Should we eat the meat and spit out the bones?

Handling False Teachers in the Church

By Cheryl Schatz

Have you ever tried to warn someone about a false teacher and then heard the excuse that it is perfectly acceptable to listen to false teachers as long as we just eat the meat and spit out the bones? We have heard this saying so many times that it needed an extended biblical answer.

There are two major problems with the excuse for tolerating error.

Picking out the bones

The saying identifies truth as “meat” and “bones” as error. Unfortunately, those who claim that it is perfectly fine to “eat the meat” provided by a false teacher, are usually the least likely to recognize error or “bones.” They follow the false teacher because the teacher seems genuine and they like the person. They come to the teacher expecting that there is pure “meat” available. They also assume that truth is not tainted by error as long as a Christian discards the error before it is ingested. But the Bible clearly teaches that truth can be tainted by deceivers. And bones can be cleverly disguised as pure meat to entice the unwary. Paul expressed his concern that the Corinthians were ripe for deception because they were enduring false doctrine.

Paul said that the Corinthians were bearing the false doctrine “beautifully.” The Greek term for “bear” in this verse means to endure something unpleasant or difficult, thereby to put up with it. Also, the term translated as “beautifully” is a word that can be used sarcastically. Paul showed that enduring false teaching is not an honorable thing, as false doctrine can lead people astray to become corrupted, spoiled, and ruined from the simplicity of the Gospel and pure devotion to Christ. Paul also records that there are many “peddling” the word of God. The word “peddling” in the original means to offer something in a way that is characterized by false and deceptive practice.

Incorrect Biblical Metaphor

The Bible does not talk about truth and error as “meat” and “bones.” Instead, false teaching is identified as “yeast" which permeates the entire lump.

The teaching of the Pharisees and Sadducees adulterated the Word of God. The tainting of the truth permeated their entire doctrine. In fact, Paul had to defend his apostleship because false apostles had tainted the pure truth of the Word of God.

Notice that Paul statesthat he and the other apostles did not walk in “craftiness” or in “adulterating the Word of God.” The original word translated as craftiness has the sense of cunning, deceitfulness, and trickery, usually characterizing an especially wicked character. The term “adulterating” carries the sense of falsifying — to deceptively make a message false as by mutilation or addition. False teachers walk in craftiness. Their purpose is to gain converts, fame, and profit, but to do this secretly. On the outside, they look good and upright, but deception is in their heart.

Paul also warned that there would be those who seek to take you captive through deception.

Satan misrepresents himself as an angel of light with the intention of deceiving God’s people. Those who think that it is okay to eat from the table of false teachers, just consuming the “meat,” are setting themselves up for deception.

The Biblical Metaphor is Permeating Yeast

False teaching is identified as yeast. Yeast is both hidden and permeating. You cannot spit out yeast and eat the bread. Just as yeast spreads and infiltrates the whole dough, so too poison added to water also infiltrates the entire water. Give a glass of tainted water that has only a small amount of arsenic in it to a person and ask them to drink the water and spit out the poison and watch if they volunteer to try. When poison is exposed as invading the water, no one will partake of it because separating the two is impossible. The nature of deception is that it is hidden, sly, and crafty so that the danger is not easily seen. Satan misrepresents himself, and so do his servants.

What is a person supposed to do if they encounter someone who has crucial teachings that are false? We are to stay away from them as their teaching is tainted with poison. Now, I am not talking about secondary issues where Christians can agree to disagree, but primary issues that are foundational to our faith. Bill Johnson is a false teacher who teaches that Jesus was only a man on the earth without any power to do miracles. In his belief, that Jesus had no ability to raise the dead. This is a major departure from biblical doctrine and it is yeast that permeates Johnson’s ministry. Bill Johnson makes Jesus out to be a false prophet because Jesus prophesied that He would resurrect His own body (John 2:19-21.) Should we spit out the false doctrine and look for untainted “meat” to eat from Bill Johnson? Or do we go to good teachers who do not deviate from solid biblical truth?

Go to solid Bible teachers. Additionally, study the Bible for yourself. What does the Bible teach in context? False teachers rip Scripture out of context. They also go to the Bible looking to prove their point, rather than letting the Bible speak for itself in its complete context. False teachers use the Bible in order to twist and distort it. Peter reveals the destruction that comes from the twisting of Scripture. Concerning false teachers, Peter said:

Be on your guard against error

Turn away from false teachers

Should we eat the meat of false teachers and spit out the bones? Absolutely not! The next time you hear this saying, ask the person how they spit out the yeast from their bread? This is the biblical example of false teaching. It isn’t bones — it is yeast!

God’s will in this matter is that we be united in truth, but also — “not tossed here and there by waves and carried about by every wind of doctrine, by the trickery of men, by craftiness in deceitful scheming;” (See Ephesians 4:12- 15.) We are to divide over error on essential doctrine, while keeping the unity of the body in love, not dividing over the non-essentials.