Three types of false teachers

There are three basic categories of false teachers. Biblical doctrine must be not only understood but accepted.

1. The first type of false teacher has little or no understanding of biblical doctrine (as opposed to the doctrines of man), yet insists on lecturing on what he has no understanding of. A common Arminian would generally fall into this category. Most rank and file Romanists as well. Mormon missionaries, etc.

2. The second type of false teacher has understanding of what is true (or gives evidence of being capable of understanding what is true) yet his fallen nature won't allow him to *accept* it, so he concocts a watered-down version of the truth, negotiated down to the demands of his fallen nature, to make it acceptable to his fallen nature which of course turns the truth into falsehood. This type of false teacher is a *soft* false teacher. Just about every doctrinal 'wobbly' out there falls into this category. I.e. liberal theologians.

3. The third type of false teacher also has understanding of what is true (or gives evidence of being able to have understanding of what is true) yet scorns the truth and consciously teaches against it, attempting to undermine the truth and deface it and generally attack it in any way he can. This type of false teacher is a *hard* false teacher. Apostates, some of whom become militant atheists or adherents of false religions like Islam (though that may be rare, i.e. those people seem to be just wildly and angrily ignorant), can fall into this category. Hard false teachers that choose to remain within the tent can seem like the soft false teacher variety, but they will give themselves away by adopting, by degree, an Alice-in-Wonderland, up is down, black is white presence, i.e. "I'm a professor at a Reformed seminary, and I teach that there are numerous errors in the Bible, or that foundational doctrines such as justification by faith alone are wrong, etc." Peter Enns and Norman Shepherd are examples of *hard* false teachers that choose to remain inside the tent.