Daily Devotional
The Counterfeit Christians
Text: 2 Peter 2:15
“They have forsaken the right way and gone astray, following the way of Balaam the son of Beor, who loved the wages of unrighteousness.”
Message
Counterfeit is made in exact imitation of something valuable with the intention to deceive or defraud.
Simply put, counterfeit goods are fake products that are made of cheaper substandard quality and are being sold under the name and trademark of another brand without authorization from the brand owner.
As we have genuine Christians and Christianity so do we have their counterfeit.
While it is good to thank God for the worthiness of Jesus and the beauty of the true gospel that redeems the worst of sinners and hypocrites, we must be careful of counterfeit Christians and Christianity in the same way we deal with counterfeit money? We don’t throw away all our money. What we do is take out the counterfeit.
When we learn that a particular doctor is an impostor, we do not refuse to go to hospital on account. Instead we shine our eyes and get the genuine!
When we come across lawyers that are dishonest, we don’t refuse ever to use a lawyer. Of course not. We look for the genuine.
While to counterfeit means to imitate something authentic, with the intent to steal, destroy, or replace the original, for use in illegal transactions, or otherwise to deceive individuals into believing that the fake is of equal or greater value than the real thing it is logical, valid and reasonable to say that the counterfeit has its usefulness and is of great importance. For it is the counterfeit that proves the worth and the validity of the genuine item.
Counterfeit Christians prove the worth, the validity, and the reality of that which they are counterfeiting.
Don’t be so foolish. You may say, “Well, I’m not going to church. There are hypocrites there.” May I give you some advice? It would be far better for you to spend a few days with some hypocrites than to spend eternity with all hypocrites in hell. So never let a hypocrite keep you away from the true riches of the Lord Jesus Christ.
While it is said that first appearance forms the largest imagination and impression, appearance alone can be deceiving such that something that appears small or insignificant may actually negatively affect your chosen path, long held value, and marked a radical change, and new direction in your relationship with Christ.
Truth is many are in the church to take undue advantage of her! And we are so deceived as the external appearance of something or someone may not accurately reflect their true worth, capabilities, or significance.
Beloved, beware of that christian brother and sister. Do not judge them solely based on their outward appearance, service, title or role in the church. They may actually be wolves in sheep’s clothing. So, look deeper to discover their true value. A tree is known by her fruit.
While the church members may not have control over surrounding counterfeit Christianity they do have control over their reactions and responses. What the counterfeit Christianity does is not what hurt you but how you choose to respond to them
How have you found it true that counterfeits prove the worth of the genuine item?
What are we disobediently missing about ourselves if we say we will avoid the church because hypocrites attend?