Image by Cailin Valente
As I was on the phone with my sister the other day she mentioned that she got a letter in the mail from a Christian “prophet.” I was intrigued, so I asked what the letter said. She gleefully read it aloud. The “prophet” was asking her for money. Why was I not surprised? If she sent him X amount of dollars, miracles would rain down upon her. I advised her what I would do in the situation, not send the man money. I pray she didn’t. I wonder what Peter would do if he had a sister that told him this.
Peter warns us today to be careful of people like this who make private interpretations of scripture. It’s okay to ask ourselves what a certain passage means to us personally, but we must be careful HOW we interpret scripture. Yet how common is it today to see schisms galore in our church? Sadly, it’s caused more division than unity, which is NOT a fruit of the Holy Spirit.
Every day it seems like a new church is popping up due to “personal revelation.” There are too many to keep track of. I know that there are plenty of Protestant Christian Communities out there that aren’t malicious and do TONS of good. I know because I have friends who are part of them! One of my girlfriends even started a wonderful ministry for the homeless and it’s booming. I am so proud of that woman. Praise be to Jesus! I have another friend who ministers to women through dance. She is another beautiful example of Jesus at work in the ecumenical church.
But what about the communities that aren’t like this? What about the people who use Scripture to manipulate and twist the truth?
I have unfortunately see news articles about people who call themselves Christians, yet openly promote hatred of certain communities who live alternative lifestyles. This is NOT Christianity.
Yet this happens when self-promoting people manipulate the word of God for their own personal gain. Or what about the group who calls themselves followers of Christ, yet stand outside of military men’s funerals harassing families, while saying their loved one is in hell? Why would anyone want to be a Christian if this is what they see? This is not what Christ stands for.
We can’t ignore what Peter tells us about false prophets. It is frightening to know that there are people out there who consciously lie and don’t care about leading our souls to God. Especially when that is what they claim to be doing! Peter does tell us that the false teachers and prophets are already condemned and destruction hangs over them. Let’s pray for conversion starting...now!
Nobody's perfect. The Church is made up of men and men sin and error. We must always ask the Holy Spirit to guide us in discerning truth from lies within our Church, our families, our minds, and our hearts. Hence, the importance of being vigilant of whom we follow. Don’t just believe something because it sounds good. Do your research and ask lots of questions. When we pursue truth we are pursuing God.
<3 God bless you <3
