|
e-tacklebox.com - Home
What is a counterfeit Christian?
For there are many rebellious
people, mere talkers and deceivers... They claim to know
God, but by their actions they deny him. They are
detestable, disobedient and unfit for doing anything good. --
Titus 1:10, 16
A counterfeit Christian is one
who may have externally appeared (or claimed) to have placed
their trust in Jesus (and may for a time believe that they have)
BUT...
1) They trusted in a Jesus
other than the one revealed in Scriptures
For if someone comes to you
and preaches a Jesus other than the Jesus we preached,
or if you receive a different spirit from the one you
received, or a different gospel from the one you accepted, you
put up with it easily enough. -- 2 Corinthians 11:4
A) Their Jesus is not fully
God and man
... from them is traced
the human ancestry of Christ, who is God over all,
forever praised! Amen. -- Romans 9:5
But about the Son he
says, "Your throne, O God, will last for ever and
ever, and righteousness will be the scepter of your
kingdom. You have loved righteousness and hated
wickedness; therefore God, your God, has set you above
your companions by anointing you with the oil of joy." --
Hebrews 1:8-9
I) Their Jesus was not
born of a Virgin
But after he had
considered this, an angel of the Lord appeared to him
in a dream and said, "Joseph son of David, do not be
afraid to take Mary home as your wife, because what is
conceived in her is from the Holy Spirit. She will
give birth to a son, and you are to give him the name
Jesus, because he will save his people from their
sins." All this took place to fulfill what the Lord
had said through the prophet: "The virgin will be
with child and will give birth to a son, and they will
call him Immanuel" - which means, "God with us."
-- Matthew 1:20-23
II) Their Jesus was
not raised bodily from the grave.
And if Christ has
not been raised, our preaching is useless and so is
your faith. More than that, we are then found to be
false witnesses about God, for we have testified about
God that he raised Christ from the dead... And if
Christ has not been raised, your faith is futile;
you are still in your sins. -- 1 Corinthians 15:14-17
B) Their Jesus is not the
eternal second person of the Trinity
"Father, the time has
come. Glorify your Son, that your Son may glorify you. For
you granted him authority over all people that he might
give eternal life to all those you have given him. Now
this is eternal life: that they may know you, the only
true God, and Jesus Christ, whom you have sent. I have
brought you glory on earth by completing the work you gave
me to do. And now, Father, glorify me in your presence
with the glory I had with you before the world began.
-- John 17:1-5
I [Jesus] and the Father
are one. -- John 10:30
"I tell you the truth,"
Jesus answered, "before Abraham was born, I am!" --
John 8:58
C) Their Jesus is not
Creator
He [Jesus] is the image
of the invisible God, the firstborn over all creation.
For by him all things were created: things in heaven
and on earth, visible and invisible, whether thrones or
powers or rulers or authorities; all things were
created by him and for him. -- Colossians 1:15-17
In the beginning was the
Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. He
was with God in the beginning. Through him all things
were made; without him nothing was made that has been made...
The Word became flesh and made his dwelling among us. We
have seen his glory, the glory of the One and Only, who
came from the Father, full of grace and truth. -- John
1:1-3, 14
To worship a Jesus who is
other than the Jesus revealed in Scriptures is to worship a
false God. While some would say that what you believe about
Jesus, or God, doesn't really matter in regards to salvation,
this must be emphasized: Salvation can never be found in a false
god! If anyone has redefined God to their own liking they are
worshipping a counterfeit God -- regardless of what they call
him/her/it.
You shall have no foreign
god among you; you shall not bow down to an alien god.
-- Psalms 81:9
I, even I, am the LORD, and
apart from me there is no savior. I
have revealed and saved and proclaimed-- I, and not some
foreign god among you. You are my witnesses," declares the
LORD, "that I am God. -- Isaiah 43:11-12
2) They believed another
gospel.
But even if we or an angel
from heaven should preach a gospel other than the one we
[the apostles] preached to you, let him be eternally
condemned! -- Galatians 1:8
A) Their gospel did not
believe in the sufficiency and completeness of Jesus' death,
resurrection, and work.
Unlike the other high
priests, he does not need to offer sacrifices day after
day, first for his own sins, and then for the sins of the
people. He sacrificed for their sins once for all
when he offered himself. -- Hebrews 7:27
... He [Jesus] entered
the Most Holy Place once for all by his own blood,
having obtained eternal redemption. -- Hebrews
9:12b
... by one sacrifice
he has made perfect forever those who are being made
holy. -- Hebrews 10:13-14
I) They believe that
their own works are necessary in their salvation, either
to effect, keep, or complete it.
What then shall we
say? That the Gentiles, who did not pursue
righteousness, have obtained it, a righteousness that
is by faith; but Israel, who pursued a law of
righteousness, has not attained it. Why not? Because
they pursued it not by faith but as if it were by
works. -- Romans 9:30-32
II) They believe that
other's works, prayers, or intervening acts are
necessary in the completion of their salvation.
For there is one God
and one mediator between God and men, the man
Christ Jesus -- 1 Timothy 2:4-5
For this reason
Christ is the mediator of a new covenant, that
those who are called may receive the promised eternal
inheritance-now that he has died as a ransom to set
them free from the sins committed under the first
covenant. -- Hebrews 9:15
III) They do not
believe that salvation is by God's grace through faith
alone.
For it is by
grace you have been saved, through faith-and this
not from yourselves, it is the gift of God- not by
works, so that no one can boast. -- Ephesians 2:8-9
B) Their gospel did not
require repentance
Repent,
then, and turn to God, so that your sins may be wiped
out... -- Acts 3:19
From that time on Jesus
began to preach, "Repent, for the kingdom of heaven
is near." -- Matthew 4:17
3) They made their professed
decision for the wrong reason.
A) To acquire wealth or
possessions.
If anyone teaches false
doctrines and does not agree to the sound instruction of
our Lord Jesus Christ and to godly teaching, he is
conceited and understands nothing. He has an unhealthy
interest in controversies and quarrels about words that
result in envy, strife, malicious talk, evil suspicions
and constant friction between men of corrupt mind, who
have been robbed of the truth and who think that
godliness is a means to financial gain. -- 1 Timothy
6:3-5
B) To acquire fame, power,
or social standing in the church -- or worse still, any of
these with the world.
Sitting down, Jesus
called the Twelve and said, "If anyone wants to be
first, he must be the very last, and the servant of all."
-- Mark 9:35
Be shepherds of God's
flock that is under your care, serving as overseers-not
because you must, but because you are willing, as God
wants you to be; not greedy for money, but eager to
serve; not lording it over those entrusted to you,
but being examples to the flock. -- 1 Peter 5:2-3
Jesus called them
together and said, "You know that the rulers of the
Gentiles lord it over them, and their high officials
exercise authority over them. Not so with you. Instead,
whoever wants to become great among you must be your
servant, and whoever wants to be first must be your
slave- just as the Son of Man did not come to be served,
but to serve, and to give his life as a ransom for many."
-- Matthew 20:25-28
You adulterous people,
don't you know that friendship with the world is hatred
toward God? Anyone who chooses to be a friend of the
world becomes an enemy of God. -- James 4:4
C) A profession solely as
a 'fire escape' without wanting to follow Jesus.
In fact, both their
minds and consciences are corrupted. They claim to know
God, but by their actions they deny him. They are
detestable, disobedient and unfit for doing anything good.
-- Titus 1:15b-16
4) They are self deceived.
A) They are unwilling to
lose their old life for God's sake.
"Anyone who loves his
father or mother more than me is not worthy of me; anyone
who loves his son or daughter more than me is not worthy
of me; and anyone who does not take his cross and
follow me is not worthy of me. Whoever finds his life
will lose it, and whoever loses his life for my sake will
find it. --Matthew 10:37-39
B) They are not truly
believers as shown by their falling away due to worldly
pleasures, ridicule, or the like.
"Listen then to what the
parable of the sower means: When anyone hears the message
about the kingdom and does not understand it, the evil one
comes and snatches away what was sown in his heart. This
is the seed sown along the path. The one who received the
seed that fell on rocky places is the man who hears the
word and at once receives it with joy. But since he has no
root, he lasts only a short time. When trouble or
persecution comes because of the word, he quickly falls
away. The one who received the seed that fell among
the thorns is the man who hears the word, but the
worries of this life and the deceitfulness of wealth choke
it, making it unfruitful. But the one who received the
seed that fell on good soil is the man who hears the word
and understands it. He produces a crop, yielding a
hundred, sixty or thirty times what was sown." -- Matthew
13:18-23
C) Their belief was merely
intellectual assent to the facts of history and the Bible.
You believe that there
is one God. Good! Even the demons believe that-and shudder.
-- James 2:19
http://www.liontracks.org/roarlion/christns.htm#num2
Also see:
http://www.jesusclips.com/view_video.php?viewkey=d81f348082ff6c4b2076
|
Click Here if you would like to link to the LiveTract.
If you would like to put the LiveTracts witnessing banners
on your site just
click here. |
|
