Why Do So Many Follow False Teachers? | Matthew 24:23-24

[00:00:00] [SPEAKER_00]: Real Truth Daily. This is Daily Truths with Dave Ahlman.

[00:00:07] [SPEAKER_01]: Hi everybody, welcome back to Daily Truths. Why do so many people today turn to false

[00:00:13] [SPEAKER_01]: Christ and false prophets who give false teaching? Why is that? I'll answer that

[00:00:19] [SPEAKER_01]: question here in just a minute but Jesus talked about this in his day and

[00:00:24] [SPEAKER_01]: those false Christ and false prophets have continued to appear in every

[00:00:28] [SPEAKER_01]: generation all the way up until now and Jesus is warning us, don't listen to

[00:00:33] [SPEAKER_01]: them, don't follow them. But look at what it says here in verse 23 and 24 that if

[00:00:39] [SPEAKER_01]: anyone says to you, look here is a Christ or there he is do not believe it. We

[00:00:43] [SPEAKER_01]: talked about when Jesus comes back everybody's gonna know it so when

[00:00:46] [SPEAKER_01]: somebody says I'm the Christ unless everybody recognizes him as such on

[00:00:51] [SPEAKER_01]: planet earth he's a false Christ and we've talked about that before. Then

[00:00:55] [SPEAKER_01]: verse 24 for false Christ and false prophets will arise and perform great

[00:00:59] [SPEAKER_01]: signs and wonders in every generation there have been false Christ and false

[00:01:04] [SPEAKER_01]: prophets who perform signs and wonders. Where did they get that power? From God?

[00:01:09] [SPEAKER_01]: No, from Satan, from the magic arts. And so Jesus is saying hey this is

[00:01:14] [SPEAKER_01]: gonna happen in every generation don't be deceived, don't be tormented, don't

[00:01:19] [SPEAKER_01]: be led astray by these people. They are false Christ and false teachers so it

[00:01:25] [SPEAKER_01]: says here in verse 24 for false Christ and false prophets will arise and

[00:01:29] [SPEAKER_01]: perform great signs and wonders so as to lead astray of possible even the

[00:01:33] [SPEAKER_01]: elect. It's not possible for those who are chosen by God before the

[00:01:37] [SPEAKER_01]: foundation of the world the elect to fall away from the faith. Why is

[00:01:42] [SPEAKER_01]: that? Because they're firmly grounded in the Word of God. Now they might

[00:01:48] [SPEAKER_01]: be thinking about well maybe that is the Christ but if they're firmly

[00:01:51] [SPEAKER_01]: grounded in the Word of God and they're chosen by God to be one of his

[00:01:54] [SPEAKER_01]: precious people it's not possible for them to fall away. So here's the

[00:01:58] [SPEAKER_01]: question I want to talk about today. Why is it that so many people are

[00:02:06] [SPEAKER_01]: led astray by false Christ and false prophets? I want you to think

[00:02:13] [SPEAKER_01]: about that. There's three reasons. Number one immediate gratification. We

[00:02:18] [SPEAKER_01]: live in a world where people want to have their problems solved right and

[00:02:23] [SPEAKER_01]: these charlatans will oftentimes give that to people they'll say oh if you come

[00:02:28] [SPEAKER_01]: to the Lord, if you come to this teaching that I'm giving you about God

[00:02:32] [SPEAKER_01]: all your problems will fade away and everything will fall into place and

[00:02:36] [SPEAKER_01]: you won't have any difficulties anymore and when that doesn't happen

[00:02:39] [SPEAKER_01]: at least these charlatans can say we'll help you feel better. That's the second

[00:02:44] [SPEAKER_01]: reason why so many people are torn away from God through the teachings of

[00:02:49] [SPEAKER_01]: false prophets and false Christ. Hey if their problems aren't taken away

[00:02:53] [SPEAKER_01]: at least we can teach you how to deal with your problems better so that you

[00:02:56] [SPEAKER_01]: feel better about yourself and feel better about the things that are

[00:03:00] [SPEAKER_01]: happening around you. And the third reason these people are oftentimes

[00:03:04] [SPEAKER_01]: torn away by false Christ and false teachings of false prophets is this.

[00:03:10] [SPEAKER_01]: They're not firmly grounded in the teachings of the Word of God so they can't

[00:03:14] [SPEAKER_01]: recognize truth from error and when they hear error if they don't recognize it

[00:03:19] [SPEAKER_01]: compared to the Word of God they are easily deceived. So let's talk about this.

[00:03:25] [SPEAKER_01]: Immediate gratification. When we become believers in Jesus Christ do we have all

[00:03:31] [SPEAKER_01]: our problems solved? No. As a matter of fact Jesus said we must through much

[00:03:36] [SPEAKER_01]: tribulation enter the kingdom of heaven. Christianity is not a way out of life

[00:03:42] [SPEAKER_01]: it is a way through life and when problems come our way

[00:03:45] [SPEAKER_01]: we have the presence and power and peace of Jesus Christ

[00:03:49] [SPEAKER_01]: to sustain us and see us through right. And talking about feeling better

[00:03:55] [SPEAKER_01]: is Christianity there to make us feel better about ourselves?

[00:04:00] [SPEAKER_01]: I tell you what nothing makes me feel better than to know that my sins which I've

[00:04:05] [SPEAKER_01]: offended a holy God with are forgiven for the sake of Christ's suffering and death

[00:04:10] [SPEAKER_01]: on the cross in my behalf. And talk about feeling better knowing indeed that at

[00:04:15] [SPEAKER_01]: the end of life I'm going to spend eternity with the Lord Jesus Christ

[00:04:19] [SPEAKER_01]: and when Christ comes back my body is going to be raised

[00:04:22] [SPEAKER_01]: and body and soul be with Jesus forever that makes me feel better

[00:04:29] [SPEAKER_01]: because it's not easy down here living on planet earth right?

[00:04:33] [SPEAKER_01]: And thirdly we need to be firmly entrenched in the truth of God's Word

[00:04:38] [SPEAKER_01]: so that when we hear errors and contradictions do the Word

[00:04:43] [SPEAKER_01]: we can easily recognize it as such and go a different direction.

[00:04:48] [SPEAKER_01]: Let me give you an example of that in Acts chapter 17 Paul and Silas were preaching

[00:04:52] [SPEAKER_01]: in a place called Berea and the Bereans were very entrenched in the Old Testament

[00:04:57] [SPEAKER_01]: Scriptures and so they compared with Paul and Silas were saying to the Old

[00:05:02] [SPEAKER_01]: Testament Scriptures and because they were firmly grounded in the Word of God

[00:05:06] [SPEAKER_01]: they knew that Paul and Silas were speaking truth.

[00:05:10] [SPEAKER_01]: My friends if we are firmly grounded in the Word of God when we hear

[00:05:14] [SPEAKER_01]: error and contradiction by false teachers and false Christ will easily recognize it as such

[00:05:20] [SPEAKER_01]: because we're firmly grounded in the teachings of God's Word.

[00:05:25] [SPEAKER_01]: So there you go false Christ false prophets are all around us they're not here to take away

[00:05:34] [SPEAKER_01]: our problems although they think they can they're not here to make us feel better

[00:05:38] [SPEAKER_01]: although they think they will they are here to try to lead us astray.

[00:05:44] [SPEAKER_01]: And the best thing I can tell you is continue to listen to daily truths go to a church that teaches

[00:05:51] [SPEAKER_01]: the purity of God's Word both law and gospel and continue to have devotions in your own life

[00:05:59] [SPEAKER_01]: so that you are firmly entrenched in the Word of God and can readily recognize

[00:06:04] [SPEAKER_01]: errors when you hear it. And that is today's Daily Truth have a great day in the Lord Jesus Christ.