The Book of II PETER
James J. Barker
Lesson 04
WARNINGS REGARDING FALSE TEACHERS Part 2
INTRODUCTION:
- Last week I
started preaching from II Peter 2, and said I would try and finish up this
evening. Lord willing, I will.
- When preaching
about false teachers it is really hard to stop because there are so many of
them. For example, I saw this on
the Internet the other day: "More than 100 Methodist ministers in New England
have pledged to marry gay couples in defiance of the denomination’s national
leadership, which maintains a ban on same-sex unions."
- This sort of
thing is going on all over the country, and all over the world. Last week I mentioned that false
teachers are condemned (2:1, 9b).
- "Whose judgment
now of a long time lingereth not, and their damnation slumbereth not"
(2:3b).
- They are
condemned because they lead lost souls to hell (2:2).
- In Matthew
23:14, our Lord said they will receive "the greater
damnation."
- Furthermore, we
saw that false teachers are carnal (2:10).
They are "unclean" (2:10).
- Peter says they
are like "natural brute beasts, made to be taken and destroyed"
(2:12).
- Second Peter
2:14 says, "Having eyes full of adultery, and that cannot cease from sin." And it was at this point that we
left off.
I.
FALSE TEACHERS ARE
CARNAL
- False teachers
are in the flesh. They do not have
the power of the indwelling Holy Spirit.
Therefore, they cannot comprehend spiritual
things.
- First
Corinthians 2:14 says, "But the natural man receiveth not the things of the
Spirit of God: for they are foolishness unto him: neither can he know them,
because they are spiritually discerned."
- False teachers
attack the Bible. They do not
believe in the Genesis account of creation. They do not believe there was a
world-wide flood in the days of Noah.
- They do not
believe Moses parted the Red Sea.
- They do not
believe in any of the miracles in the Bible, including the virgin birth of
Christ and His resurrection from the dead.
- They do not
believe in a literal hell, but they are surely going there (2:12,
17).
- False teachers
drink alcohol and indulge in riotous living (2:13). I heard a pastor preach one time,
and in his message he mentioned that he was on an airplane one time, and the man
sitting next to him was a liberal preacher. And the man was
drunk!
- False teachers
are so wicked they carry on with their sinful activities in broad daylight
(2:13). They sport themselves "with
their own deceivings" (2:13).
- Second Timothy
3:13 says, "But evil men and seducers shall wax worse and worse, deceiving, and
being deceived."
- False teachers are very immoral. They are notorious adulterers
(2:14). They are like the sons of
Eli, who were laid with the women that assembled at the door of the tabernacle
of the congregation.
- Eli rebuked his sons, and said, "Why do ye such things?
for I hear of your evil dealings by all this people. Nay, my sons; for it is no good report
that I hear: ye make the LORD'S people to transgress" (I Sam. 1:23,
24).
- There are so many dishonest, adulterous phonies in the
ministry, I'd literally be here all night if I were to mention just a few of
them.
- Consider the "Rev" Henry Lyons, the former head of the
National Baptist Convention.
- He was sentenced to 5 ½ years in prison for his
convictions on state charges of racketeering and grand
theft.
- Lyons and his mistress, National Baptist Convention
publicist Bernice Edwards, were accused of spending much of the stolen money on
a lavish lifestyle, including fancy cars, jewelry and a pricey waterfront
home.
- A few weeks after Lyons was convicted in state court, he
resigned as head of the National Baptist Convention. He pleaded guilty to
federal charges of tax evasion, fraudulent activities and lying to officials.
- Lyons is a good friend of Jesse Jackson
fathered a child out of wedlock with an employee from
his Rainbow Coalition organization.
- Jackson was the "spiritual adviser" to President Bill
Clinton, after Clinton got caught with Monica
Lewinski.
- Jesse Jackson admitted paying his mistress $472,000 to
keep quiet!
- More recently, four men have
sued Bishop Eddie Long, the pastor of
New Birth Missionary Baptist Church in Atlanta,
Georgia.
- These young men claim that Long gave them cars, clothes,
cash and trips to lure them into homosexual relationships while they were
teenage members of his church.
- "Having eyes full of adultery, and that cannot cease
from sin; beguiling unstable souls: an heart they have exercised with covetous
practices; cursed children" (II Peter 2:14).
- These wicked adulterous preachers deceive "unstable
souls" into thinking adultery and homosexuality are good and acceptable. They call it "love" when it is really "lust."
- Last Sunday night after church, I went out to eat with a
few of our church members and they mentioned that I did not refer to T.D. Jakes
when I referred to false prophets.
- It was simply an oversight. There are so many popular false teachers
today that I do not the time to mention them all.
- However, since Jakes is so popular, I should sound a
warning. He is a "Oneness
Pentecostal" who does not believe in the Trinity. He has produced a dirty R-rated
movie. He is a "prosperity" preacher.
- Jakes claims that Ruth and Naomi had a relationship that
"bordered on lesbianism."
Furthermore, he claims David and Jonathan were involved in a
same-sex relationship.
This type of filthy heresy is taught by the homosexuals. Jakes himself has been accused of
being a homosexual but has denied it.
- Jakes has all the marks of a false teacher: he is
condemned for his false doctrine; he is covetous (2:3), a
millionaire; he is carnal, possibly a sodomite (2:10), and he is totally
corrupt (2:19).
- For years now the liberal mainstream media has been
promoting Jakes as the "new Billy Graham."
That ought to be a warning right there!
II.
THE FALSE TEACHERS ARE CORRUPT
(2:19).
- A few years ago I read a book entitled, Shakedown:
Exposing the Real Jesse Jackson, written by Kenneth R. Timmerman. This interesting book details the
corruption of Jesse Jackson.
- I only mention
Jackson because he is a famous false teacher, but all false teachers are
corrupt.
- Here in II Peter 2:15, Balaam is given to us as an
example of a corrupt religious apostate.
Balaam "loved the wages
of unrighteousness" (2:15).
- False teachers
use the ministry as a means of financial enrichment. Both I Timothy 3:3 and Titus 1:7 say a
bishop (or "pastor") must not be "greedy of filthy
lucre."
- Regarding false
teachers, Titus 1:11 says, "Whose mouths must be stopped, who subvert whole
houses, teaching things which they ought not, for filthy lucre's
sake."
- Peter exhorts
his fellow elders in I Peter 5:2, "Feed the flock of God which is among you,
taking the oversight thereof, not by constraint, but willingly; not for
filthy lucre, but of a ready
mind."
- Balaam was
rebuked for his iniquity by a dumb ass (2:16). That fascinating story is
recorded in Numbers 22. Likewise,
false teachers are rebuked from time to time. They get caught in various scandals but
they continue on in their wicked ways.
- In 2006, Ted
Haggard was exposed as a homosexual and a drug user. He was kicked out of his church and
removed as the head of the National Association of Evangelicals.
- Then last year
he started a new church (cf. II Peter 2:17). I believe there is a special place in
hell reserved for false teachers.
Jesus said to the Pharisees in Matthew 23:14, "Ye shall receive the
greater damnation."
- "Swift destruction" (II Peter
2:1).
- Their "judgment now of a long time lingereth not, and
their damnation slumbereth not" (2:3).
- "Reserved unto judgment"
(2:4).
- "And turning the cities of Sodom and Gomorrha into ashes
condemned them with an overthrow, making them an ensample unto those that after
should live ungodly" (2:6).
- "And to reserve the unjust unto the day of judgment to
be punished" (2:9).
- "To whom the mist of darkness is reserved for ever"
(2:17).
- False teachers are like "wells without water" (2:17) --
useless!
- False teachers " speak great
swelling words of vanity" (2:18), all the while enticing others to sin "through
the lusts of the flesh, through much wantonness" (2:18).
- Peter was a fisherman before he became a preacher. Here Peter is using a fisherman's word
"allure" (2:18). The same Greek
word is translated "beguile" in 2:14.
It means to "entice."
- Just as a fisherman catches fish with his baited hook,
these corrupt false teachers catch their misled dupes through "great swelling
words" (2:18).
- False
teachers gather big crowds "through much wantonness" (2:18). Mark Driscoll, a pastor of a huge church
in Seattle Washington, often uses lewd words and dirty language from the
pulpit.
- I recently read an article entitled, "Lascivious
Churches." The author listed quite a few!
- CHARLOTTE SOUTH FELLOWSHIP IN MATHEWS, NORTH CAROLINA,
featured a five week series in February 2007 called "Sex Crazy." Two of the
messages were "Single and Sexually Satisfied" and "Raising Sexually Satisfied
Kids."
- In February-March 2007 EASTLAKE COMMUNITY CHURCH IN
KIRKLAND, WASHINGTON, had a "Thank God for Sex" campaign. Sermons titles
included "Sex is Good" and "Learn Some New Moves." Eastlake advertises itself as
a new kind of church and invites attendees to wear their shorts to
church.
- ROCKY RIVER COMMUNITY CHURCH IN CONCORD, NORTH CAROLINA,
had a "Desperate Sex Lives" campaign in February-March 2007. They said that "the
only time most churches talk about sex is when they speak against it" and
promised to "bring sex out of the dark and into the light." This worldly church
brags that it has "all the cool stuff like multimedia, a live band, and Krispy
Kreme donuts" and deals with Bible issues "in a casual, no pressure
environment."
- REVOLUTION CHURCH IN CANTON, GEORGIA uses secular rock
songs, including "Feel Like Making Love" by Bad Company and "Your Body is a
Wonderland" by John Mayer.
- GRANGER COMMUNITY CHURCH IN GRANGER, INDIANA, had a "My
Lame Sex Life" campaign featuring billboards with two pair of feet sticking out
from under the covers in a very suggestive configuration. One sermon title was
"The Greatest Sex You'll Ever Have."
- CORNERSTONE CHURCH IN CHANDLER, ARIZONA, had a "Bringing
Sexy Back" campaign in August-September 2007. One of the sermon titles was
"Greatest Sex Ever."
- THE GATHERING IN SEVIERVILLE, TENNESSEE, had a "Red Hot
Sex" campaign in October 2007. One sermon title by Pastor Gene Wolfenbarger was
"God has designed you for sex and how to make it hot."
- REVOLUTION CHURCH IN LONGBEACH, CALIFORNIA, kicked off
their "God Loves Sex" campaign in July 2007 with a "sex party." The
advertisement said, "God wants you to have great sex."
- OAKLEAF CHURCH IN CARTERSVILLE, GEORGIA, had a "Your
Great Sex Life" campaign in March 2007. The advertisement complained that "the
church either ignores sex or brings down a judgmental
hammer."
- False teachers allure "those that were clean escaped"
(2:18). Their followers
escaped but are eventually brought back into bondage. Matthew Henry said, "Persons who have
for a while adhered to the truth, and kept clear of errors, may by the subtlety
and industry of seducers be so far deceived as to fall into those errors they
had for a while clean escaped."
- The false teachers criticize strict churches. They promise their followers "liberty"
(2:19), they actually bring them into bondage.
- Liberty is not license to sin (cf. Jude 4).
- Our Lord said, "Verily, verily, I say unto you,
Whosoever committeth sin is the servant of sin" (John 8:34).
- Let me say this before I conclude tonight. There is a big difference between a
backslider and an apostate. When we
refer to the backslider we usually mean a Christian who got away from the
Lord.
- When we refer to an apostate we mean a man who was never
genuinely born again, though he may profess to be a
Christian.
- False teachers are apostate. They were never genuinely saved (II
Peter 2:20-22).
- They may have "knowledge of the Lord and Saviour Jesus
Christ" (2:20). In fact, many of
them are highly educated and hold important teaching positions in schools like
Harvard and Yale. These schools
were established by Christians in order to train pastors and missionaries, but
they were taken over by false teachers a long time ago.
- In Scripture, true believers are called "sheep."
Jesus said, "My sheep hear my voice, and
I know them, and they follow me" (John 10:27).
- Believers are sheep, not dogs and pigs (II Peter
2:22). False teachers are dogs and pigs. In Scripture, dogs and pigs
are the lowest of the animals.
CONCLUSION:
- There are many
differences between the saved and the unsaved. The unsaved are in spiritual darkness,
and the saved walk in the light of the Gospel.
- Godly
Christians understand that this world is under the judgment of God. Whereas the ungodly do not believe
that (cf. II Peter 2:5-9).
- Godly
Christians see that worldly-minded sinners are opposed to God. Sinners despise the Word of God.
They despise the Son of God.
- Therefore we
must separate from the ungodly, especially false teachers who teach and preach
things contrary to the Word of God (cf. Rev.
18:4).
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