Ø A
pattern of deception. These people do
things in secret in a “crafty” manner.
As Zephaniah 3:4 says, her
prophets are insolent treacherous people.
This is dangerous when they are prophets, people who supposedly speak
for God.
Ø A
pattern of unbridled lust. They were licentious (without any moral
boundaries) and shameless (not
bothered by their immorality). Isaiah
spoke of those in His day like this: The
priest and the prophet have erred through intoxicating drink, they are
swallowed up by wine … they err in vision, they stumble in judgment (Isa.
28:7). Jeremiah, speaking for God said, I have seen a horrible thing in the prophets
of Jerusalem: they commit adultery and walk in lies; they also strengthen the
hands of evildoers, so that no one turns back from his wickedness. All of them are like Sodom to Me, and her
inhabitants like Gomorrah (Jer. 23:14).
Ø A
pattern of covetousness. This has to do
with greed and the love of money. They
actually treat people, not as a good shepherd would his sheep, but rather as
merchandise; they exploit them, using them as a means to get rich. Micah
said it thus: Her heads judge for a
bribe, her priests teach for pay, and her prophets divine for money. Yet they lean on the Lord, and say, “Is not
the Lord among us? No harm can come upon us” (Micah 3:11).
These
three patterns show that false prophets and false teachers promote the world
system among God’s people. According to
1 John 2:16, all that is in the world
is bound up in the lust of the flesh
(unbridled lust), the lust of the eyes
(covetousness), and the pride of life
(deception). The result of this pattern
of character is …
Ø A
pattern of impact. Their heresies were destructive. Some even denied the Lord (the deity of
Christ) such as Gnosticism and Arianism in the early church. Other heresies simply got people’s minds and
hearts off Christ and on the things of the world, much like today’s health
(lust of the flesh) and wealth (lust of the eyes) gospel. The result is that many follow them. Jeremiah 5:31 makes a powerful statement
about this that is evident today: The
prophets prophesy falsely, and the priests rule by their own power, and My
people love to have it so. But what will
you do in the end? Because of this, Peter says, the way of truth will be blasphemed.
Can you see how important this issue is in today’s Church? This has never been a trivial matter and it is not trivial today.
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