FALSE PROPHETS APLENTY
“Dear friends, do not believe everyone who claims to speak by the Spirit. You must test them to see if the spirit they have comes from God. For there are many false prophets in the world. This is how we know if they have the Spirit of God: If a person claiming to be a prophet acknowledges that Jesus Christ came in a real body, that person has the Spirit of God. But if someone claims to be a prophet and does not acknowledge the truth about Jesus, that person is not from God. Such a person has the spirit of the Antichrist, which you heard is coming into the world and indeed is already here.”
1 John 4:1-3 NLT
Hardly a generation had gone by since the New Covenant came into bring before false prophets were on the increase. Not all who claimed to be believers were true believers. Some twisted the truth about Jesus out of shape even as Peter wrote in his second letter.
“And remember, our Lord’s patience gives people time to be saved. This is what our beloved brother Paul also wrote to you with the wisdom God gave him— speaking of these things in all of his letters. Some of his comments are hard to understand, and those who are ignorant and unstable have twisted his letters to mean something quite different, just as they do with other parts of Scripture. And this will result in their destruction.”
2 Peter 3:15-16 NLT
Others tried to marry Greek philosophy with the Gospel, producing a Christianised form of Gnosticism which denied the reality of Jesus’ humanity.
“Don’t let anyone capture you with empty philosophies and high-sounding nonsense that come from human thinking and from the spiritual powers of this world, rather than from Christ. For in Christ lives all the fullness of God in a human body.”
Colossians 2:8-9 NLT
John returns to his condemnation of this heresy repeatedly. That people were peddling this false message must have irked him greatly.
The test to check the validity of the prophet was simple. If he confessed that Jesus was a real human being, the Holy Spirit was in him.
If he did not acknowledge the truth about Jesus’ humanity, he functioned through the spirit of antichrist.
Once again, John makes it clear, as he has already done in earlier parts of his letter, that the antichrist spirit specifically denies the humanity of Jesus.
This heresy is still very much around today in the form of “Christian” cults. Perhaps the most universal cult, enslaving many millions of people, is the one that propagates and holds to the doctrine of the immaculate conception of Mary. Since this belief is an official tenet of this religious system, and since it has pronounced Mary sinless by implication, also by implication, Jesus was not born like us but like Mary. He is, therefore, according to this doctrine, disqualified from being our substitute.
And this, declares John, is the spirit of antichrist. This system, collectively, is part of the antichrist present everywhere on earth.
How do we counter this false doctrine? Our most effective strategy is to cling tenaciously to the truth. In the following study we shall find out what John’s strategy is for overcoming the work of the devil.
Tag Archives: many false prophets
THE SPIRIT OF JESUS?
THE SPIRIT OF JESUS?
Dear friends, do not believe every spirit, but test the spirits to see whether they are from God because many false prophets have gone out into the world. This is how you recognise the Spirit of God: Every spirit that acknowledges that Jesus has come in the flesh is from God but every spirit that does not acknowledge Jesus is not from God. This is the spirit of antichrist, which you have heard is coming and even now is already in the world (1 John 4: 1-3).
John was aware, in the first century after Jesus, that there were already false teachings growing up around Him. It does not take long for unscrupulous people to twist the truth to suit their own ideas and very often their pockets. Those who have no inclination to follow Jesus and abide by His requirements for being His disciples, need to accommodate sin in all its subtle forms. Rather than match their lives with His, they change Him into someone who is less demanding so that they can water down His standards and carry on with their sin.
Unfortunately for them, what they teach does not change the truth of who He is, but it does disqualify them from having any part in the life He promised those who believe in Him. Even more tragic is that they drag others down with them in their unbelief.
How do we know that we are on the right track in the midst of the outpouring of false teaching all over the world? John gave us one test, but there are many others which will help us stay on course. How do we recognise the Spirit of God? By the testimony of Jesus.
Now I know that John wrote that people who cannot confess the name of Jesus or who deny that He was truly human are manifesting the spirit of antichrist. However, there are far more subtle forms of denial within the church which gullible believers swallow without giving it another thought.
We are aware of the cults which teach that Jesus was not true God or true man. But what about the preachers and teachers who add their own prescriptions to the simple invitation of Jesus, “Follow me”?
These imposters are not always easy to recognise because they masquerade as the ministers of Christ but they are even more dangerous than those who openly deny the truth of the word. Paul warned that anyone who adds to the finished work of Christ is under God’s curse (Gal. 1: 6-9). That’s pretty serious, isn’t it? Anathema – he said; cursed by God.
There are both blatant and subtle additions to the gospel of Christ in all streams of the church. What about the rituals and paraphernalia that have been added, for example? The elevation of certain people above others. When did Jesus ever tell His disciples that only certain “ordained” priests are permitted to administer the Lord’s Supper or baptise believers? It’s an imposition.
Jesus expressly declared that true leadership steps down to lift others up, while false leaders lord it over the laity. Whether people operate officially in the church as priests or whether they claim titles for themselves like Prophet So-and-so” or “Apostle So-and-so” that make them think they are superior to others, makes no difference. It is an imposition and not of the spirit of Jesus.
When did Jesus set up an elaborate religious system with candles, incense, a priestly hierarchy and special garments, and bowing to an altar? Imposition! How does any of this fit into “Follow me,” and, “Go and make disciples”? What about teachings like “born-again”, “Spirit-filled” and “tongues-speaking” Christians versus the rest? Did Jesus ever teach these things? Did he ever put people into categories and treat them accordingly? No, He did exactly the opposite. He affirmed those who were despised and marginalised by society – lepers, “sinners”, women, children, prostitutes, tax-collectors etc.
What about those “spiritual leaders” who milk their congregations through guilt to enrich themselves by pretending to have compassion on the poor? Among the genuine ones who create opportunities for us to channel our money into ministries all over the world which help needy people, are the imposters who teach the “prosperity gospel” from which they benefit handsomely.
And superstition abounds in the so-called “preaching” of the Word. The fear of punishment is a big one. Have you heard this one – that people’s prayers for healing, for example, are not answered because they do not have enough faith, or that their business failed or their marriage fell apart because they sinned? What about “It is finished”? Jesus paid sin’s debt once-for-all, didn’t He?
How can we recognise the spirit of antichrist which is rife in the world and in the church? Does it measure up to Jesus’ identity as the Son of God, His work that He died and rose again, and does it fall in line with His simple call, “Follow me, “ and “Go and make disciples”?
Scripture is taken from THE HOLY BIBLE, NEW INTERNATIONAL VERSION®, NIV® Copyright © 1973, 1978, 1984, 2011 by Biblica, Inc.® Used by permission. All rights reserved worldwide.