Category: False Teaching

The Serpent’s Subtilty #5

Thursday, September 18, 2014

“But I fear, lest by any means, as the serpent beguiled Eve through his subtilty, so your minds should be corrupted from the simplicity that is in Christ” (2 Corinthians 11:3 KJV).

The Serpent is “subtil,” so the saint must be sagacious!

Some of Paul’s converts in Corinth, Greece, were questioning his apostleship, doubting that Jesus Christ had really sent him to them. False teachers had caused them to become anti-Paul, and thus, anti-Jesus Christ: they rejected Jesus Christ speaking through the Apostle Paul. That is the context of today’s Scripture. We want to focus on verse 4 now, particularly the phrase, “another gospel:” “For if he that cometh preacheth another Jesus, whom we have not preached, or if ye receive another spirit, which ye have not received, or another gospel, which ye have not accepted, ye might well bear with him.”

Paul feared someone would “[accept] another gospel, which ye have not accepted.” What does that mean? Prior to Paul, Jesus and His 12 apostles preached “the Gospel of the Kingdom” (Matthew 9:35; cf. Matthew 3:2; Matthew 4:17; Matthew 24:14). Acts 20:24 says that Jesus Christ committed “the Gospel of the Grace of God” to Paul’s trust (cf. 1 Timothy 1:11). “Paul’s Gospel” (Romans 2:16) is 1 Corinthians 15:3,4: “Christ died for our sins, He was buried, and He rose again the third day.” Paul preached that Gospel to the Corinthians (verses 1,3)!

Unlike Peter, James, and John (Matthew 10:5-7; Mark 16:15,16; Acts 2:38; Acts 3:19-26; 1 Peter 3:21; 1 John 1:9), Paul never preached Israel’s kingdom, her gospel message to prepare for her “at-hand” (approaching) kingdom. To learn about the gospel that Paul preached, we must read Paul’s epistles, Romans through Philemon.

We are not saved by repentance, water baptism, confession, et cetera; we are saved by grace through faith in Jesus Christ’s finished crosswork without our works (Romans 4:1-8). Unfortunately, there is so much emphasis on Israel’s salvation verses in most churches today, that few ever realize that Jesus Christ revealed additional information to Paul years later, special doctrine found nowhere else in Scripture. Like Eve, Satan has deceived them; they are misapplying, misquoting, and watering down Scripture, denying the contexts of Israel’s verses, et cetera. Satan’s relentless attack on God’s Word continues….

The Serpent’s Subtilty #4

Wednesday, September 17, 2014

“But I fear, lest by any means, as the serpent beguiled Eve through his subtilty, so your minds should be corrupted from the simplicity that is in Christ” (2 Corinthians 11:3 KJV).

The Serpent is “subtil,” so the saint must be sagacious!

Some of Paul’s converts in Corinth, Greece, were questioning his apostleship, doubting that Jesus Christ had really sent him to them. False teachers had caused them to become anti-Paul, and thus, anti-Jesus Christ: they rejected Jesus Christ speaking through the Apostle Paul. That is the context of today’s Scripture. We want to focus on verse 4 now, particularly the phrase, “another spirit:” “For if he that cometh preacheth another Jesus, whom we have not preached, or if ye receive another spirit, which ye have not received, or another gospel, which ye have not accepted, ye might well bear with him.”

Paul feared someone would “receive another spirit, which ye have not received.” What does that mean? Paul preached God’s Grace, not His Law. Romans 8:15: “For ye have not received the spirit of bondage again to fear; but ye have received the Spirit of adoption, whereby we cry, Abba, Father.” Paul preached, “For sin shall not have dominion over you: for ye are not under the law, but under grace” (Romans 6:14). Unlike Peter, James, and John (Matthew 5:17-19; Acts 10:35; James 2:8-26; 1 John 2:3; 1 John 3:22; 1 John 5:2), Paul never preached law, commandment-keeping. To learn about the spirit that Paul preached, we must read Paul’s epistles, Romans through Philemon.

We have not received the spirit of bondage, law keeping, to please God; we are pleasing to God in Christ (Ephesians 1:6). God’s grace, not His law, teaches us how to live (Titus 2:11-15). “But if ye be led of the Spirit, ye are not under the law” (Galatians 5:18).

Unfortunately, there is so much emphasis on God’s Law (whether Mosaic Law or Messianic Law) in most churches today, that few ever realize that Jesus Christ revealed additional information to Paul years later, special doctrine found nowhere else in Scripture. Like Eve, Satan has deceived them; they are misapplying, misquoting, and watering down Scripture, denying the contexts of Israel’s verses, et cetera. Satan’s relentless attack on God’s Word continues….

The Serpent’s Subtilty #3

Tuesday, September 16, 2014

“But I fear, lest by any means, as the serpent beguiled Eve through his subtilty, so your minds should be corrupted from the simplicity that is in Christ” (2 Corinthians 11:3 KJV).

The Serpent is “subtil,” so the saint must be sagacious!

Some of Paul’s converts in Corinth, Greece, were questioning his apostleship, doubting that Jesus Christ had really sent him to them. False teachers had caused them to become anti-Paul, and thus, anti-Jesus Christ: they rejected Jesus Christ speaking through the Apostle Paul. That is the context of today’s Scripture. We want to focus on verse 4 now, particularly the phrase, “another Jesus:” “For if he that cometh preacheth another Jesus, whom we have not preached, or if ye receive another spirit, which ye have not received, or another gospel, which ye have not accepted, ye might well bear with him.”

Paul feared someone would “preach another Jesus, whom we have not preached.” What does that mean? Paul was preaching “Jesus Christ, according to the revelation of the mystery” (Romans 16:25). There was a special way to view Jesus Christ—primarily, Him being the Head of the Church the Body of Christ. This message was committed first to the Apostle Paul; God kept it secret prior to Paul. Peter, James, and John never preached it. To learn about the Jesus Christ whom Paul preached, we must read Paul’s epistles, Romans through Philemon.

We do not follow Jesus’ earthly ministry (Matthew through John)—it was to Jews only (Matthew 15:24; John 4:22; Acts 2:22; Romans 15:8). The Bible says, “Wherefore henceforth know we no man after the flesh: yea, though we have known Christ after the flesh, yet now henceforth know we him no more” (2 Corinthians 5:16). Jesus Christ now has a heavenly ministry through Paul… to reach us Gentiles (1 Corinthians 14:37; cf. Romans 11:13)!

Unfortunately, there is so much emphasis on Matthew through John in most churches today, that few ever realize that Jesus Christ revealed additional information to Paul years later, special doctrine found nowhere else in Scripture. Like Eve, Satan has deceived them; they are misapplying, misquoting, and watering down Scripture, denying the contexts of Israel’s verses, et cetera. Satan’s relentless attack on God’s Word continues….

The Serpent’s Subtilty #2

Monday, September 15, 2014

“But I fear, lest by any means, as the serpent beguiled Eve through his subtilty, so your minds should be corrupted from the simplicity that is in Christ” (2 Corinthians 11:3 KJV).

The Serpent is “subtil,” so the saint must be sagacious!

We read in Genesis 2:16,17: “[16] And the LORD God commanded the man [Adam], saying, Of every tree of the garden thou mayest freely eat: [17] But of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil, thou shalt not eat of it: for in the day that thou eatest thereof thou shalt surely die.”

The Bible student will carefully compare this with Genesis 3:1-4: “[1] Now the serpent was more subtil than any beast of the field which the LORD God had made. And he said unto the woman, Yea, hath God said, Ye shall not eat of every tree of the garden? [2] And the woman said unto the serpent, We may eat of the fruit of the trees of the garden: [3] But of the fruit of the tree which is in the midst of the garden, God hath said, Ye shall not eat of it, neither shall ye touch it, lest ye die. [4] And the serpent said unto the woman, Ye shall not surely die….”

Satan first questioned God’s Word. Then, Eve misquoted it (note the underlined, bolded phrases—Eve added to God’s Word, subtracted from it, and watered it down). Satan finally denied God’s Word, although he knew what God had told Adam (and what Adam had told Eve). If Satan can cause you to doubt God’s Word to you, and you do not even know what God said to you, you are sure to fail!

The Devil actually quoted the Bible to Jesus Christ when tempting Him as he had enticed Eve thousands of years earlier (Matthew 4:6; Luke 4:10,11)—Satan again butchered the text, obviously, but he certainly preached a message that appeared good (he did quote Scripture!). Unlike Eve, Jesus knew better; He knew and believed what the Scriptures really said, so Satan could neither deceive nor distract Him.

Likewise, we must learn God’s Word to us, lest we misquote it and fall into Satan’s trap….

The Serpent’s Subtilty #1

Sunday, September 14, 2014

“But I fear, lest by any means, as the serpent beguiled Eve through his subtilty, so your minds should be corrupted from the simplicity that is in Christ” (2 Corinthians 11:3 KJV).

The Serpent is “subtil,” so the saint must be sagacious!

Satan, commonly called “the Devil” or “that old serpent” (Revelation 12:9), is one of the most misunderstood individuals in Scripture. The average church member is completely oblivious to exactly what he wants accomplished and how he operates to achieve it.

We should know our enemy, beloved—after all, he aspires to defeat us!! Just as a soldier does not haphazardly enter the battlefield, but first is briefed about his mission and the activity of the opposition, so we must study our Bibles to see how Satan wages war with us Christians (his overall goal is to thwart God’s plans). In today’s Scripture, Paul clearly explained that if we could understand the method Satan used to deceive Eve in the Garden of Eden, then we could comprehend how he will trick us.

Let us read verses 1 and 2 with today’s Scripture: “[1] Would to God ye could bear with me a little in my folly: and indeed bear with me. [2] For I am jealous over you with godly jealousy: for I have espoused you to one husband, that I may present you as a chaste virgin to Christ. [3] But I fear, lest by any means, as the serpent beguiled Eve through his subtilty, so your minds should be corrupted from the simplicity that is in Christ.”

As God’s spokesman to us Gentiles (Romans 11:13), Paul had a righteous jealousy. He did not want doctrinal error to spiritually defile us as illicit sexual activity would physically spoil a virgin. We Christians are joined to Jesus Christ; we are His Body forever, so we have no business dabbling in (false) religion. Six times JEHOVAH told Israel that He was a “jealous God,” so they were not to participate in heathen religion (Exodus 20:5; Exodus 34:14; Deuteronomy 4:24; Deuteronomy 5:9; Deuteronomy 6:15; Joshua 24:19). If we are to withstand Satan’s war against us, we too must learn to identify and avoid “doctrines of devils….”

333’s 1200th – Apprehended to Apprehend

Friday, September 12, 2014

“Not as though I had already attained, either were already perfect: but I follow after, if that I may apprehend that for which also I am apprehended of Christ Jesus” (Philippians 3:12 KJV).

Dearly beloved, only by God’s grace, we mark our 1200th devotional today!

We pray and trust our clear and concise Bible studies these last 1200 days have been helpful and a blessing to you. Yes, much material was covered; still, there is much, much more profit to mine from God’s Word. Our purpose has been to teach you the Scriptures that you can understand them for yourself; in effect, we taught you so that you can now stand with us proclaiming to all the world the message of God’s grace to us in Jesus Christ.

Every attempt was made to daily quote God’s Word—word for word—as much as possible. Our goal in expounding those passages was to whet your appetite, that you study your King James Bible on your own. The verses and topics we discussed demonstrated that God’s Word is practical, trustworthy, and understandable, provided that we allow it to speak for itself instead of us forcing it to conform to a church tradition or doctrinal statement. “Rightly dividing the word of truth” (2 Timothy 2:15)—dispensational Bible study—is vital to Bible understanding.

Every person who has just trusted Jesus Christ as his or her personal Saviour, he or she is not skilled in God’s Word; this is not a sin as long as the saint grows in spiritual understanding. That individual knows how to be saved, the Gospel of the Grace of God, but that is all. We all have to start somewhere, and the Christian life starts with the Gospel, but it involves other sound Bible doctrine as well. As today’s Scripture articulates, we press onward in spiritual maturity. Even 30-plus years after his soul salvation unto justification, the Apostle Paul wrote that he was still trying to grasp exactly why Jesus Christ had saved him (perhaps read Philippians chapter 3 on your own today).

Saints, we still have much more growing to do, so God’s grace compels us to keep on in Him and His Word! Onward! 🙂

Our latest Bible Q&A: “Why can I not get anything out of the Bible?”

The More Excellent Ministry #5

Friday, August 29, 2014

“For the love of Christ constraineth us… God, who hath reconciled us to himself by Jesus Christ, and hath given to us the ministry of reconciliation” (2 Corinthians 5:14a,18bc KJV).

Our flesh is ever so weak, but Christ’s love—the unconditional love He has for us—drives us to push ourselves aside and think of others instead.

God never saves anyone to sit and do nothing. Romans chapter 6 is the simplest passage regarding Christian living, and when read with chapters 7 and 8, one unquestionably learns how the Christian life operates. (Read these three glorious chapters to get a blessing!) Father God wants us to let Christ live in us via the indwelling Holy Spirit taking verses we study and believe, and bringing them “to life” in our lives!

When we trusted exclusively Paul’s Gospel, the Gospel of God’s Grace—Christ died for our sins, He was buried, and He rose again the third day (1 Corinthians 15:3,4)—the Holy Spirit instantly placed us into Jesus Christ (1 Corinthians 12:13). That moment, we died with Jesus on Calvary’s cross and we were raised again with Him “to walk in newness of life” (Romans 6:1-6). We are “dead, freed from sin” (verse 7). Now, Jesus Christ’s life is in us; we are dead to self-living. “I am crucified with Christ: nevertheless I live; yet not I, but Christ liveth in me…” (Galatians 2:20). We read in 2 Corinthians 5:15, the context of today’s Scripture: “And that he died for all, that they which live should not henceforth live unto themselves, but unto him which died for them, and rose again.”

In Matthew 20:28, Jesus Christ identified the more excellent ministry: “Even as the Son of man came not to be ministered unto, but to minister, and to give his life a ransom for many.” As His Father instructed, Jesus did not come to be served (self life), but to serve others (Christian life). Christ’s love for us drove Him to Cavalry’s cross, so His love for us—yea, for lost people—compels us to tell them of that love exhibited at Calvary: “For God commendeth his love toward us, in that while we were yet sinners, Christ died for us” (Romans 5:8). 🙂

He Took My Sins Away #4

Saturday, August 23, 2014

“Not by works of righteousness which we have done, but according to his mercy he saved us, by the washing of regeneration, and renewing of the Holy Ghost” (Titus 3:5 KJV).

The fourth verse of Margaret Jenkins Harris’ classic 1903 hymn “He Took My Sins Away” highlights today’s Scripture.

“If you will come to Jesus Christ today,
He’ll take your sins away, He’ll take your sins away,
And keep you happy in His love each day,
He’ll take your sins away.”

The Adamic nature hates being rejected of God; it wishes to prove that it can do enough to merit His favor. It deceives the sinner, who is led to believe that he or she can measure up to God’s righteousness by doing enough good deeds (Jeremiah 17:9). Yes, our flesh (sin nature) always wants to do something: hence, religion appeals to many. Scripture declares, however, “All our righteousnesses are as filthy rags” (Isaiah 64:6)!

Confession of sins here, generous “tithes” there, water baptism here, church membership there, church-calendar observance here, prearranged prayers there, church attendance here, “holy book” reading there, et cetera. These activities, collectively, are usually thought of as “a treasury of merit” before God. Our dear religious family members and friends are encouraged to slowly accumulate an abundance of good works to be advantageous on the day of judgment (for themselves, and for others after them). The more “good” they have done, they assume God’s judgment on them will be less severe. What deception!

What these precious people must realize is that the God of the Bible is looking beyond “good” works, to see the heart. God is not looking to repair sinners, but regenerate sinners. Anyone can reform, but only God can regenerate. The God of Scripture is looking for a new heart, a new nature, one that can truly do good, not an old nature decorated with religious extravagance. Not only does Jesus Christ’s cross crucify our sinful nature, but His resurrection gives us a new life and a new nature (Romans 6:1-23). Those works of Jesus Christ—not our works—are acceptable before God.

Yea, so He could do good works in us, He removed our sin debt….

He Took My Sins Away #3

Friday, August 22, 2014

“Therefore being justified by faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ” (Romans 5:1 KJV).

The third verse of Margaret Jenkins Harris’ classic 1903 hymn “He Took My Sins Away” highlights today’s Scripture.

“No condemnation have I in my heart,
He took my sins away, He took my sins away.
His perfect peace He did to me impart,
He took my sins away.”

Sin produces guilt, and guilt weighs heavy on the sinner’s heart and mind. Many people go to bed at night feeling so horrible because of their actions earlier that day. They beat themselves up over and over—as if the rigid religionists at the local church do not knock them “black-and-blue” enough on Sunday mornings!

Yea, many Christians lay their heads on their pillow wondering if God really loves them, if He really is for them, and if He really has forgiven them in Jesus Christ. They feel so rotten, so “sorry” (?) for their sins, that they promise to change, but despite all the remorse, they wake up the next morning and wind up repeating their mistakes of the previous day. It would behoove them to read and believe the first eight chapters of the book of Romans, and if they would apply those verses by faith, they would literally see a whole new life. They would be released from such misery, self-pity, guilt, and failure.

If you have relied exclusively on the Lord Jesus Christ and His finished crosswork at Calvary for the complete payment for your sins, you are “accepted in the beloved” (Ephesians 1:6). You be loved in Christ! The most important barrier in your life—sin, separation from God—has been dealt with in full. Today’s Scripture says that you are “justified” (made right before God) and you have “peace with God” through Jesus Christ. God is not mad at you, saint, He loves you in Jesus Christ; He has completely paid for your sins, and that sin is hidden in His tomb forever. If God is not bringing them up, why are you? Because of Calvary, we can talk to Him in prayer, and have His peace to enjoy despite our failures.

Yea, He annulled our sin debt….

He Took My Sins Away #2

Thursday, August 21, 2014

“Therefore by the deeds of the law there shall no flesh be justified in his sight: for by the law is the knowledge of sin” (Romans 3:20).

The second verse of Margaret Jenkins Harris’ classic 1903 hymn “He Took My Sins Away” highlights today’s Scripture.

“The load of sin was more than I could bear.
He took my sins away, He took my sins away.
And now on Him I roll my ev’ry care,
He took my sins away.”

While many assume that the Mosaic Law was given to help us get to heaven, the Holy Spirit through the Apostle Paul starkly disagreed (see today’s Scripture). The Law was given to codify sin, to clearly delineate what actions God accepts and what actions He hates. In fact, the Law has often been likened unto a mirror: it shows you your faults and blemishes, but it has no power to help you correct them.

In his epistle to the Galatians, Paul wrote, “the law… was added because of transgressions” (3:19). Did JEHOVAH give Israel the Mosaic Law because they were so obedient? NAY! Because they were such lovely people who delighted in serving Him by faith? NAY! Because He wanted to show them how good they were? NAY! God gave the Law to show Israel, yea all the world (Romans 3:19), that they were sinners in denial, and they needed a system to thoroughly demonstrate to them that they would repeatedly “cross the line” when God said not to (the word “transgress” [“go across”] conveys that concept). The Law was irrefutable proof that Israel could only be God’s people because of His grace, not because of their performance—the Law only generated His wrath (Romans 4:15).

Jesus Christ came and kept the Law, the Law we repeatedly broke. Now we can come by faith in Him and receive the peace with God and peace of God. In Christ, God is not mad at us anymore. He is satisfied with us because we are in Christ, the only One in whom He is satisfied. The Person who always did His Father’s will with the humblest attitude.

Yea, He nullified our sin debt….

Our latest Bible Q&A: “What is the ‘that which is perfect is come’ in 1 Corinthians 13:10?”