Lesson 19: Judging Spiritual Teachers

Getting Started: the apostle John had heard, seen and touched Jesus while He was on the earth (1John 1.1-2), and John’s knowledge of Jesus was the basis of his teaching: “that which we have seen and heard we proclaim also to you, so that you too may have fellowship with us; and indeed our fellowship is with the Father and with his Son Jesus Christ.” (1John 1.3, ESV) However, by the time the apostle penned his first letter, there were other teachers teaching a very different gospel about Jesus. And so John gave urged his brothers and sisters to “not believe every spirit, but test the spirits to see whether they are from God, for many false prophets have gone out into the world.” (1John 4.1, ESV) We would do well to heed John’s counsel.

What do you think of the following quotations? Without knowing the authors, would you be concerned with the accuracy of their teaching? (Note: the authors are revealed below, but don’t look until you’ve read and considered each quotation.)

1. “Something mysterious, even supernatural must happen in order for genuine love for God to grow in our hearts. The Holy Spirit has to move in our lives.”
2. “The “sixth” point, double predestination, is simply the flip side of unconditional election. Just as God chooses whom He will save without regard to any distinctives in the person (Ephesians 1.5-6; Acts 13.48; Revelation 17:8), so also he decides whom He will not save without regard to any distinctives in the individual (John 10.26; 12.37-40; Romans 9.11-18;1 Peter 2.7-8).”
3. “I myself think of [inspiration] as analogous to the Incarnation, as in Christ a human soul-and-body are taken up and made the vehicle of Deity, so in Scripture, a mass of human legend, history, moral teaching etc. are taken up and made the vehicle of God’s Word… The universally admitted unhistoricity (I do not say, of course, falsity) of at least some narratives in scripture (the parables), which may well extend also to Jonah and Job.”
4. “In order to be saved, a child must possess his / her own personal faith in Jesus as Savior and Lord. The initial seeds of faith may or may not be in chronological union with the time of baptism. When a child professes faith at some point after baptism, that is the time in which the baptism and all that it signifies takes full effect.”
5. “What God began to say to me about five years ago and I’m telling you it is in me on such a trek with him that my head is still whirling over it. He began to say to me, ‘I’m gonna say something right now, ____. And boy you write this one down. And you say it as often as I give you utterance to say it. ‘My bride is paralyzed by unbelief. My bride is paralyzed by unbelief.’ And he said, ‘Starting with you.’ Amen.”

Judging Spiritual Teachers

Read Deuteronomy 13.1-5 and answer the following:

• What made this false prophet so dangerous?
• What is the ultimate test of a prophet (i.e. spiritual teacher)?
• Whose lives would be put into jeopardy by false teaching?

Now read 1John 4.1-6:

• What was the particular false teaching?
• Do you think these false teachers were wrong about everything?
• Why should we listen to John and the other apostles? (See also 1John 1.1-4)

I have benefited greatly from a variety of Biblical scholars, teachers and authors over the years. However, I must always remember the true test of God’s spokesmen given in Deuteronomy 13.1-3; do they say the correct things about God and his commands? This is the test for any teacher, myself included, and should be used to discern everything we hear and read.

Our religious climate is inundated with a variety of teachers, many going so far as to claim that their teaching is inspired by the Spirit. I’ve read many of them, gleaned some things that are profitable, but I must remember that they are “spiritual” only so far as their words agree with Scripture. I must always remember John’s warning: “Beloved, do not believe every spirit, but test the spirits to see whether they are from God, for many false prophets have gone out into the world.” (1 John 4:1).

Were the false teachers of John’s day wrong about everything? I doubt it, but since they weren’t saying the right things about the incarnation of Jesus, they were deemed false and not led by the Spirit (vs. 2-3). I do not accuse many modern teachers of purposefully distorting the Scriptures and I pray that they come to a better understanding of God’s will (I pray the same for myself), but simply because they are Biblical on some things does not mean I should heed what they say on everything. Test the spirits! Remember, the Spirit delivered “all truth” to the apostles (John 16.13), not us! We must always go back to what they wrote if we are to be guided by the Spirit.

A few other points to keep in mind:

1. One can be wrong about a point of doctrine and NOT be a false teacher. Apollos is a great example of this point as he taught many correct things about Jesus, but he had an incomplete understanding of baptism. To his credit, he readily accepted the instruction of Priscilla and Aquila (Acts 18.24-28).
2. Conversely, one can be right on some matters, yet be a false teacher. Paul knew that some preached Christ “from envy and rivalry” (Philippians 1.15) and while he could rejoice that Christ was proclaimed Paul also knew that such teachers were not true followers of Christ (see 2Cor. 11.13-15).
3. Scripture would seem to define a false teacher as one who teaches a doctrine contrary to the teachings of Christ and the apostles and who does so out of impure motive (2Peter 2.1-3).
4. Truly spiritual teachers will always rely on God’s word and not their own gifts and abilities. Consider how Timothy had received spiritual gifts (2Timothy 1.6-7), but was to rely on the message of Jesus and Paul (2Timothy 1.13-14; 2.2,8,15; 3.14-17; 4.1-5).