False miracle workers, a study of 2 Peter Chapter 2.                     By Pastor Sam Oluoch (GBC-K)

In our country Kenya, we were recently treated to a drama of a ‘pastor miracle worker’ who claims that he has the power to pray away sickness of all kinds as well as the ability to sort out people’s problems whatever nature they may be. Well, the TV coverage he was given later revealed and broadcasted to the entire nation his tricks on the purported healings. In short, it was revealed by the news media that the pastor in question had in fact colluded with prostitutes who would fake and act deformity and receive the purported healings through his ministry of prayer. One of the deals went sour when he refused to pay a prostitute her cut of the deal and she decided to spill the beans to the entire nation through the media. Later the former wife to this pastor also came up on TV to affirm the claims of the prostitute against the pastor. This saga came hot in the heels of the infamous miracle babies from another Kenyan preacher who has purported to have the power to help barren women give birth miraculously. His wife was subsequently jailed for being an accomplice to the said crime while he himself is currently a fugitive in Britain.

Why do I take the trouble to bring this matter to our church blog? It is to warn and alert our readers that ‘certain men whose condemnation was written about long ago have secretly slipped in among you. They are godless men, who change the grace of God into a license for immorality and deny Jesus Christ our only Sovereign and Lord.’ (Jude 4). Apostle Peter addresses the same matter in 2^nd Peter Chapter 2.

Christianity is the only religion in the world that is of a great threat to the Devil and he has sworn to fight it right from the day that our Saviour the Lord Jesus Christ was born under the watch of Herod. After Christ’s work of saving mankind was done and He ascended to glory above, the church has continued to experience persecutions and heresies both designed by the devil to derail this glorious faith. These attacks on the church continue to this very day just as much as it was in the days of Jude and Peter. The duo did not just sit back and watch as the enemy was devouring this faith through its agents during their time. Rebuffing them was such an urgent matter to Jude that he had to change his mind from writing to his readers about ‘the salvation we share’ (Jude 3) to urging them to contend for the true faith that had been taught to them. Christian faith must be protected and preserved for it to remain as pure as the apostles passed it on to us. However, some elements will always be found amongst the faithful who claim to contend for the old faith but are surely wolves in sheep’s clothing. Apostle Peter and Jude give us some tips on finding them out. Here I list some which have caught my eye from reading both their letters (2Peter2 and Jude).

What characterises the false teachers. (2 Peter 2: 1)

a)      They love titles. They will quickly acquire titles for themselves and normally they are titles that have claim to higher offices. It does not matter to them that they are false holders of these offices. Simply put, self acquired titles and offices. God did not call them to such an office. Such titles include “Apostle”, “Prophet”, “Archbishop”, “Doctor”, and other such high sounding titles.

b)      Their modus operandi. They secretly move into unsuspecting congregation having begun as humble ‘men of God’. This makes it hard for the congregants to detect their schemes unless the congregation is extra vigilant. They love to trump up stories which cannot be verified and their life styles deny the very faith they purport to preach. Peter basically calls this ‘denying the Lord Jesus’. This they do by both what they preach and their life style (see 2 Peter 13ff).

c)       They clearly exhibit greed (Vs.3), arrogance (Vs. 10-12, 18) and despise and reject any authority over them. Normally they are an authority to themselves not only in their churches but at home as well. In fact their churches belong to them and not to Jesus Christ who died for His church (Acts 20:28).

Result of their evil ways. (2 Peter 2:2).

a)      Since people love to be cheated by fantasies, love not to engage their brains on issues that appear pleasing from the surface, these false miracle workers capitalise on this and generally end up with a large following. 2 Peter 2: 18ff nails it on the head by showing us how they take advantage of man’s already desperate state. They appear to be providing what the sinful desires in man look for but in real sense they provide nothing.

b)      Their ministry is empty and nourishes not spiritually (and even physically). They are described ‘as springs without water and mist driven by wind’ Verse 17-19. When these verses are interpreted spiritually they warn us that if one is after real spiritual nourishment, he /she should never step in to such a minister’s domain for one will come out with nothing and in the end be sent to hell together with the false teachers.

c)       Sadly, the result of these men’s evil work makes the genuine work of Christ suffer ridicule in the eyes of many people (Verse 2).

Their end.

As faithful Christians see these evil men carrying the day in Christianity, many have wondered and asked: ‘Where is God? Can’t he deal with such men straight on? My friends be consoled. God is not  asleep. His patience/long suffering gives abundant time for these men to repent. If they will not, God will definitely judge them. This is what is promised them in Verses 10-13. Throughout the history of the church God has consistently demonstrated that His eyes are not closed to these evils in the land. First, it was the rebellion of the angels and they were punished. Then when sin filled the earth during Noah’s time, judgment came in the form of floods. Not to mention Sodom and Gomorrah. These men will surely not escape the watchful eyes of God upon his beloved church (Verse 12). They will be judged and a warning here to their followers is that they will also be judged alongside their false prophets and teachers and ‘miracle workers’ whom they enthusiastically follow. God is not a respecter of persons-not even titles.

What should be a Christian’s response to this?

Fight back? Throw insults at them? No!

When Jude addressed a similar situation like did Peter, he says in verse 3 ‘I urge you to contend for the faith that was once and for all entrusted to the saints.’ See also 1Timothy 4:1-2, 11-16. The word is CONTEND. Fight for it, defend it, and uphold it even in the midst of these confusions.

In the world of today, people despise old things and are in earnest to develop new ideas that are quickly acceptable to the world. Vogue is the word. I here urge Christians not to be ashamed in following the old paths that the Apostles walked and faithful saints of the past walked. I remember one time when a friend challenged my wife on singing ‘old’ hymns like ‘On a hill far away stood an old rugged Cross’ saying that is an old, in fact out of place song for modern Christians. Aha, I wonder how old our Holy Book the Bible is, at this rate, it is not relevant to Christians of today. Perish the thought! Jude says, ‘contend for the faith that was once and for all entrusted to the saints’ this is the faith that Christian martyrs gave their lives for. Stand by it. It is the faith that upholds Christ Jesus and debases His ministers. This faith will never grow old nor run out of fashion for those who care.

It follows without saying that every Christian needs to take his faith seriously and get down and know the Bible well. Ignorance of the Bible has been the greatest undoing of many Christians today leaving them open to the tricks of ‘miracle workers.’ Know the claims of the Bible and its demands and be alert to the tricks of the devil. Equally get to know who is pastoring you well and follow not false prophets. Do not depend on euphoria, this is normally dangerous. Be wary of anything that by passes your brain faculty and appears ready to offer a quick fix to your troubles.

Secondly: In Verse 23 of Jude we are called upon not just to sit back and watch the people of God falling prey to the false teachers but to go out of our way to snatch them from such ministries. Stand for the truth and tell it openly and clearly to the victims of these men. Give them a clear biblical alternative. Be bold and snatch them from the burning house they are in.

Thirdly: We are to keep ourselves safe from such conman-ship, Jude points us to ‘Him who is able to keep you from falling and to present you before his precious presence without fault and with great joy.’ (Verse 24). Look to God, serve him faithfully and render to Him His ‘glory, majesty, power, and authority, through Jesus Christ our Lord, before all ages, now and forevermore.’(Verse 25). He is the best shepherd of your soul, look to Him alone and anything that does not glorify His holy name and uphold his majesty must be rejected. The centrality of our faith is Christ and he alone, not miracles. Finally, may I uphold the good shepherd here as Ezekiel sees him and rebukes false shepherds of his time.

‘Therefore, you shepherds, hear the word of the Lord: As surely as I live, declares the Sovereign Lord, because my flock lacks a shepherd and so has been plundered and has become food for all the wild animals, and because my shepherds did not search for my flock but cared for themselves rather than for my flock, therefore, O shepherds, hear the word of the LORD: This is what the Sovereign LORD says: I am against the shepherds and will hold them accountable for my flock. I will remove them from tending the flock so that the shepherds can no longer feed themselves. I will recue my flock from their mouths, and it will no longer be food for them (Ezekiel 34:7-10).

Amen.