I Timothy 4: 1-5
Paul has just laid out the mystery of godliness, now he will talk about anti-godliness to watch out for, and he wants Timothy to be aware and warn the congregation.
(1) But the Spirit explicitly says
There is no ambiguity in what God's Spirit is telling us here.
that in later times
We have been in "the latter days" since Jesus ascended and sent His Spirit to indwell the members of His church. This is not as strong a term as "in the last days" (II Timothy 3:1), so there has been the spirit of antichrist infiltrating the church from the beginning (I John 2: 18).
some will fall away from the faith,
To fall away is "to withdraw" or "abandon" the truth of our faith, "apostate."
paying attention of deceitful spirits and doctrines of demons,
Their focus is diverted from the truth to seductive lies, teaching what demons want us to believe.
(2) by means of the hypocrisy of liars seared in their own conscience as with a branding iron,
This is very strong language describing these false teachers. They are lying in hypocrisy, which implies that they are aware of what they are doing. This is one long word in the Greek: kekausteriasmenon, "branded with a red-hot iron." They have done this to themselves, having seared their own consciences so that they will be unfeeling about their own wrongdoings. They have branded themselves as the slaves of Satan.
(3) men who forbid marriage and advocate abstaining from foods which God has created to be gratefully shared in by those who believe and know the truth.
These are examples of the doctrines of demons, of what they would do; and they did exactly this in the Dark Ages, when they called their ministers priests and forbade them the gift of marriage (which attracted men who didn't want to marry, anyway, hence the scandals), and also forbade the whole congregation to eat meat on Fridays. I know, I grew up under these prohibitions. My daddy left the Seminary because he knew he wanted to marry someday.
(4) For everything created by God is good, and nothing is to be rejected if it is received with gratitude;
Peter had been given the vision in Acts 10: 9-16, that God had cleansed all foods to be eaten, and also by extension, all men, the Gentiles, to be able to be saved. Therefore, there are no more "unclean" foods, but some foods are more healthy than others, and today, there are some "foods" that don't even have any nutritional value at all (like Twinkies!). And some have even been genetically modified, adulterated, that result in monstrous genetic anomalies in the animals they have been "tested" on.
(5) for it is sanctified by means of the word of God and prayer.
God's gifts that He has caused to grow on and appear in this Earth have been given to us to enrich us in everything we need in the world, for our benefit and His glory. And when we partake of or use any of it, whether it be animal, vegetable, or mineral, when we recognize that God has provided it and thank Him for it, then it is His blessing to us for this time.
O my Father, please protect us from the demonic commingling of the good foods and animals You have provided us for our benefit, that have been corrupted by men for monetary gain, and our destruction by our enemy. Father, these men are deceived, and some of them are deliberately so.
Father, deliver us from those who purport to be leaders or teachers in our churches. Their crime is even greater. Please give Your children the gracious discernment to call out any person who would foist him or herself on Your congregation, to lovingly and firmly call them out, and to exclude them from influencing Your flock.
My Father, I am praying for all those precious people who think they know You, or even love You, but do not yet know You. Please, Father, open their eyes and hearts to realize the truth of who You really are, and what You have accomplished for them in Your Son. That they may turn to you, and be rescued from these satanic teachers.
And every eye shall see, every knee will bow, every tongue will proclaim that Jesus is our Christ, our Lord God Almighty, the sovereign King over all Creation; to the everlasting glory of Almighty God the Father, for ever and ever. Amen.
Even so, come quickly, Lord Jesus!
