The Holy Spirit HOW TO SPOT THE PHONY
Let no man deceive you by any means. 2 Thess. 2:3.
A hillbilly came out of the mountains with an $18 counterfeit bill. He had intended to print $20 on it, but made a mistake in his printing. But it looked so good he decided to try cashing it anyway. He arrived at the store in the valley and gave the bill to the proprietor. The proprietor accepted the bill and asked, "Would you prefer three sixes or two nines?"
There's no sense in making a counterfeit unless there is a real. Those people who are adept at making counterfeit money are the ones who know the real. As we consider the modern manifestations of the Holy Spirit, we know that for every genuine revival, there will be an attempt at a counterfeit on the part of Satan.
All of us are terribly impressed by the spectacular, and we might as well admit it. The enemy is going to try to deceive, if possible, the very elect. The Bible reports miracles, and gives evidence that the devil himself can at times perform them. So even though we might be impressed by the spectacular, we can never judge truth by it. Truth must be judged by the Bible, in the context of our personal relationship with God.
In Revelation 17 the true church is represented by a pure woman, and the false (or counterfeit) church, by a harlot. God has always had a tender regard for His church, and He manifests His power and gives His gifts to the church. The true church of the last days will be the one that can expect the genuine manifestations of the Spirit's working. The counterfeit workings of a supernatural type will be expected in the counterfeit church. Some people will at this point sit back smugly and say, "That's right, and we're the true ones." Are you sure? The false church is spoken of in Revelation as Babylon. Babylon is a classic example of man trying to save himself. And if you are still trying to save yourself in some way, you can be partaking of the spirit of Babylon whether you are in one of the churches called Babylon or not. If you have not yet reached the end of your own resources and learned the necessity of coming to Jesus day by day for salvation and for relationship with Him, you are a part of Babylon. Until you know Him for yourself, you will not be safe from deception, no matter how many facts you know about the last days. It takes both.
Let no man deceive you by any means. 2 Thess. 2:3.
A hillbilly came out of the mountains with an $18 counterfeit bill. He had intended to print $20 on it, but made a mistake in his printing. But it looked so good he decided to try cashing it anyway. He arrived at the store in the valley and gave the bill to the proprietor. The proprietor accepted the bill and asked, "Would you prefer three sixes or two nines?"
There's no sense in making a counterfeit unless there is a real. Those people who are adept at making counterfeit money are the ones who know the real. As we consider the modern manifestations of the Holy Spirit, we know that for every genuine revival, there will be an attempt at a counterfeit on the part of Satan.
All of us are terribly impressed by the spectacular, and we might as well admit it. The enemy is going to try to deceive, if possible, the very elect. The Bible reports miracles, and gives evidence that the devil himself can at times perform them. So even though we might be impressed by the spectacular, we can never judge truth by it. Truth must be judged by the Bible, in the context of our personal relationship with God.
In Revelation 17 the true church is represented by a pure woman, and the false (or counterfeit) church, by a harlot. God has always had a tender regard for His church, and He manifests His power and gives His gifts to the church. The true church of the last days will be the one that can expect the genuine manifestations of the Spirit's working. The counterfeit workings of a supernatural type will be expected in the counterfeit church. Some people will at this point sit back smugly and say, "That's right, and we're the true ones." Are you sure? The false church is spoken of in Revelation as Babylon. Babylon is a classic example of man trying to save himself. And if you are still trying to save yourself in some way, you can be partaking of the spirit of Babylon whether you are in one of the churches called Babylon or not. If you have not yet reached the end of your own resources and learned the necessity of coming to Jesus day by day for salvation and for relationship with Him, you are a part of Babylon. Until you know Him for yourself, you will not be safe from deception, no matter how many facts you know about the last days. It takes both.
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