Romans 16:17 –
And now I make one more appeal, my dear brothers and sisters. Watch out for people who cause divisions and upset people’s faith by teaching things contrary to what you have been taught. Stay away from them.
This is one of those verses that one must ask “how will we know” and if the teaching is false what happens to the salvation of those who follow? I cannot answer part two easily, but I do know the answer for the knowing part. It is easily done by actually reading the Bible and learning it. Recently I have heard of a group saying if you cannot speak in tongues than you are not saved. The basic message of the church on salvation is right, they just missed the mark when reading the word “some”.
The key that Paul is making is to not just blindly listen to someone tell you their story of salvation. We have the Bible, if you really want protection from false teaching, read it daily and fact check. Don’t just take what is being taught as doctrinal truth. You will gain a better understanding of what is being preached and be able to more clearly see God.
Believe me that diving into a study on a daily basis is so valuable in your day to day life. Some doctrines I would “never” accept have become clear. When you have a solid understanding of the Bible under your belt, other things start to provide clarity to God. I love to use the book/movie “The Secret” as an example of how I gained clarity. In a nutshell the secret is to ask the universe for stuff and you will get it. In a way it was very outside God, but at the same time provided me complete clarity on whom or what God is. Of course this may change after more study, as my understanding of the “trinity,” which shows once you start it’s never over. Believe me the more you learn the more you desire to learn!