Deceitful Workmen in Disguise

2 Corinthians 11:12-15 ESV

“And what I am doing I will continue to do, in order to undermine the claim of those who would like to claim that in their boasted mission they work on the same terms as we do. For such men are false apostles, deceitful workmen, disguising themselves as apostles of Christ. And no wonder, for even Satan disguises himself as an angel of light. So it is no surprise if his servants, also, disguise themselves as servants of righteousness. Their end will correspond to their deeds.”

This is Paul speaking of what was taking place in his time period, but this is happening today here in America on a very large scale. For we have many men claiming to be apostles of God or pastors (shepherds) of our Lord’s sheep, or preachers and teachers of the Scriptures and of the gospel of Christ who are boasting that their mission is on the same biblical terms as that of the NT apostles, but it isn’t. For they are not teaching the same truth the apostles taught, or they are teaching only a half-truth gospel.

Now, I am 73 years old, and I was raised up as a child attending church gatherings, and I have lived in 5 states and 10 cities in the USA, and my family and I have attended many different gatherings of what is called “church” from multiple church denominations, so I have heard many preachers preaching over those 73 years. Also I have listened to many preachers preaching on the internet from various church denominations and cities and states, so I am speaking from some experience here.

And what I have noticed is that not many of these preachers are teaching the full gospel message, but most seem to be teaching a half-truth and/or very diluted and altered gospel message which is deceiving many people into accepting lies as truth and into rejecting the truth as though it is the lie. For although they claim to be teaching the truth, and some of them are teaching more truth than others, not many if any that I have heard preach are teaching the whole message of the gospel.

For what did Jesus teach? He taught that if anyone would come after him that he must deny self, take up his cross daily (die daily to sin and to self) and follow (obey) Jesus. For if we try to save our own lives, i.e. if we hold on to our old lives of living in sin and for self we will lose them for eternity. But if we lose our lives, i.e. if we die with Christ to sin and live to him and to his righteousness, then we have salvation from sin and eternal life with God (see Luke 9:23-26; cf. Romans 6:1-23; Ephesians 4:17-24; Titus 2:11-14).

That is the essence of the gospel message, that because Jesus died for our sins and he put them to death with him, and he rose from the grave, it was so that we will now die with him to sin and live to him and to his righteousness. He died so we would no longer be enslaved to sin but to God and to his righteousness. He died so we would now live for him and no longer for ourselves, and he shed his blood to buy us back for God out of our lives of sin so we would now honor God with our bodies.

[1 Peter 2:24; 2 Corinthians 5:15; 1 Corinthians 6:19-20; Romans 6:1-23]

Then we have all these Scriptures which warn those of us who claim to believe in Christ that if we walk in sin, and if sin is what we practice, and if righteousness and holiness and obedience to our Lord are not what we practice that we will not inherit eternal life with God, but we will die in our sins. And these Scriptures tell us that we are liars if we say we are in fellowship with God or if we say we know God, but we are still walking in sin and not in obedience to our Lord, and not in holy living.

So, just because someone calls himself an apostle of Christ, or a pastor of God’s sheep, or a teacher of the Scriptures, it doesn’t mean that what he is teaching you is the truth, even if he teaches half the truth. For the full gospel message lets us know not only that we must die to sin and walk in obedience to our Lord in holy living, in practice, but that if we don’t do that, and we continue living in deliberate and habitual sin, that we will not inherit eternal life with God. So, please know the truth and follow the truth.

[Matt 7:21-23; Matt 24:9-14; Lu 9:23-26; Rom 1:18-32; Rom 2:6-8; Rom 6:1-23; Rom 8:1-14,24; Rom 12:1-2; Rom 13:11; 1 Co 6:9-10,19-20; 2 Co 5:10,15,21; 1 Co 1:18; 1 Co 15:1-2; 2 Tim 1:8-9; Heb 9:28; 1 Pet 1:5; Gal 5:16-21; Gal 6:7-8; Eph 2:8-10; Eph 4:17-32; Eph 5:3-6; Col 1:21-23; Col 3:5-17; 1 Pet 2:24; Tit 2:11-14; 1 Jn 1:5-9; 1 Jn 2:3-6,24-25; 1 Jn 3:4-10; Heb 3:6,14-15; Heb 10:23-31; Heb 12:1-2; Rev 21:8,27; Rev 22:14-15] 

Video Talk

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My Sheep  

An Original Work / June 24, 2012  

Based off John 10:1-18 NIV

My sheep hear me. They know me.

They listen to my voice and obey.

I call them and lead them.

They know my voice, so they follow me.

They will never follow strangers.

They will run away from them.

The voice of a stranger they know not;

They do not follow him.

So, I tell you the truth that

I am the gate, so you enter in.

Whoever does enter

Will find forgiveness and will be saved.

Nonetheless whoever enters

Not by the gate; other way,

He is the thief and a robber.

Listen not, the sheep to him.

Oh, I am the Good Shepherd,

Who laid his own life down for the sheep.

I know them. They know me.

They will live with me eternally.

The thief only comes to steal and

Kill and to destroy the church.

I have come to give you life that

You may have it to the full… 

They know my voice, so they follow me.

https://vimeo.com/114938263