Trust Me...I'm A Christian! Really! Honest and True!

"1But false prophets also arose among the people, just as there will also be false teachers among you, who will secretly introduce destructive heresies, even denying the Master who bought them, bringing swift destruction upon themselves. 2Many will follow their sensuality, and because of them the way of the truth will be maligned; 3and in their greed they will exploit you with false words; their judgment from long ago is not idle, and their destruction is not asleep." 2 Peter 2:1-3

I was listening to this book tonight, and these verses caught my attention. Peter mentions that 'false prophets arose among the people'. As you read the Old Testament, you can't help but trip over false prophets, acting up and attempting to draw people away from God.
Peter goes on to promise Christians that 'there will also be false teachers among you' introducing destructive heresies. Boy, have they ever!
It has gotten so bad in 2010 that the destructive heretics seem to outnumber true believers. It's getting so that the pagans don't know who to disbelieve anymore!

Here's a few handy hints to help you recognize the heretic next door.

If they CLAIM to be Christians:
Ask him who Jesus is. If you get any answer other than Jesus Christ, Messiah, one third of the Trinity...he might just be a heretic.

Ask her if the Bible can be trusted as the Word of God, inerrant in the original languages. If you get any other answer...she might just be a heretic.

Ask him if he is certain of going to Heaven. If not, why not?

Verse two above holds another clue: false Christians will follow their sensuality-while supposedly living for God, they will be living self satisfying, ego driven lives. If the most Christian thing about them is the fish symbol on their car parked at the no-tell motel bar...
your heretic meter should be pinging like the fifth level of the OSI protocol stack.
Another clue would be if they don't go to church regularly. If they can't stand to be around Christians... well, that's a problem that solves itself.

"In their greed they will exploit you with false words." By the bucketful, friends.
False teachers write books, hold seminars promising things which aren't found in the Bible. If somebody is trying to tell you that you can live a better life, a happier, thinner, healthier life because of something God told him...make sure your wallet is still safe in your pocket and RUN!