You are currently browsing the monthly archive for May 2008.
Todd Bentley or Jesus Christ?
by Bud Press, Director
Christian Research Service
May 20, 2008
To the Reader: Below is a word-for-word transcript of Todd Bentley’s YouTube video-taped message titled, “Jesus Christ Himself wants to visit you.” As of this writing, the 5 minute-23 second video may be reviewed on YouTube at http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zdwBrB8cCOk .
Patricia King, self-proclaimed prophetess and founder of Extreme Prophetic, provides a short introduction to the video, and backs Todd Bentley’s claims to have seen Jesus Christ. Patricia King, herself, is no stranger to conflict and controversy ( http://www.extremeprophetic.com/conflict_home.htm ).
The following word-for-word transcript begins at 2:41 into the video, where Todd Bentley states:
Just recently, I was in Redding, California, and I had a face-to-face encounter with Jesus. It was real. And I was sitting in this green room in a chair. I was in a chair just like this, and I could feel the presence of the Lord all-around me.
You know, we worship and we pray. We can feel the presence of the Lord; we can feel the peace of God. And as I was sitting in the chair, I, I literally saw heaven open. My eyes were open and I saw heaven open, and I saw the Lord step out of heaven–literally step out of heaven. And from the Lord, Himself, He appeared to me, and, and it was as if He came to me into this realm. He appeared to me.
I, I remember His face. He had the brownest eyes that I’d ever seen; kinda reminded me of the movie, Bambi. Had these big brown eyes. He had long, brownish-black, curly locks that went down past His shoulders. And I remember His beard. I remember he was wearing and Ephod [see Reference.com], and I was surprised. It wasn’t like the glory, it was just a, a plain Ephod. And it was just humble. And He came in the form of, as I would imaging Jesus with the disciples on the Earth, as the Son of man; wasn’t the King of glory; wasn’t in His resurrection glory. It was, He came to me in the form of a humble servant–the Son of man. I mean, he had sandals on His feet; a real plain Ephod. But it was His eyes. And I saw the Lord. It was His eyes.
And from the Lord I saw literally ten rainbows come from the Lord. It was almost like a, a, a TV; like a projection television from the Lord came heaven. And I saw hills and I saw lions and I saw rivers of oil and I saw all kinds of butterflies and giant bumblebees. But, but it was the rainbows. And the brightest color that came from the Lord was pink, which is love and emotions. But ten rainbows. It was blinding. And I could see all of heaven and its glory. It was like Psalms 23. It was the paradise of God. But the Lord appeared to me in this realm.
And I remember His eyes, and I looked into His eyes and I thought, Aren’t your eyes supposed to be like fire? He said, “These are my eyes as I was as a man on the Earth. If you were to see me in heaven, I have eyes like fire.” And I, I looked into Him face-to-face, and He looked me in the eyes. He actually put a hand on my shoulders and He said these words: “Peace I give you, not as the world gives.” And I felt this impartation of the literal supernatural peace of God come over me.
Jesus is wonderful. Jesus is beautiful. There’s no one like Him. He is the King of glory. He is the Lord, strong and mighty. And we love Him and we worship Him, and we thank Him for His goodness.
But may you have a visitation of the Lord. This is your year for Jesus to visit you, if He’s never visited you before.
[End of video]
Is Todd Bentley telling the truth? Was Todd Bentley’s “face-to-face encounter” with the real Jesus of the Bible or with a counterfeit? Here is what Jesus Christ and the Bible have to say:
Then if anyone says to you, ‘Behold, here is the Christ,’ or ‘There He is,’ do not believe him (Matthew 24:23).
So if they say to you, ‘Behold, He is in the wilderness,’ do not go out, or, ‘Behold, He is in the inner rooms,’ do not believe them (Matthew 24:26).
So then, when the Lord Jesus had spoken to them, He was received up into heaven and sat down at the right hand of God (Mark 16:19).
Now having been questioned by the Pharisees as to when the kingdom of God was coming, He answered them and said, “The kingdom of God is not coming with signs to be observed; nor will they say, ‘Look, here it is!’ or, ‘There it is!’ For behold, the kingdom of God is in your midst.” And He said to the disciples, “The days will come when you will long to see one of the days of the Son of Man, and you will not see it. “They will say to you, ‘Look there! Look here!’ Do not go away, and do not run after them. “For just like the lightning, when it flashes out of one part of the sky, shines to the other part of the sky, so will the Son of Man be in His day (Luke 17:20-24).
Do not let your heart be troubled; believe in God, believe also in Me. In My Father’s house are many dwelling places; if it were not so, I would have told you; for I go to prepare a place for you. If I go and prepare a place for you, I will come again and receive you to Myself, that where I am, there you may be also (John 14:1-3).
And after He had said these things, He was lifted up while they were looking on, and a cloud received Him out of their sight. And as they were gazing intently into the sky while He was going, behold, two men in white clothing stood beside them. They also said, Men of Galilee, why do you stand looking into the sky? This Jesus, who has been taken up from you into heaven, will come in just the same way as you have watched Him go into heaven (Acts 1:9-11).
But I am afraid that, as the serpent deceived Eve by his craftiness, your minds will be led astray from the simplicity and purity of devotion to Christ. For if one comes and preaches another Jesus whom we have not preached, or you receive a different spirit which you have not received, or a different gospel which you have not accepted, you bear this beautifully (2 Corinthians 11:3-4).
For such men are false apostles, deceitful workers, disguising themselves as apostles of Christ. No wonder, for even Satan disguises himself as an angel of light. Therefore it is not surprising if his servants also disguise themselves as servants of righteousness, whose end will be according to their deeds (2 Corinthians 11:13-15).
Boasting is necessary, though it is not profitable; but I will go on to visions and revelations of the Lord. I know a man in Christ who fourteen years ago–whether in the body I do not know, or out of the body I do not know, God knows–such a man was caught up to the third heaven. And I know how such a man–whether in the body or apart from the body I do not know, God knows–was caught up into Paradise and heard inexpressible words, which a man is not permitted to speak (2 Corinthians 12:1-4).
Beloved, do not believe every spirit, but test the spirits to see whether they are from God, because many false prophets have gone out into the world (1 John 4:1).
Behold, he is coming with the clouds, and every eye will see Him, even those who pierced Him; and all the tribes of the earth will mourn over Him. So it is to be. Amen (Revelation 1:7).
So remember what you have received and heard; and keep it, and repent therefore if you do not wake up, I will come like a thief, and you will not know at what hour I will come to you (Revelation 3:3).
Behold, I am coming like a thief. Blessed is the one who stays awake and keeps his clothes, so that he will not walk about naked and men will not see his shame (Revelation 16:15).
Todd Bentley claims to have seen Jesus Christ, but it was not the Jesus of the Bible.
Sunday, I noticed in our church bulletin that there was to be a movie presented that Tuesday night. It was called Prince of Slaves. Never hearing about this movie before I went on-line but couldn’t find any information about it. I did not attend.
Wednesday I received a gang email to our church that read like this.
Thanks to all of you who came to “Movie Night”
For those of you who weren’t able to come, I just HAVE to share a couple of things I learned from Nil***ur, (rhymes with Jennifer), a Muslim lady who works with *******, and the movie, Prince of Slaves! Nil***ur was very friendly, outgoing, and informative.
First, Nil***ur did not wear any head-covering
because she said the Koran says to dress modestly so
as not to be a distraction to men, especially when
they’re supposed to be praying and worshipping. She
said the Taliban and the Wahabi sect in Saudi Arabia
are extremists in their treatment of women–they are
not true representatives of Islam. Saudi Arabia is
not a Democracy, and the Royal Family maintains
power by cooperating with the extremists. (Almost all the
terrorists involved in 9/11 were from Saudi Arabia,
none from Iraq, and were trained in Afganistan,
which she said has been badly affected by invasions of the
Russians, etc.)
Second, she said “jihad” means the personal struggle
to follow God. Killing is only allowed in the Muslim
faith during a war. “Islam means PEACE and Muslim
means “SUBMITTED TO GOD”! Obviously, some of them
do not follow that, but sometimes I don’t think we
Christians follow our Savior perfectly either! (My
thought, not Nillofour’s!) Also, the Koran is a lot like our Bible, according
to Nillofour’s Christian friends. She urged us to get
an English version of the Koran from the library and
read it to see for ourselves.
Lastly, when asked why the vast majority of moderate
Muslims do not speak out more to condemn terrorism,
she said that usually doesn’t make it to the front
pages or the evening news.
Thanks for reading if you’re still with me. I was
just SO excited to see this historically accurate
documentary and to meet such a lovely lady who also
happened to be a Muslim!
**********
I had to read these paragraphs a couple of times.
Second, she said “jihad” means the personal struggle
to follow God. Killing is only allowed in the Muslim
faith during a war. “Islam means PEACE and Muslim
means “SUBMITTED TO GOD”!
Also, the Koran is a lot like our Bible, according
to Nil***ur’s Christian friends. She urged us to get
an English version of the Koran from the library and
read it to see for ourselves.
Was i dreaming?…..Were these statements going uncontested in my evangelical church?
Okay..so i found an English version of the Koran on-line. Here are some quotations I found.
2:190-193 Fight in the cause of God, those who fight you, but do not transgress limits; for God loveth not transgressors. And slay them wherever ye catch them, and turn them out from where they have turned you out: For tumult and oppression are worse than slaughter; But fight them not at the sacred Mosque unless they first fight you there; But if they fight you, Slay them. Such is the reward of those who suppress faith. But if they cease, God is Oft-forgiving, Most Merciful. And fight them on until there is no more tumult or oppression, and there prevail justice and faith in God; but if they cease, Let there be no hostility except to those who practise oppression.”
5:72-73: They do blaspheme who say: “God is Christ the son of Mary.” But said Christ: “O Children of Israel! worship God, my Lord and your Lord.” Whoever joins other gods with God, – God will forbid him the garden, and the Fire will be his abode. There will for the wrongdoers be no one to help. They do blaspheme who say: God is one of three in a Trinity: for there is no god except One God. If they desist not from their word (of blasphemy), verily a grievous penalty will befall the blasphemers among them.
8:12-15 Remember thy Lord inspired the angels (with the message): “I am with you: give firmness to the Believers: I will instil terror into the hearts of the Unbelievers: smite ye above their necks and smite all their finger-tips off them.” This because they contended against God and His Apostle: If any contend against God and His Apostle, God is strict in punishment. Thus (will it be said): “Taste ye then of the (punishment): for those who resist God, is the penalty of the Fire.” O ye who believe! when ye meet the Unbelievers in hostile array, never turn your backs to them.
First off, these Koran verses do not sound very peaceful to me…what do you think?
Then it states that those who say that Jesus is Christ, the Son of Mary… is a blasphemer. And then the trinity is denied.
It goes on to say:
5:75 The Messiah, son of Mary is but an apostle:
The Koran is not at all like the Bible. Christianity is based on Jesus Christ going to the Cross for our Salvation, and that He is the Son of God, not merely an apostle……!
Then I took a look at the people who produced the movie. Unity Productions Foundation. Anything with the name unity is suspect to me anymore. Their main cause is to “serve the cause of peace of understanding. Comprehending Islam values is of central importance to cause of peace of understanding.”
I found one of many organizations that support their work is the Kingdom Foundation which is a close alliance of “A Common Word.” A Common Word is an outlandish agreement that Muslims and Christians are on similar ground because we worship the same God. This is ridiculous.
So I am saddened because no one that I know of questioned this email. Did anyone in our congregation bother to investigate this claim put forth in our church? How is it that a Muslim comes into our church and reaches out to us but no one tell this woman the truth? I am sure she is a wonderful and lovely person, but that does not save her soul. Do I have some distorted view of what a church is?
This was the response I received when I asked if this woman was presented the Gospel in our church.
She didn’t really
talk about her personal faith; our discussions were
more about cultural things.
I think we do need to develop relationships in order
to lead people to a relationship with the Lord.
Yes, I agree that we have to reach out to the lost, but develop a relationship with them? I thought we were not be yoked with unbelievers and that we were to be separate.
Without knowing the scriptures and at least a working knowledge of other religions then we as the church are doomed. Will we follow any suggestion unquestioned? What if there were any baby Christians at “movie night”? What if there were some attending who are confused about their faith?
http://www.upf.tv/upf06/Films/PrinceAmongSlaves/tabid/77/Default.aspx
I am probably over-reacting. Am I intolerant? I certainly hope so. I pray so.
Stephen Yulish Testimony
I was a Professor at the age of 28. I had the world by the tail, at least that I thought that I did. I published a book and numerous academic papers. I gave papers at National Conferences. I shared the stage with Stephen Jay Gould. I wrote a novel, “The Other World” which was a modern day fable of the demon goddess, Lilith. It bounced around New York for years. I even did a reading of it in a loft in Greenwich Village. I knew that Stephen Speilberg’s mother had been a member of Beth Joseph Congregation in Phoenix. I tracked her down to the Milky Way Deli in LA. I sent her a letter to please tell her son about my book-it would make a good screenplay for him. She refused. I sent it to Speilberg, anyway. To Amblin Entertainment c/o Paramount Pictures. They sent it back unopened.
This book was the most New Age, demonic book that you could imagine. I glorified evil and Satan. I blurred the distinctions between good and evil, reality and dream and even male and female. I quoted from the lost gospels found at Nag Hammadi. I even gave to my future wife Paula to read when we first met in 1987. This sweet Christian lady read a chapter and gave it back to me appalled!
Here I found myself working for a Christian telemarketing firm selling precious metals to Christian listeners of a radio program. Me, a Professor, a leader in the Phoenix Jewish community working for Christians. My life had been turned upside down by the trauma of loss of job in Jewish community, divorce, my children had moved to Charleston, SC, my father had died and my health had begun to falter. I went into Barrows Neurological Center in Phoenix and they found extensive brain lesions with an MRI and other tests (diagnosis-Multiple Sclerosis… prognosis—wheelchair?). All of this, and I was now working for Christians to boot.
The staff (Paula) prayed for me, my clients prayed for me. How nice. When my coworkers tried to preach to me I slammed them. After all, I had not only been a Director of the Jewish National Fund, but I was also a part of the Community Relations Council in the Jewish community which investigated missionaries. I had lectured at the University of Arizona on anti semitism and the Holocaust. Who did these people think that they were?
I acted like Shaul to them. I flogged them with my tongue, a frequent Jewish tactic. We fight with our tongues , not our fists. One fellow said that he was so frustrated with me that he felt like throwing me over the balcony. I replied, “Oh that’s Christian!” They waved the Bible in my face. “read Isaiah 53″ read Psalm 22”. I replied, “Read this!”, shaking my fist!
One day I went to Philip’s house for dinner while my new girlfriend, a Jewish New Ager, was at work. After dinner, we all stood in a circle holding hands. He had fed me dinner so I decided to humor him (actually his love was tugging at my heart). We prayed—at least they prayed. I closed my eyes and saw an image darting across the plane of my vision. I blinked. It came back. When we were finished, Philip asked me what I had seen. I said, “Nothing”. How did he know ? He must have opened his eyes and seen me grimacing. He said again, “What did you see, Jewboy?” Finally I answered that it was stupid, “forget it”.
Well Philip kept insisting. Finally I told them. I saw a man in a suit of armor waving his sword at a being in a monk’s robe with no face. Philip’s mouth fell open. He ran and got his Bible and showed me Ephesians 6:12f. I did not know what he was talking about. I did not know the Bible. Things like that began to happen as the Holy Spirit was showing me the word visually.
Not too much later, I was sitting at my desk at the office. We all had cubicles. I was trying to close a large deal when an image appeared in front of me. I looked around to see if anyone else saw it. Nobody! It was Jesus on the cross. His head was down. It was night, or the sky was dark, and there was lightning all over the sky. Quite a sight for a nice Jewish, New Age, College Professor, Pharisee-type person. I was dumfounded. I told no one.
The next day, I saw another vision. This time Jesus was on the cross, but it was daylight. He lifted up His head and light poured out of His eyes. He broke the fetters and got off of the Cross. He then proceeded to walk all over the earth with the light still pouring from His eyes. Remember that I did know the Bible at that time especially the New Testament, i.e. Jesus is the light of the world!
I had told Philip that I would not believe unless I saw the burning bush for myself. Scripture says that Jews seek signs. Well God was showing me! That night I had a dream that I had to die (be crucified) for all my friends to live. I anticipated the flogging on my back and the nails though my hands. It was a powerful experience which cannot truly be put into words. I knew instantly what Jesus had done for me. I awoke looking at my hands (Galatians 6:17).
The next day I said the sinners prayer and accepted Jesus into my life. My sister said that they had got me. Praise God. That was on October 3, 1988. Paula and I married on March 30, 1990. I had to leave the company in April of 1991. My health had been to hamper me. but do not pity me. God all along had a plan for my life. Do I miss my former accolades and achievements? No! As Paul said I count them as rubbish in order that I may gain Christ (Philippians 3:8).
I feel stronger and healthier than ever. I spend every day serving the Lord because He was there for me. He never failed me nor forsook me. He is my rock and my comforter and supplies me with all my needs. When I am weak physically as Paul said, then I am strong spiritually. His grace is sufficient for me.
And I am still not in the “Chair”! Praise His Holy Name forever and ever!
Stephen M. Yulish, born in Cleveland, Ohio in 1947, received his BA from Case Western Reserve University in 1969, his MA in 1972, and his PhD in 1975 from the University of Illinois. His first book, The Search for a Civic Religion, was published in 1980. He was an Assistant Professor at the University of Arizona in Tucson and then became a Jewish Community Professional in Phoenix. Currently disabled with Multiple Sclerosis, the author is co-leader of Chayim Chadashim Messianic Fellowship and is on the Board of Reference for Jewish Voice Prophetic Magazine. He lives in Flagstaff, AZ, with his wife Paula and daughter Andrea.
The Great Apostasy (a great site) has an article that is reflecting my mood tonight. I went back to look for it and wanted to post it.
http://thegreatapostasy.wordpress.com/2007/06/09/there-are-lions-and-wolves-among-us/
There are lions and wolves among us …
I think sometimes when we hear about things like “wolves” entering in amongst us or about the Devil walking about like a “lion” seeking whom he may devour, many of us tend to think in terms of almost cartoon versions of wolves and lions: the Cowardly Lion from The Wizard of Oz, or Snaggle Puss (I’m dating myself, aren’t I?), or maybe Wile E. Coyote. (Although not quite a wolf, Wile E. Coyote is a representative picture that lives in my head when I think about a dog-like creature stalking something.)
Or maybe we hear the word “lion” or “wolf” and think of something cute …
Or maybe we think of something majestic and regal …
Okay, bear with me now.
Let’s imagine for just a minute being a small, defenseless, helpless lamb (which is actually how the Bible describes us) … aren’t we cute?
Now imagine being that cute little lamb … all alone and undefended … and then seeing THIS coming at you …
Or maybe this …
What would you do? I know what I’d do. RUN AWAY! (Or cry for help.)
Perhaps we, as Christians, need to really get a grip in our minds on what it is that’s coming after us. If we think “cartoons,” we won’t run away as if our very lives depend on it.
And you know what? They just might.
“Beware of false prophets, which come to you in sheep’s clothing, but inwardly they are ravening wolves.” Matthew 7:15 (KJV)
“For I know this, that after my departing shall grievous wolves enter in among you, not sparing the flock. Also of your own selves shall men arise, speaking perverse things, to draw away disciples after them.” Acts 20:29,30 (KJV)
”Be sober, be vigilant; because your adversary the devil, as a roaring lion, walketh about, seeking whom he may devour.” 1 Peter 5:8 (KJV
.JPG)
[
This is from the site The Exchanged Life and I have been enjoying the sermons. This article is relevant to some current discussion about Rick Warren and and his relationship to Ken Blanchard. Comments from Barbara Marx Hubbard, New-Ager/politician are frightening. Christians who will not evolve in this new spirituality are likened to cancer cells, which will need to be eliminated.
*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-
Understanding Church Vision (Part 4 of 4)
One World Religion
Over 300 evangelical Christians signed a response from ‘the Christian community’ and sent it to the Muslim Community agreeing to a partnership in religion. In October 2007 the Muslim community launched a website called www.acommonword.com. A letter was sent to the Christian community asking for an agreement among the religions on common grounds that we could agree on. In the letter, the Muslim writers offer a hand of partnership to Christians as long as we agree on the basic principles that unite us. While the open letter to Christians focuses on each person’s requirement to love God and love one’s neighbor, they also make it clear that loving God requires us to adhere to the following ‘Testimony of Faith’:
The central creed of Islam consists of the two testimonies of faith or Shahadahsi, which state that: There is no god but God [Allah], Muhammad is the messenger of God. These Two Testimonies are the sine qua non of Islam. He or she who testifies to them is a Muslim; he or she who denies them is not a Muslim.
The letter also states the following about Jesus Christ:
Muslims recognize Jesus Christ as the Messiah, not in the same way Christians do (but Christians themselves anyway have never all agreed with each other on Jesus Christ’s nature), but in the following way: …. the Messiah Jesus son of Mary is a Messenger of God and His Word which he cast unto Mary and a Spirit from Him…. (Al-Nisa’, 4:171). We therefore invite Christians to consider Muslims not against and thus with them, in accordance with Jesus Christ’s words here.
Since the Muslim letter only quoted part of Al-Nisa’ 4:171, I decided to look up this reference in the Quran to see the remainder of the verse. Here is the entire passage in context:
People of the Book, do not exceed the limits of devotion in your religion or say anything about God which is not the Truth. Jesus, son of Mary, is only a Messenger of God, His Word, and a spirit from Him whom He conveyed to Mary. So have faith in God and His Messengers. Do not say that there are three gods. It is better for you to stop believing in the Trinity. There is only One God. He is too glorious to give birth to a son. To God belongs all that is in the heavens and the earth. God alone is a Sufficient Guardian for all. (Al-Nisa’ 4:171)
Muhammad called Christians the ‘People of the Book’ because they believed in the scriptures. The call for unity requires us to directly reject the following scripture in 1 John 5:9-13
9 If we receive the witness of men, the witness of God is greater; for this is the witness of God which He has testified of His Son. 10 He who believes in the Son of God has the witness in himself; he who does not believe God has made Him a liar, because he has not believed the testimony that God has given of His Son. 11 And this is the testimony: that God has given us eternal life, and this life is in His Son. 12 He who has the Son has life; he who does not have the Son of God does not have life. 13 These things I have written to you who believe in the name of the Son of God, that you may know that you have eternal life, and that you may continue to believe in the name of the Son of God.
If you do not believe in Jesus Christ as He has been revealed in the scriptures, you do not, and cannot have eternal life for Jesus plainly warned that “if you do not believe that I am He, you will die in your sins” (John 8:24). Therefore, the Quran and the Bible are in direct conflict with each other and this foundational issue is irreconcilable. So in reality, the Muslim partnership extended to Christians has the following requirements in order to have common ground: accept the premise that “There is no god but God [which means Allah], Muhammad is the messenger of God”, do not be devoted solely to Christianity, and agree that Jesus is “only a messenger of God” but is not divine nor is God’s Son. According to Islam, Jesus was a messenger, but Muhammad is ‘the messenger’. Every Muslim will tell you that you must confess that ‘there is no god but Allah and that Muhammad is his prophet’. They say that Jesus was a prophet, but they will never say that Muhammad is ‘a prophet’. Every Muslim will strictly adhere to the belief that ‘Muhammad is the prophet’. The Bible tells us that Jesus is the fulfillment of all the prophets and that in these last days Jesus was the final word (Hebrews 1:1-2), but Islam teaches that Muhammad is the true messenger and the one chosen by God.
While one-world religion proponents argue that we can agree on most issues and therefore should not bicker over the few that we don’t agree on, the truth is that certain beliefs cannot be compromised. Look at Philippians 2:5-8
5 Let this mind be in you which was also in Christ Jesus, 6 who, being in the form of God, did not consider it robbery to be equal with God, 7 but made Himself of no reputation, taking the form of a bondservant, and coming in the likeness of men. 8 And being found in appearance as a man, He humbled Himself and became obedient to the point of death, even the death of the cross.
This is at the core of our Christian faith. You cannot compromise this truth and remain in the faith. Also consider 1 Timothy 3:16
16 And without controversy great is the mystery of godliness: God was manifested in the flesh, Justified in the Spirit, Seen by angels, Preached among the Gentiles, Believed on in the world, Received up in glory..
John 1:1-3 In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. 2 He was in the beginning with God. 3 All things were made through Him, and without Him nothing was made that was made.
John 1:10-14 10 He was in the world, and the world was made through Him, and the world did not know Him. 11 He came to His own, and His own did not receive Him. 12 But as many as received Him, to them He gave the right to become children of God, to those who believe in His name: 13 who were born, not of blood, nor of the will of the flesh, nor of the will of man, but of God. 14 And the Word became flesh and dwelt among us, and we beheld His glory, the glory as of the only begotten of the Father, full of grace and truth.
This wasn’t controversial among those who held to the word of God, but in this era where Christians do not seek the Lord through the word, this has become a point of contention. The world has always denied Jesus as the only way and in these last days, the church has forgotten the truth of salvation in Christ just as the Bible foretold. Look at 2 Peter 2:1
But there were also false prophets among the people, even as there will be false teachers among you, who will secretly bring in destructive heresies, even denying the Lord who bought them, and bring on themselves swift destruction.
Is this not exactly what the ‘open letter to Christians’ is asking us to do? I have quoted some of the most influential evangelical leaders and each one of them has denied that Jesus is the only way of salvation – which is a denial of the faith. On November 18, 2007, a response was posted to the acommonword.com website. The letter written was headed up by the seminary professors at Yale University and signed by over 300 evangelical Christian leaders and organizations. You can read the entire letter on the Common Word website, but I want to bring your attention to this excerpt:
We receive the open letter as a Muslim hand of conviviality and cooperation extended to Christians world-wide. In this response we extend our own Christian hand in return, so that together with all other human beings we may live in peace and justice as we seek to love God and our neighbors.
…
And to those who nevertheless relish conflict and destruction for their own sake or reckon that ultimately they stand to gain through them, we say that our very eternal souls are all also at stake if we fail to sincerely make every effort to make peace and come together in harmony.
The evangelical community received the letter and then implied that any who do not receive this are ‘those who relish conflict and destruction’. By stating that they receive the invitation, it is an acknowledgement and acceptance of the terms written in the letter as we examined above. Any who do not agree to this form of unity are identified as the cause of conflict. If you read the letter you will see that one of the overarching themes is the quest for world peace. It is not a jump in conclusion that those who do not agree with the plan for peace by compromising their faith in Christ are a threat to peace and will become the enemy of the world religions that are uniting.
Consider that Rick Warren has stated that those who refuse to change must die or leave. David Spangler stated in his writings that people who will not accept the new world spirituality (which he calls the Luciferic Initiation) will be removed from the world to an upper room to be retrained until they can be embodied and safely be returned to the social body; Leonard Sweet states that we must change or die and these each are endorsing each other. Leonard Sweet quotes David Spangler in his book ‘Soul Tsunami’. In this book, Sweet states:
I am grateful to David Spangler for his help in formulating this “new cell” understanding of New Light leadership.”
Rick Warren endorsed this very book and wrote the forward on the front and back cover. Ken Blanchard has been commissioned by Rick Warren to teach leaders who will teach evangelical churches and Blanchard spoke at the ‘Choices for the Future’ symposium with Barbara Marx Hubbard. In her book, Hubbard echoes the warnings of these evangelical leaders but adds chilling details that make it clear that the ultimate plan is to force the world into the New Age spirituality. Look at these excerpts from her writings found in ‘The Book of Co-Creation’:
Out of the full spectrum of human personality, one-fourth is electing to transcend… One-fourth is destructive…they are defective seeds. In the past they were permitted to die a ‘natural death’. …Now as we approach the quantum shift from the creature-human to the co-creative human – the human who is an inheritor of god-like powers – the destructive one-fourth must be eliminated from the social body. …Fortunately, you are not responsible for this act, we are. We are in charge of God’s selection process for the planet Earth. He selects, we destroy. We are the riders of the pale horse, Death”.
“This act is as horrible as killing a cancer cell. It must be done for the sake of the future of the whole. So be it; be prepared for the selection process which is now beginning. We, the elders, have been patiently waiting until the very last moment before the quantum transformation, to take action to cut out this corrupted and corrupting element in the body of humanity. It is like watching a cancer grow; something must be done before the whole body is destroyed…. The destructive one fourth must be eliminated from the social body.”
Is this not an exact fulfillment of John 16:2b-4?
…the time is coming that whoever kills you will think that he offers God service. 3 “And these things they will do to you because they have not known the Father nor Me. 4 “But these things I have told you, that when the time comes, you may remember that I told you of them. …
Notice that Barbara Marx Hubbard has declared that the selection process is already underway and who do you think the ‘destructive one-fourth’ is? Based on the testimony of Hubbard and our own evangelical leaders, those who refuse to change must die. Hubbard may sound like a New Age flake, but she has a lot of backing. She has worked with the White House under two presidents including our current administration; she was a vice president nominee in 1984, she was an American Citizen ambassador to the former Soviet Union; she has founded two major global organizations (the ‘Global Association for New Global Thought’ and the ‘World Future Society’); she has written 5 books and delivered over 80 keynote speeches to colleges, leadership conventions, political organizations, and has direct ties with our current evangelical leaders.
Just consider how many times death is endorsed by our major evangelical leaders. In Tim LaHaye’s left behind series, the tribulation force of God fought against the lost souls by killing them. This was justified since their souls were supposedly already lost anyway. This is the overarching theme in their Left Behind game where ‘Christians’ are encouraged to kill those who refuse to be evangelized. You can find ample information on this game by doing a search on ‘Left Behind: Eternal Forces’. In the evangelical letter to the muslims, our leaders state that those who refuse to compromise risk their eternal souls. Rick Warren calls church leaders that resist the purpose driven movement ‘leaders from hell’ and compared them to Sanballat. Sanballat tried to prevent Nehemiah from building the wall around Jerusalem. Ironically, Warren is attacking those who are trying to build a wall between the church and the world while claiming that the true wall builders are the ones attacking. For the first time in history, the evangelical community has joined forces with the world to stand against those who stand upon the word of God. Now the political, world religions, and evangelical church are all calling for the destruction of those who refuse to be evangelized into the New World Order.
*-*-*-*-*-*-*-
Please finish the article HERE
http://www.exchangedlife.com/Sermons/topical/vision/vision4.shtml
DiscernIt 
.JPG){kind=link}
Recent Comments