False teachings continue to erode the church and the called need to recognize them as such. And we are all called.

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But I will continue doing what I have always done. This will undercut those who are looking for an opportunity to boast that their work is just like ours. These people are false apostles. They are deceitful workers who disguise themselves as apostles of Christ. But I am not surprised! Even Satan disguises himself as an angel of light. So it is no wonder that his servants also disguise themselves as servants of righteousness. In the end they will get the punishment their wicked deeds deserve. -- 2Corinthians 11: 12-15 (NLT)

A Pastor in Sacramento California plans to hold his Easter service in a local mosque. Reverend Michael Moran of the Spiritual Life Center said when contacted about the controversy; "I know that I don't believe in the physical resurrection of Jesus but I do believe his spirit ascended and his teachings are very valid and transformative," With all due respect -- not transformative enough. But this is representative of the leaven infiltrating the church in these, the last days. I know this runs contrary to the "bless me" theology of the modern church but Jesus is coming back and we are in the end times He specifically warned us:

And many will turn away from me and betray and hate each other. And many false prophets will appear and will deceive many people. Sin will be rampant everywhere, and the love of many will grow cold. But the one who endures to the end will be saved. And the Good News about the Kingdom will be preached throughout the whole world, so that all nations will hear it; and then the end will come. -- Matthew 24: 10-14 (NLT)

But is the church ready today for the return of their Lord and Savior? Are we watching for His return? Or have we succumbed to the false teachers and prophets God has warned us about so many times? I am fearful for the latter because I see it all around me. A little leaven here, a little leaven there. A worldly excuse wrapped in a Godly answer. Just enough truth to confuse the masses into believing that what they are engaged in is the work of God when it is really just the folly of man. Too harsh you say?

"Not everyone who calls out to me, "Lord! Lord!' will enter the Kingdom of Heaven. Only those who actually do the will of my Father in heaven will enter. On judgment day many will say to me, "Lord! Lord! We prophesied in your name and cast out demons in your name and performed many miracles in your name.' But I will reply, "I never knew you. Get away from me, you who break God's laws.' -- Matthew 7: 21-23 (NLT)

These verses should give even the most seasoned Christian pause. Realize what Jesus is saying here. There will be people who will think they are serving God right up until the day He returns only to discover that God did not even know them. Reflect on that for a moment. Reflect on how terrible that day will be to discover that our service unto God will not be sufficient to replace our relationship with God. The Apostle Paul was also very cognizant of the dangers of false prophets and teachers. One such place he discusses it is when he gave his final address to the leaders of the Church at Ephesus:

"So guard yourselves and God's people. Feed and shepherd God's flock--his church, purchased with his own blood--over which the Holy Spirit has appointed you as elders. I know that false teachers, like vicious wolves, will come in among you after I leave, not sparing the flock. Even some men from your own group will rise up and distort the truth in order to draw a following. -- Acts 20: 28-30 (NLT)

Even some men from your own group! And what is their desire? To distort the truth in order to draw a following! Pastor Michael Moran is expecting over 1000 people to attend his Easter Service in the mosque in Sacramento. The problem however runs deeper than Mr. Moran. Apostasy is not always so obvious beloved. In fact it is usually more insidious. Integrity does not die overnight -- it is compromised to death. It dies one little piece at a time. It erodes. This doctrinal erosion continues in today's church, regardless of denomination. We have a habit of being too outwardly focused in the church but this threat is internal. Anyone can spot the heresy in the Michael Morans of the world but when it hits closer to home what do we say? Do we turn our eyes away from the small heresies and make the compromise that contributes to the erosion? Do we buy into the seeker-friendly lie that says the Gospel of Jesus Christ somehow needs help from man in this present culture? That we need to "reach people where they are at." That people need to be purpose driven instead of sin-forgiven. Hear me very clearly today -- the Gospel of Jesus Christ does not need to be marketed -- it needs to be preached!

The Gospel does not need any help. It does not need to be enhanced. It does not need a secular introduction to it. People do not need to be tricked into salvation. It is not up for debate; it is not amendable. Sacrificing doctrine for the sake of marketability is simply assuring that more people will be going to hell who think they are not. I know this is a difficult subject for many because it has become in vogue in these days to "church worship" more than "God-worship." People do not want to take a serious look at what they are being taught, how they are being taught, or how their church is living up to the standards Christ set for it. Read the first few chapters of Revelation and see the words of Christ Himself to seven of the churches that were established back then. Churches can go wrong just as easily as a person can in their walk. Is there a lot right in the church? Absolutely but that does not mean you turn a blind eye to all that is not right. There are souls at stake and eternities hanging in the balance. Looking at the key verses today we see two main points to discuss. Working backwards in the key verses we see the first point is that we have to understand the nature of this battle is not carnal -- it is spiritual!

But I am not surprised! Even Satan disguises himself as an angel of light. So it is no wonder that his servants also disguise themselves as servants of righteousness. In the end they will get the punishment their wicked deeds deserve. -- 2Corinthians 11: 14-15 (NLT)

Listen beloved. The devil is real. He is not some cartoon cut-out in a red suit with a pitchfork. He is not some cute animation sitting on your shoulder playfully trying to persuade you into doing bad things. The Bible tells us that he runs to and fro seeking whom he may devour. The Bible says that his entire mission for your life is to steal, kill and destroy you. The Bible says that his native language is lies -- it is all he knows how to speak. I know that the modern church shies away from talking about the enemy. I have even heard the absurd argument that speaking about him lends credibility or power somehow unto him. That is a lie from the pit of hell designed to get you to drop the shield of faith to your side while the enemy fires his fiery darts into your life. Period - end of story. Paul teaches us:

so that Satan will not outsmart us. For we are familiar with his evil schemes. -- 2Corinthians 2: 11 (NLT)

But as long as we are willfully ignorant of the schemes of the enemy, we will more easily fall prey to his tactics and he will outwit us. One such scheme is to poison the body from the inside out. To convince enough people to accept enough leaven that the true Gospel is no longer at the forefront of the church. That success is measured in terms of attendance numbers instead of lives changed and hearts regenerated. That victory is somehow found at the altar instead of at the cross. That the church and service unto it, supersedes Christ and our service unto God.

And note verse 14 -- not only has Satan disguised himself as an angel of light but his servants do as well. What greater angel of light do we have today other than preachers? I know this is difficult but remember what Paul warned the Ephesian elders about! False teachers like ravenous wolves will not spare the flock! And what is the rallying cry of the false teacher? Unity! We all must be unified. God hates spreading discord amongst the brethren! There are so many New Testament verses also dealing with the subject of how important it is to God that the body be unified. But unity for the sake of unity is insanity. The unifying principle must be nothing more or less than Jesus Christ and Him crucified:

When I came to you, brothers, I did not come with eloquence or superior wisdom as I proclaimed to you the testimony about God. For I resolved to know nothing while I was with you except Jesus Christ and him crucified. I came to you in weakness and fear, and with much trembling. My message and my preaching were not with wise and persuasive words, but with a demonstration of the Spirit's power, so that your faith might not rest on men's wisdom, but on God's power. -- 1Corinthians 2: 1-5 (NIV)

Unfortunately today we have far too much faith resting upon the wisdom of men and not God. We have fallen for the wise and persuasive words uttered with eloquence or what we perceive to be superior wisdom. We deify pastors while stripping the deity from Christ. These new age ideas, slick Jesus-marketing schemes, and the motivational-self-help would be modern saviors are nothing more than the false prophets and teachers Paul was warning us about. But when we look at the first half of these key verses, we find even more of the truth of God:

But I will continue doing what I have always done. This will undercut those who are looking for an opportunity to boast that their work is just like ours. These people are false apostles. They are deceitful workers who disguise themselves as apostles of Christ. . -- 2Corinthians 11: 12-13 (NLT)

We have been lulled into a trance in the modern church. We have been sold a bill of goods that looks like the genuine article, until you start pulling the layers back. Until you see the spirit at work is not the spirit of God. When we discover the experience we thought was spiritual was just emotionalism. Isn't it interesting that thousands of years ago, as the Apostle Paul was taking pen to paper to write 2Corinthians, he would write about deceitful workers who disguise themselves as apostles of Christ? What do we see today? Wolves disguising themselves as apostles or prophets. Everyone wants the titles without the sacrifices. I saw a sermon recently that correctly called the majority of these so called prophecies for what they truly are -- clairvoyance. You have to remember this beloved. There is the spirit of God but there are also other spirits and the Bible says that is who is at war with us! Are there people who can tell the future? Absolutely but remember the spirit aiding them is not of God and the devil is the father of lies.

I am sorry because I know that the fringe of Christianity is a huge draw in this country but I refuse to take off the belt of truth for anyone. There is no New Apostolic Reformation. Prophets do not tell the future like a fortune teller. They may speak of future events but was always in relation to bringing the people of God back into obedience. All of the Apostles except John died violent deaths as martyrs. The majority of the prophets were also killed because no one wants to hear the truth of where they are falling short with God. As it once was, so it still can be today.

And that brings me to the final truth from today's key verses. Those called must continue as we have always done. Speaking the truth in love and not compromising the Gospel of Jesus Christ. To fight against the erosion in the church. This will undercut those who continue to pretend that somehow we are on the same team. As they key verses say -- that their "work is just like mine." Unless it is absolutely uncompromising of the Gospel -- your work is not like mine at all. I have had many forms of attack made against me during this time I have spoken the truth through the words God gives me. Some have almost worked. Some have discouraged. But regardless, the Gospel must go forth. I am a far cry from a legalist. I just refuse to strain out a gnat while I swallow a camel.

Lastly, we must realize that we are all called to the ministry of sharing the unvarnished Gospel of Jesus Christ. He does not call the equipped -- He equips the called. He does not need ability more than He needs availability. The Great Commission is for all of us beloved. There is a heaven to gain and a hell to shun and we are living in the last days. The false teachers and prophets have already infiltrated the church and are leading many astray. The unity of the saints starts and ends with the Gospel not the church. 2Thessalonians teaches us that one of the aspects of God's will for us is that we "test everything." 1John teaches us that we must test every spirit. These are two areas we need to improve in desperately if we are to stop the small compromises which lead to the large scale erosion that is eating away at the Gospel of Jesus Christ.

Reverend Anthony Wade -- March 27, 2012

Authors Bio:
Credentialed Minister of the Gospel for the Assemblies of God. Owner and founder of 828 ministries. Vice President for Goodwill Industries. Always remember that in all things God works for the good of those who love Him and are called according to His purpose.