O Lord, our Father in heaven, hallowed be thy name, thy kingdom comes, Lord let your will be done on earth as it is done in heaven. I was glad when they said unto me, “We will go into the house of the Lord” (Psalm 122:1). Thank you, Lord, for inviting us into your house. Thank you for forgiving our iniquities and giving us the courage to forgive others. Lord, you said we have the authority and power to confront evil and be victorious over your enemy, which is also our enemy. Help us to have the courage to rebuke false teachers and expose false doctrine. Help us be ready for every excellent work. May the words of my mouth bear witness to my transformation as a new creation and to my belief that you are omnipotent and omnipresent. Please guide me to speak words pleasing to your ears and food for your people. In Jesus' name, I pray, Amen.
“Test everything; hold fast what is good” (1 Thessalonians 5:21, ESV). Examine the spirits and weigh carefully what is said. Many false prophets have gone out into the world and their mission is to cause division and sew unfruitful works of darkness. Their gift to deceive is great. They will tell us that adultery is okay, but violence is not okay because violence sets a bad example for our children. The last time I read the Scriptures sexual immorality and fits of anger appeared on the same list of sins (Galatians 5:19-21). For this reason, we need to study and come to the knowledge of the truth. With this knowledge, we can show deceivers that they cannot mislead or deceive us with smooth talk and flattery.
There are people, ungodly people, backed by money, positions of authority, and fame that have crept in among us. Examine their fruit and you will witness wicked and deceitful seeds growing within, ready to speak lies and other falsies against the Lord and those who claim Christ. Look closely and find their lying tongues are filled with hate. Too many people have bought the lies and are bent on pushing forward with divisive racist information, and pandemic-related conspiracies. They have ceased to think or act wisely.
Do not be naïve or deceived, false prophets and teachers have aligned themselves with the church and are underhandedly planting destructive heresies and blaspheming the Way and Truth that leads to Life. “By covetousness, they will exploit you with deceptive words” (2 Peter 1:3, NJKV). They exploit many and deceive the naïve with fictitious stories like “God is dead” and “there is no hell”. These leaders never get enough of anything, especially power and money and they will say and do anything to obtain it. Do not listen to the words of a person that you know is delinquent and mischievous. They turn aside the Word of God and abandon their morals and people for personal gain.
As followers of Christ, we must renounce such things, especially secret things that are profoundly dishonest. As God as our witness, disciples of Christ do not manage or proclaim the Word of God deceitfully. We are not progenitors of strife who choose to use the Gospel of Christ for personal gain or religious fame. Remember what Paul said to the Corinthians: “we do not market the word of God for profit like so many. On the contrary, we speak with sincerity in Christ, as from God and before God” (2 Corinthians 2:17, CSB).
As followers of Christ, we have an obligation to identify evildoers and expose their false doctrine. I urge you to beware of people who use words that in the end symbolize nothing. They have nothing to say but say it repeatedly. Let us not forget the people who love to talk about faith and believing in the Lord but do not actually follow the Lord’s way. “Certain persons, by swerving from these, have wandered away into vain discussion” (1 Timothy 1:6, ESV).
There is a way that seems right to the present generations, and they do not know enough about God’s Word to mount a rebuttal against false teaching. Many people have left the path of truth, going as far as to claim that there is no resurrection of the dead. Despite all the false teaching, God’s truth still stands.
Scripture puts it this way: “The entirety of Your word is truth, and every one of Your righteous judgments endures forever” (Psalm 119:160, NKJV). In the here and now, false teachers must be silenced. They need to be told publicly and boldly to be silent and stop teaching false doctrine. Under what authority do we rebuke those who come against the enemies of the Lord? Jesus gave us the authority, saying thus: Behold, I give unto you power to tread on serpents and scorpions, and overall the power of the enemy: and nothing shall by any means hurt you” (Luke 10:19, KJB). We need to be careful with this power or we could become friends with the enemies of God. We need to be honest and admit that each of us can be tempted; so, we need to watch out for false prophets! Blessed are the eyes that see what others cannot see.
Closing Prayer – Glory to God! May grace be with all of you, and peace, from God our Father, and from the Lord Jesus Christ. In Jesus’ name, I pray, Amen!
