At
the end of the Apostle Paul's ministry, he gave us
this sober warning: "I know that after my
departure fierce wolves will come in among you,
not sparing the flock; and from among your own
selves will arise men speaking twisted things, to
draw away the disciples after them. Therefore be
alert, remembering that for three years I did not
cease night or day to admonish every one with
tears" (Acts 20:29-31). This grim and prophetic
warning concerning false teachers went unheeded,
and it continues to be ignored in many churches
today.
The Roman Catholic Church,
as well as many Protestant churches, have drifted
into apostasy because they put aside the authority
of God's Word and began following the twisted
teachings of men. One of the most preposterous
"twisted things" the Catholic Church concocted is
the dogma of "infallibility" for its popes and
bishops. The dogma of "infallibility" declares
that the Church cannot error in her
objective definitive teaching regarding faith and
morals. According to the Catechism of the Catholic
Church: "In order to preserve the
Church in the purity of the faith handed on by the
apostles, Christ who is the Truth willed to confer
on her a share in his own
infallibility."
This is not only a twisted teaching, it is an
outrageous scandal! "Infallibility" is just one of
several divine attributes the papacy has hijacked
from Almighty God. The pope also has the audacity
to wear titles given only to the triune God - Holy
Father, Head of the Church, and Vicar of Christ.
With such clever and swaggering deception, it is
no wonder popes have been able to "draw away the disciples
after them." Pope Francis has become the single
most influential false teacher in the world today.
His victims are not testing his teachings against
the Word of God.
It is not only Roman
Catholics who are being woefully deceived by these
"twisted things." There are some protestants who
are leaving their churches to follow "infallible"
popes and bishops. Over the years I have counseled
some of them and warned them of the dire
consequences for anyone who departs from the
faith. Not one of them ever joined the Roman
Catholic Church because of biblical doctrine.
Instead, they became apostates after reading some
of the early church fathers who had also departed
from the faith of the apostles. Tragically, these
former Protestants chose to submit to the fallible
teachings of men rather than the infallible Word
of God.
We can all learn a vitally
important principle from the Jews who sat under
the Apostle Paul's preaching in the synagogue of
Berea. "They received the word with all eagerness,
examining the Scriptures daily to see if these
things were so" (Acts 17:11). The Scriptures are
what God gave us to test the veracity of every
man's teaching. Since an apostle, who wrote over
half of the New Testament, came under the scrutiny
of Scripture, the same scrutiny must be given to
every pope, bishop, priest, pastor and religious
leader. There is no higher authority than our
Almighty God and Creator, whose Name and Word are
exalted above all things (Psalm 138:2). The Word
of God exposes and refutes error and can be used
as a sword to slay the lies of the devil and his
minions, who disguise themselves as servants of
righteousness (2 Cor.
11:15).