1But mark this: There will be terrible times in the last days. 2People will be lovers of themselves, lovers of money, boastful, proud, abusive, disobedient to their parents, ungrateful, unholy, 3without love, unforgiving, slanderous, without self-control, brutal, not lovers of the good, 4treacherous, rash, conceited, lovers of pleasure rather than lovers of God— 5having a form of godliness but denying its power. Have nothing to do with them 6They are the kind who worm their way into homes and gain control over weak-willed women, who are loaded down with sins and are swayed by all kinds of evil desires, 7always learning but never able to acknowledge the truth. 8Just as Jannes and Jambres opposed Moses, so also these men oppose the truth—men of depraved minds, who, as far as the faith is concerned, are rejected. 9But they will not get very far because, as in the case of those men, their folly will be clear to everyone. (2 Timothy 3:1-9)

Tradition holds that Jannes and Jambres of verse 8 were Egyptian magicians who opposed Moses in Exodus 7-9.  Consider what these men did as they squared off with Moses:  they were imitators of what Moses did.  They were counterfeits!  Satan is the great imatator.

Now let’s take the context of 2 Timothy 3:1-9.  Paul appears to group those who carry the 20 characteristics given in verses 1-7 into a category of imatators/counterfeits, opposers of the truth, corrupted in mind and disqualified regarding the faith.  Now think of this for a moment:  we have professed believers in our churches who practice the things listed in verses 1-7.  This is characteristic of the last days.  The easy believe-ism promoted by many today has resulted in our churches being packed with imatators.  It is in direct opposition to the truth that when a person is saved his/her life is changed.  Paul is identifying people with corrupt thinking.  They are not really a child of God!  One day (vs. 9) “their folly will be plain to all.”  This is a call to being genuine!

“Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation; the old has gone, the new has come!” (2 Corinthians 5:17)