2 Peter 2:1 ₁But false prophets also arose among the people, just as there will also be false teachers among you, who will secretly introduce destructive heresies, even denying the Master who bought them, bringing swift destruction upon themselves.

I went to a good solid, Bible preaching church early this morning, and was fed a good message. I also attended the Bible study lesson. However, I also chose to later go to yet the Word/Faith (WOF) church, Living Water Ministries Inc. of Vero Beach, FL I had once attended. I don’t know why I continue to visit this WOF church. I tell myself it’s as if I’m in the mission field. I should listen the Apostle Paul:

Romans 16:17-18 ₁₇Now I urge you, brethren, keep your eye on those who cause dissensions and hindrances contrary to the teaching which you learned, and turn away from them.
₁₈For such men are slaves, not of our Lord Christ but of their own appetites; and by their smooth and flattering speech they deceive the hearts of the unsuspecting. [emphasis mine]

I want to go through a few things I noted in today’s message that are false teachings so if anyone else runs into these messages, you will know they are deceiving spirits.

The first thing that always concerns me at this WOF church, is the complete lack of Biblical Scripture reference. The preacher, Irwin McDanial may say, “God says…” or “this is what the Bible says,” without a book, chapter and verse to back things up. This makes discernment difficult even for someone who is well-read in Scripture because of loosely worded paraphrasing. At times, some errors and abberrant teachings are so obvious, anyone who has learned basic Christian doctrine will know when things are not true.

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Jesus Died Twice
I covered this heresy previously, but it keeps coming up so I will touch on it again briefly. It was stated today that, “Jesus died [spiritually] in the Garden of Gethsemane” before dying on the cross. It simply is not true!

Hebrews 10:10 ₁₀By this will we have been sanctified through the offering of the body of Jesus Christ once for all.

1 Peter 3:18 For Christ also died for sins once for all, the just for the unjust, so that He might bring us to God, having been put to death in the flesh, but made alive in the spirit; [emphasis mine]

And we know from scripture when Jesus’ spirit left his physical body just before breathing his last breath:

Luke 23:46 And when Jesus had cried with a loud voice, he said, Father, into thy hands I commend my spirit: and having said thus, he gave up the ghost.

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Run after the Devil??
Another disturbing statement that was preached today was that we should, “run to the devil”, and to, “chase after satan” to fight him. Many times in Scripture we are told to flee, run away, and avoid evil.

Job 28:28 “And to man He said, ‘Behold, the fear of the Lord, that is wisdom; And to depart from evil is understanding.’”

Proverbs 1:16 For their feet run to evil, and make haste to shed blood.

Jeremiah 51:6 Flee out of the midst of Babylon, and deliver every man his soul: be not cut off in her iniquity; for this is the time of the LORD’s vengeance; he will render unto her a recompence.

2 Timothy 2:22 Flee also youthful lusts: but follow righteousness, faith, charity, peace, with them that call on the Lord out of a pure heart.

James 4:7 Submit therefore to God Resist the devil and he will flee from you.

1 Corinthians 10:14 Wherefore, my dearly beloved, flee from idolatry.

And finally, Instead of focusing on defeating the Devil, we should focus on following Christ.

Hebrews 12:2 fixing our eyes on Jesus, the author and perfecter of faith, who for the joy set before Him endured the cross, despising the shame, and has sat down at the right hand of the throne of God.

How NOT to Engage in Spiritual Warfare
The ultimate example of how not to engage in spiritual warfare was the seven sons of Sceva? “A team of Jews who were traveling from town to town casting out evil spirits tried to use the name of the Lord Jesus. The incantation they used was this: “I command you by Jesus, whom Paul preaches, to come out!” Seven sons of Sceva, a leading priest, were doing this. But when they tried it on a man possessed by an evil spirit, the spirit replied, “I know Jesus, and I know Paul. But who are you?” And he leaped on them and attacked them with such violence that they fled from the house, naked and badly injured. (Acts 19:13-16). What was the problem? The seven sons of Sceva were using Jesus’ Name. That is not enough. The seven sons of Sceva did not have a relationship with Jesus, therefore their words were void of any power or authority. The seven sons of Sceva were relying on a methodology. They were not relying on Jesus, and were not employing the Word of God in their spiritual warfare. As a result, they received a humiliating beating. May we learn from their bad example, and conduct spiritual warfare as the Bible describes. (Paragraph source:GotQuestions.org)

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Give Your Tithe, Or Else…
In the tradition of the WOF televangelists, an often misused verse is given to make people feel guilty and obligated to give money to the church, even if it forgoes your bills.

Malachi 3:8 Will a man rob God? Yet ye have robbed me. But ye say, Wherein have we robbed thee? In tithes and offerings.

Remember, pray, and seek your answers to tithing from God. Do not give expecting anything in return. Remember, Jesus said:

Matt 19:24 And again I say unto you, It is easier for a camel to go through the eye of a needle, than for a rich man to enter into the kingdom of God.

And finally, your giving should be done cheerfully, not under pressure to be like everyone else (envy), for greed, or any other motive than to further the Kingdom of God.

2 Corinthians 9:7 Every man according as he purposeth in his heart, so let him give; not grudgingly, or of necessity: for God loveth a cheerful giver.

Well, that’s all for today. There was more such as the false health and healing teachings of the WOF movement. This has been covered in this article.

God bless.