How can you spot a false teacher?

In Ezekiel 13, God confronts the false prophets who tell people what they want to hear. In this study, Dr. Toby Holt explains how to recognize false teaching — and why it is so dangerous.

These prophets spoke “out of their own heart” while claiming, “Thus says the LORD.” They cried “Peace, peace” when judgment was coming, like men whitewashing a flimsy wall that cannot stand the storm. Dr. Holt explains that the mark of a true minister is faithfulness to God’s written Word, not clever words of his own. A teacher who sets the Bible aside to “speak from the heart” is the most dangerous of all, because the human heart is deceitful.

Questions this study answers:

1. What was the job of a prophet? To speak God’s words faithfully — not his own opinions. A true prophet delivered what God said, even when it was unwelcome.

2. Why were there so many false prophets? Because people “love to have it so” — they prefer comforting lies to hard truth. False prophets supplied the message the crowd wanted.

3. How can we recognize false teaching today? By testing it against Scripture. The mark of faithful teaching is God’s Word opened and obeyed, not feelings or flattery.

“Because they have seduced My people, saying, ‘Peace!’ when there is no peace.” — Ezekiel 13:10 (NKJV)

Speaker: Dr. Toby Holt is the President of New Geneva Theological Seminary, a Reformed seminary in Colorado Springs. He is known for clear, down-to-earth Bible teaching, and his sermons have been downloaded more than 1.9 million times on SermonAudio.

Listen and go deeper: This sermon is part of the Ezekiel Explained study from New Geneva Theological Seminary. Find more verse-by-verse teaching across the Bible at newgeneva.org. To support this teaching ministry, visit newgeneva.org/give.