Well, if overseas news reports are to be believed, Jesus Christ has returned to earth—in the form of one Jose Luis de Jesus Miranda.

This self-proclaimed messiah is a 60 year-old former heroin addict and convict, a divorced father of four from Porto Rico who now lives in South Florida with his second wife. After an epiphany in 1973, de Jesus Miranda says the resurrected Christ entered into him. His church is called ‘Creciendo en Gracia’, or Growing in Grace Ministry, which de Jesus Miranda calls ‘God’s government on earth’. The church’s website claims de Jesus Miranda has 350 centres in more than 30 countries, an entourage of 300 ministers and a following of millions. There’s even a congregation of his followers now meeting in Sydney.

‘The king of kings and lord of lords has arrived in America!’ states the website. ‘The nations are shaking as the man Christ Jesus is leading the biggest reform the world has ever seen.’ Through his TV and radio programs de Jesus Miranda shares an attractive message: there is no sin, no devil and no hell to pay, and so his followers are ‘free to indulge’. ‘God doesn’t see you as a sinner,’ de Jesus Miranda says. ‘For me, you are a perfect spirit.’ And his vision is grand. ‘I will be president of the biggest government that this earth has experienced,’ he promised in a CBS television interview. Since every other religion apart from his is to be destroyed, that probably comes as no surprise.

Mmm, why do images of Jim Jones and David Koresh flash to mind? What’s concerning is not that this man claims to be Jesus—his life and teachings are too far wide of Jesus Christ to even contemplate the possibility. No, what’s most concerning are the thousands flocking to him, carrying banners in Miami streets and shouting ‘the Son of Man is back!’ Hypnotic, autocratic leaders like these lead movements that inevitably implode—with much spiritual, emotional, psychological and even physical wreckage as the result.

‘Watch out that no one deceives you,’ the real Jesus said all those years ago. ‘For many will come in my name, claiming, 'I am the Christ’’ (see Matthew 4: 4-27). Another verse worth quoting here is Proverbs 29: ‘Where there is no vision, the people perish…’. This isn’t talking about some entrepreneurial vision, but a revelation of God himself—his nature and character. Without a vision of the one true God, we perish—we wither and are left vulnerable to counterfeits.

The best way to spot a counterfeit is to examine the original. The original Jesus said he would return one day, but also says he’s able to be known now. Put these two Jesus’ side by side and see which one attracts you most. If there’s a longing in your heart for something more than indulgence, I think I know which one you’ll pick.