“What gives you the right to judge me?”
To pronounce another religious group to be false can seem a pompous undertaking, especially in a culture that preaches tolerance for everything from homosexuality to a mother’s “right” to kill her unborn child. Tolerance is the banner that unites much of our culture, and anyone who points a judging finger at someone or something is often ridiculed.
But Christians are told in the Bible to separate themselves from the sinful practices of man and to expose error. God’s Word tells us to examine all things and hold fast to that which is true (1Thessalonians 5:21). So we do.
What does it mean to examine if we do not judge what is right and wrong? Jesus judged the Pharisees as hypocrites. Peter judged Ananias and Sapphira as liars (Acts 5:3,4). Paul judged the Galatians as fools (Galatians 3:1).
Something can be said to be right or wrong because the Bible has laid out before us a moral and doctrinal standard that is clear. It is wrong to lie, so we are able to say to someone who lies, “What you are doing is wrong.” That is making a judgment.
Likewise, with the cults, as Christians we are commanded to be able to give answers to everyone (1Peter 3:15) and to contend for the faith that was delivered to the saints (Jude 3). If we do not fight for the faith, the faith will be lost. If we do not expose the errors of the cults, then the cults will move unchecked in the world and lead even more people into eternal destruction.
To make a judgment means we must recognize that there are absolutes. In a world that worships relativism, absolutes are not welcome and the cults that espouse their demonic doctrines beg tolerance.
The true Church stands for the truth of God’s Word, not a compromising collection of beliefs that changes as people’s whims change. The cults are cults because they deny the true God, add works to salvation, and corrupt a multitude of biblical truths. Their end and the end of all who follow them is damnation. To do anything other than warn people about them would be unloving.
By Matthew J. Slick
There are many non-Christian religions and cults in America: Mormonism, Jehovah’s Witnesses, Christian Science, Unity, The Way International, Unitarianism, etc. All claim special revelation and privilege. The dictionary defines a cult as “a system of religious worship or ritual; devoted attachment to, or extravagant admiration for, a person, principle, etc.; a group of followers.” This is a typical secular definition and by it,
any believer in any god is a cultist, even atheists since they have an admiration for a principle and are a group of followers of the philosophy of atheism.
The definition I use for “non-Christian cult” or “non-Christian religion” encompasses groups that may or may not include the Bible in their set of authoritative scriptures. If a group does include the Bible, it distorts the true biblical doctrines that effect salvation sufficiently so as to void salvation. If it doesn’t use the Bible, it is a non-Christian religion and does not participate in the benefit of divine revelation.
The term “cult” can range from any group of worshipers of any god who pay no attention to the Bible, to a small, highly paranoid, apocalyptic people who gather around a charismatic leader who uses the Bible to control them. Groups like the Mormons and Jehovah’s Witnesses object to the label “cult” because it often gets an emotional reaction and is a label they want to avoid.
Most Christian bookstores have “cult” sections that include Mormons, Jehovah’s Witnesses, etc., so I am not alone in describing what a non-Christian, Bible-based cult is. Nevertheless, a group is non-Christian when it denies the essential doctrines of the Bible:
The deity of Christ, which involves the Trinity
The resurrection of Jesus
Salvation by grace alone
All of the cults add to the finished work of Jesus on the cross. Some cult groups even add to the Bible, e.g., Mormonism has the Book of Mormon, Doctrine and Covenants, and The Pearl of Great Price. Christian Science has added Science and Health with Key to the Scriptures. The Jehovah’s Witnesses, however, have actually changed the text of the Bible to make it fit what they want it to.
Cults add their own efforts, their own works of righteousness to the finished work of salvation accomplished by Jesus on the cross. All cults say that Jesus’ sacrifice is sufficient, yet our works must be “mixed with” or “added to” His in order to prove that we are saved and worthy of salvation. They say one thing but believe another. They maintain that they must try their best to please God and prove to Him that they are sincere, have worked hard, and are then worthy to be with Him. In other words, they do their best and God takes care of the rest.
This is absolutely wrong. The Bible says that we are saved by grace, not by works: “For by grace you have been saved through faith… not as a result of works, that no one should boast (Ephesians 2:8,9, NASB); we are not saved by anything we do: “For we maintain that a man is justified by faith apart from works of the Law” (Romans 3:28, NASB). Because if there was anything that we could do to merit the forgiveness of our sins, then Jesus died needlessly: “nevertheless knowing that a man is not justified by the works of the Law but through faith in Christ Jesus, even we have believed in Christ Jesus, that we may be justified by faith in Christ, and not by the works of the Law; since by the works of the Law shall no flesh be justified…I do not nullify the grace of God; for if righteousness comes through the Law, then Christ died needlessly” (Galatians 2:16,21, NASB).
People in cults will often cite James 2:26, which says that faith without works is dead, in an attempt to demonstrate that works are part of becoming saved. While it is true that faith without works is dead, it isn’t the works that save us. James is saying that if you have real and true faith, it will result in real and true works of Christianity. In other words, you do good works because you are saved, not to get saved. He isn’t saying that our works are what saves us, or that they, in combination with the finished work of Christ, save us. This agrees with Paul who tells us that faith is what saves us: “Therefore having been justified by faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ” (Romans 5:1). This faith is real faith, or true saving faith, not just an empty mental acknowledgment of God’s existence, which is what those who “say” they have faith but show no corresponding godliness are guilty of. Incidentally, you should realize that faith is only as good as the object in which you place it. Just having faith in something doesn’t mean you’re saved. That is why it is important to have the true Jesus, because if you have great faith but it is in the wrong Jesus, then your faith is useless.
In Mormonism, Jesus is the brother of the devil begotten through sexual intercourse with a god who came from another planet. In Jehovah’s
Witnesses, he is Michael the Archangel who became a man. In the New Age Movement, he is a man in tune with the divine consciousness. Which is true? The only true Jesus is the one of the Bible, the one who is prayed to (1Corinthians 1:1,2; Acts 7:55–60); worshiped (Matthew 2:2–11; 14:33, John 9:35–38; Hebrews 1:8), and called God (John 20:28; Colossians 2:9). The Jesus of the cults is not prayed to, worshiped, or called God. And since the Jesus of the Bible is the only one who reveals the Father (Luke 10:22) so that you may have eternal life (John 17:3), you must have the true Jesus who alone is the way, the truth, and the life (John 14:6).
Another common denominator among cults is their methods of twisting Scripture. Some of the errors they commit in interpreting Scripture are: 1) taking Scripture out of context; 2) reading into the Scriptures information that is not there; 3) picking and choosing only Scriptures that suit their needs; 4) ignoring other explanations; 5) combining Scriptures that don’t have anything to do with each other; 5) quoting a verse without giving its location; 6) incorrect definitions of key words; and 7) mis-translations. These are only a few of the many ways cults misuse Scripture.
If you want to be able to witness well to a person in a cult, you need to understand their doctrines as well as your own. It would be a good idea to study Christian doctrine regarding the Bible, God, Jesus, the Holy Spirit, salvation, creation, man, etc., to become better equipped. Through study you will be able to answer questions that often come up in witnessing encounters. A Christian should know his doctrine well enough to be able to recognize not only what is true, but also what is false in a religious system (1Peter 3:15; 2Timothy 2:15).
Jesus warned us that in the last days false Christs and false prophets would arise and deceive many (Matthew 24:24). The Lord knew that there would be a rise of the spirit of antichrist (1John 4:1–3) in the last days. Its manifestation is here in the forms of Mormonism, Jehovah’s Witnesses, and the New Age Movement, among others.
“Questions and Objections”, from Lesson 82, www.BiblicalEvangelism.Net
Adapted from an article by the Christian Apologetics and Research Ministry (www.carm.org).
