Let’s continue the conversation about the disunity in the churches. Remember that the unhealthy church is a headless body. It tries to operate without the head of the church. God is the head of the church. God is not a book or an interpretation of a book. The unhealthy church body without the head is spiritually blind and deaf. They do not have eyes to see or ears to hear. Their version of unity is a consensus of opinions of man rather than unity with the Spirit. Their doctrine is man-made instead of Spirit-led.

Again, we will briefly recap where we left off in my top ten list of false doctrines in the churches: The FALSE DOCTRINES that we previously discussed are: 1) Mute God; 2) Three Gods; 3) Jesus as a Separate God; 4) Automatically Forgiven; 5) God Needs Counsel; 6) The Holy Spirit is Unable to Anoint; and 7) Women Must Be Silent and/or Women Are Not Allowed to Lead in the Church.

The remaining three false doctrines, of my top ten list, are outlined here:

False Doctrine #8) All are Saved from Hell: Modern Christianity has often done a poor job of expressing God’s heart on the matter of an eternal home and how to secure the coveted destination. Many wrongly teach that God, because He is loving and merciful, cannot have justice or wrath against rebellion and unbelief. Their theology suggests that God would never send anyone to hell. But if there is anyone in hell, and there are, can you guess who sent them there?

* “Then he will say to those on his left, ‘Depart from me, you who are cursed, into the eternal fire prepared for the devil and his angels.’” (Matthew 25:41 NIV)

Suggesting that all are saved who took a one-time oath of allegiance is bogus theology. From that false theology spews so many others. It’s likely why so many don’t seem too concerned about the consequences of their rebellion. They are not afraid of God’s wrath because they don’t believe that He is allowed to be angry with a broken oath of allegiance. If we can break our oath, then God can certainly refuse to be our God. If He’s not your God, then He is not your Savior.

* “Not everyone who says to me, ‘Lord, Lord,’ will enter the kingdom of heaven, but only the one who does the will of my Father who is in heaven.” (Matthew 7:21 NIV)

False Doctrine #9) Forgiven by the Blood/Cross: We are forgiven by the will of God. While the atonement process that happened at the cross gave us direct access to God for a forgiveness conversation, it did NOT replace the need for actually asking for forgiveness from God.

That forgiveness conversation also affords you to ask God questions about how you can respond better during the same temptation going forward. God has a will. The cross or the blood at the cross do not have a will. Those are non-thinking things.

God views your heart and motives. The cross and blood cannot view your motives. God has sovereignty over life and death. The cross and blood do not have sovereignty over life and death. The healthy church distinguishes the difference.

Ask God for forgiveness every time. (I ask God every day if there is anything that I need to ask forgiveness for. I listen for His answer. Either it is a time of hearing that I did good or it is a time for me to learn to do better. But it is always a way to safeguard my relationship with God. I don’t ask a cross or blood to forgive me. I ask God to forgive me.)

False Doctrine #10) Spiritual Warfare is Not Real: If spiritual warfare is not real, then why did Jesus evict evil spirits and cast out demons? Why does the Bible warn to resist the devil and to put on the armor of God? Who did the Lord have a conversation with about Job? Why did Jesus have a conversation with the devil in the desert (Matthew 4:1-10) if the devil is not real?

* “Be alert and of sober mind. Your enemy the devil prowls around like a roaring lion looking for someone to devour?” (1 Peter 5:8 NIV)

Now that we have studied those top ten false doctrines, we must NOT stop there. There are many more false doctrines that can be addressed. I can name a few to get you thinking: fasting to force God’s hand, baptismal regeneration, and closed communion. In closing, it’s easy to twist Scriptures to create a theology that gives you what your itching ears want to hear. But knowing that God is watching and examining our motives and heart, should make each person hesitant to jump on the bandwagon with false teachers just because it’s easier than the investment of studying and seeking God.

Are there any of you that will insist on truth from the pulpits of the churches?