5 Common but False Teachings That Endanger Your Salvation

In this post, let me share with you the 5 dangerous false teachings that are commonly taught in churches today!

According to one estimate, there are about 46,000 Christian organizations and denominations worldwide. Whether that number is accurate or not, it is undeniable that the world of Christianity is divided according to their beliefs, traditions, and interpretations of the Bible.

This makes it inevitable for various church organizations to have differing, but conflicting teachings from the Bible.

While you can definitely study God’s word, pray for His guidance, and let Him lead you to the truth, I would just want to highlight 5 of the most dangerous false teachings today. 

If you hear these teachings in the pulpit of your church or read them on your statement of fundamental beliefs, then you’ve to leave that group as soon as you can. These false teachings are not just there to pervert your right understanding of God’s word, but they can also endanger your salvation!

So, in this blog, let me share with you the 5 false teachings of many churches today that can actually affect your salvation.

False teaching no. 1: Faith alone

false teachings in churches you probably don't know

The first false teaching that you will commonly hear in mainstream Christianity would be the teaching, “faith alone.”

Basically, what this teaching promotes is the belief that you simply have to believe and accept Jesus Christ as your Savior and you’re already saved!

Technically, what this is saying is that you can be a sinner all you want in your life and when you are about to die, you simply pray the sinner’s prayer and you’re on your way to heaven.

However, can you really find this teaching in the Bible?

We clearly read in the book of James that this is not the case. In James 2:14, James wrote:

What does it profit, my brethren, if someone says he has faith but does not have works? Can faith save him?

What did James call a faith that does not have works? We read in James 2:17, “Thus also faith by itself, if it does not have works, is dead.”

So, faith without works is dead. What’s so shocking about James’ statement is that when you simply believe in God, you are no better than the demons. 

In James 2:19, we read:

You believe that there is one God. You do well. Even the demons believe—and tremble! 

He went on to write in James 2:20:

But do you want to know, O foolish man, that faith without works is dead?

He concluded in verse 26 of the same chapter:

26 For as the body without the spirit is dead, so faith without works is dead also.

So, that’s the first dangerous teaching of most Christians today.

While faith alone is wrong, Christians can also believe the opposite extreme end of this teaching. This leads us to the second point.

False teaching no. 2: Works alone

Seven reasons why we should overcome
Christians believe they can earn their salvation.

If faith alone tells us that all we need is to believe, works alone tells us that it is our works that will save us. Nothing can be farther than the truth!

Salvation is never earned. It is a gift freely given to us by God. No amount of good works can earn you salvation. No amount of commandment-keeping can wipe away your sins.

Even if you keep God’s laws perfectly from this day forward, it won’t erase the sins you have committed in the past.

Ephesians 2:8-9 clearly tells us:

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.

As you can see, it is not us who will save ourselves. It takes God’s grace.

So, we need to ask this crucial question, then. If we are saved by grace, then does this mean there’s no need for good works?

Absolutely not!

The problem with most Christians today is that they stop reading the second chapter of Ephesians in verse 9. They don’t read verse 10:

For we are His workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared beforehand that we should walk in them.

So, faith, grace, and good works harmoniously work together. Here’s the conclusion we should learn:

No amount of works can save you but only grace. However, good works are still important because it serves as an evidence of the change in your life.

You can’t simply accept and believe in God while you don’t exert any effort in overcoming your sins and following His commandments.

False teaching no. 3: You don’t need to keep God’s commandments

Christians teach that the law of God has already been done away with.

Some Christians suggest that since we are already under the New Covenant, there’s no need to keep God’s commandments anymore. Christ kept it for us so we don’t have to.

Have you thought how absurd this teaching is? 

Think about this for a second: You have an older brother. He is a brother who always obeys your parents. Does that mean that you don’t have to obey your parents since your brother has obeyed your parents already?

Of course not!

Jesus said ni Matthew 5:17:

17 “Do NOT think that I came to destroy the Law or the Prophets. I did not come to destroy but to fulfill. 

But that’s exactly what many Christians think today that Christ came to destroy the Law and the Prophets!

In verse 18, we read:

18 For assuredly, I say to you, till heaven and earth pass away, one jot or one tittle will by no means pass from the law till all is fulfilled.

Now, do you see the heavens? Do you see the earth? Obviously, yes! So, this means the laws of God are still here for us to keep.

In verse 19, Christ gave a stern warning:

19 Whoever therefore breaks one of the least of these commandments, and teaches men so, shall be called least in the kingdom of heaven; but whoever does and teaches them, he shall be called great in the kingdom of heaven.

So those who are teaching that the commandments of God are no longer binding will be called the least in the Kingdom of God. On the other hand, those who do not just teach but also do the commandments of God will be called great in the kingdom of God!

This teaching of Christ is diametrically opposite to what most Christians believe and teach in our modern day.

False teaching no. 4: Once saved always saved

Once saved, always saved doctrine teaches that once people accepted Christ, there’s nothing they can do that will make them lose their salvation.

Once saved, always saved or some would call it, “eternal security,” is the teaching that once you accept Jesus Christ as your personal Savior, you won’t lose your salvation anymore, no matter what happens after that.

It sounds like great teaching. After all, who would like to lose their salvation, right? However, does this mean it is the truth?

Here’s what the Bible says:

But he who endures to the end shall be saved. (Matthew 24:13)

So, as you can see, enduring is needed to be saved. Yahshua or Jesus didn’t say that as long as you accept me, you’ll be saved and enduring is no longer needed.

This verse tells us that even if you started believing in God but you didn’t endure until the end, then you won’t be saved. Simple as that.

There are other verses that debunk the once saved always saved teaching. But for now, you get the idea that this teaching is never rooted in the Bible.

False teaching no. 5: Prosperity gospel

Prosperity gospel teaches that Christians will have enormous physical blessings if they have enough faith.

Among the biggest churches today around the world are preachers of prosperity gospels. Before we proceed, let’s first discuss what the prosperity gospel is.

At its core, the prosperity gospel is the teaching that God blesses Christians with good health and wealth. It means that when you only believe, you can somehow command God to bless you with prosperity and heal you from your diseases.

If you look into the history of the prosperity gospel, it is actually inspired by the New Thought movement in the late 19th century. This movement is based on the belief that if you use positive thinking, you will also receive positive outcomes. So, basically, it is the combination of self-help psychology and Christianity.

So, is the purpose of God for you is for you to consistently become healthy, wealthy, and happy?

Here’s the truth: God wants the best for all of us

However, this does not mean that we will not go through trials and suffering. 

Do you know why? Because through trials and difficulties we can develop our godly character. In some cases, God places more importance on building our character rather than our comfort.

If you look into the Bible, some of the most faithful servants of God suffered greatly. Think about righteous Abel. He was killed by his brother. How about the prophets? A lot of them went through trials in life. Some are even persecuted and killed for preaching God’s word.

How about Paul? He is the Apostle to the Gentiles and God mightily used him for His work. Yet, we see that he experienced a lot of hardships.

Does this mean that Paul has less faith than any of us that He should suffer? Does this mean that Paul didn’t believe enough for God to bring him wealth and health? Of course not!

Perhaps, when you think about the prosperity Gospel, you simply need to think about Yahshua our Messiah. He was despised, persecuted, and killed!

If Christ is physically here with us today, He would be the first one who will disqualify himself by the teaching of health and wealth gospel preachers.

As you can see, the prosperity Gospel distorts the true teaching of the Bible. Don’t believe the lie some pastors tell you that you will eternally be happy and wealthy in this life as long as you believe.

Reject these false teachings now

These are just some of the false teachings that you need to reject. If you hear these teachings in the pulpit of your church or read them on your statement of fundamental beliefs, then you’ve go to leave that group as soon as you can. 

These false teachings are not just there to pervert your right understanding of God’s word, but they can also endanger your salvation!


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11 thoughts on “5 Common but False Teachings That Endanger Your Salvation

  1. You’re absolutely wrong about eternal security. The reference you use in Matthew 24:13 you’ve taken completely out of context.

    Your easily refuted with scripture. But let me ask you this one logical question: IF you can lose you salvation what is it that is strong enough, powerful enough to take it away. Keep in mind, that in order to lose salvation, it has to be stronger and more powerful than the God who granted. It also has to be strong enough and more powerful than the blood of Jesus Christ that cleansed it.

    I believe anything you think you can answer with will show that is it an IMPOSSIBILITY to lose the salvation of God that is offered through and provided by Jesus Christ! John 10:25-30 is proof!

    • Hi KE,

      I’m afraid you have completely missed the point of this post and asking the wrong question.

      God has the final say whether He will give you salvation or not. He is sovereign and if He decides to give you salvation, then He will give it no matter what happens.

      However, we know that God chooses to whom He will grant salvation. Not everyone is given salvation.

      See what Paul said:

      27 But I discipline my body and bring it into subjection, lest, when I have preached to others, I myself should become disqualified. 1 Corinthians 9:27

      Did you read that? Even Paul knew that there’s no “once saved, always saved” doctrine in the Bible.

      Even Paul, the Apostle to the Gentiles, the one who have done a lot of great things for the church, knew that even Him, can still be disqualified and lose his reward.

      Don’t tell me that the conversion of Paul was fake and that he didn’t actually been “saved”?

      Regards,
      Joshua

  2. So “faith alone” did not apply to the thief dying on the cross next to Jesus? Kind of hard to perform good works in that situation.

    I can probably guess your next counterargument: “if you cant do good works, youre ok. If you can, then you must.”

    What about the prisoner in jail with Paul? “For everyone who calls on the name of the Lord will be saved.”

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