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We have examined several of the author's previous articles, and have found them to be less than persuasive. In today's article he sort of supplies us with a framework for discerning false teaching, but really it's more like how to recognize teaching you disagree with.
Sadly, as is typical for him, he quotes no Scripture here. At all.
We shall explain what the author neglects, using Scripture to do so. Discernment is a spiritual gift, a supernatural empowerment:
1Co. 12:10 to another miraculous powers, to another prophecy, to another distinguishing between spirits, to another speaking in different kinds of tongues...
Discernment requires the Holy Spirit:
1Co. 2:14 The man without the Spirit does not accept the things that come from the Spirit of God, for they are foolishness to him, and he cannot understand them, because they are spiritually discerned.
Discernment can be honed into maturity:
He. 5:14 But solid food is for the mature, who by constant use have trained themselves to distinguish good from evil.
Discernment happens in the gathering of the saints for their edification and evaluation:
1Co. 14:29 Two or three prophets should speak, and the others should weigh carefully what is said.
Discernment bears spiritual fruit:
Ph. 1:9-10 And this is my prayer: that your love may abound more and more in knowledge and depth of insight, 10 so that you may be able to discern what is best and may be pure and blameless until the day of Christ...
Ultimately, discernment is fundamentally recognizing the Holy Spirit:
1Jn. 4:2-3 This is how you can recognize the Spirit of God: Every spirit that acknowledges that Jesus Christ has come in the flesh is from God, 3 but every spirit that does not acknowledge Jesus is not from God.
The author never mentions the Holy Spirit. And, he doesn't seem to be aware of the biblical case for discernment, or perhaps, it doesn't matter to him.
What is false teaching and how do we spot it?
Obviously, there is no foolproof scheme for identifying false teaching. Biblical discernment takes years of prayer, preaching, and practice. But there are certain questions that may help us sift the good from the bad. Here are 15 discernment diagnostic questions I suggested to my congregation.
1. Does the teaching sound strange? This is not foolproof, of course—predestination may sound strange at first. (Indeed. Because it is strange. Calvinism as a whole is strange.)
But sound teaching should make biblical sense for those who have read through the Bible every year, go to church every Sunday, and have gone to Sunday school for decades. As an initial question, the longtime Christian should wonder “Why have I never heard anything like this before?” (This may be the pivotal statement in this entire article. Years, decades, and centuries of tradition is the basis for most people's theology. They believe what they have believed, study what they have studied, and parrot what has been parroted to them. They listen to those with whom they agree, they rehearse what they've been taught, and anything that departs from their prefect doctrine is novel, suspect, and likely false teaching.
The author is Reformed/Calvinist. This is a distinctive doctrinal approach. He has likely rehearsed his doctrines over and over, always reading his Bible through the lens of someone else's opinions about the faith, so it should not be a surprise that there might be things people believe, things that are completely biblical, that he's never heard before.
Really, everyone does this. Everyone is biased towards what they already know. That's why it's so difficult for there to be unity in the Church. Too many put absolute doctrinal conformity as the benchmark. However, if one chooses perfect doctrine as his hill to die on, one has self-isolated from anything that will challenge his viewpoint.)
2. Does it sound too good to be true? Not in the next life, mind you, but in this life. Promises of never failing material well being or relational ease or emotional tranquility are not to be trusted.
3. Does it involve trinkets or relics or holy water? Christianity entails some mystery, no magic.
4. Does it involve prophetic words? Christians may define prophecy differently. I’m not thinking here of a word fitly spoken, or powerful preaching, or wise counsel. I’m talking about “the Lord told me” sort of communication that tells other people what to do and cannot be tested or sifted according to Scripture. (??? What? Since when is prophecy untestable? That is utter nonsense and the author knows it. He tests things every single day by the Scriptural standard. If needed, he will consult with wise brothers and sisters. And he surely believes that the Holy Spirit enlightens his understanding to comprehend the Scriptures.
2. Does it sound too good to be true? Not in the next life, mind you, but in this life. Promises of never failing material well being or relational ease or emotional tranquility are not to be trusted.
3. Does it involve trinkets or relics or holy water? Christianity entails some mystery, no magic.
4. Does it involve prophetic words? Christians may define prophecy differently. I’m not thinking here of a word fitly spoken, or powerful preaching, or wise counsel. I’m talking about “the Lord told me” sort of communication that tells other people what to do and cannot be tested or sifted according to Scripture. (??? What? Since when is prophecy untestable? That is utter nonsense and the author knows it. He tests things every single day by the Scriptural standard. If needed, he will consult with wise brothers and sisters. And he surely believes that the Holy Spirit enlightens his understanding to comprehend the Scriptures.
These are all tools that are available to test any utterance, including prophecy.)
5. Do angels or aliens or seed money play a major role in the teaching? Enough said.
6. Does it feature prominently the word “code”? Bible Code, DaVinci Code, Omega Code. Just stay away.
7. Does the teaching involve secrets? This was the appeal of Gnosticism. It purported to lead the initiate into the realm of secret knowledge. This is what makes me nervous about Masons, Mormons, and even many fraternities and sororities. Unless national security is involved, be wary of groups that are held together by tightly held secrets. Books with “secret” in the title are usually suspect too (Lesslie Newbigin’s The Open Secret being the exception that proves the rule).
8. Does it rely on a cartoon view of God? False teaching tends to cast God as either an autocratic strongman or a friendly face passing out beads at Woodstock. By contrast, the God of the Bible shines forth with (to use Jonathan Edwards’ phrase) a host of diverse excellencies.
9. Does the teaching use big themes to negate specific verses? We should always interpret Scripture with Scripture, but we must not allow amorphous themes like love or justice or grace to flatten the contours of Scripture.
10. Does it promote an unmediated approach to spirituality? ("Unmediated?" The author doesn't define the term.)
5. Do angels or aliens or seed money play a major role in the teaching? Enough said.
6. Does it feature prominently the word “code”? Bible Code, DaVinci Code, Omega Code. Just stay away.
7. Does the teaching involve secrets? This was the appeal of Gnosticism. It purported to lead the initiate into the realm of secret knowledge. This is what makes me nervous about Masons, Mormons, and even many fraternities and sororities. Unless national security is involved, be wary of groups that are held together by tightly held secrets. Books with “secret” in the title are usually suspect too (Lesslie Newbigin’s The Open Secret being the exception that proves the rule).
8. Does it rely on a cartoon view of God? False teaching tends to cast God as either an autocratic strongman or a friendly face passing out beads at Woodstock. By contrast, the God of the Bible shines forth with (to use Jonathan Edwards’ phrase) a host of diverse excellencies.
9. Does the teaching use big themes to negate specific verses? We should always interpret Scripture with Scripture, but we must not allow amorphous themes like love or justice or grace to flatten the contours of Scripture.
10. Does it promote an unmediated approach to spirituality? ("Unmediated?" The author doesn't define the term.)
Mysticism, in its technical sense, can be defined as an approach to God apart from mediation. (???) False spirituality tries to foster intimacy with God that does not go through the mediated revelation of Scripture (???) and does not lead one to the mediation of Christ on the cross. (??? This is truly an obfuscating series of statements.)
11. Does the false teaching traffic in under-defined terms and slogans? (Like "mediated?" How about "soteriology," "perspicuity," or "impassibility?" Why do Calvinists/Reformists refer to "regenerated" rather than "born again?" "Converted" rather than "saved?"
11. Does the false teaching traffic in under-defined terms and slogans? (Like "mediated?" How about "soteriology," "perspicuity," or "impassibility?" Why do Calvinists/Reformists refer to "regenerated" rather than "born again?" "Converted" rather than "saved?"
It is most certainly true that everyone has his own jargon. Thus this criteria is largely useless.)
Liberalism starts with an inattention to words. It is the triumph of orthodoxy to be careful with language. (What troubles us more is the use of words that sound conventional, but actually mean something else. Like when John writes,
He is the propitiation for our sins, and not for ours only but also for the sins of the whole world. 1 John 2:2Calvinists like the author will quickly tell us that "world" doesn't mean "world," it means "the elect." This is what Calvinists do, they redefine words and Bible verses to suit their doctrines. By the author's own standards his personal beliefs are themselves false teaching.)
12. Does the teaching neglect the need for repentance? Beware the feel good invitation for everyone to come to the wide open arms. The coming of the Kingdom is not good news for sinners. It is good news for sinners who repent.
13. Does the false teaching or teacher seem obsessed about one person, one doctrine, or one idea? (Um, like Calvin?)
An unsolicited exposé running into the hundreds of pages likely reveals more about the author than the subject.
14. Does it result in an unbalanced presentation of the truth? True Christianity walks the tight rope between complementary biblical truths—truth and grace, Christ as God and man, salvation by faith alone and the necessity of the obedience of the Christian. It was usually the heretics who were guilty of resolving biblical tensions in ways that were too neat and tidy.
15. Does the teaching fit with the Bible’s storyline of sin and salvation? (Happily the author finally appeals to the Bible as a way to discern false teaching.)
14. Does it result in an unbalanced presentation of the truth? True Christianity walks the tight rope between complementary biblical truths—truth and grace, Christ as God and man, salvation by faith alone and the necessity of the obedience of the Christian. It was usually the heretics who were guilty of resolving biblical tensions in ways that were too neat and tidy.
15. Does the teaching fit with the Bible’s storyline of sin and salvation? (Happily the author finally appeals to the Bible as a way to discern false teaching.)
How can a holy God dwell in the midst of an unholy people? If the teaching doesn’t make sense as a plot line in that story, I’m suspicious.
Mature Christians do not cast a critical eye on everyone and everything a hair’s breadth different from them. (Is the author being ironic? He is explaining how to spot false teaching. His critical eye most certainly evaluates people's doctrines for even slight deviations.)
Mature Christians do not cast a critical eye on everyone and everything a hair’s breadth different from them. (Is the author being ironic? He is explaining how to spot false teaching. His critical eye most certainly evaluates people's doctrines for even slight deviations.)
But they are discerning, and they are careful. Guard your heart. Guard your home. Guard the good deposit.
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