sgys banner books

Loving the Light and Exposing the Darkness


Any man not guarding, not protecting Christ’s flock, by warning of false teachers and false doctrine, is himself a wolf!

Jesus and His holy apostles often rebuked and exposed false leaders and false doctrine (Matthew 23; Acts 13:10; 20:29-31; Galatians 5:11-12; 2 Timothy 4:2-4; 2 Peter 2; 2 John 7-11; Revelation 2:6, 15, etc.). Therefore we know that part of following Jesus includes doing the same. In fact, the body of Christ is mandated to do just that (Romans 16:17-18; Philippians 1:17; Jude 3-4).

“Now I beseech you, brethren, mark them (scope out and label) which cause divisions and offences contrary to the doctrine which ye have learned; and avoid them. 18 For they that are such serve not our Lord Jesus Christ, but their own belly; and by good words and fair speeches deceive the hearts of the simple.” Romans 16:17-18 

Simply put, it doesn’t matter what you think: The LORD has commanded that Satan’s ministers, his human emissaries, be exposed. Time to shut up and obey! (2 Corinthians 11:12-15)

“Beloved, when I gave all diligence to write unto you of the common salvation, it was needful for me to write unto you, and exhort you that ye should earnestly contend for the faith which was once delivered unto the saints.  4For there are certain men crept in unawares, who were before of old ordained to this condemnation, ungodly men, turning the grace of our God into lasciviousness, and denying the only Lord God, and our Lord Jesus Christ.” Jude 3-4

In Jude 4 the Bible forewarned us that deceivers would creep in “unawares” which means undetected. In Matthew 13 Jesus says not to try to remove the tares from among the wheat but rather the angels will do that later. While we are not to try to remove them, in Romans 16:17-18 we are commanded to “mark (name) them” and to “avoid them.” Some mistakenly think those obeying God by scoping out and marking false teachers are doing something that conflicts with Matthew 13:25-30 where Jesus says not to try to separate the tares (false) from the wheat (true).  Not so.

Deceivers are a reality and they are here to stay, until our LORD returns. So, for now, they must be scoped, discerned, and marked or labeled so others can beware and “avoid them.” (Romans 16:17-18) The word “safety” appears 19 in God’s Word. – “safety is of the LORD.” (Proverbs 21:31)

To “mark them” (Romans 16:17) means to “to scope out; to take aim at, consider, watch.” The Greek word used here for “mark” is skopeo.

When we understand that the LORD says He is “the Great Shepherd of the sheep” who bled to purchase unto Himself a people, it should not be difficult to understand the reason and purpose for marking those who prey upon and seek to mislead His beloved sheep (Psalms 23; John 10:1-16; Hebrews 13:20; 1 Peter 5:1-6, etc.).

In Romans 16:17-18 believers are here mandated to wisely scope out closely, observe and scrutinize all teachings and spiritual leaders under the lamp of God’s holy Word. We are to closely discern between true and false doctrines and leaders and sound the alarm on that which is found to be inconsistent with holy Writ. This is to be done especially when dealing with foundational, essential truths (which are a salvation issue).

While reading the interaction below, please remember that we are to first and foremost honor, fear, and obey the LORD our Maker and Redeemer and if that means offending mere men by doing so, sobeit (Exodus 20:3; Ecclesiastes 12:13; Luke 12:4-5). Some among us seem to be more concerned about the person/personality being exposed than Jesus Christ and the many that wolf may be devouring with his false teaching (Proverbs 29:25; Matthew 7:15). That is perverted love and idolatry and no idolater shall enter the eternal kingdom of God (Revelation 21:8). Who do we truly honor and love supremely? The LORD says He is Jealous and that His name is Jealous. Jesus will reject anyone who dares to attempt to share their deepest heart affections with any other – “He that is not with me IS against me” says the Son of God (Matthew 12:30) Any question? “For thou shalt worship no other god: for the LORD, whose name is Jealous, is a jealous God.” (Exodus 34:14)

Message Received:

How can you interpret the verses about judging in Corinthians (valid) with James 4:11-12 and Romans 14. And also 2 Timothy 2:14?

What´s the difference in that “judging”?

The problem is… maybe… condemning other Christians due to our interpretation in some little things (maybe we could be wrong too, we are not the apostles who received 100% truth) and posting against each other in a public forum or here in fb. I always think that it could also be very dangerous to non-Christians reading and thinking: “Look those Christians fighting each other, I don´t want to be one of them.” It could be a stumblingblock to them. But it could also be positive to edify other people… So?

Yet, I am reminded of 1 Corinthians 5.12-13 where Paul saying that it isn’t my responsibility to judge outsiders, but it certainly is your responsibility to judge those inside the church who are sinning. “God will judge those on the outside”; but as the Scriptures say, “You must remove the evil person from among you.”

It´s crystal clear about false doctrines against the word of God. But sometimes many christians don´t see clearly the difference in some interpretations (example: calvinism – arminianism), pre-trib or post-trib. So a fight begins and the two parts believe the other is an heretic, posting Scriptures against Scriptures.

Response:

God is very severe toward those who mislead His people. Remember Jesus said “But whoso shall offend one of these little ones which believe in me, it were better for him that a millstone were hanged about his neck, and that he were drowned in the depth of the sea. 7Woe unto the world because of offences! for it must needs be that offences come; but woe to that man by whom the offence cometh! … Take heed that ye despise not one of these little ones; for I say unto you, That in heaven their angels do always behold the face of my Father which is in heaven.” Matthew 18:6-7, 10

Read Deuteronomy 13. False teachers/false prophets/wolves are to be openly marked and to be shown no mercy. Why? – Because they are leading others astray and causing their eternal damnation. God wants to have mercy on the victims and potential, future victims of wolves so He instructs us to “mark them.” (Romans 16:17-18) Some people are twisted in their thinking, so much so that they want to protect, defend, and help the wolf to keep devouring sheep and they call that love. Absurd!

There is correct and incorrect judgment. We draw this conclusion based on the full-counsel of God’s Word. There are volumes of verses to be considered and factored in. Jesus says “Judge not lest ye be judged” (Matt. 7:1-2) and then He says “Judge righteous judgment.” (John 7:24) Paul says “For what have I to do to judge them also that are WITHOUT (the lost)? do not ye judge them that are WITHIN (professing believers and Christian leaders)?” (1 Cor. 5:12) We are to discern and judge things rightly, according to the Word and the Holy Spirit. We are told to “believe NOT every spirit, but try (test) the spirits whether they are of God: because many false prophets are gone out into the world.” (1 John 4:1) We are also told to “To speak evil of no man” (Titus 3:2) and also to “mark them which cause divisions and offences contrary to the doctrine which ye have learned; and avoid them.” (Rom. 16:17-18) All rebuke and expose’ must be done strictly according to God’s Word. Deuteronomy 13 teaches us to not spare when dealing with false leaders. The very sheep of Christ’s pasture are at stake. He is “the Great Shepherd of the sheep” having given His life to purchase “the precious fruit of the earth” which is His people (Heb. 13:20; James 7:7-9). Pray for His understanding brother.

As for exposing false leaders who are misleading many publicly …. Paul rebuked Peter publicly for misleading God’s people (Gal. 2:11-14). Perhaps the unsaved will respect the policing of a people, the body of Christ, more than just allowing obvious false prophets to go unchecked which is largely what is happening. How many lost people have you heard mock Christianity due to greedy, money-mongering wolves like Kenneth Copeland, Creflo Dollar, Joel Osteen, Robert Tilton, etc.? I have heard it a thousand times at least. So, how can these lost people respect Christendom/Christians who do not openly expose such wolves? We become the stumblingblock when we refuse to deal with these wolves.

Yet, biblically speaking, the lost are not God’s first priority. No. His precious body is His very highest priority as far as men go. Read Galatians 6:10 and John 17:9. – “I pray for them (the sheep of His pasture): I pray not for the world (the lost), but for them which thou hast given me; for they are thine.”

Then, Jesus does say that we are to “love one another” which is speaking of His true body and not false prophets among us. This commandment to love one another which appears 12 times in the New Testament, does not include wolves among us which are so often spoken about and we are so repeatedly warn to beware of. They are not of God and therefore not of us.

Brother, you are asking some important questions brother. I have asked them also and am learning precept upon precept, line upon line …. “For precept must be upon precept, precept upon precept; line upon line, line upon line; here a little, and there a little.” (Isaiah 28:10) We all have these same questions and are learning God’s answers one at a time.

Deuteronomy 13 is also a strong passage we must acknowledge where the LORD says to not spare in stoning and ridding yourselves of false prophets. A people who do not police themselves will soon cease to be a people. Meditate upon this. Think about the God-ordained civil system which includes police to punish evildoers, right? (Rom. 13) Would you respect this country, even as a citizen, if we didn’t punish evil doers? No. You see how the lost are being turned away from the LORD due to the lack of expose’ and policing of those in leadership? It’s a fiasco of wolves at this point as the Word foretold in many places, including Amos 8:11 and 2 Timothy 3:13.

I agree that pre and post tribulation view are nothing to argue about. Yet, calvinism is the very lie of the ages, it comes from satan in the garden when he caused man to fall. This system of theology, known as calvinism, emobodies more than any other, this lie of lasciviousness that led to the fall of mankind and the curse of sin (Gen. 2:17; 3:4). We are explicitedly warned of calvinists who would turn the grace of God into a license for sin and we specifically told to earnestly contend against this evil leaven (Jude 3-4).

All of this comes more and more into focus (Prov. 4:18) as we continue daily in God’s Word. Then, as we begin looking at what most leaders are teaching, we see that they are not teaching the original Gospel and on this basis alone, they are utterly false.

Support | STORE | Podcasts | Spiritual WarfareOn the Truth Can Make us FreeNeither Give Place to the DevilResist the Devil and He will Flee from You Be Ready in the Morning [podcast]Fresh Start with God | Making Peace with God | 100’s of Christ-Centered, Scripture-Rich Podcasts | Rooted and Grounded in Christ 

Join Us

We saved a place for you to receive our weekly newsletter.

Please wait...

Thank you for signing up!

Click to comment

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *


The reCAPTCHA verification period has expired. Please reload the page.

Abiding

The Death before the Death [podcast]


Gethsemane Preceded Calvary

“And he was withdrawn from them about a stone’s cast, and kneeled down, and prayed, 42  Saying, Father, if thou be willing, remove this cup from me: nevertheless not my will, but thine, be done. 43  And there appeared an angel unto him from heaven, strengthening him. 44  And being in an agony he prayed more earnestly: and his sweat was as it were great drops of blood falling down to the ground.” Luke 22:42-44

“He must increase, but I must decrease.” John 3:30

“Always bearing about in the body the dying of the Lord Jesus, that the life also of Jesus might be made manifest in our body. 11  For we which live are alway delivered unto death for Jesus’ sake, that the life also of Jesus might be made manifest in our mortal flesh. 12  So then death worketh in us, but life in you.” 2 Corinthians 4:10-12

“And he said to them all, If any man will come after me, let him deny himself, and take up his cross daily, and follow me. 24  For whosoever will save his life shall lose it: but whosoever will lose his life for my sake, the same shall save it. 25  For what is a man advantaged, if he gain the whole world, and lose himself, or be cast away?” Luke 9:23-25

Shall We Freshly Declare the Cross to be Front and Center in our Personal Lives?

“I am crucified with Christ: nevertheless I live; yet not I, but Christ liveth in me: and the life which I now live in the flesh I live by the faith of the Son of God, who loved me, and gave himself for me.” Galatians 2:20 

Support | STORE | Podcasts | Jail/Prison MinistryMexico Mission here | All Ministry Updates | Prayer | Manhood | The Conquering Cross of Christ [podcast]The Cross VictorySin – Man’s Core Problem

Join Us

We saved a place for you to receive our weekly newsletter.

Please wait...

Thank you for signing up!

Continue Reading

Abiding

“Rend Your Heart, and Not Your Garments” [podcast]


Who Does God Look to? Who Does God Dwell in?

Beware of any man pretending to represent Christ who isn’t praying and preaching for you to be possessed by a humble and contrite heart.

“Blessed are the poor in spirit: for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.” Matthew 5:3

“‘Blessed are the poor in spirit: for theirs is the kingdom of heaven’ (Matthew 5:3). A low condition.  ‘Blessed are they that mourn: for they shall be comforted’ (Matthew 5:4). To mourn over our sin and our utter wickedness before a holy and righteous God. Those are the ones who will receive the comfort and ‘joy in the Holy Ghost’ (Romans 14:17).” Karen Cochran

Abandoning Our Own Sin, Our Own Way, for God and His Better Way!

To “rend your heart” is a biblical phrase meaning to tear open your heart in radical sincerity, true humility, and genuine repentance.

The phrase comes from Joel 2:13 in the Bible: “Rend your heart and not your garments and return to the Lord your God.”

One source notes the following:

“Context and Deeper Meaning:

  • Cultural Background: In ancient times, the Jewish people would tear (rend) their clothes as a public, highly visible display of grief or repentance.
  • The Spiritual Message: God is warning that outward rituals (like ripping clothing) are meaningless if the heart remains unchanged. Rending your heart implies breaking through your pride, letting go of excuses, and being completely vulnerable and authentic before God.
  • The Reward: The verse goes on to say that God is “gracious and compassionate, slow to anger and abounding in love.” Tearing open your heart allows you to experience His forgiveness and restore your relationship with Him.”

To see an example of rending one’s physical garment in representation of rending their heart, see Acts 14:11-18.

Where is the LORD Looking?

“But the Lord said unto Samuel, Look not on his countenance, or on the height of his stature; because I have refused him: for the Lord seeth not as man seeth; for man looketh on the outward appearance, but the Lord looketh on the heart.” 1 Samuel 16:7

Therefore also now, saith the Lord, turn ye even to me with all your heart, and with fasting, and with weeping, and with mourning: 13 and rend your heart, and not your garments, and turn unto the Lord your God: for he is gracious and merciful, slow to anger, and of great kindness, and repenteth him of the evil. 14Who knoweth if he will return and repent, and leave a blessing behind him; even a meat offering and a drink offering unto the Lord your God” Joel 2:12-14

“What a gracious invitation is contained in these words. How tenderly the Lord reasons with his people. And what an encouraging assurance it folds up with. Reader! do not fail to observe that this call of the Lord, the accompanying grace to incline the heart to the observance of it is implied. It is most blessed ever to remember that when the Lord thus comes forth in his endearing invitations, he is secretly inclining the heart to accept them. Grace must first enter the heart, or there will be no inclination to obey.” Robert Hawker

“Jeremiah’s message was never meant to leave the heart in despair. Every warning from God carried an invitation to return. The Lord does not expose empty religion to shame His people, but to heal them. Repentance is not the loss of hope, it is the beginning of hope. Christ still receives every soul that comes with humility, and He gives living faith where there was only habit, peace where there was only fear, and joy where there was only emptiness. The call remains the same today, to draw near to Him with a sincere heart, trusting that His mercy is always greater than our weakness.” Dan Blincoe

A Fresh Start with God Always Begins with Humility and True Repentance

“Repent ye therefore, and be converted, that your sins may be blotted out, when the times of refreshing shall come from the presence of the Lord.” Acts 3:19

Therefore also now, saith the Lord, turn ye even to me with all your heart, and with fasting, and with weeping, and with mourning: 13 and rend your heart, and not your garments, and turn unto the Lord your God: for he is gracious and merciful, slow to anger, and of great kindness, and repenteth him of the evil. 14Who knoweth if he will return and repent, and leave a blessing behind him; even a meat offering and a drink offering unto the Lord your God?” Joel 2:12-14

Concerning rending our hearts before the LORD, one source notes:

The classic Bible passage on this concept is Joel 2:13, where God commands: “Rend your heart and not your garments”.  In ancient biblical culture, tearing (or “rending”) one’s physical clothing was a customary, visible display of extreme grief, despair, or repentance. Through the prophet Joel, God is essentially telling His people: Stop doing the empty, outward religious ritual of tearing your clothes to show everyone how sorry you are. Instead, let me see true, inward brokenness over your sins.

Examples of Rending Physical Garments

In the Bible, the physical act of tearing clothes was used as a dramatic expression of deep emotion in several well-known narratives:

  • Joseph’s Brothers (Genesis 37:29, 34): When Reuben realized Joseph was not in the pit, and later when the brothers brought Joseph’s blood-stained coat to Jacob, they tore their clothes in grief and despair. 
  • Job (Job 1:20): After hearing that he had lost all his wealth and his children, Job stood up and tore his robe as an outward sign of his overwhelming sorrow.
  • King David (2 Samuel 1:11-12): When David received news of the deaths of King Saul and Jonathan, he and his men tore their clothes to mourn.
  • The High Priest (Matthew 26:65): In a dramatic display of hypocritical outrage, the high priest tore his own garments when Jesus declared He was the Son of God, falsely accusing Him of blasphemy.

The Spiritual Meaning of “Rending the Heart”

The concept of “rending the heart” contrasts an outward show with inward reality.

  • Genuine Repentance: Tearing your heart means being vulnerable, acknowledging your brokenness, and deeply repenting of sin before God. 
  • Prioritizing Relationships over Rituals: God desires a sincere heart—true sorrow and a desire to change—more than he desires traditional religious pageantry or dramatic, public displays of grief.
  • The Promise of Forgiveness: In Joel 2:13, the command to rend the heart is immediately followed by the promise of grace: “Return to the LORD your God, for he is gracious and compassionate, slow to anger and abounding in love”.  

God sees beyond our external habits and religious actions, requiring instead a humble, contrite heart to fully experience His mercy.”

God’s Mercy

“Therefore also now, saith the LORD, turn ye even to me with all your heart, and with fasting, and with weeping, and with mourning: 13  And rend your heart, and not your garments, and turn unto the LORD your God: for he is gracious and merciful, slow to anger, and of great kindness, and repenteth him of the evil. 14  Who knoweth if he will return and repent, and leave a blessing behind him; even a meat offering and a drink offering unto the LORD your God?” Joel 2:12-14

In God’s Word, where we see men who tear open their garments…. This holds the illustration of rending our hearts before the LORD.

Don’t render outward tearing, no, rather, tear open your inner man, your heart—be honest, sincere, exposed, and vulnerable to the LORD whom you trust.

Let’s attempt to get at, to ascertain what God is commanding of His beloved people to do in this “rend your heart” passage.

“Joel 2:13: Rend your heart—Let it not be merely a rending of your garments, but let your hearts be truly contrite. Merely external worship and hypocritical pretensions will only increase the evil, and cause God to meet you with heavier judgments.

For he is gracious—Good and benevolent in his own nature.

Merciful—Pitying and forgiving, as the effect of goodness and benevolence.

Slow to anger —He is not easily provoked to punish, because he is gracious and merciful.

Of great kindness—Exuberant goodness to all them that return to him.

And repenteth him of the evil—Is ever ready to change his purpose to destroy, when he finds the culprit willing to be saved. See the notes on Exo_34:6, Exo_34:7.” Adam Clarke

“Joel 2:12-14: III. DIVINE APPEAL TO JUDAH TO REPENT (2:12-14)
Even now, the LORD calls the people to repentance. It is not too late to return to Him. But it must be more than outward ritual. Their turning was to be with all their heart, with fasting, with weeping, and with mourning.” Believer’s Bible Commentary

To rend our hearts is the consistent message, mandate of God to His people of all ages and eras.

The Lord is nigh unto them that are of a broken heart; and saveth such as be of a contrite spirit.” Psalms 34:18

“The sacrifices of God are a broken spirit: a broken and a contrite heart, O God, thou wilt not despise.” Psalms 51:17

In Joel 2 the LORD reminds those who are backslidden that He “is gracious and merciful, slow to anger, and of great kindness, and repenteth him of the evil. 14 Who knoweth if he will return and repent, and leave a blessing behind him; even a meat offering and a drink offering unto the LORD your God? …”

They must meet His stated conditions to receive His blessings ….

He promises that He will forgive them as they…..

“Joel 2:12-27: THE AVERTING OF JUDGMENT
To rend the garment is easy, but a broken and contrite heart can be imparted only by the grace of the Holy Spirit. The love of God should bring us to repentance. He takes no pleasure in our miseries and if men repent and turn from their sin they find an immediate and loving welcome to the Father’s heart and home. Joel had called for the trumpet to announce war; he now directs the trumpet blast to summon the people, from the highest to the lowest, to plead for help. Prayer and true repentance and faith bring an immediate answer. As the husband yearns over his erring but repentant wife, and is indignant with those who have maltreated her, so will Jehovah remove from us, when we turn to Him, those who have cruelly oppressed us.
The great things Jehovah did against Egypt and Babylon are an earnest of what He will do again. The earth (and all  the creation  of God) … have good reason to rejoice in what awaits them. God promises not only to forgive sin, but to make us happy and well provided as if the locust and cankerworm had never settled upon our lives.” FB Meyer

Religious hypocrites, counterfeits, emphasize the outward to cover their inner darkness, rebellion.

Woe unto you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! for ye pay tithe of mint and anise and cummin, and have omitted the weightier matters of the law, judgment, mercy, and faith: these ought ye to have done, and not to leave the other undone. 24 Ye blind guides, which strain at a gnat, and swallow a camel. 25 Woe unto you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! for ye make clean the outside of the cup and of the platter, but within they are full of extortion and excess.   Matthew 23:23-25

“He answered and said unto them, Well hath Esaias prophesied of you hypocrites, as it is written, This people honoureth me with their lips, but their heart is far from me.” Mark 7:6

 

Support | STORE | Podcasts | Jail/Prison MinistryMexico Mission here | All Ministry Updates | The Return of ChristStewardshipThe Importance of Keeping Our HEARTS before God

Join Us

We saved a place for you to receive our weekly newsletter.

Please wait...

Thank you for signing up!

Continue Reading

Articles

God and His Word are Unchanging [podcast]


Because God is Unchanging, So is His Word

“For I am the Lord, I change not; therefore ye sons of Jacob are not consumed.”    Malachi 3:6

“Which keepeth truth for ever” – Is the Bible “Archaic”? No. Divine truth is everlasting. Has no expiration date. You cannot escape accountability to it, to Him. It’s an open book test. The Savior says “Heaven and earth shall pass away: but my words shall not pass away” (Mark 13:31). Divine truth is eternal, unchanging, and binding upon all men (Psalms 146:6; Malachi 3:6, etc.).

Every time you open God’s Word and begin reading, you are hearing the voice of God.

“But of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil, thou shalt not eat of it: for in the day that thou eatest thereof thou shalt surely die.” Genesis 2:17

“Now the serpent was more subtil than any beast of the field which the Lord God had made. And he said unto the woman, Yea, hath God said, Ye shall not eat of every tree of the garden?” Genesis 3:1 (the devil questions God’s Word, questions what God says in His Word.)

“And the serpent said unto the woman, Ye shall NOT surely die.” Genesis 3:4

Every word of God is pure: he is a shield unto them that put their trust in him. 6 Add thou not unto his words, lest he reprove thee, and thou be found a liar.” Proverbs 30:5-6

For I testify unto every man that heareth the words of the prophecy of this book, If any man shall add unto these things, God shall add unto him the plagues that are written in this book: 19 and if any man shall take away from the words of the book of this prophecy, God shall take away his part out of the book of life, and out of the holy city, and from the things which are written in this book.” Revelation 22:18-19

“Ye shall not add unto the word which I command you, neither shall ye diminish ought from it, that ye may keep the commandments of the Lord your God which I command you.” Deuteronomy 4:2

“For we are not as many, which corrupt the word of God: but as of sincerity, but as of God, in the sight of God speak we in Christ.” 2 Corinthians 2:17

“Ye have perverted the words of the living God, of the LORD of hosts our God.” Jeremiah 23:36

“all the words that I command thee to speak unto them; diminish not a word:” Jeremiah 26:2 

 

Support | STORE | Podcasts | Jail/Prison MinistryMexico Mission here | All Ministry Updates | ParentsFamily | Godly Manhood | WomenChristology | Because You Care Page | The Greatest of these is CharityBe Ready in the Morning [podcast]The Sure Mercies of David [podcast]That Repentance and Remission of Sins should be Preached [podcast]At His Feet | Prepared to be Used of God The Damning Myth of Unconditional Eternal Security [podcast]The Essential of Fearing God | The KING is Coming [podcast]Lukewarm is Hell Bound!

Join Us

We saved a place for you to receive our weekly newsletter.

Please wait...

Thank you for signing up!

Continue Reading

Categories

donate button round
sgys-books01

Trending