Using Freedom to Cover up Evil
Ministers of Christ set people free from sin, enabling them, by His grace, to live right and do well. Ministers of men like Larry Huch, on the other hand, use the freedom they presume to have in Christ to cover over wrongdoing, teaching others to do likewise. “They promise them freedom, but they themselves are slaves of corruption. For whatever overcomes a person, to that he is enslaved” (2 Peter 2:19 ESV).
We received this note:
Hello,
I just spent some time reading Free at Last (breaking generational curses) by Larry Huch (2010). He states that on page 59; Para 2 that John 8:36 says that Jesus told the saved Jews….”When I set you free, you’ll be free indeed. I’ll not only forgive you, but I’ll break the curse of on you that’s linked to the sin.”
He has the statement in quotation marks to assume this is actually what Jesus said and added the rest of the verse after the work indeed. God has told us to not to add or take away from his word and that if we do; we will not go unpunished. It appears he is a false teacher and is trying to make excuses for his own nasty past.
Please share your thoughts on this matter.
Thank you!
Troy
Paul’s reply:
Hi Troy,
We haven’t heard of Larry Huch or his book, but I can say a couple things in answer to your question.
When the Lord forgives someone and turns him from his sins, the “curse spigot” is indeed turned off if the believer “goes and sins no more.” Otherwise, how could he be free if still a slave to sin with all its attendant consequences, which amounts to a curse? And how could he be made whole by his faith if still under a curse?
So while the Lord didn’t say the words Larry quoted, they are implied and true. There isn’t a problem with expounding on what the Lord says, if the explanation about what He is saying is true. Otherwise, how could men of God be sent to teach people the Lord’s teachings? And what about prophecy, which is the testimony of Jesus?
When the Lord says not to add to His Word, He is talking about adding things He never thought, meant, or said, and isn’t saying now.
There is a problem, however, with quoting words as if the Lord said them when He didn’t. Larry should have made it clear that he was adding to the Lord’s direct quote, and could have shown how the added words were expounding on the Lord’s message and the reality of His work of salvation. You didn’t give me the text following the quote, but I assume Larry didn’t provide any explanation, or you wouldn’t be bringing up the matter. Or you misunderstood something.
Messing up on this one thing alone doesn’t make Larry a false teacher, Troy. Given what I see at a glance on his website, however, this sloppiness is part of a larger problem of presumptuousness and speaking out of turn, which are the hallmarks of a false teacher.
If you were to compare what you see on Larry’s website to the teachings of the Lord in the following documents, you would, by the grace of God, be able to see many evidences of a false teacher in his words and works:
The True Marks of a Cult
Diabolical Doctrines
Off the top you would see Money Solicitation, Keeping Jewish Tradition and Religion (see also The Feast-Keeping that Is Sin), and Diabolical Doctrine: Women Are Ministers of God in Spiritual Authority over Men, all prominent in Larry’s and his wife’s ministry.
A giant clue and tip-off that you have encountered a false teacher is when anyone names their works after themselves, such as “Larry Huch Ministries.” That’s what Jesus talked about in the following passage – and notice how He didn’t put the onus on the false teacher as much as He did on those who followed the false teacher:
“I have come in My Father’s Name, and you do not receive Me. If another shall come in his own name [Larry Huch Ministries], him you will receive” (John 5:43 MKJV).
Larry, a true son of Satan the usurper, deceives men by using the Lord’s Name to come in his own name. He takes liberty with the Lord’s words because he serves himself, not the truth. He is the man of sin glorying before all, a spectacle of shame. All those who honor Larry in his self-exaltation deny themselves the liberty of the Lord, which He has reserved for those who love Him.