False Teachers are So Humble...
Good Evening. A Puritan’s Mind brings you the old time radio program The Wild Boar News Podcast from Sunny South Florida. Welcome, I’m Dr. Matthew McMahon.
False teachers have plagued the church ever since the church has been a church. From the false teaching of Satan in the garden of Eden with Adam and Eve, to Balaam and his attempted cursings against the Israelites, to Hymaneus, Alexander and Philetus who taught that the resurrection has already occurred, and shipwrecked their faith.
But it seems that false teachers have a way with people. Of course they do. People would never be swayed by a devil wearing red pajamas and toting a pitchfork. They would not be so stupid as to follow the devil in open array (though some still might.) Rather, false teachers have always had a charisma about them. They were strong leaders and those using persuasive words. They are like the super-apostles that the Apostle Paul had to contend with in his Corinthian correspondence. 2 Corinthians 11:4, “For if he who comes preaches another Jesus whom we have not preached, or if you receive a different spirit which you have not received, or a different gospel which you have not accepted -- you may well put up with it!” Interestingly, these false apostles and false teachers spoke well and won the crowd. Paul himself says 2 Corinthians 11:6, “Even though I am untrained in speech…” False teachers and those spreading lies and deception through demonic doctrines are always persuasive speakers and clever entrepreneurs. Arius, the great heretic of the 4th century, was the originator of Arianism, a heretical Christological teaching which refused to concede the full divinity of Christ. How did he infiltrate the church? He was a great entrepreneur. Arius came up with taking his ideas and put them to songs. Thus hymnody was born in the midst of the people of God where heresies were sung as jingles that could easily be remembered.
Not only are false teachers outwardly charismatic, but most of the time, they seem to be brimming with love and compassion toward the people of God, though it be false love, and with great godly morals against the wrong that has been done to them. They are equally “hurt” when their voices and ideas are shot down by godly pastors. They think themselves ill used and often put out the most humble of speeches and letters telling us all how badly they have been abused. This was even the case over the past week on the Reformed Puritanboard. Some Federal Visionists infiltrated the board, and after they had their privileges removed from interacting and no longer had the ability to post their ungodly information, they felt abused for being called out on it. After being called out on their position, they said they were, “publicly defamed” and that their “character and our motives as well as lied about.” They said that they found our behavior “disgraceful, lacking in Christian charity.” They ultimate said that the Reformed Board administrators were “wrong and are in sin”. They ended with “When you are ready to apologize and seek forgiveness from us” we know how to contact them. Such speech seems like the epitome of martyrdom. Such manipulation and craftiness brims over from the pit of hell.
But such was the case with the false apostles in the Church at Corinth. Though Paul was not necessarily the greatest of speakers, so we say with him, 2 Corinthians 11:6, “Even though I am untrained in speech, yet I am not in knowledge.
Yes, the false teachers and propagators of heretical material and information will always feel abused and ill treated. They will make that known in earnest. They will “sniff sniff” weep and wail at the disgrace shown to them. But really, when one gets down to brass tacks, it’s very simple- they don’t like not getting their own way, and they don’t like it when the truth that sets others free, shackles them in their own schemes and banishes them from amidst the people of God. Humility, at the expense of truth, is the devil’s playground.
This is Dr. Matthew McMahon signing off.
False teachers have plagued the church ever since the church has been a church. From the false teaching of Satan in the garden of Eden with Adam and Eve, to Balaam and his attempted cursings against the Israelites, to Hymaneus, Alexander and Philetus who taught that the resurrection has already occurred, and shipwrecked their faith.
But it seems that false teachers have a way with people. Of course they do. People would never be swayed by a devil wearing red pajamas and toting a pitchfork. They would not be so stupid as to follow the devil in open array (though some still might.) Rather, false teachers have always had a charisma about them. They were strong leaders and those using persuasive words. They are like the super-apostles that the Apostle Paul had to contend with in his Corinthian correspondence. 2 Corinthians 11:4, “For if he who comes preaches another Jesus whom we have not preached, or if you receive a different spirit which you have not received, or a different gospel which you have not accepted -- you may well put up with it!” Interestingly, these false apostles and false teachers spoke well and won the crowd. Paul himself says 2 Corinthians 11:6, “Even though I am untrained in speech…” False teachers and those spreading lies and deception through demonic doctrines are always persuasive speakers and clever entrepreneurs. Arius, the great heretic of the 4th century, was the originator of Arianism, a heretical Christological teaching which refused to concede the full divinity of Christ. How did he infiltrate the church? He was a great entrepreneur. Arius came up with taking his ideas and put them to songs. Thus hymnody was born in the midst of the people of God where heresies were sung as jingles that could easily be remembered.
Not only are false teachers outwardly charismatic, but most of the time, they seem to be brimming with love and compassion toward the people of God, though it be false love, and with great godly morals against the wrong that has been done to them. They are equally “hurt” when their voices and ideas are shot down by godly pastors. They think themselves ill used and often put out the most humble of speeches and letters telling us all how badly they have been abused. This was even the case over the past week on the Reformed Puritanboard. Some Federal Visionists infiltrated the board, and after they had their privileges removed from interacting and no longer had the ability to post their ungodly information, they felt abused for being called out on it. After being called out on their position, they said they were, “publicly defamed” and that their “character and our motives as well as lied about.” They said that they found our behavior “disgraceful, lacking in Christian charity.” They ultimate said that the Reformed Board administrators were “wrong and are in sin”. They ended with “When you are ready to apologize and seek forgiveness from us” we know how to contact them. Such speech seems like the epitome of martyrdom. Such manipulation and craftiness brims over from the pit of hell.
But such was the case with the false apostles in the Church at Corinth. Though Paul was not necessarily the greatest of speakers, so we say with him, 2 Corinthians 11:6, “Even though I am untrained in speech, yet I am not in knowledge.
Yes, the false teachers and propagators of heretical material and information will always feel abused and ill treated. They will make that known in earnest. They will “sniff sniff” weep and wail at the disgrace shown to them. But really, when one gets down to brass tacks, it’s very simple- they don’t like not getting their own way, and they don’t like it when the truth that sets others free, shackles them in their own schemes and banishes them from amidst the people of God. Humility, at the expense of truth, is the devil’s playground.
This is Dr. Matthew McMahon signing off.
