A Slippery Slope Towards a Cult, Watch Your Step. Could You Be Slipping Into a Cult & Not Even Know It ?

 Are you in a Cult?  How many of you reading this right now would answer Yes, not many at all. Most of us would answers that with a NO because we are all pretty sure what a cult looks like. Most of us can  recognize the major cults like the Mormons or the Jehovah's Witnesses with out even thinking much about it. Most of us can even point out the smaller cults like the Westboro Baptist's family cult or Harold Camping and his doomsday cult. Now the question I pose to you is, could you be attending a "church" or "group" that could be heading down the slippery slope towards becoming a cult and you may not even realize it?  

 First we must look at what a cult is. They are two major types of cults. First in the non Christian cults. this consists of groups like  the Mormons and Jehovah's Witnesses. These groups don't hold to the basis core doctrines of Christianity and often will deny Jesus Christ as their Savior or the deny the Trinity.  Most of us if not any here reading this do not fall into  associations with this group. 

The second group is what I call the "wolves in sheep's clothing" cults. These groups are harder than the first group to recognize and they may not start out as a cult but now have turn into one.  This is the group that a Christian, even a well ground Christian, could find them self part of without even knowing it until they examine the "group" a little closer.  What makes this group so dangerous is that they teach biblical doctrine but as they are doing so they add on extra insights  to their teachings or requirements to your membership that are not biblical if you want be part of their "group" or "church".  Many of these wolves in sheep's clothing cults start with good intentions. They have started their "group" or "church"  because they want to reinvent how we do church or get back to a more biblical way of doing church instead of following more institutional lines of church hood.  Sadly however many are started because they get their feeling hurt or removed from a church because of their teachings and than try and form another "group" or "church". This is where the problem comes in with these "groups" or "churches" when the leadership has no accountability.  This can lead down a dangerous road to cultic behavior and actions if one person has all the power and control within the group to rule as the father figure giving commands and orders to others in the group to follow. Remember Jim Jones in the 70's? He started out very much the same way an off shoot from a church and had a "different" view on how to do "church". Look where that ended up. 

So what should one look for to see if he or she could be in a cult? I will outline below some of the key characteristics  of a cult and what leader of a cult could look like .  You can use these points and compare them to the "group" or "church" you are attending for worship or to fellowship with to see if you recognize any of these warning signs. 

•  New Teaching - has a new theology and doctrine or adds to extra rules to existing doctrines 
  

• Only True Teaching - often considers traditional religious systems to be apostate and it alone possesses the complete truth. ( i.e. saying that institutional churches are apostate and only home churches are the true churches.) 

• Strong Leadership - often an individual or small but powerful leadership group holds control of the group’s teachings and practices. (often this person is male and has very much control over all areas of his own life. The command man type.)
  

• Isolationist - to facilitate control over the members physically, intellectually, financially, and emotionally. (often leader of the group will use shunning to control people he deems to be not fit for the group or may threaten his power.

• Controlling - exercises control over the members. Sometimes this is through fear, threatening loss of salvation if you leave the group. Sometimes through indoctrination or threaten to be kicked out of the "group" or "church".
  

• Indoctrination - possesses methods to reinforce the cult’s beliefs and standards where opposing views are ridiculed and often misrepresented.

• Persecution - predictions of being persecuted, often combined with claiming any opposing views demonstrated against them as a form of persecution.

Here is what the leader of the cult may look like. 

• Often  the leader is charismatic and is considered very special for varying reasons. 

• The leader is often above reproach and is not to be denied or contradicted. If contradicted the person questioning his authority will be booted from the "church" or "group".

What do these cults promote ? 

• Usually seeks to do good works, otherwise no one would join them. They like to try to promote themselves as upright stand up type of people with their good works. Often these good works are talked about over or more than Jesus or the need for salvation through Jesus. 

• They are usually moral and possess a good standard of ethical teaching. They preach moral relativism not the Gospel. You should be good because being good is good type of teaching. 

• Many Cults recruit Jesus as one of their own and redefine him accordingly. We see this in many small cults posing as house churches where they refined who Jesus is to fit their anti institutional church theology i.e. Harold Camping. 
  

Cults like these use many tactics to get people to join them such as,  "Love Bombing" constant positive affection in word and deed. Sometimes there is a lot of physical contact like hugging, pats on the back, and touching.  Forced group actives like making meals together made mandatory for group participation.  Over time they use what is called Gradualism which is the slow altering of thinking processes and belief system through repeated teaching. 


Above we have seen what an outline of "Christian" cult or wolves in sheep's clothing cult may look like. You may be reading this and sitting there thinking to yourself well that's not my "group" or "church" and if that is the case praise God. However if you are sitting there and wondering wow how did I get sucked into this, don't feel bad it can happen to the best of us. If you recognized that you are in a Cult praise God that He has opened your eyes and now you can free yourself from that entrapment.  If you have recognized you are in a cult and need help getting out of it or advice on doing so feel free to contact us here at Empowered by Christ. 

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