, we are always to be fervently, consistently and persistently praying. Prayer is our constant channel of communication with our Heavenly Father. It also could be considered a weapon, for we can call upon the Lord for help, protection, faith, confidence and strength at any moment we need it. You might also call it a “stealth” weapon, for it can penetrate physical walls and traverse long distances with little effort. We can pray for others who are in the hospital even though they are not present with us and we can even pray for people on the other side of the globe without leaving our living room. It’s an amazing gift, privilege and weapon that God can use to help us and others.

 

Finally, another prevention against the perversions of the pretenders is to always remember who you are in Christ! You are called by Him to live a holy life. You are kept by His power. You are loved by your Heavenly Father. You are blessed by the Holy Spirit living within you! Following are some truths from the book of Ephesians that tell of our privileges and rights as a follower of Christ.

 

We are blessed with all spiritual blessings.

We are chosen in Him before the foundation of the world.

We are loved and adopted as sons and daughters of Jesus Christ.

We are even given an incorruptible and lavish inheritance that will not fade.

We are made secure.

We are sealed in Him with the Holy Spirit of promise.

We are spiritually alive and shall live forever.

We are objects of grace and always will be.

We are His masterpiece, His workmanship, created in Christ Jesus to do good.

We were brought near to God by Christ’s death at the cross.

We are members of His family and member’s of God’s household.

We are a building in which the Holy Spirit lives.

We can be strengthened with the God’s power through the Holy Spirit in our inner person.

We can experience Christ settling down in our hearts, being rooted and grounded in love.

We possess the Son of God and the Spirit of God, and have a relationship with God the Father.

We are growing together into Christ’s likeness.

We don’t live the way we used to live.

We have been taught the truth.

We seek to be continually renewed in the spirit of our minds.

We are imitators of God.

We walk in love as Christ loved us.

We walk in wisdom.

We have all things that pertain to life and Godliness.

We lack nothing.

 

Remember the following scriptures!

 

1 Peter 3:15-17

“But in your hearts set apart Christ as Lord. Always be prepared to give an answer to everyone who asks you to give the reason for the hope that you have. But do this with gentleness and respect, keeping a clear conscience, so that those who speak maliciously against your good behavior in Christ may be ashamed of their slander.”

 

Jude 24-25

“To him who is able to keep you from falling and to present you before his glorious presence without fault and with great joy— to the only God our Savior be glory, majesty, power and authority, through Jesus Christ our Lord, before all ages, now and forevermore! Amen.”