Lesson 1 – When Heresies Threaten the Unity of the Church.pptx

Sunday Bible Lessons for Adults 1st Quarter
2025 CPAD
Title of the Sunday Magazine: IN
DEFENSE OF THE CHRISTIAN FAITH:
Fighting the Ancient Heresies that Present
Themselves with a New Appearance
Commentator: Esequias Soares
Class: Adults
Slides: Celso Napoleon
January 5, 2025
Lesson 1
When Heresies Threaten the
Unity of the Church

"Beloved, while I was very diligent to
write to you about our common salvation,
I found it necessary to write to you and
exhort you to contend earnestly for the
faith which was once for all delivered to
the saints." (Jude 3)
GOLDEN TEXT
2

Heresies are beliefs and practices contrary to
biblical thought that distort the main points
of biblical doctrine.
PRACTICAL TRUTH
3

Monday Mt 7.15 Be careful not to be deceived by appearances
Tuesday - 1 Co 11.19 Heresies can be internal, causing division
in the church
Wednesday - Phil 1.16 The apostle Paul was called to defend
the Gospel
Thursday Tit 1.9 Admonishing with sound doctrine to
convince those who contradict
Friday Tit 3.10 Do not insist with the stubborn heretic
Saturday Hb 6.1, 2 Never fail to observe the foundations of
the Christian faith
DAILY READING
4

BIBLE READING IN CLASS
Acts 20:28-31; 1 Peter 3:15,16; 2 Peter 2:1-3
Acts 20:28-31
28 Take heed therefore unto yourselves, and to all the flock, over
the which the Holy Ghost hath made you overseers, to feed the
church of God, which he hath purchased with his own blood.
29 For I know this, that after my departing savage wolves shall
come in among you, not sparing the flock;
30 And of your own selves shall men arise, speaking perverse
things, to draw away the disciples after them.
6

31 Therefore be on the alert, and remember that for three years
I did not cease to warn each one of you night and day with tears.
1 Peter 3:15,16
15 But sanctify the Lord God in your hearts, and always be ready
to give an answer to everyone who asks you a reason for the
hope that is in you with gentleness and fear,
16 having a good conscience, so that, while they speak evil of
you as evildoers, those who blaspheme your good behavior in
Christ may be ashamed.
7

2 Peter 2:1-3
1 And there were false prophets among the people, just as there
will be false teachers among you, who will secretly introduce
destructive heresies, even denying the Lord who bought them,
and bring upon themselves swift destruction.
2 And many will follow their perverse ways, through whom the
way of truth will be blasphemed.
3 And through covetousness they will make merchandise of you
with feigned words, whose judgment of old will not linger, and
their destruction will not slumber.
8

INTRODUCTION
Heresies are beliefs and practices that are contrary to biblical
thought, as they distort the main points of Christian doctrine,
confront historical Christianity and create a problem for
churches and families. The heresies of today are the same as
those of antiquity, but with a new guise, which were rejected by
the apostles and early Christians, because "there is nothing new
under the sun" (Eccl 1.9). This quarter aims to show the
doctrinal reference of the Christian faith, leading you to
recognize heresies from afar. This first lesson is a study on the
problem of heresies in churches and our responsibility in
defending the faith. 9

11
1- THE THREATS OF
RAVEROUS WOLVES

1- THE THREATS OF RAVEROUS WOLVES
1. Pastoral care (Acts 20:28). The “elders” mentioned in verse
17 are called bishops in this passage, and by saying that they
were appointed by the Holy Ghost to “feed the church of God,”
it shows that they are shepherds. The primary function of the pastor is
to feed, guide, and protect the flock (Luke 15:4-6). The New Testament
uses this metaphor when dealing with the relationship between
pastor and flock in the church. The apostolic exhortation to
church leaders aims to protect brothers and sisters from heresies
and guide everyone in the truth of the Gospel. This care appears
in the teachings of Jesus (Matthew 7:15-20).
12

13
The primary function of the shepherd is to
feed, guide and protect the flock (Luke 15:4-6).

2. “After my departure” (v. 29). This expression is a prophetic
word, because the apostle is not only referring to his death, but also
to the advance of heretics within the church after the apostolic
period, in the future. Paul uses metaphorical language to identify
false teachers, “grievous wolves” or “ravenous wolves” (v. 29 - New
American Standard Bible - NASB). The apostle Peter, after teaching
that the Holy Ghost inspired the prophets of the Old Testament (2
Peter 1:19-21), showed that the presence of true teaching is not
always enough to prevent the manifestation of false teaching. So
much so that, when speaking about the legitimate prophets among
the Hebrews, he emphasized that there were also false prophets
among the people, just as false teachers would arise in time within
the Church (2 Peter 2:1). In fact, they were already present in the
apostolic period (Gal 1:7; Col 2:8; Jude 4). 14

3. The origin of false teachers (v. 30). Two surprising points in
this part of the discourse draw our attention: first, the ravenous
wolves arise from within the church itself “from among yourselves”
and, second, “men will arise, speaking perverse things, to draw away
disciples after them.” Their disciples are still out there. Among them
are those who position themselves above the Scriptures, who,
without the slightest spiritual shame, use social networks to
“correct” the Bible and openly disagree with the biblical prophets
and apostles. Such people consider their discourses modern and the
message of the Bible outdated, and for this reason they offer a new
gospel (2 Cor 11:13-15). In view of this, we see the importance of
studying a field of theology called apologetics to guide believers in
our day.
15

Ravenous wolves arise from
within the people of God. That is
why Apologetics is so necessary.
SYNOPSIS I
16

18
II - WHAT IS APOLOGETICS?
1. Definition (1 Peter 3:15). Christian Apologetics is the logical and
rational defense of the Christian faith and its doctrinal practices. The
term comes from the Greek noun apologia, which literally means
“defense, response.” The Greek term translated “respond,” in “prepared
to respond with meekness” in 1 Peter 3:15 is apologia, in a literal
translation it is “...always prepared for [a] defense.” The Bible version
called the New Transformative Version (NVT) uses the verb “explain,”
thus: “always prepared to explain it.” Apologetics shows that Christianity
is rational, the data of revelation can be explained in a methodical and
systematic way, therefore, acceptable. Jesus said that we must love God
with all our hearts [...] and with all our understanding (Mark 12:30). This
teaches that we must love God completely, with our body, emotions, and
intellect.

19
2. What defense is Peter referring to? (v. 16). Some argue that
this defense is a response to an accusation, since this same word,
apologia, appears in this sense in the New Testament as a defense
of an accusation, both formal (Acts 22:1; 25:16) and informal (1
Cor. 9:3; 2 Cor. 7:11; Phil. 1:7,16). Verse 16 speaks of the good
Christian testimony that serves to prove the inconsistency of the
accusations against believers. But this does not seem to be the
case, because the defense, response or explanation in this passage
is about the reason for the faith of Christians, and this concerns
Christian doctrine. Even though Peter is referring to the response
to a formal accusation in a hostile environment, it is still an
opportunity to defend the Christian faith, as happened with the
apostle Paul before Festus (Acts 26:24,25) and Agrippa, in the
same hearing (Acts 26:27-29).

Paul before Festus (Acts 26:24,25) and Agrippa, in the same
audience (Acts 26:27-29).

21
3. Why should we fight heresies? (3:16).
a) For self-defense (1 Tim 4:16): Christians should be informed
about what the various groups teach and know how to refute them
biblically;
b) To help others understand their own faith: especially those
who reject fundamental points of the Christian faith, often
unconsciously, because we know that there are many sincere
people who seek to serve God and need to know His Word (Titus
1:9). This debate about beliefs should take place respectfully and
with biblical arguments and foundations, responding to objections
against the Christian faith. The success of this fight is guaranteed
when one is in the domain of the Holy Ghost (John 16:13).

The Christian is called to
respond respectfully to objections
against the Christian faith.
SYNOPSIS II
22

24
III - WHAT ARE HERESIES?
1. Sects and heresies. The word hairesis in the Greek New
Testament is translated as “sect” (Acts 5:17; 15:5; 24:5; 28:22)
and “heresies” (1 Cor. 11:19; Gal. 5:20; 2 Pet. 2:1). It is true that
Christianity was also called a “sect,” but by non-Christians,
people who did not know the truths of the Gospel of Christ
and who opposed Him (Acts 24:5, 14; 28:22). The word “sect” is
used to designate heterodox religions. It is a worn-out term,
often carrying with it a pejorative tone, so we must know when
to apply it.

Syncretism is the gathering of different doctrines, while maintaining noticeable traits of the
original doctrines. It sometimes has a certain pejorative meaning in terms of the artificiality
of the gathering of doctrines that are theoretically incongruent with each other.

26
2. “Hairesis” in the New Testament. This word
appears with the meaning of “party, sectarian spirit” and
does not always represent a break with the conventional
system of a given community. The Sadducees and
Pharisees were sects that formed factions within Judaism
itself (Acts 5:17; 26:5), and the NAA Bible version
translates it as “party.” Paul warns against these divisions
(hairesis) within the church and condemns doctrinal
innovations that cause division or dissension (1 Cor 11:19;
Gal 5:20).

27
3. Damning heresies (2 Pet. 2:1). It is in this passage that
hairesis presents the meaning of doctrinal error as “heresy,”
properly speaking, in the theological field that we know today.
Heresies distort the main points of Christian doctrine regarding
God: the Trinity, the Lord Jesus Christ, and the Holy Ghost;
regarding human beings: nature, sin, salvation, origin, and
destiny; regarding angels; regarding the church; and regarding
the Holy Scriptures. The most serious error is when it concerns
the Divinity and interferes with salvation (v.1b), since there is no
salvation without Jesus (John 14:6; Acts 4:12).

The apostle Paul warns about divisions
within the church and condemns doctrinal
innovations that cause dissension.
SYNOPSIS III
28

29
CONCLUSION
The apostles responded to the opponents of the Christian
faith and laid the foundation for our theology. All the
writings of the New Testament show this fierce struggle
against false doctrines. It is therefore the task of the
church today to “contend for the faith which was once for
all delivered to the saints” (Jude 3). We conclude with the
following question for reflection: Are we doing for the
truth what these agents of heresy do for lies?

1. In this lesson, what is the apostolic exhortation to
church leaders?
The apostolic exhortation to church leaders aims to
protect brothers and sisters from heresies and guide
everyone in the truth of the Gospel.
2. What is the definition of Christian Apologetics?
Christian Apologetics is the logical and rational
defense of the Christian faith and its doctrinal
practices.
Reviewing the content
30

3. Why should we fight heresies?
a) For self-defense (1 Tim 4:16): Christians should be
informed about what the various groups teach and
know how to refute them biblically; b) To help others
understand their own faith: especially those who
reject fundamental points of the Christian faith, often
unconsciously, because we know that there are many
sincere people who seek to serve God and need to
know His Word (Titus 1:9).
31

4. Where in the New Testament does hairesis have
the meaning of heresy, as a doctrinal error?
2 Peter 2.1. It is in this passage that hairesis presents
the meaning of doctrinal error as “heresy”, strictly
speaking, in the theological field that we know today.
5. What is the question for our reflection?
Are we doing for the truth what these agents of
heresy do for lies?
32

33
References
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Comunidade de fotos da Unsplash. , 2020. Disponível em:
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LESSONS:
• Lesson 1 – When Heresies Threaten the Unity of
the Church
• Lesson 2 – We Are Christians
• Lesson 3 – The Incarnation of the Word
• Lesson 4 – God Is Triune
• Lesson 5 – Jesus Is God
• Lesson 6 – The Son Is Equal with the Father
• Lesson 7 – The Human and Divine Natures of
Jesus
• Lesson 8 – Jesus Lived the Human Experience
• Lesson 9 – Who Is the Holy Ghost
• Lesson 10 – Sin Corrupted Human Nature
• Lesson 11 – Salvation Is Not a Human Work
• Lesson 12 – The Church Is Organizational in
Nature
• Lesson 13 – Persevering in Faith in Christ 38
SBS – Sunday Bible
School
Sunday Bible Lessons for Adults 1st
Quarter 2025 CPAD
Title of the Sunday Magazine: IN
DEFENSE OF THE CHRISTIAN
FAITH: Fighting the Ancient Heresies
that Present Themselves with a New
Appearance
Commentator: Esequias Soares
Class: Adults
Slides: Celso Napoleon
Renewed in Grace

Celso Napoleon
39
• renovadosnagraca@gmail.com
• Renewed in Grace
• https://www.facebook.com/renovadosnagraca

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