False teachers

[SolaSaint]

Finding fault with others and branding them with general labels, i.e. false teacher, is a behavior of false teachers. Cults teach that the views of others are of Satan.

So the righteous path seems to be:

1) Identify several destructive heresies, and point out specifically why they are unbiblical.

2) Then using quotes in context, demonstrate that this guy teaches several false doctrines.

In summary, rather than tearing down others, build up the body so they will not be tossed about by every wave of doctrine.

No one is saying to tear down anyone, Peter tells us to defend the faith with gentleness and respect. But this doesn't mean we don't call a spade for what it is. Exposing heresy is not tearing down, especially if it is done out of love for the church and the truth of His word.

 

[Tom Butler]

Our SS lesson today was about false teachers, from II Peter 2, and Jude's letter.

One think we have to be careful about is escalating an honest difference of opinion into a heresy fight.

For instance, I don't think non-Cals are heretics or false prophets. Some of the greatest Christians I have ever known don't see the doctrines of grace in the same way I do.

I do realize that some non-Cals may view what I believe as heresy, or unbiblical.

Is your view of eschatology a test of orthodoxy? Most of us would say no, but I can remember a time in my home area where any view other than the pre-trib rapture was considered ultra liberal. And, you might not be saved.

Maybe it would be useful to list those doctrinal views which you think are heresy, and those who teach them are false prophets.

I think most of us agree on the deity of Christ.

What about the prosperity gospel, or Word Faith?

Eternal Security. If you doubt it, are you a false prophet?

Join right in here.

 

[OldRegular]

I believe the Word of Faith doctrine is a heretical movement. I have posted a number of times on this board 16 points of their doctrine [Extracted from a book by either Hanegraff or MacArthur.] that clearly shows their heresy. I also believe there are heretical elements in the Roman Catholic Communion: The Papacy, the continual sacrifice of Jesus Christ [though they deny t], the mediation role of the priest and Mary, penance and works based salvation; possibly the hierarchy.

 

[SolaSaint]

A good question. MacArthur says its deceivers in the church and he does not list the cults and other religions in his list. You have mentioned a few, but you have failed to hit the big bombers. I am talking about people like Brian McLarren, an Rob Bell which perhaps are the most deadly of the false teachers. Osteen is a false teacher, but I am not sure I would call him a heretic just yet.

It's funny you mentioned Rob Bell and McLaren, those are the only two heretics I mentioned Sunday in class. I know there are more, but yes these two are big because they attract many unsuspecting souls.

 

[evangelist6589]

I believe the Word of Faith doctrine is a heretical movement. I have posted a number of times on this board 16 points of their doctrine [Extracted from a book by either Hanegraff or MacArthur.] that clearly shows their heresy. I also believe there are heretical elements in the Roman Catholic Communion: The Papacy, the continual sacrifice of Jesus Christ [though they deny t], the mediation role of the priest and Mary, penance and works based salvation; possibly the hierarchy.

I am not sure I agree. The Word of Faith is a false movement and teaches lies, but not sure if I would call it hell bound heresy from what I know of it, but then that may depend on the church and or teacher presenting it. The New Age Movement, and the PostModernism movement seem more hell bound than the WOF movement. Brian Mclarren and Rob Bell are not in the WOF movement, but are in the postmodernism movement and teach far bigger hell bound lie than the likes of people like Osteen.

 

[evangelist6589]

Rick Warren.

I don't about that one. He is deceived by psychology and has questionable views, but not sure if I would call him a false teacher. He does affirm the essentials of the faith. I would question his psychology based teachings and I would not read his books, but I don't thick he is a false teacher, he jus just someone that is infantile in his teachings.

 

[OldRegular]

I am not sure I agree. The Word of Faith is a false movement and teaches lies, but not sure if I would call it hell bound heresy from what I know of it, but then that may depend on the church and or teacher presenting it. The New Age Movement, and the PostModernism movement seem more hell bound than the WOF movement. Brian Mclarren and Rob Bell are not in the WOF movement, but are in the postmodernism movement and teach far bigger hell bound lie than the likes of people like Osteen.

If the following doesn't convince you that Word of Faith is heretical then What does it take?

God and Humanity[/]b

According to the Word-Faith teachers, God is much more like a man than Christians generally have supposed. God is a God of faith; he created the world by faith and accomplishes all that he desires by believing in his heart and speaking the word of faith, thereby bringing things into existence (see chapter 7).

There is another respect in which Word-Faith teaching makes God more like a man than is traditionally thought. Although God is in essence a spirit, the Word-Faith teachers hold that God, like human beings, is spirit, soul, and body - albeit a "spirit body" (see chapter 8).

Likewise, the Word-Faith teachers insist that human beings are much more like God than Christians have usually believed. Our creation in God's image is interpreted to mean that we exist in God's "class" as the same kind of being as God, though on a smaller scale (as "little gods"). Moreover, the purpose of the coming of Jesus was to restore humanity to godhood by creating a new race of humans who, like Jesus, would be God incarnate (see chapter 9).

Humanity's potential as little gods was, according to the Word-Faith teaching, thwarted by the fall. Adam forfeited his status as the god of this world by obeying the devil and thereby making Satan the god of this world. In sinning, Adam gave Satan legal dominion over this world and passed Satan's nature of death, with its corresponding symptoms of sickness and poverty, down to the rest of humanity (see chapter 10).


Jesus Christ

To correct the situation arising from the fall, God, according to Word-Faith theology, implemented a strategy for reclaiming dominion from the devil. The centerpiece of this strategy was his becoming a man. Although Word-Faith teachers affirm that Jesus Christ was God incarnate, their understanding of what this incarnation meant is in some respects highly unusual.

First, all Word-Faith teachers argue that Christians are just as much "incarnations of God" as was Jesus Christ. This implies that "incarnation" in Word-Faith teaching does not mean the same thing it means in traditional Christian usage. Much of what the Word-Faith teachers say suggests that in their view anyone who is indwelled by the Spirit is an incarnation.

Second, Word-Faith teachers are not altogether clear as to whether it was the preexistent, eternal Son of God who became incarnate. Some Word-Faith teachers, such as Hagin, seem to assume this traditional, biblical view. Others, though, notably Kenneth Copeland and Charles Capps, teach that the Word that became incarnate was God's Word of promise that he would redeem humanity, and that this Word was "positively confessed" into personal existence by the Virgin Mary (see chapter 11).

The Word-Faith teachers also have a distinctive view of what Christ did to effect our salvation. In their view, what Jesus did that was unique was to die, not merely physically but spiritually as well (thus taking on himself Satan's nature), and go to hell. There, they say, he was "born again," rising from the dead with God's nature (which, it is sometimes implied, he had lost in dying spiritually). By doing so, the Word-Faith teachers argue, Jesus paved the way for us to be born again and exhibit God's nature in our lives (see chapter 12).

As has already been mentioned, the Word-Faith teachers tend to interpret the incarnation as the prototype of God's Spirit dwelling in a human being. In this sense, they insist, Christians are as much an incarnation of God as was Jesus Christ. This lends support, in their view, to the claim that all Christians ought to be able to overcome difficulties in their lives and perform miracles in just the same way Jesus did. In principle any of us can do anything that Jesus did on earth (see chapter 13).


Faith, Prayer, and Confession

The distinctive ideas about God and man in Word-Faith theology are the basis for its views on faith and prayer. Faith is not only believing what God says but also believing that we have whatever we say. Prayer is not only speaking to God but also speaking to things and circumstances and commanding them to do as we say. This is the basis for the concept of positive and negative confession, the idea that what we believe and say, whether good or bad, will happen for us (see chapter 14).

On the basis of a positive confession - itself based on faith that we are divine spirits created and redeemed to rule our circumstances by speaking words of faith - Word-Faith theology says we are to obtain health and wealth. Since Christ died to free us from the curse of the law, reason the Word-Faith teachers, this must mean that Christians need no longer accept sickness or poverty in their lives. Christians ought to live in divine health and wealth as testimony to the power of God and as evidence that they are children of God (see chapter 15).

This is the Word-Faith theology to be studied in this book. For the most part, my focus will not be on the personalities who promote these views but on the biblical teachings that are relevant to evaluating the Word-Faith theology. However, in order to understand the teachings fully, we need to consider how they arose and know something about their sources. The next four chapters will deal with just these questions.

http://www.mtio.com/articles/bissar63.htm

 

[OldRegular]

A little more on the heretical Word of Faith movement!

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Word_of_Faith

Jesus Died Spiritually

This article cites its sources but does not provide page references. You can help to improve it by introducing citations that are more precise. (September 2010)

Often referred to as JDS, there is a teaching that to atone for sins, Jesus had to die both physically and spiritually. As an outcome of his ‘dying spiritually’, the Word of Faith movement argues Jesus thus needed to be born again, as any other sinner, and that although Jesus himself was never a sinner, Jesus was forsaken by God just as if he had committed every sin in human history.
E.W. Kenyon, a founder of the doctrine that later became known as Word of Faith, was the first to explicitly articulate the doctrine in a number of his works, including What Happened From The Cross To the Throne and Identification: A Romance In Redemption. This doctrine was later supposedly taken up by Hagin, Copeland and many of their followers.[40] The doctrine asserts that Jesus’ bodily sacrifice was but the beginning of atonement, which continued with Jesus’ suffering in Hell. Copeland claimed that Jesus took on humanity’s "satanic nature" and was "born again" in Hell.[41] Hagin's teaching was featured in his book The Name of Jesus (1978 edition), yet in a 1991 letter to the Christian Research Institute, Hagin's son Kenneth Hagin Jr. denied this interpretation and claimed Hagin senior had never taught the notion of a born again Jesus or the adoption of Satan's nature[citation needed]. D.R. McConnell has labeled the teaching heresy, believing it compromises the teaching that Jesus' blood atoned for sin.[42]

 

[OldRegular]

More of the Word of Faith heretical teaching! The teaching of these people goes to the very nature of God and salvation and is an abominable heresy.

The Word of Faith movement is a relatively new heresy, the offspring of people such as: Hagin, Kenyon, Copeland, Hinn, Crouch, Capps, Savelle, Hagin, Avanzini, Price and assorted others. Some of the most agregious teachings of these people are as follows:

From: The Kingdom of the Cults, revised by Hank Hanegraff.
1) God is a being who stands approximately six feet tall, weighs some two hundred pounds, and looks exactly like a man.

2) Faith is the literal substance that God used to create the universe, and He transported that faith with His words. Here, essentially, is what God did. God filled His words with faith. He used His words as containers to hold His faith and contain that spiritual force and transport it out there into the vast darkness by saying, ‘light, be’! That's the way God transported His faith causing creation and transformation. The way that He created the world was that, first of all, he conceived something on the inside of Him. He conceived, He had an image, He had a picture.

3) All things, including God, are subject to this ‘force of faith’ beause it works according to spiritual ‘laws’ of the universe.

4) The greatest thing God conceived of and created was an exact duplicate of himself. This duplicate god--named Adam-was God manifested in the flesh.

Snip

10) Although Jesus declared that he walked with God and that God was in Him, he never actually claimed to be God.

11) In order to redeem humanity, Jesus had to die spiritually as well as physically. When He died spiritually, he died in the same way that Adam died. In other words, He lost His divine nature and was given the nature of Satan. Jesus’ death on the cross and His shed blood did not atone for our sins. The atonement took place in hell through the devil's torturing of Jesus’ spirit for three days and three nights. Unfortunately for Satan, Jesus was taken to hell ‘illegally’ because He had never sinned. This ‘technicality’ enabled God to use His ‘force of faith’ to revive Jesus’ spirit, restore Jesus’ divine nature, and resurrect Jesus’ body. Through the resurrection process Jesus was ‘born again’.

12) When a person is born again they experience exactly what happened to Jesus. Their satanic nature is replaced by God’s divine nature. The transformation is so identical to Jesus’ transformation that Christians become little gods (small “g”) and are as much an incarnation of God as was Jesus.

http://www.baptistboard.com/showthread.php?t=80319&highlight=heresy&page=3

 

[SolaSaint]

I would agree the WOFers are heretics. I don't think Rick Warren is false, but I truly think he has led many by marketing ploys instead of the gospel. Not sure where that will land him with God, I think Osteen is false for the main reason that he doesn't proclaim truth in scripture. Bell and McLaren are easy calls since they blatantly spew unbiblical ideas. Sadly many good people follow them all. But Jesus, Peter, Paul and Jude all warned us didn't they.

 

[OldRegular]

I would agree the WOFers are heretics. I don't think Rick Warren is false, but I truly think he has led many by marketing ploys instead of the gospel. Not sure where that will land him with God, I think Osteen is false for the main reason that he doesn't proclaim truth in scripture. Bell and McLaren are easy calls since they blatantly spew unbiblical ideas. Sadly many good people follow them all. But Jesus, Peter, Paul and Jude all warned us didn't they.

Yes they did and in my opinion a preacher who is doing what God desires will do the same.

************************************************************

I have told this story before but it is appropriate.

Several years ago I was teaching a class of senior adult men. One Sunday a man made a remark as follows: "Jesus Christ had to go to hell to be purified."

I ad never heard such nonsense so asked the man to provide Scripture to support his assertion. Obviously there was none.

Some month later he made the same remark. I reminded him of my previous request that he provide Scripture to support his assertion and that if he could not provide Scripture not to make that statement again. He left the class sometime after that.

At that time I was unfamiliar with the WoF heresy but believe that is where he got that damnable heresy. It is the same heretical teaching that I have shown above as being spouted by the WoF!

 

[Berean]

I'm teaching on false teachers this Sunday and I have a question. In 2 Peter he refers to false teachers with in true church. I figure everyone will agree with my examples: Benny Hinn, Kenneth Copeland, WOFers, some of the TBN crowd, but who else is in this list? Should the Catholic church be considered? When Peter says "within the church" or "those who have obtained the same faith", who would you list as being false among us? I'm even considering Joel Osteen. What do you say?

Its fairly easy to recognize the likes of Kenneth Hagen, Benny Hinn, Paul Crouch and the TBN Crowd as false teachers But there is one area that flies under the radar and that is the home Bible Studies lead by little ole ladies (or little ole men) who get the "call to teach" and start their own bible study on their home attended by a small group of their friends on tuesday night. This is through ignorance and not intended to mislead any one. It is the lack or inlightenment or understanding. It is as far out as Oprah in some instances. We had one good intended person in our church Bible study actually teaching Eastern Mysticism.

 

[Yeshua1]

I'm teaching on false teachers this Sunday and I have a question. In 2 Peter he refers to false teachers with in true church. I figure everyone will agree with my examples: Benny Hinn, Kenneth Copeland, WOFers, some of the TBN crowd, but who else is in this list? Should the Catholic church be considered? When Peter says "within the church" or "those who have obtained the same faith", who would you list as being false among us? I'm even considering Joel Osteen. What do you say?

basically, ANY who speaks/writes the official doctrines espoused by WoF/prosperity/self esteem crowd

Roman catholic church

jesus only

"Christian cults" like JW/Mormons etc

Also liberals theology that sees all religions equal, jesus just a way to god etc

Black liberation theology see rev Wright!

 

[SolaSaint]

Jesus only? You consider this heretical? What do you add to Jesus for salvation?

 

[Yeshua1]

Jesus only? You consider this heretical? What do you add to Jesus for salvation?

meant the "jesus Only" United pentacostalists, who have one HAS to be baptised in name of jesius only, and speak in tongues!

 

[saturneptune]

Anyone who varies from the Diety of Christ is a false teacher. That goes for those who do not believe in the Trinity. Generational baptism is false doctrine. Losing salvation is false doctrine.

No doubt there are other areas, but I would not include differences over Creation, End Times, or God's sovereignty. While I think KJVO does a lot of harm to the Christian faith, I would also not call them false teachers.

Anyone who says there is more than one way to God is a false teacher.

 

[Yeshua1]

Anyone who varies from the Diety of Christ is a false teacher. That goes for those who do not believe in the Trinity. Generational baptism is false doctrine. Losing salvation is false doctrine.

No doubt there are other areas, but I would not include differences over Creation, End Times, or God's sovereignty. While I think KJVO does a lot of harm to the Christian faith, I would also not call them false teachers.

Anyone who says there is more than one way to God is a false teacher.

How about those holding to sacramental Gracings, such as catholics/Luthereyns ?

 

[saturneptune]

How about those holding to sacramental Gracings, such as catholics/Luthereyns ?

Yes, I would call that false doctrine. Additions to the Gospel. As I said above, I did not mention anything. I should have said anything that alters the Gospel, such as baptism for salvation. Also, the magical quality that Catholics put into the Lord's Supper is false doctrine. It makes a symbol of the blood and body of Jesus Christ a mockery by turning it into a magic act. The mystical presence, the wine becomes His blood, wafers become His body, etc.

 

[OldRegular]

Anyone who varies from the Diety of Christ is a false teacher. That goes for those who do not believe in the Trinity. Generational baptism is false doctrine. Losing salvation is false doctrine.

No doubt there are other areas, but I would not include differences over Creation, End Times, or God's sovereignty. While I think KJVO does a lot of harm to the Christian faith, I would also not call them false teachers.

Anyone who says there is more than one way to God is a false teacher.

I would say anyone who denies the Sovereignty of God is a false teacher.

 

[Yeshua1]

I would say anyone who denies the Sovereignty of God is a false teacher.

depends on IF you state that it means that one is saved soely of the basis of the Cross, but that God has chosen out those who will receive the benefits from the Cross or not!

basically, calvinism as regarding salvation!