Some might view this post as negative. Some may accuse me of being judgmental. Others may just pass me off as old. But I’ll risk being labeled a crotchety, judgmental, old codger—because I believe this needs to be said.
The fact is, I don’t get too excited when I hear people talking about Jesus. I get suspicious when I hear people using the word gospel. And I must say, I’m rather suspect when I hear someone talking about “receiving the spirit.”
And I know, you’re probably thinking... “Say what? Dude! As a pastor and missionary, I thought those were all the things you’re supposed to be all about!”
Well, not so much.
Not without asking a very simple, two-word question: “Which one?”
ministers of RIGHTEOUSNESS
Which Jesus are we actually talking about? Because 2 Corinthians 11:4 says there are those who are preaching another Jesus! Which gospel are we talking about? Because 2 Corinthians 11:4 says there are those who are preaching another gospel! Which spirit are we talking about receiving? Because 2 Corinthians 11:4 says there are those who are preaching about receiving another spirit!
Reading this verse may cause you to ask, “Just who are these people who are preaching this OTHER Jesus... this OTHER gospel... and this OTHER spirit?” Well, that’s not even a matter of speculation! The passage goes on to identify exactly who they are! These anothers are being propagated by “Satan’s ministers” (2 Corinthians 11:13), who operate just like Satan himself! That is, they transform themselves into something that looks like it’s light, and sounds like it’s truth—when it’s actually darkness and fabrication! (2 Corinthians 11:13b-14)
And lest we think that these ministers who propagate such dastardly and deceptive doctrines would be easy to identify by their evil demeanor and wicked decadence, the passage even goes on to declare that these satanic imposters appear, surprisingly enough, as “ministers of RIGHTEOUSNESS” (2 Corinthians 11:15)! In other words, they live impeccable lives and challenge others to do the same! Yeah, it’s that deceptive... and spooky!
our unity as believers is attained by our separation unto the truth!
This is why the scripture is so adamant that we “believe not every spirit, but try the spirits whether they are of God: because many false prophets are gone out into the world” (1 John 4:1)! And may I remind you that John wrote that before we were even out of the 1st century—and he was already talking about there being, not just a FEW, but MANY false prophets! And since the Spirit of God told us that “evil men and seducers” would “wax worse and worse,” we have to ask ourselves: just how many false teachers and seducers must there be in the world 20 centuries later?
Strangely enough, few believers seem to be able to identify who and where they are! And so it is that these false prophets (1 John 4:1) and false apostles (2 Corinthians 11:13) continue to be deceived and to deceive others (2 Ti mothy 3:13).
I realize that the things I’m saying could be viewed as rather divisive. But it is time that we allow ourselves to enter into true biblical unity. And I word it like that because there is such a thing as false unbiblical unity.
False unity focuses on man.
True unity focuses on truth.
False unity says doctrine divides, so we need to let go of it.
True unity says doctrine unites, so we need to hold tenaciously to it!
Simply put, one is biblical, and one is unbiblical.
Scripture is very clear: our unity as believers is attained by our separation unto the truth!
1 Corinthians 1:10 Now I beseech you, brethren, by the name of our Lord Jesus Christ, that ye all speak the same thing, and that there be no divisions among you; but that ye be perfectly joined together in the same mind and in the same judgment.
The Bible makes it very clear that we cannot forsake truth in the name of unity, because the two go hand in hand! You cannot have one without the other. Likewise, we must be wary of claiming unity with those who are false teachers.
Any true word from the Lord is already found in his completed word
What I’ve found is that most Christians today will actually be in agreement about all of this! Many seem to like the “tell-it-like-it-is” approach. They eat up the dogmatism. They really dig someone being just a little bit in-your-face and snarky. That is, until that someone suggests that it might be one of their spiritual gurus who is actually one of these false prophets or false teachers who needs to be brought under the scrutiny and judgment of the word of God!
For example, to even suggest to most Christians that Sarah Young’s best selling book, Jesus Calling, might more aptly be titled, Another Jesus Calling—oh my, you’ll be written off so fast, it’ll be like you never even existed! You’ll be so tarred and feathered by people who think they are evangelical and fundamentally sound, we won’t be able to recognize you! I mean, after all, what she writes is so Christian and so spiritual—how could a spiritual Christian possibly fault her or call her out?
The truth is that Jesus Calling is what has spawned the “contemplative prayer” movement, which is essentially a method of “praying” that involves emptying your mind, and repeating a few words or a phrase from scripture, or a name for God while you wait for a special “insight” or “word from the Lord,“ with pen and paper in hand.
May I remind all of us that we already have “a word from the Lord!“ We call it the Bible, and it is complete! It doesn’t need any additions or addendums from me, you, Sarah Young, or anybody else! And because it is complete, we’ve been admonished to study it, memorize it, hold fast to it, not add anything to it, not take anything away from it, and to obey it! (2 Timothy 2:15, Psalm 119:11, 2 Timothy 1:13, Revelation 22:18-19, 1 John 2:3)
Contemplative prayer is a frontal attack, first of all, on the word of God, in that it assumes and presumes that God is still speaking in the way he did before he gave us the complete, written word of God. We must understand that if your “word from the Lord” doesn’t line up with the Bible, it’s heresy! If it does line up with the Bible, it’s unnecessary! Any true word from the Lord is already found in his completed word; he doesn’t give new, unique messages today (Revelation 22:18-19, 2 Peter 1:19, 1 Corinthians 13:8-10).
But contemplative prayer is also a frontal attack on true prayer! What Young is actually advocating is not really prayer, but a passive meditation, otherwise known as transcendental meditation. Any time we are being led to empty our mind and remove everything so that our mind is open, we must recognize that we are actually opening ourselves up to danger, and opening ourselves up to receive a counterfeit! We may indeed have a “spirit” speak a word or message to us, but that doesn’t mean it will be the Spirit of Christ—it very likely could be a demonic spirit.
The only thing that’s ringing in my ears are the biblical warnings to disassociate from and to expose false prophets and teachers
Contemplative prayer is actually a hybrid of Catholic ritualism and eastern mysticism, spiritism and occultism, and has absolutely nothing to do with the Jesus of the Bible, but everything to do with another Jesus!
To even entertain the idea that Beth Moore has become biblically unhinged and is deep in the process of “departing from the faith”—how could anyone have the audacity to question such a beloved soul who has been used to teach the Bible to so many women for so many decades—and now men?
However, Beth Moore has in recent years begun receiving “prophetic messages” and “visions” which she alleges are directly from the Lord, and which she believes are her responsibility to proclaim. Here is an excerpt from one of her messages where she explains this:
Transcription from Moore:
You know what [God] told me not too long ago? I told you when I first began this whole concept (He first started teaching it to me about five years ago), and He said these words to me: “Baby, you have not even begun to believe Me. You haven’t even begun!”
You know what He said just a few days ago? “Honey, I just want you to know we’re just beginning.” Oh, glory! That meant I had begun. Hallelujah!
But He was telling me, “When this ends, we ain’t done with this. Honey, this is what we do for the rest of your life.” And He says those words to me over and over again: “Believe Me. Believe Me.” And I hope it’s starting to ring in your ears, over and over again, “Believe Me.”
Hearing this, believing that God has given Moore special revelation is not what’s ringing in my ears. The only thing that’s ringing in my ears are the biblical warnings to disassociate from and to expose false prophets and teachers like her!
We can always trust Him to BE exactly who the Bible says He is
But it must be done. The times demand it (1 Timothy 4:1), and the scripture commands it (Titus 1:9–11)! So, practically speaking, just how do we even begin to obey 1 John 4:1 and actually “try the spirits” (i.e. “put the spirits on trial!”) so we can accurately determine “whether they are of God”?
Perhaps a beginning place is simply recognizing that the “self-styled Jesus” of the 21st century isn’t the Jesus of the Bible! We constantly hear people make statements like...
“Well, I always THOUGHT that Jesus…”
“Well, the way I SEE Jesus…”
“Well, I just BELIEVE that Jesus…”
“Well, I was always TAUGHT that Jesus…”
All of the above lead-in statements are very 21st-century in expression and purpose, and thus, very acceptable in the 21st century—but here’s the biblical reality check:
Jesus isn’t who I PRESUME Him to be!
So, it may be that what “I always THOUGHT” about Jesus is totally irrelevant.
Jesus isn’t who I IMAGINE Him to be!
So, it may be that the way “I’ve always SEEN Him” is completely off base.
Jesus isn’t who I DESIRE Him to be!
So, it may be that what “I’ve always BELIEVED” about Jesus is simply a figment of my imagination.
Jesus isn’t necessarily who others PRESENTED Him to be!
So, it may be that what “I’ve always been TAUGHT” about Jesus has just been flat-out wrong.
The reality is, y’all, Jesus is who He is.
Jesus says what He says, and He operates the way He operates! We can always trust Him to BE exactly who the Bible says He is. We can expect Him to SAY exactly what has already been recorded in the pages of holy writ. And we can always count on Him to DO exactly what is consistent with what He did in the pages of scripture. Nothing more... and certainly nothing less!
Folks, it’s high time for us to exercise spiritual discernment in the body of Christ—and it’s high time we let the Bible be the Bible in our lives and in our churches, and allow it to solely dictate to us what we believe and why we believe it.
And again I say: “Beloved, believe not every spirit, but try the spirits whether they are of God: because MANY false prophets are gone out into the world” (1 John 4:1).
To learn more about Pastor Mark Trotter, check out marktrotter.tv
Mark Trotter is the associate pastor at ONE Baptist Church in Douglasville, GA and a teaching elder in the Living Faith Fellowship, and is the author of 52 Weeks of Pursuit.