Thank you, many of you, for your warnings!
The most recent was from Peter earlier this week. “Just wanted to let you know that, apart from your very welcome weekly blog, I am now receiving regular emails in your name inviting me to click a link to some photos you had intended to send sooner.”
Somehow or other someone is using my email address but not my email account to send messages, as Peter says inviting you to open a link. Strangely I get them too – although only in my Hotmail account, never in Gmail.
Not sure where the link takes you. I think most of you realise that this is phishing spam to be ignored. However, it would be helpful if you could mark it as spam so your provider can eventually act.
In fact, I have just gone to my Outlook account to find another phishing email apparently from me. A very simple message: “Maybe I should have forwarded it much sooner. But hopefully you still remember this dude: then a link which I am not going to paste.” It appears to come from me but in fact it originates from someone called wubank, from Guyana of all places.
But that’s life online. Increasingly we’ve become aware of the dangers of opening links, which means that phishing attacks have become increasingly sophisticated. The world wide web is the wild west.
You may be surprised to know that the apostle Paul had the same problem. He concludes one of his earliest letters: “I, Paul, write this greeting in my own hand, which is the distinguishing mark in all my letters. This is how I write. (2 Thessalonians 3:17)
Now we know that Paul did not actually pen most of his letters. I have asked this question before: “Who wrote Paul’s epistle to the Romans?” And the answer, of course, comes in the closing verses. “I, Tertius, who wrote down this letter, greet you in the Lord.” (Romans 16:22)
And every so often, the apostle takes the pen for the final paragraph. Hence the last verse of Colossians: “I, Paul, write this greeting in my own hand. Remember my chains. Grace be with you.” (Colossians 4:18). As far as I know, no one has done any serious study on how these various amanuenses (that’s the technical term) affect the tone, the writing style of these letters.
But the one concluding his second letter to the Thessalonians seems different, as shown in the Message translation: “I, Paul, bid you good-bye in my own handwriting. I do this in all my letters, so examine my signature as proof that the letter is genuine.”
It seems that someone is sending misleading letters in Paul’s name. He has been hacked, and if you think about it, it would not be too difficult – especially with his practice of using amanuenses with their varying styles and handwriting.
In fact, earlier in the letter he writes: “Now, friends, read these next words carefully. Slow down and don’t go jumping to conclusions regarding the day when our Master, Jesus Christ, will come back and we assemble to welcome him.”
He continues: “Don’t let anyone shake you up or get you excited over some breathless report or rumoured letter from me that the day of the Master’s arrival has come and gone. Don’t fall for any line like that! (2 Thessalonians 2:1-3)
Clearly these early Christians had not quite grasped Paul’s teaching on the day of the Lord in his first letter sent some months earlier. And in the meantime someone – we have no idea who – had written to this church to say that this Day had now happened. It hadn’t.
So he writes again, to clear up any misunderstanding and to demonstrate the authenticity of his letter he signs off with his distinctive signature. I guess in the same way I would ask you to check where this email actually comes from. Moreover, does this email sound like me?
Reality, both real and virtual, is a dangerous place. There are people, there are forces out there to get us, to deceive that something is of God when it isn’t.
So Jesus warns us: “Many leaders are going to show up with forged identities, claiming, ‘I am Christ, the Messiah.’ They will deceive a lot of people. When reports come in of wars and rumoured wars, keep your head and don’t panic. (Matthew 24:5f).
So we are not being negative or overly suspicious when we test people, even stand back for a while to check them out. Jesus wants us to be wary.
“Be wary of false preachers who smile a lot, dripping with practiced sincerity. Chances are they are out to rip you off some way or other. Don’t be impressed with charisma; look for character. Who preachers are is the main thing, not what they say. A genuine leader will never exploit your emotions or your pocketbook.” (Matthew 7:15)
I recall checking out one prominent Christian leader, prominent on the best-selling list, in asking if his organisation published audited accounts. I was publicly rebuked – but that said enough.
And in a different context but with the same question, I was once accused of having a spirit of rebellion, even smearing the Lord’s anointed. I wasn’t being cynical, just obedient. When genuine, there’s no need to fear examination.
Conclusion: “Stay alert! Watch out! Your adversary the devil prowls around like a roaring lion, searching for someone to devour.” (1 Peter 5:8)