“My sheep hear My voice, and I know them, and they follow Me” (John 10:27).
What does it mean to “hear” Jesus’ voice? It means to hear His Word. Jesus said the sheep which follow Him “know His voice. And a stranger they will not follow but will flee from him: for they do not know the voice of strangers” (John 10:4,5).
A strange voice pushes teachings not found in God’s Word. But just as you won’t find a counterfeit three-dollar-bill, counterfeits always come intended to look like truth. The false teaching/teacher usually starts with a truth from God’s Word, then manipulates it - redefining it, twisting it, taking it out of context, until it’s far removed from what Jesus intended.
Jesus revealed the motive for all false teaching… “The thief does not come except to steal, and to kill, and to destroy.” By stealing truth, they kill the source of faith and spiritual growth, and their followers end up shipwrecked and destroyed. They’ll say, “I tried Jesus, but he didn’t work for me.”
A young nursing student, while attending college, found a nearby Church which offered evening Bible studies. They followed a book that sounded encouraging. But she noticed the verses being used were consistently out of context to push an unbiblical teaching. She brought it up one day and voiced her concerns. The hostess took her aside privately and told her, “It would be best,” if she didn’t return.
The first soul-armor of the Believer is Truth. To be girded in Truth is to be safe from the voices that lead astray. Jesus, our Good Shepherd, summed it up… “If you continue in My Word, then you are My disciples indeed; and you shall know the truth, and the truth shall make you free” (John 8:31,32).
(Devotional by Lisa Cataford)
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