Several of us recently spent a day at a New Age Fair in Ohio talking with various exhibitors. Again, as was true at the last New Age fair we recently attended, in nearly every conversation the claim was made that reincarnation was in the Bible but was taken out by evil monks in the sixth century. Why evil monks would want to do such a thing I have no idea, but that is a very … Continue reading
Category Archives: Deception
Many seem surprised at how easily and quickly blatant false teaching is spreading today throughout the Evangelical church. But in fact, what we are seeing is not something new – heresy and deception have been with us since the beginning. The first deception is that of Satan himself, and that involved self-deception. Isaiah 14 recites the arrogant claims of the King of Babylon. According to the Faithlife Study Bible, verse 13: …serves to identify the … Continue reading
Recently I sat down at lunch with a church leader. Stop me if you’ve heard this one. The elders (deacons for your Baptists) were having trouble agreeing on a vision for their church. The pastor was trying to lead them in one direction and some elder says in so many words the most hard-headed sentence ever to leave the walls of a church business meeting: “We never did it that way before. Why can’t we … Continue reading
Creating a god in your own image can have many temporal benefits. Such a deity would reflect your views and sanctify your behavior. He or she might even make your own behavior look better in comparison. The ancient Greek and Roman gods, who could be extremely nasty and selfish beings, are good examples of this benefit. The gods of other pagan cultures were no better. These various gods and the God Who revealed Himself in … Continue reading
Earlier this week someone posted a meme of a church marquee with the message, “A Caravan of 5000 Migrants Confronted Jesus. So, He Fed Them.” This reminds us of the assertion made by many that Mary, Joseph, and Jesus were “homeless.” No, they were never homeless. They had to leave their home and travel to Bethlehem due to a government decree by Caesar Augustus that required everyone to be registered in their home town. They … Continue reading
Most false teachers use something our late friend and former Jehovah’s Witness, Harry Brooks, often called a cult cocktail … Scripture with a twist. It is a simple way to deceive potential recruits and to gather followers who have some respect for the Bible, but who don’t know it very well. Like talented magicians, false teachers, gifted in the art of word manipulation, employ a verbal sleight of hand that is often difficult for the … Continue reading