“And now I make one more appeal, my dear brothers and sisters. Watch out for people who cause divisions and upset people’s faith by teaching things contrary to what you have been taught. Stay away from them.”—Romans 16:17 (NLT)
As I am nearing the end of my Revelation Bible study, when it speaks of the rise of false teachers in the last days, my eyes have been opened to how that is happening today. There are some pastors who at one time were regarded as sound teachers starting to reinterpret God’s Word. Paul’s warning to the church in Romans 16:17 regarding this, is just as applicable today, maybe even more so.
False teachers are nothing new. They have been around since before Christ. They will always be among us. It is up to us to know scripture to be able discern who belongs to the Lord and who doesn’t. If someone isn’t preaching sound doctrine, it might be time to visit other churches.
We trust God’s written Word over church leaders who are twisting the Truth. We stay grounded in scripture so we don’t fall prey to this deception. It is hard to attend a church that teaches biblically sound doctrine if you don’t study it.
God will equip us to identify false teachings. He will give us the wisdom to recognize it. Carefully evaluating what we are taking in and examing if it aligns with scripture is imperative. How else will we be able to recognize falsehood if we aren’t in His Word and know His truth?
We can’t pick and choose which scriptures we think are current or which ones don’t apply today. We don’t have the authority to change the Gospel. God doesn’t change nor does His Word. God’s Word is unchanging. We let it change us through studying it.
Many churches preach to the world’s standards not the Bible’s. It is a huge red flag, if you hear a pastor changing God’s Word to be more “inclusive.” Yes, the Bible uses terms such as male, female, man and woman. “So God created mankind in his own image,in the image of God he created them; male and female he created them.”—Genesis 1:27 Verse 31 goes on to say, God saw all that he had made, and it was very good. Scripture clearly states that what God created was very good.
Will people be offended by the Bible’s use of pronouns? I am sure some will, but it isn’t up to a pastor or church leader to modify scripture so they don’t offend people. We reach people by loving like Jesus, not adopting the world’s way of thinking. In love, we boldly proclaim the Spirit of Truth in a nonjudgmental way to those who are willing to listen.
Are we following false teachers or the Word of God? We either follow the spirit of deception or the Spirit of Truth. We walk in the Spirit of Truth by declaring the Gospel. You either believe what the Bible says, or you don’t. There is no grey area.
Just because we are living in 2025 doesn’t mean the Bible’s standards have changed. It hasn’t been rewritten to go along with world views. While Jesus’ teachings tell us to love others and share His love with everyone, nowhere in the Bible does it state we should compromise the morals and values scriptures teaches us.
Father God,
I ask for discernment against false doctrine being taught. I pray for the wisdom to recognize it. Forgive me when I trust in human knowledge and not my Maker. Shut my ears to the voices of compromise. I lift those up to You who have been pierced with false teachings. Open their eyes to the error of what they are hearing. Help me to respond in a nonjudgmental and loving way in revealing Your truth to them. I pray these things in the mighty name of Jesus. Amen.
March Verse
“ So I realized that all we can do is be happy and do the best we can while we are still alive.—Ecclesiastes 3:12 (GNT)
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