Defense Against the Defiled
Notes
Transcript
Titus 1:10-16
False teachers
What do they teach?
Jewish myths
Writings of Jewish writers who devised fictional stories often based on Old Testament genealogies or religious speculation which were riddled with heresy and idolatry
Truth-denying human commands
They give instructions and commands that are not from God at all but merely their own creation
They are more concerned about what they thought to be right and true than what God had revealed to be right and true
They are teachers of their own ideas about God and man, and in these ideas, the truth is denied in unrighteousness
Demonic teachings
Forbidding of good things
1 Timothy 4:1-4- Now the Spirit expressly says that in later times some will depart from the faith by devoting themselves to deceitful spirits and teachings of demons, through the insincerity of liars whose consciences are seared, who forbid marriage and require abstinence from foods that God created to be received with thanksgiving by those who believe and know the truth. For everything created by God is good, and nothing is to be rejected if it is received with thanksgiving, for it is made holy by the word of God and prayer.
Commending evil things
Romans 1:32- Though they know God's righteous decree that those who practice such things deserve to die, they not only do them but give approval to those who practice them.
What type of people are they?
Insubordinate
They do not submit to the authority of Christ or of church leaders
If they would be submissive, then they would not be teaching false doctrine
Empty talkers and Deceivers
They use many words, but it is meaningless air
This is how false teachers often work
They say a lot of smart-sounding things to get people to buy what they are selling, but upon deeper inspection, it has no biblical merit or weight
They teach deceitful doctrine and lead people in the church astray
Isn’t this what we should expect?
Satan is the master deceiver, so it is fitting that those who teach demonic teachings are themselves deceivers through their teachings
Greedy for shameful gain
They do not care for the people of God
They simply care about power, respect, influence, and their own interests
Defiled, Detestable, and Disobedient
Both their minds and their consciences
The way that they think is wretched and impure
The way their consciences work is out of touch with godliness, but in tune with immorrality
Their ways and actions are repugnant to God
They are abominations in the sign of God
Proverbs 17:15- He who justifies the wicked and he who condemns the righteous are both alike an abomination to the Lord.
They rebel against the good law of God and create their own rules as cheap God substitutes
Unfit for any good work
They are always liars, evil beasts, and lazy gluttons
Paul is quoting a Cretan (Epimenides)
They are unable to do anything of genuine good in the sight of God
They are unbelieving
Hebrews 11:6- Without faith it is impossible to please God
Where do they come from?
Within the church
They are not usually outsiders or “those people over there”
They are usually among us
They look like sheep
They talk like sheep
They smell like sheep
They are not sheep, they are wolves
Matthew 7:15- Beware of false prophets, who come to you in sheep's clothing but inwardly are ravenous wolves.
2 Peter 2:1-3- But false prophets also arose among the people, just as there will be false teachers among you, who will secretly bring in destructive heresies, even denying the Master who bought them, bringing upon themselves swift destruction. And many will follow their sensuality, and because of them the way of truth will be blasphemed. And in their greed they will exploit you with false words. Their condemnation from long ago is not idle, and their destruction is not asleep.
The effects of their teaching
Destroying whole families
It is not certain what exactly they were saying to cause this
But it is possible that they were saying the same things as 1 Timothy 4
They perhaps were forbidding marriage and causing spouses to separate from each other
It is also likely that they were causing entire families to abandon the faith
Deceiving people in the church
Distorting truth
Through doctrinal imbalance
Through half-truths
Through cultural distortions
Through emotional and spiritual manipulation
Hijacking feelings and emotions as a vehicle for deception
Modern example:
“God just wants you to be happy”
Using guilt and discouragement as a manipulator
Modern example”
“If you have more faith and give more money, God will heal your wife of cancer and deliver your kids out of poverty”
Causing many to turn away from the truth
Some of these precious deceived sheep, in God’s gracious power and providence, are rescued from total departure from the faith
Many others, however, are led astray and make shipwreck of their faith by departing from central tenants of the Christian faith
For this, the wrath of God burns hot against false teachers
A Gospel reminder
God is perfect and righteous in every way
We are sinners and rebels against the Almighty God Glory
We are under His wrath, which we deserve because of our sin
He sent Jesus into the world to die for our sin
He was raised from the dead and has ascended into heaven and will reign forever as King of kings and Lord of lords
All who receive Him by faith in His finished and sufficient work on the cross will be saved
He is coming back to judge the world and establish a New Heavens and Earth where we will dwell with Him forever
The appropriate response
Leaders
Rebuke them sharply
Sharpness does not mean flagrant meanness
It is a pointed forcefulness that is filled with a hatred of false teaching and a love from Christ
Call them, not only to repent, but to turn to the truth
They must turn to Christ and believe
Pure doctrine
Pure conduct
Members
Keep eyes and ears wide open
In order to do this there must be a few things happening:
You must be growing in your knowledge of the Scripture
You must be committed to the local church
You must not be passive consumers, but active interactors
With the content of preaching and teaching
With one another
Guard yourselves
Keep a close watch over your own life and doctrine
Keep a close watch over what you read and listen to
Keep a close watch over your heart and its deceitful desires
Support your pastors when rebukes must be given
It can be much easier to brush things under the rug than to confront individuals in the church
Stand behind your leaders when they must have confrontation for the good and purity of the Church
Maintain vigilance
Vigilance in appointing only qualified leaders
Vigilance in learning the Truth of God’s Word
Vigilance in keeping watch