Almost every church is dealing with the issue of heretical infiltration. To safeguard against this threat, some churches caution their members during Sunday services not to easily add strangers on WeChat, and to avoid attending unknown gatherings. Other churches regularly post information about different heretical groups on bulletin boards, while some focus on strengthening their believers’ faith foundation so they can resist heresy with the power of the gospel.
Mr. L, who has extensively studied various heresies in China, believes that the main goal of all heresies is to make money.
According to him, heretics are skilled in deception and know how to manipulate people’s needs to win them over. They offer favors to the underprivileged, invite eager believers to Bible studies, ask preachers to teach, and even use women to lure single brothers. Mr. L emphasized that heretics do not aim to renew people through faith like true Christian faith does, but only seek to fulfill their own desires through false beliefs.
Heretics often justify their actions in order to gain more followers. Mr. L mentioned the heretical group "Shincheonji" as an example. He explained that the group uses the phrase “be as shrewd as snakes” to rationalize their questionable solicitation tactics. On multiple occasions, when Mr. L encountered Shincheonji members and attempted to mention this particular phrase to them, they would smile knowingly.
Mr. L mentioned that heretics often draw in followers by making them feel unique and fulfilled in ways that society cannot. This is why some people may decide to remain part of a heretical group, even though they know they are involved in something controversial, just like how individuals are trapped in a pyramid scheme.
When dealing with heretics trying to steal members from the church, Mr. L thinks pastors should not waste time trying to reason with them. It is pointless to argue when others are trying to poach your members. He believes the church needs better guidance on handling heresy. This is not something individuals or churches can handle alone - it needs to be addressed by CCC&TSPM.
Mr. L also mentioned that many churches only focus on cleaning up their own mess when it comes to heresy. He believes churches need to step up and protect the entire Church to truly prevent heresy. This means churches need to broaden their thinking and approach the issue from a bigger perspective.
- Translated by Joyce Leung
异端的侵扰，可以说是每间教会都要面对的问题。有的教会在主日聚会中的家事报告环节提醒大家不要轻易添加陌生人的微信，不要随意参加陌生的聚会；有的教会定期在宣传栏展示不同的异端简介；有的教会致力于帮助信徒坚固信仰根基，以基本要道筑牢防范异端邪教搅扰的壁垒，等等。
而L先生对国内的多个异端有较深入的了解，认为，各个异端的本质都一样，就是敛财。
L先生认为，异端在诱骗人方面是专家，他们精于研究人们的不同需求，藉此采用相对应的方式来拉拢人。说到这里，可能很多人会有同感：针对弱势群体，他们施以小恩小惠；针对渴慕的信徒，他们邀请参加圣经学习；针对传道人，他们邀请前去授课；针对单身弟兄，他们甚至以美色来吸引……L先生指出，异端不是像正统信仰那样想让人藉着信仰来改变自己，而是想要藉着信仰来满足自己的愿望。
为了拉拢人，异端可以将自己很多的行为合理化。L先生以异端“新天地”为例，说“新天地”最喜欢用“灵巧像蛇”这四个字，藉此合理化自己拉拢人的行为，而这些行为在常人看是明显有问题的。对此，他尝试了好几次，每当遇到“新天地”成员时，他跟对方一提“灵巧像蛇”，对方就笑了。
L先生指出，异端牢笼人的一个方法就是给人价值感，让他们获得在社会上得不到的满足感，如此，即便他们知道自己身处异端之中，也不愿意出来。这就如同部分深陷传销组织中的人一样。
当遇到异端来“拉羊”时，L先生认为牧者没有必要跟异端理论，不能“人家都在挖你墙、拉你羊了，你却还在跟人家理论”。他认为，教会在如何应对异端方面缺少相应的指导，这个工作不能由个人、单个教会来完成，而是需要由基督教两会来完成。
L先生指出，在应对异端方面，很多教会都处在“护院”的层次，只是想办法看好自己的教会；他认为，想要防范异端，教会必须提升到“护教”的层面，如此才能根本地解决问题，这需要教会有大的格局。
一位异端研究人士谈防范异端：需要护教，不能只是护院
Almost every church is dealing with the issue of heretical infiltration. To safeguard against this threat, some churches caution their members during Sunday services not to easily add strangers on WeChat, and to avoid attending unknown gatherings. Other churches regularly post information about different heretical groups on bulletin boards, while some focus on strengthening their believers’ faith foundation so they can resist heresy with the power of the gospel.
Mr. L, who has extensively studied various heresies in China, believes that the main goal of all heresies is to make money.
According to him, heretics are skilled in deception and know how to manipulate people’s needs to win them over. They offer favors to the underprivileged, invite eager believers to Bible studies, ask preachers to teach, and even use women to lure single brothers. Mr. L emphasized that heretics do not aim to renew people through faith like true Christian faith does, but only seek to fulfill their own desires through false beliefs.
Heretics often justify their actions in order to gain more followers. Mr. L mentioned the heretical group "Shincheonji" as an example. He explained that the group uses the phrase “be as shrewd as snakes” to rationalize their questionable solicitation tactics. On multiple occasions, when Mr. L encountered Shincheonji members and attempted to mention this particular phrase to them, they would smile knowingly.
Mr. L mentioned that heretics often draw in followers by making them feel unique and fulfilled in ways that society cannot. This is why some people may decide to remain part of a heretical group, even though they know they are involved in something controversial, just like how individuals are trapped in a pyramid scheme.
When dealing with heretics trying to steal members from the church, Mr. L thinks pastors should not waste time trying to reason with them. It is pointless to argue when others are trying to poach your members. He believes the church needs better guidance on handling heresy. This is not something individuals or churches can handle alone - it needs to be addressed by CCC&TSPM.
Mr. L also mentioned that many churches only focus on cleaning up their own mess when it comes to heresy. He believes churches need to step up and protect the entire Church to truly prevent heresy. This means churches need to broaden their thinking and approach the issue from a bigger perspective.
- Translated by Joyce Leung
Protecting Against Heresy: Defend Faith, Not Just Safeguard Churches
