JCSM's Weekly Devotions (click here to listen!)

"Avoid Apostasy, Be A Berean"

Acts 17:10, 11  "Then the brethren immediately sent Paul and Silas away by night to Berea.  When they arrived, they went into the synagogue of the Jews.  These were more fair-minded than those in Thessalonica, in that they received the word with all readiness, and searched the Scriptures daily to find out whether these things were so."

2 Timothy 2:15  "Be diligent to present yourself approved to God, a worker who does not need to be ashamed, rightly dividing the word of truth."

Mark 13:22, 23  "For false christs and false prophets will rise and show signs and wonders to deceive, if possible, even the elect.  But take heed; see, I have told you all things beforehand."

Ephesians 4:14, 15  "We should no longer be children, tossed to and fro and carried about with every wind of doctrine, by the trickery of men, in the cunning craftiness of deceitful plotting, but, speaking the truth in love, may grow up in all things into Him who is the head—Christ."

Romans 16:17, 18  "Now I urge you, brethren, note those who cause divisions and offenses, contrary to the doctrine which you learned, and avoid them.  For those who are such do not serve our Lord Jesus Christ, but their own belly, and by smooth words and flattering speech deceive the hearts of the simple."

2 Timothy 3:13-15  "Evil men and impostors will grow worse and worse, deceiving and being deceived.  But you must continue in the things which you have learned and been assured of, knowing from whom you have learned them, and that from childhood you have known the Holy Scriptures, which are able to make you wise for salvation through faith which is in Christ Jesus."

Insight: We must study and know the scriptures inside and out.  If we don't, new doctrines may come and deceive us.  Arm yourself with the Word of God and study it diligently, so you don't believe falsehoods.  The Holy Spirit will bless you and guide you as you draw closer to Christ through fellowship, scholarship, and meditation.

Prayer: "Dear Lord, bless us and make us like You.  Please educate us and help us to have a deep knowledge and understanding of your Word.  Thank you for giving us the Bible, so we can know You and what You expect from us.  Give us godly and intelligent mentors and teachers.  Help them to help us.  Let us listen to your Holy Spirit's voice and follow your teachings.  In Jesus' name, Amen."

Warren Gamaliel Harding (1865-1923), was the 29^th President of the United States of America.  He had been a prominent newspaper editor in Ohio, a state senator and a U.S. Senator.  In his Inaugural Address, March 4, 1921, President Warren Gamaliel Harding recognized:

“What doth the Lord require of thee but to do justly and to love mercy, and to walk humbly with thy God?”

I have always believed in the inspiration of the Holy Scriptures, whereby they have become the expression to man of the Word and Will of God.

If you'd like to have the citations for the footnotes above, please email us.  If you'd like to see more quotes from those who framed and founded America, please click here: http://jcsm.org/AmericasFounders/.

(This explanation came from "The Skeptic's Annotated Bible: Corrected and Explained", by Dr. Jason Gastrich.  This book is on CD and gives over 4,000 answers to alleged Bible errors, regarding the entire Bible at http://www.skepticsannotatedbible.org.  There is also a 300 question workbook that accompanies the CD-ROM.)

It's easy to be deceived.

Don't just believe what man says God says, but believe what God says.

We need to be good Bereans.

Deception began in the Garden and apostasy has been growing ever since.

Apostasy is a deliberate withdrawal or turning away from God and His Word.

The Church Age will end at the rapture of the church.

The Temple will be rebuilt and the sacrifices will begin, again.

The Abomination of Desolation will occur and the Anti-Christ will be worshiped as God.

Apostates have taken 4 deliberate steps into apostasy:

1. God's word is rejected as the supreme authority for faith and practice.

The power of the gospel is weakened by compromise.  Biblical evangelism is replaced by easy believism.

Pastors give people what they want instead of what they need

Biblical warnings to expose false teachers are ignored

2. Scripture is twisted and distorted for self-serving agendas.  "Infallible" men enter claiming to be successors of apostles.

Truth is determined by experiences.  Doctrinal error and sin are tolerated.

Satan sows his tares in the church with little resistance.  Contenders of the faith are asked to leave.

God is honored with lips, but not hearts.

3. Scripture is replaced by stories and myths.

Programs and entertainment have forced Jesus out of the church.  Love for God grows cold.

Doctrinal error is embraced.

A form of godliness exists but it is void of power.

Hearts have become hardened.  Trials expose the spurious faith and immoral lifestyles

4. The Bible is replace by doctrines of demons.

Deception is full-blown.  Lying signs and wonders are promoted as messages from God.

The church condemns those who embrace truth.

Grace is turned into a license to sin.

The church's lamp stand has been removed and judgment is now inevitable.
 

Deceptive Teachings in the Postmodern Church:

Absolute truth is rejected.

Psychological needs replace spiritual needs.

All religions lead to God.

Tolerance of all beliefs is a virtue.

Biblical authority for truth is ignored or denied.
 

Satan isn't out to destroy the church.  He wants to be an integral part of the church, so people will one day worship him as Christ.

We need to examine the fruit of every new movement before we embrace it.

Don't encourage ecumenical unity at the cost of compromising biblical doctrines.

Mike recommends "A Time of Departing" for information on the postmodern apostasy.

Have you ever considered the Satan's purposes for deception?

He wants to cause apostasy, to seduce into sin, to create counterfeits to mislead, to ensnare and trap, to delude, falsify, blind, devour, and kill.

The are many warnings about deception throughout the scriptures (see Ephesians 4:14, 2 Corinthians 4:2, Romans 16:18, 2 Timothy 3:13, etc.)

Unless we're anchored by the truth of God's Word, we'll be tossed by the wind of every new doctrine.

The Truth About Deception

Those who are being deceived don't even realize it.

For deception to be effective, it must appear to be true.  People will not believe an outright lie.

The deadliest counterfeit is the one that closely resembles the truth.

The last place people think deception will come from is the pulpit.

The worst kind of deception is self-deception.

We deceive ourselves when we fail to . . .

1. obey the Word of God

2. humble ourselves

3. acknowledge our sin or the consequences of continuing in sin

4. acknowledge that bad company corrupts good morals

If we live in habitual sin and expect to inherit the kingdom of God, we are deceiving ourselves.

There are two types of Christians: those who profess Christ and those who possess Christ.

The tares vs. the wheat, the wide gate vs. the narrow gate

Listen to what your friends and teachers say, so you can discern whether or not they are truly saved.

One doctrine of demons that Paul identifies is forbidding people to marry.  This is what the Catholic Church does.

Have you ever examined your faith through the lens of scripture?

Where religious pride exists, the seed of God's Word does not grow.

Worldliness is what every culture produces to make sin look normal and righteousness look silly.

The prudent teacher screens every teaching.

Note: These notes were from Mike Gendron's lecture at the Steeling the Mind Bible Conference.  There are many more quotes in the rest of my notes and you can click here to read them!  If you'd like to read more quotes, we have thousands in our archive!  Visit http://quotes.jcsm.org.