False Teachers, Prophets, christs, Cultists, and how to deal with them

Deut. 13:1-4 Even if what happens, should these Jews not listen to the words of the prophets or the dreamer of dreams who says to them, “Let us go after other gods and let us serve them”?

Have you ever had any religious people (even some who may claim to be Christian and who claim to have miraculous visions, healings, abilities to speak in unknown languages, prophecies, etc.), tell you to worship and serve their god, and who try to make you think that their god is the same God as the one true Creator, sovereign God in the Bible, or who try to convince you that the God of the Bible is either unfair, too bloody, or in some way not as good as theirs?

If not their god, how about their Jesus or their Holy Spirit?

If so, what did these religious people say, and what supernatural ability did they profess to have to make you think that they were from God, or had a close relationship or an “in” with God?

What was God trying to find out about these Jews (vs. 3)?

Do you love the historical, one true God (i.e., Father, Son, and Holy Spirit) of the Bible, or are you going after and serving the god, Jesus, or holy spirit of your or someone else’s demonic or fraudulent experience or imagination? Why?

Will you remain loyal to the historical God of the Bible or seek other gods of emotionalism? Why?

Deut. 18:20-22 How could these Jews know when the words a prophet spoke were not from God, even though they spoke in the name of the Lord?

If a prophet had 99% of what he predicted come true but erred just once in any prophecy, what were these Jews to do (see 13:3 also)?

Since we’re not Jews nor living in Old Testament times, what should be the Christian’s response to religious people who prophecy things that don’t come true (2 Tim. 3:5 might give some indication for those who don’t know the Bible very well, and Titus 1:9, 11-14, 16 for spiritual leaders)?

[According to 1 Cor. 13:8-10 there are no prophets of God today because the spiritual gift of prophesy ended with the completion of the Bible in 95 A.D. The word “perfect” in 13:10 is the Greek word “to teleion”, meaning “complete or mature” and is in the neuter gender, meaning “the completed thing” and refers to the completion of the Bible – Unger’s Bible Handbook; The New Analytical Greek Lexicon.].

Matt. 7:15, 16 What does Jesus say to His disciples about false prophets?

Are you careful and on guard against or watchful of false prophets? How?

What mental picture comes to your mind when you think of a false prophet? Why?

What does “sheep’s clothing” communicate to you as to a description of what a person is like?

What does Jesus mean by, “you will know them by their fruits” (vss. 17, 18)?

(Eph. 5:9-12; Gal. 5:19-23; Lk. 3:8-14; Jn. 15:8-10; Col. 1:10; James 3:17, 18; Phil. 1:11)?

(1 Jn. 4:1-3; 2 Jn. 1:9-11; Matt. 15:9; Lk. 6:45; Titus 1:9-12; Heb. 13:9)?

What fruit should a person bear (Gal. 5:22, 23; Eph. 6:14; 2 Tim. 2:14)?

Matt. 15:1-3, 7-9 What did these Pharisees who were religious but not godly do (vs. 3)?

What did Jesus call these religious leaders (vs. 7)?

What did Isaiah say of them (vss. 8, 9)?

Do you know of religious people like this? Are you ever guilty of any of this? If so, how often?

Matt. 23:2-33 Because the scribes and Pharisees seated themselves in the chair of Moses (the special or highest position in each synagogue), what does Jesus tell the multitudes (vs. 3)?

[What they “tell you, do” – means “whenever they faithfully interpret Moses’ writings in the OT, their instructions should be obeyed”.].

How did these religious leaders appear, and what really were they (vss. 27, 28)?

Do you know of religious people like this? Are you ever guilty of this? If so, how often?

Why? How does Jesus deal with these religious leaders?

Matt. 24:4, 5, 23, 24 Why does Jesus warn His disciples to “see to it that no one mislead them” (vs. 5)?

Why shouldn’t Jesus’ disciples believe people who told them that “here or there is Christ” (vs. 24)?

Have you ever been mislead by religious people who claim to come in Jesus’ name, and even demonstrate supernatural abilities (e.g., healings, speaking in tongues, performing miracles, etc.)? How will you keep from being misled?

Acts 20:28-31 What does Paul warn these Ephesian elders to do, and why?

From where will these wolves (false teachers) arise, and what will they try to do?

Did you ever think that a false teacher might arise from your own church, youth group, Sunday School class, Bible study group, etc.? What precautions can you take to keep yourself from being drawn away?

Rom. 16:17, 18 Who were these Christians told to keep their eye on?

[“the teaching” – apostolic teaching; God’s inspired Word].

[It’s not talking about dissensions caused by defending the truth, 1 Cor. 11:19.].

Are you keeping your eye open for this? How?

How were these Christians to relate to these false teachers, and why?

Have you ever had to relate to a religious person like this before? Why?

2 Cor. 11:2-4 What was Paul afraid might happen to these Christians at Corinth?

Why was Paul so concerned about this (vs. 4)?

Do you have this kind of concern (vs. 2) for those that you lead or spiritually work with? Why?

If so, have you done anything to warn them or help them to be prepared to combat false teaching and teachers?

How?

2 Cor. 11:7, 12-15 How did these false apostles who were trying to claim to be like Paul, an apostle, disguise themselves (vs. 13)?

Why shouldn’t this be surprising to us?

Is it hard for you to think that these seemingly nice, sweet, moral, good, religious people can really be false teachers?

Why?

Gal. 1:6-9 At what was Paul amazed?

Have you ever been amazed at this happening to some Christians that you know?

Who did Paul say should be accursed?

Is your attitude the same as Paul’s in this regard? Why?

Eph. 4:11-14 How would the different spiritual, instruction gifts (i.e., apostle, prophet, evangelist, pastor, teacher) being used for the building up of the body help these Christians guard against every wind of doctrine, false teaching (2 Jn. 1:4 and 1 Cor. 1:10 might help)?

If you have a teaching gift, are you using it to educate the saints in the truths of the Bible so that they’re not tossed and carried about by various false teachings? How often, and why?

Col. 2:6-8 In warning these Christians, through what avenue or means didn’t Paul want them to be taken captive?

What are you doing to insure that neither you nor those that you’re discipling or spiritually watching over are taken captive by these things, and why?

2 Thes. 2:1-10 The man of lawlessness’ coming will be in accord with what (vss. 9, 10)?

Realizing that Satan can endow human beings with such supernatural abilities, are you careful to not just accept anyone’s teaching as gospel truth just because they claim to be Christian (or from God) and have supernatural abilities to make you think that that proves that they are from God?

How do you decide whether someone is from God or not, and why that way?

1 Tim. 4:1-3, 6, 7 In later times (the church era – from Pentecost on) some will fall away from the faith (apostatize from the gospel, those who claimed to be Christian but really were not) and pay attention to doctrines of demons (like saint and angel worship) and forbid or advocate abstaining from what?

What denomination in Christendom has or still does teach these things?

Have you ever known anyone who claimed to be a Christian and then later fell away from the faith to believe and follow another religion or cult? How did you feel about that, and why?

What does Paul say about the person who points out these warnings (vs. 6)?

Would you qualify? Why?

1 Tim. 6:2-5, 11 Who is conceited and understands nothing?

What are some things Paul tells Timothy to flee from (vss. 4, 11)?

[Examples of “controversial questions” could be: “Based on 1 Cor. 11:14, is it alright for a man to have shoulder-length hair?”; “Or, is it alright for a Christian to drink three glasses of wine with dinner?”].

[An example of “word disputes” might involve anagrams of a word. The word “name”, someone would say, really means “amen” while another person would say, it really indicates that someone is “mean”. Both people rearranged the letters of the word “name” to form two different words using the same letters in “name”. Another example could be where the letters in the word “Samuel” are rearranged to say “as a mule”, and so someone could say this is what “Samuel” really means.].

Do you know of religious people, maybe some who even claim to be Christian, who don’t like what Jesus taught, but instead like to constantly bring up controversial questions and argue about word meanings?

If so, how did you react or relate to the person, and why?

1 Tim. 6:20, 21 What is Paul’s admonition to Timothy?

[An example of “worldly, empty chatter” could be arguing over how many angels could fit on the head of a pin or whether God could create a rock so heavy that He couldn’t lift it.].

Are you avoiding worldly and empty chatter (intellectual philosophizing and human learning that opposes or complicates the truths of God) and the opposing arguments (speculations and debates of worldly wisdom) of what is falsely called knowledge?

How, and why?

Are you refusing foolish and ignorant speculations (2 Tim. 2:16, 23)? Why?

2 Tim. 3:1-7 What should be our relationship to those who hold a form a godliness (appear good/religious outwardly) but who deny its power?

Do you know of any denominations, groups, or individuals who hold to a form of godliness (they’re religious and seemingly nice people and may even claim to be Christian) but who deny its power (the gospel – Rom. 1:16)?

If so, how are you relating to them, and why?

2 Tim. 3:13-15 What does Paul tell Timothy to do, realizing that impostors will proceed from bad to worse, deceiving and being deceived (vs.14)?

Are you continuing in the fundamental, evangelical, Bible teachings that you were taught by genuine, godly, biblically-in- context-knowledgeable, born-again Christians? How, and why?

Titus 1:9-14 Why should an overseer (elder) have the ability to exhort in sound doctrine and to refute those who contradict (vss. 10, 11)?

Do you have this ability? If not, how would you obtain it?

Why should they be reproved severely (vss. 13, 14)?

Have you ever been either the object of such or similar reproof, or have you ever severely reproved someone for a similar reason? What did you do, and why?

Titus 3:9-11 How should we deal with people who are given over to creating factions or divisions over foolish controversies genealogies, and disputes about the Law (Old Testament)?

Why?

Have you ever done this to a factious person? If so, over what issue?

If not, would you?

2 Pet. 2:1-3 What does Peter say about these false teachers?

Have you ever been exploited with false words by a false teacher before? If so, what was it?

And when did you realize that it was false, and how?

1 Jn. 4:1-5, 15 Why should these Christians test (try for the purpose of approving) the spirits (human beings actuated by a spirit being either demonic or divine)?

How would they know the Spirit of God (vss. 2, 3, 15)?

What cults or religions don’t believe that Jesus Christ is fully human (has a physical body)?

And which cults don’t believe that Jesus Christ is fully divine (always was, is, and will be God)?

Have you ever tested someone to see whether he was from God?

If so, how did you go about doing so, and why?

2 Jn. 1:6-11 Who is the deceiver and the antichrist?

Who shouldn’t we receive into our house or give a greeting, and why?

Have you ever housed, encouraged, or bid God’s speed upon someone who outrightly rejected Jesus Christ as the Messiah after you’ve witnessed to him/her? Why?