One can soon get the feeling in the modern, ecclesiastical climate that the Holy Bible is not so WHOLLY. That is to say, the Bible is still in flux, and the kinks are still being worked out, so that we keep on getting new and improved models.

If nothing else, the Bible critics tell us that the earliest versions of the Bible, such as the Vulgate and the King James Version, were rushed through production, and put on the market prematurely. The Bible is still undergoing refinement when it comes to what is authentic and what is not authentic. Chop, chop! When you are dealing with Bible critics, it is like alligator wrestling, as they want to keep on chopping and chomping the Bible one piece at a time.

It will be some time, or maybe a very long time, or maybe never, before the LIFEBOAT CALLED THE BIBLE is deemed TOTALLY SEAWORTHY.

In short, we are told that:

“WHEN IT COMES TO THE UNWHOLLY BIBLE, WE WILL ALWAYS BE IN THE

EYE OF THE STORM BEFORE THE BIBLE CAN BE BE BROUGHT TO THE

PLACE WHERE IT IS WHOLLY TRUSTWORTHY.

******

THUS SAITH THE LORD

How tragic that we live in a day when people are being led to think that you cannot simply read and accept the Bible for what it says. Word for word, line upon line, and verse after verse, read it knowing that “YOU HAVE GOD’S WORD ON IT.” And that the words in the Word of God mean exactly what they say, and say exactly what they mean. And that the Bible writers are not playing us for chumps.

There is a little phrase that appears over and over again, over 400 hundred of times in the Bible, a tiny phrase of few words, but words that say it all. They are:

“THUS SAITH THE LORD.”

Such as Isaiah 43:1 which is one of my favorites:

“But now, THUS SAYS THE LORD, your Creator, O Jacob, and He Who formed

you, O Israel,do not fear, for I have redeemed you, I have called you

by name, you are mine.”

When I hear someone tell me not to be afraid, I appreciate their sentiments, but it really doesn’t touch me deeply. But when my Creator, the God of Jacob (Israel), the One Who formed me, tells me not to fear, that has Divine drill power that goes down to the very roots of fear. As a matter of fact, I am told that God tells me 365 times in the Bible, “Fear not.” That covers the entire year and every day in it. Where else can you get assurance coverage against fear like that?

When God says it, that settles it! So that when we open the Bible, we no longer have to ever again perform major surgery on Scripture as the Bible critics would have us do, and sort out the vital organs from the packing materials. No longer will we have to stop and go, slice and dice, accept and eliminate. Rather, as in no other book on earth, when we open the Bible:

“WE HAVE THE TRUTH, THE WHOLE TRUTH, AND NOTHING BUT THE TRUTH,

THUS SAITH THE LORD.”

******

We now continue to uncover some of the main breeding grounds for heresy, which according to Revelation 22:18-19, fall into two main categories:

-ADDER HERESIES (adding to the Word of God).

-SUBTRACTOR HERESIES (subtracting from the Word of God).

In HERESIES – ADDITIONS AND SUBTRACTIONS Pt. I, we noted that the first heresy breeding ground is:

“REASON OVER FAITH.”

We then saw how it operates on many different critically important fronts.

Now we come to the second main breeding ground for heresy, and that is:

“SELF-INTEREST OVER TRUTH.”

II. SELF-INTEREST OVER TRUTH

The fact is, we don’t know just how powerful the truths of II Timothy 3:2 and 4 really are:

“For men will be lovers of SELF….”

And:

“…lovers of pleasure rather than lovers of God.”

The fact of the matter is:

“SELF-INTEREST AND SELF-PLEASING ARE THE GREAT WHEELS AND SPRINGS

THAT MOVE THE ENTIRE UNIVERSE.”

And now in these last days:

“SELF-INTEREST IS THE GREAT WHEEL AND SPRING THAT MOVES MOST

OF MODERN RELIGION.”

EXAMPLE NUMBER 1:

How the discipleship teachings and the example of Jesus Christ are being subtracted, denied, and shuffled for out-and-out SELF-INTEREST AND SELF-PROFITING. I have never seen such a rape of the Words of Christ in my entire 73 years of life and 47 years of ministry. As a matter of fact, we are being taught by hordes of heretics the following:

“CHRIST’S INTERESTS AND SELF-INTERESTS ARE ABSOLUTELY SYNONYMOUS.”

Which long ago prompted Voltaire to say:

“WHEN IT COMES TO MONEY, THE WHOLE WORLD HAS THE SAME RELIGION.”

How often now do you hear the Words of Jesus Christ expounded on in depth any more from the modern pulpits, words such as Matthew 6:19-21? There we hear Jesus say,

“Do not lay up for yourselves treasures upon earth, where moth and rust

destroy,and where thieves break in and steal.”

“But lay up for yourselves treasures in heaven, where neither moth nor rust

destroys, nor thieves break in or steal.”

“for where your treasure is, there will your heart be also.”

Before we get into that, note this from the outset as an infallible rule:

“IF A PRINCIPLE IN THIS MODERN WORLD AND CHURCH ELEVATES AND

ADVANCES SELF, IT WILL BE EXALTED.”

However:

“IF A PRINCIPLE IN THIS MODERN WORLD AND CHURCH DEMOTES AND DENIES

SELF, IT WILL BE DEBASED.”

In brief:

“IT IS INCREDIBLE TO SEE TODAY HOW SELF-INTEREST AND SELFIANITY

OUTWEIGH TRUTH, AND THAT IS NOWHERE TRUER THAN WHEN IT

COMES TO MONEY AND STUFF.”

I have to make an announcement which will empty the auditorium:

“JESUS CHRIST SAYS THAT IT IS A SIN TO ACCUMULATE WEALTH

AND TO HORDE RICHES.”

Shazaam! That will not set modern worshipers’ feet a-dancing. In fact, when I’ve preached that, it was obvious that many were coming down with massive migraine headaches. All I know is that one minute they looked fine, and the next minute they looked like they had been stabbed.

Why? Because these words, and many others like them from the mouth of Christ, are being totally silenced by preachers today. They have fallen prey to SUBTRACTION HERETICS AND HERESIES such as the modern PROSPERITY PULPITEERS AND PROFITEERS.

Jesus’ entire life, teaching, and ministry have been erased from the Word of God by those who teach scores of people that God wants them to be rich and bathed in luxury. That is ADDITION HERESY, and not only do they teach it, they live it. It is heresy of the first order, because it SUBTRACTS THE ENTIRE DISCIPLESHIP LIFE AND MINISTRY OF JESUS CHRIST, AND ADDS THEIR OWN MATERIALISTIC RELIGION.

Why is AMASSING WEALTH AND HORDING TREASURES WRONG? Follow the following powerfully Biblical reason, as William MacDonald outlines them from Scripture in his booklet “Where Is Your Treasure?”:

1. First, it is wrong because Jesus in the Bible says so. (Matthew 6:19)

2. Second, it is wrong to amass fortune because it is directly contrary to the example of the Lord Jesus Christ. He was infinitely rich, yet voluntarily became poor in order to enrich us through His poverty. (II Corinthians 8:9)

3. Third, it is wrong because it overlooks the vast spiritual need of the world today. It is form of spiritual fratricide to have the means of spreading the Gospel and not to massively use them. (Ezekiel 33:6)

4. Fourth, it is wrong because it is callous to the enormous physical needs of the world. The rich man in Luke 16 was quite unconcerned about the beggar at his gate. If he had just gone to the window and pulled aside the drape, he would have seen a genuine case of need, a worthy object on which to spend some of his money. But he didn’t care. (Matthew 25:42, 45)

5. Fifth, it is wrong because it robs God. (Malachi 3:8) Everything we have belongs to Him. If we can’t use it directly in the advancement of His interests, we should at least turn it over to those who can. To keep it laid up in a napkin is inexcusable. (Luke 19:20-26)

6. Sixth, it is wrong because the amassing and hoarding of wealth makes faith practically impossible. Why? Because it is almost impossible to have riches and not trust in them! The man with money doesn’t know how much he depends on it. The truth is that we would rather trust a bank balance which we can see than a God Whom we cannot see. The thought of having no one or nothing but God to trust is sufficient to bring on a nervous collapse. (Proverbs 18:17)

7. Seventh, it is wrong because failure to obey God in the matter of financial stewardship closes portions of the Bible to us. We become blind to passages that are quite simple on the face of them. Passages on self-denial have little relevance when we are living at ease in Zion.

What then happens is that we have preachers drunk on mammon taking the wheel of the church. The church becomes like sleeping beauty dancing on the silver clouds with gold flecks in her hair. She is no longer able to even think of a NO FRILLS LIFESTYLE. And certainly we cannot teach passages effectively which we have not obeyed ourselves. So one of the curses of disobedience in this, as in all areas – a mutilated Bible! (Matthew 6:22-23, Matthew 13:14-15) End of MacDonald quote.

In short:

“THE ELIMINATION OF THE STRONG FINANCIAL PRINCIPLES OF CHRIST, AND

REPLACING THEM WITH THE MAMMONIZING, MONEYIZING, AND

MATERIALIZING OF CHRISTIANITY IS ONE OF THE BIGGEST

AND MOST DESTRUCTIVE HERESIES EVER IN THE ENTIRE

HISTORY OF THE CHRISTIAN CHURCH.”

With the tragic results being that:

“SELF COMES BEFORE TRUTH, RICHES BEFORE RIGHTEOUSNESS, AND THE

HERETICAL CHURCH IS TEACHING PEOPLE TO BECOME CHRISTIANS

FOR THE PURPOSE AND WITH THE HOPE OF BECOMING RICH.”

EXAMPLE NUMBER 2:

We must understand this:

“SELF-INTEREST OVER TRUTH IS ONE OF THE MAIN BREEDING GROUNDS

FOR ADDITION AND SUBTRACTION HERESY.”

And again:

“WHEN TRUTH IS CERTAIN AND CONFLICTS WITH SELF-INTEREST, TRUTH

WILL BE WRITTEN OFF AS FALSEHOOD AND HUMAN ERROR. UGH!”

This is no more true than in the ABOMINATION OF HOMOSEXUALITY. It is nothing more or less than the elevation of evil self-interest above Holy Truth.

Hear me:

“AS IN THE CASE OF HOMOSEXUALITY, PURE BIBLE TRUTH AND PERVERTED

SELF-INTEREST WILL ALWAYS BE IN CONFLICT AND GOING IN

OPPOSITE DIRECTIONS ON THE MORAL SCALE.”

It makes no difference to the perverted that God says in Leviticus 18:22,

“You shall not lie with a male as one lies with a female;

it is an abomination.”

However, the religious gays tell us that this is the Old Testament, and does not apply any longer to the Age of the New Testament. Hello! SUBTRACTION HERESY!

Is that so? Then why does the Holy Spirit say in I Corinthians 6:9-10,

“Or do you not know that the unrighteous shall not inherit the Kingdom

of God? Do not be deceived, neither fornicators, nor idolaters, nor

adulterers, nor effeminate, nor homosexuals…shall

inherit the Kingdom of God.”

However, the religious gays tell us that this refers to gay people before they believed in Jesus Christ. In other words, unbelieving gays! That is to say, it is not homosexuality that is being condemned by God, but unbelieving homosexuals. Hello! All of which illustrates:

“NOT ONLY DOES SELF-INTEREST SUBTRACT TRUTH, IT CORRUPTS IT.”

******

It is not by accident that the Apostle Paul in I Corinthians 6:9 speaks of the EFFEMINATE in the closest connection with the HOMOSEXUALS. EFFEMINATE simply refers to men having feminine traits as so often homosexuals do. It is all part of the satanically caused sexual identity crisis that is rampant in both the homosexual and the lesbian world – feminine men and masculine women.

But then the homosexual community will be quick to respond that this is nonsense, and that homosexuals are just as manly as straight men. After all, they too drink beer, smoke cigars, play poker, watch NFL football, lay on the beach, and weight lift.

Whoopee! Just one main ingredient missing! According to the Word of God, if you are at all going to be in the running for Man of the Year in the MANLINESS SWEEPSTAKES, a prerequisite in the Bible is that you be attracted to the opposite sex, and not to the same sex. Right there is the requirement for picking up any points at all. Adam was attracted to Eve, not to Steve! This is not even in the fine print, it is the main ingredient in real BIBLICAL MACHONESS for any man.

Hear me! We read in Genesis 2:21-22,

“So the Lord God caused a deep sleep to fall upon the man, and he slept;

then He took one of his ribs, and closed up the flesh at that place.”

“And the Lord fashioned into a WOMAN the rib which He had taken from

the MAN, and brought HER TO THE MAN.”

It does not say,

“And the Lord fashioned into a MAN the rib which He had taken

from the MAN, and brought HIM TO THE MAN.”

For God’s sake, get the rib issue straight here right from the start. It is the key to going straight in this life, and if not, a key to going straight to Hell in the next.

******

And then to top off all of this heresy, many of the mainline churches and denominations today endorse and even sanctify homosexuality, homosexual marriages, as well as homosexual pastors, priests, and priestesses. That includes to one perverted degree or another The Episcopalian Church, the USA Presbyterian Church, the United Methodist Church, and many independent churches of multiplied thousands of people.

Mind you, entire churches up over their eyeballs in this SUBTRACTION AND ADDITION HERESY that boggles the mind. A heresy that destroys lives, marriages, families, children, and society in the name of Christ! God has already written ICHABOD all over their walls. It defies imagination! It is one thing that America’s White House stands for perversion. It is quite another when God’s House does it too. A MOST DAMNABLE HERESY IN CHURCH AND STATE!

EXAMPLE NUMBER 3:

Hear me:

“IT IS HARD FOR THE HUMAN SELF TO MAINTAIN THE TRUTH, BUT

IT IS EVEN HARDER FOR THE HUMAN SELF TO BE

MAINTAINED BY THE TRUTH.”

The Human Self loves the comfortable, the predictable, the controllable, the containable, and the manageable. It does not like the uncomfortable, the unpredictable, the uncontrollable, the uncontainable, and the unmanageable. That is just the way of the Human Self.

It is true in churches too which are made up of Human Selves, even though now they are Religious Selves too. Yet, they are still Human Selves who like the familiar and the religiously usual. You know, “NOTHING IS FINER THAN MY RECLINER.” There are lots of recliner churches along the way that rival Art Van’s Furniture for the comfortable and the relaxing.

You see, we have a real problem here when it comes to God the Holy Spirit in the HOMEY-COMFY CHURCH. What is that? Simply but unsettlingly:

“THE HOLY SPIRIT OF GOD IS SO VERY FAR FROM BEING PREDICTABLE,

CONTROLLABE, CONTAINABLE, OR MANAGEABLE.”

As a matter of fact:

“THE TRUTH OF THE HOLY SPIRIT AND THE HOLY SPIRIT OF TRUTH CAN

BE AND OFTEN ARE DOWN-RIGHT UNCOMFORTABLE,

UNCONTROLLABLE, UNCONTAINABLE,

AND UNPREDICTABLE.”

We read about the Holy Spirit in the Bible that He is likened to that very FICKLE-INDEPENDENT-MYSTERIOUS-POWERFUL and even DANGEROUS reality known as the WIND. The Holy Spirit says about Himself in John 3:8,

“The wind blows where it wishes and you hear the sound of it, but do

not know where it comes from and where it is going…..”

This is no truer than when it comes to the Gifts of the Holy Spirit outlined for us in I Corinthians 12:1-11. (Read it for yourself please) It all sounds so strange, so weird, almost extraterrestrial, and frankly, very threatening and disconcerting.

As a matter of fact, I have never met anyone or anything that is so disturbing, and that causes so much disturbance in the churches as the Holy Spirit and His Precious Gifts. You’d think that they were dealing with “The Creature From Outer Space” Who comes to infect them with 9 alien and dangerous forces. Yes, I mean, something so creepy as SPEAKING WITH OTHER TONGUES, and spooky as the DISCERNING OF SPIRITS.

The great tragedy here of the COMFORTABLE SELF OVER THE UNCOMFORTABLE HOLY SPIRIT AND HIS GIFTS is that the same church people who save and honor sacred objects, and who kiss the Bible in apology for dropping it on the floor, have TOTALLY SUBTRACTED THE 9 GIFTS OF THE HOLY SPIRIT FROM THEIR BIBLES, THEIR LIVES, AND FROM THEIR CHURCH LIFE.

In short, the Gifts of the Holy Spirit are not only subtracted but banned from their churches. They never even give this grievous SUBTRACTION HERESY a concerned thought. The Gifts of the Holy Spirit somewhere in their history were subtracted from the Word of God when no one was looking, and like bubbles from blowing fluid they have vanished into thin air. Poof! They have been thrown away like surplus.

Shame on us! And it gets far worse, as many of these same religious people assign the Holy Spirit and His gifts to the devil. If you will, those 9 gifts are not from the Holy Spirit but instead from the evil spirit. Even if they don’t outright say it, they think it! And God not only thinks but says that this sin of calling the Holy Spirit’s work devilish is the unpardonable sin. We read in Mark 3:28-30,

“Truly I say to you, all sins shall be forgiven the sons of men, and

whatever blasphemies they utter;”

“but whoever blasphemes against the Holy Spirit never has forgiveness,

but is guilty of an eternal sin” –

“because they were saying, “He has an unclean spirit.”

In other words:

“THERE ARE THOSE WHO NOT ONLY SUBTRACT THE HOLY SPIRIT AND

HIS GIFTS FROM THE BIBLE, BUT THEY EVEN GO SO FAR AS

AS GIVING THEM AN X RATING.”

That my friend is eternally dangerous to do. I warn you in love! Don’t even think it, let alone say it!

It is way past time for the church too repent of this horrific SUBTRACTION HERESY, and to do what I Corinthians 14:1 commands us to do,

“Pursue love, yet desire earnestly spiritual gifts, especially

that you may prophesy.” Amen!

HERESIES – ADDITIONS AND SUBTRACTIONS PT. 3 coming soon.