Jesus warned repeatedly about false teachers, saying, “Many will come in My name… and will deceive many” (Matthew 24:4-5). While such teachers may claim to be “Christian” and talk about Jesus, Jesus said, “You will know them by their fruits”—if they teach against the laws of God, they are not of God (Matthew 7:15-23).
The Apostle Paul warned congregations that false teachers would rise up “from among yourselves… speaking perverse things, to draw away the disciples after themselves” (Acts 20:29-31).
Isaiah provides an important key for recognizing false teachers, “To the law and to the testimony! If they do not speak according to this word, it is because there is no light in them” (Isaiah 8:20).
The Apostle Paul plainly states that individuals who preach a different Gospel than Jesus and the apostles preached “are false apostles, deceitful workers, transforming themselves into apostles of Christ”—and that they are actually ministers of Satan (2 Corinthians 11:1-4, 13-15).
These are strong words! In order to avoid being deceived by clever arguments, long-winded, emotionally-laced messages and twisted theologies, true Christians must diligently study the Scriptures as the Bereans did (Acts 17:10-11) to correctly understand the “word of truth” (2 Timothy 2:15).
