Christ's Warning

Jesus provided information vital to his disciples if they wished to avoid deceptions from false prophets, false apostles, and other deceivers.

The final sermon given by Jesus while on the Mount of Olives repeatedly warns his followers about the “many deceivers” and “false prophets” who will labor within the Church to mislead them, among other things, by spreading false information about his return and the end of the age. Constant vigilance is vital for avoiding deception and apostasy.

The Church has been plagued by false teachers and their deceptions since its inception. The early church struggled with pagan philosophies like Neoplatonism and Gnosticism, as well as Judaizing efforts.

[Photo by Johannes Plenio on Unsplash]

It remains the same today, only the details and identities of the deceptions vary over time, and technological innovations provide new methods and venues for deceivers to propagate their falsehoods.

Now, we must battle against New Age Mysticism in our congregations, the so-called ‘Bridal Paradigm’, Dispensationalism, the Word of Faith teaching, an army of false prophets and self-anointed apostles, “howling imposters<…> deceiving and being deceived”- (2 Timothy 3:13).

Jesus began his sermon with a stern warning: “Beware lest anyone deceive you.” Liars and charlatans would come in his name and “deceive many,” likewise, “many false prophets” and not just a few. Deceivers would target God’s “elect,” and Christ’s stress was on the term “many” - (Matthew 24:4-11, 24:23-24, 24:26).

The contents of these deceptive teachings include false information about the return of the “Son of Man.” False prophets will claim that he “is here” or “there,” or that he is “in the wilderness” or “in the secret chamber.” They will set false expectations about the imminence of Christ’s return, claiming that the “season is near” - (Matthew 24:23-26, Luke 21:8).

Disciples will “hear of wars and reports of wars,” and deceivers will point to conflicts between nations, earthquakes, and similar calamities as “signs” of the rapidly approaching “end.”

Wars, seismic activities, and famines occur with regularity; however, they are not indicators of the nearness of Christ’s return. Jesus classified them as “birth pains,” evidence of the inevitable end of the present age. Nevertheless, the “end is not yet.” Such regular events cannot be used to calculate the timing of the end - (Matthew 24:4-6).

GOD ALONE KNOWS

The Son of God warned his followers that “no one knows the day or hour, neither the angels of the heavens nor the Son, except the Father alone.” The term “alone” is emphatic in the Greek sentence. The Father is the only exception to the rule. Men and women who claim to know that day’s timing are liars. Jesus repeated this warning at least four times.

Moreover, believers cannot know “on what kind of day” the Son of Man will come. Christ is coming “at an hour you do not expect.” The version of this saying in the Book of Mark adds that we do not know “when the season is” - (Matthew 24:42-44, 24:50, 25:13, Mark 13:32-35).

Dispensationalism justifies its claims about the imminent return of Jesus by arguing that Christ said we could not know the “precise day or hour” of his coming, but we can know the “general season.” This is false logic, arguing from what someone did not say (‘argument from silence’). More importantly, Jesus said explicitly that we cannot know the “season” of his arrival in glory, the ‘kairos’ (καιρος).

Jesus warned his disciples again just before his Ascension. They asked when he would restore the kingdom. Christ replied, “It is not for you to know times or seasons, which the Father has put in His own authority.” The Greek nouns translated as “times” and “seasons” are plural, and they cover every way we may wish to delimit time - (Acts 1:7-8).

Rather than decode prophetic timetables, we must concern ourselves with proclaiming the Gospel to the nations, the mission assigned to us by our Sovereign. Until he appears, we are tasked with preaching the Gospel, and we must remain prepared for his sudden arrival because we do not know the timing of that last day - (Matthew 24:14, 24:42-44, 25:13, Mark 13:32-36).

Jesus did not provide us with a timetable for calculating the timing of his return. However, he certainly did give clear and emphatic warnings about deceivers who will plague his followers, a reality that will continue for the entire period between his resurrection and his “coming on the clouds of Heaven.” Therefore, we must “beware lest anyone deceives us!”

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SEE ALSO:

• Misdirection and Apostasy - (Believers watching for apostasy to occur outside the Church will miss the real thing since it is operating stealthily inside our congregations)

• Howling Imposters - (The New Testament repeatedly warns of coming deceivers and false prophets who will cause many to depart from the faith)

• The Spirit of Antichrist - (The Antichrist Spirit works to destroy the church from within, especially through deception propagated by false teachers and other deceivers – 1 John 2:18-22)

• L'avertissement du Christ - (Jésus a fourni des informations vitales à ses disciples s'ils voulaient éviter les tromperies des faux prophètes, des faux apôtres et d'autres trompeurs)