Untrustworthy Preachers (Part A)

These heretics are coming to the church that use the Lord's name.

We often use the Bible's words such words as true love, faith, kindness, and meanings are entirely different there applications for connections not connected to the throne of God connected to the kingdom of hell and it is most often simply the just ambitious men not too interested in what God has disabled what God can get for them.

No wonder Peter starts off slamming his false teachers. This is cross reference radio with our pastor and teacher Rick Gaston. Rick is the pastor of Calvary Chapel Mechanicsville. Pastor Rick is currently teaching through the book of second Peter, please stay with us after today's message to hear more information about cross reference radio, specifically how you can get a free copy of this teaching. We begin a new chapter in second Peter chapter 2 and the new message on trustworthy preachers is pestering you all written second Peter chapter 2 and if you like water down preaching and heresy. You picked the wrong time to come to church. We will take versus one through three and that will be quite a bit for this morning. So if you have your Bibles open to second Peter chapter 2, but there were also false prophets among the people, even as there will be false 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 way of truth will be blasphemed by covetousness they will exploit you with deceptive words for a long time. Their judgment has not been idle in their destruction does not slumber on trustworthy preachers last session in Peter second Peter we discussed the trustworthy scriptures that we have and Peter of course moves right to the antithesis the the other side which are these untrustworthy profits. He had said to his listeners that he did not follow cunningly devised fables when he made known to them the power and the coming of Christ. What was an eyewitness and eight.

He briefly takes them back to that moment on the Mount of Transfiguration is very very clear about this. Maybe. Maybe you are a you know an atheist who says I don't believe God exists, to which we respond will I do and maybe you know a an agnostic who says well I can't tell if God exists or not what our responses will I can and this authority is is born of faith.

In truth, in fact, and it is a powerful thing that has allowed the church to survive more onslaughts than any religion ever known to man and so we've been sufficiently warned in Scripture new and Old Testament ally that they're going to be these false teachers. These troublemakers within the body of Christ and yet with these warnings, false prophets have infested our churches today are all over the place of forget about the Internet that that's what they breed them. There is something and Jesus does uptake of just about 20 or 30 verses for a moment and just a few verses our Lord Jesus Christ.

He said beware of false prophets, who come to you in sheep's clothing, but inwardly they are ravenous wolves.

They will gobble you up.

They will chew you alive. Matthew 2411 Jesus the Lord says again then many false prophets will rise up and deceive many. That's the end times many false prophets in the preparing preparing the apostate church for antichrist in the time we're living in now. We are in the that the preparatory stages for antichrist to launch his despicable offensive against righteousness again. Matthew 24 Jesus speaking for false Christ's and false prophets will rise up will rise and show great signs and wonders to deceive, if possible, even the elect loose gospel. Again, the Lord said woe to you when all men speak well of you for so did their fathers to the false prophets. Acts chapter 13 now when they had gone through the Isle of pathos. They found a certain saucer, a false prophet, a Jew named bar Jesus then John and his first letter writes, beloved, do not believe every spirit, but test the spirits whether they are of God, because many false prophets have gone into the world that this is not even a percentage of what the Bible has to say about false teachers, false prophets, fake goes, claiming to represent the voice of God. Remember the word prophecy in Scripture is not limited to prediction. It is quite a bit before it includes prediction predictive prophecy with there's direct prophecy. There's encouragement government forms of anytime soon with preaching the word of God. It is a form of prophecy. In that sense false teachers. They made their way to the churches in Galatia and callously in predominance in Thyatira and likely Laodicea also this in the age of the apostles while they were still alive. Ephesians chapter 4 Paul said that God had given to the church, the apostles, the prophets, those who evangelized the pastor teachers and he said, for the equipping of the saints for the work of ministry, for the edification of the body of Christ. Satan comes along counterfeiter that he is and he gives to the apostate church for the stripping of the saints, the obstruction of ministry and the ruin of the body of Christ.

He flips everything around to the wicked and the evil and the negative were not ignorant of his devices were fully aware of what he does. And yet he gets away with it. So will hopefully discuss some of why he is so successful. But in the end it comes down to the individual. If you do not love the truth of Jesus Christ, you are lined up for destruction. These heretics to come into the church. They use the Lord's name. They often use the Bible's words such words as truth and love and faith and kindness within meanings are entirely different there applications for connections that are not connected to the throne of God connected to the kingdom of hell and it is most often simply the just ambitious men not too interested in what God has disabled what God can get for them. No wonder Peter starts off slamming his false teachers.

And he doesn't let up to the rest of his letter. So now we look at verse one.

There were also false prophets among the people, even as there will be false teachers among you who will secretly bring in destructive heresies, even denying the Lord who bought them, and bring on themselves swift destruction again is linking what he said no chapter divisions when he wrote the letter is freely wrote the letters and easiest moving from this point was of God's word is trustworthy. Holy men moved by the Holy Spirit and and now we EK comes to wicked men moved by satanic spirits.

We say Satan, we mean the whole realm of the underworld against mankind. Contrary to God. We don't just think of Satan as Lucifer, the leader of the pack.

Well, having pointed out, Peter is going to warned the church, the devil is corrupting ways is going to use Scripture to do it verses two and three tells us about the doctrine of false teachers, heretics, and verses three, also the latter part through verse nine he speaks of the doom of the heretics and then verse 10 through verse 22 of second Peter chapter 2, he talks about the deeds of the heretics we have the doctrine, the doom and the deeds church is no excuse totally prepared for these chomps and yet behaviorism were not. Not all of us, those who don't love the truth would insist on staying somewhere close to Christianity in name only, and I don't think Peter doesn't give them much did Doug give many tolerance. Neither the Paul and everything in Peter St. Paul is hit on John is in on the deal. Prophets have hit on these things and that is a lesson that God is saying man is prone to idolatry to era and aware of this, God has given us the ammunition. The body armor for the body of Christ for the individual Christian to withstand these things and he says here after heat so that was that connectionist is brought in contrast to the righteous men, but there will also be false prophets and there were also false prophets among the people of the people. Of course, is referencing here of the Jewish people. He saying those righteous Jews had to deal with this junk also an interesting word false prophet is pseudo-prophets of the word for false sooner we get our English word love for pseudo-fake fraud foe prophets you'd like, and this warning to the church of their arrival. That's what Peter is doing.

Jude will announce their here Peter is saying they going to come in bigger numbers there already. The newly when they are ready but they got a increase in Judah right and say well it's happened and that that unison between the two men because of the Holy Spirit within the Bible. False prophets fell into basically three categories. Those who worship false gods and serve idols, and they had their false prophets true Christianity says that all the other religions and their profits of false mama to Christianity as a false prophet false Christianity says is not so that's false Christianity doesn't believe the criteria set for us through Scripture. The second category false prophet are those who falsely claim to receive the message of the Lord when they really are rejecting it. This one is this just so successful because they tell you we believe in the Bible, and then they proceed to speak and they don't believe it but the audience often times has been deceived.

We believe the Bible okay but then I listening justice. Yesterday I saw this thing on YouTube it said the untold story of David and Goliath here we go.

This no untold story.

So yeah, I took the bait, but I had my 1911 out ready and so there is this evening. He was dressed as though all the close goodwill refused. He put on a just and is okay so he's supposed to be Einstein didn't care how he love the you just suppose except in bays in the mirror I got going personal and not your conviction, but it's mine. Nobody should be dressed like a bum all the time except the bomb therein, I'm back is is talking about David and Goliath and right away, it is still storyteller kind of approach, and after he tells a story not very well. He begins to pick it apart as though will Goliath really was a sickly man and and David really was you know of a strong and he needed and it just makes the story. Sound like there was no spiritual activity in this at all that God did not empower his servant with a righteous indignation to stand and say who is this uncircumcised Philistine that so defiles the name of the Lord blasphemes the name of God, and David, you couldn't hold them back because it was unleashed righteousness against the iniquity that stood before him, and the speaker with this water down talking all the most minds just listening to them so thrilled by what he was saying and how he was saying it the wrong all of them, giving no honor to the King of Kings to Jesus Christ okay I don't know if this person was claiming to be a Christian or not. I didn't mean to bring this up, I couldn't hold it back just don't know that they're out there and people are listening to them chip away nibble away at the power of God's word and the doings of God in Scripture trying to communicate to us very intelligently that the Bible is really not all that this is just another story that we put it under the microscope of medical science and social studies. It will get to the bottom of these things I will find out the word of God is not living, and powerful, sharper than any two-edged sword, piercing to the division of the soul, spirit, joints and marrow, not to bother that they believe that it just irks me that people are satisfied with this had 35,000 likes 10,001 dislikes. How many of you are afraid to say I like that because you might get some hate response in the junk like that anyway.

Let's go back to this now.

I hope I don't sound carnal, but I do hope I do sound totally intolerant of anyone who tries to use the Bible to reduce the Bible and this is what were up against. It's always been, but now we've got this broadcast feature of the Internet that is atomic in its reach and we better have a response ready now. Granted, there are times you can be speaking to someone who you know is full out wrong, and God tells you just read just doesn't give you the open door.

You can see nothing welcome back to this. Those who falsely claim to receive the message from the Lord in the third category of those who have wandered from the truth and cease to be true prophets, but they still continue to flap their gums.

They continue to preach heresy instead of just you know find a go get another profession know they want to still deal with spiritual things thing I tried.

Christianity didn't work for me.

I found out it was not all of what it claimed to be.

What is it claimed to be the true way promises that there's going to be tribulation and the Mr. and that we are to endure endurance means you take the hits. There's nothing else you can do. You just have to take it and as a Christian you find out you can ask God to remove a certain this so that from your life, and he does not, then you have to take it in Christ, trusting him as a faithful and loving father. So the antidote for deceit is love of the truth not the truth. The love of the truth. What's the difference what if you just have the truth, but you don't love it, that's a recipe for apostasy. Apostates had the truth is in love after love it.

That's what were taught in the Scripture second Thessalonians chapter 2 Paul comes right out and tells us that there are those that did not have the love of the truth and they suffered for the coming of the lawless one is according to the working of Satan with all power signs and lying wonders bookmark that with all unrighteous deception among those who perished because they did not receive the love of the truth that they might be saved.

There's nothing about that. That is difficult to understand but instead of love for truth. Some love sensations and feelings and thrills over facts over obedience. Another words the feeling shuts off the truth.

That's why they like signs and wonders they want to be wow I like that to me more, but it's a lie that's okay. Feels good. No wonder Satan uses lying wonders, and no wonder we find him using lying wonders through antichrist to deceive the planet if possible. Said the Lord, even the elect many professing believers lap up baseless and thrilling words. Guardsmen have always locked horns with Satan's counterfeits who infiltrate groups of believers in this day and age you know if for an hour or so we come in and we kind of just leave everything else would reduce the distractions as much as humanly possible and there are so many that are not going back to that church and then the boatswain on the watered down teaching.

This setting themselves up. They have sent my priority is not God's word. My priority is my comfort being catered to animal that was mean this with.

I thought it out yet that far.

But this is what's going on God's men have come along, and it was always told the believers to stand upright.

Discipline yourselves against these things.

We all struggle with this or that none of us are super Christians.

None of us not one we are we are all called to try to be Jesus to be perfect like your father and how far is that the throne of God. Isaiah dealt with them.

Here's Isaiah chapter 30 speaking about the ministry. He was involved with. He said that God speaking to him. Of course, that this is a rebellious people lying children. Children who will not hear the law of Yahweh, who say to the Sears do not see that as the prophets enter the prophets do not prophesy to us right things speak to us. Smooth things prophesy deceits get out of the way turn aside from the path because the holy one of Israel to cease from before us is a this is lampooning he is.

This is satire. He is saying you will come out and say this but this is what you're doing and you know it, and God is on to you and you better eject you better pull out of this crashing plane. Jeremiah had to deal with them quite often. Of course Jeremiah 5. The prophets prophesy falsely in the preschool by their own authority and not subject to God. They've taken their ongoing themselves that they become the culture he continues and my people love to have it so what is up with that. What is God's people like to have this and then he says, but what were you doing the how you stand before God when judgment comes. Six. Identifying biblical marks of false prophets there others not an exhaustive list through signs and wonders they lead astray after false gods. Deuteronomy chapter 13. Every Christian should read Deuteronomy 13 member to their prophecies don't come to pass. Deuteronomy 18 versus 20, 22, they contradict God's word Isaiah 8 verse 20 they bear bad fruit that would mean it's immoral. It's on biblical it's not true.

Matthew seven verses 18 through 20. All men speak well of them, all men in the culture. Of course this is what ecumenical schism is can we all just get along and hold hands and prayed. As a matter what God you pray to, and I pray to what just all pray together yet. We like that applause from hell. Number six. They deny that Jesus the one and only Christ has come once for all in the flesh. First John chapter 4 verse three, Jesus is not you know he didn't really begin to attack him messages six only takes one to be a false prophet and I weave you get to out-of-print notes is one Peter continues. He says even as there will be false teachers among you really saying is nothing new about this.

This is the one topic that we can approach with little restraint as is because it's such an obvious thing. The fires can you can just coat the flames in the boiler get it hot because this is about damning souls. False teachers are not just those who win.

You know people to their side. Unless you say it this way what side is that eternal condemnation, hell, separation from God. Those are the stakes. When talking about winning a debate with talking about where you want to go you believe these people. Why do you believe Satan sows his weed seeds amongst the wheat when we know this is Jesus warned in Matthew 13 false prophets. There are those that know the truth but don't like so they've mingled with it. Those things that refuse the truth that make it longer true may abandon the truth and that when I say they know what, I'm not saying that submitted to the agreement saying they are aware of it. They are aware of what God says Saul king Saul of Israel. He was aware of the fact that he was not supposed to go and seek counsel from a witch and he did it anyway. Speaking about God on their own authority. That is a false prophet Isaiah chapter 9 for the leaders of this people cause them to error those who are led by them are destroyed not in this lifetime necessarily angle to this lifetime quite comfortably first-class to hell.

It is something that happens. He continues Peter does in verse one, who will secretly bring in destructive heresies secretly fly beneath the radar because they know they're up to no good. They know this is deception. They know it's dishonest so they have to veil their dishonest substituting their opinions over revealed truth from God says it like this for certain men have crept in on was his apostles and prophets that were on to the distant sneak past them. That's all we have time for.

On today's edition of cross reference radio you been listening to Pastor Rick Gaston of Calvary Chapel Mechanicsville in Virginia teaches through the book of second Peter if you'd like to listen to more messages from this series or if you'd like more information about this program please visit our website cross reference radio.com. We also encourage you to subscribe to our podcast so you'll never have to miss a program. Just search for cross reference radio in iTunes Google play music or your favorite podcast. What a great way to keep God's word with you wherever you go.

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