Identifying False Teachers Series

Scripture

Paul gave Timothy instructions about three groups of people in the church: widows (in 5:3-16), elders (in 5:17-25), and slaves (in 6:1-2). Then he turned his attention to a fourth group: false teachers (in 6:3-10). Their presence was a huge problem in the churches in Ephesus. Paul showed Timothy how to identify false teachers in the church.

Let us read about identifying false teachers in 1 Timothy 6:3-10:

3 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, 4 he is puffed up with conceit and understands nothing. He has an unhealthy craving for controversy and for quarrels about words, which produce envy, dissension, slander, evil suspicions, 5 and constant friction among people who are depraved in mind and deprived of the truth, imagining that godliness is a means of gain. 6 But godliness with contentment is great gain, 7 for we brought nothing into the world, and we cannot take anything out of the world. 8 But if we have food and clothing, with these we will be content. 9 But those who desire to be rich fall into temptation, into a snare, into many senseless and harmful desires that plunge people into ruin and destruction. 10 For the love of money is a root of all kinds of evils. It is through this craving that some have wandered away from the faith and pierced themselves with many pangs. (1 Timothy 6:1-2)

Introduction

History is replete with deadly pandemics.

For example, you may have heard of the Black Death pandemic of the 14th century. That was a bubonic plague that affected Europe, Asia, and North Africa, and somewhere between 17% and 54% of the global population died. That was the most fatal pandemic recorded in world history.

Another fatal pandemic was the Spanish Flu that went worldwide in 1918-1920. As many as 5.4% of the world’s population died during that pandemic.

We are all familiar with our current COVID-19 worldwide pandemic. It is still with us, although hopefully it is abating. So far, 0.3% of the world’s population has died during the COVID-19 pandemic.

More deadly than any pandemic is the plague of false teaching that has afflicted the church throughout history. While viruses may kill the body, false teaching kills the soul. We are all familiar with how afraid people were during our current COVID-19 pandemic. Yet, people ought to be utterly terrified of false teaching because of its eternally deadly effects.

Pathologists study the causes and effects of disease. They are specialists who study what causes pandemics and its effects on people.

Every church elder needs to be a spiritual pathologist. He needs to be able to discern deviations from spiritual health. He needs to be able to diagnose false teaching and combat the errors of false teachers. He does this to shepherd God’s people.

Lesson

1 Timothy 6:3-10 shows us how to identify false teachers.

Let’s use the following outline:

1. False Teachers Deviate from the Truth (6:3-4a)

2. False Teachers Divide the Church (6:4b-5a)

3. False Teachers Desire Financial Gain (6:5b-10)

I. False Teachers Deviate from the Truth (6:3-4a)

First, false teachers deviate from the truth.

Paul identified three ways in which false teachers deviate from the truth. First, he wrote in verse 3a, “If anyone teaches a different doctrine.” The English phrase “different doctrine” is only one word in Greek (heterodidaskaleo). It is a compound word made up of two Greek words: heteros, which means “different” or “other,” and didaskalos, which means “doctrine” or “teaching.” The false teachers were teaching doctrine that was contrary to God’s revelation in Scripture.

Second, in verse 3b Paul noted that false teachers deviate from the truth because they do “not agree with the sound words of our Lord Jesus Christ.” The false teachers did not agree with Jesus. They taught doctrine that contradicted the teaching of Jesus.

And third, in verse 3c Paul wrote that false teachers oppose “teaching that accords with godliness.” The goal of doctrine is to produce disciples of Jesus who look more and more like him. Believers are to grow in the knowledge and grace of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ (2 Peter 3:18). But rather than teach doctrine that promoted godliness, the false teachers produced sin rather than a life of godliness.

The result of this kind of false teaching that deviates from the truth is that a false teacher, according to Paul in verse 4a, “is puffed up with conceit and understands nothing.” The false teacher thinks he is a gifted teacher and that his teaching is going to change people’s lives. Well, his teaching will change people’s lives but not for the better. The false teacher is deluded and he does not understand God’s truth at all.