It has been well said that a banker is not required to know all the counterfeit money that has been made; rather, he should be thoroughly acquainted with all the distinctive features of the genuine; then he will instantly detect any counterfeit that passes through his hands.
In like manner, Christians should be so thoroughly acquainted with the pure Word of God that when any false doctrine is brought to them they will instinctively discern its insidious character and whence it comes. Are not "his master's feet behind" (2 Kings 6:3232But Elisha sat in his house, and the elders sat with him; and the king sent a man from before him: but ere the messenger came to him, he said to the elders, See ye how this son of a murderer hath sent to take away mine head? look, when the messenger cometh, shut the door, and hold him fast at the door: is not the sound of his master's feet behind him? (2 Kings 6:32)) every lie as to the Word of God? As early as the third chapter of the Bible we read of Satan calling in question the express word of God.
Nevertheless, there is a sense in which even the Word of God warns against these "antichrists." In 1 John 2 the babes among the Christians (that is, those newly saved) are warned of these false teachers. They are told that those who deny that Jesus is the Christ are liars. (This was what the Jews who rejected the Lord Jesus said.) The babes are further warned against those who deny the Father and the Son. (This is the anti-Christian doctrine that started with Gnosticism and then broke like an avalanche over the professing church in the diabolical teaching of Arius.)
From the days of Arius until now, his wretched doctrine has had many followers and zealots. They are not now called Arians, but are known by such names as "Unitarians," "Christadelphians," "Jehovah's Witnesses," and others.
Unitarianism is anti-Christian, for it is a flat denial of the Trinity, and no one can accept it and not land in the lake of fire. It utterly rejects the Lord Jesus Christ-His deity, His spotless humanity, His atoning sacrifice, and consequently every need for repentance in, and salvation for, man.
Furthermore, it is sad to say that of recent years these heterodox teachers have found a home in many so-called churches that at one time were sound on these basic facts, by amalgamation of Unitarians and others.
But by far the most noticeable and most active Arians today are the so-called "Jehovah's Witnesses." There is scarcely a town where they are not at work deceiving men, women, and children. They seem to' have the zeal of some Jews to whom the Lord said, "Ye compass sea and land to make one proselyte; and when he is made, ye make him twofold more the child of hell than yourselves." Matt. 23:1515Woe unto you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! for ye compass sea and land to make one proselyte, and when he is made, ye make him twofold more the child of hell than yourselves. (Matthew 23:15).
This cult has been known as "Millennial Dawn," "Watchtower Bible and Tract Society," "International Bible Students Association," etc.
The difficulty for a young believer in meeting these agents is that they are not frank and open as was Arius in the fourth century A.D. One of their self-styled "witnesses" told us flatly that they did not deny the deity of Christ and, when challenged, affirmed it all the more; but when pressed further, he turned and gave out a most vicious attack on the blessed Person of our Lord Jesus Christ.
These people will go to great lengths to get their poisonous literature into the homes of the unsuspecting. 0 Christian, beware of these agents of the pit, and turn from their fair speeches and literature as from the most poisonous venom. There is positively no Savior for the lost in this modern Arian cult; and, consequently, to allay fears and better to blind men, they deny eternal punishment. Yes, "evil men and seducers shall wax worse and worse, deceiving, and being deceived," and they have.
We need also to remember that the '2nd epistle of John, written to a woman-a sister in Christ-instructed her not to receive into her house such as brought these false doctrines, nor to bid them God-speed-not even to say "good-by" which is a contraction of "God be with ye." It is no time for being charitable when the glory of Christ is involved. We cannot be neutral in such a case, for neutrality 'would be treason against Christ.
At one time we called on an elderly man who was just a babe' in the truth. After we had been speaking together of the Lord and His things, this man brought out a book which he said someone had given him. His comment was that it contained some good things. It was one of the early books of these Jehovah's Witnesses and was written by the self-styled "Pastor Russell."
We told our friend that if we had brought him a box of candy, he might have said there were some good things in that box, but that if we had hidden some deadly poison in some pieces of that candy, it would cause his death. We then explained that this book he had been reading contained enough poison to damn the soul for all eternity. After saying this, we opened the book at random and found one of the hidden pieces of poison; it was a flat denial of the deity of Christ, and made Him only a creature. This man was then told that if that statement were true, we had no Savior, and advised to burn the book at once.
We who are saved should rejoice in Christ Jesus our Lord -He who, though He was God, humbled. Himself and came all the way down to where we were, and then went to Calvary's cross and died there, the Just for us, the unjust. He was fully God and perfect man. What a Savior we have! And nothing short of all this would have met us in our, deep need. Job in his day, before the coming of the Son of God into this world in the form of man, said, "Neither is there any daysman betwixt us, that might lay his hand upon us both." Job 9:3333Neither is there any daysman betwixt us, that might lay his hand upon us both. (Job 9:33). Job felt the need of such a mediator, and who but one who is God could lay his hand upon God? Yet. of necessity He must also be man in order to reach down to us. Well may we sing with the poet:
"How wondrous the glories that meet
In Jesus, and from His face shine!
His love is eternal and sweet,
'Tis human, 'tis also divine.
"His glory-not only God's Son-
In manhood He had His full part-
And the union of both joined in one
Form the fountain of love in His heart.
"The merits and worth of His blood
Have freed us from hell and from fear,
That we, as the blest sons of God,
May make His good pleasure our care.
"Oh, then may this union and love
Make us walk in the service of Heaven,
'Mid obedience and suffering to prove
That we to the Lamb have been given."