Introduction
The Bible tells us of a coming counterfeit revival before the return of the Lord that will be both of such magnitude as to deceive the whole world and of such persuasion as to mislead, if possible, even the elect. This counterfeit revival will be a judgment of God on those who perish, because they did not receive the love of the truth so as to be saved. God has not hidden the truth that there is coming a counterfeit revival – He has warned us of its coming – and it is every person’s responsibility to know what God has said in the Bible on this subject. It is to this end that we examine the Scriptures to see whether these things are so. This coming counterfeit revival is prophesied, classified and clarified in the Bible. Therefore take heed that the thing spoken of will not come upon you.
1.The Coming Counterfeit Revival is Prophesied
2 Thessalonians 2:1-12
The Bible doesn’t hide the fact that the last days will be days of great deception. We are told of an increase in false prophets, false Christs, deceiving spirits, and doctrines of demons. The outcome will be a counterfeit revival and this too is prophesied in the Bible. “Now we request you, brethren, with regard to the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ and our gathering together to Him, that you not be quickly shaken from your composure or be disturbed either by a spirit or a message or a letter as if from us, to the effect that the day of the Lord has come. Let no one in any way deceive you, for it will not come unless the apostasy comes first, and the man of lawlessness is revealed, the son of destruction” (2 Thessalonians 2:1-3).
The apostasy the Bible is talking about is the counterfeit revival. The apostasy is a turning away from the truth and turning to lies disguised as the truth. The last days will seem like days of great revival with multitudes holding to a form of godliness although they have denied its power.
This apostasy, this departure from the true gospel, will culminate in a counterfeit revival to the extent that it will appear to be a turning to truth instead of a departure from truth. And because men are prone to judge by appearance rather than make a righteous judgment, pragmatism (if it gets results it must be true) will rule the day and many will turn to lies disguised as truth and believe this to be revival.
The apostasy that must come first before the Lord comes and we are gathered together to Him is tied in the Bible to the man of lawlessness – the antichrist. This apostasy, this counterfeit revival, will result in the manifestation of the man of lawlessness, the counterfeit Christ. Many fancy that they would never be deceived by the antichrist but the Bible prophesies that many will be deceived and that many of those believe themselves to be true Christians when they are in fact counterfeit Christians.
For there to be a counterfeit revival presupposes that there will be a counterfeit gospel and counterfeit preachers and counterfeit Christians and a counterfeit Christ; all of which the Bible clearly and unmistakably prophesies. We are told of another Jesus, a different spirit, a different gospel, and false apostles disguising themselves as apostles of Christ (2 Corinthians 11:3-15). This being true, we would be wise to heed the admonition of the Scripture and “contend earnestly for the faith which was once for all handed down to the saints. For certain persons have crept in unnoticed…ungodly persons who turn the grace of our God into licentiousness and deny our only Master and Lord, Jesus Christ” (Jude 3-4). “Beloved, do not believe every spirit, but test the spirits to see whether they are from God, because many false prophets have gone out into the world” (1 John 4:1).
The Bible’s prophecy of the coming counterfeit revival is so strong that we read these words: “For false Christs and false prophets will arise and will show great signs and wonders, so as to mislead, if possible, even the elect. Behold, I have told you in advance” (Matthew 24:24-25). “Then that lawless one will be revealed whom the Lord will slay with the breath of His mouth and bring to an end by the appearance of His coming; that is, the one whose coming is in accord with the activity of Satan, with all power and signs and false wonders, and with all the deception of wickedness for those who perish, because they did not receive the love of the truth so as to be saved. For this reason God will send upon them a deluding influence so that they will believe what is false, in order that they all may be judged who did not believe the truth, but took pleasure in wickedness” (2 Thessalonians 2:8-12). This is the apostasy; this is the coming counterfeit revival that is prophesied.
2.The Coming Counterfeit Revival is Classified
Matthew 13:24-30; 36-43
The coming counterfeit revival is not only prophesied, it is also classified. In the Parable of the Wheat and the Tares, the elements of the counterfeit revival are classified. These elements are there but they are not understood by all because of their classification. Jesus said, “To you (you who have received the truth) it has been granted to know the mysteries of the kingdom of heaven, but to them (those who have rejected the truth) it has not been granted. For whoever has, to him more shall be given, and he will have an abundance; but whoever does not have, even what he has shall be taken away from him. Therefore I speak to them in parables; because while seeing they do not see, and while hearing they do not hear, nor do they understand” (Matthew 13:11-13). These truths are classified for the purpose of judgment.
First we notice that there is a contrast between two sowers and two seeds. One sower sows good seed. This is the Son of Man and the good seed are the sons of the kingdom. The Son of Man sows the true gospel, good seed, and it produces true Christians, sons of the kingdom. The other sower sows tares (weeds that look like wheat). This is the devil and the weed seeds are the sons of the evil one. The devil sows bad seed, weed seeds, a false and degenerate gospel, and it produces children of the devil – counterfeit Christians. So there we have the problem – a counterfeit gospel and a counterfeit preacher – and its product – counterfeit Christians – children of the evil one who believe that they are children of God. Don’t forget that these truths are classified for the purpose of judgment. Men and women who want nothing to do with the glorious God of the Bible but instead want to believe in a God after their own making will believe in the devil’s alternative and counterfeit and will be judged and condemned.
Next we notice the classification of the procedure of the coming counterfeit revival. “Allow both to grow together until the harvest; and in the time of the harvest I will say to the reapers, ‘First gather up the tares and bind them in bundles to burn them up; but gather the wheat into my barn’” (Matthew 13:30).
This procedure of gathering up the tares and binding them in bundles – first – speaks of the apostasy; the coming counterfeit revival. Before the wheat (sons of the kingdom) is gathered into the barn, the tares (sons of the evil one) are gathered up in bundles. Before the rapture – the gathering of the wheat into the barn – the apostasy must come first – gathering and bundling of the tares.
The coming counterfeit revival is prophesied in God’s Word and the problem – a counterfeit gospel and counterfeit preachers; the product – counterfeit Christians; and the procedure – counterfeit revival – are classified in God’s Word.
3.The Coming Counterfeit Revival is Clarified
The coming counterfeit revival is not only prophesied and classified; it is also clarified in God’s Word. The elements of the counterfeit revival are clarified in God’s Word. The problem – a counterfeit gospel and counterfeit preachers; the product – counterfeit Christians; the procedure – counterfeit revival; and the purpose – the righteous judgment of God are all clearly addressed in the Bible.
First, the problem of the counterfeit revival is clarified all throughout Scripture. The root of the problem is Satan who disguises himself as an angel of light and produces both a counterfeit gospel and counterfeit preachers to preach it.
In producing a counterfeit revival, Satan offers Jesus but he offers another Jesus, not the Jesus of the Bible – “For if one comes and preaches another Jesus whom we have not preached…” (2 Corinthians 11:4). Many are willing to accept the Jesus that Satan offers but are unwilling to accept the Jesus that God offers. Satan offers a Jesus that will be your Savior and allow you to be your own Lord. Satan offers a Jesus that will allow you to be saved and hold on to your love of self, love of money, and love of pleasure. Satan offers a Jesus that exists for your happiness. Satan offers a counterfeit Jesus who appeals to many, many people because they want to keep their sin and still be saved – and Satan’s Jesus will allow you to do just that.
In producing a counterfeit revival, Satan offers a different spirit, not the Holy Spirit of the Bible – “or you receive a different spirit” (2 Corinthians 11:4). The Holy Spirit is the Spirit of Truth so Satan’s counterfeit will seem to be the Spirit of Truth but instead will actually be the spirit of error. “Beloved, do not believe every spirit, but test the spirits to see whether they are from God, because many false prophets have gone out into the world…They are from the world; therefore they speak as from the world, and the world listens to them. We are from God; he who knows God listens to us; he who is not from God does not listen to us. By this we know the spirit of truth and the spirit of error” (1 John 4:1, 5-6). Satan’s counterfeits will use worldly wisdom but not the wisdom of the Word. This spirit quotes verses and preaches Scripture but out of context and with improper interpretation and application – all of which sounds like and appears to be biblical but is actually lies disguised as truth.
In producing a counterfeit revival, Satan offers a different gospel, not the gospel of the Bible – “For if one comes and preaches…a different gospel” (2 Corinthians 11:4). In the coming counterfeit revival a false gospel of philosophical humanism will be embraced as the true gospel. This false gospel which in essence will declare the worth and value of man, will focus on man’s happiness and not his holiness. The fundamentals of the gospel (the death, burial, and resurrection of Jesus) will be used to declare to men and women how special they are instead of declaring how special the Lord is for dying for the ungodly. God’s love will be used to glorify man instead of its glorifying Him and His goodness and greatness. The grace of God will then have been turned into licentiousness. The glory of God in the face of Christ will be veiled to the minds of unbelievers because this false gospel will reveal man’s glory and not the Lord’s glory. Many will not realize that the true gospel is God-centered and not man-centered. Many will not realize that the true gospel reveals God’s glory and thereby reveals and magnifies man’s depravity – “For all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God” (Romans 3:23). Satan’s counterfeit gospel is the wide-gate that leads to destruction.
With a counterfeit Jesus and a counterfeit Holy Spirit and a counterfeit gospel, all Satan needs is counterfeit preachers. In producing a counterfeit revival, Satan offers counterfeit preachers – “For such men are false apostles, deceitful workers, disguising themselves as apostles of Christ. No wonder, for even Satan disguises himself as an angel of light. Therefore it is not surprising if his servants also disguise themselves as servants of righteousness, whose end will be according to their deeds” (2 Corinthians 11:13-15). This is why the Bible is replete with warnings of false prophets and false teachers. In these last days there are more false prophets and false teachers than there are true ones. God said through Amos, “Behold, days are coming, declares the Lord God, when I will send a famine on the land, not a famine for bread or a thirst for water, but rather for hearing the words of the Lord. People will stagger from sea to sea and from the north even to the east; they will go to and fro to seek the word of the Lord, but they will not find it” (Amos 8:11-12). Many false prophets have gone out into the world (1 John 4:1).
There’s the problem of the counterfeit revival – another Jesus, a different spirit, a different gospel, and false prophets and teachers to spread these destructive heresies. But there is also the productof the counterfeit revival – counterfeit Christians. These are the tares among the wheat, the children of the devil among the children of God. The entire book of 1 John; the book that was written so that we may know for sure that we have eternal life; was written as a contrast between the children of God and the children of the devil. The product of the counterfeit revival, counterfeit Christians, are expressly mentioned in 2 Timothy 3:1-5. There they are characterized as lovers of self, lovers of money and lovers of pleasure rather than lovers of God, holding to a form of godliness, although they have denied its power. These are church members of the last days that make ministry difficult. These are people who claim to be saved and converted and yet they are still lovers of self, money, and pleasure rather than lovers of God. These counterfeit Christians have bought into the counterfeit gospel that is man-centered instead of God-centered.
According to 2 Timothy 4:3-4, these counterfeit Christians will not endure sound doctrine; but wanting to have their ears tickled, they will accumulate for themselves teachers in accordance to their own desires, and will turn away (apostasize) their ears from the truth and will turn aside to myths. You can clearly see that in the last days these will control the churches and bring in their men – men who will tickle their ears. Counterfeit Christians are the product of a counterfeit revival which will bring about the apostasy that must come first, before the coming of the Lord.
The Bible not only clarifies the problem and the product of the counterfeit revival, it also clarifies the procedure of the counterfeit revival. The counterfeit revival, the apostasy, must come first, before we are gathered together to the Lord – “Now we request you, brethren, with regard to the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ and our gathering together to Him…Let no one in any way deceive you, for it will not come unless the apostasy comes first, and the man of lawlessness is revealed” (2 Thessalonians 2:1, 3). This is the same truth that Jesus taught in the parable of the tares – “Allow both to grow together until the harvest; and in the time of the harvest I will say to the reapers, ‘First gather up the tares and bind them in bundles to burn them up; but gather the wheat into my barn’” (Matthew 13:30). The procedure of gathering up the tares and binding them into bundles speaks of the apostasy, the counterfeit revival that precedes the Lord’s return and the rapture. How is this procedure accomplished? How are the tares, the counterfeit Christians gathered up and bundled up? The answer is simple: through false prophets and false teachers and ultimately through the false Christ – the Antichrist! This will be the one whose coming is in accord with the activity of Satan, with all power and signs and false wonders, and with all the deception of wickedness for those who perish, because they did not receive the love of the truth so as to be saved (2 Thessalonians 2:9-10). That’s the procedure of the counterfeit revival.
We have seen the problem, the product and the procedure of the counterfeit revival and that brings us to a very important theological question: What is the purpose of the counterfeit revival?
The counterfeit revival is a just and judicial judgment of God on all who will not believe the truth but takes pleasure in wickedness – “For this reason God will send upon them a deluding influence so that they will believe what is false, in order that they all may be judged who did not believe the truth, but took pleasure in wickedness” (2 Thessalonians 2:11-12). This is the same truth expressed by Jesus when He gave His purpose for speaking in parables – “To you (who have received the truth) it has been granted to know the mysteries of the kingdom of heaven, but to them (who have rejected the truth) it has not been granted” (Matthew 13:11).
People who would dare fashion Christ into their own liking and not receive the truth revealed about Him in the Scriptures are sure to fall for Satan’s counterfeit and be judged by God. And rightly so – they have rejected God’s truth about Jesus and themselves and have in essence called God a liar. By examining the coming counterfeit revival we actually get to glimpse the wisdom and glory of God who is not mocked. There is coming a great divide between the true church and the counterfeit church and it will happen when the counterfeit revival gathers up and bundles up the counterfeit Christians – and millions will think it is a real revival! And then – the rapture! God will have used the devil to clean up His church and Jesus will come and get His bride in all her glory, having no spot or wrinkle or any such thing; and she will be holy and blameless (Ephesians 5:27). What a mighty God we serve!
Have you understood and received the love of the truth that Jesus the sinless died for you the sinner in order that he might sanctify you and that you might love Him as your supreme treasure? The gospel tells us how worthy He is and how unworthy we are – and yet He died for us while we were yet sinners! Has that truth revealed to you His glory and broken your heart over your wretchedness to the point that you are willing to see yourself as dead with Christ on the cross and buried with Christ in the tomb so that you can be raised up to walk in newness of life under His Lordship – with Him taking control of you and living His life through you to the glory of God? Can you honestly say, “I have been crucified with Christ and it is no longer I who live but Christ who lives in me; and the life which I now live in the flesh I live by faith in the Son of God, who loved me and gave Himself up for me” (Galatians 2:20)? Receive the Jesus of the Bible and love Him – not the one that Satan offers and is after your own making and liking. Therefore take heed that the thing spoken of in the Bible will not come upon you!
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