Uncovering Counterfeits Series

How many of you have heard of the “five-second rule”? It’s the popular notion that food dropped on the floor and picked up within five seconds is “safe,” because bacteria need at least five seconds to transfer from the floor to the food. Parents sometimes apply the rule to pacifiers (after their first child of course). So what is the source of the five-second rule? One legend traces the rule to Genghis Khan, who declared that food could be on the ground for five hours and still be safe to eat.

The five-second rule is so popular that Professor Donald W. Schaffner, a food microbiologist at Rutgers University, conducted a two-year study just a few years ago (2016) to determine whether it is true. Professor Schaffner tested four surfaces—stainless steel, ceramic tile, wood, and carpet—and four different foods: cut watermelon, bread, buttered bread, and strawberry gummy candy. They were dropped from a height of five inches onto surfaces treated with a bacterium. The researchers tested four contact times—less than one second, five seconds, 30 and 300 seconds. A total of 128 possible combinations of surface, food, and seconds were replicated 20 times each, yielding 2,560 measurements.

It’s amazing how your tax dollars are spent! Well, after 2,560 drops of food, Professor Schaffner concluded that no matter how fast you pick up food from the floor, you will pick up bacteria with it. He said, “Bacteria can contaminate instantaneously,” and so debunked the legendary five second rule. (Christopher Mele, “'Five-Second Rule' for Food on Floor Is Untrue, Study Finds,” The New York Times, 9-19-16; www.PreachingToday.com)

It makes you wonder what other popular notions are not true. Now, a little bacterium on your food may or may not kill you, but there are some ideas that are downright deadly to your well-being and may, in fact, land you in hell.

So how do you keep from being misled? How do you prevent yourself from being deceived? Well, if you have your Bibles, I invite you to turn with me to Matthew 7, Matthew 7, where Jesus tells us how to uncover counterfeits.

Matthew 7:15 Beware of false prophets who come disguised as harmless sheep but are really vicious wolves. (ESV)

When it comes to discerning who is true and who is false, Jesus says...

LOOK PAST THEIR APPAREL.

See beyond the outward appearance. Examine what’s under the clothes.

A shepherd in Jesus’ day typically wore a sheepskin with the fleece inside and the skin outside. But a man might wear a shepherd’s dress and still not be a shepherd (William Barclay, The Gospel of Matthew, Vol.1).

He might be an imposter, intending to steal some sheep or fleece them for his own selfish gain. Jesus described “the thief who comes only to steal and kill and destroy” sheep in contrast to Him as the Good Shepherd, who came that “they may have life and have it abundantly” (John 10:10).

The false preacher might look good on the outside; but on the inside, he is like a ravenous wolf. He is violently greedy. He doesn’t care about the wellbeing of the sheep at all. He pursues them only for what he can take from them.

Many of the Pharisees in Jesus’ day were like that. They looked good on the outside, all pious and holy, but they enjoyed the prestige of their position, and they made a lot of money exploiting their followers.

The early church honored traveling preachers, but they were also wary. They said of such preachers, “He shall remain one day, and, if necessary, another day also; but if he remain three days, he is a false prophet.” They also said, “He must never ask for anything but bread. If he asks for money, he is a false prophet” (The Didache, written about A.D. 100, William Barclay, The Gospel of Matthew, Vol.1).

It makes you wonder about many televangelists today who have made millions asking for money, who live in multi-million-dollar mansions, and fly around the world in multi-million-dollar jets. They look good on the outside, all pious and holy, but when you look under the surface, all you see is greedy, self-serving, ravenous wolves. So don’t be fooled by their outward appearance.

Jane Dinscore, from San Antonio, rescued what appeared to be two abandoned Bengal kittens. She brought them home and attempted to nurse them back to health. She gave them some milk; but they were so aggressive, they destroyed the feeding bottles. Then, after enduring a few nasty scratches, Dinscore realized these were no ordinary kittens and contacted the local Animal Control Service. It turns out the two kittens were bobcats from the wild. (Hilary Hanson, “Woman Says She Took Home 'Kittens,' Only To Find Out They Were Bobcats” MSN News, 5-10-18; www.PreachingToday.com)

Appearances are deceiving, so don’t be fooled. Otherwise, you could end up with more than just a few scratches.