If you are considering commenting or sending me an e-mail objecting to the fact that I warn against certain teachers, please click here and read this article first. Your objection is most likely answered here. I won’t be publishing comments or answering emails that are answered by this article.
This article is kept continuously updated as needed.
This article is what I call a “clearinghouse article”. It is a collection of articles written by others on the teacher, ministry, or unbiblical trend named below. Either I have not had the time to write a full blown article on it myself, or I felt that the articles listed did a fine job of explaining the biblical issues and there was no need to reinvent the wheel.
Disclaimer: I did not write the articles below, and I am not thoroughly familiar with all of the websites used in my clearinghouse articles. I do not endorse anything on these sites that deviates from Scripture or conflicts with my beliefs as outlined in the “Welcome” or “Statement of Faith” tabs in the blue menu bar at the top of this page.
Here are the biblical criteria I use when deciding whether or not to recommend a teacher, ministry, etc.:
Generally speaking, in order for me to recommend a teacher, speaker, or author, he or she has to meet three criteria:
a) A female teacher cannot currently and unrepentantly preach to or teach men in violation of 1 Timothy 2:12. A male teacher or pastor cannot allow women to carry out this violation of Scripture in his ministry. The pastor or teacher cannot currently and unrepentantly be living in any other sin (for example, cohabiting with her boyfriend or living as a homosexual).
b) The pastor or teacher cannot currently and unrepentantly be partnering with or frequently appearing with false teachers. This is a violation of Scripture.
c) The pastor or teacher cannot currently and unrepentantly be teaching false doctrine.
I recommend against any teacher or ministry who violates one or more of these biblical tenets.
I am not very familiar with most of the teachers I’m asked about (there are so many out there!) and have not had the opportunity to examine their writings or hear them speak, so most of the “quick checking” I do involves items a and b (although in order to partner with false teachers (b) it is reasonable to assume their doctrine is acceptable to the false teacher and that they are not teaching anything that would conflict with the false teacher’s doctrine). Partnering with false teachers and women preaching to men are each sufficient biblical reasons not to follow a pastor, teacher, or author, or use his/her materials.
Just to be clear, “not recommended” is a spectrum. On one end of this spectrum are people like Nancy Leigh DeMoss Wolgemuth and Kay Arthur. These are people I would not label as false teachers because their doctrine is generally sound, but because of some red flags I’m seeing with them, you won’t find me proactively endorsing them or suggesting them as a good resource, either. There are better people you could be listening to. On the other end of the spectrum are people like Joyce Meyer and Rachel Held Evans- complete heretics whose teachings, if believed, might lead you to an eternity in Hell. Most of the teachers I review fall somewhere in the middle of this spectrum (leaning toward the latter).
If you’d like to check out some pastors and teachers I heartily recommend, click the Recommended Bible Teachers tab at the top of this page.
Primary issues with Kathryn Krick:New Apostolic Reformation (NAR) heretic, claims to be an Apostle, deliverance ministry / faith healing, yokes with other NAR heretics, preaches to men, teaches false doctrine.
Articles/Episodes/Videos
Most of these links contain multiple articles, episodes, or videos. They are listed in alphabetical order by content creator. The ones I would recommend starting with first are marked by an asterisk (*).
Welcome to another “potpourri” edition of The Mailbag, where I give short(er, kinda? sometimes?😀) answers to several questions rather than a long answer to one question.
Or maybe I answered your question already? Check out my article The Mailbag: Top 10 FAQs to see if your question has been answered and to get some helpful resources.
I recently commented on a post on X regarding a husband determining how his household votes and I took the position that if the husband votes against biblical principles, the wife should not have to also do so.
After reading your article I “feel led” in a different direction from my husband, I think my position is wrong. My husband generally votes liberal and I conservative. I try to keep quiet regarding my opinions which do not align with his, but my husband knows how I vote and he does not like it. Like the lady in the article, I would like to know that I am doing the right thing if I vote according to my husband’s choices.
Great question! I’m so glad you’re trying to think this through biblically and that you want to submit to your husband.
There’s a pretty big difference between the situation the lady in the “I ‘feel led'” article was asking about and the situation you’re asking about.
Her husband wasn’t doing anything sinful or unbiblical. He was doing something morally neutral and potentially beneficial for his family. Your husband is doing something sinful and unbiblical (especially if he professes to be a Christian), and potentially harmful to thousands or millions of people. Remember this paragraph of the article?
Unless your husband is…encouraging you to do something sinful, God’s will is for you to graciously submit to his decisions. Denying your request to move to another state may not make you happy, but it does not qualify as…sin.
Your initial position was correct. No Christian should vote for things that conflict with rightly handled, in context Scripture, and that includes Christian wives whose husbands vote in favor of those things. No, you would not be doing the right thing if you vote in favor of unbiblical issues simply because your husband does.
God is a God of order who established and runs His world according to a hierarchy of authorities that we are to submit to. The Christian woman’s hierarchy of authorities to submit to looks like this:
God Your husband Other authorities in their appropriate spheres (your pastor, the government, your boss, etc.)
You should absolutely submit to your husband, even if your husband isn’t a Believer. But God outranks your husband, and if God tells you to do something (in rightly handled, in context Scripture), and your husband tells you to do something else, you submit to God, not your husband. As Peter said in Acts 5:29, “We must obey God rather than men.”.
Sit down with your husband and have a conversation about this. Acknowledge that you’re aware he doesn’t like the way you vote, but that you can’t vote for things that are unbiblical. Reassure him that you will never lie to him about how you plan to vote and that you will vote the way he does on any issue that does not conflict with Scripture.
But on the items that do conflict with Scripture, there are two options on the table:
You can continue to vote on the issue in alignment with Scripture
You can refrain from voting on those items
Let him know you’ll graciously abide by whatever he decides. That way you will be submitting to him, but in a way that doesn’t cause you to sin against your conscience.
I have followed you for 6-7 years (or more-time flies!) and have learned so much about false teachers and discernment. This has also cost me many friends. I am deeply sad that so many are led astray. Would you please read the following Facebook post that my friend posted and comment on how you would respond to this? Thank you for your time and consideration.
Thank you so much for your kind words of encouragement and for being a loyal follower!
Yep, that’s me – if you have too many friends or too many social media followers, just start sharing my articles with them. I guarantee that will whittle your friend list down to an easily manageable number!😀
This is one of those things that sounds kinda “Christiany” on the surface, but the minute you start giving it any actual biblical thought, it collapses like the house of cards it is. I mean, just take the very last sentence.
Do you think any evangelical woman who swears by all this stuff -let’s call her “Vivian Virtue Signaler”- is going to find joy by surrounding herself with me (or any other doctrinally sound Christian who would tell her this is all a bunch of holier-than-thou hoo hah)? I give Vivian five minutes before she takes a swing at me – someone who, undoubtedly, lives “differently” than she does.
BEFORE READING FURTHER, let me issue all of my readers a little challenge. Go through each of the points listed on the meme, read them carefully, and see if you can explain – from rightly handed, in context, chapter and verse Scripture – why each statement is either biblical or unbiblical. Then, read my answers below and let’s see if we’re on the same page!
Here we go!
The title of this meme, “I Care About You,” is a lie for any Christian who agrees with many of the things listed in items 1-9.
Who you choose to love, and how you love, is your business. Anyone with a pulse knows this is code for, “Homosexuality is fine, and nobody better say any different.”. It’s a veiled threat. No one who’s actually been born again would ever say something so hateful to someone enslaved to the sin of homosexuality or any other sexual sin. When we see someone who desperately needs a Savior, it’s our business to call that person to repent and believe the gospel.
Furthermore, Vivian, if someone chooses to “love” your husband, your nine year old, or your dog in a sexually immoral way, is that still just his or her business? I think you’d say that’s now your business. X
I respect your pursuit of happiness. Again, this is code for, “Sin all you like, in any way you like! I’ll never confront you!”. How is that “I care about you,” for a Christian?
Vivian, what if my “pursuit of happiness” includes stealing your car, drowning kittens, or correcting all of these unbiblical beliefs you hold? You’re going to stand by and joyfully “respect” my pursuit of those things without telling me to stop? I don’t believe that for a second. X
I will live and let live. Riiiiiiight. No one who has ever said this truly believes it or lives it out. No one. Eventually, everyone confronts someone about something and tells him to stop. Why? First, because the law is written on our hearts. We all have a basic sense of right and wrong, justice and injustice. We’re not going to “let live” someone whose “pursuit of happiness” includes harming someone we love. Second, we idolize the comfort of our own flesh. If someone walks up to you and starts repeatedly poking you in the arm, exactly how many pokes will it take before “live and let live” goes right out the window?
(How ya doing over there, Vivian Virtue Signaler? Finding a lot of joy in this dismantling of your ridiculous and unbiblical platitudes?) X
I will follow my faith, knowing that Jesus calls me to love. Yo Viv, how about you follow the Bible, knowing that your “faith” is in the world’s definition of “love”. I got your love right here:
Do not love the world nor the things in the world. If anyone loves the world, the love of the Father is not in him. For all that is in the world, the lust of the flesh and the lust of the eyes and the boastful pride of life, is not from the Father, but is from the world. 1 John 2:15-16
You love the world and its ideologies. You love people thinking you’re a wonderful person. You don’t love Christ and His Word.
Greater love has no one than this, that one lay down his life for his friends. John 15:13
You won’t even lay your life down enough to call sinners to repent and believe the gospel. You hate them by leaving them to die in their sins. X
I will try to use my time on this earth wisely, choosing understanding over judgment. This whole screed is you judging other “Christians” who aren’t as awesome and virtuous as you are. It’s dripping with unbiblical, hypocritical judgment against the Christian clodhoppers who are so backwards and hick as to actually believe the Bible and do what it says.
I will not name call or belittle. This is a great – and, in fact, biblical – aspiration, Vivian, but this entire meme implicitly belittles everyone who isn’t as wonderful as you are. Furthermore, it’s the very “Christians” who say things like this and parade their awesomeness around in front of everybody who are the first to attack doctrinally sound Christians for humbly obeying Scripture and calling others to do the same. X
I am not better than you. This is a true and biblical statement, Vivian. If you believed this, you wouldn’t have created and posted this virtue signaling meme. X
We are all humans, created by God, not robots programmed to think, act, or live the same way. Accurate, at least on the surface. But in the context of all the other things Vivian is saying in this meme, what she seems to mean is that, for example, living as a Satan worshiping, transsexual, abortionist is just as valid a way of life as living as a genuinely regenerate Christian who thinks, acts, and lives according to Scripture.
It’s not. There’s a vast difference between “not thinking, acting, or living the same way” when it comes to morally neutral life choices like urban vs. rural, vegetarian vs. carnivore, or white collar vs. blue collar, and “not thinking, acting, or living the same way” when it comes to life choices that are not morally neutral, like Satanist vs. Christian, homosexual vs. heterosexual, or drunkenness vs. sobriety.
When it’s a matter of “not thinking, acting, or living the same way” as the Bible commands, that’s sin. And people living in sin must be called to repent and believe the gospel. That’s the only way “I Care About You” can be true. X X
I will love you as you express your kind, honest, true self. Well, Viv, I’ve expressed my kind, honest, true self to you, and I am kindly, honestly, and truly telling you that you need to repent of all these unbiblical notions and of the pride that motivated you to create and post this meme. Do you love me?
From experience, I’ve found joy in surrounding myself with those who live differently than I do. I don’t, because, broadly speaking, people who “live differently than I do” with regard to those life choices that aren’t morally neutral, aren’t saved.
And I find no joy in surrounding myself with sinners who are determined to fling themselves into the bowels of Hell for all eternity.
I find that heartbreaking.
I want them to know Christ. I want them to know the same forgiveness, peace, love, and hope I found when I came to know Him.
That’s what “I Care About You” means for a Christian.
Now, my dear reader who submitted this question, you asked how I would respond to this. The above is how I respond to the content of the meme.
If you’re asking how you should respond to your friend who found this meme somewhere and shared it on Facebook, I would take into consideration your friend’s spiritual state (lost or saved?) and, if she’s saved, her level of spiritual maturity, and I would most likely just scroll on by without comment.
If, for some reason, you do find it necessary to discuss it with her, I would do so privately and in person. Just take her through the various points of the meme, kindly and patiently ask her questions about what she understands each statement to mean, and point her to Scripture.
Be prepared for her not to react well. Maybe she’s just a young Christian who doesn’t know any better and will be thankful to learn from you. I hope that’s the case. But she could also be someone who’s entrenched in this drivel, doesn’t want you raining on her parade of good vibrations, and will not take kindly to anyone contradicting it. Don’t let her reaction deter you from standing firmly, yet kindly, on the truth of Scripture.
My question is, for childrens ministry, is it appropriate or biblical to have Sunday lessons as well as Wednesday night lessons for the children? I find myself being stretched thin and believe the responsibility should be for parents to primarily teach their children. I think of Titus, where Paul exhorts the older women to teach the younger women. I believe that though I have a passion to teach both women and children, I am being led to teach the mothers to teach their own children. While still continuing in Sunday lessons at least until the kids reach 12 yrs.
I think I understand what you’re asking, but I’m going to have to read between the lines a bit, because a few key pieces of information seem to be missing. So please forgive me if I misread between the lines.
There is absolutely nothing wrong or unbiblical, and everything right and biblical, with a church that has children’s Bible classes on Sunday morning and Wednesday night, just like they might have adult Bible classes on Sunday morning and Wednesday night. In fact, among the churches I’m familiar with, this is exactly what most of them do.
I’m inferring from your statements about being “stretched thin” and your passion for teaching children that perhaps you are the only one teaching the children’s classes and you’re starting to get a little burned out or your life has gotten busier and you no longer have time to prepare for and teach both Sunday and Wednesday.
If that’s the case, there are two separate issues at play here, and I would encourage you to keep them separate in order to handle each of them biblically.
First, while it’s important to keep our commitments, to be women of our word, and to follow through with things we’ve agreed to do, sometimes life just happens. This is why it is important to make sure our priorities in life are in a biblical order and that we learn to say no to lower priority things that impinge on higher priority things.
A Christian woman’s priorities and obligations should be:
Her personal relationship with Christ Her husband (if she’s married) Her children and grandchildren (if any) Her church Relationally close extended family / loved ones Her job or other work outside of managing her household Leisure, hobbies, optional volunteer work
Naturally, emergencies and other situations may temporarily shift some of these things around a bit. Caring for an aging parent may force you to miss church sometimes. If your neighbor’s house is on fire, the Lord does not want you to finish your morning Bible study time instead of helping them.
But if, for instance, you’ve entered a season of life in which your children or husband need more of your time at home, it’s OK to finish out, and cut back on, your commitments (those that are over and above attending Bible study and worship service) at church.
Too many Christian women do not know how to say a holy “no,” and end up overextending themselves in a way that is a disservice to themselves and their families, and is actually displeasing to the Lord. You do not have to say “yes” to everything you’re asked to do. (And trust me, the more you say yes, the more you’ll be asked.)
When someone asks you to take on a long term responsibility like teaching a class, or serving on a committee, or cooking the Wednesday night fellowship meal, or whatever, your immediate response should be something along the lines of, “I’m honored that you asked me. Let me talk to my husband about it and pray about it. Could I get back to you next week with my answer?”. And then take that time to think, pray, and discuss with your husband whether or not this new responsibility would be a fit for you, your family, and your schedule.
If it’s not, there’s no shame in that, and you don’t need to make up excuses (which can turn out to be lies, if you’re not careful). All you have to say is, “Myrtle, I’m so honored you asked me to teach the three year old class every week, but after discussing it with my husband, praying about it, and evaluating my schedule, I’m afraid I can’t commit to that right now. I’ll pray with you that you’ll find just the right person for the job.”.
Just because there’s a vacancy or a need doesn’t necessarily mean you have to be the one to fill it.
So if that’s the type of situation you’re in – you’re overextended, or you’ve been teaching the children forever and you just need a break, or God truly is changing the direction He wants you to go in serving Him (from teaching children to teaching adult women) that’s OK in and of itself. You don’t need to lean on “parents should be their children’s primary Bible teachers” or any other “loftier” theological reason to cut back or shift gears.* Prayerfully and honestly decide what you need to do to honor God, finish out your commitment or give plenty of notice, and do it.
*(I’m not saying the lady who asked the question is doing this, I just know that among hard-working, constantly serving Christian women, sometimes we feel like we have to have some sort of super spiritual sounding reason for saying no to something. We don’t. Keeping your priorities in a biblical order is a “super spiritual” reason.)
The principle of parents needing to be their children’s primary Bible teachers is a separate issue. Yes, parents should be pouring the Word and prayer into their children every day. Two Bible classes a week at church is not going to prevent or interfere with parents who are committed to doing that.
For parents who are not already committed to teaching their children the Bible at home, but are relying on the children’s Bible classes at church to do their job for them, canceling one or both of the classes is not the answer. That’s not going to suddenly inspire those parents to start teaching their children the Bible. All it’s going to do is reduce or eliminate the only Bible teaching the children are currently receiving.
My advice (depending on what your husband and your pastor say, of course – you’ll need to check with them first) would be to find however many people you need to either help you with or take over the children’s classes, and then begin discipling the mothers to teach their children the Bible at home during the week. Or maybe do both. Disciple the mothers, but also have them come with their children to either or both of the weekly classes so they can learn how to teach their children the Bible. Maybe even have the moms rotate teaching the children’s classes so they can get some “on the job training”! That might be a good way to get the help you need in the children’s classes.
If you have a question about: a Bible passage, an aspect of theology, a current issue in Christianity, or how to biblically handle a family, life, or church situation, comment below (I’ll hold all questions in queue {unpublished} for a future edition of The Mailbag) or send me an e-mail or private message. If your question is chosen for publication, your anonymity will be protected.
There’s a lot more to Jen Wilkin than meets the eye. Over the last 15 years, she’s become a popular Christian author and speaker whose books and Bible studies are used by hundreds of Southern Baptist churches (and churches in other denominations) across the U.S.
Yet, at the same time, Jen’s positions on a variety of biblical and social issues have stirred up a tempest of controversy, which discerning churches and individuals should be aware of…
In case you missed it yesterday on social media, you can read the remainder of my debut article, The Troubling Trajectory of Jen Wilkin at Center for Baptist Leadership.
Additional Resources:
Jen Wilkin (The “Troubling Trajectory” article {above} and the podcast episode {below} are both linked in the “Additional Resources” section of this article.)
But understand this, that in the last days there will come times of difficulty. For people will be lovers of self, lovers of money, proud, arrogant, abusive, disobedient to their parents, ungrateful, unholy, heartless, unappeasable, slanderous, without self-control, brutal, not loving good, treacherous, reckless, swollen with conceit, lovers of pleasure rather than lovers of God, having the appearance of godliness, but denying its power. Avoid such people. For among them are those who creep into households and capture weak women, burdened with sins and led astray by various passions, always learning and never able to arrive at a knowledge of the truth.
2 Timothy 3:1-7
If someone were to ask you, “What kind of person do you want to raise your daughter to be?” how would you answer? Caring? Independent? Loyal? Kind?
I’m betting none of us would answer “weak,” “burdened with sins,” “easily led astray by her passions,” or “unable to arrive at a knowledge of the truth.” Yet in these last days in which we find ourselves, that’s exactly what many good-hearted Christian mothers with nothing but the best of intentions are raising their daughters to be. It’s not that they want their daughters to grow up to be spiritually weak or led astray by sin or unbiblical teaching, it’s just that they lack the skills and tools necessary for properly training their daughters in the Scriptures and godliness.
Maybe you’re one of those moms. You want to train your daughter to be a wise, godly, discerning woman, but you’re not quite sure how. Hey, we all have those areas of our lives that we need a little help with. As an older mom myself, maybe I can lend a hand.
My daughter is almost twenty, and while she’s nowhere near perfect, by the grace of God, she is a godly young lady. Looking back, there are many things my husband and I did wrong as parents. But God, in His mercy, covered our failures and saw all of us through as He taught us through His Word how to raise a biblically strong woman.
6 Ways to Raise a Biblically Strong Woman
1. Set an example.
Our daughters learn by watching us. Faithfully study your Bible, pray, attend church, obey God’s Word, submit to your husband, repent and ask forgiveness when you sin, and serve others and your church together.
2. Learn, and teach your daughter, good hermeneutics.
Hermeneutics is just a fancy word for rightly handling God’s word. Use a reliable Bible translation. Understand Scripture in its immediate and overall context. What was the author’s intended meaning, his audience, genre, and culture? Point your daughter to Christ as you study God’s Word together.
3. Find a doctrinally sound church, join it, and attend faithfully as a family.
Study God’s Word and compare everything that’s preached and taught to Scripture (in context). Does your church’s teaching line up? Then be committed to attending every single week, not just when you feel like it or when there’s nothing better to do. Instill in your daughter a love for, and a commitment to, the church.
4. Fight the fluff.
Unfortunately, many of the most popular preachers, teachers, and Christian authors (including women’s Bible study authors) teach and write things that may sound good and make us feel good, but are in direct conflict with Scripture. These are the very people Paul was speaking of in 2 Timothy 3. Teach your daughter to follow only trustworthy teachers whose theology is in line with Scripture.
5. Bring prayer and Scripture into every situation.
She can’t find her favorite doll? Kids picking on her at school? She wants to wear clothes that barely cover her? Discuss what the Bible say about these things. Pray together about them. Lead your daughter into prayer and Scripture as part of daily life, and it will teach her that God is to have authority over every aspect of our lives and that we are to obey Him in all things.
6. Teach her how to share the gospel.
If you’re not sure how to properly present the gospel to someone, learn. You can’t lead your daughter to Christ if you can’t share the gospel with her. If your daughter is already saved, make sure she knows how to correctly share the gospel with friends and loved ones. The Great Commission was the last instruction Christ gave us before leaving earth, and we are all to be about the business of carrying it out until He returns.
The 2 Timothy passage at the beginning of this article is our commission to guard our households against ungodly ways and people – even those who may falsely call themselves Christians – who might creep in and steal our daughters’ hearts and minds away from Christ. He has charged us to train them in godliness, and we must faithfully answer His call to raise wise, discerning, and biblically strong women of God.
What advice would you offer moms who want to raise
biblically strong women?
Or maybe I answered your question already? Check out my article The Mailbag: Top 10 FAQs to see if your question has been answered and to get some helpful resources.
(I had the opportunity to ask this questioner for a little clarity, so the questioner’s words are in bold.)
Is it ok for Christians to attend Renaissance Festivals? I would really like to go but I don’t know that I should because of some of the occult practices there.
If there are occult practices going on, then I definitely don’t know enough about Renaissance festivals to give you a definitive yes or no. I thought it was just LARPing and cosplay, and jousting, and minstrels, and stuff like that.
Would you say the occult stuff is woven into pretty much everything, or is it more at the fringes while the majority of the festival is harmless fun?
I have only attended the one in our area once and I feel like it is mostly harmless fun, but am always on guard when I see fortune tellers and vendors who promote magic and sorcery.
Then I would say that this is an issue of conscience. If the occult stuff is self-contained and you can avoid it by, for example, just not visiting the booths promoting it, I don’t see any reason you can’t go and just stick to the “harmless fun” stuff.
On the other hand, if it would bother your conscience to even be near the occult stuff, or to financially support an organization that welcomes the occult stuff (by purchasing a ticket), or something like that, then you should not sin against your conscience by going. See Romans 14 (especially v. 23) and James 4:17.
Whatever you decide to do, have a good time that day!
I grew up in a charismtic church where there were tons of women pastors so I am trying to understand a lot as I have had to navigate a lot of false Christianity I was taught. Do women preachers go to hell if they dont repent and turn? I know this is a secondary issue, but I am struggling to understand this. Any insight is so appreciated!
I praise God with you about how He’s growing you in the knowledge of the truth of His Word!
In a nutshell, people don’t go to Hell because they’re committing a particular sin. People go to Hell because they haven’t repented of all their sin in general and placed their faith in Christ as Savior.
People who have placed their faith in Christ as Savior are new creatures in Christ. We still sin, but when we do, we repent of that sin and strive not to do it again. We are on a general upward trajectory of growing in holiness, sinning less, obeying Scripture more, and becoming more Christlike over time.
People who have not placed their faith in Christ as Savior – even those who claim to be Christians – are still dead in their trespasses and sins. They are not on that upward trajectory of holiness. Depending on the issue, they’re still on their current path of sin or on a downward trajectory of increasing sin, unholiness, and disobedience to Scripture.
When you see someone who lives in willful, unrepentant sin (whether it’s the sin of women preaching or any other sin), that is the fruit of someone who is unsaved, not the fruit of someone who is saved (see 1 John 1:5-10, 2:3-6, 3:4-10, 5:3, Matthew 7:15-23).
That is why most women pastors / preachers will spend their eternity in Hell. Not due to that particular sin, but because that sin is a fruit (usually just one of many) that demonstrates that they aren’t saved. A woman who is genuinely saved may fall into the sin of preaching to men, usually out of ignorance of what the Bible teaches about it, but God will convict her of that sin, and she will repent of it and stop doing it. That was certainly true of me and of other women I’ve talked to about this issue.
I am very much concerned about the correct way to understand your list of people on your website. Are most of the people you have on your list false teachers meaning they are condemned to hell? You did say it was a mixture, and I do remember at least one that after clicking on the name says not recommended so that one is clear.
I really tried to understand your explanation of that list but I’m still confused. You said some are specially highlighted and I do see the ones in yellow, but the majority are not in highlight. And I don’t see the ones highlighted in red or green on that list.
So it looks like some are not considered lost…but? So for example a person such as Michael Heiser who I think is a child of God and on the list would be considered false by you and therefore condemned along with say Joyce Meyer and maybe some of the rest? I think it would be more clear if they were all marked or highlighted at least to me. It’s scary to think of true believers being cast out. Thanks.
Are most of the people you have on your list false teachers meaning they are condemned to hell? You did say it was a mixture… [of false teachers who are going to Hell and people who are not false teachers who are not going to Hell – at least this is my (Michelle’s) understanding of what she’s asking]
A teacher’s eternal destination has nothing to do with why s/he is on the list, and my labeling someone a false teacher is not a commentary on his/her eternal destination. (More about that in a sec.) The people on the list are there because of what they teach. When I say someone is a false teacher, it’s because of what s/he teaches. This is not a list of people you should avoid because they’re going to Hell, it is a list of people you should avoid because of what they teach. Whether or not these people are destined for Hell is irrelevant to your sanctification and understanding of the Word, but what they teach is very relevant, and that’s why they’re on the list.
…after clicking on the name says not recommended so that one is clear.
Most of the names on the list are linked to an article I wrote. At the top of all of my discernment articles, right under the picture of the teacher, it says “Not Recommended” (or I wouldn’t be writing an article on him/her). “Not Recommended” does not necessarily equal “false teacher”. There are a handful of teachers on the list who are biblically problematic enough that I would not recommend that you follow them (i.e. “Not Recommended”) but I don’t feel like they’ve quite qualified for the label of “false teacher” yet, either.
There are also names on the list that are linked to an article or resource from someone else, so the “Not Recommended” label isn’t there.
Here’s what you need to know, bottom line: I don’t recommend you follow anyone or any ministry on that list. That’s why they’re on the list in the first place.
I really tried to understand your explanation of that list but I’m still confused. You said some are specially highlighted and I do see the ones in yellow, but the majority are not in highlight. And I don’t see the ones highlighted in red or green on that list.
OK, here’s what the questioner is referring to. It’s in the introduction to the list. I’ve added some highlights to help answer her questions:
You will see a few names in the list below highlighted in yellow. I have something of a “green light, yellow light, red light” system of categorizing teachers. You’ll find my “green light” (Go! – doctrinally sound, highly recommended teachers) teachers at the Recommended Bible Teachers tab in the blue menu bar at the top of this page. My “red light” (Stop! – false and biblically problematic teachers) teachers are most of those listed below. But because of the way people use my blog to research false teachers, it was most user friendly to also include the “yellow light” teachers below.
“Yellow light” teachers (Caution, slow down!) are teachers I do not believe scripturally qualify for the label of “false teacher” yet, but are biblically problematic enough that I recommend you not follow them or use their materials. Please READ the linked information carefully, and do not make assumptions about any teacher merely by seeing her name (or not seeing her name) listed below.
Here’s what this means:
There are no “green light” or “recommended” teachers on the list at the Popular False Teachers & Unbiblical Trends tab. All “green light” teachers I recommend are at a completely different tab, the Recommended Bible Teachers tab.
All of the teachers on the list at the Popular False Teachers & Unbiblical Trends tab are “red light” teachers except the ones highlighted in yellow.
All of the teachers at the Popular False Teachers & Unbiblical Trends tab are not recommended (I do not recommend that you follow them) regardless of whether or not they’re highlighted in yellow, and regardless of whether or not, when you click on their names, an article pops up that says “Not Recommended” at the top.
Are most of the people you have on your list false teachers meaning they are condemned to hell?
As I mentioned above, a teacher’s eternal destination is not a factor when I put someone on the list or when I use the term false teacher. I put them on the list to warn and protect you, not to pronounce judgment (about their eternity) on them.
So, I hope you won’t mind, but I’m going to tweak your question just a little:
Do people go to Hell because they’re false teachers?
If that question sounds familiar, that’s because it’s basically the same question that was asked in the previous section of this article – “Do women preachers go to Hell?”. And I would give you basically the same answer I gave that reader:
In a nutshell, people don’t go to Hell because they’re committing a particular sin. People go to Hell because they haven’t repented of all their sin in general and placed their faith in Christ as Savior.
Are virtually all false teachers destined to an eternity in Hell? Yes, because before they ever became false teachers they were already not saved, and that is why people spend their eternity in Hell. The fact that they’re unsaved is why people become false teachers, or women “pastors,” or bank robbers, or drag queens or whatever sinful way of life they’ve chosen. Those particular sins are the bad fruit borne by an already bad tree:
“Beware of the false prophets, who come to you in sheep’s clothing, but inwardly are ravenous wolves.You will know them by their fruits. Are grapes gathered from thorn bushes or figs from thistles? Even so, every good tree bears good fruit, but the bad tree bears bad fruit. A good tree cannot bear bad fruit, nor can a bad tree bear good fruit. Every tree that does not bear good fruit is cut down and thrown into the fire. So then, you will know them by their fruits.
“Not everyone who says to Me, ‘Lord, Lord,’ will enter the kingdom of heaven, but he who does the will of My Father who is in heaven will enter. Many will say to Me on that day, ‘Lord, Lord, in Your name did we not prophesy, and in Your name cast out demons, and in Your name do many miracles?’ And then I will declare to them, ‘I never knew you; depart from Me, you who practice lawlessness.’
Matthew 7:15-23
In short, people who are on a general life trajectory of unholiness, disobedience to Scripture, fighting against God and His Word, etc., are not saved, and will spend their eternity in Hell.
Michael Heiser who I think is a child of God and on the list would be considered false by you and therefore condemned along with say Joyce Meyer and maybe some of the rest?…It’s scary to think of true believers being cast out.
Again, for the purposes of this list, it doesn’t matter whether or not Michael Heiser is in Heaven or Hell or where Joyce Meyer will spend her eternity. They’re on the list to warn you to stay away from them and their materials because what they teach is unbiblical.
I’m not clear on whether you’re afraid God might “cast out true believers” or whether you think I am “casting out” a “true believer” because I’ve placed his name of the list. I can assure you neither is the case.
God does not cast out true Believers. Anyone who is a genuinely born again Believer at the time of his or her death – whether s/he has always been a true Believer or whether s/he repents and believes the gospel with his/her last breath – will spend eternity in Heaven with Christ. People who are not genuinely born again Believers – regardless of whether or not they claim to be Believers or whether or not you or I think they’re Believers – will spend their eternity in Hell.
I am not “casting out true Believers” by placing their names on the list. I am warning you away from people who teach false doctrine (regardless of where you or I think s/he will spend eternity).
Hope this helps clear things up!🩷
If you have a question about: a Bible passage, an aspect of theology, a current issue in Christianity, or how to biblically handle a family, life, or church situation, comment below (I’ll hold all questions in queue {unpublished} for a future edition of The Mailbag) or send me an e-mail or private message. If your question is chosen for publication, your anonymity will be protected.
of growing in holiness, sinning less, obeying Scripture more, and becoming more Christlike over time.
or on a downward trajectory 
of increasing sin, unholiness, and disobedience to Scripture.