Throughout church history, various heresies have emerged that distort core biblical truths. Surprisingly, some of these ancient errors still have a stronghold in modern times. Here are four persistent heresies that continue to influence contemporary Christian thought:
The Heresy of Judaizers: This belief suggests that good deeds or efforts contribute to salvation, echoing the false teaching confronted by Paul in Galatians. It implies that faith in Christ alone is not sufficient for salvation.
Docetism/Gnosticism: These heresies deny the true humanity of Christ, asserting that He only appeared to be human. While Gnosticism has evolved, the tendency to undervalue the physical world and focus solely on the spiritual persists today in various forms.
Prosperity Gospel: This modern heresy promises health, wealth, and success as signs of God’s favor, neglecting the biblical teaching that believers will face trials and suffering in this life.
Pelagianism: This heresy claims that humans can initiate their own salvation, contradicting the biblical teaching that salvation is solely by God’s grace.
What other modern-day heresies have you encountered, and how do they challenge the teachings of Scripture?
Read more about these heresies and their implications:
Modalism teaches that God is one in essence but manifests in different modes or roles over time—first as the Father, then as Jesus, and now as the Holy Spirit. This doctrine denies the orthodox Christian belief in the Trinity, which affirms that God is one being who exists eternally and simultaneously as three distinct persons: Father, Son, and Holy Spirit. This view struggles to align with Scripture, as passages like John 1:1-3 show that Jesus (the Word) was with God and was God from the beginning, indicating distinct yet unified existence. Similarly, John 16:7-15 and Acts 7:54-56 describe interactions between the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit, demonstrating their distinctiveness and eternal coexistence. Orthodox Christianity maintains that each person of the Trinity is distinct, yet fully God, refuting the modalistic idea that God merely shifts forms.
For those interested in a deeper dive on this subject, check out this article.
[quote=“Fritzpw_Admin, post:1, topic:2891”]
Pelagianism
[/quote]. Has been hurled at those of Armenian theological offshoots-but I do not see that as true of those of Wesleyan persuasion.
Trinitarianism has been slowly dying over the past thirty years.
Name it claim it heresy has died down from its heyday in the 1980s -1990s. But thanks to those modern heretics, the televangelists, it still exists.
The newest heresy is the melding of politics with evangelical Christianity, complete with a political candidate pictured in place of Christ in biblical scenes along with scripture.
I’ve encountered a few modern-day heresies that deeply concern me, especially the way they can lead some believers astray.
One that stands out to me is the notion of “Relativism”, the idea that truth is subjective and varies from person to person. This belief challenges the very foundation of scripture, as Jesus said, “I am the way, the truth, and the life.” (John 14:6)
When people start to believe that their interpretation of truth is just as valid as the Biblical account, it undermines God’s authority and sovereignty. It leads them to confusion about core beliefs, too.
The Bible presents a worldview that emphasizes absolute truth, as seen in verses like (John 17:17), where Jesus prays to the Father, “Sanctify them by the truth; your Word is truth.”
This counters the relativistic perspective by affirming that God’s Word is a reliable foundation for understanding truth and morality.
Relativism not only asserts that truth and morality are subjective but also contradicts another Biblical principle regarding reliance on human understanding.
(Proverbs 3:5-6) This scripture shows the importance of seeking divine guidance rather than relying on our subjective interpretations, too.
It ties into replacing Jesus with the Bible. A lot of Christians worship scripture as if it were part of the Trinity- which would make it the quadrilateral, I suppose
Heresy is a loaded term. One Christian’s heresy is another Christian’s core doctrine. I really don’t think it’s useful to speak in terms of heresy. Legitimate questions for any teaching are the extent of biblical support, the history and tradition of the teaching, and whether the tradition makes sense in the context of basic Christian theology. By this standard, there can be very different understandings without either of them being heretical.
To take a favorite example, I’ve studied the Trinity extensively. I don’t believe that either a Trinitarian or non-Trinitarian position is heretical. The latter is outside the mainstream, but a solid biblical, historical and theological case can be made for it.
