False Prophets

False Prophets

False prophets come to us as tests from the Lord.

Deuteronomy 13:1-5

“If a prophet or a dreamer of dreams arises among you and gives you a sign or a wonder, and the sign or wonder that he tells you comes to pass, and if he says, ‘Let us go after other gods,’ which you have not known, ‘and let us serve them,’ you shall not listen to the words of that prophet or that dreamer of dreams. For the LORD your God is testing you, to know whether you love the LORD your God with all your heart and with all your soul. You shall walk after the LORD your God and fear him and keep his commandments and obey his voice, and you shall serve him and hold fast to him. But that prophet or that dreamer of dreams shall be put to death, because he has taught rebellion against the LORD your God, who brought you out of the land of Egypt and redeemed you out of the house of slavery, to make you leave the way in which the LORD your God commanded you to walk. So you shall purge the evil from your midst.”

Galatians 1:8, 9

In spite of these many warnings, Israel would frequently be tempted to follow other practices in worship than those commanded by the Lord. What kinds of things would lead them to ignore the plain and clear revelation of God and begin to do exactly the opposite of what He commanded?

Charismatic and persuasive prophets would provide temptations to disobey the Lord. Men who can speak well, accomplish impressive works, and cast alluring visions may be just the sort to lead the people of God away from the true worship of the Lord.

It has always been thus, and is today. How many people in our own day have left off caring about true worship and the Gospel of the Kingdom to follow some charismatic individual in pursuit of health, wealth, or other false gospels?

We become vulnerable when we leave off hiding the Word of God in our heart and making the Law of God the touchstone in all our ways.

But the people of God need such false prophets to arise from time to time. By them the Lord sharpens our discernment, fortifies obedience, and enables us to prove and improve love for Him.

We pass these tests when we examine all we hear by the whole counsel of God in Scripture (Acts 17:11) and hold fast only to the ways of the Lord. Each act of obedience makes us stronger, but we must maintain constant vigilance, for false prophets can be very persuasive.

Do not expect false prophets to announce themselves as such. They will use the language of the Kingdom and the Gospel to press their visions and schemes. We must be vigilant, discerning, and in touch with the great heritage of Christian belief in order to know which voices to heed and which, because they foment rebellion against God, must be suppressed.

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In the Gates is a devotional series on the Law of God by Rev. T.M. Moore, editor of the Worldview Church. He serves as dean of the Centurions Program of the Wilberforce Forum and principal of The Fellowship of Ailbe, a spiritual fellowship in the Celtic Christian tradition. He is the author or editor of twenty books, and has contributed chapters to four others. His essays, reviews, articles, papers, and poetry have appeared in dozens of national and international journals, and on a wide range of websites. His most recent books are The Ailbe Psalter and The Ground for Christian Ethics (Waxed Tablet).

Scripture quotations in this article are from The Holy Bible, English Standard Version, (c) copyright 2001, 2007 by Crossway Bibles, a division of Good News Publishers. Used by permission. All rights reserved.