Christians must be vigilant ... continually on guard against even the smallest of doctrinal errors. Scripture says it can quickly spread like yeast through a batch of dough and corrupt one's overall understanding of the truth that's found in Jesus Christ ... A little leaven leavens the whole lump. (Galatians 5:9)
One of Satan's unrelenting final salvos against mankind (before the Lord's return) is 'religious subterfuge'; i.e. using 'wolves in sheep's clothing' to introduce heretical teachings into the church. At the onset, it is subtle ... almost imperceptible until it taints a man's entire belief system.
Cereghin - Full-blown apostasy always starts small ... a doctrine compromised a bit here, an unscriptural practice introduced there.
Throughout the Bible, 'leaven' is used figuratively to describe 'permeating power or influence'.
Jesus coined the term to describe the corrupt teachings of the religious leaders of His day and the reigning king of Judea ... Then He charged them, saying, 'Take heed, beware of the leaven of the Pharisees and the leaven of Herod'. (Mark 8:15)
Even a small bit of legalistic teaching will rapidly spread into full-blown doctrine; for it taps into man's prideful desire to play a part in his own salvation. It invariably introduces a concept of 'works righteousness' to the neglect of the following passage ...
For by grace, you have been saved through faith, and that not of yourselves; it is the gift of God, not of works, lest anyone should boast. Ephesians 2:8-9
When Christ's 'sufficiency' as Lord is abandoned ... spurious manmade theologies come to the fore, misguided denominations lead people astray, and cults like the Mormon church spread heresy.
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