Now the Spirit expressly says that in later times some will depart from the faith by devoting themselves to deceitful spirits and teachings of demons, through the insincerity of liars whose consciences are seared, who forbid marriage and require abstinence from foods that God created to be received with thanksgiving by those who believe and know the truth.

1 Timothy 4:1-3

Yesterday we ended by considering the question asked by the serpent in the Garden of Eden – “Did God actually say…?” (Genesis 3:1).

Is the Bible trustworthy? Today, the Faith is often being undermined from the inside the walls of churches and denominations by first creating room for doubt regarding God’s clear instructions through His word. Consider the actions of the last decade or more regarding sexual ethics in the church. Some mainline denominations have abandoned the clear teaching of Scripture and most recently it was reported that the Pope “opened the door to blessing same-sex couples.”

This is the kind of false teaching Paul is warning Timothy of in the verses above. Paul describes these false teachers as ones who leave the faith by listening to voices outside of Scripture and devoting their lives to lies.

I like the concise sentence from Alistair Begg above. The key for us is to know what God has written and to live our lives aligned with Him.