Can a Theological and a Character Defect Identify Heretics? (Edited by ChatGPT)

 

Even though spiritual growth is a continuous process that extends from second birth to the identity of Jesus, for practical reasons we could divide the faithful — based on some vague threshold — into two groups: the infants and the mature. This division is only possible among born-again faithful, not among those who follow the dead religions of the world. A dead person cannot grow, after all.

 

When faith is in infancy, character defects and theological errors are the norm rather than the exception; as a result, they are not indicators of heresy. Let us take the messed-up assembly of the Corinthians, with both serious theological and behavioral defects, yet who were wealthy in gifts of the Spirit. It is not only that their behavioral and theological defects did not make them heretics but infants in the Spirit — they were also gifted with the powers of the Holy Spirit.

 

Why would God give gifts to such ungodly faithful? Because they need them more. As sin increases, grace has to increase to keep the faithful in faith. Given their theological infancy and behavioral defects, their end could be corruption — but to keep them alive, God increases His grace because sin is abundant.

 

Let us think about the difference between Judah and Samaria. Judah did not abandon God but prostituted herself behind Him — I guess she thought God was not everywhere — while Samaria ran openly after idols and demons. Yet most of the prophets and miracles were centered around Samaria rather than Judah. This is not because Samaria deserved it more but because it needed it more. Power is sometimes given not to affirm maturity but to keep small faith alive.

 

On the other hand, even among the mature faithful, purity of theology and behavior is not a necessary condition for purity of faith. The problem is that when God plants His heavenly seed, the devil also comes and mixes his weeds. When the children of God preach the Word of God, the children of the devil come and mix their weeds into it. That is why, even until harvest time, good theology can be mixed with evil theology.

 

To my understanding — as I am not Jesus to be certain — I have never seen a single person, let alone a denomination, with a perfect or pure gospel. Even when you find the best preacher of the Word of God, you can find a few heresies in his or her teaching. At the denominational level, the problem is even more serious. After Jesus sows His seed, the devil waits until they sleep and mixes his weeds, and God lets them grow together so as not to lose what is good. That is why anyone who thinks theological purity is the certificate of genuine faith does not know as much as he needs to know about God.

 

Take Paul and his teaching. God said all food is clean, and some limits were put by the elders of Jerusalem to separate sin and idol worship from the holy people of God. What they decided on earth was approved in heaven, as Revelation affirms by banning what those elders banned. Yet some faithful kept special days, and some restrained themselves from certain foods. They were wrong, but Paul insisted we should protect them rather than condemn them. They were not against the gospel of grace by faith but had defects, and we should act in a way that helps them grow — that was Paul’s recommendation.

 

Then we have the assembly of Jerusalem, known for sacrifice and dedication to God, yet unable to cleanse itself from seeds of the devil. Some seeds of devil claimed Jesus is not God but only a prophet; others demanded that the Law of Moses be enforced, and so on. The real faithful of Jerusalem were mature — age-wise, not necessarily knowledge-wise — yet they could not separate themselves from those seeds of the devil. The bad seeds were works of the devil, but their teaching was mixed with that of the legitimate ones. Were those faithful in Jerusalem heretics? No — and even Paul says they were not. The problem is that they were mixed with heretics and, worse, could not separate good from evil, and their end was tied to the destruction of Jerusalem. Even Paul said that if you build with gold or straw, the fire will test it. Your salvation is not tied to your heresy, but your reward is.

 

So what is the criterion to distinguish the faithful from heretics? The balance between good and bad, and the direction in which that balance is moving, is the indicator of identity. The good question is: is it good fruit mixed with some bad, or bad that only appears good? I have seen people mixed up with heretical doctrines of Word of Faith, prosperity gospel, and so on, because that was the food on the menu and that is what they knew — yet their core essence is Jesus. Those are good people of God mixed with some evil theology.

 

Yet there are those who join well-developed, sound theology like the Pharisees, but who neither know God nor serve Him, and who are ready to kill Jesus when they see Him. They speak well, they seem holy, but they are painted graveyards, and their hands are stained with the blood of countless faithful whom they have cut off from the tree of God that Jesus is. It is not what they appear to be but who they are that defines them, and they are clearly seeds of the devil. This is the Pharisee problem — everything is for appearance, not for the glory of God, and no trace of Jesus can be found in them.

 

Heresy itself is often easy to detect — especially in this age, as the harvest is ripe and the devil is no longer hidden. In this age, the devil is preached openly, and the evil fruit is not hard to see. Yet identifying heresy is easier than identifying heretics, because you need a nose that can smell Jesus apart from the devil.

So how do we distinguish heretics from good seed among the mature? By their fruit. What is the right fruit? Fruit is what is harvested at the end, and the end of the faithful is the identity of Jesus. When the identity of Jesus is growing, that is good fruit. When it is only an appearance or nowhere to be found, that is an indicator of heresy.

 

In this process, your distance from Jesus is measured not mainly by theology or character but by love. If you are growing in love of God, love of the faithful, love of neighbors, and love of enemies, you will outgrow your theological errors and character defects over time — if God wills it. Sometimes God decides that certain wine cannot be placed in certain skins, and He may let you go without correcting you because you cannot carry it. Yet if you love God with all your heart, mind, soul, and spirit, it is easier for God to teach you — if He wills it. If you are built on love for people, including enemies, God can teach you over time the law of the Spirit. But if you are selfish and love yourself, your end is questionable because your identity is questionable. That is why, after admiring the assembly of Ephesus, God said that without love He does not need them. That is why Paul said without love all is worthless. And love is not a vague term that needs modern reconstruction — love lived among us, and His name is Jesus Christ.

 

So ask: do they love God with all their heart, mind, soul, and spirit? Is that love expressed in love for fellow faithful? Jesus said, “Love one another,” and this is how they will know that you are mine. We know the nature of love, and Paul listed how love works. Love does not seek its own good but the good of others. Love does not delight in injustice or sin but in righteousness. Love is not proud but humble, and love covers many sins. Love is for truth, not for sin. This love can grow into love for enemies with spiritual maturity.

 

People of God can have major heresy. John the Baptist doubted Jesus, but he was no heretic — he simply mixed with some confusion. Yes, their heresy is heresy and should be rebuked, but their identity should be judged by the overall direction of their life, not by theological and behavioral defects alone.

 

A white cloth can have dark stains and needs washing without being classified as a dark cloth. Yet a dark cloth can sparkle with glitter, and it should burn with its maker, the devil. That is why, while rejecting all heresy, we must be extra careful in rejecting godly people who are in error. Let us correct their heresy, but let us be cautious in labeling them heretics.

 

Take Graham and his major heresies. Can you see Jesus in him or the devil? His white cloth is seriously stained — he not only believed that dead religions are living, but also that people from diverse non-Christian religions, and even faithless atheists, are saved by implicit knowledge of God — yet there is more Jesus in him than error. He is not his error. We reject his heresy, but not him. Let us do the same for others.