Beware of the modern gnostics and their evil teachings

Even before the Apostles departed the earth, a new class of teachers began to crawl out from the Greek and Hebrew woodwork. Yehoshua (Jesus) and Paul would use the term "wolves" to best describe them. Jesus further described them as "ravening wolves" because their goal is not to feed the flock, but to feed themselves at the expense of the flock they were supposedly teaching or even leading. (Matthew 7:15) Paul further explained that some of them would entice the congregation from the outside while others would rise up as "anointed leaders" within the congregation and "draw away disciples after them." (Acts 20:29-30) While the Apostle Paul did not go into much detail about how this happens in this quote in the Book of Acts, a study of the New Testament should explain how this works.

When Yehoshua (Jesus) began to foretell a time when He would leave the earth and sit at the right hand of His Father in Heaven, He explained that the Holy Spirit would come and replace Him. Jesus explained that the Holy Spirit would be the one who would guide them into all truth. The Apostle John further explained that when you have the Holy Spirit, you do not have the need for men (and women) to teach you (I John 2:27). Since the Gnostic teachers did not have the Holy Spirit to help them, they were obliged to become "anointed teachers." They do it by coming up with a new angle and selling it to whatever group they can form up. Once they worm their way into a group, they start to siphon off the spiritual resources of that group. In time, the group loses all spiritual sensitivity and the "anointed leaders" effectively take over the group. They go so far as to replace the ministry of Yehoshua (Jesus) the Messiah (Christ) in the lives of their group.

When you read the letters Jesus sent to the seven key congregations in Asia Minor, you quickly find that false teachers had attempted to infect the work the world of the ministry in every one. Some, like the Ephesian congregation, had resisted the false teachers and had gotten legalistic in the process. Others like the Smyrnan and Philadelphian churches has also resisted the evil, but had held fast in their faith. The other four congregations had fallen into various errors. Smyrna apparently fell into the antinomian (replacing the Torah-law with their own law) errors, while Pergamos had problems with devil worshippers who seduced people to sin and worship idols, like the Israelites in Numbers 25 and 32. In Thyatira, the problem was with false teaching and rebellion. Finally, the church at Sardis was just plain dead. They had a reputation, but that was all it was. There was nothing of the Holy Spirit working within the congregation. It is likely the "anointed leaders" had totally controlled the group.

When you carefully study these two chapters in Revelation (2-3), you learn quickly that these false teachers often used various forms of sorcery and witchcraft (AKA Charismatic witchcraft) to replace the work of the Holy Spirit in a congregation. After they had used their sorceries to set themselves up as the personification of the Holy Spirit, they could then advance themselves to a place of "anointed leadership." Once they sold the people on who they said they were, they could step in a control the congregation. Consider the example of Elymas the sorcerer in Acts 13:6-11. He attempted to use his magical arts to control the people and keep them from the true path of righteousness.

The problems of five of these seven churches could be broken down to one thing, they were all infected by the teachings of so-called "anointed leaders." These men and women were, in one way or another, infected by errors from various devils, angels and false gods who fed their willing servants with various teachings.

When the apostolic age ended in the first century, the church groups that were formed apparently started to lose touch with the Holy Sprit and became easy targets for the "anointed leaders." Much of this happened because the persecution became so intense that many leaders who had the Holy Spirit were killed for their faith. Their replacements often lacked the spiritual guidance of their predacessors. As a result, the churches began to suffer. Before long, many of them were controlled by "anointed teachers" of various sorts.

The fourth century saw the end of most Christian persecution, and Constantine began the process of institutionalizing Christianity. That structure would known as the Roman Catholic Church. As time progressed, the Bishop of Rome began to take more and more power, and the other bishops soon began to be subservient to "the pope." Contrary to the teachings of scripture, the popes set up a hierarchial structure with them at the top, a college of cardinals below them, a group of archbishops and bishops below them, who then administered the monsingors and priests who led the local congregations. The congregations were then consisted of both pagans and nominal Christians. Those Christians who somehow received the Holy Spirit eventually found their way into various underground movements.

More coming soon!