Do you remember the Kansas City news story about a pharmacist named Robert Courtney? He was arrested and indicted on 20 felony counts for diluting the cancer drugs Gemzar and Taxol in order to increase his profits. A pharmacist is someone who holds a position of trust in our society. Robert Courtney changed prescriptions for selfish reasons, not caring about those he hurt. It’s hard for us to comprehend how he could have been so callous and self-centered.

Just as we assume pharmacists ought to be trustworthy and have our best interests at heart, we want to assume Christian teachers are trustworthy and have our best interests at heart. Yet the Bible warns us to be on the lookout for teachers who “introduce heresies,” “bring the way of truth into disrepute,” and “exploit you with stories they have made up.”

A heresy is a teaching contrary to the Bible and the truth of God. Evil or false teachers introduce doctrines contrary to God’s word and encourage Christians to believe them. These disreputable teachers behave shamefully and encourage others to un-Christian behavior which brings “the way of truth into disrepute.” Another danger is that they make up things in order to manipulate people.

Just as the selfish pharmacist was caught and punished, the Bible says that evil teachers “will be paid back with harm for the harm they have done.”

In the meantime, as Christians, we need to make sure we are trusting in God and in his Word – not in the words of men.