Real Christianity - Real or Fake?

[0:00] Talking about real and fake things today. How would you feel if someone paid you for something! and you found out later it was a counterfeit note? Now I had the blessing of getting a! $100 bill lately. And I went down the shop and I passed that. Now this isn't a $100 bill, it just needs another zero on it. I passed this $100 note to the supermarket checkout person, the shopper system. And when I gave him the $100 note, he went like this. He must have, maybe I had beady eyes or something, he didn't like the look of me or something. He might have thought that I was trying to offer him a counterfeit note. And he held it up to the light, he flicked it with his fingers, just to see if it was real. He scrunched it up on the light. And he found that it was real, right? I want to talk today about the fakes and the real.

[0:58] The fakes and the real. How do you spot a fake? And how do you know what's real? There's a problem today, there's a whole lot of fakes. A whole lot of fakes out there. A lot of people are fakes. You can't trust them. Knowing what's genuine is really important, isn't it? There's fake Christianity out there. And then there's the real thing, the real thing. So I'm going to talk about how you tell the truth from the false, how you identify what's real and what's fake. The Bible warns us a lot about this sort of thing, about counterfeits, about the danger of deception.

[1:33] And on a global, global scale, we read this in the back of your Bible, Revelation 12, verse 9. It says the great dragon, who's that? It's Satan, it's the devil. He was cast out, it says. And that old serpent called the devil and Satan, which deceived the whole world, he was cast out into the earth and his angels were cast out with him. Now here's the ultimate con artist, isn't he? The devil. He's a sly deceiver. And the Bible calls him the father of lies.

[2:08] So if you lie, you're doing what the devil wants you to do. He's the father of lies. Don't lie. Tell the truth. You have to be careful and check some things out, don't we? Hold them up to the light. See if they're for real. So we're going to talk about these things, counterfeits and reality.

[2:26] We're going to go to 2 Corinthians 11, where we're just going to use that as a kind of launching pad. 2 Corinthians 11. Now, there's a real problem with fakes. You might think these two photographs look quite realistic here. You've got President Trump and you've got, what's his name? Kim Il-sung.

[2:46] You've got the Northern dictator, North Korean dictator, the former president of the USA. And people are generating these fakes now. And they're so real that you wouldn't even realize that they are not real. They're going to generate these videos now where they put someone's face on someone's body and they put words into the mouth of this person. And it looks so real. It sounds so real.

[3:12] But it's false. It's false. You can see them on the internet. They've made some of President Obama. There's one lately, some movie star character. And they, he looks so real. It looks like it's the real person.

[3:28] But they're saying words that they actually are not saying. And their face is all changing by computer animation. It's so real. They can trick people. And they're saying today that this is a real problem for like security agencies, for government security. You know, you watch a video and you think it's real. It could be a lie.

[3:50] You can't even trust a video now. It's a real security issue. Imagine if there was a president of a country, if it was our prime minister, and they're putting their words into his mouth. Things that he's not actually saying.

[4:02] Fakes. But people think they're real. And people are searching today in this world of fake news, searching for truth, searching for the real, the genuine article. And God is also seeking for real Christians.

[4:19] People with real faith, real trust in Christ. Useful Christians who love the Word of God, who want to serve God, so please, to honour Him, to put their faith into action, into their lives.

[4:33] Are you going to be real? Or a fake? It's a big question, isn't it? Not just a word hearer, but a word doer. A fair dinkum Christian. The real deal. Not a hypocrite hiding behind a mask. And that's what the word hypocrite means.

[4:52] They used to have these masks that the stage actors, the performers would wear a mask. And that was where you get the word hypocrisy. Because they were putting on a face. They were pretenders. They weren't real.

[5:04] Are you going to be real? Do you want to be a real Christian? To hold on what's right and true. So we need to be true to God. Each one. It's between you and God. And we need to be alert to error.

[5:18] What's right? What's wrong? What's true? What's false? And aware of what's counterfeit. Look out for the counterfeit. Now I'm going to call forward a young volunteer in here.

[5:31] Sydney, can you come and help me? Come forward Sydney. I know you'd want to. Come on Sydney, I'm going to give you a treat. I want your help with this Sydney. I want you to help me to tell me if this is a counterfeit or not.

[5:46] You saw what I just did? Okay. Now how do you tell it's a counterfeit? Hold it up to the light. Can you see through that? Well check one. Tick.

[5:59] Can you scrunch it up and it goes back to how it was? Wow. Look at that. Check two. What else can we say? Look at all the fine detail of that note.

[6:11] Looks like a real note, doesn't it? Maybe it's a counterfeit. No, but Sydney's checked it. Detective Sydney here has checked that note. And you would say that's a real note, Sydney? It is.

[6:23] You don't believe me. It is a real note. You can have it for coming forward, alright? Just give Sydney a clap. Thanks Sydney. You can sit down. So Detective Sydney has discerned that that is a real note.

[6:35] Even though he didn't believe me. We've got to look out for the counterfeits, don't we? Look out for the counterfeits people. Because there's counterfeits all around us spiritually too. Sometimes they look so genuine we can't tell if it's real or not.

[6:48] It's hard to spot a fake. You know, the counterfeiters are getting more and more kind of cunning at this now. You know, here's a recent article. It's about five years old, this. Australia is getting flooded with fake $50 notes.

[7:03] So we'll have to get the people checking the offerings later and make sure there wasn't any counterfeits put in those bags today. But no, honestly, there's a lot of fake $50 notes out there.

[7:14] So we've got to watch out for the fakes, alright? Sometimes it's hard to spot, it's hard to tell the real from the false. And it's the same spiritually too. The Bible talks about fake tinctures, false tinctures.

[7:27] And they're disguised as apostles of Christ, it says. It talks about another Jesus, another spirit, another gospel. And it says that these ones can be inspired by angels of light.

[7:40] Now many false religions have been started by angels of light, haven't they? Many false churches, the Mormons for example, they had angels of light come.

[7:54] Maybe they were angels of light, fallen angels. Now they look like genuine Christians, but they preach another Jesus and he's not the real one. And we see a bit said of that in 2 Corinthians 11.

[8:07] Paul warns, he says, are fearless by any means. As the serpent, begot Eve. You know, the serpent tricked Eve. Adam and Eve in the garden, that serpent came and fooled them.

[8:19] Threw in his subtlety, his sneaky ways. So your minds would be corrupted from the simplicity that's in Christ. So it says there's three things here. Someone who comes preaching another Jesus.

[8:31] Someone who wants you to receive another spirit. Someone who wants to give you another gospel. Okay, these three things. Think of that. We're going to touch on that. And just check out, is it counterfeit?

[8:44] Is it real? So look out, firstly for number one, a counterfeit Jesus. Paul says he's afraid that these Corinthians are going to accept another Jesus. Another Jesus.

[8:55] Satan promotes the preaching of a different Jesus. Now, people want another Jesus today. They don't want the Bible Jesus, but they'll fall for the other Jesuses, if you like.

[9:06] There's a different Jesus from the one revealed in the Bible. So you can take your picture today. You know, you might want to follow the New Age Jesus.

[9:17] You know, the New Age Jesus. He's a very tolerant Jesus. He's very tolerant. He's non-judgmental. He accepts all religions as a path to God.

[9:29] You know, all paths lead to God, says the New Age Jesus, right? It's wrong, but that's what he says, right? And then, well, maybe you might want to choose the Mormon Jesus.

[9:40] The Mormon Jesus, he's an extraterrestrial alien. He's the brother of Lucifer. He's born on a distant planet and exalted to Godhood because of his good works.

[9:53] That's the Mormon Jesus. It's not the Bible Jesus. Get that. You might want to choose the Jehovah's Witness Jesus. He's Michael the Archangel, a created being.

[10:06] It's not the God made flesh that the Bible calls the real Jesus. He's just a man, a glorified man, I suppose. You might want to choose the Freemasonry Jesus.

[10:19] The Freemasonry Jesus, he's just like many light bearers. He's just another ascended master. He's just another bearer of light. And this Freemasonry Jesus, he's equal with Buddha, Mohammed, Moses.

[10:35] He's just on that level. He's not the almighty God made flesh. You might choose the faith movements, Jesus. He's not from all eternity past.

[10:45] He's just a man from another planet, just like Adam, never claims to be God. And like all men was, is, and is capable of sin. There's many false Jesuses.

[10:55] That's the point. But it says of the real Jesus, it says this in the Bible, which is the source of truth. It says in him, the real Jesus, dwells all the fullness of the Godhead bodily.

[11:08] He's almighty God wrapped up in human skin. He's the God with skin on him. That's the real Jesus. So make sure you don't follow, number one, don't follow the counterfeit, the counterfeit Jesus.

[11:20] Paul also wants about a counterfeit spirit. A spirit. Paul talks about another spirit. John talks likewise of these religious teachers who come and teach that Jesus Christ is not God come in the flesh.

[11:35] And John warns in the back of your Bible, one John, in chapter four. John says, beloved, believe not every spirit. Don't believe it.

[11:45] Check it out. Don't believe it. Check it out. Try the spirits. Test them. Whether they are of God. Because many false prophets have gone out into the world.

[11:56] And he goes on to saying, hereby, you know the spirit of God. Every spirit that confesseth that Jesus Christ has come in the flesh is of God. And every spirit that confesseth not that Jesus Christ has come in the flesh is not of God.

[12:12] And this is that spirit of Antichrist whereof you have heard that it should come. And even now, already, it is in the world. So John urges us, don't believe everything you hear.

[12:23] Oh, but it sounds so spiritual. You know, you can tune into all kinds of radio preachers and TV preachers, YouTube preachers. You name it. There's preachers galore.

[12:34] There's preachings galore. There's spiritual things, spiritual teachings, philosophies and teachings of all kinds. But John urges us, don't believe, do not believe every spirit.

[12:49] Test them. You know, get that, put it to the light. Whether it's right. The Bible warns us about lying spirits. Spirits that are lying. Now, I've seen some video clips.

[13:00] It's been quite, how's the word? It's quite impulsive to see some of these video clips where they interview suspects.

[13:15] And there's these video clips you can see of accused murderers. And they just, they're very good at trying to lie. And the detective uses all kinds of techniques to kind of catch them, trip them up.

[13:28] And these video clips of these accused murderers, they can be so convincing. That they deny that they've done any wrong. They claim that they're innocent.

[13:40] But you see the signs in their body language. Maybe it's how they look or the nervous ways that they have. You know, you that are studying psychology. You know, you that might be examiners of human behavior.

[13:53] You might sort of pick that up when someone's trying to con you. And they're liars. And so too, the spiritual entities that are spiritual beliefs that are contrary.

[14:12] They're false. They're lies. And it's popular today to believe all supernatural manifestations come from God. But that's not true. It's not true.

[14:22] And people might say, oh, I've got a vision, a thrill, a dream, an experience. You can't deny my experience. Well, is it biblical? That's the point.

[14:33] And they think that that confirms the teachings they're receiving. You see some cults that say, like the Mormons do, oh, read the Book of Mormon and pray about it. And you'll get this little sense that it's right.

[14:48] Yeah. Someone's going to whisper in your ear. Satan. Don't believe all the feelings, the thrills, so-called visions, the manifestations.

[14:59] Check it. Check it out, people. Amen. And cults are often conning people by such things. You know, there's all kinds of worship out there. Spiritual things.

[15:10] In our day, there's much talk of the Spirit. God is kind of like a good luck charm for some people.

[15:20] You know, say all the mantras and do what the teachers tell you. And it's as if God is a person they can command to bless them and give them earthly success.

[15:34] It's not biblical. It's actually not. And many today, they're focused on signs, wonders, power. Friends, the Bible talks about lying wonders.

[15:44] We've got to be careful. There is the truth, but there's the false. We've got to discern. Our Lord tells us how some are going to do great wonders, great miracles. And they're going to have a potential to mislead.

[15:57] Tell us a false Christ. This is the end times. Matthew 24, false Christ, false prophets. These false signs and wonders. And in so much as any foot were possible, they shall deceive the very elect.

[16:10] Could it be that supposed signs and wonders might not be God's, but of the other sort? So we've got to watch out. There's such things as counterfeit revivals.

[16:22] Contrafeit miracles. Counterfeit visions. Counterfeit manifestations. So watch out for the fates, people. They're all around us. They're all around us.

[16:34] And it could be Satan at work. So we have to watch out. It's not to deny there's the truth, but we must watch out for the false, right? And here's what it says in 2 Thessalonians 2, verse 9.

[16:46] You get in the context of the end times. Tell us of the Antichrist. And he's going to come after the working of Satan with all power and signs and lying wonders. You know, it's going to be amazing.

[16:59] It's just going to be so awe-inspiring. People are going to be spellbound with his power, with his signs, with his wonders. Now, many false teachers are going to be very sincere.

[17:11] They actually believe what they're telling you is true. They may even have tears in their eyes as they share their message, their dream, their vision. But, friends, sincerity is no test for truth.

[17:26] Truth must be the measure. It must be the holding it up to the light. They may be sincerely wrong if they are trying to teach you what contradicts the Bible. That must be the measure of what we believe.

[17:38] Do not believe that. Test the spirits. So we see there's a counterfeit Jesus. There's a counterfeit spirit. Now, the convicting power of the Holy Spirit, God's spirit, will truly honor Christ.

[17:52] The Spirit of God, his work is to glorify Christ. That's the, he'll put the spotlight on Christ, not on manifestations. The Spirit of God puts the spotlight on Christ. He will glorify me, says the Lord.

[18:04] He'll glorify and honor Christ in his work. So we're seeing the counterfeit spirit. Another thing Paul talked about is a counterfeit gospel. He says it's another, another gospel.

[18:15] As he says again in Galatians 1, it talks about people being removed. And called to, removed from him has called you into the grace of Christ unto another gospel.

[18:26] People moving away from Christ and the grace of God to another gospel. And really, he goes on to say it's not another. Because really, it's not a gospel. Gospel means what?

[18:38] Good news. Good news. So this, another gospel is actually not good news. It's bad news. Because it's fake. It's not the real gospel. And Paul says, let them be accursed if they preach any other gospel.

[18:53] Some will teach a false gospel. We get that all the time. As we go, at times, numbers of our dwelling witnessing. And, oh, I've got my religion. That's what they say, don't they?

[19:06] I've got my religion. Do you have Jesus? That's what matters. Do you have the good news, the gospel that saves your soul?

[19:18] Do you know you're going to heaven? That you know you're saved? But no, they don't have that assurance. Oh, I go to the Lutheran church.

[19:30] Big deal. You can go to Hungry Jack's. I mean, do you know Jesus? That's the point. You can go to church morning, noon, and night, midweek.

[19:42] Every night. And miss heaven. Friends. Do you know Jesus? That's the point. And for some, they don't know Jesus. And, you know, in some, it says they're going to pervert the gospel.

[19:54] So it's not a gospel anymore. You know, it might sound similar. It might look the same. But it's a close substitute. Yes. So close, but so far. False religion.

[20:05] False religion can use the same language. They'll talk the same language. They use the same lingo we do. But they don't know the one who can save. Now, friends, look. I'm going to show you a picture here.

[20:15] As a youngster, now, you young people, you might collect things. I used to collect rocks. All right? And when I was a youngster, I collected all kinds of rocks. And I even had gold.

[20:28] Gold. Yes. Yes. Yes. Bright, shining gold. But this gold was fool's gold. That's what it was.

[20:39] It was fool's gold. It actually wasn't gold. It looked like gold. It was shiny like gold. You could maybe trick someone to pretend to them that it was gold.

[20:51] But it was fool's gold. And it wasn't real gold. It's the same with these gospels. It might sound like the gospel. You know, they're using all the Bible language.

[21:01] But are they giving salvation? Are they pointing that Jesus is the one way, the way, the truth, and the life? No man comes to the Father but by him.

[21:12] So if you don't look carefully, you can miss it. It looks like gold. It looks like the gospel. Actually, it's not. Paul tells Timothy this. He says the time will come when they will not enjoy sound doctrine.

[21:24] That they, after their lusts, you know, it's all about feelings. Oh, they make me feel good. After their lusts, they shall heet to themselves. Teach us having itching ears.

[21:36] Oh, they just itch me where I, they just scratch me where I itch. And they shall turn away their ears from the truth. And they shall be turned unto fables. Now, some have a message that appeals to the flesh.

[21:48] But it's fables. It's fiction. It's make-believe. It's not true. For some, it's a message of success. Oh, who doesn't want that? Health.

[21:59] Yes. Wealth. Yes. A self-centered gospel. A man-made gospel. Not any gospel at all.

[22:09] Because it'll leave you in your sins. It'll leave you lost. And, Francis, the same as it was in the dark ages, there was a time when even this book was banned. Yes, even by the church of its day, the Roman Catholic Church, sadly.

[22:24] They banned this book. It was too hot to handle. Only the priests could have it. So they could give it to you and they could filter it. But, no, God wants every believer to have a Bible. And this was a book too hot to handle.

[22:36] Now they're printing a counterfeit Bible. They're distorting even the Bibles. So, friends, the answer to the counterfeit gospel is to get the real one. To honour the word.

[22:46] To honour the authority of it. Counterfeit money. It's sometimes difficult to detect. It looks so real. They check the counterfeit.

[22:57] They hold it up to the line. Check for the identifying marks. And counterfeit Christianity has some identifying marks. So, check it.

[23:07] By the light. The light of God's word. People are getting hot. We could put the fans on. Just, uh... It's feeling hot. No, you're all okay. Just me.

[23:19] That's okay. Just checking in with it here. If I start seeing you falling asleep, we'll put it on there. I'll put the cold on. Counterfeit Christianity.

[23:29] It's got some marks, doesn't it? And when you check for the counterfeit, find out if the person talking to you believes in more than the Bible.

[23:41] You know, there's good... There's some dapper-looking chaps that'll knock on your door and ride their little bicycles, and they'll say that they believe the Bible, the Mormon.

[23:52] But they'll say they want to give you further revelation. Another testament. Sounds a lot like Paul said, doesn't it? Another gospel. You know, other writings to add to the Bible.

[24:04] Jehovah's Witnesses believe the Bible, they say, but it's their own altered version where they take out critical passages and mangle them to take away the deity of Christ.

[24:18] People in the charismatic movement, they can often dwell on their experiences such that that's the focus. their experiences, they've got away from, they've shifted the focus from the Bible to experience.

[24:32] That's a dangerous, dangerous ground. And when Bible doctrine conflicts with the errors of their movement, they say, oh, I don't know about that, what the Bible teaches, but I know what I've experienced.

[24:45] When you come to some places and they're sprawling on the floor, where's the Bible for that? I mean, there's some demonic manifestations like that in the Bible. Friends, we've got to check it.

[24:57] Is it right? Is it biblical? And instead of putting the emphasis on extra-biblical, like fanciful ideas and prophecies, so-called, put the focus on the more sure word of prophecy.

[25:13] If experience disagrees with the Scriptures, forget that. Hold to this. All right? So, there's a counterfeit Jesus.

[25:26] There's a counterfeit gospel. There's counterfeit ministers, too. As we read on in 2 Corinthians 11, it talks about false apostles transforming themselves into apostles of Christ.

[25:40] And it goes on to say ministers of righteousness. They look like ministers of righteousness. They're transformed into that. Now, some ministries and churches can seem quite attractive.

[25:51] And people can often choose churches based on all kinds of reasons. Now, someone was telling me they're choosing another church because they like the Sunday school for their children in the other church more than this one.

[26:03] Or, you know, some might choose because they live closer to another church. They'll just go to that one. It's just more convenient. We can choose things based on all kinds of reasons.

[26:14] But, friends, and that's not to say this church hasn't got some work to do. But if we're a biblical church, this is a good church. If there's other churches out there that are biblical churches, they're a good church.

[26:25] Use that as your decision-making as to where you want to be to hear God's word, to hear biblical truth, sound doctrine. And we thank God some are here because they're searching for that.

[26:36] They're looking for that. Friends, the Bible tells us of Judgment Day there's going to be some fake Christians. Friends, there's going to be some fake Christians out there. And the Lord Jesus warns of that on Judgment Day where he tells this parable of this occasion where many will say, Lord, Lord, oh, Lord, Lord, have we not prophesied in thy name?

[27:02] And in thy name have cast out devils, and in thy name done many wonderful works. And then will I profess unto them, I never knew you. Depart from me, ye that work iniquity.

[27:14] Friends, there's a real strong message in these verses here. The Lord Jesus says, many will lead many astray. They'll look like Christians, but they're going to be savage wolves.

[27:27] They're going to look like they're sheep, but they're actually wolves in sheep's clothing. You know, here's what they're going to look like, you know.

[27:40] Watch out for these ones in your back paddock. You can imagine a picture of that. It sounds like a sheep, maybe.

[27:52] It looks like a sheep. But underneath it's a wolf. Wanting to tear the flock apart. And friends, the Bible warns us about savage wolves.

[28:03] In Acts 20, Paul says, be on guard. The savage wolves, they're going to have good words, fair speeches. They're going to be very religious. And he talks about how we should mark those who cause divisions and offenses contrary to the doctrine.

[28:23] He says, mark them. Avoid them. So, sometimes it's hard, but you're actually going to say, actually, they're wrong. It is righteous to say they are wrong, whoever they be.

[28:37] If they don't match up to the Bible, it's okay to judge them. To judge righteous judgment. To say, yeah, actually, I can see from those identifying marks by holding it up to the light.

[28:48] It's a counterfeit. It's not real. It's not true. They're not preaching the true gospel, which is salvation through grace by faith. It tells in 2 Peter 2 of some who shall make merchandise of you.

[29:03] It's a money-making racket where they're going to just make a business. And they're going to be smooth talkers. They're going to exploit people.

[29:14] And, you know, you see some of these TV preachers. Oh, you know, you can get your, I can give you a vial of oil from Jerusalem. I can give you a piece of the, you know, some olive wood from the Garden of Gethsemane.

[29:33] It's only going to cost you $500 for this little splinter of wood. Or, you know, for your love gift of $1,000, I can give you this vial of oil from the city of Jerusalem.

[29:46] What a bargain that is, you know. But they're profiting our people's expense through deceptive words. They're exploiting people with trinkets and gimmicks. The Lord says, just don't buy it.

[29:59] They're going to knock on your doors. They're going to have opulent TV stages. They're going to have an impressive atmosphere. Clowns are going to flock to their meetings.

[30:11] And they're going to be so popular. You know, they're just going to be top of the pops. And their music's so professional. Their sound tech people are going to be so expert. There's just going to be no fault.

[30:22] It's just going to be so perfect. And so sensual. And feeling centred. And you can have the rap. You can have the funk. You can have the hip hop. You can have the heavy metal.

[30:32] You know, where will it end? David Bowie said, rock has always been the devil's music. You know. John Lennon says, I've sold my soul to the devil. You know. There's some things that are obviously tainted.

[30:45] We're not going to touch that. There's some preachers that claim a special anointing. It's like our Lord says that some are going to say, I am Christ. In other words, they're going to say, I'm so anointed.

[30:58] Don't you hear that? Don't you hear that? Some of these wacko preachers say, they're so anointed. They're such an accurate prophet. You know. They only get. They only get.

[31:10] You know. They're only 95% right. You know. 95. Only 5% wrong. But the Bible says, if you get it wrong, you're a false prophet. There's actually no. It's got to be 100% or nothing.

[31:21] You know. And they say, I am the Christ. In other words, I am literally, you could put it, I am the anointed one. That's what people are saying these days. They're so anointed. These big name ones.

[31:33] So the point I'm trying to make, really, everyone here today, is don't buy it. Check it. Test it. There's counterfeit doctrine. The doctrine's different.

[31:43] And Paul says in 1 Timothy 6, if they consent not to wholesome words, to the doctrine which is according to godliness, he says, withdraw thyself.

[31:55] Friends, there's some that are showmen. They're tricksters. They're performers. They're counterfeits. They're cloaked with deceptions, with lies, with half-truths.

[32:06] And they create an environment. Look, the cults do it. I was in the Pentecostal movement, as people know. And I read an eye-opening book that actually showed the parallels and the correlation of altered states of consciousness, which is what the hypnotists, the stage performers, use, and the so-called slaying in the spirit.

[32:32] And it's one and the same. Friends, it's one and the same. They use the same techniques. You see the stage hypnotists? They use the same technique. The same spirit.

[32:43] The same flesh. Supernatural atmosphere, it seems. But it just sucks in the gullible. Friends, it looks so real. But it's not actually biblical.

[32:54] That's the measure of what is right. It must be. We can't put any confidence in the flesh. Even if it feels good. You know, sometimes the music, the atmosphere, it's just so engineered.

[33:11] It just feels so good. But it's wrong. Friends, the Bible says the Holy Spirit tells us that some will depart from the faith.

[33:23] We've got to be watchful. False doctrines are going to abound. And it says, beware of false prophets which come. They look like sheep.

[33:35] They're going to be wearing the sheep's clothing. But inwardly, they're ravening wolves. They look like a sheep. Maybe they smell like a sheep. They talk like a sheep. Maybe they can try to walk like a sheep.

[33:46] But they're not a sheep. They're a wolf. And so the Bible says, test things. Test the spirit. Try the spirit, says John. So I challenge you today. Can you identify a counterfeit?

[33:57] You know, next time you go shopping and you get some money, you know, use the old scrunch and light and you're going to be paranoid now. And then you're going to have a counterfeit.

[34:09] But what about spiritually so? Can you identify a counterfeit? It's important, isn't it? There's other ways, some would say.

[34:19] There's, you know, all paths lead to God. What they say. That's not true. There's only one way. It's a narrow way. Jesus says, I, I only, I am the way.

[34:32] The way. The truth. The light. So friends, I urge you today. As the Bible tells us to receive the word. The word of God. Receive it eagerly. With readiness of mind.

[34:43] Receive it. Search it, it says. Search the scriptures daily. See whether those things are so. So, that's the end of the slides now. So, let's no longer be sure and tossed to and fro with every wind of doctrine.

[34:56] Let's be careful. Hebrews 13, strange doctrines. Watch out for that. Study to know the scriptures. What the Bible says is true. And watch out. Avoid, it says, mark those that are not.

[35:08] So, look out in the context as we talked about. Many references we could give about the end times. Talks about the Antichrist. It's going to be revealed.

[35:19] It's going to be deception. The Lord Jesus says, beware. Lest any man deceive you. We see in the judgment day, someone going to say, Lord, Lord. Oh, I'll be so spiritual.

[35:33] I never knew you. Let that not be you today, I pray. You know, we could come to church, put on all the right phrases and the pious expressions and be like the hypocrite wearing a mask, pretending to be saved.

[35:51] But we're not fooling God. There's no fooling God. Friends, a genuine coin may be worn and the date may be hard to read, but it has greater value than the brand new shiny counterfeit.

[36:03] And it's the same with all of these. The counterfeit Jesus. Don't follow the counterfeit Jesus in all these many guises. Don't follow the counterfeit spirit of this, you know, all of our manifestations and spiritual, spooky spiritual things.

[36:21] Measure it. Test it. Don't follow the counterfeit gospel. The gospel that we need is the gospel that saves. It's that Christ came into the world to save sinners. For by grace are you saved through faith that not of yourselves.

[36:36] It is the gift of God, not of works, lest any man should boast. Friends, the only way to be saved is to know the saviour. And we can have all kinds of religious spiritual ideas, but we don't know the saviour.

[36:50] We're lost. And it could be said of us that I never knew you. I never knew you. It's important that you know him and he knows you. That's real faith.

[37:00] That's the real thing. Not a counterfeit faith, but real faith. And the emphasis won't be prophesying in Jesus' name.

[37:12] It won't be signs. It won't be so-called spiritual gifts. It won't be casting out devils in Jesus' name. It won't be doing wonderful works in Jesus' name.

[37:23] It'll be whether you're saved in Jesus' name. Whether you're saved in Jesus' name. And friends, the only way to be saved is to put your heart's faith and trust in Christ. That Jesus Christ died on the cross for sinners.

[37:36] That our only plea, our only hope, our only trust must be the blood of Jesus shed for us. Not any merit, nothing of us.

[37:48] All of him, all of grace, all of mercy as we've heard. What comes to your mind first when you think about whether you are going to heaven or not?

[38:00] The kind of question we pose to some as we might be witnessing. You might use this question as if it were today that you died, why would God let you into heaven?

[38:13] Why should he say, come in? Does something come to your mind? Maybe it might be what you have done for God. I've been pretty good. I post my humility badge every so often.

[38:26] I know I'm a pretty good sort of guy. I'm not as bad as all of these ones. It's about how good you are. Some would try that.

[38:38] None. This book says there is none good. No, not one. Not one. Not even one. There is none good. None righteous.

[38:48] No, not one. None. None. So if you could go to stand before the judgment throne of God and you'd say, well, what I have done for God. No.

[39:01] It doesn't gain admission. It's what God has done for you. It's what Christ has done for you. That's how we can be known that we say that we trust in what Jesus has done for us at the cross.

[39:17] Amen. Jesus has done everything to save you. Jesus has done everything to save you. So if you go to heaven when you die, it will not be because of anything which you have done for God. It will be everything Jesus has done for you.

[39:30] But you've trusted that. But you've trusted that. You've trusted his precious blood shed for you. You've trusted Jesus as your Lord and Master. And when he died on the cross, you place your faith in that, in him, the saviour, in him alone to save you.

[39:46] That's the true gospel. So I urge you to that today, to trust in him. Let's pray. Our God, our Lord, Father God, thank you for every soul he gathered, for each one joining here and tuning in, Lord, that we might each be challenged and encouraged in these truths, that we can tell the real from the fake.

[40:09] We can tell the true from the false. We know that you are the true Lord Jesus that died on the cross for sinners. We trust you, your gospel, which is the truth, the only good news that can save.

[40:21] Lord, we trust the true spirit of God that enlightens us and correlates with your word. There's no conflict there. It's always acting in accordance with your word for true teaching.

[40:36] Lord, that we have true fellowship, as a light to that above, as one day we will be. Lord, we pray for each one here, that each one might know that personal trust, that you can say of them, I do know you.

[40:50] And we can say of you, we know you as our Lord and saviour. Pray for that blessed assurance to come to every heart by faith. In Jesus' name we pray.

[41:01] Amen. Thank you.