# HERETICS AND HYPOCRITES?



## ReformedWretch (May 8, 2005)

By Paul Proctor

May 8, 2005

NewsWithViews.com

Every now and then I get a terse email from someone who has taken exception to my candid comments on Rick Warren, asking questions like: "œHave you ever spoken with him personally about your objections and concerns and tried to work through your differences privately as scripture teaches, rather than attack him publicly as you do?"

The scripture they usually cite is, of course, Matthew 18:15-17

"œMoreover if thy brother shall trespass against thee, go and tell him his fault between thee and him alone: if he shall hear thee, thou hast gained thy brother. But if he will not hear thee, then take with thee one or two more, that in the mouth of two or three witnesses every word may be established. And if he shall neglect to hear them, tell it unto the church: but if he neglect to hear the church, let him be unto thee as an heathen man and a publican."

This is probably one of the more misunderstood and misapplied scriptures quoted today, especially among those who ingest Church Growth Carcinogens and Purpose Driven Lies. Because we have been inappropriately taught that unity and relationships are the most important things for Christians to pursue and protect in the church, these verses are often touted as the principal directive we should follow when addressing false teachers, which frankly, couldn´t be any further from the truth and only ends up protecting, sustaining and empowering them, which is probably why they teach it.

There is absolutely no biblical record of Jesus or any of His disciples ever taking a heretic off to the side for coffee and donuts after they led someone astray distorting the Word of God. They didn´t shake hands, exchange hugs, kisses and phone numbers or set up appointments on their PDAs to dialog their doctrinal differences over lunch in the quiet corner of a favorite restaurant at a more convenient time.

No, Jesus dealt with heretics harshly, publicly and immediately, as did Paul and the other disciples. And, keep in mind; we´re talking New Testament here friends. In the Old Testament, false prophets were simply taken out and stoned to death for their lies. That´s how serious God is about His Word being rightly divided and properly proclaimed.

So, what was Jesus referring to in Matthew 18? Look again carefully at how he begins:

"œ"¦If thy brother shall trespass against thee, go and tell him his fault between thee and him alone"¦"

You see, the Lord is referring here to a personal offense, grievance and/or misunderstanding between two people "“ something that has broken their fellowship and has little or nothing to do with anyone else. Personal and private matters of wrongdoing should always be dealt with personally and privately first, so as not to unduly disrupt the unity of the body. That is indeed, biblical.

Now, as for wolves in sheep´s clothing that stand in pulpits and on stages before vast audiences with microphones and television cameras proclaiming demonic doctrines as the Word of God, the scriptural directive is altogether different:

"œBut though we, or an angel from heaven, preach any other gospel unto you than that which we have preached unto you, let him be accursed." "“ Galatians 1:8

"œAnd have no fellowship with the unfruitful works of darkness, but rather reprove them." "“ Ephesians 5:11

("œReprove" is another word for rebuke)

"œA man that is an heretic after the first and second admonition reject" "“ Titus 3:10

"œIf there come any unto you, and bring not this doctrine, receive him not into your house, neither bid him God speed: For he that biddeth him God speed is partaker of his evil deeds." (2nd John 1:10)

Jesus didn´t request a closed-door session with the Scribes and Pharisees in order to find common ground, build relationships and promote unity in Jerusalem. He condemned their blasphemy before one and all and repeatedly warned His disciples about their leaven. And when His number-one disciple challenged Him about His own up and coming crucifixion, Jesus didn´t put His hand gently on Peter´s shoulder and effeminately whisper: "œMy friend, you just don´t understand." No, He lashed back at him with power and authority in front of ALL the disciples saying:

"œ"¦Get thee behind me Satan: thou art an offence unto me: for thou savourest not the things that be of God, but those that be of men." "“ Matthew 16:3

Why? Because, Peter was publicly contradicting God´s Word and Divine plan, which is the equivalent of proclaiming Jesus to be a lunatic or a liar.

Did the religious leaders stone Stephen to death because of all the cute and cuddly things he had to say about them? I don´t THINK so. Stephen spoke the cold hard truth that day and they hated him for it because God´s Truth is always "evil" and intolerable in the ears of the unrepentant. He told them:

"œYe stiffnecked and uncircumcised in heart and ears"¦who have received the law by the disposition of angels, and have not kept it."

You see, defenders of today´s religious leaders almost always resort to calling their critics, among other things, "œlegalists," for incessantly using scripture to rebuke unbiblical teachings and practices; comparing them to the Pharisees of Stephen´s day, when, in reality, Stephen might just as easily say to Rick Warren and others like him:

"œYe stiffnecked and uncircumcised in heart and ears"¦who have received the Gospel, but have not proclaimed it."

Of course, when someone reprimands today´s religious leaders for their unbiblical teachings, they are silenced, shamed, slandered, marginalized, isolated and/or asked to leave. But, isn´t that exactly what the religious leaders did to Jesus and His disciples?

The Pharisees were a lot of things but they were not "œlegalists." They´ve merely been labeled as such by the religious liberals of OUR day in order to try and discount the importance of studying and obeying scripture. In fact the word "œlegalist´ does not even appear in any version of the Bible I searched. It is just another contemporary twisting of the truth to forward a corrupt agenda and steer people away from God´s Word to something more flexible, entertaining and endearing.

"œLegalism" is defined in my dictionary as the "strict adherence to a literal interpretation of a law, rule, or religious moral code." Under this definition, is not Jesus Himself a legalist? You see, without the law, there is no need for a cross; which probably explains why both are being expelled from the church and society today as outdated and offensive relics from the past.

So, according to Stephen´s own testimony, if the religious leaders indeed "œreceived the law but have not kept it," they don´t even QUALIFY as true "œlegalists" but only as lawbreakers; or, as Jesus repeatedly called them; "œHypocrites," which is another word for "œactor," meaning, they only pretended to keep the law.

And THAT, my friends, is what today´s Purpose Driven Pastor is "“ an actor "“ a hypocrite and a pretender, because he CLAIMS the Word of God but does not actually believe it nor proclaim it. If he did, he would preach the Bible and nothing else; verse by verse, for the rest of his ministry; not The Purpose Driven Life, chapter by chapter for 40 days. He would quote The Almighty with power and conviction before a trembling and uneasy congregation, instead of quoting Rick Warren with purpose and ambition before a casual and comfortable constituency.

When church attendance and revenues are down, closet liberals, be they Purpose Driven or otherwise, often minimize, in varying degrees, the importance of the Bible in a Christian´s life, calling it "œlegalism" whenever one encourages the brethren to obey God´s Word or dares to chastise those who refuse. Well, THEY might call keeping God´s commandments "œlegalism," but Jesus Christ calls it "œlove." Don´t believe me? Read it for yourself:

"œIf ye love me, keep my commandments." "“ John 14:15

"œHe that hath my commandments, and keepeth them, he it is that loveth me: and he that loveth me shall be loved of my Father, and I will love him, and will manifest myself to him." "“ John 14:21

"œJesus answered and said unto him, If a man love me, he will keep my words: and my Father will love him, and we will come unto him, and make our abode with him. He that loveth me not keepeth not my sayings: and the word which ye hear is not mine, but the Father's which sent me." "“ John 14:23-24

"œIf ye keep my commandments, ye shall abide in my love; even as I have kept my Father's commandments, and abide in his love." "“ John 15:10

"œHe that saith, I know him, and keepeth not his commandments, is a liar, and the truth is not in him." - 1st John 2:4

"œFor this is the love of God, that we keep his commandments: and his commandments are not grievous." "“ 1st John 5:3

Keeping God´s commandments will not gain you entry into the Kingdom of Heaven anymore than attending church will make you a member. That only comes by faith in Jesus Christ and His sacrifice on the cross for our sins. (Ephesians 2:8-10) But for those of us who claim Him, there is no other way to exercise that faith and prove our discipleship.

Loving God is not having a hand-raising, hip-hopping, wave-making, emotional experience in a Hawaiian shirt and sandals before a rock band in some downtown arena full of shrieking Seekers, Creekers, Promise Keepers and Passionate Purposeites. The only true act of love, worship and service to God is obedience to His Word. Everything else is distortion, distraction, deception, delusion and destruction.

And, when you set your Bible aside for some other book or teacher or preacher, you are neither loving, nor following, nor obeying the One you claim as your Lord and Savior. Oh, you might be Purpose Driven or Seeker Sensitive; but more than anything else, you´re a hypocrite.

"œNot every one that saith unto me, Lord, Lord, shall enter into the kingdom of heaven; but he that doeth the will of my Father which is in heaven. Many will say to me in that day, Lord, Lord, have we not prophesied in thy name? and in thy name have cast out devils? and in thy name done many wonderful works? And then will I profess unto them, I never knew you: depart from me, ye that work iniquity." "“ Matthew 7:21-23

Related Articles:

1 It's Your Choice
2 The Purpose Driven Hostage
3 Gathering or Scattering?

Â© 2005 Paul Proctor - All Rights Reserved

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Paul Proctor, a rural resident of the Volunteer state and seasoned veteran of the country music industry, retired from showbiz in the late 1990's to dedicate himself to addressing important social issues from a distinctly biblical perspective. As a freelance writer and regular columnist for NewsWithViews.com, he extols the wisdom and truths of scripture through commentary and insight on cultural trends and current events. His articles appear regularly on a variety of news and opinion sites across the internet and in print.

E-Mail: [email protected]


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## turmeric (May 8, 2005)

Break out a few cans of  !


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## WrittenFromUtopia (May 8, 2005)

Amazing.

 x infinity


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## Robin (May 8, 2005)

Gooooo, Paul Proctor! (I love that guy.)

Robin

PS. I just heard the White Horse Inn did an airing of examining the PDL stuff! So it begins..... (we just had a Reformed radio show cancelled because they dared to ask questions about the soundness of PDL/RW's teaching -- in a very nice way.) It will be curious to see what happens to WHI....Saddleback pays big bucks to advertise in this area - as they are about 30 miles from us.


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## Puritanhead (May 8, 2005)

Maybe I shouldn't be so conciliatory to those espousing heresy... or who malign the Scriptures with private interpretation. I can think of a few heresies that horribly disfigure the Scriptures and need sharp rebuke. Jesus' scorn for the Pharisees owes to his righteous indignation. I'm falliable and imperfect, and not always consistent myself.

I always tend to regard that passage about confronting a brother who has trespassed against you as dealing more with personal problems and less doctrinal issues... some people (a former roommate comes to mind)-- seem beyond dealing with and are naturally quarrelsome and strident, even without cause.

[Edited on 5-9-2005 by Puritanhead]

[Edited on 5-9-2005 by Puritanhead]


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## Solo Christo (May 8, 2005)

> _Originally posted by Puritanhead_
> Maybe I shouldn't be so nice to those espousing heresy... or who malign the Scriptures with private interpretation. I can think of a few heresies that horribly disfigure the Scriptures and need sharp rebuke. Jesus' scorn for the Pharisees owes to his righteous indignation. I'm falliable and imperfect, and not always consistent myself.



There are indeed many heresies out there. As far as our position to notice and rebuke them, Scripture speaks the following:

Luke 6:37-42 He also told them a parable: _"œCan a blind man lead a blind man? Will they not both fall into a pit?_ A disciple is not above his teacher, but everyone when he is fully trained will be like his teacher. Why do you see the speck that is in your brother's eye, but do not notice the log that is in your own eye? How can you say to your brother, "˜Brother, let me take out the speck that is in your eye,´ when you yourself do not see the log that is in your own eye? You hypocrite, first take the log out of your own eye, _and then you will see clearly to take out the speck that is in your brother's eye_. (emphasis added)

1 Cor 2:15 The spiritual person judges all things

1 Cor 5:12 Is it not those inside the church whom you are to judge?


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## calgal (Jul 28, 2005)

and that book will be as useful as a book of moron or an NWT from the JW's.


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