In an age where convenience is king and comfort is prized above truth, the church is not immune to the influence of compromise. A sobering warning is being echoed once again: false prophets and false teachers are not rare—they’re more common than many believers realize.
In a recent livestream, Isaiah Saldivar sounded the alarm on false teachers and prophets circulating in churches today, and how believers can identify who is true and who is a wolf in sheep’s clothing.
“False teachers and false prophets—they’re both the same,”Saldivar begins. “A lot of people think that false teachers or false prophets are rare. But I’m going to show you that in Scripture, they’re much more common than you would think.”
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This warning is not new. Jesus Himself cautioned in Matthew 7:15, “Beware of false prophets. They come to you in sheep’s clothing, but inwardly they are ravenous wolves.” These individuals may look like true followers of Christ on the outside, but their message is dangerous and deceptive. The hallmark of their preaching? Smoothness, comfort, and zero confrontation.
“If your pastor never convicts you, always something nice, always something smooth, then ladies and gentlemen, your pastor’s a false teacher,” Saldivar says boldly. “There needs to be a conviction in our hearts when we’re living in sin and we’re hearing this easy gospel.”
Many modern messages allow for a lifestyle of sin with no accountability. Saldivar identifies this as the “easy gospel.” He warns against the rising number of voices preaching that it’s fine to “drink, cuss, smoke, sleep around. Do whatever you want.” He adds, “It’s a lie, guys. It’s a lie. It’s a false teaching and a false gospel. It’s smooth. It’s watered down.”
Scripture foretells this trend in 2 Timothy 4:3–4, where Paul writes that a time will come when people will not endure sound doctrine but will turn to teachers who say what they want to hear. That time, it seems, is now.
Saldivar emphasizes, “Jesus says ‘beware.’ Paul says ‘watch out.’ Peter says ‘they’re coming.’ Jude says ‘they’ve crept in.’ Paul says ‘many will follow their destructive ways.’ Peter says ‘many.’ Jesus says ‘many.’ It is everywhere.”
This isn’t merely a theological concern—it’s a matter of eternal consequence. The broad, easy road doesn’t lead to life. It leads to destruction. “There’s a cost associated with this,” Saldivar reminds us. The true gospel demands repentance, holiness, and a willingness to walk the narrow road, even when it’s difficult.
But how can believers protect themselves from falling prey to false teaching? The answer is clear: discernment, Scripture and the Holy Spirit. As 1 John 4:1 instructs, “Beloved, do not believe every spirit, but test the spirits to see whether they are from God.”
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In this critical hour, the church must return to truth—not popularity. “A false teacher, a false prophet—they’re very common. They’re very appealing. And they’re very dangerous,” Saldivar concludes.
Let the church wake up. Let truth convict. And let every believer test what they hear, because eternity hangs in the balance.
Abby Trivett is content development editor for Charisma Media.
