Many will way to me in that day, Lord, Lord, have we not prophesied in thy name and in thy name have cast out demons and in thy name done many wonderful works? (Matthew 7:22)
The Parables Of Jesus – The Wheat And The Tares.There is a clear application of this principle today. In the New Testament, God is establishing local churches to be reflections of the Body of Christ, the true Church in this dispensation.
True to his strategy of counterfeiting, Satan is developing churches as well. You must understand that there are many Bible-believing churches, but you must also understand that there are many counterfeit churches which Satan has raised up to look just like the genuine churches. In these counterfeit churches the people come and sing songs and they have a man who speaks. They go through religious activities, but something is lacking.
Jesus said, “Many will say to Me on that day, Lord, Lord, did we not prophesy in Your name, and in Your name cast out demons, and in Your name perform many miracles? (Matt. 7:22). But in the preceding verse He described who will enter the kingdom:
“He who does the will of My Father who is in heaven will enter (verse 21).
The will of God is that you believe in His Son, Jesus Christ.Counterfeit churches have everything going except that you never hear the message of the gospel. They are not founded upon the fact that we are sinners, hopelessly separated from God, with our only hope for salvation being faith in the finished work of Jesus Christ, His death and resurrection.
Counterfeits are recognizable by the absence of that message. They may have many activities, and they may look good. Their activities may give them credibility, but they are not genuine. What is their reason for existence? Satan is developing counterfeits. If God is building true churches, you can be sure that Satan is building counterfeit ones. That is his work. This will go on right into the Tribulation in preparation for the coming kingdom. If you carefully read the Paul’s 2nd letter to Corinthians we can understand the impact of Another Jesus- a spirit of Antichrist present at that time it self,
“For I am jealous over you with godly jealousy for I have espoused you to one husband, that I may present you as a chaste virgin to Christ. But I fear, lest by any means, as the serpent beguiled Eve through his subtilty, so your minds should be corrupted from the simplicity that is in Christ. For if he that cometh preacheth another Jesus, whom we have not preached, or it ye receive another spirit. which ye have not received, or another gospel, which ye have not accepted, ye might well bear with him.” (2 Corinthians 11:2-4)
One of Satan’s key counterfeit operations is described in Revelation 13. Sometime, perhaps very soon, maybe even today, the Rapture of the Church will occur when all true believers in Christ will be bodily removed from the earth. This will be followed by a seven-year Tribulation which completes the program of God for Israel which will effectively prepare the nation Israel for the Second Coming of Christ. The purpose of the Tribulation will be to refine and purify Israel and bring that nation to its knees before God so they will believe in Jesus Christ as their Messiah. In connection with Jesus Christ as the Messiah, Satan will offer a master counterfeit.
One saw one of his heads as if it had been slain, and his fatal wound was healed. And the whole earth was amazed and followed after the beast” (Rev. 13:3).
Sol.Paulose