Beware: It's Easy to Fake Christianity by Francis Frangipane

Beware: It Is Easy to Fake Christianity Our experience of Christianity must go beyond just being another interpretation of the Bible; it must expand until our faith in Jesus and our love for Him become a lightning rod for His presence. The Power in Holiness "This know also, that in the last days perilous times shall come. For men shall be . . . having a form of godliness, but denying the power thereof" (2 Tim. 3:1-5 KJV). Holiness is powerful. Have you ever met a truly holy man or woman?There is a power in their godliness. If, however, one has never known a Christlike soul, it becomes very easy to fake Christianity.  Remember this always: being false is natural to the human heart; it is with much effort that we become true. Unless we are reaching for spiritual maturity, our immaturity shapes our perceptions of God. We point to the Almighty and say, "He stopped requiring godliness," when in reality, we have compromised the standards of His kingdom. Know for certain that the moment we stop obeying God, we start faking Christianity. We must understand that the "knowledge of the Lord" is not a ten-week course to be passed; it is an unfolding experience with Jesus Christ. It starts with rebirth and faith in Jesus, but it continues on into Christ's own holiness, power and perfection. And as we mature, we begin to realize that the Spirit of Christ is actually within us. The cross emerges off the printed page; it stands upright before us, confronting us with our own Gethsemanes, our own Golgothas -- but also our own resurrections through which we ascend spiritually into the true presence of the Lord. With Paul we say, "I have been crucified with Christ; and it is no longer I who live, but Christ 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 delivered Himself up for me" (Gal. 2:20). Do not let yourself be misled! Place upon your theology the demand that it work -- your eternal salvation depends upon it! If Christ is within us, we should be living holy, powerful lives. No excuses. If we are not holy or if there is not the power of godliness in our lives, let us not blame God. As it is written, "Let God be found true, though every man be found a liar" (Rom. 3:4). Let us persevere in seeking God until we find Him, until we discover "what [are we] still lacking" (Matt. 19:20). Let us press on until we "lay hold of that for which also [we were] laid hold of by Christ Jesus" (Phil. 3:12). How long should we continue to seek Him? If we spent all our lives and all our energies for three minutes of genuine Christlikeness, we would have spent our lives well. We will say like Simeon of old, "Now Lord, You are releasing Your bond-servant to depart in peace, according to Your word; for my eyes have seen Your salvation" (Luke 2:29-30). We do not want to just give mental assent to Christian doctrine; we want to see, have contact with, and live in the experienced reality of Christ's actual presence. The moment we settle for anything less, our Christianity starts becoming false.