Signs of Apostasy.

The scriptures tells us that in the last days that 'many will depart from the faith' and that they will 'accumulate for themselves teachers in accordance to their own desires' (1 Timothy 4: 1; 2 Timothy 4: 3). And the inevitable result we are told and which we see is that they will turn away from the truth and adhere to lies and falsehoods. It is a sad reality which proves that not every person who attends a service who claims to be a Christ truly is one. It could be that they are innocent or simply trying to sow discord; we may never know truthfully. How is it possible to discern such a thing and correctly identify the issue? While it is true that we may never know the persons heart motive; still there is a chance to call out the error in order to protect others from them as we go along. We can often detect some things which will lend to the bigger picture; and gives us biblical warrant to correct the matter before it is too late. 

Here what I want to do is give the broad sweep and show the more explicit areas that we should take note of. Often most errors fall under three denials. 

The Authority of Scriptures

Now the first clear evidence that a group has abandoned the faith will be their position on scriptures. For example, they may state that they hold to the scripture; but there will be subtle ways in which they deny it authority. Either they will out right reject it by place other works on the same level; and therefore, subjugate them by it or they will make two statement that contradict one another such as: "we believe and hold to the authority of scripture."  and then later  "we do not allow any member to be free spirited and look into scriptures as they come to believe thing that were believed by those outside one hundred years ago." (watchtower) It is a clever bit manipulation that begin the indoctrination into a false ideology. Now let us see what the scriptures have to say themselves.

In Matthew 15 (and Mark 7) we have this important interaction between the religious elite and our Lord Jesus Christ beginning at verse 1: 

Then some Pharisees and scribes came to Jesus from Jerusalem and said, “Why do Your disciples break the tradition of the elders? For they do not wash their hands when they eat bread.” And He answered and said to them, “Why do you yourselves also break the commandment of God for the sake of your tradition? For God said, ‘Honour your father and mother,’ and, ‘The one who speaks evil of father or mother is to be put to death.’ But you say, ‘Whoever says to his father or mother, “Whatever I have that would help you has been given to God,” he is not to honour his father or mother.’ And by this you have invalidated the word of God for the sake of your tradition. 

Let take note of the context; for we are dealing with an incident that involved the Disciples of our Lord  who did not follow "the tradition of the elders" as found in the the Jewish extra-biblical teaching such as the Mishnah. And therefore, it has no divine authority even if they held to the idea that it did as we see from the Lord's answer and question posed to them 'why do you break the commandment of God for the sake of your traditions?" Look at that question for it reveals something about their practice, they held their own extra-biblical tradition to a higher degree than the God-breathed Word. And that alone showed just how far these usurpers had fallen. But likewise showed just far they were willing to taken their victims down their path of deceit. And we will find no discernible difference between this and today's situation. All usurpers of this day do the same thing.

Now let us notice something that Mark's account adds to this matter: 'you no longer allow him to do anything for his father or his mother;  thereby invalidating the word of God by your tradition which you have handed down; and you do many things such as that.” (Mk. 7:12-13) In doing what they did they rendered the Word inoperative in the lives of those under them; and in the same way, many who do not truly live an obedient life by the scriptures do the same thing as well. And those of us today who hold to the authority of scriptures under the slogan 'sola scriptura' do so because it is the most consistent position for it is what Christians in the past believed in and held to and taught.  Mark also make it clear that Christ and His authoritative Word can not be set aside for man approval (Mk. 8: 34-38)  And to put in the words of John MacArthur:

The outworking of God’s authority in Scripture: It is not derived authority bestowed by humans; rather, it is the original authority of God. It does not change with the times, the culture, the nation, or the ethnic background; rather, it is the unalterable authority of God.  

The bottom line is simple: the Holy bible has a inherent authority as the sole infallible truth of God because it came from God Himself as we are told (2 Timothy 3:14-17; 2 Peter 1:19-21). And because it cannot be broken; or to put that another way, it has this divinely revealed binding power which means that its message transcend time and space, we understand it speaks to people in every generation (John 10:35; Matthew 22 29-32). But we also know that both the testaments hold the same divine command and must be obeyed because God spoken by both mean: first the prophets of Old; His Son in the last days (Heb. 1:1-2). But it does not end their: the Christian life is one that has foundation and very outworking on the authoritative truth in scriptures (John 17: 17-19; Luke 11:27-28)

 And what must we do to ensure we stay on the right path and never fall away  "test all spirits" "test all prophecies" (1 John 4:1-6; 1 Thessalonians 5). This also means that we have to know what the truth is:  compare the new word with the already established Word for authenticity (Acts 17:11-15). And both the New and Old are the only sure foundation for testing all things. Let us thank God.

The Reality of the Trinity 

Let us come to the second area which these people willing reject and that is the nature and being of God; and Him being Triune.  And it may come in many different manners; but it can often be boiled down to this kind objection:  "the bible never speaks of God being tri-personal; and in fact, it goes out of its way to express that his is one both n his being and person."  Is such an objection valid? Does it actually capture all that the scriptures teach? Let it be known that this is a weak objection because it has at the heart of one fundamental flaw. And this this: it does not allow scriptures to define its own teaching; but rather, it seeks to only deal with that which agree with position and reject that which contradict it. what is the position: a unitarian position which the scripture reject. 

Let us for a moment take note of the birth narrative found in Matthew 1:18-25 (Also Luke 1: 26-38); we begin with verse 18:

Now the birth of Jesus Christ took place in this way. When his mother Mary had been betrothed to Joseph, before they came together she was found to be with child from the Holy Spirit. And her husband Joseph, being a just man and unwilling to put her to shame, resolved to divorce her quietly. But as he considered these things, behold, an angel of the Lord appeared to him in a dream, saying, “Joseph, son of David, do not fear to take Mary as your wife, for that which is conceived in her is from the Holy Spirit. She will bear a son, and you shall call his name Jesus, for he will save his people from their sins.” All this took place to fulfil what the Lord had spoken by the prophet: “Behold, the virgin shall conceive and bear a son, and they shall call his name Immanuel” (which means, God with us). When Joseph woke from sleep, he did as the angel of the Lord commanded him: he took his wife, but knew her not until she had given birth to a son. And he called his name Jesus. 

It is right here in this very birth narrative, we find one of the most important references to the Trinity being at work in the very birth of the Saviour. let us note that we have the role of the Spirit being highlighted in these words: 'Joseph, son of David, do not fear to take Mary as your wife, for that which is conceived in her is from the Holy Spirit.' (vs 20) And then, we see the role of the Son being made known. Although His role in this event was merely passive:  'She will bear a son, and you shall call his name Jesus, for he will save his people from their sins.'   And we are told that He is also God. (vs 21; 23) So we see here is two person who are by nature God; inasmuch is the Father.   But we can also consider something that Luke tells us as well in these words from the 1st chapter and verses 29-33:  

Do not be afraid, Mary, for you have found favour with God. And behold, you will conceive in your womb and bear a son, and you shall call his name Jesus. He will be great and will be called the Son of the Most High. And the Lord God will give to him the throne of his father David, and he will reign over the house of Jacob forever, and of his kingdom there will be no end.”

Now we see that all three members are mentioned in these narratives. But is this enough to establish this truth? Yes and No. We must consider other passages such as these: In the act of creation we have all three mentioned (Genesis 1:1-2; 26-27 and Ps. 33:4-6) In the founding of the nation of Israel (Isaiah 63:7-14). In the founding of the church (John 14-16; Acts 1: 6-11) In the act of salvation of sinful men and women (Romans 8:1-39; Ephesians 1-13).  But this not the only thing we see, the member of the Trinity all speak and communicate with the people of their flock: the Father: (Matthew 3:13-17;John 12: 27-32) The Son speaks (obviously he did in His earthly ministry) However, he did in the pre-incarnate and in his post incarnate state of existence as the Divine Son: (Isaiah 48:12-17; 49: 1-4;  Acts 9:1-19; Revelation 1-3). The Spirit speaks (Acts 13:1-4; 28:25-27; 1 Timothy 4:1-4; Hebrews 3:7-11, 4: 16-19; 3-7). The true Christian will have no hesitation in saying the Trinity is true because it is precisely what the scriptures teach from beginning to end. 

It is as one person said: you cannot understand the scriptures apart from known; believing and seeing their Triune structure.  

 The Fullness of Salvation

The final thing that needs to be discussed is the fact that all non-reformed views of Christianity; and in fact, the cults and other religious expressions all hold one common factor. And that is they provide no basis for salvation being effective as they all lean toward human based element or even response which undercuts the very heart of salvation which is that it actually saved a person independent of man's part in it. It is often said that  "although God has made provision in his Son for Salvation; it is up to us to accept it and then it becomes real."   That may sound viable upon the surface; but in the end it lack one clear thing: there is no biblical warrant that would indicate such a thing to the case. The scriptures teach no such thing because it is what man would find viable as it include some kind of response. 

In the words of the first chapter of Ephesians we are given a clear answer (also look at the second chapter) starting at verse 3:

Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who has blessed us in Christ with every spiritual blessing in the heavenly places, even as he chose us in him before the foundation of the world, that we should be holy and blameless before him. In love he predestined us for adoption to himself as sons through Jesus Christ, according to the purpose of his will, to the praise of his glorious grace, with which he has blessed us in the Beloved. In him we have redemption through his blood, the forgiveness of our trespasses, according to the riches of his grace, which he lavished upon us, in all wisdom and insight making known to us the mystery of his will, according to his purpose, which he set forth in Christ as a plan for the fullness of time, to unite all things in him, things in heaven and things on earth. In him we have obtained an inheritance, having been predestined according to the purpose of him who works all things according to the counsel of his will,  so that we who were the first to hope in Christ might be to the praise of his glory. In him you also, when you heard the word of truth, the gospel of your salvation, and believed in him, were sealed with the promised Holy Spirit,  who is the guarantee of our inheritance until we acquire possession of it, to the praise of his glory.

In this section, we are given one of the most transparent statement concerning salvation; not only are we told of the each action that is part and parcel of this magnificent work; but we see that each action is assigned to a member of the Godhead. Let us see this in action: in verse 3-6 we see the sovereign control of God the father as he plans and decrees this work. And that is even down to how a person is brought into the kingdom (Election by grace which independent of our actions); then in verse 7-10 we have work of the Son upon the cross and that involves; He freely gave Himself up for us to be our means of redemption. In this we see the execution of redemption. And finally, in verses 11-14 we come to the work of the Spirit in the lives of Christian: he applies the benefits of salvation upon regeneration and through sanctification. It is a true blessing.

But we also have some important thoughts being expressed in these words: 'But God, being rich in mercy, because of the great love with which he loved us, even when we were dead in our trespasses, made us alive together with Christ—by grace you have been saved.' (vs. 4-5) In this we see that everything God does in and through salvation is because He is rich in mercy and because He loved us with a great love. I believe that it can be effective stated in these words from John MacArthur:

We are saved by grace (Eph. 2:8) and in grace we stand (Rom. 5:2). Grace upholds our salvation, gives us victory in temptation, and helps us endure suffering and pain. It helps us understand the Word and wisely apply it to our lives. It draws us into communion and prayer and enables us to serve the Lord effectively. In short, we exist and are firmly fixed in an environment of all-sufficient grace. 

That is to say: the biblical is clear in that what it teaches about salvation being permanent and effectual in nature. Think about what the following statements teach us: first, election is God work alone and has no human input (Romans 9:1-18; Hebrews 2: 9-11; John 17:6-12; 1 Peter 1: 1-2; 2; 2 Thessalonian 2: 13) Second, Regeneration is the Work of God and not man (John 1:12-13 and 3:1-8; 2 Cor. 5:17; Ezekiel 36: 26-32; Jeremiah 32:33-34; 1 Peter 3-5; 23-25); Third, Justification by imputed righteousness alone  (Romans 4: 1-25 and 8: 31-34; Isaiah 53:1-12; Daniel 9:24-27; 1 Corinthians 6:11). Those are elements which we must take note of because they are clearly monergistic in nature. And this is the whole of scripture when it comes to this grand truth. 

 It is as we read in the book of Jonah: Salvation is of the Lord. And then the Angel at the bitrh of Christ: "he will save his people from their sin.