A true church speaks nothing but the truth, operates in the power of the Holy Spirit, and does not hesitate to condemn false doctrine. False doctrine is dangerous and destructive. Galatians 1 states twice that it is a curse. When someone is awakened to this, their next question usually is, “So how do I find a true church?” The answer should be simple but, sadly, is sometimes impossible. First, let’s define church: It is not a building, it is people (Matthew 18:20). A true church is made up of true believers. What are true believers? People whom Christ knows (Matthew 7:21-23), members of His body, sons of obedience. These are the people with whom we are to assemble together (Hebrews 10:25) and, if necessary, two or three is enough. Better to assemble with one other true believer than to submit oneself to the curse of false doctrine. False doctrine is the devil’s lies and the Word warns us to not even fellowship with those who tolerate it (2 Corinthians 6:14-18 and 2 John 1:9-11).
Some (just a few) examples of current popular lies are:
- That the church is the bride of Christ. (see Revelation 21:2, 9-10)
- That the Jews still have a special relationship with God. (see John 14:6 and 8:23-24)
- That receiving salvation equals being born again. (see John 3:6-7)
- That healing and deliverance have passed away. (see Mark 16:16-18)
False doctrine abounds, brings everyone receiving it under a curse, and makes them sons of disobedience whose end, the Bible states, is eternal condemnation. Any church not operating in the full manifestation of the power of the Holy Spirit is nothing but a pseudo-christian country club. The body of Christ is very small, numbered in Jude to be only tens of thousands (awfully few out of seven billion on the earth now and seven billion gone before), so there are not many true believers in any one place. They frequently meet in homes, thus being hard to find, and countless people tire of the search. Our partners trust our teachings and have been blessed by them, finding them to be true to the Word and effective. Many such have decided to consider us their church; they call me for prayer and counsel, are fed by my teachings and receive me as pastor.
The Bible is the Word of God. It is the truth. Where you go next and what you do is up to you, but I hope you have ears to hear. Lack of the power in your church is a lack of blessing, but false doctrine curses you. When the trump sounds you will be blessed or cursed by the choices you make now.