Oops! Out of the Mouth of Preachers
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Oops! Out of the Mouth of Preachers
Ever hear someone quote the bible verse "God helps those who help themselves?" Maybe it is something you have quoted yourself. You will find this verse in the Book of Hezekiah. Look in your Bible for the book of Hezekiah and you will not find it. Why is it not found in your Bible? Because it does not exist! The book of Hezekiah is a fiction. Look for this verse in the Bible and you will not find it anywhere!
Does that surprise you? Here's something more astonishing... a very well known charismatic and inspirational preacher, Pastor Greg Laurie from Harvest Fellowship in California quoted this very same verse in his radio sermon "A New Beginning" aired on July 8, 2010. When I heard him quote this as being in the Bible, my jaw literally dropped! I could not believe that a supposedly learned spiritual leader would quote this as a Bible verse! What in the world are these preachers teaching?
To the contrary, the Word of God says in Jeremah 17:5 "Thus saith the LORD; Cursed be the man that trusteth in man, and maketh flesh his arm, and whose heart departeth from the LORD." and Proverbs 28:26 says "He that trusteth in his own heart is a fool: but whoso walketh wisely, he shall be delivered."
So are we to put our trust in ourselves and not on God? Are we self-reliant and self-sufficient? Not according to the Bible. Psalms 121:2 clearly states it "My help cometh from the LORD, which made heaven and earth." And Psalms 28:7 says "The LORD is my strength and my shield; my heart trusted in him, and I am helped: therefore my heart greatly rejoiceth; and with my song will I praise him." The Bible is full of verses that teach us that God is our only source and without Him, we are helpless!
If you have not read your Bible, you can be easily misled. Please be like the Bereans in Acts 17:11, who searched the scriptures daily to confirm what they heard.
Here are a few verses that also comes from the fictional Book of Hezekiah:
"Money is the root of all evil"
"Early to bed, early to rise, makes a man healthy, wealthy and wise."
"Cleanliness is next to godliness."
"You can be so heavenly minded that you are no earthly good."
©Faithful Daughter
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Yes indeed. When preachers take on the job of leading God's sheep, God will hold them accountable for misleading His children. This is a task that too many take on but sadly are not qualified for. Thank you for being a true man of God.
This is not surprising to me. For further information, read "Don't Know Much About the Bible" a book on this very topic
Also in my hub on the Fall of Christianity, I mention how preachers teach what they want, not what they should. We have to blame ourselves, because as you point out, we must examine the word daily to verify what is true. When we find false doctrine or errors made by ministers, we must call them out. If they don't correct the problem, rebuke them, or just leave the church.
But, we all know that people like the easy road. Remember what the Bible says about the two roads. That applies to reading the Bible. It's easy to sit in a pew and listen to a preacher interpret the Bible for us. It sounds good, so it must be right, after all he is the preacher. It's his job to read the Bible for us. Wrong! We all need to read the Bible for ourselves.
That narrow road, and the gate that is hard to find, isn't such a mystery if we read the Bible daily and pray for understanding. It really isn't that difficult.
drbillfannin you are absolutely correct; people like the easy road as you say. We live in a society where people do not want to read their bibles, nor hear about sin or anything that will convict them and bring them into repentance; they only want to hear things that will tickle their ears. The Word of God has been pasteurized! It no longer bears truth nor conviction in today’s society. And, when you have false teachers leading the sheep, it only disperses the flock instead of bringing them to the Cross. Thank you for your comment. I will surely look into this book you recommended.
Yes, I come from a religion that not only takes liberty with the Bible teachings, it replaces them with their own doctrines! Such arrogance!
So I agree wholeheartedly with your hub here! Very good job, I look forward to reading more form you Faithful daughter!
Thank you exjwlaurie. You have come a long way and now the LORD is using you in a mighty way. I look forward to reading more of your Hubs as well.
God helps those who help themselves
I had to chuckle, beause I did think that was in the bible (God helps those...)I have heard preachers use it so much! Yes, we should know our bible back and forth ,beginning to end.(Thy word have I hid in my heart that I might not sin against thee...)
You are correct bayoulady; we should know our bible. There is no excuse for preachers not to know this. If they are in a position to lead the flock, then they should know their bible. As "lifegate" pointed out, preachers will have to give an account of what they teach one day. At the same time, we need to take responsibility for not reading our bibles as well. Thanks for taking the time to read my hub and commenting.
Help! I can't find the book of Bereans either. :-)
Thanks for stopping by Rochelle, and no you will not find the book of Bereans either, sorry :)
Brilliantly put and so true, yes we can be to quick to accept as truth that which finds no place in scripture. Be a noble Berean, we need more Bereans.
Thank you for your encouraging comment Parrster. We all need to be like the Bereans. God bless!
A poingnant hub. You can also add:
The first 10% of your salary belongs to God.
You tithe where you get fed.
God gave Earth to man, man gave it to satan, Jesus took it back and gave it to the church.
Satan was a beautiful musical angel that wanted to be God so he was kicked out of Heaven.
Thanks for commenting Disappearinghead. God bless!
Greg Laurie was my pastor for many years. I still listen to him via internet, youtube, and his books. I do not know which radio message you heard, but I can't tell you how many times I have heard Greg Say that God helps those who help themselves is not in the bible. I believe you misheard the statement, or misunderstood how he said it, what context he said it in. Greg Laurie is a solid student and preacher of the Word of God. He knows the Bible well and is uncompromising in his teaching and preaching of the Word. I got a kick out of the book of Hezakiah remark. Thanks for this hub and God bless.
Lambservant, thanks for stopping by and commenting.
I have also heard Pastor Laurie many, many times on radio and never disliked him but on this particular day, at the end of his sermon, he was promoting a book and did say "the bible says God helps those who help themselves." I did not misheard the statement neither did I misunderstood what he said, nor was there any misunderstanding in the context in which he said it; unfortunately, it was plainly clear. I am sure he has a heart for God but he definitely made an error and needs to go back to the bible and re-read on this because the Bible does not make such claims.
Shortly after that, I also heard another preacher make the same statement. Preachers, of all people, should know what the Bible says and teach the truth from it, and not from their own personal beliefs. We should use discernment and follow the Word of God, not man. As a child of God, you have to agree with me that we shouldn't be blinded by the charisma of man but we are to be alert and cautious of what we are being taught. This is where satan comes in and deceives many. We all make mistakes but when it comes to the Word of God, pastors have to be very careful not to mislead God’s flock. God bless!
lifegate Level 6 Commenter 19 months ago
FD,
We preachers better be careful. We'll give an account someday to the Lord for what we teach. Thanks for the warning. May we all be like the Bereans.