Something that always surprises me is how tolerant and soft-hearted people are when you mention so-and-so is a false teacher. They look at the person being named as false, and not at Jesus. Certainly they aren’t looking at their Bible. False teachers are of satan. But when you say someone like Joyce Meyer is false, or Beth Moore, they look at Meyer and see a woman who smiles and has a large following and has a Bible in her hand, so they say “But she’s not THAT bad”, or “Have you prayed for her?’ or “Leave her alone- God will sort it out.”
All of those are wrong responses to any named false teacher.
While many people will agree that false teachers exist, when I match the person to the claim, they will balk.
Yet the Bible describes these false ones in the starkest of terms. In just one example, we turn to 2 Peter 2:13-14 which says, ‘they revel in their deceptions’.
suffering wrong as the wages of doing wrong. They count it a pleasure to revel in the daytime. They are stains and blemishes, reveling in their deceptions as they feast with you, 14having eyes full of adultery that never cease from sin, enticing unstable souls, having hearts trained in greed, accursed children;
John MacArthur preached about these false teachers from the 2 Peter 2:13 verse. He said –
“Further describing their action, Peter with obvious disgust says, “They are stains and blemishes.” Boy, those are absolutely vivid words. The word “stains” is the word filth spots, dirt spots. The word “blemish” is the word scab, or the word defect. It is the idea of dirt spots, defects, filth spots, scabs. They pollute. They’re dirty. They’re foul. They’re diseased. And he says they’re reveling in their deceptions.” Creatures born to be killed.
That means someone like Joyce Meyer is a filth spot. Joel Osteen is a defect. Beth Moore is a scab. THAT is how awful a false teacher is. I’m not saying these things, the Bible is!
Next, do you notice the word revel is used twice in the same verse?! What does revel mean here?
HELPS Word-studies says
tryphḗ (from thryptō, “to break down due to over-indulgence, i.e. living in excessive luxury”) – properly, feebleness brought on by self-indulgence (luxury); (figuratively) moral and spiritual breakdown (“enfeeblement”) from over-indulging in dainty (“delicate”) things, i.e. “dainty living” that deteriorates soul and body.
Their Reveling (2 Peter 2:13–14a), as Warren Wiersbe in The Bible exposition commentary interprets the verse, says-
The words translated “riot” and “sporting” carry the meaning of “sensual reveling.” They also contain the idea of luxury, softness, and extravagance. At the expense of those who support them (2 Peter 2:3), the apostates enjoy luxurious living. In our own society, there are those who plead for funds for their “ministries,” yet live in expensive houses, drive luxury cars, and wear costly clothes. When we remember that Jesus became poor in order to make us rich, their garish lifestyle seems out of step with New Testament Christianity.
Not only do they deceive others, but they even deceive themselves! They can “prove” from the Bible that their lifestyle is right. In ancient times, it was expected that people would revel at night, but these people dared to revel in the daytime, so convinced were they of their practices. A person can become so accustomed to his vices that he sees them as virtues.
These false teachers are born to be killed. Jude 1:4 says certain men were born for condemnation. The 2 Peter verse says they will be destroyed. MacArthur again,
The Greek text actually reads this way, “In their destroying they shall be destroyed.” And that’s…that’s another way to read this, that in the destructive work that they do as they lead people to destruction through their witless, non-reasoning stupidity and living off their passionate instincts, as they consume others in that operation, they will themselves be consumed. They are abandoned to destruction, born for the flesh, born to perish. Sermon- Creatures born to be killed part 1.
It is important to look at the Bible when discerning about false teachers. Because we are sinners, our sin clouds our judgment of others when assessing their output against the Bible. We need the clear word of God to remind us that these teachers whose father is satan, are not just as good as us or just as bad as us. Do not think, “Well, no one is perfect”, or “Well, I sin too.” False teachers are an entirely different beast.
These are springs without water and mists driven by a storm, for whom the black darkness has been reserved. (2 Peter 2:17).
Springs without water are empty, like the promises of false teachers. They are reserved for blackest darkness in the future. Don’t follow them.
