Who is doing the impersonating?
Who is doing the impersonating? And who is being impersonated? For
the answers we turn to the Word of God. And there may be some
surprises in store! Says the apostle Paul,
"Satan himself is transformed into an angel
of light" 2 Corinthians 11:14.
Listen. Satan is the great impersonator, the master impersonator.
You may have thought he was a horrible-looking creature with horns
and a tail and a pitchfork. But how many people would he deceive
looking like that? He can do much better changed into an angel of
light. He once was an angel, you know. He still is. A fallen angel.
A rebel angel. A deceiver. but he hasn't lost his brilliant
intellect. And he hasn't lost his supernatural power!
Brotherhood of impersonators
Who else is active in the impersonation game? The verse just before
the one we have read says,
"For such are false apostles, deceitful workers, transforming
themselves into the apostles of Christ" 2 Corinthians 11:13.
So we can expect to meet up with people claiming to be apostles when
they are not.
And remember what Jesus said about these last days:
"And many false prophets shall arise, and shall deceive many"
Matthew 24:11.
The impersonation team is headed, then, by Satan, who can disguise
himself at will. And men under his control will masquerade as
apostles and as prophets.
But that's only the beginning. Satan is not limited to the use of
people as his helpers. Remember that when Satan was cast out of
heaven, his angels
the angels that joined him in rebellion
were
cast out with him. We read:
"And there was war in heaven. Michael
and his angels fought against the dragon, and the dragon and his
angels fought back. But he was not strong enough, and they lost
their place in heaven. The great dragon was hurled down that
ancient serpent called the devil or Satan, who leads the whole world
astray. He was hurled to the earth, and his angels with him"
Revelation 12:7-9, NIV.
Verse three suggests that a third of the angels of heaven rebelled.
So Satan has an uncounted host of helpers. All the fallen angels.
Angels turned demons. But still with their brilliant minds. And
listen here's the key every one of them still with
supernatural power!
Demons can work miracles
It may never have occurred to you that devils demons evil
spirits can work miracles. But they can. Listen to this:
"For they are the spirits of devils, working miracles" Revelation
16:14.
Working miracles. Not magic. Not silly little tricks that wouldn't
deceive anybody. Miracles!
The book of Revelation speaks of a power that will work under the
direction of Satan in these last days. And it says of that power,
"It worked great miracles, even making fire come down from heaven to
earth before men's eyes. By the miracles it was allowed to perform.
. .it deluded the inhabitants of the earth" Revelation 13:13,14 NEB.
Who was deluded? Just a few? No. The inhabitants of the earth.
Almost everybody!
So Satan can work miracles. His helpers in the spirit world can work
miracles. And he can give men the power to work miracles whenever he
chooses!
One more scripture:
"Even him, whose coming is after the working of Satan with all power
and signs and lying wonders." 2 Thessalonians 2:9.
Lying wonders! Miracles that lie! Falsehood backed up by the
supernatural!
Do you see what is happening? Do you see what we're up against?
When we cannot trust our senses

Evidently we will soon reach a time, if we aren't in it already,
when we cannot trust our senses. A time when we cannot believe what
our eyes and our ears tell us. A time when miracles will lie. A
time when we need some more reliable yardstick than our own
judgment. A time when the counterfeit will so closely resemble the
genuine that it will be impossible to distinguish just where error
diverges from truth except by the Written Word of God.
How effective will this program of deception, this bombardment of
the supernatural, this flood of miracles that lie how effective
will it all be? How many will fall for it? Jesus told us. He said,
"For there shall arise false Christs, and false prophets, and shall
show great signs and wonders; insomuch that, if it were possible,
they shall deceive the very elect." Matthew 24:24.
Almost deceive God's own people. And why aren't they deceived?
Because
of their knowledge of
the Scriptures. Because the
Scriptures tell them how to spot a counterfeit. They haven't any
special immunity. If they didn't go to the trouble to read the
Bible, they would be just as gullible as the rest. But the
information in the Bible is free to all. Anybody can read it who
will!
Who is being impersonated?
We have found out, then, who is doing the impersonating. But who is
being impersonated? Prophets are. Apostles of Christ are. Who
else? Whom do all these fallen angels in the spirit world
impersonate?
Here's a sample. A friend of mine over in Scotland was making some
Christian calls one day. But at one door she was greeted with cold
and almost icy reserve. The lady wanted nothing to do with religion.
But after a few moments she warmed up and told her visitor why.
It seems that during the war she had received word from the
government that her husband was missing in action. Many months went
by with no word, and she concluded that he surely must be dead. Her
friends suggested that she might find comfort by visiting a sιance
and trying to make contact with him.
This she did. She recognized the voice of her husband. They talked
over many personal things. Other visits followed. But one day her
husband, alive and well, walked through the front door of their
home. He had never been dead, or even seriously wounded!
It had all been a hoax. A lying spirit, taking advantage of her
loneliness, had impersonated her husband. No wonder she was bitter!
Is this sort of thing rare? No. It is very, very common. It
happens every day. Evil spirits are constantly impersonating those
who have died and sometimes those who haven't died. And believe
me, they are experts. With their thousands of years of experience
it is no trick for them to imitate a voice convincingly. And with
their supernatural power it is not difficult at all to create an
apparition that strikingly resembles the face of a loved one who has
died. And materializing ash trays and book ends and trumpets with
which to dupe people into believing their lies this is all in a
day's work.
Why are millions fooled?
But what is it that fools millions? What is it that really
convinces the mediums and those who visit them that they are talking
with people who have died? It's the nature of the information
the spirits offer. They demonstrate a familiarity with family
and friends. They seem to know all the family secrets. They know
where Uncle Henry hid his will, and where Aunt Sue lost her ring,
and how your grandmother did her hair. They can easily tell you
where you've been, and where you're planning to go. They know
things that nobody else would know. And that's what people consider
solid proof. That's how people are fooled. That's how people are
duped!
If the information checks out. That seems to be the only criterion
of genuineness. No other test is applied. If the information
checks out, even some of it, then it must be genuine. There is no
thought of checking these spirit messages by some dependable
standard such as the Bible. To thousands of sincere minds the
thought has never occurred that something can be supernatural and
still not be from God. It has never occurred to them that a
miracle can be a fraud. Countless messages from the spirit world
are accepted simply because "no one else would know that."
Millions are deceived because they don't know what is going on.
They haven't bothered to find out. They wouldn't have to read the
psychic literature to be informed. In fact, that's the place to
find misinformation. If they would only read their Bibles, they
would know that we are surrounded in the invisible world by a host
of fallen angels whose one goal is to trick us and trap us, deceive
us and destroy us. These evil angels are watching us all the time.
They were watching our grandparents all the time. How could they
help but know the family secrets?

What Satan's propaganda is based on
Do you see what is going on? It's all a part of Satan's master plan
to sweep the world into his control. His propaganda machine was set
in motion the day he said to Eve, "Did God say you would die? Well,
you won't." That's where it all started. And that propaganda line
worked so well that he has never abandoned it. Today millions upon
millions believe it. Spiritism is founded upon it. It's the basis
of nearly all psychic phenomena. And at the bottom of it all is the
line first peddled in Eden the idea that men don't really die when
they die.
But why is Satan so interested in distorting the facts about death?
Why hasn't he chosen some other strategy, something else to lie
about? Think it through. Watch how smoothly it works for him. You
see, if you can be led to believe that men are immortal, that they
don't really die when they die, then you can easily be sold the idea
that the dead can communicate with us. And if you believe in
communication with the dead, the fallen angel has a direct line to
your soul. Because all he has to do is impersonate some loved one
who has died and get you to do anything he wants you to do!
Is the world being conditioned?
And now consider this possibility. If evil spirits can impersonate
dead people, why couldn't they just as easily impersonate people
from other planets? Little green men repairing UFOs? Or
blue-suited men kidnapping people in the night and taking them
aboard their strange ships?
Is it possible that we are being conditioned for a monstrous
deception that will sweep the world? One tailored to the mood of
this space-minded generation? Surely this subtle but powerful
softening of the minds of men is not without purpose. Where is it
all leading?
In May 1967 a man named Knud Weiking, in Denmark, began receiving
some telepathic flashes, including a number of predictions that came
true. He was then instructed to build a lead-lined bomb shelter and
prepare for a real holocaust on December 24, 1967. The bomb shelter
was built.
In the meantime, mediums and psychics and UFO contactees throughout
the world were all receiving identical messages. These messages
were all phrased in the same way, no matter in what language. All
carried the same warning. There would definitely be an unprecedented
event on December 24. The stage was all set for doomsday.
Christmas Eve would be it!
The Danish cult locked themselves in their bomb shelter that night
and waited for the end of the world. But nothing happened. The
next day the American press ridiculed the frightened Danes.
It seems that Mr. Weiking, however, had received a message that
explained it all. The message said: "I told you two thousand years
ago that a time would be given and even so I would not come. If you
had read your Bible a little more carefully, you would have borne in
mind the story of the bridegroom who did not come at the time he was
expected. Be watchful so that you are not found without oil in your
lamps. I have told you I will come with suddenness, and I shall be
coming soon!"

So this is it. This is where it is all leading. And why not? The
enemy of God has impersonated lesser personalities dead people,
space people, and all the rest. Why not go for the big one? Why not
impersonate Christ Himself? The Christian world is looking for the
second coming of Jesus Christ to this earth. It's being talked
about more than ever before. Why not engineer a second coming of
his own, with all the celestial trappings available to him and
have the whole world at his feet? That's what the enemy of God has
been after all along. He wants one thing above all else worship.
And he's determined to get it!
Yes, the members of the Danish cult locked themselves in their bomb
shelter and waited. But nothing happened. Evidently it was just a
dry run! Just a rehearsal! But with a worldwide network of
sensitives participating!
Hints of a worldwide extravaganza
Again and again in the predictions of the psychics there are
telltale indications of where the psychic procession is heading
hints of what Satan is up to. Unquestionably he is planning some
sort of end-of-the-world extravaganza in which he will play the
leading role.
In one instance it was predicted that North America would split in
two. The Atlantic coast would split into the sea. England and
France and Russia would suffer a similar fate. But a few people
would be rescued by spaceships.
Spaceships keep turning up in these predictions. UFOs seem to be
involved. Spaceships and Christ!
Is it too difficult to see what the enemy has in mind? And listen.
Satan may let some follower stand in for him in these rehearsals,
these dry runs. But you can be sure that when he's ready for his
all-out, worldwide hoax, he'll be in the starring position himself.
That's what it's all about!
Jesus plainly warned us that He would be impersonated in the last
days. He said,
"At that time if anyone says to you, 'Look, here is
the Christ!'
or,
'There he is!'
do not believe it. For false Christs and false prophets will appear and perform great signs and
miracles to deceive even the elect if that were possible. See, I
have told you ahead of time. So if anyone tells you, 'There he is,
out in the desert,' do not go out; or, 'Here he is, in the inner
rooms,' do not believe it." Matthew 24:23-26, NIV
Don't believe it! Don't go out! Don't bother to go and look!
That's the counsel of the Word of God. And that's the only safe
counsel!
Evidently this is no crude or clumsy delusion. This is no trick.
This is something big. Something big enough to deceive almost
everybody. Everybody who doesn't read the Scriptures to see how
the real Christ will come. Because it's right there in the
Bible, available to us all. If we don't bother to read it, then
it's our own fault if we are fooled!
Who will be safe?
According to the Written Word of God, when the real Christ descends
the blazing skies, the event will be visible from east to west, as
visible as the lightning. According to the Scriptures, every eye in
the world will be watching as he comes close to the earth, calls the
dead to life, and catches His people up to meet Him without His
feet ever touching the earth. It won't be an isolated event.
Everybody will know what 's happening!
Satan, before that day, will pull off his spectacular deception, his
counterfeit second coming. But if we know the Scriptures, we don't
need to be deceived. Because God will permit Satan to go a long way
with his tricks and his games.
But he will never permit him to duplicate the way in which
the Son of God returns to this earth!
I have no information whatsoever as to just how the enemy will try
to pull off his second-coming stunt. I do not know that a spaceship
of any kind will be involved in this final hoax. But if not, then
why all the buildup? Why the decades, and even centuries, of
orientation to the idea of ships from out there? Why the ready
network of sensitives and contactees with their part already
rehearsed? It seems incredible to me that all this, so prominent in
the preparation, should be left out when the show runs for real!
The world today is a pushover for a space-related deception. And
it's a pushover for the appearance of a counterfeit Christ for
anyone that seems able to solve the worlds problems that are
getting out of hand. There would be no trouble getting a following.
The cults, ready to believe anything that smacks of the
supernatural, are already in the bag. And those who have scoffed at
the prophets and the saucers and the ghosts are just as easily
snared. Because their scoffing has left them unprepared for
anything supernatural. They find out too late that devils can work
miracles after all!
Who then is safe? Not very many. Only those who have read the
Scriptures and learned to trust the Scriptures more than their
eyes and their ears!
One discerning writer, many years ago, described the day of the
final hoax.
Listen:
"As the crowning act in the great drama of deception, Satan himself
will impersonate Christ. . . . Now the great deceiver will make it
appear that Christ has come. In different parts of the earth, Satan
will manifest himself among men as a majestic being of dazzling
brightness, resembling the description of the Son of God given by
John in the Revelation. The glory that surrounds him is unsurpassed
by anything that mortal eyes have yet beheld. The shout of triumph
rings out upon the air, 'Christ has come! Christ has come!' the
people prostrate themselves in adoration before him, while he lifts
up his hands and pronounces a blessing upon them, as Christ blessed
His disciples when He was upon the earth. His voice is soft and
subdued, yet full of melody. In gentle, compassionate tones he
presents some of the same gracious, heavenly truths which the
Saviour uttered; he heals the diseases of the people, and then, in
his assumed character of Christ, he claims to have changed the [law
of God]. . . .This is the strong, almost overmastering delusion."
There he stands, this being of dazzling brightness. If you ask your
eyes, who is it? Jesus. If you ask your ears, who is it? Jesus.
If you ask your feelings, who is it? Jesus.
And so almost all will bow down before a master impersonator,
victims of the final hoax. God forbid that you or I should be among
them!
Friends, I commend to you the Word of God. Read it. Read it for
your lives!
___________________
ABOUT THE AUTHOR: George Vandeman,
founder and director of the It Is Written telecast, is the
author of numerous books and articles including The
Impersonation Game from which this article is taken. His It
Is Written ministry extended 35 years beginning in 1956 until
his death in 2000. His refreshing style of speaking and writing, his
deep regard for the Bible, his kindness and conviction of
personality, and his empathy and rapport with the reading and
viewing audience are characteristics by which he was known.
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