10 False Teachings That Could Ruin The Soul

            The Bible instructs every Christian to “Have nothing to do with the fruitless deeds of darkness, but rather expose them.” (Ephesians 5:11, NIV). False teaching,¹ most certainly, falls into the category of the ‘fruitless deeds of darkness.’ Hence, it is incumbent upon every sincere Christian to expose the false teachings prevalent in churches today.

                        Here’s a list of 10 most dangerous false teachings, which, I believe, have the potency to ruin our soul, if we believe and act according to them. In other words, we may not² be saved if we believe and live according to any of these teachings:

            1. No Truth: Postmodernists claim there is no truth. In other words, there are no objective standards of truth, rationality, and logic. They subscribe to alternate concepts such as relativism and subjectivism. Postmodern Christians subscribe to this notion as well. The Emerging/Emergent Church Movement is a derivative of postmodernism. The devious import of LGBTQ agenda into the church of Jesus Christ is an outcome of the postmodern thought process.

            2. No Bible: The detractors of Historic Christianity claim that the Bible is not the sole authority for a Christian. You can assimilate just about any religious book and trust just about any book that may seemingly offer you wisdom. This is another postmodern thought.

            The Roman Catholic Church buys into this thought as well. The Catechism of the Catholic Church believes that Muslims, just as Christians, would be saved even though they do not believe in Jesus or the Bible, so much so that the Catholic church considers the Quran and the Bible as coequals, “841 The Church's relationship with the Muslims. "The plan of salvation also includes those who acknowledge the Creator, in the first place amongst whom are the Muslims; these profess to hold the faith of Abraham, and together with us they adore the one, merciful God, mankind's judge on the last day."³³⁰”³       

    

            Another variant of this teaching is to believe that the Bible is corrupt (filled with error) and fallible. This erroneous belief led the founder of Mormonism, Joseph Smith, to start a new religion.

            3. No Jesus: Those who deny Jesus may believe in HIS divinity, but they also believe that the Lord Jesus Christ is not the only way to heaven. You can believe in just about any god and still go to heaven, they claim. Even if you do not believe in God, you can go to heaven. These are some of the various strands of Universalism. Quite a few Christians believe in Universalism or Inclusivism.

            4. No God, this Jesus: Jesus Christ is not God. Jesus Christ was a mere man during HIS life on earth. “Any teaching that redefines the person of Jesus Christ. Doctrine that denies the deity of Christ, the virgin birth, His sinless nature, His actual death, or His physical resurrection is false doctrine. A group’s errant Christology readily identifies it as a sect or cult that may claim to be Christian but is actually teaching false doctrine. Even many mainline denominations have begun the rapid slide into apostasy by declaring that they no longer hold to a literal interpretation of Scripture or the deity of Christ. First John 4:1–3 makes it clear that a denial of biblical Christology is “anti-Christ.” Jesus described false teachers within the church as “wolves in sheep’s clothing” (Matthew 7:15),” says Gotquestions.org.⁴

            Jehovah’s Witnesses believe that Jesus was a mere man when he was born on earth.

            5. No Resurrection: Jesus Christ did not [bodily] resurrect. Proponents of this erroneous teaching either subscribe to a notion that Christ did not resurrect or Christ’s resurrection was not a bodily resurrection. Jehovah’s Witnesses believe that Christ’s resurrection was spiritual and not a bodily resurrection.

            Another false teaching that can be accommodated into this category is that Jesus did not die, but lived on to marry and have children. This was the main theme of the bestseller book Da Vinci Code.

            6. No Trinity: “Mormons believe that the Trinity consists not of three persons in one God but rather of three distinct gods. According to Mormonism, there are potentially many thousands of gods besides these,” says an article in The Gospel Coalition.⁵ 

     

            Christian apologist J. Warner Wallace claims that those who deny the Trinity subscribe to some form of polytheism or they deny the deity of Jesus Christ.⁶

            Trinity is actively denied by the Jehovah’s Witnesses, Oneness Pentecostals, and Unification Church, etc.

            7. No Hell: Seventh Day Adventists believe that hell is not infinite torture. An article in Christianity.com states, “Adventists believe that hell is not an eternity of suffering and torture. They believe God is just but also merciful and it’s not in the nature of God to torture the unrighteous for eternity. Instead, sinners and unbelievers will ultimately die for eternity.

            Most Adventists believe some variant of annihilationism, which says that after final judgment, all unbelievers will be destroyed rather than suffering in hell. In this belief, the Old Testament and New Testament say that the final end for nonbelievers is total extinction. For example, in Romans, Paul describes hell as a final punishment, where the wicked die, perish or are destroyed.”⁷

            Annihilationism proposes a lack of hell. Those who subscribe to annihilationism believe that the wicked will die once and for all, thereby escaping the horror of hellfire. 

            8. No Grace, But Hyper-Grace: Hyper-grace teachers abuse God’s grace and teach people that our sins are forgiven once and for all (past, present, and future). Hence, there is no need to confess and repent our sins to God. “In short, hyper-grace teachers “pervert the grace of our God into a license for immorality” (Jude 1:4) and flirt with antinomianism…Hyper-grace preachers also claim the Holy Spirit will never convict Christians of their sin. Mature Christians should recognize this fallacy right away. Every disciple of Christ has felt the overwhelming conviction of the Holy Spirit when he or she has sinned. Jesus calls the Holy Spirit “the Spirit of Truth” (John 15:26). Truth, by its very definition, will not tolerate anything false. When the Spirit of Truth abides in a believing heart (1 Corinthians 6:19), He brings conviction about anything that is not truth,” says Gotquestions.org.⁸

            The Lord Jesus said, ““But if anyone causes one of these little ones who believe in me to sin, it would be better for him to have a huge millstone hung around his neck and to be drowned in the open sea…” (Matthew 18:6, NET). Hence, if hyper-grace teachers teach people that sinning is acceptable in the presence of God, they negate the Bible.

            9. No Grace, Yes Works: “Teaching that adds human religious works to Christ’s finished work on the cross as necessary ingredients for salvation. This teaching may pay lip service to salvation by faith alone but insists that a religious ritual (such as water baptism) is salvific. Some groups even legislate hairstyles, clothing options, and food consumption. Romans 11:6 warns against attempts to mix grace with works. Ephesians 2:8–9 says we are saved by the grace of God, through faith, and nothing we do can add to or take away from it. Galatians 1:6–9 pronounces a curse on anyone who changes the good news of salvation by grace,”⁹ says Gotquestions.org.

            The Bible does not say that Christians should not do good works. Doing good works, for a Christian, is a logical corollary/consequence to his/her salvation. This verse in the Bible sums it up well, “For it is by grace you have been saved, through faith—and this is not from yourselves, it is the gift of God—not by works, so that no one can boast. For we are God’s handiwork, created in Christ Jesus to do good works, which God prepared in advance for us to do.” (Ephesians 2: 8-10, NIV).

            Major religions emphasize doing good works (e.g. Judaism, Islam, Hinduism, etc.). Only Historic Christianity teaches that we are saved by grace through faith in the Lord Jesus Christ. Therefore, those who believe in Jesus Christ as their Lord and Savior will be saved, “…because if you confess with your mouth that Jesus is Lord and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead, you will be saved. For with the heart one believes and thus has righteousness and with the mouth one confesses and thus has salvation.” (Romans 10:9-10, NET).

            10. No Historic Christianity, Yes New Age: If you wonder why many churches around the world adopt yoga, then you need to keep the New Age Movement in your radar. Yoga is a Hindu salvific exercise.

            In an earlier blog of mine entitled “Should Christians Practice Yoga,” I stated the false teachings prevalent in the churches:¹⁰

False Teaching In Christianity To Encourage Yoga

Some false teachers within Christianity who encourage yoga⁸ emphasize that the yogic codes such as Yamas and Niyamas can strengthen our appreciation towards the Christian teachings. They maintain that the yogic codes resonate with the Christian moral teachings.

“Ahimsa” (non-violence) is one of the “yamas” (restraints) of the yoga sutras of Patanjali (an Indian sage - considered to be an incarnation of the mythical serpent Anantha, as some believe). It seems Ahimsa resonates with the Christian moral teaching “love your neighbor as yourself.”

Similarly, one of the “Niyamas” (observances) of Patanjali’s yoga sutras is “Saucha” (Cleanliness or purity). Saucha teaches the necessity of purity or cleanliness in body and mind so to attain union with God. Apparently, Saucha resonates with the cleanliness teaching of Matthew 15: 16-20, and prayer, fasting and Scripture reading that focuses on the cleanliness of the heart.

Exposing The False Teaching

At the heart of the false teaching that yogic codes are essential to appreciate Christianity is the notion that all religions should converge, and truth (from various disparate worldviews) is always convergent.

This is Syncretism (fusion of divergent religions) in full force. Syncretism presupposes an inadequacy of any single religion to comprehend the divine on its own.

But every Christian should understand that God can be adequately understood from HIS Holy Word – The Bible. Christianity does not require Hinduism or one of its practices, namely yoga, to help understand and believe in God and HIS Son the Lord Jesus Christ.

What is the significance of these similarities between Patanjali's Yamas and Niyamas with the Bible? None! There is absolutely no significance! So what if two worldviews teach similarly? Does similarity in teaching syncretize religions? No!

Hinduism and Christianity are two fundamentally different religions (Godhead, salvation etc). Certain points of interconnect in the teachings of these religions will certainly not harmonize these religions. 

            By now you may wonder why Prosperity Gospel (Health & Wealth Gospel) does not feature in the list above.  I do not think that those lay Christians who subscribe to health & wealth gospel would go to hell because they do not deny any of the essential tenets of Historic Christianity. But their proponents aka the teachers, who twist the Bible to their own benefit, are most certainly treading on dangerous grounds, with respect to their own salvation (cf. Matthew 7: 21-23).

Endnotes:

¹Any teaching that contradicts the Bible is a false teaching or false teaching could be defined as that which denies the essential tenets of Historic Christianity. The essential tenets of Historic Christianity being God’s Triunity, Christ’s Birth, HIS sinlessness, death, burial, bodily resurrection & ascension, Christ’s 2nd coming, the final judgment, heaven & hell, the inspired and the infallible Bible.

²I do not want to sit in the judgment seat, which only belongs to Christ, so I say ‘may not.’ However, the chances of them not being saved are very high.

³http://www.vatican.va/archive/ccc_css/archive/catechism/p123a9p3.htm

⁴https://www.gotquestions.org/false-doctrine.html

⁵https://www.thegospelcoalition.org/blogs/justin-taylor/the-8-beliefs-you-should-know-about-mormons-when-they-knock-at-the-door/

⁶https://coldcasechristianity.com/writings/why-is-the-trinity-an-essential-christian-doctrine/

⁷https://www.christianity.com/church/denominations/10-things-everyone-should-know-about-seventh-day-adventists-and-their-beliefs.html

⁸https://www.gotquestions.org/hyper-grace.html

⁹https://www.gotquestions.org/false-doctrine.html 

¹⁰https://rajkumarrichard.blogspot.com/2014/02/should-christians-practice-yoga.html

Websites last accessed on 7^th June 2019.

Joyce Meyer Denounces Prosperity Gospel; What About You?

            Finally, Joyce Meyer realized that the prosperity gospel is not only a theological aberration, but it rudely condemns God’s most faithful disciples, just by virtue of their suffering.

            An article in Faithwire revealed the good news of Joyce Meyer’s transformation, “Evangelist Joyce Meyer recently admitted that in the past, her views on the “prosperity Gospel” were “out of balance.”

            Meyer, who has received much criticism for her preaching on the prosperity Gospel, shared with her Instagram followers the dangers in taking such theology too close to heart.

            “I’m glad for what I learned about prosperity, but it got out of balance,” the well-known Christian author and speaker said. “I’m glad for what I’ve learned about faith, but it got out of balance.”

            Meyer noted that this sort of theology led her to believe that the reason others experienced calamities was due to a lack of faith.

            “Every time somebody had a problem in their life, [I thought] it’s because they didn’t have enough faith. If you got sick it’s because you don’t have enough faith. If your child died, it’s because you don’t have enough faith,” Meyer said.

            She explained that she has since learned that faith doesn’t ensure that everything will be perfect, but rather it means simply putting your trust in God in all things.

            “Faith is something God gives you that you need to use and release in your life. It’s a powerful force but it’s not just an automatic, you put your trust in God, you put your faith in Him,” Meyer added.

            Meyer’s announcement came as a surprise to some, as she has been a major proponent of the prosperity Gospel in the past.”¹

            Joyce Meyer, in her 8^th January 2019 video on Instagram, said, “Faith is something God gives you that you need to use and release in your life. It’s a powerful force, but it’s not just an automatic. You put your trust in God. You put your faith in HIM. I’m glad for what I learned about prosperity, but it got out of balance. I’m glad for what I learned out of faith, but it got out of balance. And so every time somebody had a problem in their life was ‘cause they didn’t have enough faith. If you got sick, you didn’t have enough faith. If your child died, you didn’t have enough faith. Well, that’s not right. You can’t – there’s nowhere in the Bible where we’re promised that we’ll never have any trouble. I don’t care how much faith you’ve got, you’re not gonna avoid ever having trouble in your life. Jesus said, “In the world there will be tribulation. Cheer up, I have overcome the world.”²

            This is the same Joyce Meyer, who audaciously said that Christ might have owned an airplane, had HE been living now.³

            But by the grace of God, Joyce Meyer has now understood the truth behind prosperity. Now, we believe, that her ministry would effect a change in the hearts and minds of those who have fallen for the deceptiveness of the prosperity gospel.

            The deceptiveness of the prosperity gospel was emphasized by Pastor John Piper, “In a video for his ministry, Desiring God, Piper argues that a huge component of the prosperity Gospel is wealth.

                        He points out that Paul talks about the dangers of money in 1 Timothy 6:6-10:

But godliness with contentment is great gain, for we brought nothing into the world, and we cannot take anything out of the world. But if we have food and clothing, with these we will be content. But those who desire to be rich fall into temptation, into a snare, into many senseless and harmful desires that plunge people into ruin and destruction. For the love of money is a root of all kinds of evils. It is through this craving that some have wandered away from the faith and pierced themselves with many pangs.

            “In other words, the very thing that leads people to suicidal piercings of pain is nurtured and cultivated by the prosperity preachers,” he notes. “They are encouraging that this suicidal behavior happens. That is abominable.”

            “It’s because riches are such dangerous things. They’re not a blessing usually, they’re usually a curse. People are cursed with riches; they’re destroyed by riches,” Piper added.

            He goes on to point out that “it’s not sinful to make a lot of money, but sinful to keep a lot of money.”⁴

            Prosperity Gospel is indeed deceptive.

            But just as Joyce Meyer realized before it’s too late, let’s hope and pray that the bulldogs of the prosperity gospel – the Joel Osteens and the T.D Jakes’ of this world  – and their believers, understand the deceptiveness of the prosperity gospel and preach Christ-crucified, for Christ did not come to make poor people rich, HE came to make dead people live (spiritually).

Endnotes:

¹https://www.faithwire.com/2019/01/14/joyce-meyer-takes-a-jab-at-the-prosperity-gospel-denounces-her-past-beliefs-in-it/

²https://www.instagram.com/p/BsWuTxmjS_y/?utm_source=ig_embed

³https://abcnews.go.com/Nightline/joyce-meyer-transparent-evangelist/story?id=10355887

⁴https://www.faithwire.com/2019/01/14/joyce-meyer-takes-a-jab-at-the-prosperity-gospel-denounces-her-past-beliefs-in-it/

Websites last accessed on 17^th January 2019. 

Was Jesus Poor?

            Was Jesus poor or wealthy when HE lived on earth? The common notion is that HE was poor. But the prosperity gospel preachers preach that Christ was wealthy.

            Before we seek an answer to the question about Jesus’ financial status, let us ask another question: Why is the question – Was Jesus poor or rich – even relevant? In other words, is this a subject worthy of our time and effort?

            At the very least, the preachers of ‘prosperity gospel’ or ‘health & wealth gospel’ allude to the notion that Christ was rich. Hence they convince their audience that they should be rich and not poor. Therefore, knowledge of this subject would enable us to determine whether there is any truth to the claims of the prosperity gospel preachers.   

The Case For Jesus’ Affluence

            A paper published in the journal African Research Review, entitled Jesus: Born Poor or Rich? and authored by Professor Ozomogo Jason Osai, presents arguments in favor of Jesus being born rich:

1. Carpentry, as a profession then, is equivalent to the modern day professions of an architect or a construction engineer. Hence Joseph was not a poor carpenter; rather he was a wealthy man.  

2. Apparently, Mary’s parents were wealthy, “Virgin Mary “was born in the city of Nazareth and educated at Jerusalem.” Implicit in this account is that she was sent from Nazareth, the city of her birth, to Jerusalem for education; even by the standards of Judaea of that epoch, the education of the boy child belonged amongst the rich; now, for a family to send its girl child to school not in the home city but in faraway Jerusalem, which was the regional center of learning and a comparatively expensive city, is a clear indication of not only wealth but consciousness of the invaluable essence of education.”

3. Jesus’ birth in a manger is another instance of his parents being wealthy. The Bible says that Jesus was born in a manger because there was no room in the inn, “And she gave birth to her first-born son and wrapped him in swaddling cloths, and laid him in a manger, because there was no place for them in the inn.” (Luke 2:7, RSV). This implies that Joseph had enough money to pay for a room in the inn. Therefore, Joseph was not a poor man.

4. Jesus’ escape to Egypt is a case for his parents’ affluence. Joseph and Mary would not have been able to afford an unplanned escape to Egypt had they not owned sufficient financial resources.

            Proponents of the case for Jesus’ affluence cite these reasons as well:¹

1. Jesus was born into a family that owned a home.

2. Jesus’ step-father worked as a skilled carpenter and was required to pay taxes in Bethlehem even trying to rent a room at the inn there.

3. Jesus was born into the world and as a child was given gifts of gold, frankincense and myrrh.

4. Jesus was not hungry and was criticized for eating with sinners and publicans.

5. Jesus wore fine expensive clothes of the day that were gambled over when He was crucified proving their extreme value.

6. When challenged by Jesus to feed the 5000, His disciples asked “do you want us to spend a year’s wages to buy bread for this crowd?” proving they had that much money in their pockets to do this.

7. The disciple Judas was the appointed treasurer of the entire ministry and this is only necessary if you have enough money to manage.

8. If Judas could steal money and it goes unnoticed, then there was a lot of money in his possession.

The Case For Jesus’ Poverty

            For years, preachers have preached about a poor Jesus and they may not be absolutely incorrect. The Bible seems to suggest that Jesus was poor. Consider these verses:

            Jesus did not have a house to live in: Matthew 8:20: “Jesus replied, “Foxes have dens and birds have nests, but the Son of Man has no place to lay his head.”” (NIV).

            Jesus was buried in a borrowed tomb: Matthew 27: 57-61: “Now when evening had come, there came a rich man from Arimathea, named Joseph, who himself had also become a disciple of Jesus. This man went to Pilate and asked for the body of Jesus. Then Pilate commanded the body to be given to him. When Joseph had taken the body, he wrapped it in a clean linen cloth, and laid it in his new tomb which he had hewn out of the rock; and he rolled a large stone against the door of the tomb, and departed. And Mary Magdalene was there, and the other Mary, sitting opposite the tomb.” (NIV, Emphasis Mine).

            Jesus taught that earthly treasures are not important: Matthew 6: 19-20: “Do not store up for yourselves treasures on earth, where moths and vermin destroy, and where thieves break in and steal. But store up for yourselves treasures in heaven, where moths and vermin do not destroy, and where thieves do not break in and steal.” (NIV).

            Matthew 10:9-11: “Do not get any gold or silver or copper to take with you in your belts — no bag for the journey or extra shirt or sandals or a staff, for the worker is worth his keep. Whatever town or village you enter, search there for some worthy person and stay at their house until you leave.” (NIV).

            Joseph and Mary were too poor to sacrifice a lamb: “…in Luke 2:24, it is written that the Holy Family offered a sacrifice of “a pair of turtledoves or two young pigeons.” Leviticus 12:8 reads: “If, however, she cannot afford a lamb, she may take two turtledoves or two pigeons.” This shows that the Holy Family was too poor to be able to afford the prescribed sacrifice and instead had to present the alternative the Law allowed for the poor…” (NIV), says an article in the uCatholic.²

            Christian apologist, Bill Muehlenberg emphasizes that Jesus was like most people in the first century Palestine: basically poor but able to get by. He contends that if Jesus and HIS disciples were affluent, they would not have required support from wealthy women (Luke 8:2-3; Mark 15: 40-41).³

            On a side note, the Bible states that Jesus had a home, “And when he returned to Caper′na-um after some days, it was reported that he was at home. And many were gathered together, so that there was no longer room for them, not even about the door; and he was preaching the word to them.” (Mark 2:1-2, RSV; cf. Matthew 4:13). So those who claim that Christ had no home to live in are not accurately portraying the Biblical data.

If Jesus Was Rich, Should Christians Seek To Be Rich?

            Preachers of the prosperity gospel emphasize that every believer in Christ should be wealthy. Bill Muehlenberg discredits this notion:⁴

The issue is this: during his life on earth, was Jesus “extremely wealthy” as folks claim, or was he very much like most people back in first century Palestine: basically poor, but able to get by.

All the biblical evidence we have would suggest the latter. And given how often Jesus warned about the dangers of wealth, it is highly unlikely that he chose an opulent and extravagant lifestyle. In fact, everything we know about Jesus suggests the exact opposite.

Those preachers who want to convince believers that they should always be rich and rolling in the dough by appealing to Jesus and the disciples are simply on very shaky ground when it comes to the biblical record. The truth is this: God may not want us wealthy, but he most certainly wants us holy. And if financial hardship is part of the means to bring about such holiness, then God is more than happy to use it.

And if he can trust us with wealth and riches, that is also fine. Of course the point of having such wealth is to finance the work of the Kingdom, not to be lavishing it all on ourselves. Wealth is a gift of God and is to be used for his work. But a lack of wealth is also a way in which God can and does work.

The issue is not ultimately about money, but our attitude toward it. The prosperity gospel teachers are simply appealing to carnal, materialistic and greedy desires when they promise every Christian great wealth. The Scriptures make no such promise, and Jesus and the disciples did not live it. We are promised however that if we put his Kingdom first, everything else will be added unto us (not for our greed, but for our need).

            Finally, Jesus’ financial status is irrelevant. Even if HE were rich, there is no reasonable biblical support to the claims of the prosperity gospel preachers.

Endnotes:

¹https://agapegeek.com/2011/08/07/did-jesus-have-no-money-and-set-an-example-of-poverty-for-us-to-follow/

²https://www.ucatholic.com/blog/jesus-really-born-poor-one-biblical-hint-offers-clue/

³https://billmuehlenberg.com/2013/08/14/were-jesus-and-the-disciples-wealthy-part-one/

⁴https://billmuehlenberg.com/2013/08/14/were-jesus-and-the-disciples-wealthy-part-two/

Websites last accessed on 13^th June 2018.