Watch Out for Fakes!

You went to a doctor who diagnosed you with a fatal disease and then said, do you know, just go home and take two aspirin to get a good nights rest. As long as your sincere is a no no.

Tolerance is not a virtue. In this case. Truth is when you're giving people eternal directions. You better be careful. Counter billing is a big industry that seems to weaken lot, but there are big consequences when those guilty of that are today on connect with skip-Skip shares how God's word equips you wisdom to spot fix. Now we want to tell you about a resource that inspires you to live with confidence in God, you know. Proverbs 31 the go to passage that describes the ideal Christian woman in life. To be honest that I deal can be as intimidating as it is inspiring.

Here Skip type that with more can I just tell you it's exhausting to just read that letter law.

However, women could you ever do that.

Let me say first of all, you can't do that in a day is not giving the 24 hour description of the virtuous wife. This is a woman over time.

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Scott a few years ago I had the opportunity to go. Some of you want to turn his call tour where we went to the city of Ephesus were Paul spent three years of his life will you have to land first at the port city of Crusoe Dawsey to get to Ephesus so I'm walking on the street of Crusoe Dawsey and I see a sign hanging down to cut my attention. It plainly said fake watches and I thought I have to go fake watches so I was just so intrigued and I was with our tour guide was that Skip these watches are like the best fake watches you. They look so realistic, so I went and I still have my mother wakes up for three years is working fine but I was with a guy who had the real version of what I bought the fake version up.

Here's the real one.

He looked at it and he looked very closely, and he had a little magnifying glass look front and back, waited, and he said you know I really cannot tell the difference. In fact, if we were to mix these up, I may walk away with the wrong watch and I've got lots of thought, but so I purchased it and I was with another friend of mine who knows watches pretty well and he recognize go so that's one of those better than I said actually it's a fake watch and he said wow it looks pretty good, and he looked it over and he said if you opened it up. You could tell if you look inside you can tell it's fake. Today we have the opportunity to look inside the mind and heart and results of false teachers. As will be told in this chapter when whenever somebody speaks for a company or an advertisement is shown that represents a company you expect that there's going to be an accurate description of what that company is all about or trying to sell it doesn't always work that way. The here's an example years ago when Gerber baby food decided to market in the country of Africa. They decided they would use the same strategy that they have used here over the years you you know Gerber baby food has on the front jar, a cute little Gerber baby right and so they thought that he's that cute little Gerber baby to put on their jars in Africa. What the Gerber company didn't realize is that in Africa because of the very high rate of illiteracy.

Most people many people that time especially did not read that companies would place on the labels. The contents of what was inside. So can you imagine what it would look like to see a little baby on the front of the jar you'd be repulsed by it. And so it didn't really work well. It was the wrong message they were sending. And then there was the case of Pepsi-Cola, who was marketing in China and they wanted to use the slogan come alive with the Pepsi generation, but it didn't translate that way in Chinese actually said to them, Pepsi will bring your ancestors back from the grave again got a great selling point and then there's the case of the Coors brewing company who wanted to use the slogan that was very successful elsewhere turn it loose. But when translated into one Spanish-speaking country. It read this way suffer from diarrhea. I don't think you want to drink that right now. These are innocent mistakes babies aren't jars in your ancestors will come back from the gray but the point is, it did not represent what that company was all about. Anyone who claims to speak for God must represent God correctly or they will be labeled by Scripture. False prophets, false prophets words are like false labels on the front of jars. They send the wrong message wrong information. Second Peter chapter 2, but there were also false prophets among the people, even as there will be false teachers among you who will secretly bring in destructive heresies, even denying the Lord who bought them, and bring on themselves swift destruction, and many will follow their destructive ways. Because of whom the way of truth will be blasphemed by covetousness they will exploit you with deceptive words for a long time. Their judgment has not been idle in their destruction does not slumber. For God did not spare the angels who sinned, but cast them down to hell and delivered them into chains of darkness, to be reserved for judgment and did not spare the ancient world, but saved Noah, one of eight people preacher of righteousness, bringing in the flood on the world of the ungodly and turning the cities of Sodom and Gomorrah into ashes condemned them to destruction, making them an example to those who afterword would live ungodly and delivered righteous lot was oppressed by the filthy conduct of the wicked for that righteous man dwelling among them tormented his righteous soul from day to day by seeing and hearing their lawless deeds.

Then the Lord knows how to deliver the godly out of temptations and to reserve the unjust under punishment for the day of judgment, and especially those who walk according to the flesh and the lost of uncleanness and despise authority. They are presumptuous, self-willed, they are not afraid to speak evil of dignitaries, whereas angels were greater in power and might, do not bring a reviling accusation against them before the Lord, but these like natural brute beasts made to be caught and destroyed speak evil of the things they do not understand and will utterly perish in their own corruption they will receive the wages of unrighteousness as those who counted pleasure to carouse in the daytime. They are spots and blemishes carousing in their own deceptions while they feast with you having eyes full of adultery and that cannot cease from sin, enticing unstable souls.

They have a heart trained in covetous practices and are accursed children. Welcome to church. What I have the passage of Scripture to read and we immediately ask. After reading that. Why is Peter so harsh.

In fact, some of us might say, Peter, don't you know that really what's important in life is a person's sincerity does matter what they believe everybody believes different things as long as you are sincere. I would answer that by asking you a question. If there was a blind man walking down a path and that path ended in a cliff and as he's walking down that path toward the cliff, he hears that you're around and he asked you for directions and he says which way should I step would be appropriate for you to say it doesn't really matter which way you step as long as your sincere know that wouldn't work in this situation, what it or if you went to a doctor who diagnosed you with a fatal disease and then said to you, you know, just go home and take two aspirin to get a good nights rest. As long as your sincere is a no no. Tolerance is not a virtue. In this case. Truth is when you're giving people eternal directions.

You better be careful and Peter like a good surgeon diagnoses the problem and is ready to conduct surgery. Now the central thought here is this God loves you enough to warn you about it. God cares for you enough that he would say you and I discerning what is true and what is not is all important. Think of it this way, God is hanging a beware sign out. You see no signs beware of dog to little Chihuahua. Beware of dog sometimes you better beware the dog is up to take you take it out for. Beware of falling objects, or beware of oncoming traffic. I saw one sign that said beware. I just turned 16 and I have a license that is scary is God hanging the signed beware of false teachers and false prophets. Now, as we have read this I want to make three statements based upon what we just read.

In fact, they are three principles three rules really of dealing with counterfeit teachers and their simple beware. Be assured, be aligned. Be aware of their falsehood.

Be assured of their fate and be aligned with the faithful. All three of these are clearly seen in the text that Peter writes first thing though is that we are to be aware of of some of the things that would characterize a false teacher false prophet be aware of their falsehood.

Now listen, I went to this tax and I counted about 25 things to be aware of on a spare you that I've summed them up. I give you six little things you out of your world. Six little things that that are features of common false prophets number one there always around there always around verse one there were also false prophets among the people. That's the people of Israel, even as there will be false teachers among you throughout all of the Scripture.

There are warnings that are sounded from the time of Moses to the time of Messiah. Did you know that in Deuteronomy 13, way back in the time of Moses. It's a whole chapter devoted to instructing the Israelites on how to spot a false prophet, a false dream or even a false miracle worker. Then the prophet, the true prophet Isaiah warns about prophets who teach lies and cause Israel to error. Then there's Jeremiah, the Lord spoke to him saying the prophets prophesy lies in my name. God continues I did not send them I did not command them. I did not speak to them and yet they prophesy false visions see there's always been false prophets is always been false gospels.

There've always been fake Christians and in the end of days there will even be a false Christ will be presented. Why is that because that's Satan's ammo… Is that's his biggest trick in the bag is number one tactic is deception. That's what Jesus said he is a liar and the father of lies. Not only that, but as we near closer and closer to the end of days you can expect it to proliferate get any better it's going to get worse.

According to Jesus in Matthew 24. Many will come in my name, saying, I am Christ, and deceive many and many false prophets will rise up and they will also deceive many. When you were in school you learned Newton's third law of motion, you know I would know that it know you were there, you'll recognize when I said every action brings in equal and opposite reaction, and that is also true in the spiritual world. Every action from heaven brings a correspondent reaction in the realms of hell and earth and earthlings are the crossfire. It's just like when you turn on a light in the summertime on your back porch. All the bugs come the light of truth shines in this world and bugs will come they've always been around a second thing to be aware of is that they will distort the truth. Verse one tells us who will secretly bring in destructive heresies, that's a loaded word is heresy. Heretic we we've heard the word.

I just don't know if we know what what it means. It speaks about somebody who makes a preferential choice in the idea here is somebody who chooses something that isn't true. William Barclay said it best I heretic is a man who believes what he wishes to believe instead of accepting the truth of God which he must believe.

Why would anyone choose something to believe, rather than what Jesus said or what the Bible says they must believe here's why I think all of us.

All humans have a longing to worship something. So I got wireless because natural man. Modern natural man has any aversion at all to absolute truth.

What most people would rather do is simply adopt some of generic spirituality. So the pick and choose a come to the Bible's are like a salad bar and I'll say take the golden rule and about love your neighbor as yourself bit. I like that. And, oh yeah, that Judge not lest you be judge gotta have that in their so basically what they're saying is all all take a small order of Christianity. Please hold the guilt on a guilt free diet these days and that's what is more palatable to believe in something about them. Not only do they bring in destructive heresies how to they do it. What is it say they secretly do it.com quoting scriptures big smiles as they knock on your door and they'll say Jesus in all the right words.

Nobody knocks or comes up to you and says hi I'm your local neighborhood false prophet give me five minutes and I bet I can deceive you not to come that way at all. Think a little red riding hood.

That's that's out of a come the big bad Wolf dressed up like grandma.

But first, like little red riding hood to get in grandma's house.

Then after eating grandma waited dress up like grandma to get little red riding that in the door they come in secretly listen.

False prophets will use our vocabulary but not our dictionary use the same terms. Jesus save your salvation inspiration, but the meaning of the words that they are using are not the meaning of the words. As you know them from Scripture same vocabulary different dictionary or something else you should be aware of. They deny Christ, they deny Christ. Verse one says, even denying the Lord who bought them next time you encounter somebody from an aberrant group from a false cult asked him a simple question. Don't argue about all the minutia about this and that just just asking a simple question tell me about Jesus. Who is he, what you believe Jesus to be you will discover within moments, truth or error if they deny or affirm Christ. By the way when it says here, they deny the Lord means they contradict the Lord they say about Jesus when Jesus never said about himself. So here's the scoop to deny Jesus Christ is to deny his incarnation that he left heaven and came to this earth to deny Jesus Christ is to deny his salvation that he lived the perfect life that we could never live and then paid the atoning death to deny Jesus Christ is to deny his substitution that he bore our sins, that he took our punishment to deny Jesus Christ is to deny his resurrection that he conquered death and he promises to us eternal life, and to deny Jesus Christ is to deny his ascension that he is actually seated at the right hand of God and is worthy of our praise and worship. In a nutshell, Christianity is Jesus Christ and if he is not who he claims to be. Then we don't have a Christian faith. In fact, if Jesus is not who he claims to be, then he's guilty of putting the wrong label on the jar, but if he is who he claims to be, and others deny that now there guilty of putting the wrong label on the jar something else you should be aware of. They will broaden the way to heaven.

They broaden the way you look at verse two, and many will follow their destructive ways because of home. The way of truth will be blasphemed to see the word many. This tells me that the false teachers will be very popular because they they take the narrow way and they broaden it they make it easy now these are misunderstanding is not some major hard feet to be safe.

You just have to trust in Jesus Christ, that he paid the price for your sins, but part of that is the willingness to repent of your sin, to turn from that and turn to Christ, the false teacher comes along and will say yeah you know but anytime you make it so narrow in one way, you just alienate so many people swimming this broaden that out a little bit. I was a Starbucks store and if there are any bookstores around anymore, but we have one that may be the last one but I was in a bookstore and it was Becky's and I was at a book stand where they were featuring a book of a religious leader newly put out. I will tell you his name or the name of the book and there was a young girl who opened the book and started to look at it. She was curious and then I saw a young man come up beside her and I heard the conversation went like this. Gotta buy that book is really good and his wife.

This preacher, he won't he won't talk about sin.

He will make you feel bad you want talk about repentance with this young man said his note, this preacher will just tell you how good you are already that you don't need to change and I thought of the words of Jesus who said why it is the gate and broad is the way that leads to destruction, and many go in by you need to be aware of that. Something else you need to be aware of. They will cover up their motives. Verse three by covetousness they will exploit you they want something from you. They want power. They want money they want status and they will make merchandise if you they will exploit you. I've seen this for so many years in in in obvious things like this. I've been in meetings I've heard this, wait a minute, wait a minute I'm hearing from God. Yes, there are yes Lord yes yes there are 10 people here with $10,000 each. Hallelujah and I'm going oh Jag give me a break.

No wonder Paul wrote to the Thessalonians, and said neither at any time did we use flattering words nor a cloak for covetousness.

That's the motive I want something out of many will be accurate. Many many many many years ago I taught a Bible study and Garden Grove, California run at the 22 freeway and Beach Boulevard as a home Bible study was growing growing in one night, a member young man came in smiles in the Bible and he was there the next week in the next week by about the third week as we did know who he was or is background. He kind of revealed who he was, after the Bible said he'd been IN this cute little girl in the Bible study and he walked up to her and I overheard this conversation. He said the Lord told me the year to be my wife now set for a pickup laborer that one before. That's new, and it the Lord told me you're going to be my wife. So she held up her wedding band. She said I'm already married.

Thank you. And he didn't stop he persisted as well.

That only proves that you married the wrong person and you need to leave him and marry me so I gave him a good dose of the say of the Lord right on the spot. That's exactly the kind of stuff that was happening back in Peter's day – Skip the message from the series walks.

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