John 10:34-35, With Psalm 82:6
Those who embrace the "little gods" doctrine almost universally cite these verses, wrested from their contexts. In Mark 12:28, Christ was asked the question, "Of all the commandments, which is the most important?" To which Jesus replied, "Here, O Israel, the Lord our God, the Lord is One." And yet, Jesus claimed deity, union with the Godhead, on numerous occasions. Nevertheless, the faith teachers appeal to Christ's remark in John 12:48-50: "Is is not written in your Law, 'I have said you are gods'?. . . and the Scripture cannot be broken" (John 10:34-35).
In the beginning of this story in John 10, Jesus states, "I and the Father are one" (v. 30). Furious, the Jews picked up stones. Jesus asked them, "For which of these [good works] do you stone me?" To which the Jews responded, "We are not stoning you for any of these . . . but for blasphemy, because you, a mere man, claim to be God" (v. 32-33). His citation of the eighty-second Psalm perplexed them. "Is is not written in your law, 'I have said you are gods'?. . . and the Scripture cannot be broken" -- why on earth did He quote that one? they wondered. Was Christ, in fact, teaching that man was a god? And if so, how can this be reconciled with the extreme monotheism (one-God-ism) of Judaism, which He both believed and taught as a rabbi.
There can be no doubt from the history and theology of the Old Testament that the judges of Israel and rulers of the people were representatives, or mouthpieces, for God. Such individuals were accorded great respect and assumed in the eyes of the people the outward appearance of "mighty ones" (in Hebrew, Elohim, "gods").
This should not come as a surprise to us when we remember Exodus 7:1, where God, speaking to Moses, says, "I have made thee a god to Pharaoh" (KJV). Now, there can be no doubt that Moses was no more than a mortal man -- in no sense divine, by nature or in essence. Nevertheless, since Pharaoh was a pagan and God was addressing him in that context, He was, in effect, saying, "When I finish with Pharaoh, through the power that will be revealed in you, Moses, My representative, he (Pharaoh) will think you are a god." The plagues of Egypt were evidence to Pharaoh and to the occultic priests who surrounded him that this was indeed the "finger of God" (Exodus 8:19).
Moses did not lay claim to being a deity. Instead, he manifested the power of deity as a gift from the only Deity -- God the Father, Son, and the Holy Ghost. Similarly, the judges of Israel fulfilled the same role and so appeared to be gods. But in reality, they were sinful men who abused their office, and as a result God mocked them, saying, "I have said, Ye are gods. . . . Ye shall die like men" (Psalm 82:6-7). Here were men who were supposed to emulate God's own character but who had become corrupt rulers. They were supposed to be defenders of "the poor and fatherless . . . the afflicted and needy" (v3, KJV), but instead they were proud men, who -- though they looked like gods in the eyes of the people -- would nevertheless demonstrate their frail mortality in the judgment of death.
In Genesis 3:5, we can clearly see the teaching that man is a "god" or can become "like God" in relation to the divine essence originates not with God, but with Satan, who brought about the fall of man by deceiving Eve and then Adam into believing they would be like "gods."
Bible scholars have pointed out that Christ's statement, then, in John 10, is in the form of irony. God, they say, was stating something that would be recognized by anyone as an absurdity. Paul did the same with the Corinthians, mockingly referring to them as "kings," when both he and they knew they had not become kings at all. Instead, they were abusing their spiritual gifts. Similarly, in John 10, Jesus mocked the people as if to say, "You all think you're gods yourselves. What's one more god among you?" Irony is used to provoke us, not to inform us. It is not a basis for building a theology.
It is also pertinent to an understanding of John 10 that we remember that Satan is called "the ruler of this world" by no less an authority than the Lord Jesus Christ (John 14:30, NASB). And Paul reinforces this by calling him "the god of this age" (II Corinthians 4:4). We can make a "god" out of anything -- money, power, status, position, sex, patriotism, family, or, as in Lucifer's case, an angel. We can be our own "god." But to call something deity or to worship it or treat it as divine is quite another thing than its being by nature and in essence deity.
The Bible insists that there is but one Creator: "Besides Me there is no god" (Isaiah 45:5, NASB). We need only compare Deuteromony 32:21, where God charged the Israelites with provoking Him to anger by the worship of "what is not God" (NASB), with Galations 4:8, where Paul reminds the church that they served pagan deities before their conversion to Christ and "were slaves to those which by nature are no gods" (v. 8, NASB; italics added).
There is, therefore, only one God by nature, one God who is omnipotent, omniscient, omnipresent, one God who possess characteristics and attributes that may be imitated but never duplicated in finite creations. When it is said, then, that man is or can be a "god," we must remember that Christ is stating (John 10, with Psalm 82) that only He, the incarnate Word, has the right to the title of deity among men, since He alone is designated "the only begotten God" (John 1:18, Greek text). What we worship then may become "a god" to us, but it is not deity, as it is written, "'You are my witnesses,' declares the Lord, 'and my servant who I have chosen, so that you may know and believe Me and understand that I am He. Before Me no god was formed, nor will there be one after Me.'" (Isaiah 43:10).
If this were not enough, such passages as Isaiah 44:6, 45:22, and Deuteronomy 6:4 would close the issue forever.
For more information on Victory Churches and the Faith Movement, go to the Reference Library. Click on any book title to get a brief overview of the book. All books on the list are available through www.amazon.com.
Showing posts with label Jesus Christ. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Jesus Christ. Show all posts
Wednesday, June 12, 2013
Friday, January 16, 2009
Defective Christology (Mark #7)
Who is Jesus Christ?
This is the most important question that any person will ever face. The deepest joys we will ever know in this life and our very hope of eternal life depend on the proper answer to that question. Because this is true, we may be sure that the primary activity of Satan will be to obscure as much as possible the true nature of the person of our blessed Saviour, the Lord Jesus.
In all of the history of the Church, the most grievous heresies have been those which have advocated a view of the person of Christ other than that which is taught in the Word of God. Satan knows that an improper understanding of the person and the work of Christ makes salvation impossible.
The attack on the understanding of the nature of Christ began in the early days of the Church. The intellectually disposed Colossians began to be infected by a heretical view called Gnosticism. This doctrinal error taught that a human approached the Godhead through progressive steps of higher and higher angelic beings who bridged the gap between man and God. It taught that Christ was one of these angelic beings who was more than man but less than God. It advocated the worship of these angelic beings and included worshipping Christ as merely a part of the duty of a Christian.
The Apostle Paul, knowing the peril the Colossians were in of turning to a religion other than the faith of Jesus Christ, wrote them a most earnest epistle. He warned. "Beware, lest any man spoil you through philosophy and vain deceit, after the tradition of men, after the rudiments of the world, and not after Christ. For in Him dwelleth all the fullness of the Godhead bodily" (Colossians 2:8-9; 2:18-19).
These people prided themselves in possessing knowledge. Paul told them that knowledge was not enough; they must have "full knowledge" (epignosis). He insisted that this full knowledge was the knowledge of the person of Jesus Christ Himself. The Scripture therefore insists that in worshipping Jesus Christ, we are worshipping God Himself. "He that honoureth not the Son honoureth not the Father" (John 5:23).
Later in the history of the Church there grew up another sub-Christian point of view called Arianism. This was one of the first heresies of the Church, and it was declared so because it denied the true deity of our Saviour, the Lord Jesus Christ.
The advocacy of Arianism by the satanic opponents of Christianity produced great doctrinal clarity in the ranks of the early Christians. These confrontations lead them to the greatly reinforced conviction that one's attitude towards the nature of Jesus Christ is primary to his Christianity. A false view of the Saviour produced a false religion which presented no salvation at all. This conviction lead the Early Church fathers to earnestly contend for the faith. They knew what was at stake. The issue was the survival of Christianity itself.
The central truth of Christianity is therefore related to the question, "What think ye of Christ?" The Christian is commanded to test the spirits of these suspicious alternative messengers. The doctrinal test of those spirits is very clear. (Read 1 John 4:1-3). It is clear then that the test of a true representative of the Gospel has to do with his definition of the person and the work of Jesus Christ. The central doctrine of Christianity is Christology, the doctrine of the nature of the person of Jesus Christ.
Christianity affirms the true deity and true humanity of our blessed Saviour, which deity and humanity is conjoined together in one personality on the basis of the hypostatic union. By this we understand that Jesus Christ was not partly man and partly God on the basis of some percentage or formula. He is true humanity. He is true deity in human form. The characteristic of biblical faith is that it has a proper understanding of the nature of the person of Christ.
There are those today who claim to be Christians who deny the true deity of Christ. Religious liberalism can be judged as heretical on the basis of its denial of the sure deity of the blessed Son of God. Liberalism is not Christianity, it is a heretical, anti-Christian view, being defective in its view of the deity of Christ.
There are religions that deny the true humanity of the Saviour. Christian Science, as an instance, denies the existence of the physical, claiming the essential substance of the universe is mind. If the physical does not exist, then deity did not become true humanity in the person of Christ. This is the doctrine of antichrist, according to Scripture.
The thoughtful Christian will carefully analyze the doctrine of a cult that is being pressed upon him paying special attention to the Christology of that alternative religious message. The message that in effect declares Christ to be the automaton of the Father and not a real person in Himself, is a cult. The message that denies the virgin birth of Christ, holding Him to be merely the natural son of Joseph and Mary, is a cult. An examination of the doctrinal base of any religion in the light of its views on the person and the work of Jesus Christ can be most revealing.
The question, "What think ye of Jesus?" is only answered correctly by the believing Christian. The Christian gladly answers, "Jesus Christ is the only begotten Son of the living God, God incarnate in the form of human flesh. He is the Son of man, the only Saviour of the world, the Author and Finisher of our faith, who, through His death on the cross, provides redemption for all who believe in Him. He is the One who died for our sins, rose again on the third day who lives to make intercession for us before His Father and who one day will come in His glorious returning to judge the quick and the dead at His appearing in His kingdom. He is Lord and God, and in Him alone we have life, and life more abundantly."
Closely related to the fatal heresy of defective Christology is a denial of the trinity of the Godhead. The only true God is one God, eternally existent in three persons, Father, Son. and Holy Spirit. Each person of the Godhead is co-equal and co-eternal with the others. This view is not held by the Jehovah Witnesses. Many cults are blind as to the nature of God and in their theology deny the deity of Jesus Christ or the deity of the Holy Spirit. An improper faith in the only true God makes impossible any real hope of salvation.
These critical doctrinal problems concerning the nature of the Godhead should come to each Christian as a new reminder of the need for Christian scholarship. For too long we have been influenced by foolish leaders who say, "We don't need doctrine; we just need experience!"
In the same vein is the mindless claim, "We don't preach doctrine, we just preach Christ!" Preachers who talk like this need to move up from their spiritual kindergartens and realize the shameful neglect of their own personal scholarship and the consequent neglect of doctrinal preaching to their people. The cults will have a field day in exploiting experience-orientated saints who have no time for the study of Christian doctrine.
(from Know the Marks of Cults - the 12 Basic Errors of False Religion by Dave Breese)
This is the most important question that any person will ever face. The deepest joys we will ever know in this life and our very hope of eternal life depend on the proper answer to that question. Because this is true, we may be sure that the primary activity of Satan will be to obscure as much as possible the true nature of the person of our blessed Saviour, the Lord Jesus.
In all of the history of the Church, the most grievous heresies have been those which have advocated a view of the person of Christ other than that which is taught in the Word of God. Satan knows that an improper understanding of the person and the work of Christ makes salvation impossible.
The attack on the understanding of the nature of Christ began in the early days of the Church. The intellectually disposed Colossians began to be infected by a heretical view called Gnosticism. This doctrinal error taught that a human approached the Godhead through progressive steps of higher and higher angelic beings who bridged the gap between man and God. It taught that Christ was one of these angelic beings who was more than man but less than God. It advocated the worship of these angelic beings and included worshipping Christ as merely a part of the duty of a Christian.
The Apostle Paul, knowing the peril the Colossians were in of turning to a religion other than the faith of Jesus Christ, wrote them a most earnest epistle. He warned. "Beware, lest any man spoil you through philosophy and vain deceit, after the tradition of men, after the rudiments of the world, and not after Christ. For in Him dwelleth all the fullness of the Godhead bodily" (Colossians 2:8-9; 2:18-19).
These people prided themselves in possessing knowledge. Paul told them that knowledge was not enough; they must have "full knowledge" (epignosis). He insisted that this full knowledge was the knowledge of the person of Jesus Christ Himself. The Scripture therefore insists that in worshipping Jesus Christ, we are worshipping God Himself. "He that honoureth not the Son honoureth not the Father" (John 5:23).
Later in the history of the Church there grew up another sub-Christian point of view called Arianism. This was one of the first heresies of the Church, and it was declared so because it denied the true deity of our Saviour, the Lord Jesus Christ.
The advocacy of Arianism by the satanic opponents of Christianity produced great doctrinal clarity in the ranks of the early Christians. These confrontations lead them to the greatly reinforced conviction that one's attitude towards the nature of Jesus Christ is primary to his Christianity. A false view of the Saviour produced a false religion which presented no salvation at all. This conviction lead the Early Church fathers to earnestly contend for the faith. They knew what was at stake. The issue was the survival of Christianity itself.
The central truth of Christianity is therefore related to the question, "What think ye of Christ?" The Christian is commanded to test the spirits of these suspicious alternative messengers. The doctrinal test of those spirits is very clear. (Read 1 John 4:1-3). It is clear then that the test of a true representative of the Gospel has to do with his definition of the person and the work of Jesus Christ. The central doctrine of Christianity is Christology, the doctrine of the nature of the person of Jesus Christ.
Christianity affirms the true deity and true humanity of our blessed Saviour, which deity and humanity is conjoined together in one personality on the basis of the hypostatic union. By this we understand that Jesus Christ was not partly man and partly God on the basis of some percentage or formula. He is true humanity. He is true deity in human form. The characteristic of biblical faith is that it has a proper understanding of the nature of the person of Christ.
There are those today who claim to be Christians who deny the true deity of Christ. Religious liberalism can be judged as heretical on the basis of its denial of the sure deity of the blessed Son of God. Liberalism is not Christianity, it is a heretical, anti-Christian view, being defective in its view of the deity of Christ.
There are religions that deny the true humanity of the Saviour. Christian Science, as an instance, denies the existence of the physical, claiming the essential substance of the universe is mind. If the physical does not exist, then deity did not become true humanity in the person of Christ. This is the doctrine of antichrist, according to Scripture.
The thoughtful Christian will carefully analyze the doctrine of a cult that is being pressed upon him paying special attention to the Christology of that alternative religious message. The message that in effect declares Christ to be the automaton of the Father and not a real person in Himself, is a cult. The message that denies the virgin birth of Christ, holding Him to be merely the natural son of Joseph and Mary, is a cult. An examination of the doctrinal base of any religion in the light of its views on the person and the work of Jesus Christ can be most revealing.
The question, "What think ye of Jesus?" is only answered correctly by the believing Christian. The Christian gladly answers, "Jesus Christ is the only begotten Son of the living God, God incarnate in the form of human flesh. He is the Son of man, the only Saviour of the world, the Author and Finisher of our faith, who, through His death on the cross, provides redemption for all who believe in Him. He is the One who died for our sins, rose again on the third day who lives to make intercession for us before His Father and who one day will come in His glorious returning to judge the quick and the dead at His appearing in His kingdom. He is Lord and God, and in Him alone we have life, and life more abundantly."
Closely related to the fatal heresy of defective Christology is a denial of the trinity of the Godhead. The only true God is one God, eternally existent in three persons, Father, Son. and Holy Spirit. Each person of the Godhead is co-equal and co-eternal with the others. This view is not held by the Jehovah Witnesses. Many cults are blind as to the nature of God and in their theology deny the deity of Jesus Christ or the deity of the Holy Spirit. An improper faith in the only true God makes impossible any real hope of salvation.
These critical doctrinal problems concerning the nature of the Godhead should come to each Christian as a new reminder of the need for Christian scholarship. For too long we have been influenced by foolish leaders who say, "We don't need doctrine; we just need experience!"
In the same vein is the mindless claim, "We don't preach doctrine, we just preach Christ!" Preachers who talk like this need to move up from their spiritual kindergartens and realize the shameful neglect of their own personal scholarship and the consequent neglect of doctrinal preaching to their people. The cults will have a field day in exploiting experience-orientated saints who have no time for the study of Christian doctrine.
(from Know the Marks of Cults - the 12 Basic Errors of False Religion by Dave Breese)
Tuesday, January 13, 2009
The Claim of Special Discoveries (Mark #6)
"I have found the secret!"
Few people are more fascinating then those who claim to have inside information on a given subject. Who of us as a child has not listened with breathless anticipation to stories told by older people of their experiences? Stories of talking animals or mysterious haunted houses were a part of our youthful pursuit of fantasy.
Children's stories which are known to be fantasy are one thing; fantasies purveyed as religious truth are quite another. There is nothing wrong with listening to a storyteller; the wrong, indeed the insane course, is to fall down at his feet and worship him. Fables that are known to be such are enjoyable little diversions in life. Religious fantasies that are presented as special spiritual discoveries are dangerous.
In the world of religion, many have been conned out of their money, their eternal souls, or both by those who claim special knowledge from sources of information not commonly available. It is illegal for any person to purchase securities on the basis of "inside information" not generally available to the average investor on the street. We could wish that in the world of religion there were such a law. Unfortunately, such a law would be impossible to pass. Even if it were enacted, it would be ignored by millions of people in pursuit of religious fascinations rather than common truth.
The careful teacher of sound doctrine is rarely as electrifying as the mysterious religious promoter who, usually for a price, will let us in on his "secret." Under the spells he casts, we are often tempted to forget that the best things in life are not only free, but they are usually obvious. It is very clear that the humble Christian who will pursue the teaching of the Bible with simplicity and godly sincerity becomes the glad recipient of the abundant provision of God for every need for time and eternity. There can be no greater promise than that we are blessed "with all spiritual blessings in heavenly places in Christ" (Ephesians 1:3).
In the face of this open provision of all things freely given from God, one is amazed to see the large and loyal following that comes to people who report some vision, presence, revelation, or special discovery which has come to them and which they claim to be divine. It would be impossible to have a cult without mysterious, otherwise unavailable inside information.
The Christian must remember that there is no discovery in the entire universe that anyone could possibly have that is superior to his discovery of salvation in Jesus Christ. There is no higher information, no better revelation, no deeper truth -- nothing is greater than the knowledge of Christ. The person who turns from this greatest discovery, this ultimate revelation, to pursue the delusions of a cult leader is a fool. Despite this obvious truth, the cults continue to beguile unstable souls with their false claims to special discoveries. No discovery is more special than Jesus Christ.
The claim to special discoveries and "repeatable-on-demand" revelations from God is the point where the cults tend to move off into the occult. Witchcraft, spiritism, and Satan worship are nothing more than religions that claim to be able to call for the incursion of the metaphysical in the realm of the physical. This is surely one of the reasons why the cults are often but a stopping place where a disturbed soul lingers briefly before dropping totally into the pit of the occult.
Nevertheless, the almost universal base of each cult religion is the purported revelation that one person received. These persons claimed divine authority for a private, unauthenticated religious event. They claim to have seen a vision of a woman on a mountain, heard a voice in a prayer tower, or been visited by an angel who came with golden tablets and giant spectacles. The unsubstantiated and largely preposterous stories are endless. The discovery may have been a hallucination, an outright lie, or even the result of indigestion or a sleepless night. We cannot know, we are without corroborative evidence.
How different is the truth of Christianity? It is not dependent upon claims by private individuals to special discoveries. The fundamental characteristic of the faith of Christ is that it is based on historical fact. Talking of all of the events that centered around the life, work, death, and resurrection of Christ, Luke states that Christ declared Himself to be alive after His passion "by many infallible proofs" (Acts 1:3). There were hundreds and in some cases thousands of witnesses to the open and public facts of the Gospel.
The witnesses to the facts of the Gospel were declared as being alive and responsible to testify of Christ (1 Corinthians 15:6). Nothing is more obvious in the Old and New Testaments than the fact of the public revelation and working of God in the presence of proofs and competent witnesses. The truth of Christianity does not depend on private knowledge or secret, unconfirmable relationships on the part of individuals.
But the growing activity of religious promoters with concocted stories should not come as a surprise to us. The Scripture predicts, "There shall be false teachers among you, who privily shall bring in damnable heresies, even denying the Lord that brought them, and bring upon themselves swift destruction. And many shall follow their pernicious ways; by reason of whom the way of truth shall be evil spoken of..." (2 Peter 2:1-3).
We notice that the heresies being brought in by false teachers are secret and destructive. It would never be possible for these purveyors of their own imaginings to be successful were it not for the foolish inattention on the part of many to the laws of evidence. Again and again Jesus paid respect to the divine laws of evidence by naming those other sources of data that would bear witness to the truth of His Word (John 5:31; John 10:25).
Because of these abundant sources of evidence the Apostle Peter was able to say, "For we have not followed cunningly devised fables, when we made known unto you the power and coming of our Lord Jesus Christ, but were eye witnesses of His majesty" (2 Peter 1:16).
Nevertheless, the deceitful infection of the cultic promoters continues as they beguile unstable souls away from the clear and obvious truth into unprovable mysteries that they themselves cannot explain. It is a fair generalization to say that it is the duty of the true minister of the Gospel to take the mysteries of God and make them plain. The normal direction of the cultic promoter is to take the plain truth of the Word and turn it into as mysterious a message as possible. Many deadly pitfalls lie along the path of the dark and the mysterious.
No Christian is required to believe that Jesus Christ has appeared to anyone since the day of the completion of Holy Scripture. God rests His case on the Bible. This Book should be plainly preached by those who stand in pulpits. It should be clearly taught by those who would expound truth. It should be carefully read by all who would discover the nature of reality. Then there will be no need for special discoveries on the part of anyone. The greatest discovery an individual can make is to experience the joy of a personal relationship with Jesus Christ, which comes by faith in His person and His work as revealed in Holy Scripture.
The secret is out! The Gospel is available to all. Jesus Christ has come in the flesh and brought life and immortality to light through the Gospel. Faith in Him brings a discovery that is special indeed and available to all.
(from Know the Marks of Cults - The 12 Basic Errors of False Religion by Dave Breese)
Few people are more fascinating then those who claim to have inside information on a given subject. Who of us as a child has not listened with breathless anticipation to stories told by older people of their experiences? Stories of talking animals or mysterious haunted houses were a part of our youthful pursuit of fantasy.
Children's stories which are known to be fantasy are one thing; fantasies purveyed as religious truth are quite another. There is nothing wrong with listening to a storyteller; the wrong, indeed the insane course, is to fall down at his feet and worship him. Fables that are known to be such are enjoyable little diversions in life. Religious fantasies that are presented as special spiritual discoveries are dangerous.
In the world of religion, many have been conned out of their money, their eternal souls, or both by those who claim special knowledge from sources of information not commonly available. It is illegal for any person to purchase securities on the basis of "inside information" not generally available to the average investor on the street. We could wish that in the world of religion there were such a law. Unfortunately, such a law would be impossible to pass. Even if it were enacted, it would be ignored by millions of people in pursuit of religious fascinations rather than common truth.
The careful teacher of sound doctrine is rarely as electrifying as the mysterious religious promoter who, usually for a price, will let us in on his "secret." Under the spells he casts, we are often tempted to forget that the best things in life are not only free, but they are usually obvious. It is very clear that the humble Christian who will pursue the teaching of the Bible with simplicity and godly sincerity becomes the glad recipient of the abundant provision of God for every need for time and eternity. There can be no greater promise than that we are blessed "with all spiritual blessings in heavenly places in Christ" (Ephesians 1:3).
In the face of this open provision of all things freely given from God, one is amazed to see the large and loyal following that comes to people who report some vision, presence, revelation, or special discovery which has come to them and which they claim to be divine. It would be impossible to have a cult without mysterious, otherwise unavailable inside information.
The Christian must remember that there is no discovery in the entire universe that anyone could possibly have that is superior to his discovery of salvation in Jesus Christ. There is no higher information, no better revelation, no deeper truth -- nothing is greater than the knowledge of Christ. The person who turns from this greatest discovery, this ultimate revelation, to pursue the delusions of a cult leader is a fool. Despite this obvious truth, the cults continue to beguile unstable souls with their false claims to special discoveries. No discovery is more special than Jesus Christ.
The claim to special discoveries and "repeatable-on-demand" revelations from God is the point where the cults tend to move off into the occult. Witchcraft, spiritism, and Satan worship are nothing more than religions that claim to be able to call for the incursion of the metaphysical in the realm of the physical. This is surely one of the reasons why the cults are often but a stopping place where a disturbed soul lingers briefly before dropping totally into the pit of the occult.
Nevertheless, the almost universal base of each cult religion is the purported revelation that one person received. These persons claimed divine authority for a private, unauthenticated religious event. They claim to have seen a vision of a woman on a mountain, heard a voice in a prayer tower, or been visited by an angel who came with golden tablets and giant spectacles. The unsubstantiated and largely preposterous stories are endless. The discovery may have been a hallucination, an outright lie, or even the result of indigestion or a sleepless night. We cannot know, we are without corroborative evidence.
How different is the truth of Christianity? It is not dependent upon claims by private individuals to special discoveries. The fundamental characteristic of the faith of Christ is that it is based on historical fact. Talking of all of the events that centered around the life, work, death, and resurrection of Christ, Luke states that Christ declared Himself to be alive after His passion "by many infallible proofs" (Acts 1:3). There were hundreds and in some cases thousands of witnesses to the open and public facts of the Gospel.
The witnesses to the facts of the Gospel were declared as being alive and responsible to testify of Christ (1 Corinthians 15:6). Nothing is more obvious in the Old and New Testaments than the fact of the public revelation and working of God in the presence of proofs and competent witnesses. The truth of Christianity does not depend on private knowledge or secret, unconfirmable relationships on the part of individuals.
But the growing activity of religious promoters with concocted stories should not come as a surprise to us. The Scripture predicts, "There shall be false teachers among you, who privily shall bring in damnable heresies, even denying the Lord that brought them, and bring upon themselves swift destruction. And many shall follow their pernicious ways; by reason of whom the way of truth shall be evil spoken of..." (2 Peter 2:1-3).
We notice that the heresies being brought in by false teachers are secret and destructive. It would never be possible for these purveyors of their own imaginings to be successful were it not for the foolish inattention on the part of many to the laws of evidence. Again and again Jesus paid respect to the divine laws of evidence by naming those other sources of data that would bear witness to the truth of His Word (John 5:31; John 10:25).
Because of these abundant sources of evidence the Apostle Peter was able to say, "For we have not followed cunningly devised fables, when we made known unto you the power and coming of our Lord Jesus Christ, but were eye witnesses of His majesty" (2 Peter 1:16).
Nevertheless, the deceitful infection of the cultic promoters continues as they beguile unstable souls away from the clear and obvious truth into unprovable mysteries that they themselves cannot explain. It is a fair generalization to say that it is the duty of the true minister of the Gospel to take the mysteries of God and make them plain. The normal direction of the cultic promoter is to take the plain truth of the Word and turn it into as mysterious a message as possible. Many deadly pitfalls lie along the path of the dark and the mysterious.
No Christian is required to believe that Jesus Christ has appeared to anyone since the day of the completion of Holy Scripture. God rests His case on the Bible. This Book should be plainly preached by those who stand in pulpits. It should be clearly taught by those who would expound truth. It should be carefully read by all who would discover the nature of reality. Then there will be no need for special discoveries on the part of anyone. The greatest discovery an individual can make is to experience the joy of a personal relationship with Jesus Christ, which comes by faith in His person and His work as revealed in Holy Scripture.
The secret is out! The Gospel is available to all. Jesus Christ has come in the flesh and brought life and immortality to light through the Gospel. Faith in Him brings a discovery that is special indeed and available to all.
(from Know the Marks of Cults - The 12 Basic Errors of False Religion by Dave Breese)
Friday, September 26, 2008
Paradise Forever - A No-Brainer!
Heaven (Choice #2)
Have you ever met a person who did not want to go to heaven? Heaven was designed to be the ultimate experience. Some portray heaven as a place filled with plump little cherubs, floating on clouds, playing harps. The Bible tells us that heaven is a place which will allow us to experience our fullest potential and accomplish possibilities that we never realized on earth. This life which we have been given on earth is merely preparation for eternity, either in hell or in heaven. Which place are you preparing for?
Heaven, like hell, is an actual place. The fact of heaven is supported by Jesus, who frequently referred to it as the residence of God. "Our Father who art in heaven ... " (Matthew 6:9, NASB). Paul also spoke of being caught up into heaven, which he referred to as paradise (2 Corinthians 12:1-4), and stated that heaven was a far better place than earth. "We are confident, I say, and would prefer to be away from the body and at home [in heaven] with the Lord" (2 Corinthians 5:8).
A Wonderful Place
There are many wonderful aspects of living forever in heaven. When we get there, we will be given perfect bodies. "But our citizenship is in heaven. And we eagerly await a Saviour from there, the Lord Jesus Christ, who ... will transform our lowly bodies so that they will be like his glorious body" (Philippians 3:20-21). Heaven will also be a place of rest from earthly problems (2 Corinthians 4:17; Revelations 14:13), and there will be "no more tears" there (Revelation 21:4). When we get to heaven, we will also enjoy increased knowledge (1 Corinthians 13:8-10) and holiness (Revelation 21:27). In heaven we will be gloriously fulfilled by serving and worshipping the Lord (Revelation 19:1; 22:3).
I believe in heaven because God promised it to all those who place their trust in Him. John 3:16 says "For God so loved the world that He gave His one and only Son, that whoever believes in Him shall not perish but have eternal life." Jesus also tells us that He is looking forward to seeing us in heaven. "In my Father's house are many rooms...I am going there to prepare a place for you" (John 14:2).
Make A Decision!
It's hard to believe there are only two eternal destinations, heaven and hell. That view may make God seem unfair, but remember, Jesus was literally crucified to give you this choice. He decided in favour of heaven when He hung on the cross as your Saviour.
Jesus desires that none of us should perish. "The Lord...is patient with you, not wanting anyone to perish, but everyone to come to repentance" (2 Peter 3:9). He gave His life in our place as payment for our sin, that God might receive us into heaven.
Satan, on the other hand, has decided against heaven (Isaiah 14:12-14). The Bible tells us that Satan's desire is that we do perish. He intends to harm us, deceive us, and discourage us from following God (John 17:15; Revelations 12:9).
Heaven or hell..it's up to you. You must now make the final decision for yourself. Today I urge you to consider God's love for you. He wants you to spend a joyful eternity in heaven with Him. Say "yes" to heaven today. Say "yes" to Jesus Christ.
"This day I call heaven and earth as witnesses against you that I have set before you life and death...Now choose life, so that you and your children may live" (Deuteronomy 30:19).
If you have made your decision between heaven and hell, you can pray something like this.
Dear Jesus, I know that I deserve hell, but You have offered me heaven as a gift of Your love. I have decided to place my trust in You right now. I want to be certain that by Your power I will be with You in heaven one day. Amen.
(by Daniel Southern, President, American Tract Society)
If you have made the decision to trust Christ, please e-mail us or visit http://www.emmanuelbarrie.org/.
Have you ever met a person who did not want to go to heaven? Heaven was designed to be the ultimate experience. Some portray heaven as a place filled with plump little cherubs, floating on clouds, playing harps. The Bible tells us that heaven is a place which will allow us to experience our fullest potential and accomplish possibilities that we never realized on earth. This life which we have been given on earth is merely preparation for eternity, either in hell or in heaven. Which place are you preparing for?
Heaven, like hell, is an actual place. The fact of heaven is supported by Jesus, who frequently referred to it as the residence of God. "Our Father who art in heaven ... " (Matthew 6:9, NASB). Paul also spoke of being caught up into heaven, which he referred to as paradise (2 Corinthians 12:1-4), and stated that heaven was a far better place than earth. "We are confident, I say, and would prefer to be away from the body and at home [in heaven] with the Lord" (2 Corinthians 5:8).
A Wonderful Place
There are many wonderful aspects of living forever in heaven. When we get there, we will be given perfect bodies. "But our citizenship is in heaven. And we eagerly await a Saviour from there, the Lord Jesus Christ, who ... will transform our lowly bodies so that they will be like his glorious body" (Philippians 3:20-21). Heaven will also be a place of rest from earthly problems (2 Corinthians 4:17; Revelations 14:13), and there will be "no more tears" there (Revelation 21:4). When we get to heaven, we will also enjoy increased knowledge (1 Corinthians 13:8-10) and holiness (Revelation 21:27). In heaven we will be gloriously fulfilled by serving and worshipping the Lord (Revelation 19:1; 22:3).
I believe in heaven because God promised it to all those who place their trust in Him. John 3:16 says "For God so loved the world that He gave His one and only Son, that whoever believes in Him shall not perish but have eternal life." Jesus also tells us that He is looking forward to seeing us in heaven. "In my Father's house are many rooms...I am going there to prepare a place for you" (John 14:2).
Make A Decision!
It's hard to believe there are only two eternal destinations, heaven and hell. That view may make God seem unfair, but remember, Jesus was literally crucified to give you this choice. He decided in favour of heaven when He hung on the cross as your Saviour.
Jesus desires that none of us should perish. "The Lord...is patient with you, not wanting anyone to perish, but everyone to come to repentance" (2 Peter 3:9). He gave His life in our place as payment for our sin, that God might receive us into heaven.
Satan, on the other hand, has decided against heaven (Isaiah 14:12-14). The Bible tells us that Satan's desire is that we do perish. He intends to harm us, deceive us, and discourage us from following God (John 17:15; Revelations 12:9).
Heaven or hell..it's up to you. You must now make the final decision for yourself. Today I urge you to consider God's love for you. He wants you to spend a joyful eternity in heaven with Him. Say "yes" to heaven today. Say "yes" to Jesus Christ.
"This day I call heaven and earth as witnesses against you that I have set before you life and death...Now choose life, so that you and your children may live" (Deuteronomy 30:19).
If you have made your decision between heaven and hell, you can pray something like this.
Dear Jesus, I know that I deserve hell, but You have offered me heaven as a gift of Your love. I have decided to place my trust in You right now. I want to be certain that by Your power I will be with You in heaven one day. Amen.
(by Daniel Southern, President, American Tract Society)
If you have made the decision to trust Christ, please e-mail us or visit http://www.emmanuelbarrie.org/.
Wednesday, September 24, 2008
Eternity is a Long Time -- Choose Wisely!
Hell (Choice #1)
People's opinion of the biblical description of hell ranges from "slightly confusing" to "completely irrational." Although everyone agrees that the idea of punishment and suffering is distasteful, the Bible claims that hell is an actual place. At the crux of the matter lies a question we all must ask ourselves..."What do I believe about hell?"
What's Your Hell?
In my own life my first encounter with the idea of hell marks the beginning of my spiritual pilgrimage, I will never forget the experience of sitting on the front seat of our old Chevy, my feet not yet touching the floor, listening to a radio program with my mother. The radio preacher spoke on why we would all surely go to hell if we did not place our faith in Jesus Christ as our personal Saviour.
My parents raised me in a very safe and secure environment. We went to church regularly, and I believed in God with all of my heart. But until that moment I had never been told that hell was my certain destination unless God somehow intervened.
The next time I remember thinking about hell was in high school as we read Dante's Inferno. Dante saw hell as a place made up of levels of punishment descending into an abyss inhabited by Satan himself. Dante portrayed his personal enemies writhing in hell, suffering torments based on how they had lived.
Another concept is the "hell on earth" that we all experience while living in an imperfect world. We all seem to go through seasons of distress and trouble. My own mind flashes back to the war in Viet Nam, my parent's divorce and the terrible loneliness I sometimes felt as an adolescent.
No-one Wants To Go To Hell
By definition, hell is the worst possible place we could ever imagine. The Bible describes hell as a place filled with eternal suffering and separation from God. "Their place will be in the fiery lake of burning sulphur...And the smoke of their torment rises forever and ever." (Revelation 21:8; 14:11).
Jesus and Hell
Many people have no room in their "spiritual philosophy" for a place like hell but it is interesting to note that out of thirteen references to hell in the New Testament, twelve come from the very lips of Jesus Christ Himself. Jesus describes hell as a real place, inhabited by real people -- conscious, thinking people -- eternally regretting their misspent lives. Why do you suppose that Jesus Himself would be the primary spokesman on such a distasteful subject? It's because His very mission on this earth was to help us avoid that awful place. In fact, He poured out His life so we could get into a right relationship with His heavenly Father.
The Scriptures teach that hell was not created for you and me. Neither were we created for hell. Instead, hell was designed as a place of confinement and punishment for Satan and his angels when they rebelled against God. "Then he will say to those on his left, 'Depart from me, you who are cursed, into the eternal fire prepared for the devil and his angels.'" (Matthew 25:41).
Avoiding Hell
Yes, we all have some concept of hell, perhaps conjured up by bad experiences or exposure to fanatical preaching. But hell really exists and is described vividly in God's revelation to us in the Bible. We can choose to reject this concept because it is distasteful or seems irrelevant to us now, or we can come to grips with its reality, based on the authority of God's word but no matter how we choose to deal with this information -- the reality of hell remains.
The Bible tells us that we are saved (from hell) by faith alone. In John 5:24, Jesus says, "I tell you the truth, whoever hears My word and believes Him who sent me has eternal life and will not be condemned; he has crossed over from death to life." Whenever the Bible talks about salvation, it is always in reference to the eternal doom that awaits those who reject God. "Whoever believes in the Son has eternal life, but whoever rejects the Son will not see life, for God's wrath remains on him" (John 3:36).
It's Your Decision
You see, we are all created for the purpose of knowing God and enjoying a relationship with Him. When we choose to exclude God from our lives, rejecting His desire to act as our loving, heavenly Father, we have made a decision with terrible and eternal consequences.
Many of us have not refused God outright...we have simply delayed making a decision about Him but psychologists tells us that we often deal with weighty choices this way. In effect, when we put off any decision -- that act itself is a choice. Jesus Christ said "he who is not with me is against me, and he who does not gather with me scatters" (Matthew 12:30). Today, I invite you to make the decision to receive Jesus Christ as your Saviour and enter into the privilege of becoming a member of His eternal family.
If you have decided to trust Jesus Christ as your Saviour, please e-mail us or visit http://www.emmanuelbarrie.org/ for more information.
People's opinion of the biblical description of hell ranges from "slightly confusing" to "completely irrational." Although everyone agrees that the idea of punishment and suffering is distasteful, the Bible claims that hell is an actual place. At the crux of the matter lies a question we all must ask ourselves..."What do I believe about hell?"
What's Your Hell?
In my own life my first encounter with the idea of hell marks the beginning of my spiritual pilgrimage, I will never forget the experience of sitting on the front seat of our old Chevy, my feet not yet touching the floor, listening to a radio program with my mother. The radio preacher spoke on why we would all surely go to hell if we did not place our faith in Jesus Christ as our personal Saviour.
My parents raised me in a very safe and secure environment. We went to church regularly, and I believed in God with all of my heart. But until that moment I had never been told that hell was my certain destination unless God somehow intervened.
The next time I remember thinking about hell was in high school as we read Dante's Inferno. Dante saw hell as a place made up of levels of punishment descending into an abyss inhabited by Satan himself. Dante portrayed his personal enemies writhing in hell, suffering torments based on how they had lived.
Another concept is the "hell on earth" that we all experience while living in an imperfect world. We all seem to go through seasons of distress and trouble. My own mind flashes back to the war in Viet Nam, my parent's divorce and the terrible loneliness I sometimes felt as an adolescent.
No-one Wants To Go To Hell
By definition, hell is the worst possible place we could ever imagine. The Bible describes hell as a place filled with eternal suffering and separation from God. "Their place will be in the fiery lake of burning sulphur...And the smoke of their torment rises forever and ever." (Revelation 21:8; 14:11).
Jesus and Hell
Many people have no room in their "spiritual philosophy" for a place like hell but it is interesting to note that out of thirteen references to hell in the New Testament, twelve come from the very lips of Jesus Christ Himself. Jesus describes hell as a real place, inhabited by real people -- conscious, thinking people -- eternally regretting their misspent lives. Why do you suppose that Jesus Himself would be the primary spokesman on such a distasteful subject? It's because His very mission on this earth was to help us avoid that awful place. In fact, He poured out His life so we could get into a right relationship with His heavenly Father.
The Scriptures teach that hell was not created for you and me. Neither were we created for hell. Instead, hell was designed as a place of confinement and punishment for Satan and his angels when they rebelled against God. "Then he will say to those on his left, 'Depart from me, you who are cursed, into the eternal fire prepared for the devil and his angels.'" (Matthew 25:41).
Avoiding Hell
Yes, we all have some concept of hell, perhaps conjured up by bad experiences or exposure to fanatical preaching. But hell really exists and is described vividly in God's revelation to us in the Bible. We can choose to reject this concept because it is distasteful or seems irrelevant to us now, or we can come to grips with its reality, based on the authority of God's word but no matter how we choose to deal with this information -- the reality of hell remains.
The Bible tells us that we are saved (from hell) by faith alone. In John 5:24, Jesus says, "I tell you the truth, whoever hears My word and believes Him who sent me has eternal life and will not be condemned; he has crossed over from death to life." Whenever the Bible talks about salvation, it is always in reference to the eternal doom that awaits those who reject God. "Whoever believes in the Son has eternal life, but whoever rejects the Son will not see life, for God's wrath remains on him" (John 3:36).
It's Your Decision
You see, we are all created for the purpose of knowing God and enjoying a relationship with Him. When we choose to exclude God from our lives, rejecting His desire to act as our loving, heavenly Father, we have made a decision with terrible and eternal consequences.
Many of us have not refused God outright...we have simply delayed making a decision about Him but psychologists tells us that we often deal with weighty choices this way. In effect, when we put off any decision -- that act itself is a choice. Jesus Christ said "he who is not with me is against me, and he who does not gather with me scatters" (Matthew 12:30). Today, I invite you to make the decision to receive Jesus Christ as your Saviour and enter into the privilege of becoming a member of His eternal family.
(written by Daniel Southern)
If you have decided to trust Jesus Christ as your Saviour, please e-mail us or visit http://www.emmanuelbarrie.org/ for more information.
Wednesday, May 14, 2008
THE TRUTH
Jesus said, "I am the Way, the Truth and the Life. No man comes unto the Father but by Me."
Do you want to know for sure that you are going to be with God in Heaven?
If God were to ask you, "Why should I let you into My Heaven?" what would you say?
Following is the best news you could ever hear.
Did you know that the Bible tells you how you can know for sure that you have eternal life and will go to be with God in Heaven?
"These things I have written unto you ... that ye may know that ye have eternal life ... (1 John 5:13)
The Bible says there are 5 things you need to know about eternal life.
Do you want to know for sure that you are going to be with God in Heaven?
If God were to ask you, "Why should I let you into My Heaven?" what would you say?
Following is the best news you could ever hear.
Did you know that the Bible tells you how you can know for sure that you have eternal life and will go to be with God in Heaven?
"These things I have written unto you ... that ye may know that ye have eternal life ... (1 John 5:13)
The Bible says there are 5 things you need to know about eternal life.
- Heaven - - Eternal Life is a Free GIFT. The Bible says, "... the GIFT of God is eternal life through Jesus Christ our Lord." (Romans 6:23). And because Heaven is a GIFT, like any other genuine GIFT, it is not earned or deserved. No amount of personal effort, good works, or religious deeds can earn a place in Heaven for you. "For by grace are ye saved through faith; and that not of yourselves: it is the GIFT of God: NOT OF WORKS, lest any man should boast." (Ephesians 2:8, 9) Why is it that no-one can earn his way to Heaven?
- Because Man is a Sinner. "For all have sinned, and come short of the glory of God." (Romans 3:23) Sin is transgressing God's Law and includes such things as lying, lust, cheating, deceit, anger, evil thoughts, immoral behaviour, and more. And because of this, man cannot save himself. If you wanted to save yourself by good deeds, do you know how good you would have to be? "Be ye therefore perfect, even as your Father which is in heaven is perfect." (Matthew 5:48) With such a high standard, no-one can save himself.
- However in spite of our sin ... God is merciful and therefore doesn't want to punish us. This is because "... God is love." (1 John 4:8) And He says, "...I have loved thee with an everlasting love..." (Jeremiah 31:3) But the same Bible that tells us that God loves us also tells us that God is just and therefore must punish sin. He says..."...I will by no means clear the guilty..." (Exodus 34:7) "...the soul that sinneth, it shall die." (Ezekiel 18:4). Therein lies the problem. God loves us and doesn't want to punish us but He is just and must punish sin.
- God solved this problem for us in the person of JESUS CHRIST. Who is He? The Bible tells us clearly that He is the infinite GOD-MAN. "In the beginning was the Word (Jesus)... and the Word (Jesus) was God. And the Word (Jesus) was made flesh, and dwelt among us..." (John 1:1, 14) Jesus Christ came to earth and lived a sinless life, but while on earth what did He do? He died on the Cross to pay the penalty for our sins and rose from the grave to purchase a place for us in Heaven. "All we like sheep have gone astray: we have turned every one to his own way and the Lord has laid on Him (Jesus) the iniquity (sin) of us all." (Isaiah 53:6) Jesus Christ bore our sin in His body on the Cross and now offers you eternal life (Heaven) as a free gift.
- This gift is received by faith. Faith is the key that opens the door to Heaven. Many people mistake two things for saving faith. Saving faith is not mere intellectual assent, like believing certain historical facts. The Bible says that the devil believes there is one God, so believing there is one God is not saving faith. Saving faith is not mere temporal faith, that is, trusting God for temporary crises such as financial, family, or physical needs. Now these are good and you should trust Christ for these, but they are not saving faith! Saving faith is trusting in Jesus Christ alone for eternal life. It means resting upon Christ alone and what He has done rather than in what you or I have done to get us into Heaven. "... Believe (trust) on the Lord Jesus Christ and thou shalt be saved ..." (Acts 16: 31) You have just read the greatest story ever told, about the greatest offer ever made, by the greatest person who ever lived, Jesus Christ!
You too can receive this gift!
If you have trusted Christ as your personal Saviour as a result of reading this, and you want further help in the decision you have made or if you have more questions about the Christian faith, please contact us by e-mail or visit http://www.emmanuelbarrie.org/.
Sunday, April 13, 2008
Beyond Christianity
We are living in a day when many are trying to move beyond Christianity.
The word "beyond" has a certain appeal. Something that is forever fixed and changeless in the minds of some seems to be stodgy and undynamic. Things must forever progress in order to avoid boredom. We demand new fascinations to feed our ever-shortening spans of interest.
This demand for new fascinations has led many to try to move beyond the faith once delivered to the saints to something newer (and therefore presumably truer) and more exciting. Wise words that apply in this situation are "if it's new, it isn't true; and if it's true, it isn't new."
Christianity should not be thought of as a stone wall behind which we cannot get. It is rather the highest mountain-top beyond which it is downhill no matter which way one goes. There is nothing greater, nothing higher, and certainly nothing more magnificient than the mountain-top of divine revelation in Scripture and in Jesus Christ. To move beyond that mountain-top in the pursuit of something better is to lose ones self in the crags and crevices of the slopes that fall away from real Christianity. Beyond the crevices of heresy are the fever swamps of the cults, where the serpents and the scorpions wait.
Beyond Christianity is death, hopelessness, darkness, and heresy. (David Breese)
The word "beyond" has a certain appeal. Something that is forever fixed and changeless in the minds of some seems to be stodgy and undynamic. Things must forever progress in order to avoid boredom. We demand new fascinations to feed our ever-shortening spans of interest.
This demand for new fascinations has led many to try to move beyond the faith once delivered to the saints to something newer (and therefore presumably truer) and more exciting. Wise words that apply in this situation are "if it's new, it isn't true; and if it's true, it isn't new."
Christianity should not be thought of as a stone wall behind which we cannot get. It is rather the highest mountain-top beyond which it is downhill no matter which way one goes. There is nothing greater, nothing higher, and certainly nothing more magnificient than the mountain-top of divine revelation in Scripture and in Jesus Christ. To move beyond that mountain-top in the pursuit of something better is to lose ones self in the crags and crevices of the slopes that fall away from real Christianity. Beyond the crevices of heresy are the fever swamps of the cults, where the serpents and the scorpions wait.
Beyond Christianity is death, hopelessness, darkness, and heresy. (David Breese)
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)