Counterfeit Christianity
Agents who work for the counterfeit department of the secret service study real money so intensely that when they come across a fake, they can tell immediately. In the same way with Christian theology in songs, in preaching, in Bible studies, in Christian book stores, on the radio, on the internet...we won’t be able to tell what’s counterfeit if we aren’t intensely familiar with what’s genuine.
The label of “Christian” and sentiments about God in a positive light does not mean that something is teaching truth or representing the Jesus of scripture. There are many, many, many mainstream preachers and movements today that are pushing Christians away from the true Christ and into a false one - one that cannot save - yet, a lot of us tend to avoid our Bibles on a regular basis, so we can’t tell.
Remember, Satan’s chief tactic wasn’t to make people think there was no God, it was to subtly twist God’s Word. If we don’t really know scripture, we won’t perceive the subtle changes and we’ll blindly accept rank untruth - sometimes, like in the case of Mormonism, Jehovah’s Witness, Word of Faith Theology, Progressive Christianity, and others, it leads to gospel-nullifying heresy that does not save.
Just like with working out a muscle, when we’re consistently reading scripture, what will happen over time without you knowing is that you’ll start to discern more and more the heart of God, the will of God, how to love others according to His ways and not the world, and truth vs untruth. Start today! Start with a chapter or two. Make it a habit. Worship God in this way. Don’t feel burdened that there’s so much to read, so therefore you just don’t dive in. Don’t rely on the Sunday gathering to get your Bible shot to last you till next time. Show up to church with an overflow from the week of personal reading! Take the journey. I promise it’s worth it.
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“Do your best to present yourself to God as one approved, a worker who has no need to be ashamed, rightly handling the word of truth.” 2 Timothy 2:15
