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Tuesday, March 17, 2015

Counterfeit Christianity!

Baseball season is upon us! Can your eye detect counterfeit tickets? Be cautious as to where you get your tickets from...You want to save money so you find someone selling tickets for a fair price. You pay the money for tickets you think are real, you then walk up to the gate to get into the game, they scan the tickets and BEEP BEEP BEEP, they're fake! You were fooled but the ticket collector wasn't! No game for you...

Counterfeit Christianity will only get you so far also. You prayed a prayer and maybe got baptized as a baby or even as an adult and you think you're good to go. The day comes when you die and stand before the Lord...what will He say to you? You were fooled but the Lord cannot be fooled! No eternal life in heaven for you...

This may seem harsh to some but I am compelled to tell you the truth. Counterfeit Christianity has swept through so many churches and has fooled so many people. I was walking today and this thought came to my mind and I prayed asking the Lord for clarification. How many church don't talk about sin? LOTS! How many preachers talk about heaven and say if you believe in Jesus you will go to heaven? LOTS! How many people are calling themselves Christians and yet have no conviction about sin? LOTS!

Don't get me wrong, there are a lot of churches that do talk about sin, preachers who do explain clearly how one gets to heaven, Christians who do struggle with a sin/s and fell conviction not wanting to live contrary to the Word of God. I'm happy to say that I belong to a church that speaks the Truth without fear or shame!

So why am I writing this blog today? My heart is burdened for those who have been fooled...usually the fooled one doesn't know it until "the joke is on you" so to speak. I have to speak up and pray that someone hears the Gospel clearly today! I'm going to break it down as best as I can with the help of the Holy Spirit and then leave the rest to Him.

Read the Bible verses below:

Matthew 4:17
From then on Jesus began to preach, “Repent of your sins and turn to God, for the Kingdom of Heaven is near.”
Matthew 11:20
Then Jesus began to denounce the towns where he had done so many of his miracles, because they hadn’t repented of their sins and turned to God.
Luke 5:23
I have come to call not those who think they are righteous, but those who know they are sinners and need to repent.”
Luke 15:7
In the same way, there is more joy in heaven over one lost sinner who repents and returns to God than over ninety-nine others who are righteous and haven’t strayed away!

First, one has to admit they are a sinner and repent, confessing your sins to the Lord.
1 John 1:8-9, "If we claim we have no sin, we are only fooling ourselves and not living in the truth. But if we confess our sins to him, he is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all wickedness." Have you been broken by the fact that your sins are the reason Jesus had to die on the cross?

Another thing counterfeit Christianity says is if you believe that Jesus is the Son of God then you are saved. There is some truth to this but is that enough? Is belief the same as faith? Look what
James 2:19 says, "You say you have faith, for you believe that there is one God. Good for you! Even the demons believe this, and they tremble in terror."

One last thing counterfeit Christianity says if your good outweighs your bad then you will go to heaven. So do the most good and God will accept you in to His perfect heaven.
Look at Isaiah 64:6, "We are all infected and impure with sin. When we display our righteous deeds,
they are nothing but filthy rags. Like autumn leaves, we wither and fall, and our sins sweep us away like the wind."

What is true Christianity? We are all sinners, in need of a Savior, Jesus Christ! We don't deserve heaven based on our own goodness and we can't earn our way to heaven by being good enough.
Jesus the sinless Son of God died in our place on the cross. Jesus is the WAY, TRUTH AND THE LIFE no one can get to heaven without faith in Him. The good news is that HE PAID IT ALL! Jesus did what no man could do! The burden of our own salvation has been lifted by the Cross of Christ! Praise the Lord!



When faith compels you to belief this truth, you will be humbled, repentance will be your hearts desire, you will ask Jesus to forgive you and be your Lord and Savior. He will then take up residence in your heart. His Holy Spirit will begin teaching you the things of the Lord and your life will change! Your old desires will be gone and you will desires God and His will!
1 Corinthians 15:22b, "Everyone who belongs to Christ will be given new life."
 
He has been pursuing you...what are you waiting for? No one is promised tomorrow, but we are promised eternal life in Heaven for All who call on the name of the Lord Jesus will be saved!
Romans 10:8-13:
"In fact, it says,
“The message is very close at hand;
  it is on your lips and in your heart.”
And that message is the very message about faith that we preach: If you openly declare that Jesus is Lord and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead, you will be saved. For it is by believing in your heart that you are made right with God, and it is by openly declaring your faith that you are saved. As the Scriptures tell us, “Anyone who trusts in him will never be disgraced.” Jew and Gentile are the same in this respect. They have the same Lord, who gives generously to all who call on him.  For “Everyone who calls on the name of the Lord will be saved.”