I would like to begin today’s service with a joke. On a dark night, in a small town, the industrial chemical plant caught fire. Not too much time went by before the place exploded with great flames, and the firemen arrived to extinguish the blaze. After watching the fireman fight what appeared to be an inextinguishable fire, the owner of the plant approached the fire captain on the scene and said: “all of our secret formulas are in the safe, located in the middle of the plant. You have to save them! I will give a $50,000 reward to the fire brigade that delivers these documents in my hand”. As soon as he heard this, the captain ordered the firemen to intensify their efforts, and requested more fire brigades to the scene. But another hour went by, and the fire blazed. The owner then approached the fire captain once again and said: “I will double the reward I offered you, I will give $100,000 to the brigade that delivers my documents safely in my hands. While this conversation was taking place, the siren of another fire truck was heard and began coming into view. It was the all voluntary fire department from the adjoining town, and this brigade was composed of elderly men, all of them were older than 65. To the surprise of all that were present, the volunteer fire truck did not stop where all of the other trucks were positioned; the truck sped through all the locations, broke through a fence, and stopped right in the middle of the blaze. It was then that everyone saw how every one in the brigade jumped from the truck with great enthusiasm and energy equipment in hand and began their labor. After about an hour these elderly men were able to extinguish this fire that seemed to be hell itself, and safely delivered the secret formulas in the plant owner’s hands. The plant owner was very grateful, and with great joy announced that he would increase the reward to $200,000 and drew near to all of the elderly men to personally thank them. After thanking them all individually, he then turned to the group and asked what they would do with the reward money. The driver of the truck then took one step forward, looked him straight in the eyes and said: “the first thing we are going to do is fix the brakes in that truck”. Isn’t that funny? Things are not always as they appear, and this will be our theme of study today. Let’s now turn to the Word of God.
2 Timothy 3:1-5 - But know this, that in the last days perilous times will come: 2For men will be lovers of themselves, lovers of money, boasters, proud, blasphemers, disobedient to parents, unthankful, unholy, 3unloving, unforgiving, slanderers, without self-control, brutal, despisers of good, 4traitors, headstrong, haughty, lovers of pleasure rather than lovers of God, 5having a form of godliness but denying its power. And from such people turn away!
In these verses we find a clear warning for each and every single one of us today. I say this because when we take the time to examine what happens around us and in the world, we quickly realize that we are living in very dangerous times. The picture that Paul paints here in these verses unfortunately represents rather well a large portion of human beings. I am sure that if we give this some thought, the majority of us will reach the conclusion that we know at least one person that can be identified with the description provided here by the apostle. But this is not the theme that I want to concentrate on today; that is another theme for another day. Today I want us to concentrate in those that disguise themselves, those that appear to be one thing, but in fact are something completely different. We must do this because this type of person represents a serious danger for believers.
When we look at the world from a biblical perspective, it is not difficult to reach the conclusion that although this planet is inhabited by more than six billion human beings, there are only two types of people. In this world there only exist those that belong to Christ, and those that do not. What I have just told you is something that is very well reflected in 1 Corinthians 10:21 when we read “You cannot drink the cup of the Lord and the cup of demons; you cannot partake of the Lord’s table and of the table of demons”. Unfortunately, in comparison to the rest of the world, the true Christian church, that is to say, all believers that are not willing to compromise and do not compromise their faith by following the norms and the evil current that runs through this world is in fact a minority. It is sad to think that out of more than six billion people only a small group or percentage will be saved, but unfortunately this is the grim reality. Look carefully at how the Lord says it very clearly in John 14:6 when we read “Jesus said to him, “I am the way, the truth, and the life. No one comes to the Father except through Me”.
This world is full of people that just like described here, appear to be one thing, but in all reality are something very different. This world is full of people that profess to be Christians; people that with their mouths loudly declare that they are men and women of God, but that in reality they are very far from God. I say this because there are numerous doctrines and teachings that superficially appear to be beautiful and good, but that when they are closely examined against the Word of God, we quickly find that they are doctrines and teachings designed to separate men from God’s presence. The apostle Paul tell us here to separate ourselves from them, but way before Paul, our Lord warned us stay alert so that this would not catch anyone by surprise. Look at how the Lord tells us in Mark 13:22-23 when we read “For false christs and false prophets will rise and show signs and wonders to deceive, if possible, even the elect. 23But take heed; see, I have told you all things beforehand.” I want to make a brief pause now and clarify something. What I have said thus far I have not stated nor implied that we should judge and condemn someone. Furthermore, none of us here are worthy to judge anyone. There is but one just judge, look carefully at how this is clearly stated in John 5:22-23 when we read “For the Father judges no one, but has committed all judgment to the Son, 23that all should honor the Son just as they honor the Father. He who does not honor the Son does not honor the Father who sent Him.” There is but one true and just judge, and his name is Jesus. So I want us to be very clear on the fact that we are not called to judge and condemn anyone because they may be confused and find themselves trapped in a religion or sect. Let’s always remember that when we find ourselves in a situation where the Lord provides us an opportunity to evangelize, our first words must never be “you are going to hell.” Our responsibility in these cases is to preach God’s truth. So I am not saying nor implying that we must judge, but what I am saying is that we can not trust everything that we see or hear.
In the illustration that I used at the beginning of the service we saw how the elderly firemen did not enter into the middle of the blaze because they were braver than the rest. They did not jump from the truck because they were enthused to put out the fire. They found themselves in the middle of the blaze because the brakes on the truck did not work. For those here that when I made the joke developed a mental picture of these elderly men running into the fire, I am sure that at first glance, because of the appearances, the though in your mind was that they were obviously very brave and motivated by the reward. But as we saw that was not the case, and it is for this reason that our Lord Jesus Christ warns us not to judge based on appearances. Look at what our Lord tells us in John 7:24 when we read “Do not judge according to appearance, but judge with righteous judgment.” But regardless of this warning, the majority of the people pass judgment based on appearances. The majority of people allow themselves to be led by first impressions, be it positive or negative, and these influence their attitude and behavior toward others. If we are honest with ourselves we will all say that we are guilty of doing just this, and the Lord tells us very clearly that we must be very careful in doing this. Look at what the Lord says as we find in Matthew 7:1-2 when we read “Judge not, that you be not judged. 2For with what judgment you judge, you will be judged; and with the measure you use, it will be measured back to you.” But then the question is, how can we prevent being deceived? How can we distinguish between the good and the bad without counting on appearances? In reality the answer to this question is very easy, and can be found in the words of our Lord in Matthew 7:16-20 when we read “You will know them by their fruits. Do men gather grapes from thornbushes or figs from thistles? 17Even so, every good tree bears good fruit, but a bad tree bears bad fruit. 18A good tree cannot bear bad fruit, nor can a bad tree bear good fruit. 19Every tree that does not bear good fruit is cut down and thrown into the fire. 20Therefore by their fruits you will know them.”
As I said in the beginning, there are many people in this world that appear to be something that they are not. People that disguise themselves by wearing masks of religions, and that speak eloquent and fancy words. People that do not work for God, but against God, and this is why the Lord tells us what we find in Matthew 7:15 when we read “Beware of false prophets, who come to you in sheep’s clothing, but inwardly they are ravenous wolves.” There is but one way for us to distinguish these types of persons from the rest, there is but one way that we can prevent from being deceived. The only way is to examine the fruits that they produce. In other words, although our first impression may be good or bad, although the appearance of a group or individual is good or bad, as true Christians we have to learn to wait on God. This is something that many will say places the believer at a disadvantage. But in fact the opposite is very true.
What happens is that once we receive conviction and we separate ourselves from all of those things that we have learned displease God, we will be accused by many saying that a true Christian is called to love. That as Christians we are called to love God and our neighbors. That we are called to forgive even those that may have seriously offended us, and that because of these calling we can never distance ourselves or stop sharing with a particular group or individual. I can tell you that there is some truth to these types of accusations; a Christian believer is called to love God and to love his neighbor. This is something clearly stated by our Lord in Matthew 22:37-40 when we read “Jesus said to him, “You shall love the LORD your God with all your heart, with all your soul, and with all your mind.’ 38This is the first and great commandment. 39And the second is like it: ‘You shall love your neighbor as yourself.’ 40On these two commandments hang all the Law and the Prophets.” A Christian is called to forgive even those that have greatly offended us; this is something that is also clearly stated by the Lord as we find in Matthew 18:21-22 when we read “Then Peter came to Him and said, “Lord, how often shall my brother sin against me, and I forgive him? Up to seven times?” 22Jesus said to him, “I do not say to you, up to seven times, but up to seventy times seven”. Therefore, one truth is that Christians are called to love and to forgive. But another great truth is that a Christian is not called to share with the world. Christians are not called to be accomplices of the doctrines, rituals, and sects that serve only to drive a wedge between man and God. Our responsibility is to teach the truth and to preach the gospel of salvation through our Lord Jesus Christ. But if they are unwilling to hear, if they are unwilling to accept the truth and wish to continue in those things that do not please God, then we are called to separate ourselves from them. Look at how this is clearly reflected in Matthew 7:6 when we read “Do not give what is holy to the dogs; nor cast your pearls before swine, lest they trample them under their feet, and turn and tear you in pieces.”
We are called to love, and many will say that this is a great disadvantage, but it is not how many say or think. The love of Christ is our advantage! Tell the person sitting next to you, the love of Christ is our advantage. Why is this love our advantage? I say that the love of Christ is our advantage because when a person genuinely loves God’s work; when a person genuinely loves his neighbor as he loves himself, then we are speaking about a person that will look further than the appearance. Our advantage as Christians is the Holy Spirit that dwells within us, and when we allow ourselves to be guided by Him; He is that one that gives us conviction. He is the one that will remove the appearances; He is the one that will reveal the truth to us. After all, can anything exist hidden from God? Men can deceive men, but Hill never be able to deceive God, and because can not be deceived then those of us that faithfully serve Him will also never be deceived for long because God will not allow it. Look at how this is very clearly stated in Luke 8:17 when we read “For nothing is secret that will not be revealed, nor anything hidden that will not be known and come to light”.
In conclusion. We must be careful; we must take care of that which God has given us. Look at how our Lord tells us in Revelations 3:11 when we read “Behold, I am coming quickly! Hold fast what you have, that no one may take your crown.” We must avoid those persons that disguise themselves to confuse us; we must separate ourselves from this wicked and evil world. But we must also examine ourselves very closely to find if the fruits that we are bearing are in fact pleasing to God. We must examine ourselves to find if perhaps we have become so preoccupied with those around us that our life has stopped testifying of our Lord Jesus Christ. We have to carefully examine ourselves to see if perhaps we are wearing the mask of religion. We have to examine ourselves. We have to examine ourselves carefully because if we find that we are criticizing, envying, and hating, then we must recognize that we are not bearing good fruits. If we are not allowing our life to reflect the love, grace, and mercy of God, then we have to recognize that we are not bearing good fruits. If our life is plagued by disagreements, resentments and disobedience, then we have to recognize that we are not bearing good fruits. We must be very careful with what we hear and see, and we have to test everything by using the Word of God. But just as important is the process of self examination; we have to examine ourselves to discover if our life is truly hidden in Christ, or if perhaps it is just hidden. Appearances can be deceiving, let’s be very careful that we may not be deceiving ourselves.
