What is a Cult?
They have a different Jesus than the Jesus of the Bible who is the Eternal Son of God.
Four
They have a works plus grace salvation.
Five
They claim that their prophet is the final latter-day prophet and his followers are the only true people of God.
If one were to talk with ten different people who are "cult experts," most likely he or she would get a different definition of what a cult is from each of them. Most people agree with the three main categories that group counterfeit religions. They are as follows: the occult, cults, and false religions. After one has these three categories, there is very little real clarity as to what group belongs where- at least with the last two groups there isn't. So for the sake of clarity, this is my criteria for classifying Jehovah's Witnesses, Mormons, Seventh-day Adventists, and Muslims as a cult.
1. They have a man or woman who claims to be a latter-day prophet.
2. They claim to have received extra-biblical revelations and have a book in addition to the Bible that is equally "God's Word," and in most cases it is to them more authoritative than the Bible.
3. They have a different Jesus than the Jesus of the Bible who is the Eternal Son of God.
4. They have a works plus grace salvation.
5. They claim that their prophet is the final latter-day prophet and his followers are the only true people of God.
Five marks of a cult