False Authority: Appealing To An Authority Beyond Scripture
Bodie Hodge, M.Sc., B.Sc., PEI
Biblical Authority Ministries, July 16, 2026 (Donate)
As we continue learning about false doctrines, it is important to understand where they come from. Every false doctrine has a false authority (lesser authority) behind it (which is a faulty appeal to authority fallacy right from the start!).
The Bible teaches that God is the highest authority over
all creation and all matters. Since God cannot lie (Titus 1:2), His Word is
completely true and trustworthy (John 17:17). Therefore, every teaching,
belief, and practice must ultimately be tested by Scripture.
Whenever someone looks to another authority that
contradicts or that they use to attempt to supersede God's Word, error will
inevitably follow. It may happen gradually, and the false authority may even
agree with much of what the Bible says. That is what often makes false teaching
so dangerous. It usually contains enough truth to appear convincing before it
eventually departs from God's revealed truth.
Throughout history, false religions, cults, false teachers,
and even many divisions within professing Christianity have all begun by
placing some authority above or alongside Scripture—adding to Scripture, subtracting Scripture, adding strange interpretations due to outside beliefs,
etc.
Whether that authority is a spiritual being, human reason,
tradition, emotions, or personal experience, the result is the same—it leads
people away from the truth God has revealed and puts them into the realm
of false doctrine.
False Authorities Often “Appear” Respectable
False authorities rarely announce themselves as false. They
usually present themselves as trustworthy, wise, compassionate, or enlightened.
Jesus warned:
"Beware of false prophets, who
come to you in sheep's clothing, but inwardly they are ravenous wolves."
(Matthew 7:15, NKJV)
A counterfeit $100 bill resembles the real thing. Likewise,
false doctrine often sounds biblical on the surface. A teacher may quote many
Bible verses, affirm many orthodox doctrines, and speak respectfully about God.
But when that teacher eventually contradicts Scripture or adds another source
of authority, the deception becomes more clear.
This is why Christians are repeatedly commanded to
"test all things" (1 Thessalonians 5:21) and to imitate the Bereans,
who examined the Scriptures daily to determine whether what they heard was true
(Acts 17:11).
Satan: The Original False Authority
Satan is the master deceiver. Jesus called him "a liar
and the father of it" (John 8:44). Rather than openly denying God every
time, Satan often twists God's words, mixes truth with error, and encourages
people to trust another authority instead of God.
His first recorded deception occurred in the Garden of Eden.
God had clearly told Adam not to eat from the tree of the knowledge of good and
evil (Genesis 2:16–17) otherwise he would die-die, or “surely die” as our
English translations put it. Satan approached Eve by questioning God's
authority:
"Has God indeed said...?"
(Genesis 3:1, NKJV)
Rather than beginning with an outright denial, Satan first
planted doubt. Then he cleverly deceived Eve by repeating back to her God’s statement
of “die-die” when she merely said “die” once (which changed the meaning) in
Genesis 3:3. In our English translations we translate die-die as “surely die”
in Genesis 2:17—which means begin to die—an ingressive sense.
Eve stated that we would “die” which essentially means die
immediately. Satan then quoted back to Eve ‘you will not
“die-die”/"surely die”’ over against her statement that man would die
immediately (Genesis 3:4). It was actually very clever.
It was enough for her to step back and elevate her own thoughts
and desires to “judge for herself” if she should eat instead of trusting God (James 1:13-15). Notice
that Satan did not force Eve to sin (i.e., “the devil made me do it”).
Instead, he persuaded her to trust his words (through a serpentine
vessel) above God's words by thinking he was an authority and even using God’s
words against her.
Adam likewise chose to follow his wife rather than obey the
Lord (Genesis 3:6, 17). The first false doctrine entered human history because
mankind accepted a false authority.
Satan Can Quote Scripture
One of Satan's most remarkable tactics—if you noticed—is that
he sometimes quotes Scripture.
When Jesus was tempted in the wilderness (Matthew 4; Luke
4), Satan quoted Psalm 91 in an attempt to persuade Jesus to throw Himself from
the pinnacle of the Temple. Satan used God's own Word—but he misapplied it. Jesus
answered each temptation by correctly interpreting and applying Scripture.
This teaches an important lesson: simply quoting Bible
verses does not make a teacher trustworthy. Cults and false prophets are
masters at this. Scripture must be understood in its proper context and
interpreted consistently with the rest of God's Word.
Many false teachers today quote isolated verses while
ignoring the larger teaching of Scripture. This is why careful study and sound
doctrine are so important.
Satan's Influence Throughout Scripture
The Bible records many examples of Satan attempting to
influence people. Satan stood behind the prideful rebellion associated with the
king of Tyre (Ezekiel 28), revealing something of Satan's own fall. Jesus
warned Peter:
"Indeed, Satan has asked for
you, that he may sift you as wheat." (Luke 22:31, NKJV)
Although Satan desired Peter's downfall, he could only act
within the limits God allowed. Christ prayed that Peter's faith would not
ultimately fail.
Judas Iscariot provides another sobering example.
John records that Satan entered Judas before his betrayal of Jesus (John
13:27). Judas willingly yielded to greed and unbelief, allowing Satan to use
him in carrying out his betrayal.
Throughout Scripture, Satan continually seeks to oppose
God's purposes by deceiving people into trusting something other than God's
Word.
Demons And False Doctrine
The Bible also warns about demonic influence behind false
teaching. Paul wrote:
"Now the Spirit expressly says
that in latter times some will depart from the faith, giving heed to deceiving
spirits and doctrines of demons." (1 Timothy 4:1, NKJV)
These doctrines appear attractive because they often contain
elements of morality or spirituality. In the context of 1 Timothy 4, some
falsely forbade marriage and certain foods, presenting themselves as especially
holy when they were actually rejecting God's good gifts. Paul also warned
believers against participating in pagan worship:
"You cannot drink the cup of
the Lord and the cup of demons; you cannot partake of the Lord’s table and of
the table of demons.” (1 Corinthians 10:21, NKJV)
Behind false religions and idolatrous systems stand
spiritual forces that oppose God. While not every false belief comes through
direct demonic activity, Scripture teaches that demons actively promote
deception and false worship.
Man As A False Authority
Not every false doctrine originates from obvious satanic
activity. Much error comes from the sinful human heart. James explains:
"But each one is tempted when
he is drawn away by his own desires and enticed. Then, when desire has
conceived, it gives birth to sin; and sin, when it is full-grown, brings forth
death." (James 1:14-15, NKJV)
Satan did not make Adam or Eve sin. They made real choices
for which they were fully responsible. Likewise today, people often elevate
their own fallible opinions above God's Word. Instead of asking, "What
does Scripture teach?" they ask, "What do I think?" or
"What feels right to me?"
This is one reason humanism has become so influential.
Humanism places man at the center and makes autonomous human reasoning (reasoning
apart from God) the ultimate standard of truth. Rather than submitting
to God, man becomes the measure of all things—which is a false doctrine that
the foundation of many other false doctrines.
Whenever we allow our own thoughts, feelings, traditions,
philosophies, or experiences to overrule Scripture, we have accepted a false
authority.
Other Human Authorities
False authority can also come through other people or groups of people. This just
pushes the same problem elsewhere.
Throughout history, some have treated church leaders,
scholars, philosophers, celebrities, political leaders, or even family
traditions as though they were infallible. While God gives teachers and leaders
to help His people, none of them possess authority equal to Scripture.
Every preacher, pastor, author, and teacher must be evaluated by God's Word. Paul praised the Bereans because they searched the Scriptures daily to verify whether even an apostle's teaching agreed with God's revelation (Acts 17:10-11). Christians should respect faithful teachers while remembering that Scripture alone is the final authority.
Conclusion
Every false doctrine can ultimately be traced back to a
false authority. Whether that authority is Satan, demons, human reasoning,
personal desires, religious tradition, or another person, the pattern is always
the same: something is elevated above God's Word. Interestingly, one way or
another, it still comes through the mind of man!
The safest place for every believer is to stand firmly upon
Scripture as the supreme authority for all matters. God has spoken clearly
through His Word, and His truth never changes. When we continually test every
teaching against Scripture, we are better protected from deception and remain
anchored to the truth revealed by our faithful and unchanging God.
Bodie Hodge, Ken
Ham's son in law, has been an apologist defending 6-day creation and opposing
evolution since 1998. He spent 21 years working at Answers in Genesis as
a speaker, writer, and researcher as well as a founding news anchor for Answers
News. He was also head of the Oversight Council.
Bodie
launched Biblical Authority Ministries in 2015 as a personal
website and it was organized officially in 2025 as a 501(c)(3). He has spoken
on multiple continents and hosts of US states in churches, colleges, and
universities. He is married with four children.
Mr. Hodge earned a
Bachelor and Master of Science degrees from Southern Illinois University at
Carbondale (SIUC). Then he taught at SIUC for a couple of years as a
Visiting Instructor teaching all levels of undergraduate engineering and
running a materials lab and a CAD lab. He did research on advanced ceramic
materials to develop a new method of production of titanium diboride with a
grant from Lockheed Martin. He worked as a Test Engineer for Caterpillar,
Inc., prior to entering full-time ministry.
His love of science
was coupled with a love of history, philosophy, and theology. For about one
year of his life, Bodie was editing and updating a theological, historical, and
scientific dictionary/encyclopedia for AI use and training. Mr. Hodge has over
25 years of experience in writing, speaking and researching in these fields.
*Images generated by ChatGPT
