West Willow Community Church

A Portrait of False Teachers from Don Tines on Vimeo.

A Portrait of False Teachers

TEXT: II Peter 2:1-3

THESIS: Peter’s Portrait of False Teachers is as relevant today as it was 2000 years ago; a problem that continues to plague the church today.

INTRODUCTION: There is nothing more offensive to God than the distortion of His Word. To falsify the facts about who God is and what He said—even promoting Satan’s lies as if they were God’s truth—is the worse form of hypocrisy. With eternity at stake, it is hard to believe that anyone would intentionally deceive other people, teaching them something that is spiritually catastrophic. Yet, such appalling arrogance is exactly what characterizes the pseudo-ministries of false teachers.
As the father of lies, Satan is constantly using deception and false doctrine to attack the church—employing false teachers to infiltrate the flock of God. Claiming to teach truth, these vendors of demonic error disguise themselves as angels of light, attempting to creep into the fold unnoticed. As a result, throughout history God has repeatedly warned believers to be on the alert against such men (and women).
In light of this satanic threat, the New Testament writers emphasized the importance of being armed with the truth for the purpose of discernment. For them, doctrinal purity was a very high priority and a heartfelt concern. In fact, the apostles reserve their harshest criticism for those who distort the truth.
The verdict from both Old and New Testaments is unmistakable: God does not tolerate false prophets. Ironically, many in today’s church do exactly the opposite—tolerating any teacher who claims to be Christian, regardless of the content of his teaching. Such mindless acceptance, in the name of love and unity, has tragically produced a careless indifference to the truth. As a result, some Christians view biblical absolutes as an embarrassment, preferring to embrace false teachers despite the Bible’s clear protest.
To be sure, Satan’s attacks are often external, through the propagation of false religions and cults. But he also uses internal tactics, seeking to destroy God’s people from within. His servants, as wolves in sheep’s clothing, do their best to infect the flock with the doctrine of demons. Because their false teaching comes in subtle forms, the undiscerning are often deceived, being unable to distinguish the error from the truth.
Peter understood the danger that false doctrine posed for believers. In his first epistle, he warns us to be aware of the devil’s tactics. In this passage, he again addresses the strategies of the Evil One—exposing Satan’s servants for who they really are. In fact, he gives us a clear portrait of false teachers.

I. First Peter Speaks Of A False Teachers’ Sphere. Vs. 1a.
But false prophets also arose among the people, just as there will also be false teachers among you, Vs. 1a

A. God and Satan are at war with one another, both have prophets, priest and preachers.

1. Through genuine prophets, God has spoken the truth to His people, but, through false prophets, Satan attempts to obscure or contaminate God’s message.
2. As servants of the Deceiver, false prophets propagate lies and falsehood in their systematic attack on the truth.
3. Throughout history, these spiritual mercenaries have always plagued God’s flock.
4. In Old Testament times they arose among the people of Israel, spreading their deceptions and causing devastation.
5. Even during Jesus’ ministry, false prophets were still a serious problem for the Jewish people. For that matter, the entire religious establishment was corrupt, with the Pharisees providing the perfect example of false religion. Here is Christ’s indictment of those spiritual pretenders:

B. Satan’s strategy hasn’t changed: Just as false prophets had assaulted Israel, there will also be false teachers among the church.

1. Years before, Jesus had predicted that in the last days the church would have to endure a variety of false teachers: “See to it that no one misleads you. For many will come in My name, saying, ‘I am the Christ,’ and will mislead many” (Matt 24:4-5; cf. vv. 11,24).
2. In a similar vein, Paul warned Timothy:
Preach the word. . . . For the time will come when they will not endure sound doctrine; but wanting to have their ears tickled, they will accumulate for themselves teachers in accordance to their own desires, and will turn away their ears from the truth and will turn aside to myths.

3. False teachers arise when the church begins to embrace the worldly culture around it.
a. As a result, congregations no longer desire to “endure [hold to] sound [healthy] doctrine.”
b. God-centered worship and preaching is replaced by man-centered antics and entertainment.
c. A biblical emphasis on sin, repentance, and holiness is replaced by an emphasis on self-esteem and felt needs.
d. People look for teachers who proclaim only pleasant, positive ideas “in accordance to their own desires” because they want “to have their ears tickled.”
e. As a result, these popular teachers (whom “they will accumulate for themselves”) will “turn” the minds of the people from the truth, leaving them vulnerable to Satan’s deceptive influence.
4. The warning from Scripture is clear: false teachers will arise in the church.
a. The church is one of Satan’s primary spheres of operation.
b. For that reason, the true shepherd must continually be on guard—constantly studying, proclaiming, and defending the truth, “so that he will be able both to exhort in sound doctrine and to refute those who contradict” (Titus 1:9b).

II. Secondly Peter Speaks Of A False Teacher’s Secrecy Vs. 1b
who will secretly introduce destructive heresies, (2:1b)

A. False teachers are never honest and straightforward about their operations.

1. After all, the church would never embrace them if their schemes were unmasked. Instead, they secretly and deceptively enter the church, posing as pastors, teachers, and evangelists.
2. Jude describes them as “certain persons [who] have crept in unnoticed” (Jude 4).
a. The verb “to creep in” means to “slip in without being seen,” or “to sneak in under false pretenses.”
b. The term refers to a clever defendant attempting to fool a judge, or a criminal secretly returning to a place from which he was banished.

B. Posing as true shepherds, false teachers introduce destructive heresies (or literally, “heresies of destruction”).

1. Destructive means “utter ruin” and speaks of the final and eternal condemnation of the wicked.
2. In this context, the term indicates that the antics of these men have disastrous eternal consequences, both for them and their followers.
3. This Greek word has the sense of damnation and can be seen by several examples:
a. It is used to describe those who go through the wide gate in Matt 7:13,
b. Its use to describe the fate of Judas in John 17:12,
c. Its application to unbelievers’ doom in Rom 9:22,
d. Its use to describe the judgment of the man of sin in 2 Thess 2:3,
4. The term heresies means “an opinion, especially a self-willed opinion, which is substituted for submission to the power of truth, and leads to division and the formation of sects”

C. False teachers exchange the truth of God’s Word for their own self-styled opinions.

1. As a result, they distorted the truth to their own ends, convincing the gullible to believe their lies.
2. Their teaching, then, was nothing more than a religious counterfeit—a pseudo-Christian knockoff.
3. While ‎haireseis ‎can simply refer to a sect or division here it refers to the worst kind of deviation and deception—teaching that claims to be biblical but is actually the very opposite.

D. False teachers do not always openly oppose the gospel.

1. Some claim to believe it, to have the true interpretation of it; but in truth they misrepresent it, or offer a shallow, inadequate message that cannot save.
2. Because their teaching is as lethal as it is subtle, the self-styled opinions of false teachers can damn the souls of unsuspecting, professed believers.
3. Unless they repent, believe the truth, and turn to Christ, those who embrace these heretical doctrines will be eternally lost.

III. Thirdly Peter Speaks Of The False Teacher’s Sacrilege Vs. 1c
even denying the Master who bought them, bringing swift destruction upon themselves. (2:1c)

A. One Sure Characteristic of a False Teacher Is Arrogance—a pride that is evidenced by denying the Master.

1. Denying is a strong term meaning “to refuse,” “to be unwilling,” or “to firmly say no.”
a. The same verb appears in Heb 11:24 to describe Moses’ refusal to be called the son of Pharaoh’s daughter.
b. Peter used the present tense participle to denote a habitual pattern of refusal, indicating that false teachers characteristically reject divine authority.
2. Master means “sovereign,” “ruler,” or “lord.”
a. The word appears ten times in the New Testament and always refers to one who has supreme authority.
b. In four occurrences it refers to the master of a household or estate, who has full authority over all the servants.
c. Here and in the other five occurrences it directly refers to Christ or God.
3. For Peter the supreme sacrilege of false teachers is that they deny the sovereign lordship of Jesus Christ.
a. They may not outwardly deny Christ’s deity, atonement, resurrection, or second coming. But internally, they adamantly refuse to submit their lives to His sovereign rule.
b. As a result, their immoral and rebellious lifestyles will inevitably give them away.

B. A False Teacher’s Pride Refuses To Allow Them To Acknowledge That Their Master “bought them”.

1. He is alluding to the master of a house who would purchase slaves and put them in charge of various household tasks.
a. Because they were now regarded as the master’s personal property, they owed their complete allegiance to him.
b. While false teachers maintain that they are part of Christ’s household, they deny such professions through their actions—refusing to become servants under His authority.
2. Bought means “to purchase,” or “to redeem out of the marketplace”.
3. The false teachers of Peter’s day claimed Christ as their Redeemer, yet they refused to accept His sovereign lordship, thus revealing their true character as unregenerate enemies of biblical truth.

C. An Example of a “false doctrine” is seen in the way some people take Peter’s statement “the Master who bought them”

1. Some would say that this means that Christ has purchased redemption in full for all people, even for deny his purchase.
a. This position states that Christ died to pay in full the penalty for everyone’s sins, whether they ever believe or not.
b. Since God loves everyone, wants everyone saved, so Christ died for everyone.
c. This means His death was a potential sacrifice or atonement that becomes an actual atonement when a sinner repents and believes the gospel.
d. Evangelism, according to this view, is convincing sinners to receive what has already been done for them.
e. All can believe and be saved if they will, since no one is excluded in the atonement.
2. This viewpoint, if taken to its logical conclusion, has hell full of people whose salvation was purchased by Christ on the cross.
3. Therefore the lake of fire is filled with those damned people whose sin Christ fully atoned for by bearing their punishment under God’s wrath.

IV. Fourthly Peter Speaks Of The False Prophet’s Success. Vs. 2a
Many will follow vs. 2a

A. The Bible is clear that many more people follow the broad way that leads to destruction than adhere to the narrow way that leads to life.

1. Credit is due to false teachers for the popularity of the “wide road,” as they usher people onto the broad way and encourage them not to look back.
2. Their message of independence, personal freedom, and self-exaltation is inherently appealing to fallen human hearts, who would rather serve themselves than submit to Christ.

B. In His Sermon on the Mount, Jesus declared, “Not everyone who says to Me, ‘Lord, Lord,’ will enter the kingdom of heaven, but he who does the will of My Father who is in heaven will enter” (Matt 7:21).

1. Superficial, insincere claims to be followers of Christ are meaningless; only those who fully submit to His lordship and obey His will demonstrate that they truly belong to Him.
2. There’s more to salvation than just raising your hand, walking an Isle, and repeating some words after a preacher.

V. Fifthly, Peter Speaks Of The False Prophet’s Sensuality. Vs. 2b
their sensuality Vs. 2b

A. Sensuality is a strong word referring to habitual sexual immorality and unrestrained, debauched conduct.

1. By using the plural Peter emphasizes that the false teachers’ sexual lewdness comes in many forms and extremes.
2. Because they had rejected the lordship of Christ, their lives were characterized by unrestrained indulgence and lawlessness.
3. They intentionally refused to place any restraints on their fleshly desires or their sexual escapades. Their decadent behavior caused Jude to compare their sins with those of Sodom and Gomorrah:
4. Jude 4 & 7 says: For certain persons have crept in unnoticed, those who were long beforehand marked out for this condemnation, ungodly persons who turn the grace of our God into licentiousness and deny our only Master and Lord, Jesus Christ . . . just as Sodom and Gomorrah and the cities around them, since they in the same way as these indulged in gross immorality and went after strange flesh, are exhibited as an example in undergoing the punishment of eternal fire.

B. When Speaking of False Teachers Peter agreed with Jude’s assessment.
Jude 4: For certain men whose condemnation was written aboutb long ago have secretly slipped in among you. They are godless men, who change the grace of our God into a license for immorality and deny Jesus Christ our only Sovereign and Lord.

1. As he repeatedly addressed their sinful behavior, Peter made it clear that unmitigated sensuality is a distinguishing mark of these spiritual counterfeits.
2. A teacher may claim to be God’s spokesman, but if his life is characterized by corruption, lust, and immorality, it proves that he is actually a fraud.

VI. Sixth, Peter States That False Teachers Have a Stigma Attached To Them. Vs. 2c
and because of them the way of the truth will be maligned; Vs. 2c

A. “The way of the truth” refers to right doctrine and the accurate proclamation of the gospel.

1. But because of false teachers, and the spiritual wreckage they leave behind, the biblical message has often been reproached in the eyes of the world.
2. True Christianity is blasphemed, reviled, cursed, condemned by outsiders who see professed Christians running to all manner of excesses.
a. “If that is Christianity,” they will say, “curse it!”
b. When many follow such excesses, outsiders are unable to distinguish and so blaspheme the whole “way.”
c. These false exponents seem true products of the way to them.

B. By their deceptive teaching and immoral behavior, false teachers have maligned (literally “blasphemed,” “slandered,” or “defamed”) the gospel.

1. Of course, their mode of operation is consistent with Satan’s mission.
a. On the one hand, he seeks to undermine the church from the inside, by introducing deceptive heresies and false doctrines.
b. On the other hand, he seeks to tarnish the church’s reputation from the outside, by periodically unmasking false teachers before a watching world. When unbelievers associate the conduct of false teachers with the practice of the true church, the name of Christ is inevitably defamed.
2. To counter these relentless, satanic efforts, the church must be doctrinally pure, and Christians must live the kind of righteous lives that make the transforming power of Christ believable.
3. With this in mind, the apostle Paul exhorted the Philippians, “Prove yourselves to be blameless and innocent, children of God above reproach in the midst of a crooked and perverse generation, among whom you appear as lights in the world”.
VII. Lastly, Peter States Their Sustaining Motive Vs. 3a
and in their greed they will exploit you with false words; Vs. 3a
A. False teachers primary motivation is their love for money.

1. They are not ultimately motivated by a fascination with false doctrine, rebelliousness, or even sexual immorality. To be sure, they actively participate in each of those activities.
2. But people can do all such sins without being teachers.
3. The term for greed means an uncontrolled, covetous desire for money and wealth.
a. Later in this chapter Peter describes false teachers as “having a heart trained in greed” (v. 14).
b. They crave as much money as possible (cf. 1 Tim 6:3-5,10) and are experts at bilking people in the church out of their wealth.
c. This is a standard biblical indictment and characterization of religious charlatans.

B. To accomplish their materialistic goals, false teachers will exploit people with false words.

1. “Exploit” means “to traffic in,” or “to realize gain from.”
a. Such men want to get rich from the people to whom they “minister.”
b. Although they claim to serve others, they are only interested in serving themselves, using false words to enrich their own pockets.
2. Interestingly, the English word plastic is derived from the term false.
a. False teachers deal in phony doctrine.
b. Their theology is not really based on biblical truth, but only molded by false reasoning to appear genuine.
Conclusion: Satan’s goal is to deceive as many people as possible, both inside and outside the church, by means of false teachers. In contrast, God’s goal is to identify and expose such hypocrites. Through Peter’s warning, the Holy Spirit makes it clear that false teachers are everywhere and have been since the dawn of redemptive history. In response, believers need to be vigilant and discerning, taking to heart the apostolic admonition of Paul to the Ephesian elders:
Be on guard for yourselves and for all the flock, among which the Holy Spirit has made you overseers. I know that after my departure savage wolves will come in among you, not sparing the flock; and from among your own selves men will arise, speaking perverse things, to draw away the disciples after them. (Acts 20:28-29)