“Error, indeed, is never set forth in its naked deformity,
lest, being thus exposed, it should at once be detected.
But it is craftily decked out in on attractive dress, so as, by its outward form, to make it appear to the inexperienced . . . more true than truth itself.”
Irenaeus Against Heresies 1.2
“Do you see my bookshelves over there?” All heads would turn toward the thousands of books surrounding them in my classroom. “Do you think that’s real wood?” I would offer. “It feels like vinyl,” one would say, hands close enough to touch. “But it looks like real wood!” I would feign surprise. [The purchase of real wood is far too expensive for a teacher more interested in books than lumber. Most of my library is even now supported by cheap, pre-fab construction.]
I would then show them the back edge of an extra shelf; exposed particle board greeted their gaze. “Now the advertisement says I can pick from cherry or walnut grains. But in all honesty, I’m simply buying a thin veneer of plastic, covering pressed wood. This is exactly what false teaching is like: it looks right at first glance but upon further inspection, it is shown to be wrong. 2% true, 98% false: the essential nature of heresy depends on attracting our attention, then leading us astray.”
The word [1] “false” in the New Testament means to create a fabrication or produce a counterfeit as the result of deception by deliberate misrepresentation.[2] In contrast, the word[3] “true” communicates faithfulness[4] leading toward reliability in speech and teaching[5]. A Greek idiom explains what it means to be wholly truthful: “to open the mouth to” (“open wide” or “show that you’re not hiding anything”) is equivalent to our idea of complete truthfulness.[6]
Intentionality, however, marks the content of something itself as false, giving us our English work pseudo.[7] Derivations of professing something to be false include a person who pretends to be a Christian is a “false brother.”[8] “Falsehood” is to invent with the purpose in mind to mislead.[9] Inventing truth makes one a liar, a pretender, or a false witness.[10] An association with truth-seekers, however, suggests a strong sense of unity based on a clear standard of belonging in the same way siblings are from the same family[11].
So a standard for trustworthiness is not simply reliant upon abstract, propositional truth statements but upon the person who is speaking. It is not enough that words be accurate but the speaker herself must be a truth-teller. 3 John repeats “the truth” six times referencing not simply trusted content but faithfulness in commitment to, practice for, unification with, and personification of truth. Diotrephes is unflatteringly compared with Demetrius. The former speaks untruth, disassociating himself from The Church. The latter is said to embody truth which can be confirmed by everyone including the apostle John.
As much as one actively chooses to decide for Christ, others defect: the word is “apostasy.” In classical Greek usage the word was used for political revolt, joining the “other side.” The idea is much the same from the Old Testament suggesting a trespass, stepping over the line, and in this case backwards as in “backsliding.”[12] Israel was said to have deserted The Lord,[13] as some of her kings turned traitor against God.[14] The heart of the matter is registered in Jeremiah 5:5 as conscious rejection of “the way of the Lord, the requirements of their God” by “scattering favors to foreign gods” (Jeremiah 3:13).
As Hosea gives Israel the title of “harlot” so the New Testament continues the theme choosing our word for “pornography” to establish how people prostitute themselves, turning from God.[15] Apostasy is a willful act, leaving a person no possibility of repentance, making the end worse than if they had not believed, but never really being a part at all.[16] In the end, rejection of the faith will be linked to worldwide unbelief as Christians are warned not to fall away.[17]
The word “heresy” seems an apt word of conclusion coming from the Greek word meaning “to choose.” All movements of falsehood, apostasy, or heresy are premeditated steps of belief away from Christ and His Church.[18] Believers bear the responsibility of being rooted in sound doctrine, wary of being uprooted. As Paul says in 1 Timothy 4:16, “Watch your life and doctrine closely.”
A veneer of truth may seem to make the bookshelves out to be real but upon close inspection reveals only the particle of truth (pun intended).
Mark believes that heresy, error, apostasy, and false teaching are clearly seen when set side-by-side with truth. He also believes that he’ll never be able to afford anything more than particle board shelves for all his books. Mark teaches for Capital Seminary & Graduate School.
[1] Do-lo-o; 2 Corinthians 4:2.
[2] The antithesis to truth is not error but active, calculated lying; Romans 1:25; Ephesians 4:25; Titus 1:4.
[3] A-la-thea; Galatians 4:16
[4] Pistos; Matthew 24:45; 1 Corinthians 1:9. The idea of faithfulness is ascribed to God (Ps 86:15; 132:11; Jer 42:5) and humans (Exodus 18:21; Joshua 24:14).
[5] Aletheia; Matthew 22:16; John 3:33; 8:44-46. The idea of trustworthy sayings is Psalm 15:2; 25:5; Zechariah 8:16.
[6] To stoma anoigo pros; 2 Corinthians 6:11
[7] Romans 3:7; 1 John 2:21
[8] 2 Corinthians 11:26
[9] Romans 9:1
[10] Pseutas John 8:44; 1 Timothy 4:1-2; pseudo-martus Matthew 26:60
[11] Delphos 1 Peter 2:17; Philippians 3:1; James 2:15.
[12] Isaiah 57:17; Jeremiah 3:14, 22; 31:22; 49:4; 50:6; the concept can also mean disloyalty or faithlessness Proverbs 1:32; Jeremiah 2:19; 3:6, 8, 11, 12, 22; 5:6; 8:5; 14:7; Hosea 11:7; 14:4.
[13] Joshua 22:22; 2 Chronicles 29:19; 33:19; Jeremiah 2:19
[14] Rehoboam, 1 Kings 14:22-24; Ahab, 1 King 16:30-33; Ahaziah, 1 Kings 22:51-53; Jehoram, 2 Chronicles 21:6, 10; Ahaz, 2 Chronicles 28:1-4; Manasseh, 2 Chronicles 33:1-19; and Amon, 2 Chronicles 33:21-23.
[15] Pornea, Revelation 2:21; 11:8; 14:8; 17:2, 4; 18:3, 9; 19:2
[16] Hebrews 10:26-31; 6:1-6; 2 Peter 2:20-22; 1 John 2:18-19.
[17] 2 Thessalonians 2:3-12; 1 Timothy 1:18-20; 4:1-3; 2 Timothy 3:1, 5; 4:3-4.
[18] Hairesis, The main times the word is used is as one who creates factions within the body, 1 Corinthians 11:19; Galatians 1:8-9; 5:20; 2 Peter 2:1.
Good word for church planters!
Hi, this is Liz Le Mond again – I completely agree, but “Apostasy is a willful act, leaving a person no possibility of repentance, making the end worse than if they had not believed, but never really being a part at all.[16],” is, to me at least, a bit unclear. “Worse than if they had not belived” sounds if you’re saying that a believer can commit this Unforgivable Sin, and thus lose their salvation. On the other hand, “never really being a part at all” seems to imply that apostates never really were true believers in the first place. Of course, that section of Hebrews is a very “hard nut to crack”…I’ve tended to think of apostasy as “damnable heresy,” false doctrines that, when believed, lead a soul to hell, and heresy as false doctrines that don’t. Now a final profound thought, a “cut and past job” on a song from Disney’s Mary Poppins: “Just a spoonful of scripture makes the heresy go down…in a most delightful way”!