Of all things to know, the most important thing is to know God. But you must know him in truth. All other knowledge will fail you. Jesus said to the Pharisees, “If the light that is in you is darkness, how great is that darkness?” If you think you see and believe you are in the light, you do not come to the light. And if you think you already know the truth when you do not, you do not seek knowledge of the truth.

There is a dearth of truth in both the religious and secular worlds. The dearth is not merely the absence of knowledge but the abundance of fallacies that corrupt knowledge.

As ever-increasing advancements provide humanity with new information, a growing void of God leaves mankind in a state of ever learning but never able to come to the truth.

With its endless broken mosaic pieces that have never been fully assembled, science, so-called, is being elevated to the status of a paramount religion. Nonetheless, without the knowledge of the one who created all things by His perfect wisdom, knowledge, and understanding, the finite pieces of knowledge we possess cannot be arranged correctly; many falsehoods are presented as fact.

Contrived “science”—put together with the untempered mortar of innumerable theories—is intentionally used to lead people away from God. Fanciful mosaics with missing and imaginary pieces are arranged into deceitful illusions to put humanity into bondage.

More damning than the manufactured falsehoods of science is what has taken place in religion. Although mankind has an uninterrupted history of creating and worshiping idols, no idol has ever led more people astray than the contrived images of Jesus Christ. Christ, imagined wrongly and worshiped sincerely, is harmful.

God created man in his own image and likeness. Man, in turn, contrives a concept of God and creates it in his own image, to his liking, and after his own heart. Forged in the imagination within the foundries of a darkened heart, preached in the pulpits, and spread abroad throughout the world, contrived versions of the gospel become “lights” that are the blackest of all darkness. They are antichrists.

The true Jesus Christ, the Son of God, is revealed by the Spirit through his word. He is the Word of God. He is not like the images conceived by men.

Many who only preach a Christ of love set aside how offensively Christ confronted the enemies of God. Jesus stood up and rebuked the self-righteous and wicked men. He did not shy from offending many who followed him, either. John 6:66 says many of his disciples were offended by his sayings and turned away from him, never to return to him.

Jesus is offensive to those who are offended by the truth and resist it. Many false depictions of Christ are contrived to grow and retain followers. The offense of the cross and the call to holiness are removed, and the process of sanctification is turned into a perpetual state of toleration—but without holiness no man shall see the Lord. (Hebrews 12:14).

Fearing man more than God and the prospect of losing followers, pretentious leaders seek to avoid social discomfort and persecution. Loving the praises of men above God, modern trends are embraced to find acceptance in the current culture of sin.

Seeking personal enrichment, they peddle a marketable “Jesus” for worldly gain and increase profits by comforting those who crave security, providing them with assurances of a false hope.

Beware of wolves who come as shepherds. Any rendition of Jesus Christ in any form outside of scripture—no matter how benevolent, whether it is visual, audio, spoken, or written—corrupts the divinity of God and creates a false image of Christ. No man is able or worthy to create an accurate rendition worthy of God.

Unless a portrayal of Jesus Christ is absolutely perfect in every single aspect—every word, every deed, every inflection, every way, and in every degree—a false image of Christ is created that belittles him. It is an impossible task for any man to portray God, for who knows the mind of the Lord?

Jesus said, “The wind bloweth where it listeth, and thou hearest the sound thereof, but canst not tell whence it cometh and whither it goeth; so is every one that is born of the Spirit.” How much more is the mind of the Lord only known by the Holy Spirit?

A false impression of Jesus redirects hearts from him to an image of him, robbing both Christ and the believer of a true relationship that belongs solely to him—regardless of how inspiring it is or if it brings multitudes of people to tears.

Biblical scriptures misapplied to create erroneous renditions of the Lord only serve to make illusions more deceptive. Sincere or not, any man-made conception of Christ can only diverge from the true to a false depiction of Jesus that deceives those who lack knowledge.

God made man after his likeness and in his image. Beware, whenever man makes an image of God, it will be like man.

The world hates God. That is why Jesus was nailed to the cross. It is why false images of Jesus Christ are created to replace him. Jesus preached the truth; it is the truth that sets us free. Many are offended by the truth. Jesus said, “Blessed is he whosoever shall not be offended in me.”

“And we know that the Son of God is come, and hath given us an understanding, that we may know him that is true, and we are in him that is true, even in his Son, Jesus Christ. This is the true God, and eternal life. Little children, keep yourselves from idols. Amen.” (1 John 5:20-21)