False Teachers

Turn in your Bibles to first Timothy chapter 6 visiting with us. We are preaching verse by verse to the book of first Timothy were in chapter 6 now focusing this evening on verse three through five. If anyone teaches a different doctrine and does not agree with the sound words of our Lord Jesus Christ, and the teaching that accords with godliness is puffed up with conceit and understands nothing has an unhealthy craving for controversy and for quarrels about words which produce in the dissension, slander, evil suspicions and constant friction among people who were depraved in mind and deprived of the truth, imagining that godliness is a means of gaining spring heavenly father. We do ask that you would give us eyes to see this evening as we go into Paul's final warning here on detecting false teachers that have seeped into the church. We pray that we would love the truth. As Paul has that we would cherish this gospel message that you have given us as it is given us eternal life. We pray that we would write this truth in our hearts that we would love it, preserve it, guard it, that would be the foundation of our Christian lives. Guide us by your spirit this evening as we go into your word, your sins, and we pray on. Please be seated as a said we are continuing. First Timothy now in chapter 6 were looking now at identifying false teachers as we know from chapter 3 that this book is about how we are to conduct ourselves in the household of God. We are now looking at how we are to detect how we are to identify faults.

Teachers whole is bringing this up for 1/3 time. In this book. If you've been with us. Paul is pleading with his son in the faith Timothy Creech a faithful word Timothy. He ends this letter in verse 20 oh Timothy Gardner, the deposit entrusted to you. I think about that all the time in 100 years will all be dead and I hope that Grace Church will continue to be a place where the gospel truth is communicated weekly. That is what Paul wants. That's what I want. That's what I hope that you want as the faithful church is that one day we will die. We will be with the Lord. But that life-giving gospel message will continue to be present at Grace Church in Harrisburg, North Carolina.

The truth is what we have. The gospel truth is the foundation of our faith. What we believe as the church.

Jesus said in John eight. If you abide in my word, you are truly my disciples and you will know the truth and the truth will set you free. I want the church to stand on the truth above all else is the only thing that we can stand on Matthew seven warns us that we can stand on the rock we can stand on the sand in the sand is shifting and it's slipping out from under our feet. We must stand on the rock of salvation that is provided only in Christ and a way to do that away for you and I to preserve the truth here at Grace Church the way that we can guarantee that the gospel will be proclaimed throughout our nation throughout the world is that we are extremely careful about what is the gospel of Jesus Christ and as we know the truth, and as we analyze the truth, and as we consider these things from God's word.

The hope is that this doctrine will form the foundation for our Christian living peopling the doctrine is this high-minded thing that theologians do know RC Sproul wrote the book. Everyone, a theologian, I'm so thankful to say that because every single one of us. If want to thrive in the Christian life.

We must study and no who God is, we must study and know the will of God and how to live in light of these truths. Charles Spurgeon once said, those who do away with Christian doctrine are whether they are aware of it or not, the worst enemies of Christian living because the coals of orthodoxy are necessary to the fire of piety.

If you want to love God. If you want the love of Christ to be pouring out of you.

There's a real flame and real zeal for Christ beneath that flame is coals burning of truth and facts and knowledge about who God is. That is what guides us and directs us every morning knowing that God is a sovereign God that rules in heaven that he provides salvation to all those in my believe in him. Christian doctrine, whether we like it or not fuels our Christian life. If we want to thrive. We must go to God's word know him let that motivate our obedience to Christ. And so, in light of the reality of salvation by grace in Christian doctrine. We want to live in a way that honors the Lord and so we must commit to God's truth.

But here Paul is addressing false teachers is talking about the counterfeiters out there.

What immediately comes to mind. I think of the FBI. They have men that work in the FBI that can detect on fake dollar bills and they don't analyze all the faults dollar bills out there.

What they do is they commit themselves to really knowing what $20 bill $50 bill hundred dollar bill. Looks like they study it they analyze every single angle to the distinguishing marks of a dollar bill and so when they see a faults bill. They immediately can detect it because they know it's not the real thing they touch and they have intimate knowledge of the dollar bill. That's how they can see what else is faults in the world. I'm telling you that's how we need to be as Christians, not to be an expert in every other religion in the world necessarily, but to no the truth and to write this truth on our hearts. There are false teachers today that are sneaking into the church and happened back in the day of Jude talk about false teachers creeping in unannounced.

They're not out there in the world oppressing us, but they are infiltrating into the church. Paul is saying that if were to deal with these false teachers start first give a priority to sound doctrine.

The first morning of this was back in chapter 1, feel free to turn their fault they just got. He's gotta get it out.

He quickly gives greetings and salutations verse three he charges right into it and I urge you, when I was in going into Macedonia remain in Ephesus, so they may charge certain persons not to teach any different doctrine verse four, nor to devote themselves to myths and endless genealogies.

There was a temptation back in early church. Many Jewish Christians still wanted to hold onto their Judaism. They wanted to hold onto their ethnicity and their lineage going back to Abraham, Isaac and Jacob. They wanted to say yes you Gentiles are Christians technically were Jewish Christians were the real deal or holding onto their genealogy, their ethnic lines going back there heritage. The territorial rights that you might get within the church citing this heritage and Paul is saying know this promotes speculation rather than us protecting stewardship that God has given us and continues in chapter 1 verse five.

The aim of our charges love that issues from a pure heart and a good conscience and a sincere faith is the result of faithful teaching sound doctrine that Paul is insisting on is that we have love from a pure heart and a sincere faith. The love that is coming from a heart that is been cleansed of all other idols and affections. The heart of good conscience, a heart that has no other competitors for the love of Christ.

Paul is calling us back. You and I to our first love. Our love for God that we would see how Christ has washed us and purified us of sin and that we would love Christ Jesus in Matthew five Blessed are the pure in heart for they shall see God selling verse six certain persons swerving from these have wandered away and vein discussions designed to be teachers of the law without understanding either what they are saying or the Satan, the things about which they are making confident assertions. These false teachers are confident in their ignorance, but their scene again. There warned again in chapter 4, the Spirit expressly says in later times some will depart from the faith, devoting themselves to deceitful spirits and teachings of demons to the insincerity of liars, whose consciences are seared permitting marriage and crying abstinence from foods that God is created be received with thanksgiving by those who believe and know the truth. Again, this creeping in of the Jewish dietary laws limiting food crisis fulfilled this Christ has spoken clearly next chapter 10 that this doesn't apply their consciences are seared to the truth. We see this asceticism that is limiting oneself and limiting indulgence here. They were not to warmly embrace food and good things that God has given us the warning goes out again.

This is the third time here in chapter 61 more time for Timothy anyone teaches a different doctrine and does not agree with the sound words of our Lord Jesus Christ, because that's who were representing by the way, not ourselves, not the Presbyterian Church in America.

We are representing Christ. That is the one that we are to represent here primarily yes were in the PCA. Yes, we have commitments as a church. What I'm saying is our primary role is to represent Christ in the way that we do that is teaching doctrine that accords with godliness, according to God's word teaching that does is the kind of teaching that God blesses, but here we see that this is a different type of teaching this is teaching that does not line up. It is a sort of Judaism that is creeping into the church hall being a former Pharisee himself.

He is trained by Pharisees to be an up-and-coming Pharisees converted so not only does he know in Christian doctrine is. He knows what solid Jewish teaching is so as these false teachers are coming in on two different levels. He can say that there false teachers. He saying to them, you're not even teaching faithful Judaism, let alone faithful Christianity and yet you want to merge the two into this new innovative teaching and claim many followers, ultimately leading them down a path of destruction.

This is throughout the history of the church is nothing new under the sun. This is going back in Paul's day. This is going on American history we have David Karesh of the Branch Davidians, Jim Jones of the People's Temple. We have Jehovah's Witnesses in our nation. Charles Russell is just repackaging 1/4 century heresy called Arianism that limits the divinity of Christ, saying that he is not equal to the father. Eugene just read from the Gospel of John very clearly that Jesus is claiming to be one with the father John five saying he is equal with the father the Pharisees in John eight pick up stones to kill Jesus. Not because they were confused, but because he was crystal clear in what he was claiming to be equal with the father again this cult. This American colt is denying the triune nature of God and the full quality that Christ has with the father, Joseph Smith of Mormonism same thing, he felt torn between two different denominations and created a false religion claiming divine revelation from God. He basically says that God father is a God among many gods and that Jesus is brothers with the devil. This is Mormon teaching. If you go back to the original sermons of Joseph Smith. It was a requirement to be a polygamist to go to heaven. These are not confused brethren.

Though I have heard a Mormon say to me I am a Christian, just simply a Christian of Latter Day Saints know you are not. I love the truth and therefore I hate false doctrine. I can't stand it in. We as the church want to express the love of Christ to everyone everywhere and pointed to salvation by grace through faith in Christ. It's all of God.

I'm telling you as we start with our interaction. Socially, we must be crystal clear, as the gospel is being claimed by others that are ultimately in a deceptive colt the world mission society Church of God. This is in Charlotte. I was in the freezer section I saw Diana's eyeball in May and I got to the fruit and picking up bananas disguise comes up in a suit and says do you know about the mother of God, and I'm going know tell me you tell me about they go to Genesis chapter 1 verse 26, God says let us plural right let us make man in our image, after our likeness for 2000 years it is been absolutely crystal clear the us there is referring to our triune God the Spirit of God is in creation, hovering over the deep. John chapter 1 tells us that in the beginning was the word the word was with God.

The word was God.

That is, Christ. The word became dwelt in flesh and dwelt among us. He tabernacle among us John chapter 1 verse 14 Christ is the word with the father with the spirit, let us make man in our image is our triune God. They believe that the us here is God the father and God the mother, but gets matter better. The mother is actually still alive. She's 73 years old. She lives in South Korea.

She still exist today and this is a quote from their website on song home should be regarded as the founder before the church split he should be regarded as Jesus Christ should be titled Christ on song home and then pursuant of traditional Trinitarian view of Christian hyper stasis on was consequently also the Holy Spirit. God the father and the sky so this false teacher is Christ.

They say and because trinitarianism is a thing going around will make him the father in spirit is, why not Zhang Gill jaw. The woman who claims to be God the mother she called mother Jerusalem. She's called new Jerusalem, mother or heavenly mother. These people are claiming to be God and there's three church plants with in Charlotte, North Carolina.

Thankfully, the national Council of churches in Korea has boldly declared that this is a blasphemous heretical group. What do we see common among false teachers. They see this as a way to gain power to gain wealth they take God's word. There claiming the Bible there claiming Scripture, but they twisted and manipulated. This is fundamental to all false teachers. The compromise of the person and work of Christ. They do not preach clearly the full divinity of Christ know they claim themselves to be Christ just as David Karesh claimed to be the Lamb of God, these are false teachers have an unhealthy craving for controversy. They come in to churches and could stir up trouble verse four we can have this, I was at a conference back in 2012 I went even in seminary, but this guy next to me. He said what's your view of the end times. I didn't know much about eschatology. That's the doctrine of the end times. What's the future hold and I don't want to dismiss that we should study this. Most of our faith is a is a historic faith it's handled in the past and of course in first Timothy here. We have a lot of application for the present Christian living.

How we are to conduct ourselves in the household of faith. But the future of the church is in eschatology so I admittedly just didn't know much about it but he dug in further. I think this and this and I'm giving him a nod. Okay, okay, that wasn't enough.

PET had to keep pushing and pressing his argument. I finally had to say man. I don't know enough about this topic to even give you a decent opposition.

I don't know what the opposing viewpoint would even say to you, so thankfully it is sort of deflated the whole thing.

I wasn't able to give him what he wanted which was this craving of a debate controversy with me. I didn't know what else to do but tell me out, pan millennialist and will pan out eventually. You know the Lord will see his will done. I don't know what else to tell you we can do this is Christians, we can have the sort of cravings to debate to discuss and have to check it but as a distinctive mark of a false teacher. There is a desire to controversy, to have a quarreling about words and elders called to not be quarrelsome, false teacher is distinctly marked by their quarrelsome is a group that insists on Jesus being called the issue that the be the Hebrew way of saying the name Jesus. If you're in Mexico you might say he's increased out if you're in America you say Jesus if you're in Burmese you say a shoe but I'm telling you, ultimately, does not matter what we name Jesus, but that we know Jesus that we know the biblical Jesus, but this has been so pervasive and you pair this concept with Matthew seven where Jesus is him. Yes, you cast out demons in your name. I cast out demons. They insist on the name being stated as though Jesus cannot hear us if we don't say Yeshua, but there is a movement again in Charlotte.

The Hebrew roots movement where they are essentially the repackaging of the Galatian heresy they bring in faith in Christ and trusting in him. They blend that in with the 614 laws of the Mosaic covenant and they add whatever they want to and they merge the old Mosaic covenant with the new covenant and Paul again in Galatians 1. I am astonished you are so quickly deserting him who called you in the grace of Christ and are turning to a different gospel. Not that there is another one. But there's some trouble you, and want to distort the gospel of Christ. As these men blending justification by faith in the finished work of Christ, with the keeping of the law, all continues in verse eight, Galatians chapter 1, but even if we are an angel from heaven, should preach to you a gospel contrary to the one we preached to you, let him be accursed. As we have said before, I will now say it again if anyone preaches to you gospel contrary to the one you received, let him be accursed. If we want others to come to saving faith in the Lord Jesus Christ. We need to give them the Jesus Christ that saves that fully saves that his finished work is fully sufficient these new ideas that are creeping in these innovative theologies.

I say it all the time. If it's true, it's not new.

And if it's new, it's not true. A false gospel gives these followers of these false religions a false assurance of salvation.

They sadly feel confident in the cold that they exist in ensnares him. My hope is that as Jesus says the gospel will set you free. I hope that the freeing gospel of grace will be sent out to them. Continuing on the marks of these men there puffed up with conceit understanding nothing. He has an unhealthy craving for controversy for quarrels about words which produce the evidence of this false teaching envy and dissension, slander, and evil suspicions. False teachers are coveting the existing church. They see the success of Paul in Ephesus. They covet his success. They want this following the have this inordinate desire that they too would have a following like Paul really for themselves, though not for the honor of Christ, not for the propagation of the gospel. They really just wanted for themselves so they going to the local church. They start to spread dissension they start spreading slander that is lying and unsubstantiated claims about others that are negative, evil suspicions know the quickest way you can cause division in the church is to spread suspicion about someone without actually confirming the speak on others in a way that is not true and confirmed to not speak on what you know what you speculate on in a negative way operating on a hunch, rather than operating on the truth.

This is causing friction among people who are depraved of mind could deprived of truth. Imagine the godliness as a means of gaining this is a false teacher that is depraved in his mind he he is not saved by grace, as Paul tells us in Ephesians 2 he is dead in his trespasses and sins, he is depraved act reformed doctrine of total depravity.

He is dead in his trespasses and sins, he is not spiritually sick but dead. He has been deprived of the truth. There is no biblical truth in his ministry.

He is blind to the truth. There is no illumination of the spirit of God bringing understanding through the gospel. They are lost to a false prophet holiness is just a way to garner respect and gain reverence from followers to the Galatian heresy.

Look at how I keep the law you Christians don't look at how I keep the festivals Christ fulfilled those festivals, you shouldn't be keeping them know your Bible know the law. See what Christ has done in the book of Hebrews see how Christ has fulfilled these things and to go on practicing these things is to deny Christ, the say that his work was not sufficient. We need to be clear, we need to go back to God's word and use this as a warning that we have in verse five.

This game that's being referenced here. This is a financial gain. This is a selfish gain for money, even going back to the Pharisees that the faith for them was not a white actually access God but for them to gain respect away for the faith of them was really to get respect and honor within the society as they had honor in the church they had power, and with that devouring widows houses they would accrue much wealth and they were attached to the powerful elite in society going back to Numbers chapter 22 bail him. He was the first freelancing false prophet.

He literally was a known false prophet that used religion for his personal gain. He was a famous sorcerer he would pretend to be pious in order to deceive others and pay them for his teaching, he would pretend to be reverent back the book of acts. Paul is operating in Ephesus around the Temple of Diana, and their men that are selling religious goods, trinkets and little statues of the of the Diana he wouldn't preach the gospel so powerfully God and by the power of the Holy Spirit works so strongly in Ephesus that is shut down businesses all pointed out their idolatry with sound teaching from the Lord Jesus Christ. He proclaimed to forsake these things come back to a faithful triune God that offer salvation in Christ and it literally put people out of business and caused a riot.

They were so upset. There is the power of the gospel illustrated in Ephesus. Of course, Roman Catholic Church many schemes to buy indulgences and indulgence would be used by an indulgence to lessen the punishment of your loved one is there in purgatory are Luther confirmed the only thing indulgences guaranteed was an increase in profit and greed.

Because the pardon of the church was in God's power alone. He knew that God alone saves God alone can do these things despite the corruption of the Catholic Church. The truth, the doctrine of truth.

The thing that were to guard you and I continues on here at Grace Church despite Joel O'Steen and Kenneth Copeland and Creflo Dollar, who is 30 minutes north of my parents house back in Atlanta. I mean, it is ongoing and it will always be in see you and I we must be prepared to identify these things and I would say take Paul's command to heart. If you have the King James, the new King James majority text has one little phrase that the ESV doesn't have that's okay.

We have majority text and eclectic text.

We have the full word of God, but the King James expounds a little bit further in this verse is from such withdrawing yourself. Avoid these false teachers you might think all the Jehovah's Witnesses are coming. The Mormons are coming violently bring a man let me serve them a meal and shown the love of Christ.

I understand and I appreciate the heart of the church to do such thing. I really do.

Paul is clear and doesn't just say it here. He says in Romans chapter 16 verse 17 I peel you brothers to watch out for those who cause divisions and create obstacles contrary to the doctrine you've been taught avoid them. Do not welcome the men do not let the false teaching spread. This is a cancer that is infiltrating the body of Christ. Do not let them in if you know someone is a false teacher. I think about how I interact. I have friends were Muslims and friends are Mormons.

I talk with him. I interact with them. I have a social life that I can be friends with them at the moment we get a doctor I'm not going to entertain this voltage.

There is a zero tolerance policy for false teaching and he says it to Timothy. Here he says it to the church in Galatia and he says it to Titus at the church in Crete. Avoid foolish controversies, genealogies, dissensions and quarrels about the loss of same Judaizers of air unprofitable and worthless. As for a person who stirs up division after warning them once and twice have nothing more to do with him, knowing that such a person is warped and sinful. He is self condemned, what would it look like for us with a look like for us here at Grace Church in modern times I think of someone coming in the Grace Church there visitor want to welcome the men we want to bring them in the Sunday school and corporate worship and their friendly as most false teachers and false cult members are and then the question started rising in Sunday school which again I want to encourage good questions.

I wanted to encourage discussion but as the doctrine starts coming out as we get the Galatian Genesis 1. They mentioned maybe the mother of God, or perhaps they go to Isaiah and challenge the idea that God is and always has been and he is the one true God.

Perhaps a challenge that with a background in Mormonism reps they want to make Jesus of like substance with the father. Perhaps they want to creep in. This voltage we must address it immediately. I is a minister the gospel have to address it the elders here at the church must do this. We took about coming from a broken church church order. One of the valves that I took do you promise to be zealous and faithful in maintaining the truth of the gospel in the purity and peace and unity of the church.

Whatever persecution or opposition may arise unto you on that account. If there is false teaching in the church. There is a zero tolerance policy. They must be removed.

They Artemis representing Christ. They are misrepresenting and misguiding the people of God.

This can influence our younger and more impressionable Christians, but it is of no profit.

If you reason with them and witness to them and ultimately they will not repent. Titus says do not have anything more to do with them as they will only spread lies and spread slander and spread dissension and further division within the church. Chris, I want us to remember one thing we are the people of God. We are God's people. We are a holy nation, a royal priesthood, we represent Christ as ambassadors to Christ. We go out and proclaim the gospel message, that all those that look upon Christ by faith will be saved. We look to the atonement of Christ and see the Christ bore arson and that he gives us a washing and regeneration of cleansing from our sin, and he gives us his perfect righteousness by faith, we go up to heaven as those with nothing in our hands, but simply trusting and clinging to the cross of the Lord Jesus Christ.

We are going into heaven, saying, it is all of Christ.

So please with me sharpen your spiritual discernment. Read the word of God study these things, know these things.

You never know when we'll be in a Walmart parking lot and you run into someone that claims that God is ice water and steam which is just a repackaging of the fourth century heresy call Modell's and you never know when it's can happen, but it happens. Be prepared. Peter tells us to give a defense of the faith give a defense of the hope that is within us. Finally, Paul tells us here to guard the deposit it's been entrusted to you to me as a minister yes but to you as a Christian guard that deposit protect the truth of God's word protect faithful doctrine and delight in the truth of God's word spring and the father we come to you in the Lord, we come to you in the finished work of Christ is Christ that is full of grace and full of truth. We think over these things this evening so that we would know Christ.

All the more that we would conform ourselves to the faithful teaching of Christ and the father we ask that you would work with in our hearts regenerate us, recalibrate us, strengthen our love that we have for Christ. We pray that you would give us assurance of what Christ is and what he accomplished on our behalf. Let us go to your word and see these truths and base our lives on these things. Let it be a foundation of the path in which we walk in the name of Christ, nations, and we pray, amen