Spiritual Weakness

Now the Spirit expressly says that in latter times some will depart from the faith, giving heed to deceiving spirits and doctrines of demons,

(1 Timothy 4:1)

Spiritual weakness among believers constitutes the second condition that has already been fulfilled. In the passage quoted above, Paul reveals that the fundamental cause of saints departing from the faith stems directly from the church’s exposure to doctrines of demons.

For the time will come when they will not endure sound doctrine, but according to their own desires, because they have itching ears, they will heap up for themselves teachers; and they will turn their ears away from the truth, and be turned aside to fables.

(2 Timothy 4:3-4)

Exposure to sound doctrine is the church’s primary safeguard against being ensnared in the great falling away. However, as Paul warns, a time would come when large numbers of believers would reject sound doctrine, preferring instead false teachers who offer selective and distorted interpretations of Scripture—teachers who deliver motivational messages rather than the full counsel of God.

But there were also false prophets among the people, even as there will be false teachers among you, who will secretly bring in destructive heresies, even denying the Lord who bought them, and bring on themselves swift destruction. And many will follow their destructive ways, because of whom the way of truth will be blasphemed. By covetousness they will exploit you with deceptive words; for a long time their judgment has not been idle, and their destruction does not slumber.

(2 Peter 2:1-3)

Peter’s passage offers additional insight into the false prophets and teachers who will infiltrate the church in the last days. He reveals that these individuals will cause the way of truth to be blasphemed, for their destructive heresies and immoral lifestyles—practiced under the banner of Christianity—will lead many unbelievers to regard the faith as hypocritical, thereby undermining the credibility of the gospel.

Furthermore, Peter explains that covetousness will drive these false teachers to exploit the church through deceptive words, their primary motive being financial gain. As already noted, such teachers refuse to proclaim sound doctrine. They isolate one or two truths from God’s Word and then teach those truths to extremes.

For example, they will not teach on the Lord’s chastening, judgment, Christian suffering, or any other “unpopular” topics found in the New Testament. They go to great lengths to avoid preaching the full counsel of God, sometimes even denying that certain parts of the New Testament apply to the church today—because those passages expose their teachings as false.

But know this that in the last day’s perilous times will come: For men will be lovers of themselves, lovers of money … lovers of pleasure rather than lovers of God, having a form of godliness but denying its power. And from such people turn away! For of this sort are those who creep into households and make captives of gullible women loaded down with sins, … these also resist the truth: men of corrupt minds, disapproved concerning the faith; but they will progress no further, for their folly will be manifest to all, as theirs also was.

(2 Timothy 3:1-9)

In the above passage, the apostle Paul lists several characteristics of ministries to be avoided in the last days, clearly admonishing believers to turn away from such individuals.

The first characteristic is that these ministries focus on the individual rather than on God. Paul describes them as “lovers of themselves,” whose message centres on self-interest—“What can God do for me?”—instead of service to God, His body, and His purposes.

The second characteristic is that they focus on financial prosperity. These ministries take the message of prosperity to the extreme, as Paul notes that they are “lovers of money” and “lovers of pleasure rather than lovers of God.”

The third characteristic is that they are incapable of displaying God’s power. Paul says that they have “a form of godliness but deny its power.” In other words, their teaching is rooted in the wisdom of men rather than the authority of the Holy Spirit, for they have no access to God’s power.

The fourth characteristic is that they resist sound doctrine. Paul describes them as men who “resist the truth.” Sound doctrine is their enemy, and they preach a distorted gospel instead.

And so the question must be asked: How prevalent are doctrines of demons within the church today?

The following is a brief, though not exhaustive, list of some of the more recognizable satanic doctrines that have emerged in the modern church:

·         The prosperity gospel theology

·         Dominionist theology

·         Postmillennial theology

·         New Apostolic Reformation theology

·         Seven Mountain Mandate theology

·         Christian Zionist theology

·         Pre-tribulation rapture theology

·         Spiritual warfare theology

The false teachers who promote these various doctrines collectively have a combined following of multiple millions of believers.

Because the followers of these ministries are not grounded in sound doctrine, they will be completely unprepared for the persecution that is soon to come upon the church. When that persecution arises, they will quickly become offended and will fall away from Christ.

Tragically, the church today is ripe for the falling away event, waiting only for the third and final condition to be fulfilled.

Michael E.B. Maher

Resurrection of the Dead

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