2 CORINTHIANS CHAPTER 11:1-15,
“Paul Begins His Fool’s Speech”
By
1.
INTRO
1.1.
In our last study, we looked at the second half of chapter 10 and
completed Paul’s initial defense of his apostleship to the minority group of
his detractors in the church in Corinth
1.1.1. We saw that Paul again made
the point that he is the same person whether in person or by letter
1.1.2. Speaking of the
“super-apostles” who had come into the Corinthian church and who were
constantly boasting of their superior ministry and abilities and sporting their
letters of recommendation, Paul told the Corinthians that he did not compare
himself to those who measure themselves by themselves
1.1.2.1.We talked about why
comparing ourselves and our spiritual progress with any man or woman is always
wrong
1.1.3. Paul made the point that in
our walk as Christians and in our sense of our own righteousness that all glory
and boasting can only be in the Lord and the things He has done, for none of us
are righteous in and of ourselves
1.2.
In our study today, we are going to look at the first half of Paul’s
“Fool’s Speech” that he makes to the Corinthians in trying to defend himself
against the minority group within the church in
1.2.1. In the previous chapter,
Paul defended himself against his detractors, the “super-apostles,” and we saw
that in his direct response to those who criticized him as walking according to
the flesh and not having the dynamic power and anointing that the
“super-apostles” claimed for themselves, that Paul wrote that though he walked
in the flesh that the weapons of his warfare were not of the flesh but were
divine weapons and armor used to fight spiritual battles. Here, we see that Paul’s defense of himself
takes the opposite tactic a person whose weapons are of the flesh would choose,
and thus Paul composes what has come to be called his “Fool’s Speech”
1.2.2. We will see that Paul’s
“Fool’s Speech” is filled with ironies, and also that surprisingly Paul’s
approach to defending himself is to speak of his weaknesses, not his strengths
1.2.3. We will see that we in the
church of all eras need to learn to follow Paul’s example and not rely upon the
weapons of the flesh, but rather equip ourselves and fight our battles using
God’s armor, council, and strength
1.2.4. We will see how that it is
so easy to be deceived by those who come preaching another gospel and another Jesus,
as did these “super-apostles,” because they come to us as deceptively and as if
they were “an angel of light”
2.
VS 11:1-2 - “1 I wish
that you would bear with me in a little foolishness; but indeed you are bearing
with me.2 For I am jealous for you with a godly jealousy; for I betrothed you
to one husband, that to Christ I might present you as a pure virgin.” - Paul asks the Corinthians to bear with him in
a little foolishness and then proceeds with his “Fool’s Speech”
2.1.
The speech of Paul here in chapter 11 of 1 Corinthians has been called,
“The Fool’s Speech,” for a variety of reasons, including the following:
2.1.1. It is filled with ironies.
2.1.2. Paul’s defends his
apostleship not by showing his strengths or abilities but rather his
weaknesses, something that appears to have no previous historical precedent.
2.2.
In this speech of Paul’s we see that he is very passionate and bold in addressing the
Corinthians. He knew that the Corinthian
church was on the verge of being lost as a church to the heresies and whims of this
group of self-proclaimed “super-apostles” who had come into their midst and
been accepted by the church. Just like a
parent who will go to any extreme to keep from losing a child to some type of
lifestyle of debauchery, Paul pours out his heart and soul to the Corinthians
in a revealing and even humiliating manner.
He will do anything to bring the Corinthians back from the precipice of
disaster upon which they are perched.
2.3.
One of the ironies of this speech of Paul’s is contained right here in verse 1
where Paul tells the Corinthians that he wishes that they would bear with
him ‘in a little foolishness,’ and then he tells them that they already ‘are
bearing with’ him. It is evident
that this group of “super-apostles” looked at Paul as an inferior apostle, and
worse than that, a fool that the church was having to bear with. It is ironical that Paul, the one who had
led many if not most of the people in the church to faith in Christ and who
also planted the church, should now be considered to be a fool by a
minority group within the church sympathizing with the “super-apostles.”
2.4.
Previously in this letter, Paul had pleaded and begged the
Corinthian church to be reconciled to God.
We saw that that reconciliation hinged around their rejecting the
teachings of these “super-apostles” who were teaching that in addition to
simple faith in Christ for salvation that a person had to also keep the law of
Moses. They also needed to be reconciled
again to Paul and accept the fact of his authority as an apostle of Jesus
Christ. Paul now tells the
Corinthians of his sincere motives for seeing them getting properly aligned
and reconciled with the Lord by saying that he has a godly jealousy over
them and wishes to present them to Jesus Christ as a pure virgin.
2.5.
The godly jealousy that Paul had for the Corinthians was not a selfish type of
jealousy but rather instead a selfless jealousy for them on God’s
behalf. Paul had the same earnest desire
for the Corinthians to be reconciled to their Father in heaven as the Lord Himself
had for them.
2.6.
Paul had in mind the betrothal to marriage in the Jewish culture as he told the Corinthians
that since he is the one that betrothed them to Christ that he also wanted to
present them to the Lord as a pure virgin.
In the Jewish culture there was the practice of arranged marriages. A father would betroth his daughter to a
young man in marriage. From that
point on until the time of the actual wedding itself it was the father’s
responsibility to make sure that his daughter remained a virgin. If a young man married a girl whom he later
discovered to not have been a virgin then he was under no obligation to remain
married to her.
2.6.1. Paul wanted the church in
3.
VS 11:3-4 - “3 But I am
afraid, lest as the serpent deceived Eve by his craftiness, your minds should
be led astray from the simplicity and purity of devotion to Christ.4 For if one
comes and preaches another Jesus whom we have not preached, or you receive a
different spirit which you have not received, or a different gospel which you
have not accepted, you bear this beautifully.” - Paul tells the Corinthians that he is afraid
that they will be tempted and deceived, just as was Eve in the Garden of Eden,
and be led away from the simplicity and purity of devotion to Christ
3.1.
One preliminary note here is that we see that Paul believed the
scripture to be inspired and considered the accounts found in the book of
Genesis concerning the fall of man in the Garden of Eden to be factual.
3.1.1. Not also that Paul
believed in the existence of the Devil as a literal being who was the
tempter and deceiver of mankind.
3.2.
In the accounts of the fall of man from Genesis chapter 3 we see that Eve
was tempted of the Devil in a couple of primary ways:
3.2.1. To doubt God’s word that she would die the day
that she ate from the forbidden tree.
3.2.2. To desire knowledge that she was not privileged
by the Lord at this time to possess.
3.2.2.1.Eve’s was the first attempt
of a man to become a god.
3.2.3. To doubt the Lord’s good
intentions for her.
3.2.3.1.The Devil tempted her to
believe that God didn’t have her best interests in mind but rather wanted her
to not eat of the forbidden tree because then her eyes would be opened and she
would be like Him in knowledge.
3.3.
Just as Eve was tempted in her mind and beliefs, so Paul was concerned that the
Corinthians had been tempted to depart from the essential truths that a
person must believe in order to receive salvation through Christ.
3.4.
Another irony is seen in verse 4. The
church was not standing united behind Paul as their apostle, and yet it was
he who had opened their eyes to the truth of God’s word and plan of
salvation and led them to their faith in Christ. However, they would openly embrace
anyone who came to them preaching another Jesus than the one he had preached,
or another spirit than that which they had received.
3.4.1. By speaking this way, Paul
is of course referring to the “super-apostles” whom the church in
3.4.2. It is amazing to me how that people
tend to be slow to receive and accept those who preach the truth to them but
quick to follow someone who comes along teaching heresies and
leading them into abominations and enslavement.
False teachers tend to quickly amass a big following.
3.5.
Paul tells the Corinthians that they will beautifully bear with someone
preaching ‘another Jesus.’
3.5.1. The cults and all false
prophets and teachers have some sort of heretical beliefs about the nature of
God. If people truly understand the
nature of God as revealed in the scriptures then they will also not be led
astray from those essential truths that the Christian must believe in order to
be “saved.”
3.5.2. The “super-apostles” appear
to have only embraced Jesus in the past sense as one who came and died upon the
cross, perhaps even believing that He was raised from the dead. However, they did not apprehend Him as the
living and exalted Lord leading and guiding them in all that they did. Their emphasis was more upon Moses and their
own works of righteousness under the law.
3.6.
Paul tells the Corinthians that they will beautifully bear with someone
preaching ‘another gospel.’
3.6.1. The ‘gospel’ is the “good
news” that brings salvation. Paul is telling
the Corinthians that they will gladly embrace anyone who comes to them teaching
them of another way in which a person could be saved from their sins and have
eternal life.
3.6.2. The “super-apostles”
believed that in addition to having faith in Jesus that a person also had to
keep the law of Moses, and keep it as a Pharisee, if they would hope to go to
heaven.
3.7.
Paul tells the Corinthians that they will beautifully bear with someone
preaching ‘another spirit.’ This
phrase is a bit difficult to interpret, especially in relation to the
“super-apostles,” however there are a couple possible explanations:
3.7.1. The “super-apostles”
believed and taught various heresies concerning the working of the Holy Spirit
in the believer’s life.
3.7.2. Perhaps it is more likely
that being legalists depending upon their own efforts they in large measure
ignored the gifts of the Spirit and His working in their lives.
4.
VS 11:5-6 - “5 For I
consider myself not in the least inferior to the most eminent apostles.6 But
even if I am unskilled in speech, yet I am not so in knowledge; in fact, in
every way we have made this evident to you in all things.” - Paul tells the Corinthians that he considered
himself not to be inferior in any sense to the most imminent apostles
4.1.
The metaphor that Paul uses for the “super-apostles” in these verses is
“the most eminent apostles.” Other
translations render this, “the super apostles.”
4.2.
The “super-apostles” who were in the church in
4.3.
Paul points out in these verses what is a more important qualification for an
apostle than being a skilled orator is that he have accurate and inspired
knowledge about God and His word.
Oratory skills are only useful in the communication of knowledge to
hearers, however if a person is teaching that which is untrue or unfounded as
truth then it doesn’t matter what kind of preaching style he uses.
4.3.1. In the church today, there
are many false apostles in the various cults around the world.
Many people are drawn into these cults because of the charisma
of the leader. Not having a good
foundation based upon accurate knowledge of the word of God those drawn in do
not have the discernment to tell right from wrong doctrine.
4.3.1.1.Many follow the American
“tele-evangelists” of today who are teaching heresies because they are caught up
with the “charisma” of these men and women, and they do not have the
discernment to realize that what they are saying contradicts the word of God.
4.3.2. We as Christians would do
well to learn a lesson from what Paul says here. The most important thing about a church is
that they do not corrupt the truth of the word of God, but rather teach and
preach God’s word accurately. What
you receive from a pastor’s or Christian leader’s teaching ministry that is
well balanced and accurate to the scriptures from a theological point of view
is much more important than the external trappings of a leader’s charisma, big
following, nice building, even good worship, etc.
4.3.2.1.In the Calvary Chapel’s we
pastors painstakingly study God’s word carefully and as we teach through the scriptures
verse by verse from Genesis to Revelation we attempt to present the truth of
His word in a concise and understandable way so that people can first of all
understand it and second of all see how to apply it to their lives. Many pastors in other churches preach over
people’s heads using theological terms or in sermons that more resemble essays
than sermons, however it is often the case in the Calvary Chapels that we
pastors have people come up to us and say things like, “This is the first time
that I was ever in a church where I actually understood what a pastor was
teaching about!”
5.
VS 11:7-9 - 7 Or did I commit a sin in humbling myself that
you might be exalted, because I preached the gospel of God to you without
charge?8 I robbed other churches, taking wages from them to serve you;9 and
when I was present with you and was in need, I was not a burden to anyone; for
when the brethren came from Macedonia, they fully supplied my need, and in
everything I kept myself from being a burden to you, and will continue to do so.” - Paul asks the Corinthians if he committed a
sin in not demanding a salary from them for his ministry to them
5.1.
We infer from this letter that the “super-apostles” in the
Corinthian church charged that one of the things that showed that Paul was a
second rate apostle was the fact that he ministered free of charge. They said in effect that if his ministry was
truly of God and had such great worth then of course he would have charged for
it. However, in the speech of this
chapter Paul points out that the fact that he didn’t charge for his ministry
actually proved his apostleship and the worth of his ministry.
5.1.1. I do have to say that I
believe that it is a sad truth that it is often the case that when people
are given something for free that they do not value it as they should
because it is free. This includes the
attitude of many towards the free gift of eternal life that God has given us
through the sending of His Son to die for our sins upon the cross of Calvary
(Rom. 6:23).
5.2.
Here is yet another irony in Paul’s speech of this chapter. The Corinthians had had their feelings
hurt because Paul would not accept their offer to pay him for his ministry
in preaching the gospel to them. Paul on
his part felt that part of his calling by Christ involved not receiving income
for preaching the gospel to the Gentiles wherever he went. For the most part, he had not allowed the
churches to support him in his ministry (with the exception being the
Macedonians). Though Paul taught in
chapter 9 of his first letter to the Corinthians that a workman was worthy of
his wages, for himself he felt that if he did not accept money for his
service of ministry that this would also quiet any rumors in the churches that
he had a profit motive for ministry, something he was not willing to
sacrifice. The irony here is that
instead of just being thankful for Paul’s huge heart of love, the Corinthians
were suspicious of his motives and some questioned whether somehow he was
funneling money back to himself, and in these verses he begs them the
question of whether it was a sin for him to minister to them for free?
5.3.
Paul tells the Corinthians that he ‘robbed other churches’
taking wages from them’ in order for him to be able to serve the
Corinthians. By saying ‘robbed,’ he
is not speaking of the illegal and immoral act of taking something that
rightfully belonged to someone else, rather he is just speaking of the fact
that financial support came from the Macedonian church so that he would be able
to minister to the Corinthians without being a burden to them.
6.
VS 11:10-12 - 10 As the truth of Christ is in me, this
boasting of mine will not be stopped in the regions of Achaia.11 Why? Because I
do not love you? God knows I do!12 But what I am doing, I will continue to do,
that I may cut off opportunity from those who desire an opportunity to be
regarded just as we are in the matter about which they are boasting.” - Paul reiterates to the Corinthians that he
will not receive financial support from all of the churches located in the
region of Achia (modern day southern
6.1.
Paul tells the Corinthians that he will continue to not receive a
salary from them because he did not want his boasting to them of
doing ministry for free to be found to be empty (false).
6.2.
As I mentioned earlier, the Corinthians were hurt by the fact that
Paul refused to receive remuneration from them for his minister. Here we see that evidently some said, “If
Paul really loved us he would let us support him financially!”
6.2.1. It was the case in the
Greek culture that teachers were always supported by their students,
and thus the Corinthian’s feelings about Paul’s not receiving their support
were shaped by their culture.
6.3.
Paul felt at this point that if he reversed his trend and now begin to
receive a salary from the church in
7.
VS 11:13-15 - 13 For such men are false apostles, deceitful
workers, disguising themselves as apostles of Christ.14 And no wonder, for even
Satan disguises himself as an angel of light.15 Therefore it is not surprising
if his servants also disguise themselves as servants of righteousness; whose
end shall be according to their deeds.” - Paul
exposes the “super-apostles” for who
they really are in the most poignant and direct way
7.1.
Some commentators have tried to make these verses refer to a different
group than the “super-apostles” mentioned in verse 5 of this chapter and alluded
to throughout the rest of the letter.
However, there is really no context support for this. Paul must now be expressing his true
opinion of the “super-apostles” in “no uncertain terms” and thus referring to
them as ‘false apostles.’
7.2.
Notice how Paul describes the “super-apostles” in these verses:
7.2.1. Paul tells the Corinthians
though that the “super-apostles” are in fact “false apostles.” This means that they were not sent nor commissioned
by Jesus Christ.
7.2.1.1.The “super-apostles” had
come to the church in
7.2.2. The ministry of the “super-apostles” was
one of “deceit.”
7.2.2.1.They were not who they said
they were and perhaps appeared to many to be.
They were nothing less than evil deceivers who were disguised as
apostles.
7.2.3. Paul describes the
“super-apostles” as being like Satan, the tempter of mankind himself. Satan does not come to people dressed in a
red devil suit with a pitchfork, nor as the twisted and perverse enemy of all
good that he really is. Rather, he comes
to mankind appearing to be “an angel of light.”
7.2.3.1.This is another reference
to the temptation of Eve in the Garden of Eden. There, Satan appeared as a friendly and very
intellectual and good looking serpent.
In tempting Eve, Satan told Eve lies in such a way that they appeared
to be true and he appeared to be a minister of benevolence.
7.2.3.1.1.Satan told Eve the lie that
she would not die if she ate of the fruit of the forbidden tree, which she
believed because after all it looked so beautiful and good to eat.
7.2.3.1.2.Satan also told Eve the lie
that God had a selfish and self-serving reason for not wanting her to eat of
that tree and that is that if she did she would have great knowledge and be
like Him, knowing good from evil.
7.2.3.2.These verses show us the
fact that we Christians have to be very careful about our dealings with those
who come to us preaching some truth or message. This is because the messenger that
preaches the false gospel message will most likely appear to be everything
that a man or woman of God should ever be and more. He will share a message with us that rings
true with what our senses and our deepest intuitions tell us. He will most likely spout off the
importance of wholesome family values and truly loving one another in the body
of Christ. He will probably tell
us 99 truths in order to sneak in one lie that is from the pit of hell and
will lead us astray for our Father in heaven.
7.2.3.2.1.Dave Hunt, in his book, “An Urgent
Call To A Serious Faith,” has an excellent passage that shows how cult groups
can come to us as angels of light declaring a message that sounds so good and
right and yet can lead astray those who are not well grounded in the
scriptures, “Consider the following message placed in newspapers by the
Mormon Church:
“During the Easter season we again rejoice with all of Christendom, and gratefully commemorate the resurrection of our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ…At this sacred season we solemnly testify that Jesus Christ is the Son of God, the Savior and Redeemer of the world. We know that He lives! We know that because He lives, we too shall live again!”
How biblical it sounds! Yet terms such as “Savior” and “Redeemer”
have an entirely different meaning in Mormonism from the evangelical
understanding—and that fact is deliberately hidden. “Eternal life,” which the Bible says is a
free gift of God’s grace, is, for the Mormon, “exaltation to godhood” and comes
by works and ritual. Nor are the Mormon
“God” and “Jesus” at all Christian. The
“God” of Mormonism is an “exalted man” with a physical body who had physical
sex with Mary to produce the body Jesus needed to occupy. The Mormon “God” was once a sinful man who
was redeemed by another Jesus Christ who died on a distant planet where this
“God-in-the-making” lived. He eventually
became a full-blown “god,” like untold numbers of others before him. The Jesus of Mormonism (only one of trillions
on other planets) was Lucifer’s half-brother in a spirit preexistence. He was not God but came to this earth to get
a body in order to become a “God.” The
heresy goes on and on. Obviously, this
Mormon Easter ad was deceitfully designed to seem both Christian and
evangelical.”
7.2.3.2.2.The United States Department
of the Treasury’s web site has some training tips to help people to be able to detect counterfeit
bills. Their emphasis in training those
who handle money is that you have to first learn about what a genuine bill of
money looks like so you can compare it to that which may be counterfeit. Their web site states, “Look at the
money you receive. Compare a suspect
note with a genuine note of the same denomination and series, paying attention
to the quality of printing and paper characteristics. Look for differences, not similarities.
Portrait.
The genuine portrait appears lifelike and stands out distinctly from the background. The counterfeit portrait is usually lifeless and flat. Details merge into the background which is often too dark or mottled.
Federal Reserve and Treasury Seals.
On a genuine bill, the saw-tooth points of the Federal Reserve and Treasury seals are clear, distinct, and sharp. The counterfeit seals may have uneven, blunt, or broken saw-tooth points.
Border.
The fine lines in the border of a genuine bill are
clear and unbroken. On the counterfeit,
the lines in the outer margin and scrollwork may be blurred and
indistinct.
Serial Numbers.
Genuine serial numbers have a distinctive style and
are evenly spaced. The serial numbers
are printed in the same ink color as the Treasury Seal. On a counterfeit, the serial numbers may
differ in color or shade of ink from the Treasury seal. The numbers may not be uniformly spaced or
aligned.
Paper.
Genuine currency paper has tiny red and blue fibers
embedded throughout. Often
counterfeiters try to simulate these fibers by printing tiny red and blue lines
on their paper. Close inspection
reveals, however, that on the counterfeit note the lines are printed on the
surface, not embedded in the paper. It
is illegal to reproduce the distinctive paper used in the manufacturing of
Jesus said that one of the signs of the “last days”
is that there would be many false Christ’s and false apostles and that the
deception of these men would be so great that if it would be possible even the
very elect would be deceived. The only
way for us to avoid being deceived is to have our hearts right before
God in the first place and then to become a student of the real thing,
that is, study and learn to rightly divide the word of God so that we might
clearly distinguish what God’s word teaches.
Then, when we encounter anyone teaching us about God, to examine
everything that is taught by the teacher verses what the word of God teaches.
7.2.3.2.3.I have been reading this week the book by A.W. Tozer called, “The Root Of The Righteous.” In that book he brings out how that it tends to always be the tendency of the church itself to look at the fruit of what it would like the church to be however to ignore the fact that in order for the church to be where we might hope and want it to be that we need to “root” the people in the word of God and the love of God. However, the rooting of people in the word of God takes commitment and tenaciousness, and we who are leaders and teachers in the church must do the hard task of teaching the word of God, seeing that God’s people are equipped for every ministry, and providing the kind of discipleship that causes people to get proper roots in the Lord. Today in churches there is a huge emphasis on immediate results, and thus there are so few Christians who are truly rooted in their faith and who are even growing in their relationship with Christ, regardless of how many years that they have been saved. In the Calvary Chapels with our teaching verse by verse through the entire word of God we pastors attempt as best as we can to get people rooted in the word of God, and the fruit of this has been an incredible movement of God in our lifetimes.
7.2.3.2.3.1.The word of God speaks a lot about how that we need to get people rooted in the word of God, for instance:
7.2.3.2.3.1.1.Eph. 3:17, “17 so that Christ may dwell in your hearts through faith; and that you, being rooted and grounded in love.”
7.2.3.2.3.1.2.Col. 2:7, “7 having been firmly rooted and now being built up in Him and established in your faith, just as you were instructed, and overflowing with gratitude.”
7.2.3.2.3.1.3.Prov. 12:12, “12 The wicked desires the booty of evil men, But the root of the righteous yields fruit.”
7.2.3.2.3.1.4.Prov. 12:3, “3 A man will not be established by wickedness, But the root of the righteous will not be moved.”
7.2.3.2.3.2.A.W.
Tozer writes the following about how that if we get rooted in our walk with
the Lord that nothing shall be able to move us, “A tree can weather
almost any storm if its root is sound, but when the fig tree which our Lord
cursed “dried up from the roots” it immediately “withered away” (Mark
11:20-21). A church that is soundly
rooted cannot be destroyed, but nothing can save a church whose root is dried
up. Not stimulation, no advertising
campaigns, no gifts of money and no beautiful edifice can bring back like to
the rootless tree.”
7.2.4. Paul calls the
“super-apostles” servants of Satan himself.
7.2.4.1.Self-explanatory.
7.2.5. Paul says that the
“super-apostles” are disguising themselves “as servants of righteousness.”
7.2.5.1.The “super-apostles were Judaisers
who were teaching Christians that if they truly wanted to be righteous
before God that they had in addition to having faith in Christ for salvation
also keep the law of Moses, and of course keep it in the tradition as a
Pharisee. Since keeping the law of
Moses never made anyone righteous since the law is only a standard that
declares what righteousness consists of, these “super-apostles” were not
truly righteous in God’s estimation but only thought of themselves as being so
and appeared to be so.
7.3.
Paul tells the Corinthians that on the day that the Lord judges the world that
He will judge these false apostles who are Satanically led deceivers according
to what their deeds deserve.
7.3.1. All of God’s judgments of mankind are based
upon a person’s works, for both Christians as well as non-Christians.
7.3.2. If a person is depending
upon his works to make him righteous before God instead of Christ Himself
and His imputed righteousness on his behalf, then he will not gain access to
heaven and his judgment shall be the judgment of condemnation of the Great
White Throne judgment in Revelation chapter 20.
Everyone who is brought before that judgment shall be condemned for
eternity to the
7.3.2.1.To be “saved” a person must
not place one iota of trust in his own deeds in order to make him acceptable or
righteous in God’s sight. He must place
total reliance upon the completed work of Christ upon the cross of
8.
CONCLUSION:
8.1.
Realize that in this spiritual warfare that you are engaged in
throughout each and every day that the weapons of your warfare are not of the
flesh, they are divine armor and divinely powerful.
8.2.
Don’t rely upon the weapons of the flesh in the spiritual warfare you
are involved in, rely instead upon Christ and His strength
8.3.
Put on that full armor of God Paul wrote about in Ephesians 6
8.4.
Beware of anyone speaking to you about God, for many before have been
deceived by them because they appear as angels of light.
8.5.
Don’t automatically accept what preachers tell you because it sounds
good and right, but check all that they say against what the scripture teaches