How To Spot A Fake

In an effort to stay ahead of counterfeiters, the US Treasury periodically makes changes to the paper currency. Soon, a new $5 bill will be released in the US. I happen to work at a bank and before new currency is released, bank employees receive a detailed description of what the new currency will look like. We receive descriptions of what the bills will look like so that we can spot potential counterfeits.

Did you know that the best way to identify a counterfeit is to know what the real bill looks like? We don’t receive a description of what fake bills look like; they tell us about the real bills and anything that doesn’t look like it is a fake. This should apply to our doctrine as well.

In Acts 17:10-11, we are told about the Bereans. These noble folks were eager to receive the word, but they would always compare new teaching to the Scripture to see if the new doctrine was true. If anyone would bring a different gospel, the false teaching would be immediately exposed.

We need to be diligent about knowing what the Bible has to say. The world abounds with opinions and “feel good” doctrine but the word of God is true (Psalm 119:160). It’s easy to be deceived by something that might sound reasonable but is really a lie. The best way to avoided being tricked by false doctrine is to study the true doctrine. You don’t need to study a long list of everything that is wrong; you just have to know what is right.

The Sadducees in Jesus’ day did not believe there would be a resurrection. They thought they could be clever and stump Jesus by asking a hypothetical situation about the resurrection. Jesus, of course, couldn’t be stumped; He knew the Scriptures too well. His response to the Sadducees is interesting:

“And Jesus answering said unto them, Do ye not therefore err, because ye know not the scriptures, neither the power of God?” Mark 12:24

From there, He went on to show them – from Scripture – that they were wrong about the resurrection:

“And as touching the dead, that they rise: have ye not read in the book of Moses, how in the bush God spake unto him, saying, I am the God of Abraham, and the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob? He is not the God of the dead, but the God of the living: ye therefore do greatly err.” (Mark 12:26-27)

Jesus is not only our Savior, He is our example. He was bold in His teaching. And whenever He was challenged, He backed up His teaching with Scripture.

Let me leave you with 2 Timothy 2:15:

“Study to shew thyself approved unto God, a workman that needeth not to be ashamed, rightly dividing the word of truth.”

So you see, studying the Bible is not just a good idea - it’s a commandment.