Meat, Bones, and Mushrooms

I have heard more than once that when it comes to subpar, confusing, or false teaching that we should "chew on the meat and spit out the bones." In other words, we should take what's good and helpful and throw out the rest. That sounds like good advice, but is it biblical? What does the Bible say? In his letter to the Galatians, Paul wrote a stern rebuke to them for falling under the influence of false teachers and their teachings:

"I am astonished that you are so quickly deserting the one who called you to live in the grace of Christ and are turning to a different gospel— which is really no gospel at all. Evidently some people are throwing you into confusion and are trying to pervert the gospel of Christ. But even if we or an angel from heaven should preach a gospel other than the one we preached to you, let them be under God’s curse! As we have already said, so now I say again: If anybody is preaching to you a gospel other than what you accepted, let them be under God’s curse!" Galatians 1:6-9 NIV

Notice that Paul doesn't say, "Take the best and throw out the rest." No, he rebukes the Galatians for "turning to a different gospel - which is really no gospel at all." He says that these teachers are perverting the gospel of Christ and they are to be under God's curse (condemned). False teaching mixed with truth is dangerous.

My youngest son has special needs: he is legally blind, nonverbal, and cognitively delayed (among other things). I NEVER give him meat with bones. If we're having chicken, I give him slices of chicken breast. If we're having pork chops, I always use boneless pork chops. Why? Because he is incapable of discerning that he should not eat the bones. He may bite on the bone and throw it aside, or he may bite on the bone and break a tooth, or he might swallow a bone and choke. Because I am concerned for his well-being and I'm charged with protecting him, I do not give my youngest son meat with bones. A good preacher or teacher will not feed false doctrine to you or mix truth with error because they care about your spiritual well-being.

My problem with the meat/bones metaphor is that it assumes that false teaching is always obvious. Friends, instead of using meat and bones, I'd like to offer a different metaphor to describe the mixing of false teaching with correct teaching: mushrooms. Imagine a bowl of mushrooms on the kitchen counter. Some of the mushrooms are familiar to you because you have probably eaten them, such as: the button mushroom, the oyster mushroom, or the exotic chanterelle mushroom. Other mushrooms in the bowl are not familiar to you. One of them - the jack o'lantern mushroom - looks like the chanterelle, but not quite. The aptly-named destroying angel looks harmless. Still another mushroom, Amanita phalloides or death cap, looks as though it could be just another button mushroom, but it is absolutely deadly. With this bowl of mushrooms in mind, what should you do? Do you:

1. Grab a handful of mushrooms from the bowl and start cooking?
2. Recall that some mushrooms are poisonous and since you can't tell which one is which, you leave the entire bowl alone?
3. Sift through the bowl of mushrooms to find the good ones, confident that you can tell the difference between edible and deadly mushrooms?

The correct answer is #2. You may be able to recognize the edible mushrooms, but if you mistakenly choose a jack o'lantern mushroom thinking it's a chanterelle, you could become ill. If you mistakenly choose a death cap mushroom, you could die. Friends, we should never assume that we can't fall prey to false teaching. False teaching can be way more subtle than meat and bones. False teaching can pose as a harmless edible mushroom, but in fact is a deadly poison. A little bit of error mixed with truth makes the entire teaching false.

So what is the remedy? Read your Bible. Every day. Know what the Bible says about Jesus and about the plan of salvation. Read the Bible's warnings about false teaching and false teachers. (Note: I have linked to OpenBible.info which is a topical Bible search engine. Type in a topic and it will return relevant Bible verses. Use these as a starting point for further Bible reading.) Compare every sermon, every devotional, and every Bible study with God's Word. Also, you should pray and ask God for discernment and wisdom:

"If any of you lacks wisdom, you should ask God, who gives generously to all without finding fault, and it will be given to you." James 1:5 NIV

For further reading on how to recognize a false teacher or false teaching, GotQuestions.org has some helpful articles, such as the one below. May the word of Christ dwell in you richly.

Further Reading: "How can I recognize a false teacher/false prophet?"

What Does the Bible Say?

"See to it that no one takes you captive through hollow and deceptive philosophy, which depends on human tradition and the elemental spiritual forces of this world rather than on Christ." - Colossians 2:8

Christians should get into the habit of asking themselves this question: "What does the Bible say?" Every time you hear a teacher, a preacher, or read a religious or spiritually-sounding meme on Facebook, ask yourself, "What does the Bible have to say about that?" What does the Bible say about joy and happiness? What does the Bible say about pain and suffering? What does the Bible say about who Jesus is? What does the Bible say about there being only one way to God? Why does it matter what the Bible says? Because the Bible is God's word and it is truth. In my opinion, the more of God's truth that we know, the better we will become at filtering out and distinguishing worldly wisdom from Biblical wisdom.

One of my favorite tools is OpenBible.info. Type in a topic that you want to learn more about (like 'false teachers'), and OpenBible.info will retrieve Bible verses related to that topic. Read through each of the verses; better yet, read the verse that comes before and after that verse; better still, read the entire chapter from which that verse is taken; even better, read the entire book in which that verse is found.

I know I'm repeating myself, but take the time to get to know God's word and start reading the Bible today. Absorb God's word like a sponge so that you can squeeze out false teaching and worldly wisdom. May the word of Christ dwell in you richly.

Man's Word vs. God's Word

I have seen this meme on Facebook. When I first read it I thought, "Strange words from a man who claims to lead the church." But in reality, Pope Francis does not lead the Church; he leads the Catholic Church, but that is not the Church. These words are devoid of Biblical truth, and more importantly, they are devoid of the Gospel.

Edit: According to Snopes, this meme is inaccurate. Nevertheless, I will examine each line because many people hold similar beliefs to those expressed in this meme. My goal is to encourage believers to test everything they hear and read using the word of God as the standard.

"See to it that no one takes you captive by philosophy and empty deceit, according to human tradition, according to the elemental spirits of the world, and not according to Christ." - Colossians 2:8

Let's briefly take each line one by one and compare them with God's word. (Note: When I quote a verse from Scripture I have linked it to the entire chapter from which the quote is taken. Ex: Colossians 2:8 is from the second chapter of Colossians, verse 8. I have linked to the entire chapter 2.)



It is not necessary to believe in God to be a good person.

In some ways this is true...if you are comparing yourself to other people. The Bible says that no one is good except God. Therefore, God is the standard for goodness, not other people. His standard is 100% perfection for 100% of the time. There is no one on earth who meets that standard (Romans 3:23). Furthermore, the goal is not to be a good person; the goal is to be saved by faith in Jesus so that the Holy Spirit can begin the sanctifying work to make you more and more like Christ - which will not happen if you do not believe in God. Why in the world would a Christian want to give unbelievers the notion that it's OK to simply be a "good" person?

"You believe that God is one; you do well. Even the demons believe—and shudder!" - James 2:19

"And Jesus said to him, “Why do you call me good? No one is good except God alone." - Mark 10:18

"And without faith it is impossible to please him, for whoever would draw near to God must believe that he exists and that he rewards those who seek him." - Hebrews 11:16

"And we all, with unveiled face, beholding the glory of the Lord, are being transformed into the same image from one degree of glory to another. For this comes from the Lord who is the Spirit."- 2 Corinthians 3:18

In a way, the traditional notion of God is outdated.

I don't really know what this means. What is the traditional notion of God and why is it outdated? Certainly, God's opinion of Himself doesn't change. The apostle John said that God is love. Is that a traditional notion of God that is outdated? It is true that the Bible says that God is a consuming fire (Deut. 4:24) - He cannot and will not tolerate sin because He is love. Yet He is merciful and patient and provides us with every opportunity to repent of our sins and to believe the Good News!

“For I the Lord do not change; therefore you, O children of Jacob, are not consumed." - Malachi 3:6

"Jesus Christ is the same yesterday and today and forever." - Hebrews 13:8

"God is not man, that he should lie, or a son of man, that he should change his mind. Has he said, and will he not do it? Or has he spoken, and will he not fulfill it?" - Numbers 23:19

"Anyone who does not love does not know God, because God is love." -1 John 4:8

"The Lord is not slow to fulfill his promise as some count slowness, but is patient toward you, not wishing that any should perish, but that all should reach repentance." - 2 Peter 3:9

One can be spiritual but not religious.

I used to spout this all the time before I came to Christ. Honestly, I don't even really know what it means, but at the time it sounded good. It is true that we have a spiritual nature. Those who are in Christ will have the Holy Spirit to guide them; unbelievers do not have the Holy Spirit. When you become a Christian (that is when you repent of your sins and trust in Jesus' sacrifice on the cross), you are born again (John 3:3, 1 Peter 1:23), you are a new creation who becomes a citizen of heaven (2 Corinthians 5:17). You will no longer trust in yourself and your power, but you will live your life by faith in Jesus, the Son of God:

"And I will ask the Father, and he will give you another Helper, to be with you forever, even the Spirit of truth, whom the world cannot receive, because it neither sees him nor knows him. You know him, for he dwells with you and will be in you." - John 14:16-17

"Religion that is pure and undefiled before God, the Father, is this: to visit orphans and widows in their affliction, and to keep oneself unstained from the world." - James 1:27

"I have been crucified with Christ. It is no longer I who live, but Christ who lives in me. And the life I now live in the flesh I live by faith in the Son of God, who loved me and gave himself for me." - Galatians 2:20

Further reading: http://www.gotquestions.org/religion-spirituality.html


It is not necessary to go to church and give money - for many, nature can be a church.

This demonstrates a lack of understanding about what the church is. The church is not a building nor is it nature. The church is the Body of Christ - those believers who have put their faith in the finished work of Christ's perfect sacrifice on the cross. Believers gladly meet together to encourage each other and most importantly, to worship and glorify God together:

"For as in one body we have many members,and the members do not all have the same function, so we, though many, are one body in Christ, and individually members one of another." - Romans 12:4-5

"Built on the foundation of the apostles and prophets, Christ Jesus himself being the cornerstone, in whom the whole structure, being joined together, grows into a holy temple in the Lord. In him you also are being built together into a dwelling place for God by the Spirit." -  Ephesians 2:20-22

"And let us consider how to stir up one another to love and good works, not neglecting to meet together, as is the habit of some, but encouraging one another, and all the more as you see the Day drawing near." - Hebrews 10:24-25

Some of the best people in history did not believe in God, while some of the worst deeds were done in His name.

Who are these "best people in history"? Name some names. The problem with this statement is the same as the first statement in that it is using other people as the standard for goodness. Additionally, no matter what these "best people" accomplished, they were still dead in their sins if they were not in Christ:

"Jesus said to him, 'I am the way, and the truth, and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me.' " - John 14:6

I agree with the latter part of the statement that horrible things were done in the name of God, but the people who did these things were not of God. The Bible also speaks of these pretenders and deceivers:

"They will put you out of the synagogues. Indeed, the hour is coming when whoever kills you will think he is offering service to God." - John 16:2

"I appeal to you, brothers, to watch out for those who cause divisions and create obstacles contrary to the doctrine that you have been taught; avoid them. For such persons do not serve our Lord Christ, but their own appetites, and by smooth talk and flattery they deceive the hearts of the naive." - Romans 16:17-18

Why do atheists and non-Christians like Pope Francis? Because the pope is speaking their language, which is the language of the world and not of God:

"They are from the world; therefore they speak from the world, and the world listens to them." - 1 John 4:5

"Jesus said to them, “My time has not yet come, but your time is always here. The world cannot hate you, but it hates me because I testify about it that its works are evil." - John 7:6-7

Dear brothers and sisters in Christ, please test all things using the word of God as the standard not the words of men. May the word of Christ dwell in you richly.

If You Say "I'm Christian, But I'm Not...", Then You're Not

Originally posted on Soak the Beans on 9/15/2015.


This video is a perfect example of what compromise and friendship with the world looks like.

"You adulterous people, don’t you know that friendship with the world means enmity against God? Therefore, anyone who chooses to be a friend of the world becomes an enemy of God." (James 4:4)

                                                      

                                                                        
This video is full of error and here are some reasons why:

1) If you're a Christian, you better be prepared to talk more about Jesus than yourself. Before you can do that, however, you better familiarize yourself with some of Jesus' words such as these:

“If the world hates you, know that it has hated me before it hated you. If you were of the world, the world would love you as its own; but because you are not of the world, but I chose you out of the world, therefore the world hates you." (John 15:18-19)

2) This is what happens when you rely on your own opinion instead of God's word: you make it all about you. God's word is recorded in the Bible. Because it is God's word, the Bible is the standard by which Christians determine correct doctrine. Our opinions count for nothing. If you disagree with what is written, then either you or God is mistaken. (Hint: It's not God.)

"There is a way that seems right to man, but in the end leads to death."(Proverbs 14:12)

3) It is obvious these young people have no clue about who Jesus is and what he did. Not one time do they quote from Scripture to back up what they say. There is no talk of Jesus taking our sins - in fact, there is no mention of sin at all - upon himself and dying on the cross nor is there talk of his victorious resurrection. There is no mention of the Gospel, which is the entire reason for being a Christian. In other words, these young people have not said anything that would set them apart from unbelievers. They have RELIGION, not a RELATIONSHIP with Jesus. If they do not repent and get to know the real Jesus, they will one day hear these terrifying words of Jesus:

“Not everyone who says to me, ‘Lord, Lord,’ will enter the kingdom of heaven, but the one who does the will of my Father who is in heaven. On that day many will say to me, ‘Lord, Lord, did we not prophesy in your name, and cast out demons in your name, and do many mighty works in your name?’ And then will I declare to them, ‘I never knew you; depart from me, you workers of lawlessness.’ (Matt 7:21-23)

Friends,  get to know the real Jesus. Get to know what Jesus really said. The Gospel of John is an excellent place to start. If you don't have your own Bible, go to Bible Gateway.

For the record, a Christian is someone who:

• Believes that Jesus is the Messiah, the Son of the living God. (Matthew 16:16)
• Believes that Jesus is the only way to heaven. (Acts 4:11-12) (John 14:6)
• Has repented of their sins. (Luke 13:4-5) 
• Understands that the wages of sin is death (Romans 6:23), and acknowledges that Jesus died on the cross in their place, thereby paying the penalty for their sin. (1 Peter 2:24)
• Believes that Jesus was raised from the dead. (Mark 16:5-8)
• Is a new creation. (2 Corinthians 5:17) 
• Is being sanctified by God so that they will be like Christ and not be defined by sin. (2 Peter 1:2-4)
• Is nothing without Jesus. (John 15:1-4)
• Knows that they did nothing to earn their salvation - it is the free gift of God. (Ephesians 2:8-9) (John 3:16)
• Gladly preaches the gospel so that others may be saved. (Matthew 28:16-20)