Sister Alvear
07-08-2008, 03:39 PM
Dear Brothers and Sisters,
Speaking of this as he does in all of his letters. There are some things in those [epistles of Paul] that are difficult to understand, which the ignorant and unstable twist and misconstrue to their own utter destruction, just as [they distort and misinterpret] the rest of the Scriptures. Let me warn you therefore, beloved, that knowing these things beforehand, you should be on your guard, lest you be carried away by the error of lawless and wicked [persons and] fall from your own [present] firm condition [your own steadfastness of mind]. (2 Peter 3: 16-17, AMP)
The word “unstable” is used here and in 2 Peter 2:14 only. It means that the false teachers are involved in adultery or fornication, but also are enticing unsteady souls. This enticing has to do with luring with bait into a trap. These unsteady ones are those who waver, whose foundation is not solidly set upon Christ, and are like the ones who build their house upon sand (Matthew 7: 26). Their faith is weak and they can be led astray easily, both in understanding the message and in their actions. Though some may say these are new converts, and that is possible, there are those who have been “in the way” for years and are yet are of little faith. These do not know what they believe and usually think that since they prayed a “magic” prayer, they are fine for eternity. Sad it is that this is not the case, for only those who stay connected to the True Vine will produce fruit which our Father is looking for (John 15: 4-7).
The false teachers, whose hearts are trained, teach for greed or other selfish purposes, and will thus victimize the unsteady or unstable ones. Those who are not on guard will be victimized by the false teachers. The false teachers will use "twisting" of things written. Literally, they will “twist," "torture," "dislocate" (as in dislocating the joint of a person on the rack).
Jesus answered them, Be careful that no one misleads you [deceiving you and leading you into error]. (Matthew 24:4, AMP)
Jesus warned His disciples of those who would lead into error all through His discourse in Matthew 24. Deceivers have been successful throughout the ages with their eschatological programs, bringing many weak and unstable sheep to shipwreck when the events do not occur as “prophesied.” This is what it means in Matthew 18:12 when a single sheep wanders astray. The active voice with the causative sense means “to lead astray.” Being led astray is of primary importance to Matthew when the understanding of discipleship is considered. Jesus warned repeatedly of false “Messiahs” and false “prophets” who would try to lead the disciples astray.
And He said, Be on your guard and be careful that you are not led astray; for many will come in My name [appropriating to themselves the name Messiah which belongs to Me], saying, I am He! and, The time is at hand! Do not go out after them. (Luke 21: 8, AMP, emphasis added)
Jesus said to us that in the last days there would be those who would bring deception as their avenue of ministry, some so audacious as to claim to be the Messiah. If there are those who will deceive, just what do these false prophets, false teachers, and false teachings look like?
Hypocrisy will be a plain attribute of these false prophets, teachers, and “Messiahs.” They will have admirable principles and teach these principles, appearing moral or successful, yet their lifestyle will not demonstrate a true conversion to Christ.
In Luke 12, crowds had gathered, but Jesus was speaking primarily to His disciples when he told them to be “on guard” against the leaven of the Pharisees. This was due to their responsibility to teach the Truth as Holy Spirit made it clear to them. The Amplified Bible says this “ferment” (of the Pharisees) is hypocrisy and produces “unrest and violent agitation” in Luke 12:1
The hypocrite is one who is Godless or profane, giving a false appearance of admirable principles, beliefs or feelings. They have a form of godliness but deny the power thereof. They utter falsehood, under the guise of prophesy (“thus saith the Lord”). They often offer “new revelation,” but it must line up with the Word of God or the prophecy must be ditched for what it is. Often these prophecies are saying that “God is doing a new thing.” Beware- check it out. God has spoken the end from the beginning and He is carrying out His purposes so that He can bring His Kingdom to earth in its pure form, just as Jesus told us. (See Daniel 2: 34-35 for the Stone Kingdom that will be set up in the earth in the Millennial Reign and will crush all kingdoms of the earth and rule over all.) Anything that is “new” and not moving with this purpose is not of God. It is the reason Jesus told His disciples to pray “Thy Kingdom come, Thy will be done, in earth as it is in heaven.” (Matthew 6: 10)
These outward appearances look righteous, due to a set of rules or practices of certain principals. But, these rules correct outward appearances, not necessarily change or transformation of our inward man through the leading and guiding of the Holy Spirit. This is to administer the Law without divine direction of the Holy Spirit. It is to bring death instead of life (2 Corinthians 3: 6). Holy Spirit will always bear witness to the Word of God and nothing else. This can be seen when a minister will speak and nothing of eternal value happens, for that which does not come from Holy Spirit cannot change a person.
Jesus told His disciples to beware of the leaven of the Pharisees (Matthew 16: 6). Leaven puffs up. Leaven is the very ingredient they were told to leave behind when the Israelites left Egypt. Too, leaven signifies worldliness, traditions of men, philosophies of men, rudiments of the world, or any particular teaching that is exalted above the simple Gospel of Christ crucified, dead, buried, and raised. A little error mixed with truth will make a religiosity to rise above the Gospel Truth. This includes the worshipping of man’s ways or even acts of service that men would perform- all of this is to elevate self above Christ.
Many have become so enamored with the blessings of God that they go after them, with greed and the desire for an abundance of possessions taking up their thoughts and actions more than God. A man’s life does not consist of the abundance of the things he possesses. A man’s life consists of his dying to self (Luke 12: 15; Galatians 2: 20). When we continuously hear of the Lord’s blessings and the desire for finances, there is at the least a lack of balance. Not that the Lord does not bless, but if that is the focus and that only, we can rest assured that the speaker is headed for trouble. There is a requirement of balance and moderation in all things (NT:4998, sophron (so'-frone); meaning “safe [sound] in mind, i.e. self-controlled [moderate as to opinion or passion]).
Dogs are pictured as those with impure minds (Matthew 7: 6). The Word of God washes our minds. These “dogs” are savage and snarling haters of truth and righteousness. Dogs (those with impure minds) do not and will not practice or walk out their faith through the leading and guiding of the Holy Spirit who leads us into all truth and understanding and ultimately toward holiness and our production of the fruit of the Spirit (Galatians 5:22-23).
Paul described these as “evil workers” that we are to beware of in Philippians 3:2. These are bad natured, having destructive attitudes, and producing no growth in the character of Christ. He also tells us to beware of “the concision” in the above mentioned verse. Concision means mutilation, which is a religious act found in several cults. To mutilate is to also depict the spiritual condition of a society and evidence of what the culture is cultivating.
These deceivers Paul and Peter are talking about will also try to “spoil you through philosophy” (Colossians 2:8). Any particular system of thought which inadvertently spoils the truth of the Gospel is depicted here. In this same verse Paul also says to beware those who would “spoil you with vain deceit,” which is teaching that is empty, devoid of truth, and mostly teachings about “self exaltation.” This is prominent today on television in the teachings of “improving self.” These same ones may spoil the unstable ones after the “tradition of men.” Traditions of men are those established customs that create a foundation of belief that alters Christ from being the Cornerstone and foundation on all we believe. Then too they may spoil others after the “rudiments of the world” which is a “first principle” which is then used as the origin or groundwork for a belief that is not truth.
Gain is not godliness. A preacher without a transformed life in Christ should be avoided. Those who would “sell” the Word of God are to be avoided. Without the clear truth, the unstable ones will be led astray, and if no remedy is applied, will be destroyed. While God intends for us to be financially well off (2 Corinthians 9: 6-10), this is not to be the continuous focus of any believer. To do so is to get the eyes on the blessing and not the Blessor.
Your servant in Christ,
Dr. Roger Price
Speaking of this as he does in all of his letters. There are some things in those [epistles of Paul] that are difficult to understand, which the ignorant and unstable twist and misconstrue to their own utter destruction, just as [they distort and misinterpret] the rest of the Scriptures. Let me warn you therefore, beloved, that knowing these things beforehand, you should be on your guard, lest you be carried away by the error of lawless and wicked [persons and] fall from your own [present] firm condition [your own steadfastness of mind]. (2 Peter 3: 16-17, AMP)
The word “unstable” is used here and in 2 Peter 2:14 only. It means that the false teachers are involved in adultery or fornication, but also are enticing unsteady souls. This enticing has to do with luring with bait into a trap. These unsteady ones are those who waver, whose foundation is not solidly set upon Christ, and are like the ones who build their house upon sand (Matthew 7: 26). Their faith is weak and they can be led astray easily, both in understanding the message and in their actions. Though some may say these are new converts, and that is possible, there are those who have been “in the way” for years and are yet are of little faith. These do not know what they believe and usually think that since they prayed a “magic” prayer, they are fine for eternity. Sad it is that this is not the case, for only those who stay connected to the True Vine will produce fruit which our Father is looking for (John 15: 4-7).
The false teachers, whose hearts are trained, teach for greed or other selfish purposes, and will thus victimize the unsteady or unstable ones. Those who are not on guard will be victimized by the false teachers. The false teachers will use "twisting" of things written. Literally, they will “twist," "torture," "dislocate" (as in dislocating the joint of a person on the rack).
Jesus answered them, Be careful that no one misleads you [deceiving you and leading you into error]. (Matthew 24:4, AMP)
Jesus warned His disciples of those who would lead into error all through His discourse in Matthew 24. Deceivers have been successful throughout the ages with their eschatological programs, bringing many weak and unstable sheep to shipwreck when the events do not occur as “prophesied.” This is what it means in Matthew 18:12 when a single sheep wanders astray. The active voice with the causative sense means “to lead astray.” Being led astray is of primary importance to Matthew when the understanding of discipleship is considered. Jesus warned repeatedly of false “Messiahs” and false “prophets” who would try to lead the disciples astray.
And He said, Be on your guard and be careful that you are not led astray; for many will come in My name [appropriating to themselves the name Messiah which belongs to Me], saying, I am He! and, The time is at hand! Do not go out after them. (Luke 21: 8, AMP, emphasis added)
Jesus said to us that in the last days there would be those who would bring deception as their avenue of ministry, some so audacious as to claim to be the Messiah. If there are those who will deceive, just what do these false prophets, false teachers, and false teachings look like?
Hypocrisy will be a plain attribute of these false prophets, teachers, and “Messiahs.” They will have admirable principles and teach these principles, appearing moral or successful, yet their lifestyle will not demonstrate a true conversion to Christ.
In Luke 12, crowds had gathered, but Jesus was speaking primarily to His disciples when he told them to be “on guard” against the leaven of the Pharisees. This was due to their responsibility to teach the Truth as Holy Spirit made it clear to them. The Amplified Bible says this “ferment” (of the Pharisees) is hypocrisy and produces “unrest and violent agitation” in Luke 12:1
The hypocrite is one who is Godless or profane, giving a false appearance of admirable principles, beliefs or feelings. They have a form of godliness but deny the power thereof. They utter falsehood, under the guise of prophesy (“thus saith the Lord”). They often offer “new revelation,” but it must line up with the Word of God or the prophecy must be ditched for what it is. Often these prophecies are saying that “God is doing a new thing.” Beware- check it out. God has spoken the end from the beginning and He is carrying out His purposes so that He can bring His Kingdom to earth in its pure form, just as Jesus told us. (See Daniel 2: 34-35 for the Stone Kingdom that will be set up in the earth in the Millennial Reign and will crush all kingdoms of the earth and rule over all.) Anything that is “new” and not moving with this purpose is not of God. It is the reason Jesus told His disciples to pray “Thy Kingdom come, Thy will be done, in earth as it is in heaven.” (Matthew 6: 10)
These outward appearances look righteous, due to a set of rules or practices of certain principals. But, these rules correct outward appearances, not necessarily change or transformation of our inward man through the leading and guiding of the Holy Spirit. This is to administer the Law without divine direction of the Holy Spirit. It is to bring death instead of life (2 Corinthians 3: 6). Holy Spirit will always bear witness to the Word of God and nothing else. This can be seen when a minister will speak and nothing of eternal value happens, for that which does not come from Holy Spirit cannot change a person.
Jesus told His disciples to beware of the leaven of the Pharisees (Matthew 16: 6). Leaven puffs up. Leaven is the very ingredient they were told to leave behind when the Israelites left Egypt. Too, leaven signifies worldliness, traditions of men, philosophies of men, rudiments of the world, or any particular teaching that is exalted above the simple Gospel of Christ crucified, dead, buried, and raised. A little error mixed with truth will make a religiosity to rise above the Gospel Truth. This includes the worshipping of man’s ways or even acts of service that men would perform- all of this is to elevate self above Christ.
Many have become so enamored with the blessings of God that they go after them, with greed and the desire for an abundance of possessions taking up their thoughts and actions more than God. A man’s life does not consist of the abundance of the things he possesses. A man’s life consists of his dying to self (Luke 12: 15; Galatians 2: 20). When we continuously hear of the Lord’s blessings and the desire for finances, there is at the least a lack of balance. Not that the Lord does not bless, but if that is the focus and that only, we can rest assured that the speaker is headed for trouble. There is a requirement of balance and moderation in all things (NT:4998, sophron (so'-frone); meaning “safe [sound] in mind, i.e. self-controlled [moderate as to opinion or passion]).
Dogs are pictured as those with impure minds (Matthew 7: 6). The Word of God washes our minds. These “dogs” are savage and snarling haters of truth and righteousness. Dogs (those with impure minds) do not and will not practice or walk out their faith through the leading and guiding of the Holy Spirit who leads us into all truth and understanding and ultimately toward holiness and our production of the fruit of the Spirit (Galatians 5:22-23).
Paul described these as “evil workers” that we are to beware of in Philippians 3:2. These are bad natured, having destructive attitudes, and producing no growth in the character of Christ. He also tells us to beware of “the concision” in the above mentioned verse. Concision means mutilation, which is a religious act found in several cults. To mutilate is to also depict the spiritual condition of a society and evidence of what the culture is cultivating.
These deceivers Paul and Peter are talking about will also try to “spoil you through philosophy” (Colossians 2:8). Any particular system of thought which inadvertently spoils the truth of the Gospel is depicted here. In this same verse Paul also says to beware those who would “spoil you with vain deceit,” which is teaching that is empty, devoid of truth, and mostly teachings about “self exaltation.” This is prominent today on television in the teachings of “improving self.” These same ones may spoil the unstable ones after the “tradition of men.” Traditions of men are those established customs that create a foundation of belief that alters Christ from being the Cornerstone and foundation on all we believe. Then too they may spoil others after the “rudiments of the world” which is a “first principle” which is then used as the origin or groundwork for a belief that is not truth.
Gain is not godliness. A preacher without a transformed life in Christ should be avoided. Those who would “sell” the Word of God are to be avoided. Without the clear truth, the unstable ones will be led astray, and if no remedy is applied, will be destroyed. While God intends for us to be financially well off (2 Corinthians 9: 6-10), this is not to be the continuous focus of any believer. To do so is to get the eyes on the blessing and not the Blessor.
Your servant in Christ,
Dr. Roger Price