Month: January 2024

“Judge not according to the appearance, but judge righteous judgment.” – John 7:24

Our bid to stay clear of heresy in these Last Days puts us in a rather peculiar position: what do we define as heresy and who can we legitimately call a heretic? The answer to this question can be somewhat problematic as there are various shades and hues of doctrinal falsehood. Nevertheless, while pondering on that point it would be helpful to note that a heretic is not a pastor whose preaching methods we don’t subscribe to, or who flies a private jet. Neither is it a preacher that doesn’t emphasise every Sunday what we emphasise.

Similarly, that some Christians do not attend your denomination/church does not make them sinners, neither does the fact that their Sunday services last 10-hours each make them “spiritually blind”.

Some people today – especially those who claim they have received a direct warning in visions from Jesus to the church – label churches as “satanic” if they’re not preaching what they call “the true gospel of our Lord Jesus Christ”. Upon analysis, however, what they term “satanic” turns out to be any church that worships differently from them. Worse still, what they hold as the “true” gospel, tend not to even be the gospel at all.

The church is like a family – a really big family complete with its quirks and eccentricities. Family members do not always see eye to eye on everything, but that does not stop them from being kin. What then defines our spiritual family? It’s simply any organisation or person that scales through our 3 acid tests. A Christian is one who believes in the incarnation of God in the person of Jesus Christ, who accepts the atoning work of said Christ on the Cross as the only way to be saved, and who views the Bible as the inspired word of God and final authority on all matters eternal and temporal.

Fanciful as that definition sounds, it (sadly?) accommodates quite a few persons and groups that we may not quite agree with in terms of doctrine and practice. Yet this definition is necessary in order for us to streamline our judgments and also to appreciate the latitude of expressions that exist in this family of ours that is the Body of Christ.

AMEN.

More Blessings await you today; you’ll not miss them in Jesus’ Name.

GREG ELKAN

Test all things; hold fast that which is good. – 1Th 5:21

The most important doctrine of the Bible is not about God (theology), Jesus (Christology), the Holy Spirit (pneumatology) or even salvation (soteriology). As important as these are, they’re not as fundamental as BIBLIOLOGY – the doctrine of the Bible itself.

This is because the only way we can know God is through Christ, and the only way we can know Christ is through the Bible. God, in His divine and regal prerogative, has designed it that way. That’s why the most important thing you need to check in any church, organisation or preacher is their bibliology; in other words, “what is their opinion of the Bible”?

Every so-called “Christian” preacher will quote from the Bible and every so-called “Christian” group will say they believe in the inspiration of the scriptures. But just like with “soteriology”, deviant teachers or will rely on additional SOURCES as authorities they quote from.

In these days of deception and error, the scriptures serve as our canon – our rule or yardstick – with which we can discern truth from error. Any preacher or organisation that takes away this rule in the name of “Church tradition”, “church founder”, “divine revelation”, “lost books of the Bible”, “hidden or secret books”, “personal revelation”, etc. is patently heretical.

This is particularly important in these modern times of ours where just about everybody is claiming to have received a “revelation” from God. Suddenly, Jesus has gotten loquacious. He appears to them when they were sleeping, when they were praying, when they were minding their own business, when they died and went to Hell/Heaven… etc. in every example, “Jesus” gave them a “personal and very important message to the body of Christ”.

One thing they all have in common is that they place their revelations on the same level with the word of God. Some even accuse you of unbelief if you question them. A lady once made waves when she claimed she went to Hell and was given a very important message for all men of God in Nigeria. When a well-known General Superintendent (whom she endorsed) distanced himself from her revelations, guess what? Her “Jesus” appeared again to tell her that the GS was envious! Indeed, “by their fruits you shall know them” (Mt 7:20).

Beloved, it’s not enough for someone to quote token verses in their sermons or books; we must determine what they consider as final authority. Is it only the written Word or is there another source? Taking them through the bibliology test will save us from a whole lot of heresy and deception.

AMEN.

GREG ELKAN

Test all things; hold fast that which is good. – 1Th 5:21

Beyond checking for the Christology (opinion of Christ) of any doctrine or teaching, we need to also check for a most important aspect of their belief system: their “soteriology”, i.e. their doctrine of salvation, (gotten from “soteria”, the Greek word for salvation).

Soteriology is a doctrine/preacher’s answer to the Philippian jailer’s question, “WHAT MUST I DO TO BE SAVED?” (Act 16:30). The biblical answer was what Paul gave in that passage, “Believe on the Lord Jesus Christ, and you shall be saved.” We are saved by grace, through faith in the atoning death of Christ on the Cross alone (Eph 2:8).

The key word there is “alone”. Deviant Christian doctrines, while affirming the work of the Cross, will typically place additional “requirements” on it. These may come in the form of membership to a specific church or organisation, performing a church rite/practice, tithe payment, etc. Whenever a church, organisation or preacher says that you aren’t yet saved (or “fully saved”) even after you’ve believed on the Lord Jesus, you’re dealing with heresy.

In these last days of dangerous deception, it is easy to find organisations or preachers that say they believe in Christ (right Christology); they may even also affirm they believe in the atoning work of Christ, but as our Lord says in Mat 7:20, by their fruits (there teachings, doctrines, scriptural emendations, obligatory rites, etc.) “you shall know them.”

AMEN.

More Blessings await you today; you’ll not miss them in Jesus’ Name.

GREG ELKAN

Test all things; hold fast that which is good. – 1Th 5:21

As every science student learns quickly in chemistry, gold – pure gold – is a very boring element. In fact, it is one of the least reactive elements in the periodic table. It doesn’t combust spontaneously, doesn’t corrode when exposed to air, doesn’t fizzle when dropped into water, it doesn’t even react with nitric acid; it just sits there with its dull, shiny self; (talk about an oxymoron).

This non-reactive character of gold is what gives rise to the phrase, “Acid Test”; to test a piece of jewellery, simply dip it in nitric acid. Gold-looking fake alloys will quickly dissolve in it. Real gold, however, will come out unscathed!

In Christianity, there’re three concepts that serve as effective “acid tests” in spotting false doctrine: “Christology”, “Soteriology” and “Bibliology”. It’s virtually impossible for a false doctrine/preacher to go through these 3 tests unscathed. In these last days of ours with new doctrines and “revelations” popping up every day, we need to be familiar with the tests so you can “both save yourself and those that hear you,” (1Ti 4:16).

“Christology” is the branch of theology concerned with the study of the nature, character, and actions of Jesus Christ. In other words, you need to know what a doctrine or speaker’s opinion of who Jesus Christ is! The Bible states that Jesus is both fully God and fully man (Jn 1:1-3,14;Phil 2:5-11; Col 2:9; 1 Tim 3:16; Heb 1:5-13). He’s not so much of God that He’s not man and He’s not so much of Man that He’s not God. Deviant doctrines typically emphasise one at the expense of the other, or deny both altogether.

When Christ is not the centre of any teaching or doctrine, you already know its satanic source. Muslims, for example, may tell you that Jesus is a well-respected prophet in Islam; but you won’t see Jesus anywhere in the “5 Pillars”. Similarly, Jehovah’s Witnesses’ signature book “The Greatest MAN Who Ever Lived” unwittingly gives away their errant Christology. Other examples are Gnosticism, Mormonism, Christian Science, even Liberal/Secular Scholarship.

Christology is usually the easiest test for heresy. But considering that the shrewdness of many “Christian” heresy, the two other tests will be necessary to make sure we’re on solid footing.

GREG ELKAN