Strange Teachings

Heb. l3:9

Intro:

1. Charles Williams has a book called All Hollow's Eve in which a creature named Simon the Clerk appears in London being proclaimed as a prophet, a healer, and a man of goodness. He talks about love, peace, brotherhood, the healing of nations,
and has a loyal devoted following among certain people. Simon the Clerk is a fascade, a covering for a man who is bent upon deception, using people in tuning himself with the evil of the universe, aspiring to make evil triumphant.

2. This person serves as a model for many who appear in the name of goodness, but who are using good to their own evil purposes. But there are people who have not gone that far. Our world is filled with empty shells searching for something
to fill them with meaning. When they stumble upon something better than their emptiness, they become advocates of the cause, seeking recruits wherever they may be found. People stumble from one ism to another trying to find themselves. There are people who become part of the Christian community, but
soon depart for some more radical or less radical form of Christianity because they are transient spiritual creatures.

3. Religious fads are not new. They are as old as man.The reaction to religious fads in the New Testament is that of rejection. Our text is one of warning: "Do not be led away by diverse and strange teachings..." This seems to be a closed minded text, but it is not that only. The book of Hebrews has declared that God has come in the flesh, and the highest revelation possible has taken place. Therefore, do not go after lessor claims.

4. . There is in Christian faith a claim for truth that brings the rejection of other religious claims. There is no basis for arrogance in this. In life one bows before the truth humbly. There is no basis for arrogance if I recognize that  2 plus 2  is 4. If I know that impure water is promoting  sickness, there is no basis for arrogance in the matter.

5. It does make a difference how I believe in life. If I live in ignorance of the facts of sanitation, my life will reflect it. If I am ignorant of farming techniques, I may starve in my ignorance. My ignorance may destroy my life early when with knowledge I could have had a long life.

6. In Christianity, it makes a difference what you believe and what you give your life to. The Bible is very narrow. I cannot change that claim. I may reject it, or accept it, but the changing of it is not within my realm.

Do not be led away by diverse and strange teachings:

I. Those who reject Christ's uniqueness.

l. The Bible declares that Jesus is the Son of God, the eternal God who has come down to earth taking to himself a body. In no other person has this been true.
The Bible asserts that Jesus alone is uniquely God's Son. The Book of John, Hebrews and all the other books of the New Testament speak of him as the only Savior.

2. Yet there are diverse and strange teachings of people  who use the Scripture with their own translations or books added to the Bible about Jesus.

A. Jehovah Witnesses. Many of you have had callers at your door who are known as the Jehovah's Witnesses. They preach an old doctrine revived from the 4th century known as Arianism. Arius believed that Jesus was not uniquely God in the flesh but rather that Jesus was a created being who was more important and powerful than angels, but not the eternal Son of God. The J.W’s preach the same today. Jesus is not God in the flesh. He is a created being who was involved in mighty acts on earth, but not deity.

But the Gospel of John 1:1,l4, l8  talks about the Word  being God, and becoming incarnate, and no one but the Logos has ever seen God. Only God can reveal God. Without this fact our knowledge about God is vague and uncertain.

B. The group of people known as Mormons, or the Latter  Days Saints preach a different doctrine about Jesus.  Brigham Young taught about Jesus‘s birth, "When the Virgin Mary conceived the child Jesus, the father had begotten him in his own likeness. he was not begotten by the Holy Ghost. And who was the father? He was the first of the human family. ...Jesus our elder brother was begotten in the flesh by the same character that was in the Garden of Eden and who is our father in heaven." (Journal of Discourses, vol. I. pp. 50-51) The Mormon view of God becomes polytheistic.   It is a famous summary of their view of God in these words: "As man is, God once was; as God is, man may become." Every person is a potential God. This means that there is nothing really unique about Jesus.

3. The Bible has the background of intense truth about it.  There is no God but one. God revealed himself as a jealous God. The Ten commandments declares: thou shalt have no other Gods before me.

4. Therefore, do not be led around by diverse and strange teachings

II. Those who make everybody divine.

1. Although the Mormons teach that everybody is potentially a God, there are diverse movements that declare that  everybody is divine--the only rub is that most people don't realize it. When you come to realize it, then you have achieved
liberating insight into life and Being.

2. Examples:

l) One could take several detailed views on this, but briefly one can summarize the Maharishi Mahesh Yogi or the Transcendental Meditation Movement, the Maharashi Ji, and the Ananda Marga Society as variations on the same theme.
Some statements are necessary: (1) The Hindu view is that Being--not called Personal God—is everything. Everybody is part of Being. (2) Only people who are perceptive realize this, and when they do, and reject their personhoods, they achieve liberation from the cycle of rebirth. People continue rebirthing until they achieve this liberation, or perception that they are one. Now since everybody is divine, then no one is uniquely so. There are only people who have been more intuitive. These gurus have gone further in this than the un-initiated. Now, Jesus is believed to be a great guru along with Buddha, Mohammed, Sri Sri Anandimurti,
and many others.

3. Implications: 1) If everybody is divine, how is the divine known. By meditation--looking within and not looking without for a special revelation. Each man could write his own Scriptures on this ground. There is no need to pay much intention
to the Bible since I have the potential in me to write one. (2) All religions are true. It doesn't matter what you call God, but all religions are equally true. Thus, while
Christianity declares that it is the only true religion, no other, this claim is rejected for saying that there is no false way to God. Even though Islam regards its self as
true, then the claim to truth is rejected. (3) The laws of logic are rejected. The principle of contradiction is thrown out. The principle of contradiction says: "God cannot be conceived as pantheistic and non-pantheistic at the same time.

4. If God has revealed himself in Christianity as saying, "there is no other name under heaven whereby men can be saved, can this be interpreted to mean that all men can be saved under any name.  Not if you believe the Bible.

III. Those involving the occult

1. The occult has become of interest to the American public and has an influence within the church in some of its forms. There are two varieties of the occult that I would mention.

A. witchcraft. Witchcraft has various levels to it. There are some who are interested in the subject because it appears  fun or different, but there are white witches, black witches, Satanic witches, and so on. Witchcraft was dealt with in a false way when it appeared in the early part of our country. A sign of being a witch was some bump or mole on your body; which would make most of us witches.
Witchcraft has nothing to do with the body, but with the mind and heart; a commitment to the worship of something that is not God.

One area of concern is in the high school where pop courses on witchcraft have been taught. In some situations the students are required to do something that involves them in witchcraft. The outside assignments break down the
student's resistance and the familiarity helps to lure students into the movement. You should aware of what is going on in these courses.

B. Astrology is another form of the occult. It is as old as ancient Babylon and is based upon the idea that the center of the universe is the earth which is poor astronomy. The stars or planets are homes of the gods who influence the
lives of people on earth.

2. The occult is rejected by the Bible for one basic reason; although that reason may take several forms. The basic reason is: your life is not to be given to anything less than God himself. Astrology is a form of paganism, of polytheism, in which the movements of the planet-gods are to govern your life. Astrology is a denial of our free will. Astrology is to abdicate your reason to some advisor. Likewise, witchcraft is a form of polytheism in which one commits a life to something less than God.

3 Our verse says, "do not be led away by diverse and strange teachings. There is a real sense in which Christian must cringe and retreat from these things. Eph.5:11-12 says, "Take no part in the unfruitful works of darkness, but instead expose them. For it is a shame even to speak of the things that they do in secret.

Conclusion:
1. This morning I have been pointing out some of the strange doctrines that we encounter in the world. What is the Bible's message and doctrine?  The good news is that God who is creator of the universe has come in person to reveal himself in love and redemption. His coming is declared in the Bible, and he calls men to turn from sin and turn to him in faith. This turning involves the fact that Jesus as
 born  in Bethlehem as the Son of God and the virgin born son of Mary. He died on a cross to make a new covenant with men that he might have forgiveness
of his sins and everlasting life. He is the unique savior of the world. God's son is the only one you can trust and have eternal life.

2. Have you been trusting something less than God for your salvation? Have you been thinking that you can make it yourself? Let Jesus Christ come into your life
and give you his presence and promise of salvation.

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