I’ve been thinking lately of how satan is not a Creator like God, but he is rather an imitator. And the practices he plants in the minds and heart of man is that of imitation or a substitution.

• When Cain and Able brought their offerings to the LORD, Able brought the required animal sacrifice but Cain brought a substitute of his farming goods. But it was a substitute and not pleasing to the LORD (Gen 4).
  
• God said that his holy temple could only be in Jerusalem. But when there was a civil conflict and the nation of Israel split into two, the northern kingdom of Israel built a new capitol in Samaria. Not only that but it had a replica of the feasts, festivals, offerings, and sacrifices but they were to the gods and not the One True God. Their worship was a substitute, their temple was a substitute, the location was a substitute and more. It was considered an abomination by God.

And here and now we have substitutes happening everywhere. They’re exploding.

• Instead of a man and a woman in marriage, there is the substitute of a “marriage” between the same genders. And if you notice a same gender couple, you will see that one takes on the role of the “husband” and another takes on the role of the “wife.” It is always a substitute.
  
• And with the recent craziness, men and women think they can substitute for each other, becoming what they are not by having “therapy” and transition. Yet there are 6000 factors of biology that determine gender. You cannot create a substitute and think you are pleasing to God.

There are even substitutes in worship services and substitutions in relationships and substitutions in how we come before God. They are imitations of the real thing, but they are not the real thing. Don’t buy into this.

Substitution and imitation have never been acceptable before God. We can’t have God on our own terms. There’s no such as imitation truth.