Beyond Today -- Counterfeit Christianity

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[Steve Myers] When we look into the Bible, God's  instruction is distinctly different from what most   churches teach. God challenges us. He challenges  you. Do you value scripture? Is it your guide   to what you believe? Because you  don't want to fall for the lie. Counterfeits, forgeries, and fakes are everywhere.   Now, some of them are pretty harmless aren't  they? Faux fur, artificial plants, synthetic gems.   But there's others that can be damaging, maybe  even dangerous. How about phony websites,   or fake IDs, or counterfeit cash, counterfeit  drugs, even fake news? Now here's a lethal one.   You may not have considered counterfeit  Christianity. Now growing up, I didn't think   that was possible. I mean, I knew many sincere  people, individuals I respected, folks I love.   They couldn't be deceived, could they? I mean,  could it be possible that most religion at   this time has false and dangerous teachings? I  mean, after all, as a young man I have to admit   I was misled. I mean, I learned it at church,  so it had to be true. I mean, I was sure   I had an immortal soul. How could that be wrong?  In fact, in Sunday school, I learned that at death   I would keep on living in the spirit sense,  that I'd either go to heaven if I was good,   or if I was bad, I would go to hell or maybe  even purgatory. Now could that be fraudulent? In fact, as a child, my favorite times were  the holidays, but until God started to open   my mind to His truth, I had no idea that they  really only imitate God's days of worship.   Now stay with me for a moment and I'm going  to expound and expand on several of these   counterfeits that we find in Christianity today.  Now you don't want to stay unaware like I was. You   don't want to be fooled. In fact, today there are  more than 2.5 billion Christians around the world.   Now how many different denominations are there?  41,000. Why so many? Well, conflicting beliefs,   contrary practices, different doctrines,  but supposed to all have the same Bible. Now, most people believe that what they  think is true, but Christianity today, it's   littered with error. That a fair statement? I  mean, isn't that what makes a good counterfeit? I   mean, it looks real, seems real, sounds real, but  it's a fraud, it's a fake. Yet on the other hand,   Jesus Christ promised that He would build  His church. Not churches, but one church,   one body, not 41,000 denominations. In fact, in  the Bible, He clearly says He would establish   the Church of God. Now that leads us to an  important question. What did He really teach?   I mean, do you know what Jesus taught? Are you  a part of God's church? And how can you know? Well, Christ said something very important in that  regard in John 17:17. He said, "Sanctify them by   your truth." He's talking to the Father. He said,  your Word is truth. John 17:17 reminds us of that.   And so He pointed to His Word. And surprisingly,  there's a difference between Christianity   and the teachings of the Bible. And that's  one reason there's so many denominations.   Churches don't follow the Bible. This is the Holy Word of God.  Now, do you believe the Bible?   Are you willing to follow God's instructions?  Now Jesus said in Luke 11:28, He said,   "Blessed are those who hear the Word of God and  keep it." And of course, that's where you've got   to start. You've got to start right there. Believe  God, have faith, trust and follow His Word.   Because what happens when we begin to compromise  the Word? Well, that's when we're vulnerable.   That's when we fall for the imitation.  And it's interesting, we have an example   to show that most Christians have  fallen. They have been taken in. This idea of the immortal soul, counterfeit. Now  you may be like I used to be. Doesn't the Bible   say we have an immortal soul? I mean, the shocking  truth is, it doesn't. The idea that you have   a soul and at death, your consciousness, your  soul leaves your body, it's just not biblical.   And this false idea has been around for thousands  and thousands of years. Good example, the   pyramids. They're the oldest surviving testament  to this wrong idea of the hereafter. The ancient   Egyptians tried to preserve the body and provide  for the soul in its journey into the afterlife. Now that's not biblical, but it wasn't just the  Egyptians who believe these unbiblical, pagan   ideas. Cultures from China to North America buried  their dead in ways to show this belief that a soul   departs the body at death and continues to live  on in another realm. But that idea of the immortal   soul, even though it's a foundational doctrine in  Christianity and the fact that most people accept   it without question, doesn't make it right.  So what do you think? I found it's a forgery. The Word, the Holy Scripture, God's Word  does explain where that idea originated.   And you know, you probably know the story. It  goes all the way back to the very beginning.   You've heard the story of Adam and Eve. Well,  immediately after Adam and Eve were created,   God instructed them. Then who came along? That  serpent, the devil came along, and in Genesis 3,   the serpent asked Eve, "Has God indeed said,  'You shall not eat of every tree of the garden'?"   She replied, "God has said, 'You shall not eat  it, nor shall you touch it, lest you die.'"   Then the serpent said, "You will not surely  die." You see here's the first forgery,   the first counterfeit, in fact, the first  recorded lie in history. And you might wonder   why would Satan tell that lie? Why  not something else? Well, here's why.   This idea hides the truth. It hides  the truth about the nature of man,   what he is, and what is his purpose, and it  conceals what God is doing with human life. The truth is there's absolutely no indication  in your Bible that some kind of a spirit soul   continues to live on in some other form or some  other place. That deception began with the devil   and now it's almost universally believed  and taught. But it's not biblical.   In fact, you might even be surprised to learn  that this concept of the soul is connected   to a pagan Greek philosopher who lived hundreds  of years before Jesus Christ. Who is it? Plato.   Plato believed and taught that. He said  this, "The soul is shown to be immortal,   and since immortal, indestructible. Is this death  anything but the separation of soul and body?" The Word of God says something  totally different, and in fact,   if you begin to study this false concept of  the immortal soul and you begin to discover   what God says about it, a couple of amazing  passages that really jump out at you, one of them   is in the Book of Ezekiel. Ezekiel 18:4  it says very clearly, "The soul who sins   shall die." And in fact, God emphasized it  by saying it again in those same words a   couple of verses later. And so we're shown very  clearly we don't have a soul, we are a soul,   and there's so much to investigate on this false  idea of the immortal soul. And you'll definitely   want to study into it. You don't want to be taken  in. This idea hides the meaning and the purpose   of God. And you don't want to miss out on that  understanding of what God's plan is all about. When we look into the Bible, God's instruction  is distinctly different from what most churches   teach. God challenges us. He challenges you to  take an honest look. Do you value scripture?   Is it your guide to what you believe? Because  you don't want to fall for the lie. So how   can you be sure? Well, we'd like to help you  discover what happened and how God is working   today. We have a study aid called The Church  Jesus Built. What happened to that church?   It's something that you need to learn about. And  this booklet will help you to study the traits of   that church that Jesus and the apostles said would  identify His people. So call us at the number on   your screen. We'll send you a free copy of The  Church Jesus Built and you can begin to study   for yourself what your Bible has to say about it.  Now, if you want it right away, go to our website   beyondtoday.tv. There you can read it immediately  online or download it to your phone, your iPad,   your tablet, your computer because you'll discover  how many church organizations have been influenced   to preach a different gospel. Now you're not going  to learn this from human tradition, you're not   going to learn this from me or take my opinion  for granted, you need to read it for yourself.   You'll learn right from the Word of God. You will  definitely want to watch out for the imitations. Now there's a related counterfeit  that's also interesting,   one that Christianity teaches that at death,  you go to heaven, or hell, or maybe in between,   maybe to purgatory. Is that true? That's fake  news. That's also a fraud. The Bible describes   death totally differently. It identifies  and connects it to an unconscious sleep. Now, if we look in the Old Testament, in fact you  could look them up for yourself, time and time   again you'll see that connection of death is like  a sleep. Daniel recorded it for us. You know that   Daniel in the lion's den? That Daniel. He said  that the dead sleep in the dust of the earth. In the Book Ecclesiastes, Ecclesiastes  9:5 says this, "The dead know nothing."   And it goes on to say, "There's no work or  device or knowledge or wisdom in the grave."   And so we see that comparison to resting, to like  sleeping. And in fact, we find in God's Word,   it is consistent. Old Testament says that, what  do you think the New Testament says? Well Christ   Himself compared death to an unconscious  sleep. And one of the best examples   is the story of His friend Lazarus. In John  11:11, Jesus refers to His friend and He says,   "Our friend Lazarus sleeps," but He  says, "I go that I may wake him up." That was kind of confusing to the disciples so  they said, "Lord, if he sleeps, he'll get well."   But verse 13 says, "Jesus spoke of his death, but  they thought He was speaking about taking a rest   in sleep." And Jesus clears any doubt you might  have in your mind with the next verse. "He said to   them plainly, 'Lazarus is dead.'" And so the truth  was not that Jesus' friend Lazarus was in heaven,   or had died and gone to hell or purgatory,  Christ Himself taught the dead are figuratively   in a state of sleep. They're awaiting the  resurrection. It's as though they're unconscious   waiting in the grave and they won't awake until  that time of Christ's return, the resurrection. Now that may raise a question. Do you understand  the resurrection? Do you really know the truth?   There's a lot to the story of death and what lies  ahead that I really hope you'll take the time to   discover it for yourself because understanding  what happens at death helps us not only to know   the truth, but it gives us hope, the hope of  the resurrection. And we recognize the fact that   we are dependent on God. We're dependent on  God for our life and we ultimately look forward   to His kingdom. And so we have to be sure we  haven't been misled. And in so many ways some have   been fooled by wrong ways, but then there's also  wrong days. Wrong days can also be a counterfeit. That was something I came to  realize, that man-made holidays   actually subvert the truth of God. Example,  Christmas and Easter. They're not Christian   celebrations. In fact, most Christians even  realize that these days originated in paganism.   They have non-biblical roots and were celebrated  centuries before Christ. And early Christians,   what did they do? Well, they had nothing to  do with Christmas and Easter, and instead,   they kept the Passover and  the rest of God's Holy days. So I came to realize, just claiming  that something is Christian or saying,   I do this, I honor God in this way,  didn't make it acceptable to God.   These counterfeit sacraments, these artificial  practices, okay, they have a Christian flavor,   but they're just not true. Christ Himself plainly  said in Mark 7:7, kind of a scary thought, here's   what He said. "In vain they worship Me, teaching  as doctrines the commandments of men. He went on   to say, "For laying aside the commandment  of God, you hold the tradition of men." Now I hope you'll look into it because like every  counterfeit, it really ends up to be hollow.   It's empty because God didn't design  them. Instead, these holiday celebrations,   they perpetuate ungodly practices, practices  that just aren't right. And so you've got to   get rid of that emptiness and find real meaning  in your life and it begins with recognizing   the Church of God, the one that follows Jesus'  teachings. So be sure you get our study aid,   The Church Jesus Built. Call us at the number on  your screen and we'll send you a free copy. Either   that or go to our website. You can download  it immediately or read it right there online. There is a huge difference between Jesus'  teachings and most of Christianity,   so we have to be careful. I don't know if  you've ever thought about it this way or not.   It's possible to go to church, but not really  be following Jesus. So we have to be cautious.   Is any church just as good as another? No. Watch  out. There is a vast difference between religion,   church, Christianity, and the teachings of  Christ. So what's the difference? The key is   Jesus taught people to follow Him. And He  didn't say it two times, or three times,   but over and over, in fact, almost two  dozen times He tells people, follow me,   follow me. A good example of that is in John  12:26. Christ Himself said, "If any man serve me,   let him follow me. Where I am,  there shall also my servant be."   And so when we recognize that fact,  you know we have to think about that. Now, most Christian denominations have excuses why  they don't have to live like Jesus. But after all,   wasn't Jesus the perfect example of how to live?  The Bible shows that Jesus rejects religion,   He rejects churches, He rejects people that  don't follow Him. And so over and over,   He warned about false prophets, false  teachers, false brethren, and false churches. One of those warnings in  Matthew 7:22. Christ said this,   "Many will say to Me in that day, 'Lord,  Lord, have we not prophesied or preached in   your name? Haven't we cast out demons in your  name? Haven't we done wonders in your name?'"   And then Christ says to them, "I never knew you;  depart from me, you who practice lawlessness."   And so what we find, Christ taught there are  key characteristics that identify God's people. I mean, how will you recognize the true  Church of God, the one that Jesus built?   I mean, how do you know? How do you know if you're  following the example and the teaching of Christ?   What should you do? Well, the true church is  described in your Bible in the Book of Acts.   And it gives key characteristics to  identify God's people. What do you do?   Here's one of the keys. First of all, you have to  hold your beliefs up to the light of scripture. I   mean, the only way to really know is to read your  Bible. Read your Bible and see it for yourself,   actually get it out and read the text. Don't  let somebody else tell you what to believe,   don't just believe it because you grew up that  way as a child, read it for yourself, and then   recognize do my practices actually match the  Word of God? It tells us we ought to obey God   rather than men. And we got to listen to those  warnings of the counterfeits. Let go of the   traditions of men and hold on to the truth. And  that might mean you've got a decision to make.   You've got to make a choice. You  know, are you going to be led   by God, seek the truth, hang onto it, and  choose to live by the standard of God? Now another key, pray. Pray for God to give you  understanding, ask Him to lead you, ask for His   guidance. Ask God to help you to understand  the blessings of obeying Him and keeping His   commandments so that you can really then begin  to learn. You can learn about real repentance,   changing your life. You'll learn what's my  purpose, why was I born? And what is this   kingdom of God all about after all? And what about  the true church that Jesus built? Psalms tells us,   pray and ask God for understanding and He  can give it. Now that leads to a third key. Third key, begin to put it into practice. In  other words, do the things that Jesus taught.   James tells us to be doers of the Word,  not just hearers only. In fact James 1:22,   a powerful passage, it says that you  could deceive yourself. You could fall   for that counterfeit, but be a doer. Put  those things that you learn into practice. And then a fourth key, a final key. Find  people who are doing the will of God,   those that are actually putting into  practice the things that you're reading   in scripture. Follow people of like-mind  that are putting God's Word into practice.   Great example of what they'll be doing is  found over in 1 John 5:3. Here it tells us,   "This is the love of God." And God's way is the  way of love. And so what does that look like?   That we keep His commandments and His  commandments are not burdensome. So you've   got to find a commandment-keeping Christian  church who trust in their Savior, Jesus Christ. The Bible also tells us, "A good  understanding have all those who do   His commandments." So who do you follow? A  denomination or Christ? Listen to the savior,   choose to side with the truth, and determine to  follow and live that truth. And of course, we want   to help you to do just that. And that's why we've  produced this study aid, The Church Jesus Built.   And you can get this study aid absolutely free so  call us at the number on your screen. It will help   you to decipher what you're reading in your Bible  because the Bible is the Word of God, so make sure   that you get your free copy by calling us or going  to our website. Go to beyondtoday.tv and you can   read it right there online or download a copy to  your tablet, to your smartphone, to your computer   so you really can begin to dig in to the Word of  God. It'll help you to recognize the imitations. So call us at the number on your screen or be  sure and go to our website at beyondtoday.tv.   And of course, as you really look honestly  at Christianity today, most of it opposes the   teachings of Christ. In fact, Christ plainly  said that many would follow false teachers.   So don't be one of them. Don't be fooled.  And I really hope you will set your heart   on God's church, on His way,  and be a part of His people. So are you ready to search it out? Are you  ready to look for that church that really fits   that true, Biblical model? The church that Jesus  built is truly a transformed body of believers.   They've repented of sin, they're in the process  of growing and being more Christ-like. They've   changed by baptism through the power of God's Holy  Spirit. Now it's going to take some commitment.   It's going to take study, but God commands it, and  He'll bless and reward you as you follow His lead. So rely on Christ. He will help  you live by every Word of God.   Strive to follow His example in all things. And  if you do, you won't fall for the counterfeit. [Announcer] Call now to receive the  free booklet offered on today's program,   The Church Jesus Built. Churches today have a wide  variety of approaches, doctrines, and teachings.   How do they compare to those of the original  church, the one Jesus founded, the one carried   on by those who knew Him? This free study aid,  The Church Jesus Built, will give you biblical   keys to discerning the church Jesus calls His  own. Order now, learn the fascinating story   of the church Jesus built. Call 1-888-886-8632  or write to the address shown on your screen. God's Word speaks of a true church and a false  church. Your Bible tells you which one is which.   You can find those who are among the church Jesus  built today. When you order this free study aid,   we'll also send you a complimentary one-year  subscription to "Beyond Today" magazine.   "Beyond Today" magazine brings you understanding  of today's world and hope for the future.   Six times a year you'll read about current  world events in the light of Bible prophecy,   as well as practical knowledge to  improve your marriage and family.   Call today to receive your free booklet, The  Church Jesus Built, and your free one-year   subscription to "Beyond Today" magazine. Call  1-888-886-8632 or go online to beyondtoday.tv. Hi, I'm Gary Petty, a pastor with United  Church of God. If you're looking for a church   that encourages living what the Word of God  really teaches, you've found the right place.   Visit ucg.org to find a church near you.  We're looking forward to meeting you soon.
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Channel: BeyondTodayTV
Views: 5,241
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Length: 28min 21sec (1701 seconds)
Published: Fri Apr 16 2021
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