The Danger Posed by False Teachers

Near the close of his letter to the Romans, Paul issued a serious warning about the danger posed by false teachers and told the brethren what they must do about it.

“Now I urge you, brethren, keep your eye on those who cause dissensions and hindrances contrary to the teaching which you learned, and turn away from them. For such men are slaves, not of our Lord Christ but of their own appetites; and by their smooth and flattering speech they deceive the hearts of the unsuspecting” (Romans 16:17-18).

This command to mark (identify) and avoid false teachers is often forsaken today in favor of ignoring, tolerating, or even accepting one who brings a different gospel. Why is that?

I will not get into the possible reasons for the failure to do what Paul said to do here. Each one should examine his own heart (cf. 2 Corinthians 13:5). But whatever the reason, failure to follow this command is a problem that needs to be corrected. Aside from the desire we ought to have to follow divine commandments (John 14:15), the New Testament gives several other reasons why we should not ignore, tolerate, or accept false teaching/teachers.

False teachers stand condemned – “Anyone who goes too far and does not abide in the teaching of Christ, does not have God; the one who abides in the teaching, he has both the Father and the Son” (2 John 9). When one does not remain within the confines of Scripture, he loses his fellowship with God. Therefore, error is not to be brushed aside as if it was of no consequence.

False teachers cause others to be lost – “But false prophets also arose among the people, just as there will also be false teachers among you, who will secretly introduce destructive heresies, even denying the Master who bought them, bringing swift destruction upon themselves” (2 Peter 2:1). When one’s message falls outside of the confines of Scripture, it is described as destructive or damnable (KJV) because it will cause those who accept it to also lose their fellowship with God.

False teaching will spread – “But avoid worldly and empty chatter, for it will lead to further ungodliness, and their talk will spread like gangrene. Among them are Hymenaeus and Philetus, men who have gone astray from the truth saying that the resurrection has already taken place, and they upset the faith of some” (2 Timothy 2:16-18). Timothy could not simply ignore this error and hope it would go away. It would not; instead, it would spread. The same is true today.

False teachers must be stopped – “For there are many rebellious men, empty talkers and deceivers, especially those of the circumcision, who must be silenced because they are upsetting whole families, teaching things they should not teach for the sake of sordid gain” (Titus 1:10-11). Knowing the things mentioned in the verses above, we should naturally want to stop the influence of the false teachers. Paul told Titus that the silencing of false teachers – which would be done through teaching – was of great importance.

We stand condemned if we receive false teachers – “If anyone comes to you and does not bring this teaching, do not receive him into your house, and do not give him a greeting; for the one who gives him a greeting participates in his evil deeds” (2 John 10-11). The false teacher is condemned for his error. The one who follows the false teacher is also condemned. But here we see that one will be condemned – even one who does not teach error or follow the message of the false teacher – by accepting, encouraging, and supporting one who does not remain within the confines of Scripture.

We are given a clear warning in the New Testament. False teaching brings destruction – for the false teacher, for the one who follows the false teacher, and for the one who accepts the false teacher. Therefore, we need to be serious about identifying and avoiding those who advocate a different doctrine. As Paul wrote, “Examine everything carefully; hold fast to that which is good; abstain from every form of evil” (1 Thessalonians 5:21-22).

Before John warned against the acceptance of false teachers, he told us why this is important: “For many deceivers have gone out into the world, those who do not acknowledge Jesus Christ as coming in the flesh. This is the deceiver and the antichrist. Watch yourselves, that you do not lose what we have accomplished, but that you may receive a full reward” (2 John 7-8).

Do not be deceived. False teachers pose a deadly threat to the children of God. Therefore, watch for yourselves and avoid false teachers so that you will not follow them. Also, identify them – even specifically by name and doctrine (2 Timothy 2:17-18) – so that others can recognize and avoid these false teachers and not be deceived themselves.