When people are accepted for the FBI, they are given intensive training in how to watch for counterfeit currency. They must make a thorough study, not of the phonies but of the genuine bills so that fake will be recognized because of its contrast with the real thing. There’s a lesson here for seekers after truth. While it’s helpful to spot counterfeit Christians we should know enough about the Bible to be able to know it when we have met up with the genuine article. It is vital to learn what a person is depending on to take him or her to heaven. If it is a dependence on good works, water baptism, church membership or the like, be on guard. It is possible to be sincere, but sincerely wrong, and unaware that the Bible teaches that it is “by grace we are saved, through faith and that not of ourselves, it is the gift of God. Only when trusting in Christ alone for forgiveness and a heavenly home are we real Christians.

Pastor Alex Rockwell