Several years ago I was preaching out of town. While in the hotel room, I flipped on the television and there was an intriguing church service broadcasted on a local channel. I do not recall the name of the church or the preacher but for some reason it caught my attention. Everyone in the congregation and the choir was wearing white. The pastor began to preach about the millennial kingdom. At first, it seemed good. He used a number of scripture passages referring to the reign of Christ during the millennial kingdom. Then, just as he got my attention, things became very twisted. The television preacher suggested that there were different revelations of Christ for different ages of time. He went on to suggest that we are now living in the millennial kingdom and he was the Christ for this age. At that point, I turned off the television in disgust.

                False teachers have been around for centuries. As time has progressed, it has become more and more difficult to spot a false teacher. In modern time, with the rise of A.I. technology, it is becoming increasingly difficult to discern truth from error.

                In Jeremiah’s day, the people of Judah were neck deep in sin and the worship of false gods. Their behavior was encouraged by false teachers that led them further away from the Lord. The Lord speaks through Jeremiah and addresses the issue of false prophets. In the context of this passage, we learn several things concerning the dangers of listening to false teaching and refusing to repent.

                False teaching leads to immature behavior (v. 4-7). When guarding against false teaching, it is important that we know the source of truth. We live in a day when you cannot believe everything you hear. Many relationships are broken unnecessarily due to the spread of false information. Therefore, it is imperative to know the truth before you act. This is especially true when you hear something that is second or third hand information and is not something that you personally experienced. When it comes to false teaching, we have a source we can go to where we can find the truth. That source is, the Bible. It is imperative that you are a student of the Bible yourself. Don’t just follow what another man says. Compare what you are being taught with the scriptures. If you find that the teacher consistently aligns with the scriptures, then you have a teacher you can trust. Even though you may trust that teacher, you still should be on guard and search the scriptures for confirmation. As a pastor, I often encourage people to not simply take my word. I encourage them to study the Bible for themselves. As you study the Bible for yourself you will grow to maturity and wisdom, able to discern truth from error.

                Those who succumb to false teaching will demonstrate immature behavior. Warren Wiersbe speaks well to this point: “Jeremiah used analogies from human life and nature to illustrate his point. When people fall down, they get up again. That’s the sensible thing to do. If they find themselves walking on the wrong path, they retrace their steps and get on the right path. Conclusion: if people can be sensible about these everyday matters, why can’t they be sensible about eternal matters, especially since the consequences are much more tragic?”^[1] Jeremiah also gives an illustration regarding horses going into battle and the migration of birds. Humans riding the horse, knows where they are going and the battle that is ahead. A horse just runs at the command of the rider and has no idea what it’s getting itself into. Birds will migrate at the change of season. It is a natural instinct. However, Jeremiah says that the birds are smarter than the people of Judah. The people don’t know when to change or how to change course and they are like a horse running into battle with no understanding of the dangers ahead. The point is that when you follow false teaching, you will do irrational and embarrassing things. This applies not only to false teaching, but also to anything you do in response to believing gossip, false narratives, and misinformation. This is why it is so important to know and understand the truth for yourself rather than making conclusions simply based on what you hear from other people. Don’t be like the horse running to battle, not realizing what you are running for. Be wise like the bird that knows what to do in the right season. For those things you don’t fully know or understand, refrain from doing anything until you have discovered the truth for yourself through the study of God’s Word and prayer. Unfortunately, there are times when we go too far and too deep. We’ve believed a lie and to save face we just continue in the lie. Instead of correcting our steps or getting back up like a sensible person would do, we go deeper into the lie because we do not want to admit that we are wrong. Just like the people of Judah, we too can be a stubborn people. Judah refused to repent and they continued to follow false teaching which led them to behavior that was increasingly immature.

                False teaching is caused by deception (v. 8-12). The people of Judah thought they were in the right because of what they had been given. The law was given to them. They were God’s chosen people. How could they be wrong? Yet, they were wrong. Just because you have a Bible, doesn’t mean you are always right. It is one thing to possess the scriptures, it is another thing to live the scriptures. You may have a number of Bibles on your bookshelf. However, having a Bible does not make you a good Christian. If you do not obey the Bible, then having one does you no good. False prophets are those who may preach from a Bible, but they do not put it into practice. They may preach a good sermon, but their sermon is powerless because of the kind of life they live.  “Jeremiah pictured these men as deceitful physicians (6:14; 8:11), empty wind (5:13), dispensers of chaff (23:28), ruthless, selfish shepherds (23:1–4), and infected people spreading disease (23:15, NIV). God had not sent these so-called prophets (14:14; 23:18, 21; 29:9, 31), nor did they receive their messages from God (23:25–28).”^[2] False teachers are everywhere and one can easily fall prey to false teaching if they are not grounded in the Word. When you look at the state of many churches today you find worldly leaders who produce worldly people. Too many people simply follow a personality rather than following the One person: Jesus Christ. It’s not about the personality, it’s about Jesus. It’s about the Word of God. Don’t be deceived by well-spoken men and fine-tuned programs. Don’t be attracted to flashy personalities. (though nothing is inherently wrong with any of those things) Find you a church that is Gospel-centered and outward focused and a pastor that preaches the full counsel of God’s Word and plant yourself there and grow. Be careful that you are not led astray by the next biggest and brightest thing. In reality, we are all called to follow Jesus. God has given us certain leaders to guide us and set an example for us. However, a good leader understands that he is also a follower. A leader must also follow Jesus. Christ is the head of the church, not any man. Together, as one organism, we all follow Jesus. Any leader that takes you away from Jesus is a false teacher. Any leader that does not emphasize the cross and keeping your focus on Jesus and staying true to the mission, is not one that you should follow. Follow those who follow Jesus. Don’t be deceived by false teachers.

                False teaching leads to judgement (v. 13-22). The people of Judah were given ample opportunity to turn to the Lord and make things right. Yet, they were so enamored by the false teachers and personalities they followed, they refused to listen. They thought they knew better than God did. Their refusal to repent led them to experience the judgement of God. It was declared of the Lord that they would see their cities destroyed and their fields ruined. It would be so bad, that it would be like drinking poison or attacked by snakes or being crushed. Even with the declaration of judgement, the people still would not repent. Instead, they ran away to walled cities and would even blame God for the turmoil. There would come a time when they would miss their opportunity to repent and all hope would be lost. When we succumb to false teaching and worldly behavior, we invite the discipline of God. He will remove His hand of blessing and protection and all types of trouble may come upon us. A true believer will be chastened by the Lord. You cannot go too far in your sin without the discipline of God. If there is no discipline, your salvation is in question. The Lord will discipline those who are is. You cannot continue to rebel against Him without experiencing His judgement.

                Jeremiah mourns for the people. He did not enjoy bringing them this message. He hurts for them. He hurts with them. No true believer would ever be glad for the failures of others. Those who follow the Lord, like Jeremiah, desires the best for God’s people no matter what the circumstance. The people of Judah deserved everything that was coming to them, but Jeremiah’s heart was broken for them. His heart desire is that they would repent and get things right with God. May that be the desire of our heart, both for ourselves and for others. May we repent of our sin and walk in His way and encourage others to do so also.

^[1] Wiersbe, W. W. (1996). Be Decisive (p. 46). Victor Books.

^[2] Wiersbe, W. W. (1996). Be Decisive (p. 47). Victor Books.