Did you know that Jesus Christ warned about false Christianity? He said there would be people who claim to follow Him and speak for Him but would deceive and be deceived.

Jesus Christ was a prophet. In Matthew 24, His disciples asked Him about the end of the world and the sign of His coming. He gave dramatic warnings of earthshaking wars, famines, pestilences and earthquakes. But what was the first thing He warned about?

Mass religious deception and counterfeit Christianity!

“… Take heed that no man deceive you. For many shall come in my name, saying, I am Christ; and shall deceive many” (verses 4-5). Christ said many would be deceived by people who said they were Christian.

Does something feel off with those who are supposedly championing Christianity in politics and society? Are you wondering why there are so many different and conflicting churches in the first place? Are you quietly wondering about the pastor on television, your own minister, your own church?

Listen to those thoughts. God might be trying to get your attention.

Through the Bible, God invites you to test Him. He tells you to test your minister—and to test the teachings of your church.

“Beloved, believe not every spirit, but try the spirits whether they are of God: because many false prophets are gone out into the world” (1 John 4:1). Have you put your minister or church to the test? A true minister of God will welcome your questions and answer them from the Bible!

“Prove all things; hold fast that which is good” (1 Thessalonians 5:21). How is it possible for you to do that? By proving teachings that are labeled as Christian against the Word of God: your own Bible!

As Acts 17:11 exhorts, by “search[ing] the scriptures daily, whether those things were so.”

Start by asking two basic questions.

1) Does my minister really teach what Christ and the apostles taught?

Almost all Christian ministers use certain Bible passages in their preaching. But they promote doctrines and practices that come not from Scripture but from human philosophy, popular traditions and even ancient pagan practices, many of which directly contradict the plain teaching of the Bible.

For example, did you know that two of the annual days most Christians keep are not taught in the Bible? Christmas and Easter both originated in paganism. So why do “Christian” churches celebrate them? The Bible clearly teaches true Christians to keep certain weekly and annual days holy, yet few Christians observe those, choosing instead to celebrate man-made holidays.

The Bible teaches the seventh-day Sabbath. You will not find a biblical command to worship on Sunday. Jesus clearly kept the Sabbath, and so did His followers after He died. So why doesn’t your church keep the Sabbath?

Most Christian churches teach that you have an immortal soul. But the Bible explicitly says the “soul” can die (Ezekiel 18:20). The Bible says the wages of sin is death, and eternal life is a gift God must give us (Romans 6:23). Why would that be, if we already have an immortal soul?

The Bible teaches that evil people die; they don’t live forever in everlasting hellfire. The Bible doesn’t say the righteous are in heaven with God—it actually says “no man hath ascended up to heaven” (John 3:13). So why do so many preachers teach about an afterlife in heaven and hell?

Most Christian churches teach that God’s law was done away by Jesus Christ being nailed to the cross. But Christ specifically said in Matthew 5:17-18, “Think not that I am come to destroy the law, or the prophets: I am not come to destroy, but to fulfil. For verily I say unto you, Till heaven and earth pass, one jot or one tittle shall in no wise pass from the law, till all be fulfilled.” After Christ died, His disciples kept and taught God’s spiritual law. God’s law is “holy, and just, and good” (Romans 7:12). Does your church teach God’s law that way?

2) Does my minister preach repentance toward God?

The first command Jesus gave when He began His ministry on Earth was repent. The Bible clearly shows that repentance is the first step toward becoming a true Christian. You might hear this word, but are you being taught what the Bible teaches about truly repenting?

Jesus taught and the whole Bible teaches that repentance is not merely confessing sins, partaking of sacraments, or “accepting Jesus.” Repentance means turning to the way of God, and the way of God is defined by His law! It is a radical change of mind and heart that produces real change in attitude and behavior.

Does your minister help you confront and overcome your wicked heart?

Have you really repented? Are you a true Christian?

You must prove what you believe. Prove that God exists. Prove that the Bible is His Word. Then ask God to teach you from the Bible, to avoid the many who come in Christ’s name but don’t teach what He taught. Ask Him to show you the one true Church that Jesus promised would never die. Ask Him to lead you to true repentance and obedience to Him.

Prayerfully ask Him to help you live by the Bible.