2 Tim. 4:3 (GW) A time will come when people will not listen to accurate teachings. Instead, they will follow their own desires and surround themselves with teachers who tell them what they want to hear.
According to some Apostolics, Satan no longer goes through out the earth seeking whom he may devour. He is currently writhing in the fiery abyss we call hell, and has been for the past two thousand years. They also teach that the rapture took place just prior to the Roman destruction of Jerusalem, and that there will be no physical resurrection in our future. Today’s Apostolic Movement, it seems, is not immune to the predators of false doctrines.
The necessity for accuracy in our teachings cannot be overemphasized. A faulty compass presents a greater danger to a traveler than no compass in that it gives a false security in the journey. A faulty doctrine also gives a false security and a mistaken hope for a blessed future. One can easily understand why Jude insisted that we fight with intensity for the preservation of the doctrines that were entrusted to God’s people. (Jude 1:3 KJV)
The destructive force of False Doctrines
Our Apostolic Church of the first century also waged war against predators of false doctrines. Paul, in a letter to Timothy, identifies two men by name and the doctrine they taught.
2 Tim. 2:14-18 (Living) Remind your people of these great facts, and command them in the name of the Lord not to argue over unimportant things. Such arguments are confusing and useless and even harmful. [15] Work hard so God can say to you, "Well done." Be a good workman, one who does not need to be ashamed when God examines your work. Know what his Word says and means. [16] Steer clear of foolish discussions that lead people into the sin of anger with each other. [17] Things will be said that will burn and hurt for a long time to come. Hymenaeus and Philetus, in their love of argument, are men like that. [18] They have left the path of truth, preaching the lie that the resurrection of the dead has already occurred; and they have weakened the faith of some who believe them.
What should be of great importance to us is the result of the false doctrine. By preaching a lie, the faith of some is weakened. The King James Version uses the word subverting. In the Greek, the word for subverting is katastrophē, from which we get our English word catastrophe. False doctrines destroy the faith of people who embraces them, including those that teach them. (2 Peter 2:1 KJV)
The creation of a False Doctrine
How are false doctrine formed? The answers are as diverse as the people who teach them. I would, however, give you two of the methods.
Some false doctrines are formed by a using of presumptive (priori) reasoning. A conclusion is made and the subsequent investigations of scriptures are interpreted to support the conclusion. In the case of Full Preterism, the conclusion is that all prophecy was fulfilled in the destruction of Jerusalem in 70 AD. This requires them to claim a resurrection of the saints, a rapture of the saints, and a cessation of satanic activity in 70 AD, and they do so despite the illogic of such a doctrine.
Other false doctrines are formed by a proclivity to spiritualize a text based upon personal biases. This allows the “teacher” to interpret and twist the passage to suit his views. Peter warned of those that took this approach.
2 Peter 3:15b-16 (NLT) This is just as our beloved brother Paul wrote to you with the wisdom God gave him—speaking of these things in all of his letters. Some of his comments are hard to understand, and those who are ignorant and unstable have twisted his letters around to mean something quite different from what he meant, just as they do the other parts of Scripture—and the result is disaster for them.
One ensures a true doctrine by seeking exactly what Paul and other canon authors meant with the words that they used. This requires a historical-grammatical approach in hermeneutics that determines how the author used words that may have changed their meaning over the centuries. The word gay in the 1890s evolved to a different meaning by the 1990s. One must avoid the twisting the author’s work to mean something quite different than what he meant in order to ensure a correct doctrine.
In a garden, the grower must continually war against the invasion of weeds. No matter how often he removes the destructive plants, more invariably take their place. Failure to engage the weeds leaves the garden overgrown and unproductive. False doctrines must also be engaged and removed from the believer lest the Apostolic Movement is overgrown with destructive doctrines that leave the Church impotent and unproductive.
Parson
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