What is Sound Doctrine?

Ken Loucks - What is Sound Doctrine - YouTube
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hXce9CuwnpY

Transcript:
(00:01) The title of my message today is what is sound doctrine? What is sound doctrine? I'm going to begin over in second Timothy 4. 2 Timothy 4:es 3 and 4 where Paul is talking to young Timothy and he's giving him advice as a as the mentor of the young man and he says to him for the time will come I'm in 2 Timothy 4:es 3 and 4 the time will come when they will not endure sound doctrine but according to their own desires because they have itching ears.
(00:53) What does that mean? Itching ears. What do you think that means? Itching ears is that restless desire to be affirmed. It's it's think of it as like the the enjoyment of hearing something again that makes you feel good. Okay. So a good way to view that is I think most of us if we look back probably came to a moment in our conversion when it all came together and made sense like that that light switch moment and you're like you remember how you felt when you finally got it.
(01:32) You really understood there's truth here that's different than the world and it's okay and it's good and it's right and and God revealed it. He opened my eyes to see it. How did you feel? I I remember that feeling being magnificent, fantastic, just like nothing like nothing else you could describe.
(01:58) Maybe except when you go into that infatuation stage when you're dating and you realize you'd like to spend the rest of your life with this person who doesn't do anything wrong. They're perfect in every way and we are going to be perfect as a couple for the rest of our lives together. That's the front end. Remember that's the front end.
(02:19) We usually don't last that long in that phase. You move on from there. But this idea of itching ears conveys the sense of somebody who wants to go back and try to recapture that feeling. only in this case it's with regard to the truth or what sounds good to them what feels good to hear maybe what affirms what I want to believe that's the idea behind itching ears and so people will search high and low long and far to find those things and they may be seeking those things from all kinds of sources because notice what Paul tells Timothy the result of
(02:54) this is it says they will heap up for themselves teachers Heap up. You know what that means? Heap. Pile up. Gather. Okay. They will gather up teachers that what what what are the teachers doing? If if all the teachers were saying the same thing, you don't need more than one, right? So, if they're not all saying the same thing, why do you need a whole bunch of them? It's because they're not all saying the same things.
(03:25) You like to hear certain things and you're seeking that which you want to hear. This is the condition he's describing the church is going to get to. He's warning Timothy about that. He says they're going to heap up for themselves teachers and they will turn their ears away from the truth and be turned to fables.
(03:49) Well, what are fables? The opposite of truth. Things that are not true. Things that are made up. And so this is a warning that applied not only to the time that Paul was talking to Timothy, but also throughout the history of the church. It applies even today. There are definitely going to be people fitting in this category.
(04:14) And that warning then applies to us every bit as much as it ever did to them. So this word itching ears means restless desire to be affirmed rather than instructed. And it doesn't say that they're going to abandon all teaching. It says that they're going to surround themselves with teachers, many teachers, whose words are going to align with their personal desires where they will prefer what sounds good to the truth.
(04:44) So, if the truth doesn't tickle the ears, but something else does, Paul's saying that's where they'll go, that's what you need to know. They'll chase what sounds good instead of the truth. It's a warning that they would turn away from what is true. False doctrine does not come with warning labels.
(05:08) Often, it appears reasonable. And of course, it can be supported by selective scriptures. It often is supported by something that may be a little bit obscure and could sound like it could mean one thing or another. You know, I recently gave the series on or this the Bible study on Lazarus and the rich man.
(05:30) This is a classic case of some of people reading a story and seeing within the story meaning that isn't there. It sounds good because it affirms a belief they'd like to believe that there is a heaven and a hell. That's what the story seems to be saying. And if that's what you want to believe, then that's how you'll read the scripture.
(06:00) You read into it what you want. Paul's concern was not limited to Timothy's generation. Of course, it applies to every generation of the church, including us today. So the question placed before us is not how many voices claim to speak the truth. The real question is what is sound doctrine and how do we recognize it? What is sound doctrine and how do we recognize it? Let's begin with that question.
(06:26) Paul warned Timothy that a time is going to come when sound doctrine would no longer be endured. A time when people would turn toward teachings that gratify desire instead of upholds the truth. But Paul answers the question of what is sound doctrine here. Let's turn over to Titus 1 vers9 to get a sense of Paul's instructions.
(06:50) And here we have another minister Paul is mentoring. Titus 1:9 where he tells Titus holding fast the faithful word as he has been taught. He's talking about the ministry that he may be able that minister ordained by God that he may be able by sound doctrine both to exhort and convict those who contradict that faithful word.
(07:24) He says holding fast that faithful word. The term sound is drawn from the Greek meaning to be healthy, whole or free from error. to be healthy, whole, or free from error. And so that's what Paul's talking about. This faithful word that's been given to us. We need to treat that soundly. They's Greek lexicon says the metaphorical use of this word speaks of teachings free from any mixture of error, healthy, wholesome, spiritually beneficial.
(07:56) Vincent's word studies reinforces this meaning by adding the word refers to doctrine that strengthens and preserves spiritual health. Notice these the way that this is being described for us when we're looking at doctrine that these are the things we should be looking for from it that it does these things for us spiritually.
(08:20) Paul again makes this contrast in his letter to Timothy over now in 1 Timothy 1 Timothy chapter 1 and verse 10 where he lists the opposite. He says here verse 10, for fornicators, for sodomites, for kidnappers, for liars, perjurers, and if there is any other thing that is contrary to sound doctrine.
(08:50) Well, these are things that are contrary to sound doctrine. He says, 'If there's anything else that is contrary to sound doctrine according to the glorious gospel of the blessed God which was committed to my trust. He's saying our responsibility in the ministry is to defend sound doctrine to pursue sound doctrine. The word contrary means to be set against or in opposition to.
(09:17) In other words, sound doctrine is not one idea among many ideas. It's the dividing line between truth and error. And of course, it doesn't come from us. Its foundation is God's word. Over in Proverbs chapter 4 and verse 2, we see this direct connection. Proverbs chapter 4 and verse two. He says,"For I give you good doctrine. Do not forsake my law.
(09:59) " We see a direct connection then between good doctrine and God's law. The Hebrew word that's translated doctrine refers to teaching, insight, or understanding. Teaching, insight, or understanding. According to Brown Driver Briggs, this is instruction that forms character and guides behavior in righteousness.
(10:27) You know, we use words like righteousness or sanctification, big words like this. They're religious terms. What is righteousness? Simplest definition of righteousness is this. To be right with God. That is righteousness. So if you want to be right with God, we heed his instructions. That's what the proverb is telling us.
(10:58) And of course, this instruction is paralleled with law, which shows that doctrine and commandments are not two separate categories. They're part of the same divine revelation. They are directly connected. And of course, God's doctrine is practical. His teachings are practical because it's instruction for life in a relationship with him. We learn from his word, the fear of the Lord, the way of righteousness, and the path of obedience.
(11:32) So, sound doctrine must be measured against all of scripture, not on a single verse, as we just heard in the sermonet. We take all of the scripture into account when we look at the subject of what is sound doctrine because it must be in harmony with the entire word of God. One of the more famous passages in the book of Timothy is 2 Timothy or letters to Timothy I should say is 2 Timothy chapter 3 and verse 16.
(12:07) 2 Timothy chapter 3 and verse 16 where it says all scripture is given by inspiration of God. All scripture. Well, when when Paul was writing this, what was the scripture? The Old Testament. That was all that was available. That was called the scripture. And so Paul is saying that body of work that's inspired by God.
(12:43) And he says it's profitable for doctrine. So you know how human beings we tend to do things like hey let's look at this top 10 list of things and then we start with number 10 and then we work our way down to the big bango number one. Well sorry to say God doesn't like to do things that way. He always starts off with what's most important first.
(13:00) And so if you read here, he says, "What's what's this profitable for?" He says, "It's profitable for doctrine, for teaching." That's the number one thing it's profitable for. It's not the only thing, but it's the number one thing. It's also profitable for reproof and for correction and for instruction in righteousness, how to be right with God.
(13:35) The Cambridge Bible for Schools and Colleges notes that Paul puts doctrine first in this list, showing that the first purpose of inspired scripture is to teach. Teaching precedes transformation. And of course, if the doctrine is sound, all the rest will follow. But we've just been talking about that now going into coming out of the days of unleven bread leading up to and coming through the feast of Pentecost.
(14:02) We've been talking about this issue of transformation. And that begins of course with what we learn, what God reveals to us about how we have to change, what we need to do differently in our life to become right with him. Notice that from the beginning, the church continued in what the apostles taught. And what did the apostles get taught? So, let's turn over here and notice though in Acts chapter 2 after Peter gives the first sermon, having received the Holy Spirit, we come down to verse 40. And he says it in Acts 2:40.
(14:40) and with many other words he testified and exhorted them, saying, "Be saved from this perverse generation." Then those who gladly received his word were baptized. And that day about 3,000 souls were added to them. And notice this group that now forms the brand new church of God. It says here in verse 42, "And they, the new church, continued steadfastly.
(15:05) " Again, the number one thing continued steadfastly in the apostles doctrine, the teachings of the apostles. And guess what? We just have an example of what that looks like because Peter just gave us teachings in his first sermon, which taught about Jesus Christ that taught about the plan of God. This is the doctrines he learned and he's teaching the doctrine he learned from Jesus Christ.
(15:40) Jameson Faucet and Brown commentary observes that the apostles doctrine quote was not merely the facts of the gospel but all the instruction Christ had given them concerning the kingdom, repentance and obedience. It's the same message that Christ himself taught. And notice that Christ didn't say that it was his doctrine. Notice John chapter 7 and verse 16. John 7 and verse 16.
(16:21) Jesus answered them and said, "My doctrine, okay, that what I'm teaching, my doctrine is not mine, but his who sent me, it is the father's doctrine." So where does doctrine come from? The father. It doesn't come from us. Comes from the father through the son. It is the direct expression of the mind and the will of the father.
(16:52) And to be sound, it has to reflect his character. It has to agree with his law. It has to harmonize with his plan. If it doesn't do those things, is it from God? Is he confused? Does he change? Does his plan kind of wander all over the place and maybe ultimately land someplace that's recognizable? Or is it the same plan from the beginning to the end? He never changes.
(17:19) Yesterday, today, and tomorrow, he is the same. Therefore, if we're listening to doctrine that does not validate that, it isn't doctrine that comes from God. And notice that God wants this taught. And so over in Ephesians chapter 4, Ephesians chapter 4 11 and 12 where Paul is telling Ephesus that God himself gave some to be apostles, some prophets, some evangelists, some pastors and teachers.
(18:02) And why did he do that? for the equipping of the saints. For the equipping of the saints. Every lay member called needs a pastor and a teacher, an advocate from God, a helper on the journey. And God has not failed to deliver that. It's why we have jobs. Adam Clark says this shows that doctrine is not for speculation but for preparation for making the people of God ready for their calling.
(18:36) It says for the work of ministry which is service. But of course we know the ultimate end of that is our the purpose of our calling is first fruits. So we're being prepared by the doctrines for the job we'll have when Christ returns as first fruits. kings and priests serving, ruling, and reigning under Jesus Christ to establish the government of God over this entire earth.
(19:08) The foundational teachings, the basic doctrines are what prepare us to move towards maturity. That's why I went through the Hebrews 6 1-2 series. Let's just be reminded. Hebrews chapter 6:es 1 and 2. Therefore, leaving the discussion of the elementary principles of Christ. We're leaving that discussion. But first, let us go on to perfection.
(19:30) We're not going to lay again the foundation of these doctrines. Repentance from dead works, faith toward God, baptisms, laying on of hands, resurrection of the dead, eternal judgment. I mean, that's the plan of God. The most concise description of the plan of God in the Bible is right there. These elementary principles are the essential doctrines. We need to build upon them.
(20:05) They remain the foundation for our spiritual journey. They need to be immovable, permanent, and established for us. So sound doctrine is the pattern of teaching that's given by God. It's revealed in the scripture and it's preserved by the church. It's not temporary. It's not speculative. It's clear. It's consistent.
(20:27) And it harmonizes with the teachings of God with regard to salvation, our purpose, and his plan. And if we do it correctly, receive it with understanding and faith, it should produce unity, stability, and godly character in his offspring, in us. So why is sound doctrine so important? Well, it's the framework by which God's truth is communicated.
(20:59) So, you know, we have to consider we're talking about what is sound doctrine and the opposite of that is unound doctrine. One of them leads to salvation and the other one doesn't. It's why it's important for us to know the difference. that it's important for us to know the difference. Isaiah wrote plainly that the word of God is the standard by which every teaching must be tested.
(21:34) Notice Isaiah 8:20. Isaiah 8 and verse 20. where it says to the law and to the testimony. If they do not speak according to this word, it is because there's no light in them. And really, this is our warning. If what we hear, if what we read, if what we consume, because we have itching ears and we're chasing after that feeling, that first love feeling we had when we first learned the truth.
(22:11) If that's our desire that we would chase that more than truth, then this is the warning. The Hebrew word translated light means dawn, brightness, or morning light. And of course, the absence of light signifies the absence of truth. If you don't have the light, you don't have the truth. That's what is being said here.
(22:34) So doctrine is not true because it feels good. It's true because it comes from God. And of course, Jesus Christ in his final prayer in John chapter 17, this conversation he had with the father, John chapter 17, he prayed for us. Verse 17, we ask God to sanctify them by your truth. Your word is truth. truth. He leaves no ambiguity about where we find truth in.
(23:14) We're going to find it in the word of God. It isn't your truth. You know, I I smile when I see this. Sometimes you'll you'll hear or you'll see somebody talking about you need to live your truth. Like you don't have a version of truth. Like the truth is the truth and you don't get a version of it that's yours. like God's the the Christ says as he's talking to the father this is conversation between the two God beings where we're told exactly what the truth is your word father is truth well that's the end of that whole live out your truth because there's only one version
(23:51) of truth and it comes from the father the Greek word to sanctify means to make holy to set apart for sacred use theer's lexicon says that this sanctification is not by experience erience or feeling, but by truth. So, we're not set apart by how we feel about the truth. We're set apart by the truth that God has revealed it to us.
(24:20) God's word rightly understood and internalized is how we understand truth. And sound doctrine then sanctifies or sets us apart for our future. It's preparing us for our future role and it stabilizes us. Paul taught that Christ gave the church spiritual leadership so that the people of God would not be vulnerable and immature.
(24:45) He gives a ministry to help with that. Not as your boss, as a helper, as a guide. Colossians chapter 1 and verse 28 where Paul says, "Him we preach." Colossians 1:28, "Him we preach, warning every man and teaching every man in all wisdom that we may present every man perfect in Christ Jesus." Well, that is definitely his ambition. We know that Paul desired very much to be able to do that to be able to say as Christ did that I have not lost one that you have given me when he talked to the father.
(25:32) I haven't lost any of them and I know Paul felt the same way that he was called to a ministry to the Gentiles and he did his job the best he possibly could and yet I know his prayer was his belief was his desire was that he would not lose any either. And he connects teaching with completion in Christ. The word perfect means mature, fullgrown, spiritually complete.
(25:58) And that's the purpose of doctrine. Of course, are we there now? Are we there yet? like I hope by the time Christ returns I'm as close as I'll ever be in that moment to being ready. So when sound doctrine gets rejected or replaced the consequences are very serious because without it people are left vulnerable, confused, even deceived. unstable in their spiritual walk.
(26:37) Like this is why this is so important. Each and every one of us is accountable for what God has revealed to us. No one's getting in on anybody else's coattails. Each and every one of us is responsible for the truth given to us by God. We're accountable for that truth, which means it's serious business.
(27:02) And we need to be on guard because notice what Paul says to Galatians. His shock and surprise at a people turned away from sound doctrine. Galatians 1:es 6 and 7. Galatians 1:6 says,"I marvel that you are turning away so soon from him who called you in the grace of Christ to a different gospel. Not the gospel Paul had taught. They were turning away to some other gospel.
(27:44) That's not the gospel he says, which is not another because there's only one gospel that Christ gave. So it's not you're not turning away to another gospel of Christ. But there are some who trouble you and want to pervert the gospel of Christ. And this is our challenge in the church today. that some might come in who don't have the gospel of Christ, don't have the proper understanding, but who might try to lead us astray.
(28:30) And we need to be on guard for that. Sound doctrine influences how we worship, how we make decisions, and how we view salvation itself. So it becomes this lens through which we see the plan of God because this is how he reveals it to us through sound teachings. Paul urged Timothy not only to teach sound doctrine but to continue in it faithfully over in 1 Timothy chapter 4. Again, this is the warning.
(29:03) Why is this so important? Well, it was very important to Paul as he taught Timothy. Timothy was a minister in training under Paul. So, can we say, well, he's a minister in training. This doesn't apply to us. I don't think any of us think that. And so, it's just as important for us to read what his instruction to Timothy was.
(29:24) 1 Timothy 4 and verse 16, he says, "At my first defense," I think I'm in the wrong place here. See, I do First Timothy. All right. I I'm get this. every single week. I'm going to do this for a while. Apparently, 1 Timothy 4:16. He says, "Take heed to yourselves or to yourself and to the doctrine." So, you have to take heed. You have to keep faithful to them.
(29:52) You have to obey. More than that, though, continue in them is what he's saying. For in doing this, you will save both yourself and those who hear you. So the expectation isn't just that he lives it but that he teaches it. And I think all of us should be taking that responsibility seriously as well.
(30:16) We do we teach necessarily by our word? Sometimes it's just by our actions through obedience that we're teaching. So doctrine needs to be held. It needs to be taught. It needs to be lived because it's the way that we preserve the truth. So doctrine matters. How do we identify sound doctrine? Well, that's what I have the handout for.
(30:47) So I wanted to just I'm briefly going to walk through these. I'm not going to turn to all the scriptures. I gave them to you so that you could do that on your own at any time. Okay? So, it is the instruction on how to identify with 11 steps, if you will. I titled it Bible study principles that protect. How do I study my Bible and know that I'm actually discovering or learning more about true doctrine, sound doctrine? Well, I want to walk through each of these briefly for the sake of time and just give you a brief description so you understand why they're here and what
(31:29) they mean. We begin with understanding that we let scripture interpret scripture. God's word does not contradict itself. So, we don't start with my understanding of the scripture. We start with what the scripture says. So, we're looking when we're searching for what is the truth of a doctrine. We're looking throughout the scripture for all that touches on that.
(31:54) And let the scriptures actually interpret the scriptures, which happens quite frequently. The Bible is its own best interpreter. Remember, the one who inspired and preserved it was the very same person who walked in this earth and taught it to the disciples. The consistency of the message from the very beginning to the very end has been delivered by one being.
(32:19) Christ is the word. Christ is the son of God. And it is through Christ that we have that truth revealed to us. And so no, Christ is not in conflict with himself. That's why you don't have one message in the Old Testament and a different message in the New Testament. It's the same God being that revealed it all. Number two, so again the scriptures are there.
(32:46) Sake of time I'm not going to walk through all the scriptures. You have them which defend each and every one of these. Number two, do not form doctrine from a single passage. No scripture should rest on one verse alone. But yet I've I've heard you probably have heard somebody will take something one verse it's obscure. They don't really know exactly what it means.
(33:04) It makes it sounds like it could mean this and now all of a sudden that's what it means. You're like, but if that interpretation is not in harmony with the rest of the passages in the Bible that cover that subject, then it's being interpreted incorrectly. It has to harmonize. It has to match. It can't be an outlier.
(33:23) And you don't base a doctrine on one verse. Number three, we read the full context. You start before it, you read through it, you read after it. you get the sense of what's being talked about. Cherry-picking a scripture in the middle of something that's not talking about what you want that to say is a very common practice.
(33:50) I think this should mean this, so I'm going to say that's what it means. And then you read it in the context, you're like, but that's not what it's talking about. So, if you only had that one scripture, maybe you could make an argument about that. But it's in a context that says it's the exact opposite. Lazarus and the rich man is a great example of that, right? When you fully understand that a parable is a story, that it is not meant to be a real event, a story, then it helps you to understand because you read that now in its context. That's not what Christ was
(34:19) talking about. Number four, you got to use both the Old and the New Testaments. They harmonize. They don't argue. They harmonize with one another. And yet there are a number of people who would take our Bibles. You know this is true too. They would take our Bibles and say that that Old Testament stuff was done away. It's hung on the cross.
(34:41) Doesn't mean anything. So they would tear our Bibles in half. Well look if I look where Malachi ends. It's like a third. It's not even that. I mean honestly you're that's how much of is the New Testament. This is how much is the Old Testament. And they want you to throw all of that away. It's like as though those could be in conflict with one another. They're not in conflict.
(35:02) So you have to use both the testaments. And of course, how many times is the Old Testament quoted in the New Testament? Many times, many, many times. Okay. Again, these are principles to apply for safe Bible study. Number five is begin with what's clear. So when somebody wants to pitch an idea that's a little obscure, I want to go to my Bible and say, "Well, what's the clear instructions?" Like if there's a clear statement that says this is true. Okay.
(35:33) So for example, somebody wants to say that there's something like the trinity out there that God is three people in one. Then I want to go to John 1:1 and see the clear language that describes the word and it says was God and that that being created everything and that nothing was created that he didn't create. You have to explain that because that's the clear statement, right? When it says that God created man, male and female, what's the clear words mean? Does it mean a range of possible sexual options or is it male and female? Very
(36:12) binary choice. This is how he made them. We start with the clear words. In other words, we don't assign allegory. This is so common in some some religious groups where they will literally allegorize everything because it doesn't quite harmonize with what I want it to say. Our teaching is this. And if it doesn't say that, then it's probably an allegory or a metaphor.
(36:37) All right? So that's what number six is about. Also take the literal meaning first, which is where he says here made them male and female. That's not ambiguous. That's very clear. Okay. Number seven says confirm doctrine with multiple witnesses. What does that mean? Well, it means you don't just take one case where it says something and say, "Well, see that's the whole doctrine.
(37:03) " It the idea is the same as we would adjudicate a scenario between two people. We want multiple witnesses to establish the truth. Okay? In the mouth of two or three witnesses, the truth is established. And so, the the principle here is the same when it comes to doctrines. He's not asking us to believe the truth based off of one single reference.
(37:26) We need multiple scriptures that talk about something for us to know that it is a doctrine. Multiple scripture. Okay. Number eight talks about avoiding isogesis. What is Jesus? Well, the simplest definition is to read into the text what you want it to say. It's very common for people who have a particular view they really don't want to let go of.
(37:49) So conf we talk about confirmation bias, which is when we read things that only favor what I want to believe. Well, you can do the same thing with your Bible. You can read something and you can say, "Well, it it means this thing I want it to mean." It's that's reading into it. We read out of it. That's what's called ex Jesus.
(38:07) We read out of it what it means, not read into it our meaning. So avoid doing that. Be honest with yourself when you're doing Bible study. Am I telling it what it means or is God telling me what it means? And of course number nine is to use proper study tools. Use the reference here of Ezra because Ezra had prepared himself for a very long time by studying the scriptures.
(38:32) Historically scholars will say that outside of Moses, there's been no greater scribe than Ezra, who knew and prepared his heart to teach the law of God. And so for us today, it means have multiple resources available. There are lots of commentaries, there are lots of dictionaries, and there are lots of encyclopedias. Use them all.
(38:57) And here's the deal. Bias becomes pretty obvious when they're all either saying the identical wrong thing, right? Or when you start to see that somebody favors a particular explanation, but the body of people tend to believe this is true. And so you begin to look at these different commentaries and get a sense of, wait a minute, he wants it to be this.
(39:17) You find this often when it comes to reading anything about the Holy Spirit. Very common to see them turn themselves into a pretzel to describe the Holy Spirit as a Trinity. And so everything sounds like the Holy Spirit and everything's justifiable when that's what you want to believe. You have to be careful about your sources in that regard.
(39:33) So you need multiple sources to be able to flesh something out. So use proper study tools. And of course I list this as number 10, but that's not an oversight. It's not meaning I'm not diminishing it. None of this is is a list in terms of priority. All of these are important. But number 10 is to be led by the Holy Spirit.
(39:53) You should be praying when you study your Bible, asking God to reveal the truth, not telling him what he means. You you ask him to reveal what he means. And you know what's a good aid to that is to fast. If it's a particularly complex or difficult thing you're trying to learn about and you're struggling with it, fast about it.
(40:17) This is what draws us closer to God. We humble ourselves and then ask God to reveal and help me to see it and understand it. And often as not, he will do just that. And then the final thing number 11 here is to check the fruit. What is the fruit of the direction of that particular belief or this argument or this comment that I got from somebody? Is it to lead us to unity with one another? You know, the beautiful thing about the Holy Spirit is it seeks unity.
(40:51) It's the very spirit of God. It wants us to be on the same page, to think alike. How many of us have gone to a feast site, never been to before? You walk into a congregation, maybe you visited a congregation in some part of the country or some part of the world you haven't been to before. You walk in, you feel like it's old home week.
(41:09) You feel like, wow, it's like I feel like I've known these people for a long time. It's the spirits bringing you in there. If you have the Holy Spirit and you walk into a room with people filled with the Holy Spirit, you feel comfortable. You feel welcome. It can't be helped. The spirit unites.
(41:25) That's the challenge when it comes to false doctrines. They lead us away from the unity. They create division. The spirit isn't about division. It's not divided against itself. And so, it's an area where we need to be looking at what's the fruit. Where is this going? If this thing that's being introduced that I heard at services or at the feast or some place, if that's true, where does that go? What's the fruit of it? And if the answer is division, undermining of faith, destroying of what somebody knows to be the truth, is that from God? I don't think
(42:03) so. So, we need to look at the fruit. Let me leave you with this thought, and I put it I think I put it on your handout. Each of these principles is a safeguard, and not one of them can be neglected without risk. and taken together, they form a defense against error and a path toward the clarity God desires for us to have.
(42:28) All right, I'm going to wrap up with what is false doctrine then? Because if there's sound doctrine, then there's the opposite of sound doctrine, which is false doctrine. Sound doctrine aligns with God's truth. And of course, false doctrine then does not align with God's truth. And it's not just error. It's spiritually dangerous.
(42:52) It will obscure the plan of God. It will m misrepresent his character and it will corrupt the faith of those who follow it. Now Paul oversaw or foresaw this time in 1 Timothy 4:1. Yeah. 1 Timothy 4 and verse 1. It says, ' Now the spirit, 1 Timothy 4:1, I got here again. I landed it this time.
(43:22) Now the spirit expressly says that in the latter times some will depart from the faith. How will that happen? Well, giving heed to deceiving spirits and doctrines of demons. So if our father in heaven is giving us the truth because his word is truth and something does not harmonize with that truth, it is therefore false doctrine.
(43:48) Who is the author of lies? The father of lies, the scripture says, is Satan. And of course, he governs the demonic world. And so if what we're hearing doesn't come from God, then there's only one other source that isn't from God, and that is from Satan and his government. And so it's very important that we understand the source of false doctrine and why we need to be meticulous in defending ourselves against it.
(44:19) You're our literally we are under judgment right now. That's the contract we signed with God. When I said to God yes when I was baptized then I knew in that moment I had entered into a contract with him in which the terms were clearly defined. Obey and the price was revealed. Salvation and that judgment was going to be a part of that process because this is not graded on a scale.
(44:48) It is pass fail. If we fail, there's no second chance for us. That's why it's serious business. And that's why we have to be on guard for false doctrine. We've got to be paying attention. We cannot get lazy in our hearing. And I've noticed, I was talking to somebody about this recently, how easy it is to do that.
(45:14) You hear something and if it sounds just close enough to the truth, how closely do you pay attention to it? If it's in passing, if it's in a conversation, do you drill in on it to make sure you understand what's being said and that it is truth or it is false? I'd have to say for myself sometimes I get a little lazy about that and I might just let it go if it sounds close enough to be true.
(45:40) I might not be as meticulous in scrutinizing it as I should be. And a little bit of that over time, a little bit of that over time weakens the foundation. I never should have been vulnerable in 1995, but I was a little bit over time, not paying attention and the foundations eroding and I'm not even watching as the church at the time that I was going to fell away, left the truth. And I was very close myself.
(46:13) Thankfully, God rescued me from my own idiocy because he made me start paying attention to what real sound doctrine is and what false doctrine is. Okay. So, here the phrase doctrine of demons reveals the origin of many false teachings. Not merely human misunderstanding, but spiritual deception. That's what's key about that.
(46:40) It is deliberate spiritual deception trying to get in right in here. And according to theer's Greek lexicon, this word denotes instruction. And here it is instruction that comes from sources in rebellion against God. Satan's not teaching us how we should live a life in harmony with God. Of course not.
(47:02) It is all how we rebel against God. False teachers do not always appear as enemies of truth. And of course, scripture emphasizes their subtly. Their teachings are usually enter quietly. You know, you're not going to open up a beyond today and see an article talking about how the Sabbath is no longer the seventh day of the week, are you? We've codified 20 fundamental beliefs.
(47:31) They're in our constitution. Everything we do, everything we write, everything we preach is supposed to harmonize with that. So, are you going to open up a Beyond Today and see an article that says Sunday is now the Sabbath day? Of course not. So, how does deception enter? If we're not going to blatantly do what they did in '95 or '94, 93 in our former organization, how does it enter? I can tell you by an experience at the feast a few years back how it entered.
(48:00) Somebody I trusted, somebody I respected came to me quietly. Have you thought about this? No, my answer was I have not thought about that. Well, consider this meaning. It was quiet. It wasn't boisterous. It wasn't loud. It wasn't flamboyant. It was just planting seeds. And so, can that happen to any of us? 100%. Does everybody that will ever come and meet with us come and meet with us with beautiful pristine motives? Well, I'd say the most probably, but is it 100%? I'd say no.
(48:45) People often come in because they have an agenda of their own beliefs that they want to sell to these innocent lambs of God. And if we're not paying attention, we might be buying things we don't know. So we need to pay attention to that. Second Peter chapter 2 and verse 1, Peter warns us similarly. Second Peter chapter 2 and verse one. He says, "But there were also false prophets among the people even as there will be false teachers among you who will secretly bring in destructive heresies.
(49:33) " See, they're not going to be getting published in the Beyond Today. They're not going to get their own article in the United News. It's secretly being brought in. That's why we have to pay attention. even denying the Lord who brought who bought them and bring on themselves swift destruction. This is the end of those ultimately under judgment.
(49:55) The Greek word heresies originally meant choices or factions. But in this context, it refers to divisive teachings that depart from the truth and create spiritual separation. As noted in Vine's expository dictionary, the term developed into meaning a body of doctrine that is self-chosen and in opposition to revealed truth.
(50:26) So the danger is not only what false doctrine teaches, but also how it spreads. Jesus warned that deceptive teachings could appear so convincing that even those chosen by God might be tempted to believe them. Of course, we have that warning in Matthew chap 24 and verse 24. Matthew 24 and verse 24 where Christ himself said for false Christs and false prophets will rise and show great signs and wonders to deceive if possible even the elect.
(51:02) I worry that some who are going to be deceived by signs which we hear about signs at the end time that some can be deceived by the sign. See, if our desire is for that which tickled the ears, that satisfies what I want to believe, which makes me feel good when I hear it. If that's my priority, then that's where I'm vulnerable.
(51:24) Because the truth has to be more important than that. The truth has to be more important than how I feel when I hear it. What I feel when I hear something that makes me feel good. Why? We have to challenge oursel about that. Why? If it's not purely the truth of God, then why is it so attractive to me? The Greek word for deceive means to cause, to wander, to mislead from the truth.
(51:58) False doctrine may retain the language of truth, but it redefineses it, and that makes discernment more challenging for us. Paul gave the elders in Ephesus a very sobering warning over in Acts 20 29-30. Acts chapter 20 verses 29-30 where Paul says, "For I know this that after my departure savage wolves will come in among you, not sparing the flock.
(52:42) Also from among yourselves men will rise up speaking perverse things to draw away the disciples after themselves. Savage wolves are not externally aggressive but spiritually destructive. That word perverse means twisted and distorted. And we see why. To gather a following for themselves. This is what makes false doctrine so perilous for us.
(53:16) It often uses biblical language and speaks of Jesus Christ and appeals to emotion. But its fruit is what exposes it because over time it leads to confusion. It leads to pride. It leads to lawlessness, compromise. Christ said, "You will know them by their fruit." That's what we have to keep analyzing. What is the fruit? What is the fruit? That's how I know if what I'm hearing from you, what is the fruit from that? Where does that lead? We must be able to recognize both what is true and what is not true and understand why it's not true. Jude urged
(54:01) us about this. Jude chapter or well there's only one chapter so Jude verses 3 and 4 right by it Jude verses 3 and 4 beloved while I was very diligent to write to you concerning our common salvation I found it necessary to write to you exhorting you to contend earnestly for the faith which was once for all delivered to the saints.
(54:46) For certain men have crept in unnoticed, who long ago were marked out for this condemnation, ungodly men who turn the grace of our God into lwdness and deny the only Lord God and our Lord Jesus Christ. Yeah. Yeah. The phrase once for all delivered affirms that truth is not evolving. It's been delivered. We have the truth.
(55:13) It is the word of God. It's not a living document. It's a set set of scriptures. The danger is not only that false teachers will change doctrine, but that they change people's understanding of what sound doctrine really is and what it reveals about the plan of God. And Jesus himself warned about this over in First John or excuse me, John warned about this. Not Jesus here.
(55:48) Well, Christ warned in his own way. Let's go over here to John. 1 John chapter 4. 1 John chapter 4 verse one where John warns us. He says, "Beloved, do not believe every spirit, but test the spirits whether they're of God because many false prophets have gone out into the world." That Greek word test means to examine, prove genuine after investigation.
(56:26) Testing requires knowledge of the word of God and of course the courage to resist error to be honest with myself when I'm looking in the mirror about my own motives, my own desires. Am I being truthful? Am I truly pursuing what God wants to reveal? Or do I have my own agenda, things I want to believe? In the end, false doctrine brings division and distraction.
(56:51) and decay. It weakens the church by creating confusion and compromising the standard of truth. We're not called to chase every single error. But we are called to know the difference between truth and distortion. Honest and meticulously being careful in our studies to know the difference.
(57:15) What comes from God and what does not. We have to be vigilant. Truth has to be defended. And the church of God is called to uphold the pillar and the ground of truth, as Paul told Timothy in 1 Timothy 3:15, to shine as a light in a world increasingly shaped by darkness, what we would call spiritual deception. Let's wrap up here in 2 Timothy 1:13.
(57:47) 2 Timothy 1 verse3 where he says where Paul says to Timothy hold fast the pattern of sound words which you have heard from me in faith and love which are in Christ Jesus. Sound doctrine is a pattern of truth structured, spirit breathed, a framework that comes from God that outlines his plan.
(58:31) We can't know and understand his plan without sound doctrine being taught, living, and teaching that doctrine within our homes. In a time when many turn to teachings that appeal to emotion or tradition, we're called to be rooted in scripture. That foundation prepares us for what comes next. So, what I intend to do from here is I'm going to pick on a few different false doctrines that are common out there, but I want to assault them.
(59:05) Not because I'm trying to pick on the people who believe them, but because we need to know what they are and we need to know what the truth is. We need to be ready with an answer as we heard in the sermonet. We need to be prepared through our own careful study, meticulous learning, and then holding fast to what is the truth. What I hope to do is again shore up our foundations.
(59:24) That's all I want to do is shore up our foundations to make sure we know what we believe and why we believe it. So, I will be doing that in the sermons to come.