What Does The Bible Say About Pretenders
Pretenders are trying to put on a show and deceive others. The Bible talks about pretenders in several places: Jesus said that pretenders would be cast into outer darkness, the Apostle Paul warned Timothy against men who “pretend to be apostles of Christ” but were false teachers and wolves in sheep’s clothing. In this post we will look at what these verses say about pretenders and hypocrites, so that when you encounter them in your life or someone else’s life, you can help them see their hypocrisy for what it really is—sin!
6 Bible Verses about Pretenders
6 Bible Verses about Pretenders
1 John 2:22 – “Who is the liar? It is the man who denies that Jesus is the Christ. Such a man is antichrist—he denies the Father and the Son.”
Matthew 6:1 – “Take care not to practice your righteousness in front of others to be seen by them. If you do, you will have no reward from your Father in heaven.”
I Timothy 5:8 – “Anyone who does wrong will be repaid for his wickedness, and there is no favoritism.”
Matthew 7:15-16 – “Watch out for false prophets. They come to you in sheep’s clothing, but inwardly they are ferocious wolves. By their fruit you will recognize them.” Luke 18:9-12 – “He also told this parable to some people who trusted in themselves that they were righteous and regarded others with contempt…The Pharisees, who loved money, heard all this and were sneering at Jesus… But he said, ‘You are those who justify yourselves before men,’ but God knows your hearts; for what is highly esteemed among men is detestable in God’s sight.’ Matthew 23:27-28 – “‘Woe to you scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! You build tombs for the prophets’ and decorate the graves of holy people.'”
[I John 2:22]
In I John 2:22, John writes, “whoever denies that Jesus is the Christ is a liar and whoever confesses that Jesus is the Christ is a godly man.” This verse seems pretty clear. If you deny that Jesus was who He claimed to be then you’re lying because truth has been revealed to you. But if you confess what God has revealed about Jesus then He gives us His Spirit which indwells us and leads us into all truth (John 14:16-17).
[Matthew 6:1]
In this passage, Jesus is telling us not to be pretenders. He’s saying that we are not who others want us to be and he doesn’t want us to pretend that we are. We’re all human and flawed, and we shouldn’t try to act like something or someone that we aren’t. If you have a talent for writing or art, don’t be afraid of showing it off because it’s good and God made you that way! He wants us all to use our talents wisely in order to glorify him with them (1 Corinthians 10:31).
[I Timothy 5:8]
[I Timothy 5:8]
“But if anyone does not provide for his relatives, and especially for members of his household, he has denied the faith and is worse than an unbeliever.”
A dog returning to his vomit is a picture of a pretender. A person who claims to know God but does not obey His Word is a pretender. In other words, one who is like a dog that has returned to its vomit after washing itself shows that they have no real conversion experience; they only pretend to have been born again by water baptism or some other ritualistic ceremony.
[Matthew 7:15]
“Nearly everyone is a pretender. You cannot deceive God and you cannot hide from Him. There are only two ways that you can get to heaven: either by the new birth or by works. If we are not born again by faith in Christ’s blood shed for us on the cross, then we must be saved by our own good works. In other words, if we are not saved by faith in Jesus Christ as Lord and Savior, then we must be saved by something else—good works or religion (Eph 2:8-9).
It’s not hard to figure out what kind of person deceives themselves into thinking they don’t need any help from God to get into heaven because they have enough good deeds accumulated through their life time (Mt 7:15; Lk 8:14). These self-righteous people pridefully think that they have enough merit with God because of their own efforts alone (2 Cor 5:10; Eph 2:9), while being blind to their own sinfulness which condemns them before God (Ro 3:23).”
[Luke 18:9-12]
When you read this passage, you’ll notice that Jesus begins by telling a story. He tells the story of two men who went to see him. One of them was a leader of the Pharisees and the other was a tax collector. The Pharisee was proud and thought he was more righteous than others; but the tax collector knew that he needed God’s forgiveness for his sins, so he humbly asked for it.
What does this mean for us today? It means that we should be humble when we come to God and ask Him to forgive our sins. We shouldn’t think that we are better than other people because we can pray or go to church every week; instead, we need to realize that everyone sins and only through His grace can anyone be forgiven (Romans 3:23).
[Matthew 23:27-28]
[Matthew 23:27-28]
“Woe to you, teachers of the law and Pharisees, you hypocrites! You are like whitewashed tombs, which look beautiful on the outside but on the inside are full of dead men’s bones and everything unclean. In the same way, on the outside you appear to people as righteous but on the inside you are full of hypocrisy and wickedness.”
What does this verse mean? It is not enough for us to look good; we have to be good. We must also have righteousness within our hearts toward God and others if we want them to recognize us as his children when they see us in church or elsewhere in their communities—not just because we go there every Sunday (or Saturday or Wednesday), but because they can tell by our words and actions that we really do love God with all our heart—and those around us with true compassion
Bible Verses About Pretenders, What Does The Bible Say About Pretenders, What Does The Bible Say About Hypocrites, What Does The Bible Say About Pretending To Be Something Get help from these verses.
What is a pretender?
A person who pretends to be something or someone they are not.
What is the difference between a hypocrite and a pretender?
A hypocrite is one who acts in contradiction to their own professed beliefs, especially in religious matters. A hypocrite may also be said to be someone who puts forth false appearances for their own advantage, such as an actor on stage or in film; but this use of the term does not necessarily imply that there are any real feelings behind the act. In contrast, while there are certainly hypocrites among all kinds of people (including Christians), pretending to have qualities one does not possess can take place even before anyone else knows about it—and even if no one ever finds out! For example: “I did my best,” you might say when asked why you didn’t finish your homework last night; but if your teacher knows better than this statement reflects reality then he/she will probably still give lower grades due to lack of effort put forth by students.”
The Bible contains many verses that address the issue of pretenders. These verses can help us spot them, as well as protect ourselves from falling into the trap of being one ourselves. The good news is that there are also many other passages that speak about how we can grow out of this cycle by focusing on who God says we are and not what others think about us (Philippians 2:1-11). So next time someone tells you they know what God thinks—or if someone tries to tell you!—remember these words from Jesus: “Those who hear my words and obey them are like a wise man who built his house on rock” (Matthew 7:24-27).