In general, public speculation about whether another believer is a false teacher strikes me as wildly inappropriate.
But I do think it's fruitful to ask where, if there were any false teachers in our midst, we might expect to find them.
But I do think it's fruitful to ask where, if there were any false teachers in our midst, we might expect to find them.
https://twitter.com/JonathanLeeman/status/1462817714691584009
According to Scripture, false teachers dwell in the political or religious establishment. They misrepresent God to the people of God in order to fortify their own position of power or influence, often at the expense of vulnerable people.
So the notion that those who expose oppression are false teachers isn’t just wrong.
It lacks a basic grasp of the currency in which it trades, not unlike the sentence: “The quarterback of the Yankees scored a hat trick in the Final Four.”
It’s not merely untrue—it’s nonsense.
It lacks a basic grasp of the currency in which it trades, not unlike the sentence: “The quarterback of the Yankees scored a hat trick in the Final Four.”
It’s not merely untrue—it’s nonsense.
Simply put, demanding justice for others isn’t what false teachers do.
Every single time Scripture presents God’s prophets in direct conflict with false prophets, God’s prophets are the ones demanding justice for the oppressed. Every. Single. Time.
Every single time Scripture presents God’s prophets in direct conflict with false prophets, God’s prophets are the ones demanding justice for the oppressed. Every. Single. Time.
And how do the false prophets react? First, they accuse God’s prophet of being a false teacher. Then they try to protect their own power and influence by lying about God. “Everything’s good here. God says that the status quo is just fine, and judgment is not forthcoming.”
For example, the biblical picture of false prophets bears a striking resemblance to some of the evangelical patriarchists whose dalliances with heresy have redounded to their own professional benefit.
Some proponents of ESS misrepresented the very nature of the Trinity in an effort to legitimate a niche research agenda that they were well-positioned to lead (largely because the most fertile theological minds of our era simply have no interest in advancing male headship).
These men spend their days stirring up controversy, insisting that God’s people break fellowship over the second-order consequences of tertiary doctrines that are a matter of grave importance only to men whose professional advancement depends on it.
It’s clever in a strictly Machiavellian sense: find a subject that none of the really talented people in your field care about, create a journal for it, publish in your own journal, and then leverage politics and personal connections to demand that it be taken seriously.
Now these men and their theological allies are attempting to persuade God’s people that demands for justice are false teaching.
“Everything’s good,” they say. “God has instructed me to assure you that the status quo is just fine, and judgment is not forthcoming.”
“Everything’s good,” they say. “God has instructed me to assure you that the status quo is just fine, and judgment is not forthcoming.”
I don’t know whether judgment is upon us. But if it is, it’s not for the reasons that the culture warriors warned us about, or the teachings they've warned us against. It’s because of infirmities that the culture warriors themselves created.
• • •
Missing some Tweet in this thread? You can try to
force a refresh
