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The Good News of Jesus Christ is packed with references warning us not to stray from the written Word and

to beware of those who preach against it and/or live in a manner that contradicts its teachings. Many in to-

day's world- including some Christians- have stated that our society "has evolved" since the time Jesus

walked the Earth and, therefore, the Bible is "outdated" and needs "revising" or "updating."

This opinion clearly contradicts many Old & New Testament Scriptures (Isaiah 44:6 and 48:12, Matthew

6:24, Luke 16:13, Romans 8:7-8, James 4:4, Hebrews 1:12, 7:24, 13:8, 1 John 2:15-16, 2 John 1:7-11, Reve-

lation 1:8 and 1:17 to list but a few of many) that proclaim we either:

a) honor, serve and do our human best to emulate a God of consistency. He is One who never wavers with

public opinion (1 Samuel 15:24), does not conform to the ways of this world (Romans 12:2), does not strad-

dle political fences (1 Kings 18:21) or cave to desires of the flesh (Galatians 5:17-21). He is the same yester-

day, today and forever (Hebrews 13:8).

OR

b) we don't.

There is no "updating" or "revising" required, only a complete and unconditional surrender to the King we

say we are followers of. We must bend to His desires, not the other way around.

Jesus Christ Himself spoke unceasingly about how any of us who claim to be His followers are to pick up our

Cross daily to follow Him (Matthew 10:38, Matthew 16:24-25, Mark 8:34-35, Luke 14:27 & John 12:26).

When we are met with resistance in today's world about the steadfast teachings of Jesus Christ, we have two

options: Pick up our Cross and follow Jesus OR turn our back on Him and follow any other way. There is no

middle ground to stand on or fence post to straddle. Again turning to the God-inspired Scriptures (2 Timothy

3:16-17), the footnotes to Revelation 3:15-16 share with us that a halfhearted commitment to the faith is

"nauseating to Christ." Instead, we are to possess zeal, enthusiasm and be fervent of Spirit (Romans 12:11).

This is the Ultimate Challenge which has eternal consequences. The Good News is that we have a choice

and, today, I choose to follow Jesus Christ. Amen!

Whether we are at Church on Sunday or at the supermarket on Tuesday, how do we know when we are hear-

ing the Truth of Jesus Christ (John 14:6) as opposed to when we are hearing anything else? The great evange-

lizer and author of a majority of the New Testament, St Paul, exhorts in 1 Thessalonians 5:21 that we are to

"test everything; retain what is good." To be more specific, Paul is telling us we need to know what the Word

says so we can discern upon what we are hearing. Does what we are hearing line up with the Scriptures or is

it a false teaching?

Our very first Holy Father, Peter- the Rock and chosen one of Christ- encourages us in 1 Peter 2:2 to "long

for spiritual milk, so that through it we may grow into salvation." After a seasonal period, we are to be

weaned from that milk and, in place, seek out solid spiritual food- the fresh manna of Jesus Christ.

WHAT THE BIBLE & OUR FAITH DOCTRINE SAYS ABOUT

Spiritual blindness

& False teachers

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Church Fathers, Church Tradition and Holy Fathers throughout the ages have pointed to the Holy Scriptures

as the very touchstone for that spiritual milk.

If we don't know what the Good News has to say about a certain issue, how can we be obedient and do what

God says to do? How can we be "doers of the Word and not hearers only, deluding ourselves (James 1:22),"

if we don't know what the Word says to do?

We're grateful for many forewarnings outlined in both Old (ex: Hosea 4:6) and New (ex: Matthew 7:24-27)

Testament Scriptures that spell out what is to take place if we adhere to or stray from what God wants us to

do. The Good News is also relentless in teaching about kingdoms and their inhabitants- once very righteous

in the eyes of God- who ultimately perished for falling off of the Vine they were called to remain upon. They

chose, instead, to follow their own way, their own understanding and their own flesh. Akin to children under

the tutelage of sound parents, we can avoid the consequences of disobeying our Father in Heaven and, in-

stead, spend eternity with Him- if we crawl up into His lap and embrace His teachings. We have a choice. Let

us choose Jesus!

NEW AMERICAN BIBLE REFERENCES

Utilizing the Holy Scriptures from the New American Bible, listed below in Canonical order are numerous

False Teaching / Spiritual Blindness references:

OLD TESTAMENT

Genesis 3:1 Now the snake was the most cunning* of all the wild animals that the LORD God had made. He

asked the woman, “Did God really say, ‘You shall not eat from any of the trees in the garden’?”

Deuteronomy 13:1-9 Every word that I command you, you shall be careful to observe, neither adding to it

nor subtracting from it. If there arises in your midst a prophet or a dreamer who promises you a sign or won-

der, saying, “Let us go after other gods,” whom you have not known, “and let us serve them,” and the sign or

wonder foretold to you comes to pass, do not listen to the words of that prophet or that dreamer; for the

LORD, your God, is testing you to know whether you really love the LORD, your God, with all your heart

and soul. The LORD, your God, shall you follow, and him shall you fear; his commandments shall you ob-

serve, and to his voice shall you listen; him you shall serve, and to him you shall hold fast. But that prophet

or that dreamer shall be put to death, because, in order to lead you astray from the way which the LORD,

your God, has commanded you to take, the prophet or dreamer has spoken apostasy against the LORD, your

God, who brought you out of the land of Egypt and redeemed you from the house of slavery. Thus shall you

purge the evil from your midst.

If your brother, your father’s child or your mother’s child, your son or daughter, your beloved spouse, or

your intimate friend entices you secretly, saying, “Come, let us serve other gods,” whom you and your ances-

tors have not known, any of the gods of the surrounding peoples, near to you or far away, from one end of the

earth to the other: do not yield or listen to any such person.

Deuteronomy 29:3 But the LORD has not given you a heart to understand, or eyes to see, or ears to hear until

this day.

1 Samuel 8:10-18 Samuel delivered the message of the LORD in full to those who were asking him for a

king. He told them: “The governance of the king who will rule you will be as follows: He will take your sons

and assign them to his chariots and horses, and they will run before his chariot. He will appoint from among

them his commanders of thousands and of hundreds. He will make them do his plowing and harvesting and

produce his weapons of war and chariotry. He will use your daughters as perfumers, cooks, and bakers. He

will take your best fields, vineyards, and olive groves, and give them to his servants. He will tithe your crops

and grape harvests to give to his officials and his servants. He will take your male and female slaves, as well

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as your best oxen and donkeys, and use them to do his work. He will also tithe your flocks. As for you, you

will become his slaves. On that day you will cry out because of the king whom you have chosen, but the

LORD will not answer you on that day.”

Psalms 50:16-23 But to the wicked God says: “Why do you recite my commandments and profess my cove-

nant with your mouth? You hate discipline; you cast my words behind you! If you see a thief, you run with

him; with adulterers you throw in your lot. You give your mouth free rein for evil; you yoke your tongue to

deceit. You sit and speak against your brother, slandering your mother’s son. When you do these things

should I be silent? Do you think that I am like you? I accuse you, I lay out the matter before your eyes. “Now

understand this, you who forget God, lest I start ripping apart and there be no rescuer. Those who offer praise

as a sacrifice honor me; I will let him whose way is steadfast look upon the salvation of God.”

Isaiah 9:1-20 The people who walked in darkness have seen a great light; Upon those who lived in a land of

gloom a light has shone. You have brought them abundant joy and great rejoicing; They rejoice before you as

people rejoice at harvest, as they exult when dividing the spoils. For the yoke that burdened them, the pole on

their shoulder, the rod of their taskmaster, you have smashed, as on the day of Midian. For every boot that

tramped in battle, every cloak rolled in blood, will be burned as fuel for fire. For a child is born to us, a son is

given to us; upon his shoulder dominion rests. They name him Wonder-Counselor, God-Hero, Father-

Forever, Prince of Peace. His dominion is vast and forever peaceful, upon David’s throne, and over his king-

dom, which he confirms and sustains by judgment and justice, both now and forever. The zeal of the LORD

of hosts will do this!

Judgment on the Northern Kingdom The Lord has sent a word against Jacob, and it falls upon Israel; And

all the people know it— Ephraim and those who dwell in Samaria— those who say in arrogance and pride of

heart, Bricks have fallen, but we will rebuild with cut stone; Sycamores have been felled, but we will replace

them with cedars.” So the LORD raises up their foes against them and stirs up their enemies to action—

Aram from the east and the Philistines from the west— they devour Israel with open mouth.

For all this, his wrath is not turned back, and his hand is still outstretched! The people do not turn back to the

one who struck them, nor do they seek the LORD of hosts. So the LORD cuts off from Israel head and tail,

palm branch and reed in one day. (The elder and the noble are the head, the prophet who teaches falsehood is

the tail.) Those who lead this people lead them astray, and those who are led are swallowed up.

That is why the Lord does not spare their young men, and their orphans and widows he does not pity; For

they are totally impious and wicked, and every mouth speaks folly. For all this, his wrath is not turned back,

his hand is still outstretched! For wickedness burns like fire, devouring brier and thorn; it kindles the forest

thickets, which go up in columns of smoke. At the wrath of the LORD of hosts the land quakes, and the peo-

ple are like fuel for fire; no one spares his brother. They hack on the right, but

remain hungry; they devour on the left, but are not filled. Each devours the flesh of the neighbor; Manasseh

devours Ephraim, and Ephraim Manasseh, together they turn on Judah. For all this, his wrath is not turned

back, his hand is still outstretched! A spirit of judgment for the one who sits in judgment, and strength for

those who turn back the battle at the gate.

Against Judah But these also stagger from wine and stumble from strong drink: Priest and prophet stagger from strong

drink, overpowered by wine; They are confused by strong drink, they stagger in their visions, they totter

when giving judgment.

Isaiah 42:6-7 I, the LORD, have called you for justice, I have grasped you by the hand; I formed you, and set

you as a covenant for the people, a light for the nations, to open the eyes of the blind, to bring out prisoners

from confinement, and from the dungeon, those who live in darkness.

Isaiah 42:14-23 For a long time I have kept silent, I have said nothing, holding myself back; Now I cry out

like a woman in labor, gasping and panting. I will lay waste mountains and hills, all their undergrowth I will

dry up; I will turn the rivers into marshes, and the marshes I will dry up. I will lead the blind on a way they

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do not know; by paths they do not know I will guide them. I will turn darkness into light before them, and

make crooked ways straight. These are my promises: I made them, I will not forsake them. They shall be

turned back in utter shame who trust in idols; who say to molten images, “You are our gods.” You deaf ones, listen, you blind ones, look and see! Who is blind but my servant, or deaf like the messenger I send? Who is blind like the one I restore, blind like the servant of the LORD? You see many things but do not observe; ears open, but do not hear. It was the LORD’s will for the sake of his justice to make his

teaching great and glorious. This is a people* plundered and despoiled, all of them trapped in holes, hidden

away in prisons. They are taken as plunder, with no one to rescue them, as spoil, with no one to say, “Give

back!” Who among you will give ear to this, listen and pay attention from now on?

Isaiah 43:8 Lead out the people, blind though they have eyes, deaf though they have ears.

Isaiah 52:5 But now, what am I to do here?—oracle of the LORD. My people have been taken away for noth-

ing; their rulers mock, oracle of the LORD; constantly, every day, my name is reviled.

Jeremiah 5:31 The prophets prophesy falsely, and the priests teach on their own authority; Yet my people

like it this way; what will you do when the end comes?

Jeremiah 6:13-21 Small and great alike, all are greedy for gain; prophet and priest, all practice fraud. They

have treated lightly the injury to my people: “Peace, peace!” they say, though there is no peace. They have

acted shamefully, committing abominations, yet they are not at all ashamed, they do not know how to blush.

Therefore they will fall among the fallen; in the time of their punishment they shall stumble, says the LORD.

Thus says the LORD: Stand by the earliest roads, ask the pathways of old, “Which is the way to good?” and

walk it; thus you will find rest for yourselves. But they said, “We will not walk it.” I raised up watchmen for

them: “Pay attention to the sound of the trumpet!” But they said, “We will not pay attention!” Therefore hear,

O nations, and know, O earth, what I will do with them: See, I bring evil upon this people, the fruit of their

own schemes, because they did not pay attention to my words, because they rejected my law.

Of what use to me is incense that comes from Sheba, or sweet cane from far-off lands? Your burnt offerings

find no favor with me, your sacrifices do not please me. Therefore, thus says the LORD: See, I will place be-

fore this people obstacles to trip them up; Parents and children alike, neighbors and friends shall perish.

Jeremiah 14:14 These prophets utter lies in my name, the LORD said to me: I did not send them; I gave them

no command, nor did I speak to them. They prophesy to you lying visions, foolish divination, deceptions

from their own imagination.

Jeremiah 23:1-40 A Just Shepherd. Woe to the shepherds who destroy and scatter the flock of my pas-

ture—oracle of the LORD. Therefore, thus says the LORD, the God of Israel, against the shepherds who

shepherd my people: You have scattered my sheep and driven them away. You have not cared for them, but I

will take care to punish your evil deeds. I myself will gather the remnant of my flock from all the lands to

which I have banished them and bring them back to their folds; there they shall be fruitful and multiply. I will

raise up shepherds for them who will shepherd them so that they need no longer fear or be terrified; none

shall be missing—oracle of the LORD.

See, days are coming—oracle of the LORD—when I will raise up a righteous branch for David; As king he

shall reign and govern wisely, he shall do what is just and right in the land. In his days Judah shall be saved,

Israel shall dwell in security. This is the name to be given him: “The LORD our justice.” Therefore, the days

are coming—oracle of the LORD—when they shall no longer say, “As the LORD lives, who brought the Is-

raelites out of the land of Egypt”; but rather, “As the LORD lives, who brought the descendants of the house

of Israel up from the land of the north”—and from all the lands to which I banished them; they shall again

live on their own soil.

The False Prophets. Concerning the prophets: My heart is broken within me, all my bones tremble; I am

like a drunk, like one overcome by wine, because of the LORD, because of his holy words. The land is filled

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with adulterers; because of the curse the land mourns, the pastures of the wilderness are withered. Theirs is

an evil course, theirs is unjust power. Both prophet and priest are godless! In my very house I find their wick-

edness— oracle of the LORD. Hence their way shall become for them slippery ground. Into the darkness

they shall be driven, and fall headlong; For I will bring disaster upon them, the year of their punishment—

oracle of the LORD.

Among Samaria’s prophets I saw something unseemly: They prophesied by Baal and led my people Israel

astray. But among Jerusalem’s prophets I saw something more shocking: adultery, walking in deception,

strengthening the power of the wicked, so that no one turns from evil; To me they are all like Sodom, its in-

habitants like Gomorrah. Therefore, thus says the LORD of hosts against the prophets: Look, I will give

them wormwood to eat, and poisoned water to drink; for from Jerusalem’s prophets ungodliness has gone

forth into the whole land.

Thus says the LORD of hosts: Do not listen to the words of your prophets, who fill you with emptiness; They

speak visions from their own fancy, not from the mouth of the LORD. They say to those who despise the

word of the LORD, “Peace shall be yours”; And to everyone who walks in hardness of heart, “No evil shall

overtake you.” Now, who has stood in the council of the LORD, to see him and to hear his word? Who has

heeded his word so as to announce it?

See, the storm of the LORD! His wrath breaks forth In a whirling storm that bursts upon the heads of the

wicked. The anger of the LORD shall not abate until he has carried out completely the decisions of his heart.

In days to come you will understand fully.

I did not send these prophets, yet they ran; I did not speak to them, yet they prophesied. Had they stood in my

council, they would have proclaimed my words to my people, They would have brought them back from

their evil ways and from their wicked deeds. Am I a God near at hand only—oracle of the LORD— and not a

God far off? Can anyone hide in secret without my seeing them?—oracle of the LORD. Do I not fill heaven

and earth?—oracle of the LORD. I have heard the prophets who prophesy

lies in my name say, “I had a dream! I had a dream!” How long? Will the hearts of the prophets who proph-

esy lies and their own deceitful fancies ever turn back? By the dreams they tell each other, they plan to make

my people forget my name, just as their ancestors forgot my name for Baal. Let the prophets who have

dreams tell their dreams; let those who have my word speak my word truthfully! What has straw to do with

wheat? —oracle of the LORD. Is not my word like fire—oracle of the LORD—like a hammer shattering

rock? Therefore I am against the prophets—oracle of the LORD—those who steal my words from each other.

Yes, I am against the prophets—oracle of the LORD—those who compose their own speeches and call them

oracles. Yes, I am against the prophets who tell lying dreams—oracle of the LORD—those who lead my peo-

ple astray by recounting their reckless lies. It was not I who sent them or commanded them; they do this peo-

ple no good at all—oracle of the LORD.

And when this people or a prophet or a priest asks you, “What is the burden of the LORD?” you shall an-

swer, “You are the burden, and I cast you off”—oracle of the LORD. If a prophet or a priest or anyone else

mentions “the burden of the LORD,” I will punish that man and his household. Thus you shall ask, when

speaking to one another, “What answer did the LORD give?” or “What did the LORD say?” But “the burden

of the LORD” you shall mention no more. For each of you, your own word becomes the burden so that you

pervert the words of the living God, the LORD of hosts, our God. Thus shall you ask the prophet, “What an-

swer did the LORD give?” or “What did the LORD say?” But if you ask about “the burden of the LORD,”

then thus says the LORD: Because you use this phrase, “the burden of the LORD,” though I forbade you to

use it, therefore I will lift you on high and cast you from my presence, you and the city which I gave to you

and your ancestors. And I will bring upon you eternal reproach, eternal shame, never to be forgotten.

Ezekiel 13:3-4 Thus says the Lord GOD: Woe to those prophets, the fools who follow their own spirit and

see nothing. Like foxes among ruins are your prophets, Israel!

Hosea 4:1-12, 14 Indictment of Israel. Hear the word of the LORD, Israelites, for the LORD has a dispute

with the inhabitants of the land: There is no fidelity, no loyalty, no knowledge of God in the land. Swearing,

lying, murder, stealing and adultery break out; bloodshed follows bloodshed. Therefore the land dries up, and

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everything that dwells in it languishes: The beasts of the field, the birds of the air, and even the fish of the sea

perish.

Guilt of Priest and of People. But let no one accuse, let no one rebuke; with you is my dispute, priest! You

will stumble in the day, and the prophet will stumble with you at night; I will make an end of your mother.

My people are ruined for lack of knowledge! Since you have rejected knowledge, I will reject you from serv-

ing as my priest; since you have forgotten the law of your God, I will also forget your children. The more

they multiplied, the more they sinned against me, I will change their glory into shame. They feed on the sin

of my people, and are greedy for their iniquity. Like people, like priest: I will punish them for their ways, and

repay them for their deeds. They will eat but not be satisfied, they will promote prostitution but not increase,

because they have abandoned the LORD, devoting themselves to prostitution. Aged wine and new wine take

away understanding. My people consult their piece of wood, and their wand makes pronouncements for

them, for the spirit of prostitution has led them astray; they prostitute themselves, forsaking their God. Thus a

people without understanding comes to ruin.

Amos 6:12 Yet you have turned justice into gall, and the fruit of righteousness into wormwood.

Micah 2:11 If one possessed of a lying spirit speaks deceitfully, saying, “I will preach to you wine and strong

drink,” that one would be the preacher for this people.

NEW TESTAMENT

Matthew 6:33 But seek first the kingdom (of God) and his righteousness, and all these things will be given

you besides.

Matthew 7:13-14 “Enter through the narrow gate; for the gate is wide and the road broad that leads to de-

struction, and those who enter through it are many. How narrow the gate and constricted the road that leads

to life. And those who find it are few."

Matthew 7:15-20 “Beware of false prophets, who come to you in sheep’s clothing, but underneath are raven-

ous wolves. By their fruits you will know them. Do people pick grapes from thornbushes, or figs from this-

tles? Just so, every good tree bears good fruit, and a rotten tree bears bad fruit. A good tree cannot bear bad

fruit, nor can a rotten tree bear good fruit. Every tree that does not bear good fruit will be cut down and

thrown into the fire. So by their fruits you will know them.

Matthew 10:37-39 “Whoever loves father or mother more than me is not worthy of me, and whoever loves

son or daughter more than me is not worthy of me; and whoever does not take up his cross and follow after

me is not worthy of me. Whoever finds his life will lose it, and whoever loses his life for my sake will find it.

Matthew 13:13-16 This is why I speak to them in parables, because ‘they look but do not see and hear but do

not listen or understand.’ Isaiah’s prophecy is fulfilled in them, which says: ‘You shall indeed hear but not

understand you shall indeed look but never see. Gross is the heart of this people, they will hardly hear with

their ears, they have closed their eyes, lest they see with their eyes and hear with their ears and understand

with their heart and be converted, and I heal them.’

The Privilege of Discipleship. “But blessed are your eyes, because they see, and your ears, because they

hear.

Matthew 23:1-39 Denunciation of the Scribes and Pharisees. Then Jesus spoke to the crowds and to his

disciples, saying, “The scribes and the Pharisees have taken their seat on the chair of Moses. Therefore, do

and observe all things whatsoever they tell you, but do not follow their example. For they preach but they do

not practice. They tie up heavy burdens [hard to carry] and lay them on people’s shoulders, but they will not

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lift a finger to move them. All their works are performed to be seen. They widen their phylacteries and

lengthen their tassels. They love places of honor at banquets, seats of honor in synagogues, greetings in mar-

ketplaces, and the salutation ‘Rabbi.’ As for you, do not be called ‘Rabbi.’ You have but one teacher, and

you are all brothers. Call no one on earth your father; you have but one Father in heaven. Do not be called

‘Master’; you have but one master, the Messiah. The greatest among you must be your servant. Whoever ex-

alts himself will be humbled; but whoever humbles himself will be exalted.

“Woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, you hypocrites. You lock the kingdom of heaven before human beings.

You do not enter yourselves, nor do you allow entrance to those trying to enter.

“Woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, you hypocrites. You traverse sea and land to make one convert, and

when that happens you make him a child of Gehenna twice as much as yourselves.

“Woe to you, blind guides, who say, ‘If one swears by the temple, it means nothing, but if one swears by the

gold of the temple, one is obligated.’ Blind fools, which is greater, the gold, or the temple that made the gold

sacred? And you say, ‘If one swears by the altar, it means nothing, but if one swears by the gift on the altar,

one is obligated.’ You blind ones, which is greater, the gift, or the altar that makes the gift sacred? One who

swears by the altar swears by it and all that is upon it; one who swears by the temple swears by it and by him

who dwells in it; one who swears by heaven swears by the throne of God and by him who is seated on it.

“Woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, you hypocrites. You pay tithes of mint and dill and cummin, and have

neglected the weightier things of the law: judgment and mercy and fidelity. [But] these you should have

done, without neglecting the others. Blind guides, who strain out the gnat and swallow the camel!

“Woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, you hypocrites. You cleanse the outside of cup and dish, but inside they

are full of plunder and self-indulgence. Blind Pharisee, cleanse first the inside of the cup, so that the outside

also may be clean.

“Woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, you hypocrites. You are like whitewashed tombs, which appear beautiful

on the outside, but inside are full of dead men’s bones and every kind of filth. Even so, on the outside you

appear righteous, but inside you are filled with hypocrisy and evildoing.

“Woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, you hypocrites. You build the tombs of the prophets and adorn the me-

morials of the righteous, and you say, ‘If we had lived in the days of our ancestors, we would not have joined

them in shedding the prophets’ blood.’ Thus you bear witness against yourselves that you are the children of

those who murdered the prophets; now fill up what your ancestors measured out! You serpents, you brood of

vipers, how can you flee from the judgment of Gehenna? Therefore, behold, I send to you prophets and wise

men and scribes; some of them you will kill and crucify, some of them you will scourge in your synagogues

and pursue from town to town, so that there may come upon you all the righteous blood shed upon earth,

from the righteous blood of Abel to the blood of Zechariah, the son of Barachiah, whom you murdered be-

tween the sanctuary and the altar. Amen, I say to you, all these things will come upon this generation.

The Lament over Jerusalem. “Jerusalem, Jerusalem, you who kill the prophets and stone those sent to you,

how many times I yearned to gather your children together, as a hen gathers her young under her wings, but

you were unwilling! Behold, your house will be abandoned, desolate. I tell you, you will not see me again

until you say, ‘Blessed is he who comes in the name of the Lord.’”

Matthew 24:11-12 Many false prophets will arise and deceive many; and because of the increase of evildo-

ing, the love of many will grow cold.

Matthew 24:23-25 If anyone says to you then, ‘Look, here is the Messiah!’ or, ‘There he is!’ do not believe

it. False messiahs and false prophets will arise, and they will perform signs and wonders so great as to de-

ceive, if that were possible, even the elect. Behold, I have told it to you beforehand.

Mark 7:6-9, 13 "This people honors me with their lips, but their hearts are far from me; In vain do they wor-

ship me, teaching as doctrines human precepts. You disregard God’s commandment but cling to human tradi-

tion.” He went on to say, “How well you have set aside the commandment of God in order to uphold your

tradition! You nullify the word of God in favor of your tradition that you have handed on. And you do many

such things.”

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Mark 13:5-6 Jesus began to say to them, “See that no one deceives you. Many will come in my name saying,

‘I am he,’ and they will deceive many."

Luke 6:43-45 “A good tree does not bear rotten fruit, nor does a rotten tree bear good fruit. 44For every tree

is known by its own fruit. For people do not pick figs from thornbushes, nor do they gather grapes from

brambles. A good person out of the store of goodness in his heart produces good, but an evil person out of a

store of evil produces evil; for from the fullness of the heart the mouth speaks.

Luke 11:37-52 Denunciation of the Pharisees and Scholars of the Law. After he had spoken, a Pharisee

invited him to dine at his home. He entered and reclined at table to eat. The Pharisee was amazed to see that

he did not observe the prescribed washing before the meal. The Lord said to him, “Oh you Pharisees! Al-

though you cleanse the outside of the cup and the dish, inside you are filled with plunder and evil. You fools!

Did not the maker of the outside also make the inside? But as to what is within, give alms, and behold, every-

thing will be clean for you. Woe to you Pharisees! You pay tithes of mint and of rue and of every garden

herb, but you pay no attention to judgment and to love for God. These you should have done, without over-

looking the others. Woe to you Pharisees! You love the seat of honor in synagogues and greetings in market-

places. Woe to you! You are like unseen graves over which people unknowingly walk.”

Then one of the scholars of the law said to him in reply, “Teacher, by saying this you are insulting us too.”

And he said, “Woe also to you scholars of the law! You impose on people burdens hard to carry, but you

yourselves do not lift one finger to touch them. Woe to you! You build the memorials of the prophets whom

your ancestors killed. Consequently, you bear witness and give consent to the deeds of your ancestors, for

they killed them and you do the building. Therefore, the wisdom of God said, ‘I will

send to them prophets and apostles; some of them they will kill and persecute’ in order that this generation

might be charged with the blood of all the prophets shed since the foundation of the world, from the blood of

Abel to the blood of Zechariah who died between the altar and the temple building. Yes, I tell you, this gen-

eration will be charged with their blood! Woe to you, scholars of the law! You have taken away the key of

knowledge. You yourselves did not enter and you stopped those trying to enter.” (see also Matthew 23:1-36;

Mark 12:38-40; Luke 20:45-47).

Luke 12:8-10 “I tell you, everyone who acknowledges me before others the Son of Man will acknowledge

before the angels of God. But whoever denies me before others will be denied before the angels of God. Eve-

ryone who speaks a word against the Son of Man will be forgiven, but the one who blasphemes against the

holy Spirit will not be forgiven.

John 8:37, 44-45, 47 (Jesus speaking with fellow Jews who believed in Him) "I know that you are descen-

dants of Abraham. But you are trying to kill me, because my word has no room among you. You belong to

your father the devil and you willingly carry out your father’s desires. He was a murderer from the beginning

and does not stand in truth, because there is no truth in him. When he tells a lie, he speaks in character, be-

cause he is a liar and the father of lies. But because I speak the truth, you do not believe me. Whoever be-

longs to God hears the words of God; for this reason you do not listen, because you do not belong to God.”

John 9:41 Jesus said to them, “If you were blind, you would have no sin; but now you are saying, ‘We see,’

so your sin remains.

Acts 4:12 "There is no salvation through anyone else, nor is there any other name under heaven given to the

human race by which we are to be saved.”

Acts 15:19-20 It is my judgment, therefore, that we ought to stop troubling the Gentiles who turn to God, but

tell them by letter to avoid pollution from idols, unlawful marriage, the meat of strangled animals, and blood.

Acts 17:11 These Jews were more fair-minded than those in Thessalonica, for they received the word with all

willingness and examined the scriptures daily to determine whether these things were so.

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Acts 20:29-31 I know that after my departure savage wolves will come among you, and they will not spare

the flock. And from your own group, men will come forward perverting the truth to draw the disciples away

after them. So be vigilant and remember that for three years, night and day, I unceasingly admonished each

of you with tears.

Romans 1:18-32 Punishment of Idolaters. The wrath of God is indeed being revealed from heaven against

every impiety and wickedness of those who suppress the truth by their wickedness. For what can be known

about God is evident to them, because God made it evident to them. Ever since the creation of the world, his

invisible attributes of eternal power and divinity have been able to be understood and perceived in what he

has made. As a result, they have no excuse; for although they knew God they did not accord him glory as

God or give him thanks. Instead, they became vain in their reasoning, and their senseless minds were dark-

ened. While claiming to be wise, they became fools and exchanged the glory of the immortal God for the

likeness of an image of mortal man or of birds or of four-legged animals or of snakes.

Therefore, God handed them over to impurity through the lusts of their hearts for the mutual degradation of

their bodies. They exchanged the truth of God for a lie and revered and worshiped the creature rather than the

creator, who is blessed forever. Amen. Therefore, God handed them over to degrading passions. Their fe-

males exchanged natural relations for unnatural, and the males likewise gave up natural relations with fe-

males and burned with lust for one another. Males did shameful things with males and thus received in their

own persons the due penalty for their perversity. And since they did not see fit to acknowledge God, God

handed them over to their undiscerning mind to do what is improper. They are filled with every form of

wickedness, evil, greed, and malice; full of envy, murder, rivalry, treachery, and spite. They are gossips and

scandalmongers and they hate God. They are insolent, haughty, boastful, ingenious in their wickedness, and

rebellious toward their parents. They are senseless, faithless, heartless, ruthless. Although they know the just

decree of God that all who practice such things deserve death, they not only do them but give approval to

those who practice them.

Romans 8:7-8 For the concern of the flesh is hostility toward God; it does not submit to the law of God, nor

can it; and those who are in the flesh cannot please God.

Romans 11:8 as it is written: “God gave them a spirit of deep sleep, eyes that should not see and ears that

should not hear, down to this very day.”

Romans 11:25-27 I do not want you to be unaware of this mystery, brothers, so that you will not become

wise [in] your own estimation: a hardening has come upon Israel in part, until the full number of the Gentiles

comes in, and thus all Israel will be saved, as it is written: “The deliverer will come out of Zion, he will turn

away godlessness from Jacob; and this is my covenant with them when I take away their sins.”

Romans 12:2 Do not conform yourselves to this age but be transformed by the renewal of your mind, that

you may discern what is the will of God, what is good and pleasing and perfect.

Romans 16:17-20 I urge you, brothers, to watch out for those who create dissensions and obstacles, in oppo-

sition to the teaching that you learned; avoid them. For such people do not serve our Lord Christ but their

own appetites, and by fair and flattering speech they deceive the hearts of the innocent. For while your obedi-

ence is known to all, so that I rejoice over you, I want you to be wise as to what is good, and simple as to

what is evil; then the God of peace will quickly crush Satan under your feet. The grace of our Lord Jesus be

with you.

2 Corinthians 4:3-4 And even though our gospel is veiled, it is veiled for those who are perishing, in whose

case the god of this age has blinded the minds of the unbelievers, so that they may not see the light of the

gospel of the glory of Christ, who is the image of God.

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2 Corinthians 6:14-18 Do not be yoked with those who are different, with unbelievers. For what partnership

do righteousness and lawlessness have? Or what fellowship does light have with darkness? What accord has

Christ with Beliar? Or what has a believer in common with an unbeliever? What agreement has the temple of

God with idols? For we are the temple of the living God; as God said: “I will live with them and move

among them, and I will be their God and they shall be my people. Therefore, come forth from them and be

separate,” says the Lord, “and touch nothing unclean; then I will receive you and I will be a father to you,

and you shall be sons and daughters to me, says the Lord Almighty.”

2 Corinthians 10:3-6 For, although we are in the flesh, we do not battle according to the flesh, for the weap-

ons of our battle are not of flesh but are enormously powerful, capable of destroying fortresses. We destroy

arguments and every pretension raising itself against the knowledge of God, and take every thought captive

in obedience to Christ, and we are ready to punish every disobedience, once your obedience is complete. 2 Corinthians 11:1-15 If only you would put up with a little foolishness from me! Please put up with me. For

I am jealous of you with the jealousy of God, since I betrothed you to one husband to present you as a chaste

virgin to Christ. But I am afraid that, as the serpent deceived Eve by his cunning, your thoughts may be cor-

rupted from a sincere [and pure] commitment to Christ. For if someone comes and preaches another Jesus

than the one we preached, or if you receive a different spirit from the one you received or a different gospel

from the one you accepted, you put up with it well enough.

For I think that I am not in any way inferior to these “super apostles.” Even if I am untrained in speaking, I

am not so in knowledge; in every way we have made this plain to you in all things.

Did I make a mistake when I humbled myself so that you might be exalted, because I preached the gospel of

God to you without charge? I plundered other churches by accepting from them in order to minister to you.

And when I was with you and in need, I did not burden anyone, for the brothers who came from Macedonia

supplied my needs. So I refrained and will refrain from burdening you in any way. By the truth of Christ in

me, this boast of mine shall not be silenced in the regions of Achaia. And why? Because I do not love you?

God knows I do!

And what I do I will continue to do, in order to end this pretext of those who seek a pretext for being re-

garded as we are in the mission of which they boast. For such people are false apostles, deceitful workers,

who masquerade as apostles of Christ. And no wonder, for even Satan masquerades as an angel of light. So it

is not strange that his ministers also masquerade as ministers of righteousness. Their end will correspond to

their deeds.

2 Corinthians 13:5 Examine yourselves to see whether you are living in faith. Test yourselves. Do you not

realize that Jesus Christ is in you?—unless, of course, you fail the test.

Galatians 1:6-10 I am amazed that you are so quickly forsaking the one who called you by [the] grace [of

Christ] for a different gospel (not that there is another). But there are some who are disturbing you and wish

to pervert the gospel of Christ. But even if we or an angel from heaven should preach [to you] a gospel other

than the one that we preached to you, let that one be accursed! As we have said before, and now I say again,

if anyone preaches to you a gospel other than the one that you received, let that one be accursed! Am I now

currying favor with human beings or God? Or am I seeking to please people? If I were still trying to please

people, I would not be a slave of Christ.

Galatians 3:1-3 O stupid Galatians! Who has bewitched you, before whose eyes Jesus Christ was publicly

portrayed as crucified? I want to learn only this from you: did you receive the Spirit from works of the law,

or from faith in what you heard? Are you so stupid? After beginning with the Spirit, are you now ending with

the flesh?

Galatians 3:10 For all who depend on works of the law are under a curse; for it is written, “Cursed be every-

one who does not persevere in doing all the things written in the book of the law.”

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Galatians 5:16 I say, then: live by the Spirit and you will certainly not gratify the desire of the flesh.

Ephesians 1:17 that the God of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of glory, may give you a spirit of wisdom

and revelation resulting in knowledge of him.

Ephesians 2:1-3 You were dead in your transgressions and sins in which you once lived following the age of

this world, following the ruler of the power of the air, the spirit that is now at work in the disobedient. All of

us once lived among them in the desires of our flesh, following the wishes of the flesh and the impulses, and

we were by nature children of wrath, like the rest.

Ephesians 6:12 For our struggle is not with flesh and blood but with the principalities, with the powers, with

the world rulers of this present darkness, with the evil spirits in the heavens.

Philippians 1:6 I am confident of this, that the one who began a good work in you will continue to complete

it until the day of Christ Jesus.

Philippians 3:1-4 Concluding Admonitions. Finally, my brothers, rejoice in the Lord. Writing the same

things to you is no burden for me but is a safeguard for you.

Against Legalistic Teachers. Beware of the dogs! Beware of the evil workers! Beware of the mutilation!

For we are the circumcision, we who worship through the Spirit of God, who boast in Christ Jesus and do not

put our confidence in flesh, although I myself have grounds for confidence even in the flesh.

Philippians 3:17-21 Join with others in being imitators of me, brothers, and observe those who thus conduct

themselves according to the model you have in us. For many, as I have often told you and now tell you even

in tears, conduct themselves as enemies of the cross of Christ. Their end is destruction. Their God is their

stomach; their glory is in their “shame.” Their minds are occupied with earthly things. But our citizenship is

in heaven, and from it we also await a savior, the Lord Jesus Christ. He will change our lowly body to con-

form with his glorified body by the power that enables him also to bring all things into subjection to himself.

Colossians 2:4-8 I say this so that no one may deceive you by specious arguments. For even if I am absent in

the flesh, yet I am with you in spirit, rejoicing as I observe your good order and the firmness of your faith in

Christ. So, as you received Christ Jesus the Lord, walk in him, rooted in him and built upon him and estab-

lished in the faith as you were taught, abounding in thanksgiving. See to it that no one captivate you with an

empty, seductive philosophy according to human tradition, according to the elemental powers of the world

and not according to Christ.

2 Thessalonians 2:10-12 and in every wicked deceit for those who are perishing because they have not ac-

cepted the love of truth so that they may be saved. Therefore, God is sending them a deceiving power so that

they may believe the lie, that all who have not believed the truth but have approved wrongdoing may be con-

demned.

1 Timothy 1:3-7 Warning against False Doctrine. I repeat the request I made of you when I was on my

way to Macedonia, that you stay in Ephesus to instruct certain people not to teach false doctrines or to con-

cern themselves with myths and endless genealogies, which promote speculations rather than the plan of God

that is to be received by faith. The aim of this instruction is love from a pure heart, a good conscience, and a

sincere faith. Some people have deviated from these and turned to meaningless talk, wanting to be teachers of

the law, but without understanding either what they are saying or what they assert with such assurance.

1 Timothy 4:1-5 Now the Spirit explicitly says that in the last times some will turn away from the faith by

paying attention to deceitful spirits and demonic instructions through the hypocrisy of liars with branded con-

sciences. They forbid marriage and require abstinence from foods that God created to be received with

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thanksgiving by those who believe and know the truth. For everything created by God is good, and nothing is

to be rejected when received with thanksgiving, for it is made holy by the invocation of God in prayer.

1 Timothy 6:3-5 Whoever teaches something different and does not agree with the sound words of our Lord

Jesus Christ and the religious teaching is conceited, understanding nothing, and has a morbid disposition for

arguments and verbal disputes. From these come envy, rivalry, insults, evil suspicions, and mutual friction

among people with corrupted minds, who are deprived of the truth, supposing religion to be a means of gain.

1 Timothy 6:12 Compete well for the faith. Lay hold of eternal life, to which you were called when you made

the noble confession in the presence of many witnesses.

1 Timothy 6:20-21 O Timothy, guard what has been entrusted to you. Avoid profane babbling and the ab-

surdities of so-called knowledge. By professing it, some people have deviated from the faith.

2 Timothy 3:1-9 The Dangers of the Last Days. But understand this: there will be terrifying times in the last

days. People will be self-centered and lovers of money, proud, haughty, abusive, disobedient to their parents,

ungrateful, irreligious, callous, implacable, slanderous, licentious, brutal, hating what is good, traitors, reck-

less, conceited, lovers of pleasure rather than lovers of God, as they make a pretense of religion but deny its

power. Reject them. For some of these slip into homes and make captives of women weighed down by sins,

led by various desires, always trying to learn but never able to reach a knowledge of the truth. Just as Jannes

and Jambres opposed Moses, so they also oppose the truth—people of depraved mind, unqualified in the

faith. But they will not make further progress, for their foolishness will be plain to all, as it was with those

two.

2 Timothy 3:16 All scripture is inspired by God and is useful for teaching, for refutation, for correction, and

for training in righteousness, so that one who belongs to God may be competent, equipped for every good

work (see also Rom 15:4; 2 Pt 1:19–21).

2 Timothy 4:1-5 I charge you in the presence of God and of Christ Jesus, who will judge the living and the

dead, and by his appearing and his kingly power: proclaim the word; be persistent whether it is convenient or

inconvenient; convince, reprimand, encourage through all patience and teaching. For the time will come

when people will not tolerate sound doctrine but, following their own desires and insatiable curiosity, will

accumulate teachers and will stop listening to the truth and will be diverted to myths. But you, be self-

possessed in all circumstances; put up with hardship; perform the work of an evangelist; fulfill your ministry.

Titus 1:7-14 For a bishop as God’s steward must be blameless, not arrogant, not irritable, not a drunkard, not

aggressive, not greedy for sordid gain, but hospitable, a lover of goodness, temperate, just, holy, and self-

controlled, holding fast to the true message as taught so that he will be able both to exhort with sound doc-

trine and to refute opponents. For there are also many rebels, idle talkers and deceivers, especially the Jewish

Christians. It is imperative to silence them, as they are upsetting whole families by teaching for sordid gain

what they should not. One of them, a prophet of their own, once said, “Cretans have always been liars, vi-

cious beasts, and lazy gluttons.” That testimony is true. Therefore, admonish them sharply, so that they may

be sound in the faith, instead of paying attention to Jewish myths and regulations of people who have repudi-

ated the truth.

Titus 3:10-11 After a first and second warning, break off contact with a heretic, realizing that such a person is

perverted and sinful and stands self-condemned.

Hebrews 6:4-6 For it is impossible in the case of those who have once been enlightened and tasted the heav-

enly gift and shared in the holy Spirit and tasted the good word of God and the powers of the age to come,

and then have fallen away, to bring them to repentance again, since they are recrucifying the Son of God for

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themselves and holding him up to contempt.

Hebrews 10:26-27 If we sin deliberately after receiving knowledge of the truth, there no longer remains sac-

rifice for sins but a fearful prospect of judgment and a flaming fire that is going to consume the adversaries.

Hebrews 10:32 Remember the days past when, after you had been enlightened, you endured a great contest

of suffering.

James 3:13-18 Who among you is wise and understanding? Let him show his works by a good life in the hu-

mility that comes from wisdom. But if you have bitter jealousy and selfish ambition in your hearts, do not

boast and be false to the truth. Wisdom of this kind does not come down from above but is earthly, unspiri-

tual, demonic. For where jealousy and selfish ambition exist, there is disorder and every foul practice. But the

wisdom from above is first of all pure, then peaceable, gentle, compliant, full of mercy and good fruits, with-

out inconstancy or insincerity. And the fruit of righteousness is sown in peace for those who cultivate peace.

James 4:7 So submit yourselves to God. Resist the devil, and he will flee from you.

1 Peter 5:8 Be sober and vigilant. Your opponent the devil is prowling around like a roaring lion looking for

[someone] to devour.

2 Peter 2:1-22 There were also false prophets among the people, just as there will be false teachers among

you, who will introduce destructive heresies and even deny the Master who ransomed them, bringing swift

destruction on themselves. Many will follow their licentious ways, and because of them the way of truth will

be reviled. In their greed they will exploit you with fabrications, but from of old their condemnation has not

been idle and their destruction does not sleep.

Lessons from the Past. For if God did not spare the angels when they sinned, but condemned them to the

chains of Tartarus and handed them over to be kept for judgment; and if he did not spare the ancient world,

even though he preserved Noah, a herald of righteousness, together with seven others, when he brought a

flood upon the godless world; and if he condemned the cities of Sodom and Gomorrah [to destruction], re-

ducing them to ashes, making them an example for the godless [people] of what is coming; and if he rescued

Lot, a righteous man oppressed by the licentious conduct of unprincipled people (for day after day that right-

eous man living among them was tormented in his righteous soul at the lawless deeds that he saw and heard),

then the Lord knows how to rescue the devout from trial and to keep the unrighteous under punishment for

the day of judgment, and especially those who follow the flesh with its depraved desire and show contempt

for lordship.

False Teachers Denounced. Bold and arrogant, they are not afraid to revile glorious beings, whereas angels,

despite their superior strength and power, do not bring a reviling judgment against them from the Lord. But

these people, like irrational animals born by nature for capture and destruction, revile things that they do not

understand, and in their destruction they will also be destroyed, suffering wrong as payment for wrongdoing.

Thinking daytime revelry a delight, they are stains and defilements as they revel in their deceits while carous-

ing with you. Their eyes are full of adultery and insatiable for sin. They seduce unstable people, and their

hearts are trained in greed. Accursed children! Abandoning the straight road, they have gone astray, follow-

ing the road of Balaam, the son of Bosor, who loved payment for wrongdoing, but he received a rebuke for

his own crime: a mute beast spoke with a human voice and restrained the prophet’s madness.

These people are waterless springs and mists driven by a gale; for them the gloom of darkness has been re-

served. For, talking empty bombast, they seduce with licentious desires of the flesh those who have barely

escaped from people who live in error. They promise them freedom, though they themselves are slaves of

corruption, for a person is a slave of whatever overcomes him. For if they, having escaped the defilements of

the world through the knowledge of [our] Lord and savior Jesus Christ, again become entangled and over-

come by them, their last condition is worse than their first. For it would have been better for them not to have

known the way of righteousness than after knowing it to turn back from the holy commandment handed

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down to them. What is expressed in the true proverb has happened to them, “The dog returns to its own

vomit,” and “A bathed sow returns to wallowing in the mire.”

2 Peter 3:3-4 Know this first of all, that in the last days scoffers will come [to] scoff, living according to their

own desires and saying, “Where is the promise of his coming?

2 Peter 3:15-17 And consider the patience of our Lord as salvation, as our beloved brother Paul, according to

the wisdom given to him, also wrote to you, speaking of these things as he does in all his letters. In them

there are some things hard to understand that the ignorant and unstable distort to their own destruction, just as

they do the other scriptures. Therefore, beloved, since you are forewarned, be on your guard not to be led into

the error of the unprincipled and to fall from your own stability.

1 John 2:15-16 Do not love the world or the things of the world. If anyone loves the world, the love of the

Father is not in him. For all that is in the world, sensual lust, enticement for the eyes, and a pretentious life, is

not from the Father but is from the world.

1 John 2:18-23 Antichrists. Children, it is the last hour; and just as you heard that the antichrist was coming,

so now many antichrists have appeared. Thus we know this is the last hour. They went out from us, but they

were not really of our number; if they had been, they would have remained with us.

Their desertion shows that none of them was of our number. But you have the anointing that comes from the

holy one, and you all have knowledge. I write to you not because you do not know the truth but because you

do, and because every lie is alien to the truth. Who is the liar? Whoever denies that Jesus is the Christ. Who-

ever denies the Father and the Son, this is the antichrist. No one who denies the Son has the Father, but who-

ever confesses the Son has the Father as well.

1 John 4:1-6 Beloved, do not trust every spirit but test the spirits to see whether they belong to God, because

many false prophets have gone out into the world. This is how you can know the Spirit of God: every spirit

that acknowledges Jesus Christ come in the flesh belongs to God, and every spirit that does not acknowledge

Jesus does not belong to God. This is the spirit of the antichrist that, as you heard, is to come, but in fact is

already in the world. You belong to God, children, and you have conquered them, for the one who is in you is greater than the one who is in the world. They belong to the world; accordingly, their teaching belongs to

the world, and the world listens to them. We belong to God, and anyone who knows God listens to us, while

anyone who does not belong to God refuses to hear us. This is how we know the spirit of truth and the spirit

of deceit.

2 John 1:7-11 Many deceivers have gone out into the world, those who do not acknowledge Jesus Christ as

coming in the flesh; such is the deceitful one and the antichrist. Look to yourselves that you do not lose what

we worked for but may receive a full recompense. Anyone who is so “progressive” as not to remain in the

teaching of the Christ does not have God; whoever remains in the teaching has the Father and the Son. If any-

one comes to you and does not bring this doctrine, do not receive him in your house or even greet him; for

whoever greets him shares in his evil works.

3 John 1:9-11 I wrote to the church, but Diotrephes, who loves to dominate, does not acknowledge us. There-

fore, if I come, I will draw attention to what he is doing, spreading evil nonsense about us. And not content

with that, he will not receive the brothers, hindering those who wish to do so and expelling them from the

church. Beloved, do not imitate evil but imitate good. Whoever does what is good is of God; whoever does

what is evil has never seen God.

Jude 1:3-19 Beloved, although I was making every effort to write to you about our common salvation, I now

feel a need to write to encourage you to contend for the faith that was once for all handed down to the holy

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ones. For there have been some intruders, who long ago were designated for this condemnation, godless per-

sons, who pervert the grace of our God into licentiousness and who deny our only Master and Lord, Jesus

Christ.

The False Teachers. I wish to remind you, although you know all things, that [the] Lord who once saved a

people from the land of Egypt later destroyed those who did not believe. The angels too, who did not keep to

their own domain but deserted their proper dwelling, he has kept in eternal chains, in gloom, for the judgment

of the great day. Likewise, Sodom, Gomorrah, and the surrounding towns, which, in the same manner as

they, indulged in sexual promiscuity and practiced unnatural vice, serve as an example by undergoing a pun-

ishment of eternal fire.

Similarly, these dreamers nevertheless also defile the flesh, scorn lordship, and revile glorious beings. Yet the

archangel Michael, when he argued with the devil in a dispute over the body of Moses, did not venture to

pronounce a reviling judgment upon him but said, “May the Lord rebuke you!” But these people revile what

they do not understand and are destroyed by what they know by nature like irrational animals. Woe to them!

They followed the way of Cain, abandoned themselves to Balaam’s error for the sake of gain, and perished in

the rebellion of Korah. These are blemishes on your love feasts, as they carouse fearlessly and look after

themselves. They are waterless clouds blown about by winds, fruitless trees in late autumn, twice dead and

uprooted. They are like wild waves of the sea, foaming up their shameless deeds, wandering stars for whom

the gloom of darkness has been reserved forever.

Enoch, of the seventh generation from Adam, prophesied also about them when he said, “Behold, the Lord

has come with his countless holy ones to execute judgment on all and to convict everyone for all

the godless deeds that they committed and for all the harsh words godless sinners have uttered against him.”

These people are complainers, disgruntled ones who live by their desires; their mouths utter bombast as they

fawn over people to gain advantage.

Exhortations. But you, beloved, remember the words spoken beforehand by the apostles of our Lord Jesus

Christ, for they told you, “In [the] last time there will be scoffers who will live according to their own god-

less desires. These are the ones who cause divisions; they live on the natural plane, devoid of the Spirit.

Revelation 13:1-10 The First Beast. Then I saw a beast come out of the sea with ten horns and seven heads;

on its horns were ten diadems, and on its heads blasphemous name[s]. The beast I saw was like a leopard, but

it had feet like a bear’s, and its mouth was like the mouth of a lion. To it the dragon gave its own power and

throne, along with great authority. I saw that one of its heads seemed to have been mortally wounded, but this

mortal wound was healed. Fascinated, the whole world followed after the beast. They worshiped the dragon

because it gave its authority to the beast; they also worshiped the beast and said, “Who can compare with the

beast or who can fight against it?”

The beast was given a mouth uttering proud boasts and blasphemies, and it was given authority to act for

forty-two months. It opened its mouth to utter blasphemies against God, blaspheming his name and his

dwelling and those who dwell in heaven. It was also allowed to wage war against the holy ones and conquer

them, and it was granted authority over every tribe, people, tongue, and nation. All the inhabitants of the

earth will worship it, all whose names were not written from the foundation of the world in the book of life,

which belongs to the Lamb who was slain.

Whoever has ears ought to hear these words. Anyone destined for captivity goes into captivity. Anyone des-

tined to be slain by the sword shall be slain by the sword. Such is the faithful endurance of the holy ones.

Revelation 22:16-19 “I, Jesus, sent my angel to give you this testimony for the churches. I am the root and

offspring of David, the bright morning star." The Spirit and the bride say, “Come.” Let the hearer say,

“Come.” Let the one who thirsts come forward, and the one who wants it receive the gift of life-giving water.

I warn everyone who hears the prophetic words in this book: if anyone adds to them, God will add to him the

plagues described in this book, and if anyone takes away from the words in this prophetic book, God will

take away his share in the tree of life and in the holy city described in this book.

16

FAITH DOCTRINE

CATECHISM OF THE CATHOLIC CHURCH REFERENCES

Blindness doubt of faith and blindness of the spirit, 2088

of Herod and Pilate and the plan of salvation, 600

New life in the Spirit, 1698, 1708, 1715

living according to the Spirit, 1533, 2848

See also Spiritual life; Spirituality(ies)