Beware of False Teachers

We must guard against paying any attention to false teachers of the Word of God. How can we identify a false teacher? For a matter to be scriptural we must resort to a preponderance of Scripture taken in context. According to 1 Timothy Chapter 1, verses 4-7; Chapter 4, verses 1-3; and Chapter 6, verses 3-5 a false teacher:

Engages in mystical speculations that stimulate curiosity but do not promote devotion to the one true God

Emphasizes secondary considerations, such as genealogies

Encourages controversies, questions designed to raise doubt

Encourages activities that do not develop faith and doing God's work

Strives toward goals that lead to lovelessness, hate and prejudice

Acts and speaks from impure motives and actions

Promotes goals or teachings which violate a good sense of right and wrong

Shows insincerity, spiritual and intellectual dishonesty

Takes part in senseless talk

Is motivated by selfish ambition

Shows a shortfall in spiritual understanding

Has turned away from Christian belief and lifestyle, showing a skewed world-view

Encourages pagan, non-Christian teaching

Is a hypocrite, lying and dishonest

Is insensitive in his conscience, teaching things that dull the sense of right and wrong

Presents a religion of works, mandating the following of rules, regulations and asceticism

Forbids marriage

Insists on arbitrary dietary restrictions

Speaks, acts and teaches contrary to the teaching of Jesus

Is arrogant

Shows a nature that is argumentative and quarrelsome

Spreads envy, suspicion, gossip and divisiveness

Is motivated heavily by personal greed and material gain

Anyone can slip and stumble, but the one to turn from is the one who has made a lifestyle of the above and shows no inclination to reverse course.