THE TRAGEDY

April 15, 1912 was a tragic day in maritime history. April 15, 2008 marks the 96^th anniversary of the 20th century’s most catastrophic shipping calamity. At 2:40 a.m. the “unsinkable” luxurious White Star Liner, Titanic, pride of the British merchant fleet, plunged to its watery grave becoming a humungous coffin for 1,517 perplexed people.

THE GREAT DELUSION

Too many have an errant, even flippant view of God. One crewmember brazenly stated, “Not even God could sink this ship!” It was commonly stated that the ship was “unsinkable.” This was the selling point of all the promoters. After all, it was the world’s largest vessel in 1912: 882 ½ feet long, weighing 46,328 tons, with a double bottom of 5 to 6 feet thick to insure added safety.

 

Thirty-two-year veteran E.J. Smith, the Titanic captain, stated, “I cannot imagine any condition that would cause the ship to founder. I cannot imagine any disaster happening to this vessel. Modern shipbuilding has gone beyond that.”

People would have harangued anyone as a lunatic who would have said the Titanic would sink on her maiden voyage. It was a known “fact” that the only way possible she would sink would be if both keel plates on her double bottom hull were torn at least half her length. The odds of that happening were too high to figure! Especially considering there were 30 watertight compartments designed to prevent that from ever happening. Adding to the air of security, or might I say false security, was the presumptuous talk that the 46,328 ton Titanic traveling at 18 knots could slice through anything without sinking.

THE PEOPLE

The Titanic has received worldwide publicity, with the owners, designers, builders, captain, crew and news media proclaiming it as the safest, most luxurious attraction ever. They made it seem as if it were the Eighth Wonder of the World and a first class booking cost like it also. The best accommodations were reserved for $4,350, while the less expensive first-class rooms were a mere $2,300. That was a BIG PRICE back then.

For that money, you might guess the class of people that were attracted to an expensive “unsinkable” ship offering the plushest transatlantic accommodations in the world. The tall, 48-year-old John Jacob Astor IV was probably the most renowned. If not, he was at least the riches, worth some $150 million. His wealth included companies still known today: Western Union, The Equitable Life Assurance Company, and Mercantile Trust Company. At 48 he took Madeline, his bride of 19, and reserved the best of accommodations on the Titanic as the final leg of a trip from Egypt. He never stepped foot on dry land again after boarding at Southhampton, England although his wife escaped the watery grave and later gave birth to his son, John Jacob Astor V.

Benjamin Guggenheim, age 47, was worth $95 million. Jay Bruce Ismay of International Mercantile Marine Company and White Star Line chairman was on board with his wife and children. He was worth about $40 million and he wanted everyone to know it. His wife was a “display piece” for his wealth. It is said that one string of her pearls was worth $250,000.

Among the noted Americans on the Titanic was Major Archibald Butt. He had been military aide to the 25^th president, Theodore Roosevelt and at the time was returning to Washington from a visit to Italy and specially visiting the Vatican on behalf of President Taft. Butt was serving President Taft as military aide also.

There was Isidor Straus, an elderly Bavarian Jew who made his fortune in commerce and banking. He was also a partner with R. H. Macy in New York City’s famous store by the latter name. He was returning from the Rivera. It is said he was worth $50,000,000.

Great men of industry, commerce and finance, as well as a sprinkling of aristocrats of Europe, held prime places on the Titanic. Leading theatrical and motion picture figures, a renowned American publisher, a British journalist, a famous metallurgical engineer, a fashion designer and dozens of other celebrities were aboard. Such great wealth and fashion; the women outstandingly arrayed in the finest Parisian gowns, shimmering with enough jewels to sink a lifeboat. The rich and famous, as well as hundreds of average people like Lawrence Beesley, a London schoolmaster going to visit his brother in America, did not have the slightest inkling of the tragic disaster they would encounter at 41° 46′ N. and 50° 14′W.

THE PLEASURES AND PROBLEMS

Amid the swimming pool, Turkish baths, library and reading room, gymnasium, miniature golf course, child’s playroom, tennis courts, restaurants, ballrooms, tailor shops, dress shops and palm-lined courts, people had no time to be interrupted from their amusement. Wallace Hartley and his eight-man orchestra often captivated the attention of the passengers with light waltzes and American Rag Time. An electric camel, horse, 16 pianos and a “hospital equipped with an operating room” testified to the extravagant heights White Star Lines had gone to quench the thirst for pleasure and amusement of the rich. She even published her own magazine enroute – “The Atlantic Daily Bulletin”.

The alarming truth is that a fire was burning in number 6 coal bunker when they left Southhampton. In fact there was a near disaster when the Titanic pulled away from port because it displaced such an immense volume of water in such a restricted area that it caused a powerful suction, which combined with an offshore breeze dragged the ship the New York from her berth, snapped her mooring lines and a collision between the two was missed by just a matter of inches! Adding further to the danger, it was discovered after the Titanic was under way that there were no binoculars in the crow’s nest with which to watch and spot danger more easily.

There was a fourth problem. The accounts that I have found set the number of people, in total, from 2,222 to 2,340. There were 20 lifeboats with a capacity of 58 each. That meant there was room for 1,160 if each boat were filled to capacity.

The fifth problem was bad seamanship. Despite all urgent warnings of ice by radio and signal lamp, the Titanic, in hopes of an early arrival in New York harbor, sailed at near top speed of 22 ½ knots, into slushy iceberg infested waters.

On that cloudless, breezeless night of April 14, 1912 with only the stars for light, the Titanic rammed a huge iceberg, which ripped a 300-foot gash into the one side of the “unsinkable” ship. Lady Cosmo Duff Gordon, in her stately room, was awaken by the jolt and was quoted to have said, “It seemed as though somebody had drawn a giant finger along the side of the ship”. Many were so busy the jar went unnoticed.

By 12:10 a.m., April 15, Thomas Andrews, the Chief designer of the Titanic had informed Captain Smith the ship had incurred some serious damage, but there was no need to alarm the people. The crew was notified and ordered to uncover the lifeboats and distribute life vests. Many refused to put on the vests, saying they didn’t want to ruffle their gowns with those dirty vests! John Jacob Astor was asked where his life vest was and he replied, “I didn’t think I needed it”!

At 12.45 a.m. Captain Smith ordered an S.O.S. flair fired but no assistance would come after many firings. The call was given – “To The Life Boats…women and children first” but people had been brainwashed by the pompous publicity – “Unsinkable”, and the cries for the most part were not taken seriously. The truth is that many lifeboats pulled away with only a dozen or so people in them while the capacity was 58. One story has it that people were chipping off hunks of icebergs and having snowball fights on deck.

At 1:30 a.m. a series of explosions turned the dream cruise into a nightmare. People were shocked into the reality of impending disaster. The stampede was on. A few men were said to have disguised themselves as women in an effort to get in the lifeboats.

There were men on the Titanic that day that could have bought it, but in those last moments they did not have enough money to buy a seat in the lifeboat.

Some say 705 lived to tell of the terrible tragedy. The British Government said 1,490 people perished. The British Board of Trade said 1,503 and the U.S. Senate Investigating Committee said 1,517. That figure is probably the most accurate.

Eyewitnesses say that the partings were horrible…children snatched from parents and thrown into lifeboats. Women torn from their husbands by ship stewards and placed screaming into the boats.

One eyewitness said a man was holding his 12-year-old son. Many came and begged him to let the boy loose and put him into the boat. The man tried to push his son away several times but the little boy would not release his grip from his dad.

At 2:40 a.m., April 15, 1912, as the band played the Episcopal Hymn, Autumn: “All against my soul combined, Hold me up in mighty waters, keep my eyes on things above, Righteousness, divine atonement, peace, and everlasting love”, as the Titanic slipped beneath the icy waters, 1,600 miles from New York City, off the Banks of Newfoundland. It came to rest in 16,500 feet of water.

Those drifting in lifeboats heard the calls of those left struggling in the sea. The Third Officer, Herbert Jolin Pitman testified at the Senatorial inquest, after burying his head in his hands and sobbing – “Sir, you asked about the screams…it was just one long, continuous moan!” some lifeboat groups rowed frantically in an effort to get away from the terrible sound. Some tried singing, some plugged their ears, some just rowed.

The “Unsinkable” ship sunk on her maiden voyage, becoming a gigantic gloomy sepulcher for 1,517 people.

SPIRITUAL APPLICATIONS SHOULD BE CONSIDERED

1. “Not even God can sink this ship” was a seaman’s rash remark. Men throughout the ages have endeavored to demonstrate their independence from God and even think themselves equal with God Almighty. The sailor’s remark was a flippant one, probably made in jest. Many today feel they are “above” relying on the Lord. The Bible reminds us, “Pride goeth before destruction, and an haughty spirit before a fall. Better it is to be of an humble spirit with the lowly, than to divide the spoil with the proud.” (Proverbs 16:18-19) I do not believe God sank the Titanic, but I believe He allowed it to happen. We are also reminded, “Be not deceived; God is not mocked: For whatsoever a man soweth that shall he also reap. For he that soweth to his flesh shall of the flesh reap corruption; but he that soweth to the Spirit shall of the Spirit reap life everlasting.” (Galatians 6:7-8) Despite the claims of the designers, builders, owners, captain, crew and news media, that the Titanic was unsinkable, in essence claiming, “Lord, we will care for ourselves, we do not need Your protection or help, we are the masters of our own destiny and captains of our fate”, the ship sank. After all these years the incident is a lamentable and catastrophic reminder to the world that we still need God.

2. There is more to life than luxury. The Titanic had the grandest accommodations. There were none better in the world…tennis courts, bars, ballrooms, dining rooms, gambling dens, an elevator and plush cabin accommodations. Those securely resting in the comfort and luxury of the palatial surroundings found too late that the builders had furnished much for self-gratification and enjoyment in life, but little for saving it. There were 20 lifeboats with a capacity of 58 each on the Titanic. There were no crew members assigned to man the lifeboats in an emergency. The lifeboats contained no provisions, no fresh water, and some had no plugs in the water drains. The Bible says, “But seek ye first the kingdom of God, and his righteousness and all these things shall be added unto you.” (Matthew 6:33) The age in which we live offers many luxuries to strive for and enjoy. Most get an education, get a job, get married, buy a home, have a family and continue to work, striving to acquire enough earthly things and to be set by the time they retire. Then they die. If there has been no “seeking God” their situation is hopeless for all of eternity. They cannot take a single cent to the grave with them. Are you prepared for eternity?

3. The worthlessness of money in the light of eternity. There were men aboard the Titanic who could have bought her. But in those last sinking moments their entire fortunes were not enough to by a seat in a lifeboat. Remember the words of Mark in his gospel – “For, what shall it profit a man, if he shall gain the whole world, and lose his own soul? Or what shall a man give in exchange for his soul:” (Mark 8:36-37)

Friend, if you are without Christ as your personal Saviour, it is like being on the Titanic with no room in the lifeboat. Jesus Christ said, “I am the Way, the Truth and the Life; No man cometh unto the Father but by me.” (John 14:6) “Neither is there salvation in any other: for there is none other name under heaven given among men, whereby we must be saved.” (Acts 4:12) “He that believeth on Him is not condemned: But he that believeth not is condemned already, because he hath not believed in the name of the only begotten Son of God.” (John 3:18) “For whosoever shall call upon the name of the Lord shall be saved.” (Romans 10:13)

Have you ever called on Christ Jesus and asked Him to forgive your sin and come into your life as Saviour? Would you like to? Why not pray this simple prayer of acceptance? “Lord…I know that I am a sinner, and that I deserve to go to Hell, but I now believe that Christ died for me, and now by faith receive Him as my personal Saviour and Lord.”

4. The Alternative…

If you were to die tonight without Christ, what would be your fate? Remember Third Office Pitman’s testimony relating to the sounds as the Titanic slipped to its watery grave – “Sir, it was just one long, continuous moan!” Hell will be like that… “There shall be wailing and gnashing of teeth.” (Matthew 13:42) Do not sink in your sin…Repent of your sin and reach out to the Lord Jesus Christ and be saved.

Ecclesiastes 8:11-13 “Because sentence against an evil work is not executed speedily, therefore the heart of the sons of men is fully set in them to do evil. 12 Though a sinner do evil an hundred times, and his days be prolonged, yet surely I know that it shall be well with them that fear God, which fear before him: 13 But it shall not be well with the wicked, neither shall he prolong his days, which are as a shadow; because he feareth not before God.”

I will begin today’s message by telling you a little bit about the Babylonian Talmud. Let’s begin with the word Talmud (Hebrew: תלמוד). The Talmud is a collection of ancient Rabbinical writings consisting of two parts, the Mishnah and the Gemara, which record the opinions of the Rabbis pertaining to Jewish law, ethics, customs and history. There are two Talmuds: The Palestinian Talmud (c. AD 400) and The Babylonian Talmud, which is more extensive and thus more highly esteemed. So, why am I telling you this? The answer is, there has only been one other time in history when same sex marriage exhisted. As I understand it, according to the Babylonian Talmud, one of the features of society in Noah’s time was same sex marriage.

Why should that concern us? Turn in your Bibles to Matthew 24:36-39 But of that day and hour knoweth no man, no, not the angels of heaven, but my Father only. 37 But as the days of Noe were, so shall also the coming of the Son of man be. 38 For as in the days that were before the flood they were eating and drinking, marrying and giving in marriage, until the day that Noe entered into the ark, 39 And knew not until the flood came, and took them all away; so shall also the coming of the Son of man be.

Turn to the parallel passage in Luke 17:26-27 “And as it was in the days of Noe, so shall it be also in the days of the Son of man. 27 They did eat, they drank, they married wives, they were given in marriage, until the day that Noe entered into the ark, and the flood came, and destroyed them all.”

If there is any doubt in your minds that we are living in the “last days” you should rethink your position! We are walking down the same slippery path that many European countries, Canada and now Mexico have walked down. But…

• How Did We Get Here?

For years, when you thought of family it was a male husband who was the head of his home (Ephesians 5:23). He went to work and was the primary breadwinner. The mother was primarily a “home maker” or housewife (Titus 2:5). The husband protected his wife and his children. In fact, the dad would even watch over a grown daughter until she was given to the man she would marry.

It Began With Promiscuity in the Late 50’s & Early 60’s

All that changed in the 60’s and it had nothing to do with homosexuality. Hugh Hefner came onto the scene promoting his hedonistic, pleasure-oriented, recreational sex philosophy

focused on personal enjoyment, instead of biblical sexual relationships within the confines of marriage and only with your own spouse.

About that time, fornication came out of the closet, fueled by two things. First came the introduction of the birth control pill. Secondly, there was a proliferation of unsupervised, recreational dating. Rock & Roll added fuel to the fire of hormone driven youth and parents abdicated their responsibility to supervise their children. The public school became the focus of young people and not the family or the church. Promiscuity, which had been there all the time, but was subdued and kept in the closet so to speak, came bursting out of the closet big time.

What happened next was the acceptance of heterosexual cohabitation. This is where the accepted definition of the family came under attack and began to change. Larry Vincent of World magazine put it this way – “Cohabitation began shedding its stigma, leading to a revolving door family structure that often left children fatherless and economically deprived.” Then, by the 1970’s we began to commonly hear the phrase, “single parent” families, which usually referred to a mother rearing children without the benefit of marriage and without the presence of the biological father, (though different men were often in and out of the woman’s bedroom).

Here’s how Dr. Erwin Lutzer sums it up in his eye-opening book The Truth About Same-Sex Marriage – “Gradually, the notion of a family with a father, mother and children, all living under the same roof, became something of a relic of a bygone era…” for the most part. Thus, the definition of “family” underwent its first change, and it had nothing to do with the homosexuals. But, the success of fornicating heterosexuals in “freeing” themselves from biblical morality signaled to the homosexual community that it was time for them to break the bands of biblical constraint.

Homosexuality Comes Out of The Closet

Homosexual Activists Marshall Kirk and Hunter Madsen reveal the approach they would follow in “coming out of the closet.” Here’s how they put it — “Almost any behavior begins to look normal if you are exposed to enough of it.”

The homosexual crowd cares nothing about the truth! They will lie if it will advance their cause. But, remember, the Bible is clear. We are all to tell the truth. The 9th of the 10 Commandments tells us that we must not lie, or more specifically we are not to “bear false witness” (Exodus 20:16). Or as Colossians 3:9 says, “Lie not one to another….” However, homosexuals do NOT play by the rules! You cannot believe a thing they say! Eric Pollard, the militant homosexual and founder of ACT-UP, writes that lying was a part of the strategy of homosexual activists. He said Hitler was the model. “By cleaver and persevering use of propaganda, even heaven can be represented as hell to people and conversely, the most wretched life as paradise.” In fact, homosexuals will lie and their sympathizers will swear to it because their goal is to force us to accept their sinful perversion as normal.

I studied psychology as a part of my social science major for an undergraduate degree. I can tell you that when I began attending the University in 1968, homosexuality was classed as psychiatric illness! By 1970 the homosexuals were coming out of the closet. Part of their strategy was to strongly encourage homosexuals to talk about gays and gayness as loudly and as often as possible. Of course this is completely contrary to the Scriptures – Ephesians 5:12 “For it is a shame even to speak of those things which are done of them in secret.”

One of the first targets of the radical homosexuals was the American Psychiatric Association. Every year, for three years, they made a huge ruckus for the purpose of disrupting the APA’s annual meeting. One year one of the radical homosexuals grabbed the microphone and yelled – “Psychiatry is the enemy incarnate. Psychiatry has waged a relentless war of extermination against us. You may take this as a declaration against you.” In 1973 the American Psychiatric Association removed homosexuality from its list of psychiatric illness and reclassified it as normal behavior. It should be noted that this was the first time in the history of the organization that a scientific society ignored scientific data and yielded to the demands of a militant group.

With this victory under their belt, the media soon cooperated with the homosexual strategy. Sitcoms, movies and documentaries were all calculated to make homosexuality took normal. They began to portray themselves as victims and underdogs whose perversion needs special privileges and protections.

A BIG part of the Gay agenda was to make anyone who was anti-gay look nasty. In fact in the book, Unveiling the Gay Agenda, the two homosexual authors write – “We intend to make the anti-gays look so nasty that average Americans will want to disassociate themselves from such types.” The homosexual’s goal is to portray themselves as normal, just another option. Homosexuals Kirk and Madsen say, “It makes no difference that the ads [portraying homosexuals as icons of normality] are lies, not to us….”

Finally, the capstone of the radical homosexual agenda was realized when in 2001, the National Education Association adopted a resolution to indoctrinate school children to accept and affirm homosexual behavior as normal. When word leaked out, the motion was “tabled” but quietly implemented without official member approval.

This is how we got to where we are today.

• The Arguments Homosexuals Use Against Us

Let’s begin with one of the main lies that are being used to convince us that we should accept homosexuality as normal…

I Was Born That Way

Here’s how they present their false argument: “If it can be established that homosexuality is caused genetically rather than a chosen lifestyle, then homosexuality cannot be immoral.”

This reasoning is utterly false. We are all responsible for our behavior, even if we are genetically motivated. No one can say that their genes have rendered them helpless robots, incapable of human choice about their behavior. As Dr. Erwin Lutzer points out, “no matter what influence our genetic makeup has on us, we cannot use this as an excuse for a lack of accountability and responsibility.” Here’s why. We are all born with certain predispositions. Since the Fall of Adam and Eve into sin, we all have a predisposition to sin. We are born sinners! However, even though that is the case, “So then every one of us shall give account of himself to God.” Romans 14:12. God will judge sinners. He expects us to abhor that which is evil and cleave to that which is good (Romans 12:9).

Homosexuality Cannot Be Changed

That is a BIG lie. Pastor Darrow and I went to a conference where two, one time homosexuals, gave testimony how God freed them from homosexuality. Turn in your Bibles to 1 Corinthians 6:9-11 “Know ye not that the unrighteous shall not inherit the kingdom of God? Be not deceived: neither fornicators, nor idolaters, nor adulterers, nor effeminate, nor abusers of themselves with mankind, 10 Nor thieves, nor covetous, nor drunkards, nor revilers, nor extortioners, shall inherit the kingdom of God. 11 And such were some of you: but ye are washed, but ye are sanctified, but ye are justified in the name of the Lord Jesus, and by the Spirit of our God.”

Gay Marriage Is A Matter of Civil Rights

The civil rights movement had to do with people being born black having the same rights as people who are born white. While I do not care much for the Reverend Jesse Jackson, I agree when he points out, “we must unhitch the supposed connection between civil rights and homosexual rights. After all, no black person can abandon his or her blackness, but many people have abandoned their sexual behavior. The “civil rights” argument is bologna!

I Am A Christian and God Accepts My Homosexuality

Some who profess to be Christians claim that they can be in active homosexual relationships with God’s approval. One such alleged “Christian” is Marsha Stevens. She is a practicing homosexual. That is one of the reasons we do not sing her song “For Those Tears I Died” (also, the song is not theologically accurate). One of the reasons I do not allow Gaither songs to be sung here is because he endorsed the homosexual immorality of Marsha Stevens. The Bible is clear, active homosexuals are not saved and will not be in heaven. I refer you back to 1 Corinthians 6:9-11.

Even If You Do Not Accept Homosexuality You Should Tolerate It

That is completely contrary to the teaching of the Bible. I point you first to Psalms 97:10 “Ye that love the LORD, hate evil: he preserveth the souls of his saints; he delivereth them out of the hand of the wicked.” Now turn to Proverbs 8:13 “The fear of the LORD is to hate evil: pride, and arrogancy, and the evil way, and the froward mouth, do I hate.”

While tolerance has emerged as a national value, so to speak, people don’t understand what the original meaning of tolerance was. It meant that people should be free to believe what they wanted to believe. However, today people define it as freedom to do whatever you want to do. Those who preach toleration, demand that we accept all behavior, no matter how demented, immoral, unnatural and bizarre. The homosexual lobby defines tolerance as the requirement to endorse homosexual behavior. You can clearly see their agenda when you see how they went after the Boy Scouts of America because they refused to allow homosexuals to be Scout leaders. It cost the BSA dearly. Let me put it simply for you – What God condemns in His Word, we must NOT tolerate.

In conclusion, I would like to remind you that the family, that is one man married to one woman seeking to have children, is the backbone of any society. Regardless of the homosexuals’ intimidation, we must stand strong for the Biblical Family.

[Resource material for this message came primarily from The Truth About Same-Sex Marriage by Erwin W. Lutzer. You should read this book]

Title for today’s message came from Jeremiah 2. I will begin reading in verse 11 and continue through verse 13 – “Hath a nation changed their gods, which are yet no gods? but my people have changed their glory for that which doth not profit. 12 Be astonished, O ye heavens, at this, and be horribly afraid, be ye very desolate, saith the LORD. 13 For my people have committed two evils; they have forsaken me the fountain of living waters, and hewed them out cisterns, broken cisterns, that can hold no water.” Jeremiah 2:11-13

• Background
  

This is a sobering passage of Scriptures. Let me set the context for you. Jeremiah is rightly called the weeping prophet. He was called to the prophetic ministry when he was just a youth (Jermiah 1:6), during the thirteenth year of Josiah’s reign (626 b.c.). We are told (1:1) that Jeremiah was the son of a priest from Anathoth, three miles northeast of Jerusalem. In 1 Kings 2:26ff. Abiathar the priest is banished to Anathoth and told not to return to Jerusalem because of his part in supporting Adonijah’s attempt to take the kingship. Because of this, Jeremiah was of a priestly stock that was not well received in Jerusalem even centuries later. Jeremiahs ministry then continued until after the destruction of Jerusalem (586 b.c.). The period of Josiah’s reign was the last high point in Judah’s spiritual history. After finding the book of the law, Josiah instituted vast reforms in worship and stamped out idolatry (2 Kings 22; 2 Chronicles 34). Jeremiah was an ally in Josiah’s reforms, though there is no direct mention of this in this book. When Josiah died at the hand of Pharaoh Neco, it was Jeremiah who led the lament for the dead king at the funeral (2 Chronicles 35:25). After Josiah’s death, Judah quickly declined spiritually and materially until it fell to Babylon in 586 b.c. Jeremiah wept over the spiritual decline and prophesied that Jerusalem’s destruction was close at hand. Jeremiah 36:1-3 informs us that God commanded Jeremiah to record the messages that had come to him from the beginning of his ministry (626 b.c.) to that time, which was the fourth year of Jehoiakim (605 b.c.). So Jeremiah dictated the words and Baruch wrote them down (36:4). Since Jeremiah had been banned from the temple, this manuscript was then taken to the temple by Baruch (36:5-8). When the contents were read, one of the king’s officials heard it and reported it to the king. Baruch was summoned to read it before Jehoiakim, who angrily cut up the scroll and burned it piece by piece (36:23): Then God told Jeremiah to rewrite what had been destroyed. So he rewrote the original scroll, making additions as he went (Jeremiah 32). But the writing probably continued for some time, since Jeremiah lived through the days after Jehoiakim to the fall of Jerusalem and beyond. Thus, the book as we know it evidently was written over a period of time ranging from 605 to around 580 b.c.

The greater part of the book describes the dark days in the Kingdom of Judah. It characterizes the backsliding of Judah and the consequences associated with it.

In the verses that I have used as my text, we see that Judah has changed Gods. They had worshipped Jehovah, the glorious God of the Bible. Jehovah had manifested Himself as The Shekinah, or cloud resting by day and pillar of fire resting by night on the Sanctuary. This was the manifestation of “the glory of the Lord.” Turn to 1 Kings 8:11 “So that the priests could not stand to minister because of the cloud: for the glory of the LORD had filled the house of the LORD.” But, the heartbreaking thing is, that the Jews changed their god. We read in Exodus 32:4 “…he [Aaron] received them at their hand, and fashioned it with a graving tool, after he had made it a molten calf: and they said, These be thy gods, O Israel, which brought thee up out of the land of Egypt.” It says in Acts 7:41 “And they made a calf in those days, and offered sacrifice unto the idol, and rejoiced in the works of their own hands.” From the Shekinah Glory to a golden calf; do you see how pathetic that is?

Judah had been corrupted by their heathen neighbors, and they broke the first and second Commandment! Israel had exchanged the prosperity, which was God’s reward of obedience, for the calamities, which resulted from idol-worship. Jeremiah refers to that calamity in chapter 2, verses 12-13 – “Be astonished (stunned), O ye heavens, at this, and be horribly afraid, be ye very desolate (to be wasted or made desolate), saith the LORD. 13 For my people have committed two evils; they have forsaken me the fountain of living waters, and hewed them out cisterns, broken cisterns, that can hold no water.” Jeremiah 2:12-13

Now, perhaps you are puzzled why I have spent so much time recounting the events of Judah to you in this Independence Day message. It is because, AMERICA IS AT THE SAME PLACE JUDHA WAS IN THE DAYS OF JEREMIAH! They have exchanged the triune God of the Bible for the pagan gods of the unsaved nations. They have rejected the glorious God of the Bible and have set up a golden calf. Our nation is far along in the process of abandoning the God that blessed us with prosperity, and gave us living water, and now we are chiseling out cisterns that are cracked and cannot hold water, and the prosperity and blessings leak away.

• Was America Founded As A Christian Nation?
  

Now, there are those who claim America was never a Christian Nation. I disagree. I am not saying that all early Americans were Christians, but I am saying that Biblical Christianity supplied the value system of our Nation. I could cite many thing to support my statement, however time will not allow that, so I will share the following with you. In 1811 the New York State Court, in a ruling by Chief Justice Kent said, “We are Christian people, and the morality of the country in deeply engrafted upon Christianity.” President Andrew Jackson said, “That book (The Bible), sir, is the rock on which our Republic rests.” John Quincy Adams said, “The Bible is the sheet-anchor of our liberties.”

• America IS Changing Gods
  

The famous British Historian Arnold J. Toynbee (1889-1975) said that 19-21 major civilizations that had come and gone since man began to form governments. He said, the American civilization is one of five that remain. He point out that almost all had not been overthrown by some outside aggressors, but by moral and spiritual collapse from the inside.

That brings me to General Douglas MacArthur. As a quick aside, in 1907, while on an engineering assignment in Milwaukee, MacArthur used to live in a Hotel where the Grand Avenue Mall stands today. MacArthur insisted, “History fails to record a single precedent in which nations subject to moral decay have not passed into political and economic decline. There has been either a spiritual awakening to overcome the moral lapse, or a progressive deterioration leading to ultimate national disaster.”

I am the co-editor of a little Gospel paper called Fellowship. It comes out six times per year and has a circulation of about 40,000. I often quote F. B. Meyer. I recently came something Meyer wrote about sensuality and sexual immorality and how it destroys a nation. He wrote, “There is no sin which will sooner bring about a nations fall. If history teaches anything, it teaches that sensual indulgence is the surest way to national ruin. Society, in not condemning this sin condemns itself.”

So, how is the United States of America doing? VERY POORLY! Pornography has permeated our society. In 1973 Americans spent about $10 million on pornography. Today, by some estimates, Americans spend more than $14 Billion on pornographhy. Pornography is considered by many in the investment community to be the new glamour stock of the 21^st century according to an article by Dan Ackman, in Forbes magazine.

Did you know that statisticians estimate that 1 of 3 girls and 1 of 7 boys will be sexually molested by their 18^th birthday in America today? Did you know that and estimated 20% (one in five) Americans suffer from an STD (sexually transmitted disease) and most of these people are 25 years of age or younger?

There’s more. There continues to be 1,400,000 abortions each year (about 45,000,000 since 1972).

And what about the American family? A single parent runs 50% of all American households. 33% of all births in the USA are to single women. Out-of-wedlock childbirth is not just the leading cause of single-parenthood, it is also the number one cause of poverty among women.

And what about homosexuality? 45% of adults in this country believe homosexuality is an “acceptable lifestyle” thanks to the relentless teaching of the public schools and the liberal media. 85% of high school seniors say homosexuality is acceptable and 86% believe the lie that homosexuality is determined at birth. Now the push is on for same-sex marriage.

The people of our Nation are bowing at The Perverse Golden Calf of Sensuality and have thrown off the sexual restraints of God’s morality as revealed in the Bible. The elected leaders of America are forsaking God. The judges of our courts are forsaking God. It is like it was in Isaiah 59:14 “And judgment is turned away backward, and justice standeth afar off: for truth is fallen in the street, and equity cannot enter.” Our public educational system is forsaking God. Pastors in the churches of America are forsaking God just as they were in Jeremiah’s day (Jeremiah 2:8; Jeremiah 10:21; Jeremiah 12:10; Jeremiah 22:22; Jeremiah 23:1-2). There was a day in this nation when the Pastors were the conscience of our Nation. In 1831 renowned French historian and philosopher Alexis De Tocqueville made an extended trip across America. He wrote a book about it called Democracy in America. It was an in-depth analysis of American culture, described as “the greatest book ever written on one country by the citizen of another” (The American People’s Encyclopedia, The Spencer Press, 1954, vol. 18, p. 873). De Tocqueville believed that religion, the Protestant Christian religion, lay behind America’s greatness. He said: “I sought for the key to the greatness and genius of America in her harbors; in her fertile fields and boundless forests; in her rich mines and vast world commerce; in her public school system and institutions of learning. I sought for it in her democratic Congress and her matchless Constitution. Not until I went into the churches of America and heard her pulpits aflame with righteousness did I understand the secret of her genius and power.”

The days when America’s pulpits were “aflame with righteousness” are long gone! Popular Christianity does NOT want pulpits aflame with righteousness. They do not want to hear preaching about sin, immorality, Hell, and the need for holiness. They want to laugh, clap their hands, jive to the music and leave feeling good. And, Pastors are giving the people what they want instead of what they need. Why? Because, I believe America is far down the road of changing gods. America is making the same mistake as the Jews of Judah did – “For my people have committed two evils; they have forsaken me the fountain of living waters, and hewed them out cisterns, broken cisterns, that can hold no water.” America is exchanging prosperity, which is God’s reward of obedience, for the calamities and judgment!

• What Can We Do?
  

Live a holy life – 1 Peter 1:15-16;

Forsake Worldliness – 1 John 2:15-17;

Follow 2 Chronicles 7:14;

Pray For Political Leaders – 1 Timothy 2:1-2

Vote Biblically – Matthew 5:13-14

Romans 13:11-12 “And that, knowing the time, that now it is high time to awake out of sleep: for now is our salvation nearer than when we believed. 12 The night is far spent, the day is at hand: let us therefore cast off the works of darkness, and let us put on the armour of light.”

•  • Introduction

The DA Vinci Code is the wildly popular fiction novel by Dan Brown. To date, the book has sold 43 million copies and has been translated into 40 different languages. The movie, based on the book has proven to be a blockbuster as well.

• Overview

The book opens with the discovery of a murdered Louvre curator, who is found naked with a five-pointed star, a pentagram, carved on his stomach.

For those of you who are unfamiliar with the plot of this novel we offer you the following summary which is found on the flyleaf of the book –

 While in Paris on business, Harvard symbologist Robert Langdon receives an urgent late-night phone call. The elderly curator of the Louvre has been murdered inside the museum, a baffling cipher found near the body. As Langdon and a gifted French cryptologist, Sophie Neveu, sort through the bizarre riddles, they are stunned to discover a trail of clues hidden in the works of Da Vinci – clues visible for all to see and yet ingeniously disguised by the painter.

The stakes are raised when Langdon uncovers a startling link: The late curator was involved in the Priory of Sion – an actual secret society whose members included Sir Isaac Newton, Botticelli, Victor Hugo, and Da Vinci, among others. Langdon suspects they are on a hunt for a breathtaking historical secret, one that has proven through the centuries to be as enlightening as it is dangerous. In a frantic race through Paris, and beyond, Langdon and Neveu find themselves matching wits with a faceless powerbroker who appears to anticipate their every move. Unless they can decipher the labyrinthine puzzle, the Priory’s secret – and an explosive ancient truth – will be lost forever.

As you read, The Da Vinci Code weaves a tangled conspiracy web and most everybody loves a conspiracy. The book that is neck deep in murder, intrigue, mystery, hidden treasure, clandestine secrets, sensual rituals, secret codes and more. However, Dan Brown, the author, has another agenda and that is to attack Jesus Christ, the Church, Christianity, and those, like myself, who identify themselves as Christians. But, why should we even be worried about this book? First, author Dan Brown was recently named as one of the World’s 100 Most Influential People by Time Magazine. The Da Vinci Code book and movie is influencing people. Here are some of the assertions made in the book –

Almost everything we have been taught about Christ is false

The recognition of Jesus as God was the result of a close vote

Leonardo Da Vinci was a Grand Master of a secret society, the Priory of Sion

His painting of the Last Supper reveals that Christ was married to Mary Magdalene

Historical records assert that Jesus and Mary Magdalene were married

Mary Magdalene is the Holy Grail

The Bible is the product of man not God & was put together by Constantine

The New Testament is a false testimony

80 Gospels were considered for a place in the New Testament.

Early Jews and Christians worshipped through sex, for sex is a mystical spiritual act.

The deity of Christ was established by a close vote

The Gnostic Gospels are the earliest Christian record

Jesus was the original feminist and intended His church to be headed by Mary Magdalene

Early Jews believed that the Holy of Holies of Solomon’s Temple housed not only God but also His female equal, Shekinah

• Breaking The Code & Exposing The Lie That The Book Is Based On Fact

Is the book fact or fiction? To be sure, it is catalogued as a fiction work, but as Timothy P. Jones says, “If the book’s claims were only treated as fictional, there probably wouldn’t be so much interest. However, the author of The Da Vinci Code doesn’t view his work as pure fiction.” (Answers to The DA Vinci Code; Rose Publishing; p.1). Is Jones correct in his evaluation? Yes, I think he is and here’s why. On page 1 of The DA Vinci Code we read these words –

F A C T :

The Priory of Sion – a European secret society founded in 1099—is a real organization.

In 1975 Paris’s Bibliothèque Nationale Discovered parchments known as Les Dossiers Secrets, identifying numerous Members of the Priory of Sion, including Sir Isaac Newton, Boticelli, Victor Hugo, And Leonardo da Vinci…

All descriptions of artwork, architecture, documents, and secret rituals in this novel are accurate. (Hard back edition of The Da Vinci Code; by Dan Brown; p.1)

The author, Dan Brown, would have you believe his fiction novel, The Da Vinci Code, is actually based on facts. He has purposely gone about to blur the lines between fact and fiction. Consider his interview with Matt Lauer, on The Today Show, June 9, 2003.

Matt asked Dan Brown, “How much of this book is this based on reality in terms of things that actually occurred?”

Dan Brown answered, “Absolutely all of it. Obviously, Robert Langdon is fictional, but all of the art, architecture, secret rituals, secret societies—all of this is fact.”

The New York Daily News said of his book The Da Vinci Code, “His research is impeccable.” (http://www.danbrown.com).

In light of the “FACT” declaration on the opening page, and the author’s very public assertions that the book is “Absolutely” based on fact, many people believe the book and movie are based on facts. However, I contend that The Da Vinci Code is a cunningly devised fable.

Before we expose the more significant deceitful fabrications of the book I want to…

˜ Expose A Few of the Inaccuracies In the Descriptions of the Alleged “Accurate” Artwork & Architecture” In the Book

The book says that the Louvre’s Glass Pyramid (designed by MIT & Harvard educated Ieoh Ming Pei and added to the entrance of the Louvre Museum in 1989) was “at President Mitterand’s explicit demand, [and] had been constructed of exactly 666 panes of glass….” (Hard back edition of The Da Vinci Code; by Dan Brown; p.21; hereafter D.C.) However, on a recent visit to the Louvre, I discovered that their own count is 673 panes of glass NOT exactly 666 panes of glass as the book says! 

Next we come to the painting the book identifies as Madonna of the Rocks (DC p.134). The actual name of this Da Vinci painting is Virgin of The Rocks. The book says it hangs in a side room of the Louvre called the Salle des Etats (DC p. 131). In fact, it actually hangs in the Grand Gallery Hallway! Again, in the book we see that Sophie Neveu is looking at the painting described as 5 feet tall. Let me accurately describe the painting for you. It is much larger than that – 6 feet 5 inches tall. It is in a massive wooden frame behind glass. It is estimated the painting weight at least 200 pounds. That is something you should note because on page 133 of The Da Vinci Code, Sophie lifts it off the wall. She must have been quite some muscle-bound babe to lift a 200 pound painting off the wall.

One final example of the inaccuracies in art come in the book’s description of Da Vinci’s The Last Supper. Leigh Teabing refers to the painting as a fresco on page 243-244. That is most definitely an error on the author’s part. If the painting had been a fresco, it would have lasted through the years and would have been clearly visible. The painting was a tempera painting and not a fresco! It was something Da Vinci was experimenting with. Tempra was a mixture of egg yolk and vinegar mixed with oil and then painted on dry plaster. The experiment was a disaster! The painting was completed in 1497-99. By 1568 painter-architect Giorgio Vassar said the painting was “so badly preserved that one can only see a muddle of blots.” By 1642, when Dr. Francesco Scannelli went to see the painting he reported “that it was in such a blurred state that it was difficult to make out the well known subject of the picture.”

What is the difference between a fresco and a tempera painting? Here is how a fresco is made. When the plaster is wet, paint is put on the wet plaster which intermingles with the plaster. When the plaster dries the color is permanent. The problem with a fresco: only a limited number of colors can be used, the painting cannot be retouched and when the plaster dries you have a permanent, unchangeable painting. Then, there is the tempera. Leonardo wanted to experiment with a new style he had invented – tempera (egg yolk and vinegar) plus oil painting ON dry plaster. That way he could use more colors and redo portions if necessary. This new style of painting turned out to be a disaster. One artist described it this way – “The paint almost immediately began falling off the plaster. The humidity was causing the paint to separate from the plaster on which it had been painted. Whole pieces of paint fell off the wall. Over the years, the piece has been vandalized and nearly fell apart completely.”

Upon close examination, the “FACTS” of the Da Vinci Code crumble! Let’s look at some of the more important facts.

• Breaking The Code & Exposing The Lie Of The Origin And Nature Of The Priory of Sion

The cornerstone of the entire story is a secret society called The Priory of Sion. The book claims that it was established in 1099 AD. The book gets its name from Brown’s claim that Leonardo Da Vinci was one of the Grand Masters of The Priory of Sion. The objective of this clandestine organization was to protect the “truth” that Jesus and Mary Magdalene were married and had a child together. To aviod the wrath of the Roman Catholic Church The Priory would hide their secret in paintings, encrypted writings and architecture.

But, there is a BIG PROBLEM! There was no secret society called The Priory of Sion founded in 1099 AD. There was a medieval order of monks called The Order of Sion. Here is what Answers.com says about this order –

“The Order of Sion was a medieval order of canons which, according to a papal bull of the 12th century, had abbeys on Mount Sion in Jerusalem, on Mount Carmel, in Southern Italy (Calabria), and in France. The Order occupied its ‘mother’ abbey, the Abbey de Notre Dame du Mont Sion, built on the foundations of the original apostolic Cenacle, or Coenaculum, traditionally assumed to be the location of the Last Supper. The abbey was maintained up until c1291, when it fell to the Muslims. Supposed connections with the Priory of Sion are now believed to be an hoax perpetrated in the 1960s in France.”

In my research, here is what I have uncovered. Historically, the Priory of Sion was founded in 1956 not 1099. Paul Smith records this —

“The President of the 1956 Priory of Sion was André Bonhomme. André Bonhomme was one of the four founding members of the Priory of Sion in Annemasse in 1956, along with Pierre Plantard. He is tired of being harassed by inquiries about the nature of the association and doesn’t want any publicity – he refuses to be interviewed on television or on radio. He doesn’t understand where people get the idea that the Priory was anything other than what it was – just a small club of friends.” In reality the society was created to lobby for low cost housing in that area of France. (see registration below).

 

(the perceeding documents are from — http://priory-of-sion.com/psp/posd/regdoc.html)

This was the statement André Bonhomme made to the BBC in 1996: “The Priory of Sion doesn’t exist anymore. We were never involved in any activities of a political nature. It was four friends who came together to have fun. We called ourselves the Priory of Sion because there was a mountain by the same name close-by. I haven’t seen Pierre Plantard in over 20 years and I don’t know what he’s up to but he always had a great imagination. I don’t know why people try to make such a big thing out of nothing.“ (see http://priory-of-sion.com/psp/id43.html).

Then there is information from the BBC 2 Timewatch documentary The History of a Mystery (1996):

“There’s no evidence for a Priory of Sion until the 1950s; to find it, you go to the little town of St-Julien. Under French Law every new club or association must register itself with the Authorities, and that’s why there’s a dossier here showing that a Priory of Sion filed the proper forms in 1956. According to a founding member, this eccentric association took its name not from Jerusalem, but from a nearby mountain (Col du Mont Sion Alt. 786 m). The dossier also notes that the Priory’s self-styled Grand Master Pierre Plantard, who is central to this story, has done time in jail.“

You should know about the character of Pierre Plantard. He “was a lifelong charlatan and confidence trickster – his 1937-1954 activities involving confidence trickery, anti-semitic and anti-masonic activities are provided in File Ga P7 which is available for public inspection at the Paris Prefecture of Police, 9 Boulevard du Palais, 75195 Paris (Monsieur Claude Charlot, is the Director of Museum Archives of the Bureau of Associations at the Paris Prefecture of Police, for written enquiries).” (http://priory-of-sion.com).

Indeed French anti-Semite, and jail bird, Pierre Plantard had a “great imagination” and got himself into trouble with it. He spent six months jail in 1953 for fraud and embezzlement or as the official record reads, a ‘breach of trust.’

The Priory of Sion disbanded sometime after August 1956 when Plantard served another time in prison between December 1956 and December 1957 over allegations relating to “corruption of minors.” But Plantard held on to the name The Priory of Sion. Throughout the 1960s and 1970s, Plantard put together a number of bogus documents which “proved” the Jesus–Mary Magdalene theory, with French royalty being their descendants. Plantard claimed that he himself was one of the descendents of Jesus and Mary Magdalene. These bogus documents, alleged to be ancient parchments were called Les Dossiers Secrets. These documents are nothing but a forgery penned in the 1960s and secretly deposited in the Paris Library. While under oath, the judge asked Plantard about these documents about Jesus and Mary Magdalene, and he admitted he made the whole thing up. An associate of Plantard’s conceded that Plantard made the whole thing up. All this has been thoroughly documented by several French books and a BBC special.

My point is simply this. The The Priory of Sion, which is the cornerstone of Brown’s book, is a hoax! The Jesus – Mary Magdalene theory that is the premise of the whole book is a HOAX. It is FALSE, BOGUS, and PHONY. (For more specifics get the book Cracking The Da Vinci’s Code by Garlow and Jones published by Cook Communications).

Now, just in case you do not believe me, consider what Glenn Whipp of the Los Angeles Daily News writes, “The experts say: The Priory, a repository of all manner of conspiracy theories, was a hoax created in 1956 by French anti-Semite Pierre Plantard.” (quote from The ChronicleHerald.ca, May 17, 2006; Halfax, Nova Scotia).

Upon breaking the code we see, despite Brown’s claim, The Priory of Sion, was not a real organization founded in 1099 AD. Neither was it formed to guard the Jesus-Mary Magdalene marriage theory. It was a very small organization of friends founded in 1956 to lobby for low cost housing.

• Breaking The Code & Exposing The Lie That Jesus Was Married To Mary Magdalene

On page 244 and again on page 245 of The Da Vinci Code we read, “the marriage of Jesus and Mary Magdalene is a part of the historical record.”

Let’s consider what the New Testament has to say about Jesus being married…………………………………!

There is a deafening silence on the subject. The New Testament mentions absolutely nothing. Certainly Paul would have cited the marriage of Jesus as his number one illustration, if it were so, when he defends the right of Apostles to be married in 1 Corinthians 9:5 “Have we not power to lead about a sister, a wife, as well as other apostles, and as the brethren of the Lord, and Cephas?” But, neither he, nor any other New Testament writer mentions or alludes to it.

So, since the New Testament does not mention the marriage what does The Da Vinci Code mean when it says, Jesus’ marriage to Mary Magdalene was “a matter of historical record.” (DVC, p. 244). What is this “historical record” that is being referred to? 

This assertion is made based on a passage from the Gnostic Gospel of Phillip which was written some time between 200 and 350 AD. While we will look at “Christian” Gnosticism later in this article, you should know that scholars disregard the Gnostic gospels as “not genuine, spurious and counterfeit.”

Here is the supposed quote from the gospel of Philip as it is given in The Da Vinci Code –

“And the companion of the Savior is Mary Magdalene. Christ loved her more than all the disciples and used to kiss her often on her mouth.” (DVC, 246)

“As any Aramaic scholar will tell you, the word companion, in those days, literally meant spouse.” (DVC, 246)

Let’s take a look at what the gospel of Philip really says –

“and the companion of the [ ?? ] Mary Magdalene [ loved? ] her more than [ all? ] the disciples [ and used to? ] kiss her [ often? ] on her [ ?? ].” gospel of Philip 63:33-36.

This is really what the gospel of Philip says! Why all the blanks? It is because segments of the original manuscript were damaged, including this portion as you can see from the picture I have included.

But, what about the word “companion“ that is said to mean “spouse” in Aramaic? This is almost laughable because the gospel of Philip was NOT written in Aramaic, but rather in Coptic (an Egyptian language written in Greek letters as a result of Hellenization). The Coptic gospel of Philip, found at Nag Hammadi, uses the coined Greek word koinwnov – koinonos which is rightly translated “companion.” Of the 10 times it is used in the New Testament, not once does it refer to marriage or sexual relationships. In fact, Luke uses this term to describe James and John as Peter’s business partners – “And so was also James, and John, the sons of Zebedee, which were partners with Simon. And Jesus said unto Simon, Fear not; from henceforth thou shalt catch men.” Luke 5:10

For the record, the common word for “wife” in the New Testament is gunh – gune. Teabing’s claim, the statement that Mary was Jesus’ companion, does not at all prove that she was His wife.

I have broken the code! It is NOT a matter of historical record that Jesus and Mary Magdalene were married. In fact, The Da Vinci Code invents a marriage between the two.

• Breaking The Code & Exposing The Lie That Jesus Was Only A Man and Not God

The Da Vinci Code claims that Jesus was merely a “mortal prophet” and that “Constantine upgraded Jesus’ status to being divine in 325 AD at the Council of Nicaea. Here are some quotes from the book.

“Jesus was a historical figure of staggering influence…” DVC p.231

“Jesus was viewed by His followers as a mortal prophet…a great and powerful man, but a man none the less. A mortal.” DVC p.233

“Jesus’ establishment as the ‘Son of God’ was officially proposed and voted on by the Council of Nicea.” Sophie asks, “You’re saying Jesus’ divinity was the result of a vote?” Teabing aswers, “A relatively close vote at that.”

“Many scholars claim that the early Church literally stole Jesus from His original followers, hijacking his human message, shrouding it in an impenetrable cloak of divinity and using it to expand their own power.” DVC p.233

“Constantine upgraded Jesus’ status almost four centuries after Jesus’ death.” DVC p.234

“Thousands of documents already existed chronicling His life as a mortal man.” DVC p.234

“Almost everything our fathers taught us about Christ is false.” DVC p.235

Let me break the code concerning Jesus Christ as He is presented in this book. Noted scholar J.N.D. Kelly writes in his book Early Christian Doctrines, that “the universal Christian conviction in the centuries prior to the Council of Nicea, had been that Jesus Christ was divine as well as human.” (The Da Vinci Hoax; Carl E. Olson and Sandra Miesel). He is right. John the Apostle clearly believed that Christ was divine, the Son of God and God the Son – John 1:1 “In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. 14 And the Word was made 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.” Further, John records for us the declaration of Jesus declaring Himself to be God – John 10:30 “I and my Father are one.” Finally, 1 John 4:9 “In this was manifested the love of God toward us, because that God sent his only begotten Son into the world, that we might live through him.”

Then there is Paul. He wrote in his letter to the Colossians “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. 9 For in him dwelleth all the fulness of the Godhead bodily.” Colossians 2:8-9 There is another great Pauline passage – 1 Timothy 3:16 “And without controversy great is the mystery of godliness: God was manifest in the flesh, justified in the Spirit, seen of angels, preached unto the Gentiles, believed on in the world, received up into glory.”

I also want to point out that the early church leaders believed Jesus was divine. “Ignatius believed Jesus was God manifest ‘in human form.” Clement, Justin Martyr, Irenaeus, Tertullian, Origin, Novatian, and Cyprian all believed Jesus was God.” (A Dictionary of Early Christian Beliefs; David Bercot, ed., pp. 93-100)

Let me be more specific. In 110 AD, Ignatius of Antioch wrote, “There is One God who manifests himself through Jesus Christ his son.” I want to point out that he wrote more than 200 years before the Council of Nicaea.

Justin Martyr said Christ was “the son and the apostle of God the Father and master of us all.”

Irenaeus of Lyons wrote in 177 AD, “all distinctions between the Father and the Son vanish, for the one God made all things through His Word.

Do you want to know what is ironic about this whole claim that Jesus was not considered to be God until the Council of Nicaea in 325 AD. The demons are smarter than the author of The Da Vinci Code because they KNOW that Jesus is divine. They know that He is the Son of God – “And unclean spirits, when they saw him, fell down before him, and cried, saying, Thou art the Son of God.” Mark 3:11 (Also see Matthew 8:29; Mark 1:24; Luke 4:41).

Let me set the record straight! The “followers of Jesus from AD 30 on, believed that Jesus was uniquely God.” (Answers To The Da Vinci Code, Rose Publishing). In fact, the Council of Nicaea in 325 AD neither needed to define nor did define that Jesus, the Son of God, was divine. That was accepted by virtually all Christians. What they did address was the exact relationship between the Son and the Father – Were the Father and Son equal? Were They two persons? Were They one substance? The reason they needed to answer these questions is because around 320 AD Arius, a North African pastor insisted that Jesus, the Son of God was a lesser god, created by God the Father and therefore not God in human flesh and not eternally existent. 318 Church leaders gathered in Nicaea and summarized their commitment to the belief that Christians had held from the beginning, that Jesus Christ was uniquely God. The document is called the Nicene Creed –

Πιστεύομεν εις ΄ενα Θεον Πατερα παντοκράτορα, πάντων ορατων τε και αοράτων ποιητήν.

Πιστεύομεν εισ ΄ενα κύριον `Ιησουν Χριστον, τον υ΄ιον του θεου, γεννηζέντα εκ του πατρος μονογενη, τουτέστιν εκ της ουσίας του πατρός, θεον εκ θεου αληθινου, γεννηθέντα, ου ποιηθέντα, ΄ομοούσιον τωι πατρί δι οϋ τα πάντα εγένετο, τα τε εν τωι ουρανωι και τα επι της γης τον δι ΄ημας τους ανθρώπους και δα την ΄ημετέραν σωτηρίαν κατελθόντα και σαρκωθέντα και ενανθρωπήσαντα, παθόντα, και αναστάντα τηι τριτηι ΄ημέραι, και ανελθοντα εις τους οθρανούς, και ερχόμενον κριναι ζωντασ και νεκρούς.

Και εις το ΄Αγιον Πνευμα.
Τους δε λέγοντας, ΄οτι ΄ην ποτε ΄ότε οθκ ΄ην, και πριν γεννηθηναι ουκ ΄ην, και ΄οτι εξ ΄ετερας ΄υποστάσεως η ουσιας φάσκοντας ειναι, [η κτιστόν,] τρεπτον η αλλοιωτον τον υ΄ιον του θεου, [τούτους] αναθεματίζει ΄η καθολικη [και αποστολικη] εκκλησία.

“We believe in one God the Father Almighty, Maker of all things visible and invisible; and in one Lord Jesus Christ, the only begotten of the Father, that is, of the substance of the Father, God of God, light of light, true God of true God, begotten not made, of the same substance with the Father, through whom all things were made both in heaven and on earth; who for us men and our salvation descended, was incarnate, and was made man, suffered and rose again the third day, ascended into heaven and cometh to judge the living and the dead. And in the Holy Ghost. Those who say: There was a time when He was not, and He was not before He was begotten; and that He was made our of nothing; or who maintain that He is of another hypostasis or another substance [than the Father], or that the Son of God is created, or mutable, or subject to change, [them] the Catholic Church anathematizes.”

If you will carefully look at the Greek text of the Creed, you will see the underlined word ΄ομοούσιον – homoousion, which means one and the same. Athanasius had advised the Council to use that word because it meant Jesus had the very same nature as the Father. The Council agreed. Out of the 318 preachers who attended the conference only 5 protested the creed, and when the Creed was finally signed on July 25, 325 AD, all signed it except 2, and Arius.

I have Broken The Code for you. The Council of Nicaea did not upgrade the status of Jesus to divinity as the book alleges. It merely reaffirmed what had been taught in the Church since its founding – Jesus Christ is “true God of true God.”

• Breaking The Code & Exposing The Lie That The Bible Is False And Merely The Product of Man

In his book, Dan Brown attacks the inspiration, canonicity and preservation of the Holy Scriptures. In The Da Vinci Code the following statements are made –

“The Bible is a product of man…not of God. The Bible did not fall magically from the clouds. Man created it….” DVC p. 231

“The Bible did not arrive by fax from heaven.” DVC p. 231

“…the New Testament is false testimony.” DVC p. 341

“…the New Testament is based on fabrications.” DVC p. 341

What Brown writes in his novel, about the Bible, is a LIE! Turn with me to 2 Timothy 3:16 – The Greek reads, pasa grafh yeopneustov kai wfelimov prov didaskalian prov elegcon prov epanorywsin prov paideian thn en dikaiosunh. The English reads, “All scripture is given by inspiration of God, and is profitable for doctrine, for reproof, for correction, for instruction in righteousness:” Note the phrase “inspiration of God,” one word in the Greek – yeopneustov. The Greek word means God–breathed. The Bible is not the product of man but it was breathed out by God. Turn with me to 2 Peter 1:20-21 “Knowing this first, that no prophecy of the scripture is of any private interpretation. 21 For the prophecy came not in old time by the will of man: but holy men of God spake as they were moved by the Holy Ghost.” This verse teaches that Scripture is not the product of man’s opinions, but God’s, through the operation of the Holy Ghost.

It is clear that the writers of the New Testament knew that what they were writing was inspired of God! Turn in your Bibles to — 1 Corinthians 2:13-14 “Which things also we speak, not in the words which man’s wisdom teacheth, but which the Holy Ghost teacheth; comparing spiritual things with spiritual. 14 But the natural man receiveth not the things of the Spirit of God: for they are foolishness unto him: neither can he know them, because they are spiritually discerned.”

It is Dan Brown’s work that is based on fabrications, NOT the Bible. A good deal of the New Testament is based on eye witness accounts. Consider

“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 eyewitnesses of his majesty. 17 For he received from God the Father honour and glory, when there came such a voice to him from the excellent glory, This is my beloved Son, in whom I am well pleased. 18 And this voice which came from heaven we heard, when we were with him in the holy mount.” Let’s add to that 1 John 1:1 “That which was from the beginning, which we have heard, which we have seen with our eyes, which we have looked upon, and our hands have handled, of the Word of life;”

We have broken the code again! It is Dan Brown’s The Da Vinci Code, while claiming to be based on fact, is not fact at all. It is filled with fabrications, false testimony, deceit and out and out lies.

• Breaking The Code & Exposing The Lie that Matthew, Mark, Luke & John Were The 4^th Century Additions of Constantine

“Any gospels that described earthly aspects of Jesus’ life had been omitted from the Bible.” DVC p.244

These are photos of the Nag Hammadi and Dead Sea scrolls…the earliest Christian records…these unaltered gospels. DVC p.245 & 248

“Constantine commissioned and financed a new Bible, which omitted those gospels that spoke of Christ’s human traits and embellished those gospels that made Him godlike.” DVC p.234

“… More than eighty gospels were considered for the New Testament, and yet only a relative few were chosen for inclusion—Matthew, Mark, Luke, and John among them.” DVC p.231

“The Bible, as we know it today, was collated by the pagan Roman Emperor Constantine the Great.” DVC p.231

I am one of the associate curators of a Bible museum. Our museum has actual fragments from the Dead Sea Scrolls. I have spent multiplied hours studying the Dead Sea Scroll find and I can tell you with certainty that none of the documents found in the caves above the Dead Sea have anything to do with Christianity.

On page 234 of The Da Vinci Code , Brown’s scholarly character British Historian, Sir Leigh Teabing, claims that the Vatican blocked the release of the Dead Sea Scrolls because the scrolls revealed “glaring historical discrepancies and fabrications” in the Bible. These errors are alleged to expose the hidden political agenda behind the Modern Bible – which was to promote the divinity of Jesus and thus secure Constantine’s power base.

The Dead Sea Scrolls, however, were mostly written before Jesus was even born. They contain no New Testament writings and do not even mention Jesus or the early Christians. They are not Christian writings; they are Jewish writings believed sacred by Christians. Not one of the 18,000 Dead Sea Scroll fragments recovered either supports or even addresses what the novel claims. Further, It is hard to believe that Jewish scholars (or even atheistic scholars for that matter) would have participated in a cover-up to protect Christianity.

Next, we come to the documents found at Nag Hammadi, Egypt, which the book characterizes as “the earliest Christian records” of “these unaltered gospels.”

Inside an earthenware jar they found thirteen leather-bound volumes containing fifty-two treatises. The books included two Gnostic Gospels, the Gospel of Thomas and Philip. They also found the Acts of Peter and the Twelve Apostles, A letter of Peter to Philip and the Apocalypse of Peter and Paul. In his book The Gnostic Discoveries, Marvin Meyer makes it clear all of the writings were Gnostic in nature, and they were all written in Coptic. Now, there is another important fact you need to know. The Nag Hammadi texts were all written in the second and third centuries AD. In The Da Vinci Code, Teabing claims that the Nag Hammadi texts are “the earliest Christian records DVC p.245. The truth is that every book in the New Testament was written in the first century AD! In fact, Gnostic beliefs did not begin to be mixed with Christianity until about 150 AD and so-called Christian Gnostic sects virtually disappeared by the 6th century. The only known exception was the Mandaean sect of Iran/Iraq.

There is also something further I should draw to your attention. Scholars disregard the Gnostic gospels as not genuine, spurious, counterfeit.

Here are some facts that you should know about Christian Gnosticism –

The name Gnostic comes from the Greek Word gnosis, meaning knowledge. Gnosticism was made up of elements taken from many syncretistic belief systems. They combined elements taken from Babylonian, Egyptian, Asian, Greek and Syrian pagan religions. Other elements came from astrology and Judaism and later Christianity. There is a broad range of beliefs among Gnostic systems.

Peter Jones, professor of New Testament at Westminster Seminary California and director of Christian Witness to a Pagan Planet says this about Gnosticism –

“Gnosticism is formed from the Greek term gnosis meaning knowledge, but it means here a particular form of knowledge, namely ‘spiritual experience.” Like all pagan spirituality, so-called ‘Christian’ Gnosticism engages in ‘sacred technologies’ (occult meditations, chanting mantras, drumming, etc.) to access the higher, spiritual self, the self that is part of God. In this essentially out-of-body experience, all physical and this-worldly restraints, like rational thinking and a sense of specific gender, fall away. In a word, the experience of ‘enlightenment’ is both the rejection of the goodness of the physical creation and an acquisition of the knowledge of the divinity of the human soul.”

Basically, Gnostics see the human soul as divine. You look within for God.

There was no consensus on a Gnostic canon of scriptures. Gnostic groups had no scruples about rewriting and adapting other religions sacred writings to fit their fancy. Many of their own works were circulated in different versions. Various sects had their own preferred rendition. Further, Gnostic groups had no unified doctrinal statement within Gnostic groups. In fact, the Nag Hummadi find revealed that a variety of different beliefs existed among different groups and individuals. For instance, some taught celibacy and others did not.

Let’s take a look at some of the generally held beliefs of Gnostic groups:

Salvation is by learning and understanding secret knowledge. Gnostics were exclusivists, teaching that they alone understood the teachings of Christ. They also taught that the Supreme God of Truth is unknowable.

Gnostics also taught that the Supreme God created a number of supernatural, but finite beings called Aeons. A virgin Aeon named Sophia, gave birth to the inferior Creator-God Demiurge who is know as Jehovah. Gnostics viewed Jehovah as evil, arrogant and incompetent. They believe that “the Serpent of Genesis spoke truth and the God of Genesis was a blind and evil liar. Thus Eve was a heroine and Adam a wimp who quickly converted to the ‘truth’” (Onward Gnostic Soldiers; May 20 World, Peter Jones)

These Gnostics believed that the physical world, matter and the human body were evil. However, trapped within people was a spark of divinity that needed to be released.

Jesus Christ was looked upon as a revealer of knowledge and a liberator telling them how they could be free of Demiurge’s control and return to their spiritual home with the Supreme God at death.

My point in telling you all of this is to make you aware that Dan Brown’s novel, The Da Vinci Code is a Gnostic novel. Gene Edward Veith correctly pointed this out in his article The Da Vinci Phenomenon in the May 20^th edition of World Magazine. He says, “The Da Vinci Code is at the forefront of a Gnostic revival….Mr. Brown and his modern-day bestseller-turned-blockbuster resurrect that ancient heresy. Religion here has to do with secret knowledge. Spirituality is unrelated to what one does with one’s body. Religion is a construction that exists primarily in one’s head.”

It is clear; The Da Vinci Code preaches another Jesus and a false Gospel. The Apostle Paul in his letter to the Galatians had poignant words for those who advocate such lies – “I marvel that ye are so soon removed from him that called you into the grace of Christ unto another gospel: 7 Which is not another; but there be some that trouble you, and would pervert the gospel of Christ. 8 But though we, or an angel from heaven, preach any other gospel unto you than that which we have preached unto you, let him be accursed. 9 As we said before, so say I now again, If any man preach any other gospel unto you than that ye have received, let him be accursed.” Galatians 1:6-9

Let us move on to Brown’s statements – “…

More than eighty gospels were considered for the New Testament, and yet only a relative few were chosen for inclusion—Matthew, Mark, Luke, and John among them.” DVC p.231

“The Bible, as we know it today, was collated by the pagan Roman Emperor Constantine the Great.” DVC p.231

You do not even need to do a deep study of the canonicity of the New Testament to discover that Matthew, Mark, Luke and John were recognized from the very beginning as the authoritative accounts of the life and ministry of Jesus Christ. The Four Gospels of our New Testament were written between AD 40-90. The Gnostic Gospels were written in the mid 100’s to 400 AD.

In fact, by the mid-100’s, at about the time the earliest texts found at Nag Hammadi were being written, Iraneaus wrote in his work Against Heresy – “Since there are four quarters of the earth,…it is fitting that the church should have four pillars,…the four Gospels.” I should also tell you that I have an exact facsimile of a fragment of the Gospel of John, chapter 18. It is known as P52. It was found in Egypt and has been dated at around 125 AD, which indicates that the Gospel of John was in wide circulation by then.

The books of the New Testament were already settled, long before the 325 AD Council of Nicaea. The Gnostic gospels emerged later, and therefore are too late to be counted. And, there were NOT 80 other “Gospels” circulating at the time Matthew, Mark, Luke and John had been accepted by the church. Even if you consider the other false gospels circulating at a later date, there are only twelve and the true Gospels had already been accepted by the end of the first century. The other false gospels were clearly NOT “inspired Scripture.”

The four gospels in our present Bible were chosen for good reason. First, early in church history, four centers of Christianity emerged: Jerusalem, Antioch, Alexander, and Rome. These centers of Christianity used the four gospels in our present Bible.

Christian leaders who lived between A.D. 95 and 170 consistently point to the reliability of the New Testament Gospels. Following is a sampling.

1. Clement. Clement was a leading elder in the church at Rome. In his epistle to the Corinthians (c. A.D. 95), he cites portions of Matthew, Mark, and Luke, and introduces them as the actual words of Jesus.

2. Papias. Papias, the bishop of Hierapolis in Phrygia and author of Exposition of Oracles of the Lord (c. A.D. 130), cites the Gospels of Matthew, Mark, Luke, and John, presumably as canonical. He specifically refers to John’s Gospel as containing the words of Jesus.

3. Justin Martyr. Justin Martyr, foremost apologist of the second century (A.D. 140), considered all four Gospels to be Scripture.
4. The Didache. The Didache, an ancient manual of Christianity that dates between the end of the first century and the beginning of the second century, cites portions of the three synoptic Gospels and refers to them as the words of Jesus. This manual quotes extensively from Matthew’s gospel.

5. Polycarp. Polycarp, a disciple of the apostle John, quotes portions of Matthew, Mark, and Luke, and refers to them as the words of Jesus (c. A.D. 150).

6. Irenaeus. Irenaeus, a disciple of Polycarp (c. A.D. 170), quoted from twenty–three of the twenty–seven New Testament books, omitting only Philemon, James, 2 Peter, and 3 John.

7. The Muratorian Fragment dates to about A.D. 175, and lists the four canonical gospels. Indeed, it lists 23 of the 27 books in the New Testament.

8. Papyrus 45, dated around A.D. 200, has all four canonical gospels together.

Clearly, there are many early sources dating between A.D. 95 and 150 that refer to Matthew, Mark, Luke, and John as containing the actual words of Christ. History is therefore on the side of the New Testament Gospels.

Dr. Ron Rhodes points this out – “There are also some 86,000 quotations of the New Testament from the early church fathers and several thousand Lectionaries (church–service books containing Scripture quotations used in the early centuries of Christianity). In fact, there are enough quotations from the early church fathers that even if we did not have a single manuscript copy of the Bible, scholars could still reconstruct all but 11 verses of the entire New Testament from material written within 150 to 200 years from the time of Christ.”

Again, we have broken the code and shown that Matthew, Mark, Luke and John were NOT 4^th century additions to the Bible by Constantine.

• Breaking The Code & Exposing The Lie That Jesus Intended Mary Magdalene to Be the Head of the Church

Here are the quotes from the book —

“The rock on which Jesus built His Church … was not Peter … It was Mary Magdalene.” DVC p.248

Jesus “intended for the future of His Church to be in the hands of Mary Magdalene.” DVC p.248

Here is the truth –

Dan Brown’s statement alludes to Matthew 16:18 which says, “And I say also unto thee, That thou art Peter, and upon this rock I will build my church; and the gates of hell shall not prevail against it.”

In this passage Jesus was not saying that Peter was the rock upon whom the church would be built. Rather, He was referring to Peter’s previous statement in Matthew 16:15-17 “He saith unto them, But whom say ye that I am? 16 And Simon Peter answered and said, Thou art the Christ, the Son of the living God. 17 And Jesus answered and said unto him, Blessed art thou, Simon Barjona: for flesh and blood hath not revealed it unto thee, but my Father which is in heaven.”

Peter’s confession was that Jesus was the Christ would be the rock upon which the church would be built. There are a number of factors in the Greek text that argue against the interpretation that Peter was the rock. First, whenever Peter is referred to in this passage (Matthew 16), it is in the second person (“thou”), but “this rock” is in the third person (verse 18). Moreover, “Peter” (petros) is a masculine singular term and rock” (petra) is a feminine singular term. Hence, they are not referring to the same thing. What is more, the same authority Jesus gave to Peter (Matthew 16:18) is later given to all the apostles (Matthew 18:18). So Peter is not unique.

Look at Ephesians 2:20 “And are built upon the foundation of the apostles and prophets, Jesus Christ himself being the chief corner stone.” This verse affirms that the church is “built on the foundation of the apostles and prophets,” with Christ Jesus himself being “the corner stone.”

Two things are clear from this: 1. all the apostles, not just Peter, are the foundation of the church; 2. the only one who was given a place of uniqueness or prominence was Christ, the corner stone. Indeed, Peter himself referred to Christ as “the head of the corner” of the church (1 Peter 2:7) and the rest of believers as “lively” or living “stones” (verse 4) in the superstructure of the church. There can only be one head of the church, and that is Jesus Christ. Ephesians 5:23 tells us that “Christ is the head of the church: and he is the saviour of the body.” Colossians 1:18 “And he is the head of the body, the church: who is the beginning, the firstborn from the dead; that in all things he might have the preeminence.”

We have broken the code again! We have exposed the Lie! Christ is the head of the Church, not Mary Magdalene.

I could go on and on. However, you can see from what I have published that The Da Vinci Code is a book filled with lies in this book. So why is the book so popular? I think Paul’s letter to Timothy gives us the answer –

“For the time will come when they will not endure sound doctrine; but after their own lusts shall they heap to themselves teachers, having itching ears; 4 And they shall turn away their ears from the truth, and shall be turned unto fables.” 2 Timothy 4:3-4

The Da Vinci Code is a Gnostic fable! Only people who have turned away their ears from the truth will believe what it is saying.

I have written this booklet for Christians, so that they can follow Ephesians 5:11 “And have no fellowship with the unfruitful works of darkness, but rather reprove them.” When people question you about the teachings of The Da Vinci Code to fulfil 1 Peter 3:15 “But sanctify the Lord God in your hearts: and be ready always to give an answer to every man that asketh you a reason of the hope that is in you with meekness and fear:”

I will end with Paul’s words to the Romans “…Abhor that which is evil; cleave to that which is good.” Romans 12:9

Is the name Kerioth or Carioth familiar to you? Likely not, however, it is listed as a town of the Tribe of Judah in Joshua 15:25. We know the town was still in existence in Christ’s day however, there is no town in Palestine today that carries that name. Bible scholars identify it with the ruins of el-Kureitein, which is about 10 miles south of Hebron.

Kerioth is important to us because it is used to identify specifically the notorious betrayer of our Lord Jesus Christ – Judas Iscariot.

The Judas Iscariot of the New Testament

• Some Basic Facts About Judas Iscariot

We know the meaning of the name Judas

Judas is the Greek form of the Hebrew word for Judah, meaning praise.

We know who the father of Judas Iscariot was

Turn in your Bibles to John 6:71 “He spake of Judas Iscariot the son of Simon: for he it was that should betray him, being one of the twelve.” His father is also identified in John 12:4 and John 13:2 & 26

We know where Judas Iscariot was from

The first mention of Judas, the betrayer of Jesus, is in the listing of the 12 Disciples of Christ found in Matthew 10:1-4. He is called Judas Iscariot. The Greek word is – iskariwthv – Iskariotes, pronounced in Greek as – is-kar-ee-o’-tace and means a man of Kerioth.

• The Other Men Named Judas In The New Testament

You might wonder why it is important to know that Judas was from Kerioth. It helps us so we do not confuse him with the other men named Judas in the New Testament. Let’s take a look at some of the other men named Judas –

The half-brother of Jesus – Matthew 13:55 “Is not this the carpenter’s son? is not his mother called Mary? and his brethren, James, and Joses, and Simon, and Judas?”

Judas one of the 12 Apostles, but not Iscariot – Luke 6:16 “And Judas the brother of James, and Judas Iscariot, which also was the traitor.” The same as the Judas of Acts 1:13.

Judas not Iscariot – John 14:22 “Judas saith unto him, not Iscariot, Lord, how is it that thou wilt manifest thyself unto us, and not unto the world?” Who is this Judas? It is probably the same as Thaddeus Lebbeus (Matthew 10:3), the brother of James, and author of what is called the Epistle of Jude (Jude 1:1). Note: The actual Greek word behind the word Jude is Ioudav which transliterated is Ioudas, Joudas or Judas. It is my thought that the Apostle Judas who is the brother of James, the Judas, not Iscariot, Thaddeus Lebbeus and the author Jude of the Epistle of Jude are very likely the same person.

Judas the Revolutionary – Acts 5:37 “After this man rose up Judas of Galilee in the days of the taxing, and drew away much people after him: he also perished; and all, even as many as obeyed him, were dispersed.”

There is Judas who owned the house Saul/Paul stayed in shortly after his conversion – Acts 9:11 “And the Lord said unto him, Arise, and go into the street which is called Straight, and inquire in the house of Judas for one called Saul, of Tarsus: for, behold, he prayeth,”

Judas Barsabas along with Silas were chosen accompanied Paul and Barnabas to the Church of Antioch to tell them of the decision of the Jerusalem Council – Acts 15:22, 27, 32 “Then pleased it the apostles and elders, with the whole church, to send chosen men of their own company to Antioch with Paul and Barnabas; namely, Judas surnamed Barsabas, and Silas, chief men among the brethren:”

Since there are numerous men named Judas in the New Testament, I am thankful that, under the inspiration of the Holy Spirit, Judas the traitor is identified as Judas Iscariot or Judas which betray him.

• The Prophecy of The Traitor

Jesus Knew of David’s Prophecy & Knew Judas Would Betray Him

It is important to draw to you attention that Jesus knew, right from the beginning, which of the twelve disciples it was that would betray Him. Turn in your Bibles to John 6:64-66 “But there are some of you that believe not. For Jesus knew from the beginning who they were that believed not, and who should betray him. 65 And he said, Therefore said I unto you, that no man can come unto me, except it were given unto him of my Father. 66 From that time many of his disciples went back, and walked no more with him.”

Our Lord Jesus Christ clearly indicates that Psalm 41:9 – “Yea, mine own familiar friend, in whom I trusted, which did eat of my bread, hath lifted up his heel against me.” – was a prophetic reference to the fact that one of his friends, one of his disciples would betray him. John 13:18 “I speak not of you all: I know whom I have chosen: but that the scripture may be fulfilled, He that eateth bread with me hath lifted up his heel against me.”

The Apostles Believed Judas’ Betrayal Was A Fulfillment of Prophecy

Apostles saw the betrayal of Judas as a fulfillment of Psalm 41. Turn to Acts 1:16 “Men and brethren, this scripture must needs have been fulfilled, which the Holy Ghost by the mouth of David spake before concerning Judas, which was guide to them that took Jesus.”

• Facts About Judas

The name if Judas Iscariot is always listed last in the Synoptic Gospels – Matthew 10:2-4; Mark 3:14-19; Luke 6:13-16.

Judas is a prime example of a person who professed to be a believer who fell into absolute apostasy. He followed the Lord Jesus Christ three years along with the other disciples and pretended to be one of them. I think he must have considered himself to be a believer, at least at the beginning, because if he didn’t I doubt that he would have joined the other eleven. He, like the others, must have left everything to follow Christ. He must have initially thought Christ was the Messiah and shared in the hope of the Kingdom. But what happened?

Judas Iscariot was the treasurer & thief

John 13:29 “For some of them thought, because Judas had the bag, that Jesus had said unto him, Buy those things that we have need of against the feast; or, that he should give something to the poor.”

I think it is possible that the greed of Judas was the beginning of his downfall, which ultimately led to his betrayal of Christ. John 12:3-6 “Then took Mary a pound of ointment of spikenard, very costly, and anointed the feet of Jesus, and wiped his feet with her hair: and the house was filled with the odour of the ointment. 4 Then saith one of his disciples, Judas Iscariot, Simon’s son, which should betray him, 5 Why was not this ointment sold for three hundred pence, and given to the poor? 6 This he said, not that he cared for the poor; but because he was a thief, and had the bag, and bare what was put therein.”

Judas Iscariot did not confess that Jesus was Lord

Turn to Matthew 26:20-25 “Now when the even was come, he sat down with the twelve. 21 And as they did eat, he said, Verily I say unto you, that one of you shall betray me. 22 And they were exceeding sorrowful, and began every one of them to say unto him, Lord (kurie – kurie), is it I? 23 And he answered and said, He that dippeth his hand with me in the dish, the same shall betray me. 24 The Son of man goeth as it is written of him: but woe unto that man by whom the Son of man is betrayed! it had been good for that man if he had not been born. 25 Then Judas, which betrayed him, answered and said, Master (rabbi – Rabbi), is it I? He said unto him, Thou hast said.”

Judas Iscariot was possessed by Satan.

We see this in John 13:27.

Judas Iscariot negotiated with the Chief Priests to betray Jesus

Mark 14:10-11 “And Judas Iscariot, one of the twelve, went unto the chief priests, to betray him unto them. 11 And when they heard it, they were glad, and promised to give him money. And he sought how he might conveniently betray him.”

Matthew 26:14-16 “Then one of the twelve, called Judas Iscariot, went unto the chief priests, 15 And said unto them, What will ye give me, and I will deliver him unto you? And they covenanted with him for thirty pieces of silver. 16 And from that time he sought opportunity to betray him.”

Have you ever given any thought why Judas betrayed Jesus? What was his motive? While we do not know for sure, there are some good possibilities in my mind…

Was it that he was angry at the public rebuke given him by Christ at the supper in the house of Simon the leper? (See Matthew 26:6-14)

Was it because he was greedy & covetousness? He did it for the thirty pieces of silver, because we know that he was a thief (John 12:6).

Was it because he was disappointment because Christ insisted on foretelling his death instead of receiving his kingdom. He began to fear that there was to be no kingdom, after all?

 

Was it because he abandoned what increasingly seemed to be a failing cause and hoped he would gain honor and a position of influence in the Pharisee party?

Judas betrayed Jesus with a kiss

Matthew 26:47-50 “And while he yet spake, lo, Judas, one of the twelve, came, and with him a great multitude with swords and staves, from the chief priests and elders of the people. 48 Now he that betrayed him gave them a sign, saying, Whomsoever I shall kiss, that same is he: hold him fast. 49 And forthwith he came to Jesus, and said, Hail, master; and kissed him. 50 And Jesus said unto him, Friend, wherefore art thou come? Then came they, and laid hands on Jesus, and took him.”

• The regret of Judas

Matthew 27:3-8 “Then Judas, which had betrayed him, when he saw that he was condemned, repented [ himself, and brought again the thirty pieces of silver to the chief priests and elders, 4 Saying, I have sinned in that I have betrayed the innocent blood. And they said, What is that to us? see thou to that. 5 And he cast down the pieces of silver in the temple, and departed, and went and hanged himself. 6 And the chief priests took the silver pieces, and said, It is not lawful for to put them into the treasury, because it is the price of blood. 7 And they took counsel, and bought with them the potter’s field, to bury strangers in. 8 Wherefore that field was called, The field of blood, unto this day.”

The key word here is repent. This verb (first aorist passive participle of metamelomai) really means to be sorry afterwards. But mere sorrow avails nothing unless it leads to change of mind and life (metanoia), the sorrow according to God (2Corinthians 7:9). This sorrow Peter had when he wept bitterly. It led Peter back to Christ. But Judas had only remorse that led to suicide.

• The end of Judas

Let’s look at Matthew 27:5 one more time – “And he cast down the pieces of silver in the temple, and departed, and went and hanged himself.” However, there are some who think there is a conflict between what Matthew writes and what Luke wrote in Acts 1:18-19 “Now this man purchased a field with the reward of iniquity; and falling headlong, he burst asunder in the midst, and all his bowels gushed out. 19 And it was known unto all the dwellers at Jerusalem; insomuch as that field is called in their proper tongue, Aceldama, that is to say, The field of blood.”

Judas first hanged himself, perhaps over the valley of Hinnom. The rope or branch likely gave way causing Judas to fall headlong, hitting the rocks below causing hom to burst and all his bowels to spill out. According to Acts 1:25 Judas “went unto his own place.” There is no doubt in my mind that the reference is pointing to Hell.

This is the picture of Judas Iscariot of the New Testament.

The Judas Iscariot of The “Gnostic Godpel of Judas

The so-called Gospel of Judas, that is making the rounds so to speak, was written in Coptic (Egyptian language in Greek letters) somewhere between 300 and 400 AD. Many scholars believe that it is a translation of an earlier letter by the same name written in Greek. Early church pastor Irenaeus of Lyon, warned of a writing called the Gospel of Judas. We do not know if it really is the basis of the Coptic pseudo-gospel.

Here is part of the warning of Irenaeus –

Some “declare that Cain derived his being from the Power above, and acknowledge that Esau, Korah, the Sodomites, and all such persons, are related to themselves. . ..They declare that Judas the traitor was thoroughly acquainted with these things, and that he alone, knowing the truth as no others did, accomplished the mystery of the betrayal; by him all things, both earthly and heavenly, were thus thrown into confusion. They produce a fictitious history of this kind, which they style the Gospel of Judas.”

Let me explain the meaning of his warning. Gnostic groups were not averse to rewriting other people’s scriptures. They would put their own spin on them. That is what Irenaeus was saying. In his day there was a Gnostic sect called the Cainites that worshipped Cain as a hero. The Cainites, like many Gnostic groups, believed that the God of the Old Testament was evil and inferior to the deity that created the universe. This group, like many Gnostic groups, glorified and worshipped the biblical characters that rebelled against the creator God Jehovah and sought to discover secret knowledge. They would vilify the biblical heroes and undermine biblically accepted interpretations of the Bible. I should also note that so called “Christian” Gnosticism began about 150 AD and virtually disappeared by 600 AD.

The Coptic “Gospel of Judas” clearly makes Judas a hero.

Some Things You Should Know About The Gospel of Judas

First, virtually all scholars agree that the Gospel of Judas is a Gnostic Gospel; therefore it is opposed to biblical Christianity.

Second, virtually all scholars agree that the Judas Iscariot of the Bible did not write this so-called Gospel.

Third, this gospel was NEVER in the running to be included with Matthew, Mark, Luke and John for several reasons, none the least is that it was written at least a century after the other for Gospels, which were already accepted by the early church.

How Judas Is Portrayed In This Gnostic Gospel

It says that Judas is the favorite disciple of Christ. That is not what the Bible indicates. Peter, James and John are the “inner circle” for

Christ’s friends (Matthew 17:1). John describes himself as “the disciple that Jesus loved (John 13:23; John 20:2; John 21:7,20).

Further, Judas is portrayed to be the only disciple who really understands Jesus. Here is how the introduction to The Gospel of Judas reads — “Unlike the other disciples, who misunderstand Jesus…Judas understands who Jesus is, and takes his place before him and learns from him.” (The Gospel of Judas – Kasser, Meyer & Wurst; p. 4) We also read that Jesus took Judas aside for some special instruction – “Step away from the others and I shall tell you the mysteries of the kingdom.”

Like many Gnostic writings, the Gospel of Judas claims to be an esoteric (hidden, secret) revelation that Jesus secretly spoke to Judas Iscariot. The opening verse says – “The secret account of the revelation that Jesus spoke in conversation with Judas Iscariot during a week three days before he celebrated the Passover.” (The Gospel of Judas – Kasser, Meyer & Wurst; p. 19)

How diametrically different this Gnostic gospel is compared to the purpose John wrote his Gospel. John 20:31 “But these are written, that ye might believe that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of God; and that believing ye might have life through his name.”

Gnostic secrets are CLANDESTINE, written for a select enlightened few. The Gospels are written to reveal the person and work of Jesus Christ so that all have an opportunity to believe.

The Gospel of Judas portrays Judas as a reluctant hero. In this pseudo-gospel, Judas betrays Jesus at his urging. Jesus states to Judas, “You shall be cursed for generations – and you will come to rule over them all. In the last days they will cures your ascent to the holy [generation]. (The Gospel of Judas – Kasser, Meyer & Wurst; p.33) On page 33 we read that Christ says, “You will sacrifice the man that clothes me.”

This pathetic gospel closes, “He received the money and handed him over to them.”

The title of my message – The Da Vinci Code: Foolish People Have Blasphemed Thy Name, O LORD! – is taken from Psalms 74:18 “Remember this, that the enemy hath reproached, O LORD, and that the foolish people have blasphemed thy name.”

I suppose the place to begin is to define the term blaspheme because it is a word seldom used in our modern English vocabulary. We get the word from the Greek word blasfhmew – blasphemeo (blas-fay-meh’-o) or the Latin word blasphemare. It means to speak evil of God or anything sacred. My 1828 Noah Webster’s Dictionary says, “Blasphemy is an indignity offered to God by words or writing.” Let me define very simply how I am using the word. Blasphemy is slandering the triune God.

The wildly popular but blasphemous book titled The Da Vinci Code, by Dan Brown, was on the New York Times bestsellers list for 56 weeks. To date more than 40 million copies, probably by now 50 million copies, have been sold. As I understand it, it has been translated into 44 different languages.

You might think who cares about a fiction novel! But wait just a minute: The author claims that though the book is a work of fiction, all of it is based on reality, “all of the art, architecture, secret rituals, secret societies – all of that is historical fact.” (Today Show, NBC, interview with Matt Lauer, June 9, 2003). The truth is, right after the title page, in all capital letters, is a page titled –

FACTS: He says on this page, The Priory of Sion was organized in 1099 and is a real organization. He says parchments known as Les Dossiers Secrets identify who were members of the Priory and include Sir Isaac Newton, Botticelli, Victor Hugo, and Leonardo da Vinci. He makes allegations against Opus Dei, a Catholic organization and then says “All descriptions of artwork, architecture, documents, and secret rituals in this novel are accurate.” Hence, people reading The Da Vinci Code assume that what they are reading is factual.

Here’s why that is alarming. Dan Brown says Christianity is based on a big lie. Christianity was founded on a cover-up, the biggest cover-up in history. The church has conspired for years to hide evidence that Jesus was a mere mortal. Brown’s novel clearly denies the deity of Jesus Christ and claims that Jesus and Mary Magdalene had sexual relationship and produced children, descendents who are alive yet today. It is claimed that Jesus Christ as God and the Trinity were not invented until the 4^th century. As far as Brown is concerned, The New Testament is based on fabrications. He believes that the “real,” historical gospels, that tell the truth about Jesus, were destroyed in the 4^th century. What remained were the Gospels of Matthew, Mark, Luke and John, which Christians have been reading for centuries. The book claims our New Testament Gospels are spurious and illegitimate. But, where doe Leonardo Da Vinci come into the picture? Brown alleges that Da Vinci imbedded clues in his art that, when discovered and correctly understood, would reveal the truth about Christ and His church. Among those blasphemous truths revealed in the book is that Jesus’ “real” church was to be founded on Mary Magdalene.

Dan Brown Da Vinci Code lies are getting a hearing world wide! TIME Magazine named Brown as one of the World’s 100 Most Influential People. If people knew their Bible’s, biblical doctrine and their history, I would not even be concerned about this book. However, people don’t. And, as you might imagine, Hollywood has now jumped on the bandwagon. Sony Pictures and Director Ron Howard (Opie Taylor on the Andy Griffith Show) have joined hands and produced a movie based on the book and thousands of worldly, undiscerning Christians will go to see it.

In this message, I want to expose some of the blasphemous lies advanced by the Da Vinci Code book and movie. Take your Bibles and turn them to 1 Timothy 4:1-2 & 16 “Now the Spirit speaketh expressly, that in the latter times some shall depart from the faith, giving heed to seducing spirits, and doctrines of devils; 2 Speaking lies in hypocrisy; having their conscience seared with a hot iron; 16 “Take heed unto thyself, and unto the doctrine; continue in them: for in doing this thou shalt both save thyself, and them that hear thee.”

I believe the real purpose of the book is to undermine the foundation of the biblical Christian faith and replace it with a counterfeit system.

• Some of The Lies of Dan Brown & His Da Vinci Code

Lies About The Priory of Sion and the Les Dossiers Secrets Parchments

Brown makes the assertion on the first page that “The Priory of Sion—a European secret society founded in 1099—is a real organization. In 1975 Paris’s Bibliotheque Nationale discovered parchments known as Les Dossiers Secrets, identifying numerous members of the Priory of Sion, including Sir Isaac Newton, Botticelli, Victor Hugo, and Leonardo da Vinci.”

To be sure, the Priory of Sion is at the very heart of Brown’s story, and which, if it could be proven to be based on bogus history, it would undermine the entire infrastructure of Brown’s theory. This organization is said to guard the secret of Jesus’ marriage to Mary Magdalene. It is claimed to have been founded in Jerusalem in 1099 by a French King. The organization is said to be watching over Jesus and Mary Magdelene’s descendants, and waiting for the perfect time to reveal its secret to the world. Because of constant threat of danger from the Roman Catholic Church, the organization has allegedly hidden its message in literature, paintings, and even architecture such that only very learned people can decipher the meanings.

The fact is that the author and the book are “Speaking lies in hypocrisy.” Historically, the Priory of Sion was founded in 1954 not 1099 by a French jail bird named Pierre Plantard, who spent time in jail for fraud. The Priory of Sion was a small social club formed for the purpose of calling for low–income housing in France. The organization dissolved in 1957, but Plantard held on to the name. Throughout the 1960s and 1970s, Plantard put together a number of bogus documents which “proved” the Jesus–Mary Magdalene theory, with French royalty being their descendants. Plantard claimed that he himself was one of the descendents of this couple. One of these bogus documents was the Dossiers Secrets. This document is nothing but a forgery penned in the 1960s by a French conman and deposited in the Paris library. While under oath, the judge asked Plantard about these documents about Jesus and Mary Magdalene, and he admitted he made the whole thing up. An associate of Plantard’s also conceded that Plantard made the whole thing up. All this has been thoroughly documented by several French books and a BBC special. My point is simply this. The Jesus – Mary Magdalene theory that is the premise of the whole book is FALSE, BOGUS, PHONY. This is well documented in the book Cracking The Da Vinci’s Code by Garlow and Jones published by Cook Communications.

Blasphemous Lies About the Bible Being False, the Product of Man

In his book, Dan Brown attacks the inspiration, canonicity and preservation of the Holy Scriptures. He makes statements like these –

“The Bible is a product of man…not of God. The Bible did not fall magically from the clouds. Man created it….”p. 231

“The Bible did not arrive by fax from heaven.” p. 231

“…the New Testament is false testimony.” p. 341

“…the New Testament is based on fabrications.” p. 341

What Brown writes about the Bible is a LIE! Turn with me to 2 Timothy 3:16 “All scripture is given by inspiration of God, and is profitable for doctrine, for reproof, for correction, for instruction in righteousness:” Note the phrase “inspiration of God.” The Greek word means God–breathed. The Bible is not the product of man but it was breathed out by God. Turn with me to 2 Peter 1:20-21 “Knowing this first, that no prophecy of the scripture is of any private interpretation. 21 For the prophecy came not in old time by the will of man: but holy men of God spake as they were moved by the Holy Ghost.”

It is clear that the writers of the New Testament knew that what they were writing was inspired of God! Turn in your Bibles to — 1 Corinthians 2:13-14 “Which things also we speak, not in the words which man’s wisdom teacheth, but which the Holy Ghost teacheth; comparing spiritual things with spiritual. 14 But the natural man receiveth not the things of the Spirit of God: for they are foolishness unto him: neither can he know them, because they are spiritually discerned.”

It is Dan Brown’s work that is based on fabrications, NOT the Bible. A good deal of the New Testament is based on eye witness accounts. Consider 2 Peter 1:16-18 “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 eyewitnesses of his majesty. 17 For he received from God the Father honour and glory, when there came such a voice to him from the excellent glory, This is my beloved Son, in whom I am well pleased. 18 And this voice which came from heaven we heard, when we were with him in the holy mount.” Let’s add to that 1 John 1:1 “That which was from the beginning, which we have heard, which we have seen with our eyes, which we have looked upon, and our hands have handled, of the Word of life;”

Dan Brown and Ron Howard like Belshazzar of old, have been weighed in the balances and found wanting.

Blasphemous Lies Claiming that Matthew, Mark, Luke & John Were The 4^th Century Additions of Constantine.

On page 231 we read, “… More than eighty gospels were considered for the New Testament, and yet only a relative few were chosen for inclusion—Matthew, Mark, Luke, and John among them.” Brown says in his book that it was Constantine who chose the gospels that were to be included. “The Bible, as we know it today, was collated by the pagan Roman Emperor Constantine the Great.” p. 231.

This is another blasphemous lie. It is not true that the Four Gospels—Matthew, Mark, Luke, and John—were 4th century inventions of Constantine and the Nicaean Council. The Four Gospels were written in AD 40-50 shortly after Christ rose from the dead and ascended to heaven. The Early Church Fathers—

Papias (in AD 110) and Irenaeus (in AD 180)—mentioned them by name

and affirmed their Apostolic origins.

Dr. Ron Rhodes points this out – “There are also some 86,000 quotations of the New Testament from the early church fathers and several thousand Lectionaries (church–service books containing Scripture quotations used in the early centuries of Christianity). In fact, there are enough quotations from the early church fathers that even if we did not have a single manuscript copy of the Bible, scholars could still reconstruct all but 11 verses of the entire New Testament from material written within 150 to 200 years from the time of Christ.”

This is just a small portion of the blasphemous lies in this book. The Bible is clear –

Ephesians 5:11 “And have no fellowship with the unfruitful works of darkness, but rather reprove them.”

Romans 12:9 “…Abhor that which is evil; cleave to that which is good.”

REVIEW:
“Christine Narloch’s article Contemplative Prayer: Seducing Spirits and a Doctrine of Devils is brilliant, condensed, current, and connects all of the dots for doubters as to the truth behind contemplative prayer, its roots, false teachers promoting it such as Rick Warren and Richard Foster, Larry Crabb, Henry Blackaby, Bill Hybels, and Chuck Swindoll, Brennan Manning, and Ken Blanchard, and the unholy alliances connected with it. I have been meaning to commend and recommend Christine’s research and labor in our Lord for years, but could wait no longer because this subject is so urgent to address.” James Sundquist, Director, Rock Salt Publishing

• INTRODUCTION
• BIBLICAL PRAYER
• CONTEMPLATIVE PRAYER
• FALSE TEACHINGS
• UNFRUITFUL RESULTS
• AVOID FALSE TEACHINGS

Our pastor, David L. Brown, approached my husband Mike and I asking if I could take the time to carefully research and publish a report on Contemplative Prayer. This is the report he requested. Its purpose is to compare the Bible’s model for prayer to Contemplative Prayer thus exposing the grievous errors of Contemplative Prayer. It is a condensed overview providing a springboard for further research.

• INTRODUCTION

According to Webster’s 1828 Dictionary, “contemplate” is defined as “to view or consider with continued attention; to study; to meditate on.” ₁

“Prayer” is defined as “in worship, a solemn address to the Supreme Being, consisting of adoration, or an expression of our sense of God’s glorious perfections, confession of our sins, supplication for mercy and forgiveness, intercession for blessings on others, and thanksgiving, or an expression of gratitude to God for his mercies and benefits.” ₂

Yet there is a type of prayer being taught today which is far from the above definitions and even further from Biblical prayer. It’s known as Contemplative Prayer. Since the Bible is to be our guideline for faith and practice and since we are to use it to discern good from evil (Hebrews 5:14, 2 Timothy 3:16-17, Acts 17:11), let’s compare the teachings of Biblical prayer to those of Contemplative Prayer.

• BIBLICAL PRAYER
  According to the Bible, prayer is talking to God the Father (Philippians 4:6), through the Lord Jesus Christ (John 16:23), by people who are born again (John 3:7), according to the Scriptures (Micah 7:7, Psalm 4:3, 1 John 5:14,15).

The Bible is clear, the prayers of unbelievers are not heard by God. “Now we know that God heareth not sinners: but if any man be a worshipper of God, and doeth his will, him he heareth.” John 9:31 “The LORD [is] far from the wicked: but he heareth the prayer of the righteous.” Proverbs 15:29 (Psalm 34:16, Proverbs 15:8a). Nor are prayers of disobedient born again believers heard. “If I regard iniquity in my heart, the Lord will not hear [me]:” Psalm 66:18 (Proverbs 28:9, James 4:3, 5:16c).

God hears the prayers of repentant sinners turning to Christ as Savior (Mark 1:15), and obedient believers. “And whatsoever we ask, we receive of him, because we keep his commandments, and do those things that are pleasing in his sight.” 1 John 3:22 (1 John 5:14, John 15:7, Psalms 34:15, Proverbs 15:8b).

There are many examples of Old Testament believers who prayed. Just a few include: Abraham, Moses, Daniel, David as well as Elijah, Ezekial, Ezra, Nehemiah and Habakkuk. Abraham prayed for a son, he prayed for Ishmael, for Sodom, and for Abimelech, (Genesis 15-24). Daniel prayed for the Jews, (Daniel 9:3-19) and for knowledge (Daniel 2:17-23). David prayed for the Jews, for knowledge, for blessing, for help, for guidance, for grace, and for justice.

Examples in the New Testament of those who prayed include Jesus praying to God the Father at Lazarus’s tomb (John 11:41-42). Jesus prayed submitting to the Father’s will (Matthew 26:39-44), and he asked God to forgive those who crucified him (Luke 23:34).

The Lord Jesus Christ prayed for believers of that day (John 17:9), and future believers (John 17:20). He requested they be sanctified by the truth (John 17:17).

He instructed his disciples to pray to God the Father (Luke 11:2), specifically for the Kingdom to come, for God’s will to be done, for daily food provision, for their sins to be forgiven, they would forgive others, they not be lead into temptation, and to be delivered from doing evil. His instructions to believers include to pray with humility (Luke 18:13), to pray alone (Matthew 6:6), for those who despitefully use them (Luke 6:28), that God would send people to preach the gospel (Luke 10:2), and as you pray, forgive others (Mark 11:2). Jesus promised that the Father rewards those openly who seek Him in prayer privately (Matthew 6:6).

When the Apostle Paul prayed, he prayed with understanding (1 Corinthians 14:15), and with joy (Philippians 1:4). He prayed for believers not to do evil but good (2 Corinthians 13:7), to be filled with knowledge, wisdom and understanding, (Colossians 1:9) to abound in love, understanding and all judgment (Philemon 1:9), to be without wrath and doubt in God’s Word (1 Timothy 2:8), to pray without ceasing (1 Thessalonians 5:17), to pray when afflicted (James 5:13), to pray for one another, (James 5:16) and to pray against evil, (Ephesians 6:12,18). Paul requested prayer for himself and those with him to preach the word boldly (Ephesians 6:18-19), that the word they share would do it’s work, (2 Thessalonians 3:1) and that they would have a good conscience (Hebrews 13:18).

In Proverbs 2:1-11, God promises to answer prayers of believers who ask to understand His word and desire to obey it. He provides knowledge, wisdom and understanding through the words of His mouth which are written in the Bible. It states:

1 My son, if thou wilt receive my words, and hide my commandments with thee;

^{2 So that thou incline thine ear unto wisdom, and apply thine heart to understanding;}

^{3 Yea, if thou criest after knowledge, and liftest up thy voice for understanding;}

^{4 If thou seekest her as silver, and searchest for her as for hid treasures;}

^{5 Then shalt thou understand the fear of the LORD, and find the knowledge of God.}

^{6 For the LORD giveth wisdom: out of his mouth cometh knowledge and understanding.}

^{7 He layeth up sound wisdom for the righteous: he is a buckler to them that walk uprightly.}

^{8 He keepeth the paths of judgment, and preserveth the way of his saints.}

^{9 Then shalt thou understand righteousness, and judgment, and equity; yea, every good path.}

^{10 When wisdom entereth into thine heart, and knowledge is pleasant unto thy soul;}

^{11 Discretion shall preserve thee, understanding shall keep thee:}

An entire book of examples concerning prayer in the Bible could and perhaps should be written. This was just a sample.

Additionally, for believers who aren’t able to pray, the Holy Spirit intercedes according to God’s will (Romans 8:26) and Jesus who is now at the right hand of the Father, intercedes for believers (Romans 8:34).

The Bible also contains several warnings concerning prayer. “Use not vain repetitions, as the heathen [do]” (Matthew 6:7), do not pray self-righteously (Luke 18:11), avoid hypocritical prayer, praying to be seen of men (Matthew 6:5) or praying to show off in front of others (Luke 20:46, 47).

With these examples and instructions in mind, let’s now examine Contemplative Prayer.

• CONTEMPLATIVE PRAYER

In the 1970’s, three mystic Roman Catholic monks, Fr. William Meninger, Fr. Basil Pennington and Abbot Thomas Keating (head monk) labeled Centering Prayer as a “method of prayer, which prepares us to receive the gift of God’s presence, traditionally called contemplative prayer”. It is “…the opening of mind and heart – our whole being – to God… whom we know by faith is within us… Contemplative Prayer is a prayer of silence, an experience of God’s presence…” ₃

The Contemplative Outreach Ltd. website featuring Thomas Keating’s teachings, provides further insight into the method of Contemplative Prayer and lists the guidelines to practice it. It states:

“This method of prayer is a movement beyond conversation with Christ to communion with Him.” “The source of Centering Prayer, as in all methods leading to Contemplative Prayer, is the indwelling Trinity: Father, Son, and Holy Spirit. ” “It is also inspired by writings of major contributors to the Christian contemplative heritage including John Cassian, the anonymous author of The Cloud of Unknowing, Francis de Sales, Teresa of Avila, John of the Cross, Thérèse of Lisieux, and Thomas Merton.” Emphasis Added

Contemplative Prayer “Guidelines include:

1. Choose a sacred word as the symbol of your intention to consent to God’s presence and action within.

2. Sitting comfortably and with eyes closed, settle briefly and silently introduce the sacred word as the symbol of your consent to God’s presence and action within.

3. When engaged with your thoughts*, return ever-so gently to the sacred word.

4. At the end of the prayer period, remain in silence with eyes closed for a couple of minutes.

*Thoughts include body sensations, feelings, images, and reflections .” ₄ Emphasis Added

In my research, it became clear that these Roman Catholic monks were influenced by pagan Eastern Religions. “During the twenty years (1961-1981) when Keating was abbot, St. Joseph’s held dialogues with Buddhist and Hindu representatives; and a Zen master gave a week-long retreat to the monks. A former Trappist monk who had become a Transcendental Meditation teacher also gave a session to the monks.” ₅

Not Prayer But Mystical Meditation

Contemplative Prayer is not Biblical prayer at all, rather it is a type of mystical meditation leading the mind into an altered state of consciousness. It goes beyond thought, providing an experiential union with so-called God or with nature producing body sensations, feelings, images, and reflections.

It is based on “experiences” rather than sound doctrine. “… give attendance… to doctrine.” 1 Timothy 4:13. Faith is to be based on God’s word rather than experiences. “So then faith [cometh] by hearing, and hearing by the word of God.” Romans 10:17, “For we walk by faith, not by sight:” 2 Corinthians 5:7.

Contemplative Prayer is also known as centering prayer, listening prayer, breath prayer, and prayer of the heart. It is just one of many mystical practices taught within a confusing, mixed-up movement called Contemplative Spirituality.

Mystical practices are now widely embraced and taught in secular and professed Christian seminaries, colleges, universities, organizations, ministries and seminars, etc. throughout the United States. Academic promoters have introduced these practices into the fields of medicine, business and law while countless secular and Christian books, magazines, seminars, and retreats are teaching lay people how to incorporate them into their daily lives. Promoters promise physical, mental and spiritual benefits desiring to bring about positive social change.

One promoter of mystical practices, the “Center for Contemplative Mind in Society”, states:

They “can play a part in the positive transformation of governments, businesses, and organizations. We are dedicated to the idea that contemplative awareness, when incorporated into contemporary life, can help produce a more just, compassionate, and reflective society.” ₆

The following Contemplative Practices are listed on their website:

“- Movement (martial arts, dance, yoga, labyrinth walking, etc.)

– Creation (singing, chanting, art, music, etc.)

– Relational (dialogue, deep listening, storytelling, journaling, etc)

– Ritual/cyclical (shabbot, vision quest, sweatlodge, alter building, ceremonies/rituals etc,)

– Activist (work, pilgrimage, mindfulness, vigals/marches, etc.)

– Generative (prayer, lectio divina, petitionary prayer, etc.)

– Stillness (silence, prayer centering , insight & sitting meditation, quieting & clearing the mind)” ₇

Emphasis Added

Stillness, listed as the last practice includes prayer centering also known as Contemplative Prayer.

Contemplative Prayer is Practiced Far and Wide

While Western religions falsely label Contemplative Prayer as “Christian” and “prayer”, Eastern Pagan religions such Buddhism, Hinduism, Sufi Muslims have long practiced mystical meditation. A variety of occult and New Age devotees also practice mystical meditation styles consistent with Contemplative Prayer.

Since this method of meditation is mystical in nature, it is important that you know the definition of “mysticism“. An on-line Occult Encyclopedia defines it as:

“A belief in or the pursuit in the unification with the One or some other principle; the immediate consciousness of God; or the direct experience of religious truth. Mysticism is nearly universal and unites most religions in the quest for divinity.”

It goes on to state, “Mysticism from the East or from Western traditions relies on techniques such as:

-repetitive prayers,

-repeating over and over a word or phrase (mantras, which maybe names of deity),

-contemplations of icons or images real or imagined,

-also involved are methods of emptying the mind,

-extreme asceticism and

-in some cultures the use of hallucinogenic drugs.”

“Through these and other methods the mind goes blank or passive and one enters an altered state of consciousness. Buddhists call this state Nirvana or Satori… New Age people call it at-one-ness, etc…, Christian mystics perceive they have experienced some kind of ecstatic union with God.” ₈

“In mysticism, the altered state of consciousness may be total or partial. When partial, the state of consciousness is usually only a feeling. Most generally this feeling is one of unity with God, or the universe, or of enlightenment.” “The experience of being united with God or nature is called a mystical experience.” ₉

Philosopher W. T. Stace, “discovered seven common themes of mysticism when studying Roman Catholic, Protestant, ancient classical, Hindu, and American agnostic mystical experiences. They were (1) a unifying vision and perception of the One by the senses and through many objects; (2) the apprehension of the One as an inner life; (3) and objective and true sense of reality; (4) feelings of satisfaction, joy, and bliss; (5) a religious element that is a feeling of the holy and sacred; (6) a paradoxical feeling; (7) and inexpressible feelings.” ₁₀

Are They Experiencing God or Seducing Spirits?

Contemplative Prayer is described as “an experience of God’s presence” and “movement beyond conversation with Christ to communion with Him” resulting in “…body sensations, feelings, images, and reflections”. ₁₁

So whose “presence” are these people really experiencing? Interestingly, the Universal Gnostic Church provides some insight through their guidelines for “Working With Your Spirit Guides“:

“If you do not already know your spirit guides, we recommend you start speaking to them. The basic way of doing this is through meditation and listening to your intuitive insights.”

“Meditation: Meditation is a process of moving your consciousness into higher planes while remaining in the physical plane. There are several meditative techniques. The Universal Gnostic Church teaches three excellent techniques for those who want to work with their spirit guides. Essene Healing Breath Meditation, Kriya Power Meditation, and Contemplative Meditation .”

“If you already know who your spirit guides are, we recommend you work with them on a regular basis. You can do that through channeling, visualization and ritual, divination and prayer .”

“Channeling: Channeling is a process of recording or repeating out loud for others what your spirit guides tell you or show you . You can do this by writing it all down or by recording it with an electronic device. You may also do it by repeating what is said in a private session or to a large group. You may allow your spirit guides to bring other disincarnate people to deliver messages to you . When you channel, you’re working with your spirit guides.”

“Visualization and Ritual: Visualization of your spirit guides is a step toward seeing them in the physical dimension. The easiest way to learn how to visualize your spirit guides and guardian angel is through the teachings of the Magickal Order of the Golden Dawn. They teach both the skills of visualization and ritually working with your spirit guides and guardian angel.”

“Prayer. Praying with your spirit guides is an excellent way to develop a closer relationship with them. The Universal Gnostic Church recommends Intentional Prayer and Contemplative Prayer for that purpose.” Emphasis Added ₁₂

Regardless of what the “presence” is labeled (Spirit Guides, Guardian Angels, Jesus, God, etc.) these people are actually experiencing seducing spirits also known as demons (1 Timothy 4:1,7).

And this is all accomplished through various methods of Spiritism, also known as Necromancy.

“Spiritism or Necromancy is an occult activity grounded in the belief that through certain persons acting as mediums or channels (psychics, necromancers, channelers, etc.) the dead or the spirit world can be contacted and hidden information can be acquired from those contacted. Trances and seances are often used by the medium. The power behind this activity is demonic. This activity is forbidden by the Lord. 1 Chronicles 10:13, So Saul died for his transgression which he committed against the LORD, even against the word of the LORD, which he kept not, and also for asking counsel of one that had a familiar spirit, to inquire of it. (1 Sam. 28:7 gives the context).” ₁₃

In the case of Contemplative Prayer, the individual is really acting as the channeler or necromancer communicating with demons. This is strictly forbidden in the Scriptures.

“When thou art come into the land which the LORD thy God giveth thee, thou shalt not learn to do after the abominations of those nations. There shall not be found among you any one that maketh his son or his daughter to pass through the fire, or that useth divination, or an observer of times, or an enchanter, or a witch, or a charmer, or a consulter with familiar spirits, or a wizard, or a necromancer . For all that do these things are an abomination unto the LORD : and because of these abominations the LORD thy God doth drive them out from before thee.” Deuteronomy 18:9-12

Thus, those who practice and promote Contemplative Prayer are really an abomination unto the LORD!

Quotes from Promoters of Contemplative Practices

We “should all without shame enroll as apprentices in the school of contemplative prayer.”

—Richard Foster, Pastor and Author of the book “Celebration of Discipline”, p. 13, 1978 ed.

Recommends “Richard Foster’s meaningful work… Celebration of Discipline…”, p.15

“Discipline. This is the means for having intimacy with God. … Discipline is control gained by enforced obedience. It is the deliberate cultivation of inner order.

So how are intimacy and discipline connected? …Discipline is the means to that end.”, p.21

—Chuck Swindoll, Pastor and Author of the book “So, You Want to Be Like Christ? Eight Essentials to Get You There.”

(Note: Understanding and obeying God’s word as well as prayer is the means for having intimacy with God.

Not the “discipline” of contemplative practices providing mystical experiences.)

“Contemplative prayer is nothing other than coming into consciousness of what is already there.”
—Brennan Manning, Catholic Priest and Author of the book “Signature of Jesus”

“Use ‘breath prayers’ throughout the day, as many Christians have done for centuries.

You choose a brief sentence or a simple phrase that can be repeated to Jesus in one breath.”

—Rick Warren, Pastor and Author of the book “The Purpose-Driven Life”, p. 89.

“Choose a sacred word or phrase. Consistently use the same word throughout the prayer.

Begin silently to repeat your sacred word or phrase”
—Mark Yaconelli, Youth Specialties, National Pastor’s Convention

“As we find ourselves caught up in this meditation, we soon enough realize another change has occurred.

We have almost effortlessly been transported over into a passive “contemplation” beyond thoughts, emotions, images, forms, or words.”

—John Michael Talbot, Christian Musician

 

Promoters of Contemplative Practices

The following is a list of just some of the secular and religious promoters of Contemplative Prayer provided by the “Lighthouse Trails Research Project” ₁₄ website:

BAILEY, ALICE : Founder of the Arcane School, an offshoot of Theosophy – authored several books through a “spirit guide.”
BLANCHARD, KEN: Founder of Ken Blanchard Companies and “Lead Like Jesus” Leadership Conferences.

BROTHER LAWRENCE: (1605-1691) Carmelite layman, author of “Practicing the Presence of God”. Believed God was in all things.

CANFIELD, JACK: Creator and author of the “Chicken Soup for the Soul” series. *New Age.
CRABB, LARRY: *Christian Clinical Psychologist, author, Spiritual Director and Advisor for American Association of Christian Counselors.
EDWARDS, TILDEN: Founder of the Shalem Prayer Institute in Washington, DC
FOSTER, RICHARD: Quaker and Founder of Renovare and author of “Celebration of Discipline”, *the General Editor of “Renovare Spiritual Formation Bible”, and “Prayer: Finding the Heart’s True Home”.
FOX, MATTHEW: Former Dominican priest and author of “The Coming of the Cosmic Christ”; developed Creation Spirituality; believes that God and Christ are in all things.

KEATING, THOMAS: Catholic monk, Co-father of the modern day Contemplative Prayer Movement.

KIMBALL, DAN: Author of “The Emerging Church” and a leader in the Emerging Church Movement. Promotes labyrinths and lectio divina.

MANNING, BRENNAN: Former Catholic priest, author of “Ragamuffin Gospel”, and “Abba’s Child”.

MARX HUBBARD, BARBARA: Influential New Ager who says of Christians: “Unaware of our evolutionary potential, they [Christians] prevent the action and response needed to transcend the terrestrial phase of our existence. They would annihilate the possibility of Universal Humanity by claiming we have no right to achieve it.”
MCLAREN, BRIAN: Considered the main leader of the Emerging Church Movement, *New Age Promoter, Pastor

MERTON, THOMAS: Now deceased Catholic monk *who wanted “to become as good a Buddhist as I can.”
(Steindl-Rast, 1969); quoted often by Richard Foster.

NOUWEN, HENRI: Deceased Catholic theologian, *Contemplative Universalist, author of “In the Name of Jesus” and “The Way of the Heart”.

PECK, M. SCOTT: *Psychiatrist, Author of “The Road Less Traveled”.
SCHULLER, ROBERT: Pastor of Crystal Cathedral and the “Hour of Power” television program. *Promotes Psychology

SANFORD, AGNES: *Author of “Healing Light”, taught that the “Kingdom of God is within you”.
SHANNON, WILLIAM: New Age biographer of Thomas Merton.

TEASDALE, WAYNE: Coined the term “interspirituality”.
TERESA OF AVILA: *Catholic nun, author of “Book of Foundations”, Quoted by Foster, Peterson.

UNDERHILL, EVELYN: *Roman Catholic, author of “Mysticism”, wrote 39 books and over 350 articles.

WALSCH, NEAL DONALD: Author of “Conversations with God” and New Age leader who said, ” The era of the Single Savior is over. What is needed now is joint action, combined effort, collective co-creation.” p. 157

WARREN, RICK: Pastor and author of the “Purpose-Driven Life”. *Promotes his Global P.E.A.C.E. plan involving 400,000 churches.

WILLIAMSON, MARIANNE: Contributed to making “A Course in Miracles” well known; currently involved with the Department of Peace.
YACONELLI, MIKE: The late founder and owner of Youth Specialties; promoted Contemplative Spirituality. [Mike passed away in 2003].
YACONELLI, MARK: Son of the late Mike Yaconelli – very active in the Contemplative Prayer Movement.

*Extra notes added by author.

Additional Promotors

BLACKABY, HENRY: Author of “Experiencing God” workbook and seminars. Taught among SBC and Roman Catholics. Promoted by Rick Warren.

HYBELS, BILL: Pastor of Willowcreek Community Church, Hosts conferences with Contemplative Speakers such as Larry Crabb and Brian McLaren. Hosted “Lead Like Jesus” 2004 Conference with Ken Blanchard.

JEREMIAH, DAVID: Pastor of “Turning Point Ministries”, Author of “Life Wide Open”, Speaker at Ken Blanchard’s “Lead Like Jesus Seminars” and America Association of Christian Counselors.

LUCADO, MAX:  Author and Founder of UpWords.  Speaker on an instructional DVD on Contemplative Prayer, titled “Be Still” which includes Richard Foster.

MONK KID, SUE: Mystic Author of “God’s Joyful Surprise” a spiritual memoir describing her advent into contemplative Christian spirituality and “When the Heart Waits”.

MOORE, BETH:  Founder of Living Proof Ministries for women.  Speaker on an instructional DVD on Contemplative Prayer, titled “Be Still” which includes Richard Foster

NEE, WATCHMAN: Mystic Author of “The Spiritual Man”.

ORTBERG, JOHN: Author of “Closer Than You Think“, 2005 favorably quotes comtemplatives.

PETERSON, EUGENE: Author of “The Message” bible translation and the book “The Contemplative Pastor”. Endorses Foster.

SENGE, PETER: Buddhist, Author and Founder of Society for Organizational Learning. New Age.

SMITH, MICHAEL W.: Christian Musician. Promoter of Brennan Manning’s book “Above All”.

STANLEY, CHARLES: SBC Evangelical Pastor, Author “How to Listen to God”. Espouses the belief that God continues to speak to man today outside of His Word. In the 9/93 In Touch magazine, Stanley quotes favorably from mystic Richard Foster’s book “The Celebration of Discipline” (9/22).

STANLEY, ANDY: Pastor, Spoke at Ken Blanchard’s “Lead Like Jesus” Conference in October, 2005.

SWINDOLL, CHUCK: Evangelical Pastor of “Insight for Living”, author of “So, You Want to Be Like Christ? Eight Essentials to Get You There.” (A book on the solitude and silence of Contemplative Prayer.)

TALBOT, JOHN MICHAEL: Christian Musician. Practices Tai Chi and Yoga. Writes on “Christian Meditation”.

Christian College Promotors

Many Christian Colleges promote Contemplative Spirituality. They include Wheaton College Graduate School, Biola University, Dallas Theological Seminary, Fuller Theological Seminary, and Northern Baptist Theological Seminary. For a complete list, visit the “Lighthouse Trails Research Project” website. ₁₅

Promoted through Church and Ministry Programs

Programs promoting Contemplative Practices include: Alpha Courses, Taizé, Lectio Divina, The Labyrinth (prayer walk), Renovaré, Guided Imagery, Walk to Emmaus, Cursillo, Centering Prayer, Ignatian Awareness Examen, The Jesus Prayer, and The Spiritual Exercises of St. Ignatius. ₁₆ Ministries include: Youth Specialities, Youth for Christ, Nav Press, Church Growth Institute and Awana Clubs. ₁₇

Promoted through the Emerging Church Movement

Another whole paper could be written on the Emerging Church movement lead by Brian McLaren. In my research, I’ve discovered this movement is fueled by those who are tired of the Mega churches and desire to experience “so-called” God in a fresh and new way. Much of the movement includes Contemplative Practices. Interestingly, Rick Warren is excited about such a movement. ₁₈

The Goal

One of the goals mentioned earlier is to bring about social change. Yet in reality, it is contributing to a universal spirituality (religious or irreligious) apart from the Bible.

Ray Yungen, author of “A Time of Departing” states “…contemplative prayer also stands on the threshold of exploding worldwide. Dr. Larry Crabb, spiritual director for the 50,000 member American Association of Christian Counselors, has written the foreword to a recent book ₃₇ that expounds on the future of spiritual direction in the evangelical church. The authors the book promotes are… Nouwen, Merton, Foster, Keating, Pennington, etc. …With that in mind, Dr. Crabb predicted: ‘The spiritual climate is ripe. Jesus seekers across the world are being prepared to abandon the old way of the written code for the new way of the Spirit.’” ₁₉ Emphasis added .

When Clinical Psychologist, Larry Crabb advocates not walking in “old way of the written code”, he means abandoning a careful, obedient walk of faith according to all of God’s word. The “new way of the Spirit” means utilizing Contemplative Practices to experience God. The Bible says, “Thus saith the LORD, Stand ye in the ways, and see, and ask for the old paths , where [is] the good way, and walk therein, and ye shall find rest for your souls. But they said, We will not walk [therein].”

Contemplative Outreach Ltd. states (of the false church), “For the Church’s first sixteen centuries Contemplative Prayer was the goal of Christian spirituality. After the Reformation, this living tradition was virtually lost. Today, with cross-cultural dialogue and historical research, the recovery of the Christian contemplative heritage has begun. The method of Centering Prayer, in the tradition of Lectio Divina (praying the scriptures) is contributing to this renewal.” ₂₀ Lectio Divina is a mantra whereby a single phrase or word of scripture is repeated over and over; leading to an “experiential” union with “so-called” God. It’s a vain repetition strictly forbidden in the Bible.

The goal of the true Biblical church is the Great Commission given to believers by Jesus Christ – not Contemplative Prayer. “Go ye therefore, and teach all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Ghost: 20 Teaching them to observe all things whatsoever I have commanded you: and, lo, I am with you alway, [even] unto the end of the world. Amen.” Matthew 28:19-20

Promoters of Contemplative Practices are not teaching the commands of Jesus Christ.

• FALSE TEACHINGS

After comparing Scriptures pertaining to Biblical prayer to the teachings of Contemplative Prayer, the error is glaring. None of these contemplative practices are advocated in Scripture. When anyone chooses not to abide by sound doctrine, the result is a faulty faith based on experiences or fables instead of the sure Word of God. Scripture states, “For the time will come when they will not endure sound doctrine; but after their own lusts shall they heap to themselves teachers, having itching ears; And they shall turn away [their] ears from the truth, and shall be turned unto fables.” 2 Timothy 4:3,4

Listen to this observation by David W. Cloud: “The mystical “spirituality” that is so popular in evangelical and charismatic circles today is a yearning for an experiential relationship with God that downplays the role of faith and Scripture and that exalts “transcendental” experiences that lift the individual from the earthly mundane into a higher “spiritual” plane. Biblical prayer is talking with God; mystical spirituality prayer is meditation and “centering” and other such things. Biblical Christianity is a patient walk of faith; mystical spirituality is more a flight of fancy. Biblical study is analyzing and meditating upon the literal truth of the Scripture; mystical spirituality focuses on a “deeper meaning”; it is more allegorical and “transcendental” than literal.” ₂₁

True faith can only come by the hearing of the Word of God. “So then faith [cometh] by hearing, and hearing by the word of God”. Romans 10:17 The mind of the believer is then to be transformed by the Word of God which reveals God’s will for the believer. “And be not conformed to this world: but be ye transformed by the renewing of your mind, that ye may prove what [is] that good, and acceptable, and perfect, will of God.” Romans 12:2 All of the mind is to be used to love God according to His Word. “Jesus said unto him, Thou shalt love the Lord thy God with all thy heart, and with all thy soul, and with all thy mind.” Matthew 22:37

Believers are to have a sound mind. “For God hath not given us the spirit of fear; but of power, and of love, and of a sound mind.” 2 Timothy 1:7. A mind in an altered state of consciousness inviting demon activity is anything but a sound mind. It is entertaining a seducing spirit masquerading as an angel of light, 2 Corinthians 11:14. Every thought of the believer is to brought to the obedience of Christ rather than influenced by demons, our own flesh or the world. “Casting down imaginations, and every high thing that exalteth itself against the knowledge of God, and bringing into captivity every thought to the obedience of Christ;” 2 Corinthians 10:5.

• UNFRUITFUL RESULTS

Contemplative Practices are infiltrating evangelical and fundamental churches which is contributing to the unbiblical Ecumenical movement already underway. This is due to Pastors ignoring sound doctrine and allowing false teachings.

Ecumenicalism (also known as Interdenominationism, Interfaith, and Interspiritualism) is a movement toward a worldwide false church consisting of religions (including false, apostate Christians) joining together by:

1. Agreeing on a portion of biblical doctrines or as they often state “core teachings,”

2. Ignoring the remaining biblical doctrines and
3. Promoting false doctrines. (Psychology, Evolution, Contemplative Practices etc.)

It is a religious unity movement falsely promoted in the name of God’s love yet it is not based on the full counsel of God. This false Ecumenical unity causes great confusion and error to those not well grounded in God’s Word.

In Richard Foster’s book “Streams of Living Water”, he says the following with regard to his vision for “a great gathering of the people of God: “I see a Catholic monk from the hills of Kentucky standing alongside a Baptist evangelist … I see a people”. ₂₂

“Contemplative consciousness,” says [Thomas] Merton, is “a trans-cultural, trans-religious, trans-formed consciousness … it can shine through this or that system, religious or irreligious” ₂₃

So what does the Bible have to say when it comes to dealing with false teachings? God commands true believers to “…come out from among them, and be ye separate, saith the Lord, and touch not the unclean thing; and I will receive you” 2 Corinthians 6:17.

Contemplative Prayer appears to be paving the way to the False Prophet’s One World Religious system mentioned in Revelations 17 and 18. Revelation 18:4, though specifically referring to the time when the Antichrist rules on earth, offers good advice for believers to follow today in the matter of demonic teachings such as Contemplative Prayer — “And I heard another voice from heaven, saying, Come out of her, my people, that ye be not partakers of her sins, and that ye receive not of her plagues.”

• AVOID FALSE TEACHINGS

“Now the Spirit speaketh expressly, that in the latter times some shall depart from the faith, giving heed to seducing spirits, and doctrines of devils; 7 But refuse profane and old wives’ fables, and exercise thyself [rather] unto godliness.” 1 Timothy 4:1, 7

First, if you are not born again according to the Word of God, I would invite you to repent and believe on the Lord Jesus Christ alone for salvation.

Second, to protect yourself from seducing spirits and doctrines of devils, use the King James Version of the Bible. Despite numerous myths, thorough research reveals the KJV is the most accurate English word for word translation. It includes all of the words; no verses or portions of verses are missing. The Bible says “every word” of God is important (Proverbs 14:15, Proverbs 30:5, Matthew 4:4). Modern counterfeit bibles including “The Message” by Eugene Peterson and “Renovare Spiritual Formation Bible”, have replaced God’s words with New Age terminology further deceiving unsuspecting readers.

Dave Hunt expresses his concern. “Many Christian leaders promote wicked Bible versions such as Eugene Peterson’s The Message (NavPress, 1993: see TBC Oct ’95) that pervert God’s Word. Men like Peterson have no conscience about changing what God says, replacing His words with their own. Peterson is praised for this perversion by many Christian leaders such as J.I. Packer, Warren Wiersbe, Jack W. Hayford, and Richard Foster, founder of the Renovare Movement and General Editor of the “Renovare Spiritual Formation Bible” (Harper San Francisco, 2005″. ₂₄

Third, study the Scriptures in their context and define the words using Strong’s Concordance. False teachings are typically based on Scriptures, or portions of verses, taught outside of the context they were written. Satan misquoted God’s Word to Jesus himself. Yet, Jesus defeated Satan by quoting Scripture accurately.

Fourth, have faith in what God teaches you in His Word and obey it. Satan is great at leading people to doubt God’s Word. Remember, the old Serpent deceived Eve, leading her first to doubt His Word, then deny God’s Word, which lead to her deifying herself – she chose her own way instead of God’s way. (Genesis 3:1,4,5)

Fifth, before you choose to read any literature, research the authors’ beliefs and practices. Understand their definitions for terms and compare them to scripture. Also, learn who they endorse and associate with.

Sixth, if you realize you have accepted a false teaching, confess it as sin, repent and obey the scriptures. The Scripture promises “Submit yourselves therefore to God. Resist the devil, and he will flee from you.” James 4:7

Seventh, earnestly contend for the faith (Jude 1:3), by warning others of false teachings. ²Preach the word; be instant in season, out of season; reprove (convict), rebuke (admonish), exhort (instruct) with all long suffering and doctrine. 2 Timothy 4:2

Eighth, practice biblical separation from those who will not repent of false teachings. “Study to shew thyself approved unto God, a workman that needeth not to be ashamed, rightly dividing the word of truth. 16 But shun profane and vain babblings: for they will increase unto more ungodliness.17 And their word will eat as doth a canker: of whom is Hymenaeus and Philetus;18 Who concerning the truth have erred, saying that the resurrection is past already; and overthrow the faith of some.” 2 Timothy 2:15-18

ENDNOTES:

1 Webster’s 1828 Dictionary, http://www.cbtministries.org/resources/webster1828.htm

2 Webster’s 1828 Dictionary, http://www.cbtministries.org/resources/webster1828.htm

3 Contemplative Outreach, Ltd. http://www.contemplativeoutreach.org/cntrgpryr.htm#Centering%20Prayer

4 Contemplative Outreach, Ltd. http://www.contemplativeoutreach.org/methodcp.htm

5 Catholic Answers, “The Danger of Centering Prayer” by By Rev. John D. Dreher, http://www.catholic.com/thisrock/1997/9711fea1.asp

6 The Center for Contemplative Mind in Society, http://www.contemplativemind.org/about/faq.html

7 The Center for Contemplative Mind in Society, http://www.contemplativemind.org/practices/tree.html

8 Mystical Deception Files by Noah Dove, http://www.dtl.org/cults/article/mystical.htm

9 The Mystica Mythical-Folk, Occult Encyclopedia, http://www.themystica.com/mystica/articles/a/altered_states_of_consciousness.html

10 The Mystica Mythical-Folk, Occult Encyclopedia, http://www.themystica.org/mystica/articles/m/mysticism.html

11 Contemplative Outreach, Ltd. http://www.contemplativeoutreach.org/methodcp.htm

12 Universal Gnostic Church, http://universalgnostic.com/guides/

13 Logos Resource Pages, “Primer For Recognizing Occult Practices”, http://www.logosresourcepages.org/Occult/occult_primer.htm

14 Lighthouse Trails Research Project, http://www.lighthousetrailsresearch.com/glossarynames.htm

15 Lighthouse Trails Research Project, http://www.lighthousetrailsresearch.com/Colleges.htm

16 The Berean Call, http://www.thebereancall.org/Newsletters/2000+Newsletters/4493.aspx

17 Lighthouse Trails Research Project, http://www.lighthousetrailsresearch.com/awanas.htm

18 Lighthouse Trails Research Project, http://www.lighthousetrailsresearch.com/emergingchurch.htm

19 A Time of Departing by Ray Yungen, p.137; 37 -David G. Benner, Sacred Companions: The Gift of SpiritualFriendship & Direction, Intervarsity Press, Downers Grove, Illinois, 2002, p.9

20 Contemplative Outreach, Ltd. http://www.contemplativeoutreach.org/cntrgpryr.htm

21 Way of Life, David Cloud, http://www.wayoflife.org/fbns/eugenepeterson-the-message.html

22 Council for Christian Colleges & Universities, article titled “Richard Foster” http://www.cccu.org/chem/profileID.69/profile.asp

23 “Thoughts on the East” p.34 by Thomas Merton

24 Dave Hunt, The Berean Call, August 2005 Newsletter, http://www.thebereancall.org/Newsletters/2005+Newsletters/107940.aspx

“Marvel not, my brethren, if the world hate you.“ 1 John 3:13

Scripture Reading – John 15:18-25

The hatred and persecution of Christians is nothing new. In 64 A.D. Nero unleashed his fury against Christians, falsely accusing them primarily hate crimes to cover up his culpability in the burning of Rome. The first-century Roman historian Cornelius Tacitus provides some insight in his classic work, “Annals.” Here’s a translated excerpt from “Annals” 15:44, describing Emperor Nero’s reaction to the burning of Rome:

“But all human efforts, all the lavish gifts of the emperor, and the propitiations of the gods, did not banish the sinister belief that the conflagration was the result of an [his] order. Consequently, to get rid of the report, Nero fastened the guilt and inflicted the most exquisite tortures on a class hated for their abominations, called Christians by the populace. Christus [Christ], from whom the name had its origin, suffered the extreme penalty during the reign of Tiberius at the hands of one of our procurators, Pontius Pilate, and a most mischievous superstition, thus checked for the moment, again broke out not only in Judaea, the first source of the evil, but even in Rome, where all things hideous and shameful from every part of the world find their center and become popular. Accordingly, an arrest was first made of all who pleaded guilty; then, upon their information, an immense multitude was convicted, not so much of the crime of firing the city, as of hatred against mankind. Mockery of every sort was added to their deaths. Covered with the skins of beasts, they were torn by dogs and perished, or were nailed to crosses, or were doomed to the flames and burnt, to serve as a nightly illumination, when daylight had expired.”

What I want you to notice is that Christians were charged with “hatred of mankind.” Isn’t that interesting? They were convicted of “hate crimes.”

Increasingly Christians who stand up for Biblical teachings are objects of hate and derision in America and they likewise are being accused of “hate” speech and “hate” crimes. Here are some examples — A government report blamed Christianity for causing teenage suicides. Published in 1989 by the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, it accused Catholics, Baptists, and other Christian groups of depicting homosexuality as morally wrong, thus creating “unresolvable internal conflicts for youth who adhere to their faith but believe they will not change their sexual orientation.” The recommendation: churches must change their beliefs. “Religion needs to reassess homosexuality in a positive context…” [“Government Tells Churches What to Teach,” AFA Journal (October 1989).]

Former liberal CBS News Dan Rather, blamed Christians for attacks on homosexuals in an April 11 editorial for the magazine Nation. He wrote, “Gays and lesbians are beaten to death in the streets with increasing frequency – in part due to irrational fear of AIDS but also because hatemongers, from comedians to the worst of the Christian Right, sent the message that homosexuals have no value in our society.”

Former Texas governor Ann Richards labeled pro-life Christians “mongers of hate” who “preach their anger” and “have turned the party of Lincoln into the party of Operation Rescue.”

Recently a Christian employee of Hewlet Packard was fired for posting Bible verses condemning homosexual behavior on his desk in response to posters displayed during a company campaign to promote a diverse work force.

I well remember the denunciation of the late Reggie White, an All-Pro defensive end for the Green Bay Packers, because he stated in a speech his Christian beliefs regarding homosexuality. CBS almost immediately cancelled his pending sports casting contract. During his speech, White declared that he is “offended” by the comparison of struggles of homosexual groups to those of blacks. “Homosexuality is a decision. It’s not a race,” he said. At about the same time, CBS announced plans to air the Howard Stern Show, featuring raunchy language, nudity and graphic sexual content. Nike agreed to retain Reggie as a spokesman, but Nike Chairman Phil Knight denounced Reggie as “crazy.” The Campbell Soup Company declined to renew Reggie’s endorsement contract, saying that his “comments are not consistent with the principles of the Campbell Soup Company.”

The late Ronald Reagan said this about those who attacked the biblical values of Christians – “The frustrating thing is that those who are attacking religion claim they are doing it in the name of tolerance, freedom, and open-mindedness. Question: Isn’t the real truth that they are intolerant of religion? They refuse to tolerate its importance in our lives.”

Liberals, Atheists, Hedonists, and the pro-death crowd indict Bible believing Christians as “intolerant,” “radicals,” “hate mongers,” “fanatics,” etc. who want to establish a Christian version of Taliban government with a message of hate and fear. However, their real goal is to stigmatize the beliefs and values of Christians so that people believe we are extremists, bigots and fanatics and will ignore us.

Why Does The World Hate Christians?

• The Exclusive Nature of The Christians Message

The Christians message is not a message of inclusiveism or relativity. It is an exclusive, absolute message. It is not a broad message but a narrow message. And that makes people mad! Verses that confirm this are – Matthew 7:13-21, John 10:1, 7-10; Acts 4:12; 1 John 5:11-13; John 14:6; 1 Timothy 2:5-6.

• The Holy Nature Of The Christians Manner

Our Lord Jesus Christ said, “And this is the condemnation, that light is come into the world, and men loved darkness rather than light, because their deeds were evil. 20 For every one that doeth evil hateth the light, neither cometh to the light, lest his deeds should be reproved.” John 3:19-20

The world hates Christians because when we speak-up for righteousness and live righteously the behavior of the sinner is “reproved,” that is, shown to be sinful. Paul knew what that was like. He was beaten with whips and sticks and even stoned, all because of his holy living and holy witnessing. He wrote to young Timothy – “Yea, and all that will live godly in Christ Jesus shall suffer persecution.” 2 Timothy 3:12

• The Bold Character of Our Modus Operandi

The Christian’s aim is to be bold for the Lord. Paul is our mode. He said, “According to my earnest expectation and my hope, that in nothing I shall be ashamed, but that with all boldness, as always, so now also Christ shall be magnified in my body, whether it be by life, or by death. 21 For to me to live is Christ, and to die is gain.” Philippians 1:20-21

When you love God, you hate evil (Psalm 97:10). Hating evil is not synonymous hating the perpetrator of that evil. I regularly preach against sin that God hates because I want the sinner to come under the conviction of the Holy Spirit, repent of their sin and trust Christ as their Savior. Why? So they don’t God to Hell! I was a Hell bound sinner and, praise God, someone shared the Gospel with me and trusted Christ!

Those who hate God and His Son Jesus Christ would have us shut our mouths and go cower in the corner. But we must not. I will conclude by issuing you the same challenge Paul issued to Timothy in 2 Timothy 4:1-8. Marvel not if the world hate you.

Introduction

As we begin, let me to refresh your memory concerning what some of the main tenants of multiculturalism are.

1) Ethnic Origin Identity — Multiculturalism emphasizes and promotes the segregation of ethnic origins as opposed to the blending of individual backgrounds into one American culture.

2) Special Interest Group Advantages — Multiculturalism supports and advances the rights of special interest groups (i.e. sexual orientation, gender, economic status, and race) at the expense of others’ individual freedoms.

3) Redefinition of What Constitutes a “Minority” and Special Privileges For Them — Multiculturalism pushes for, supports and seeks special privileges and protections those cultures or counter-cultures that are outside of mainstream society because they have no power, voice or status (i.e. homosexuals, illegal aliens, atheists, etc.)

4) Social Entitlement — Multiculturalism promotes the doctrine of “social entitlement,” which teaches that our society is responsible to support those who have not achieved, or those who do not have the initiative to achieve, or those who have not taken advantage of the opportunities to better themselves.

5) Moral Relativism — Multiculturalism preaches moral relativism. They proclaim that no one viewpoint or lifestyle is necessarily right or wrong. It is a matter of individual preference.

6) Sexual Neutrality — Multiculturalism advocates sexual neutrality. It presses for the removal of male and female roles and or identities. In their minds, sexual distinctions and labels are merely personal bias and preprogrammed prejudice. Opportunities for jobs, marriage, etc. must be gender neutral.

They build their house of cards on the belief that all truth is created by humans. They assert that since humans create all truth, all truth is equally true. They teach that we live in a universe that is blind to moral choices. Because of that belief, they claim that we are the final judges of how we shall live. We know better than that. Psalms 119:160 says, “Thy word is true from the beginning: and every one of thy righteous judgments endureth for ever.”

By design, the multicultural philosophy was developed clandestinely in the bowls of liberal, left wing groups. The design was to inject their toxic multicultural ethic into American culture with the purpose of weakening and if possible killing patriotism, Christian values, and ethics, which are the backbone of our society. The most vulnerable candidates for their noxious injection are the youth. Therefore, the toxic multicultural ethic has been increasingly injected into the children in our public schools. Further, the liberal National media in our country is distributing this multicultural poison in higher doses as the years go by. The effect is that there is an epidemic of people, even Christians, who have been infected by the toxic multicultural philosophy.

The Agenda of Multiculturalism

• Eliminate Any Absolute Morals or Ethics

Absolute Standards do not exist. I determine what is right for me.

How many Americans do you think believe in moral absolutes? Here’s what a July 2005 poll by The Barna Group, a Christian research organization, found. Only 35 percent of Americans believe in absolute standards of morality — that is, believe that right and wrong do not change with time or circumstances. 32 percent of Americans say that morality depends on the situation and the circumstance, while 33 percent say they do not know if morality is absolute or relative. But, it gets even more interesting. Polls consistently show that a majority of Americans consider themselves to be Christians. But despite that, only 5 percent of Americans hold to a biblical worldview. Barna defines a biblical worldview as believing that: moral absolutes exist; the source of truth is the Bible; the Bible is “accurate in all of the principles it teaches.”

It is obvious that most Americans have adopted the multicultural agenda! So, what should the Christian response be? Believe the Bible and proclaim its teachings. Isaiah 45:19 “I have not spoken in secret, in a dark place of the earth [like the pagan oracles]: I said not unto the seed of Jacob, Seek ye me in vain: I the LORD speak righteousness, I declare [make known publicly] things that are right.” The multicultural crowd is changing the “truth of God into a lie…” Romans 1:25. Judgment is pronounced on those who deny and contradict God’s truth. We see this in Isaiah 5:20 “Woe unto them that call evil good, and good evil; that put darkness for light, and light for darkness; that put bitter for sweet, and sweet for bitter!” There ARE moral absolutes. These absolutes truths are found in the Bible. Mankind is responsible to obey these absolutes.

• Their Goal is to Change and Eliminate Sexual Orientation

Homosexuality, bisexuality, and heterosexuality are all equally valid. They want homosexuals and lesbians to have the same rights as heterosexuals.

Nearly all states had laws on the books against homosexuality. With the rise of the “gay” and “lesbian” movement in the 60’s and the 70’s and rising public support, 23 states had repealed their sodomy laws by 1980. Four more did so between 1980 and 1990. Those which did not repeal their sodomy laws were hindered from enforcing them on June 26, 2003 “In an unexpectedly large step, the [Supreme] court said traditional morality is no justification for making legal distinctions among sexual behaviors of consenting adults. ‘The fact that the governing majority in a State has traditionally viewed a particular practice as immoral is not a sufficient reason for upholding a law prohibiting the practice.’”

This advanced the multicultural agenda BIG TIME. That’s why they are now pushing for “homosexual marriages,” and trying to force companies to cover homosexual partners in insurance programs.

What does the Bible say? Leviticus 18:22-26 “Thou shalt not lie with mankind, as with womankind: it is abomination. 23 Neither shalt thou lie with any beast to defile thyself therewith: neither shall any woman stand before a beast to lie down thereto: it is confusion. 24 Defile not ye yourselves in any of these things: for in all these the nations are defiled which I cast out before you: 25 And the land is defiled: therefore I do visit the iniquity thereof upon it, and the land itself vomiteth out her inhabitants. 26 Ye shall therefore keep my statutes and my judgments, and shall not commit any of these abominations; neither any of your own nation, nor any stranger that sojourneth among you:”

Leviticus 20:13 “If a man also lie with mankind, as he lieth with a woman, both of them have committed an abomination: they shall surely be put to death; their blood shall be upon them.”

Jude 1:7 “Even as Sodom and Gomorrha, and the cities about them in like manner, giving themselves over to fornication, and going after strange flesh, are set forth for an example, suffering the vengeance of eternal fire.”

• Their Goal Is To Change and Eliminate Gender Roles and Labels

Male and female roles must be interchangeable. Bias or limitations upon women or homosexuals must be eliminated

The egalitarian and multicultural view says “that a man and woman, male and female are created as equal in all respects.” That just is not true! Genesis 1:26-27 indicate male and female created in God’s image, but as Genesis 2 makes clear, God ordained different functions for the man and the woman. The man serves in a leadership role, while the woman serves in a support role. The woman serves in a submissive role under the leadership and authority of the male. This role differentiation which was instituted by God in the Old Testament continues in the New Testament. The 12 Apostles were all men. The husband is the head of the wife — Ephesians 5:22-33. Likewise it is seen in the Church women are not to exercise authoritative roles of teaching men or preaching 1 Timothy 2:8-15.

• Economic Inequities Must Be Eliminated

Opportunities for success must be rearranged and taken away from middle class males.

There is no valid principle that can justify economic robbery, but that is what is going on in our culture today. To be sure it is the will of God that we voluntarily give to those who have genuine needs as we see in Ephesians 4:28 “Let him that stole steal no more: but rather let him labour, working with his hands the thing which is good, that he may have to give to him that needeth.” However, the “entitlement” or “you owe me” mentality is foreign to the Scriptures. Consider Proverbs 14:23 “In all labour there is profit: but the talk of the lips tendeth only to penury [poverty].” The Bible teaches rewarding the diligent and allowing the slacker to suffer the consequences of his or her slackness. Read Proverbs 10:4 “He becometh poor that dealeth with a slack hand: but the hand of the diligent maketh rich.” It is just plain wrong to reward laziness.

• Change or Eliminate National Patriotism and Boundaries

Past origin is more important than present culture. Promote global allegiance rather than national allegiance.

God’s command was to replenish the earth. Man wanted to unite at Babel and sought to establish a “one world government” there. God confounded their language and disbursed them all over the world. It is God who causes nations to rise and fall. It is God who establishes their boundaries and the length of their existence. Man’s march toward globalism is against God’s plan. To seek to dilute our Judeo-Christian culture is a sin. Acts 17:26 says, “And hath made of one blood all nations of men for to dwell on all the face of the earth, and hath determined the times before appointed, and the bounds of their habitation;”

• The Program of God For His Children

God Wants Us To Shine As Lights — Philippians 2:15

God Does Not Want Us To Return Evil For Evil — Romans 12:17

God Does Not Want Us To Overlook Evil But Expose & Rebuke It — Ephesians 5:10-13

God Does Want Us To Do Good To All Men — Galatians 6:10

God Does Want Us To Testify of Him To Everyone — 2 Corinthians 5:18-20

God Does Want Us To Challenge Our Culture – 1 Corinthians 1:18-31

Conclusion

There is a spiritual war being waged within our culture. Unregenerate man hates the things of God and loves the things of this world that cater to the sinful nature. Satan is using the agenda of multiculturalsim to bring about the demise of every Godly vestige in our culture and he has been very successful. One reason is because Christians have been unwittingly duped into believing his lies. While claiming to be Christians, they have adopted many of the tenants of the multicultural ethic and thereby rejected the tenants of the Judeo-Christian Ethic. My we be among those who shine as lights in the midst of this “crooked and perverse nation.”

In order for you to understand this series of messages, on Multiculturalism’s Clandestine War Against Christianity, I will begin by defining some words that will be used in this series.

• Definitions

Paradigm – An example that serves as a pattern or model; A pattern, example or model. [I will be talking about the paradigm shift that has taken place in the United States. The original paradigm or model that our nation was built on was the laws, teachings and principles of the Bible. By and large the people of this country had a Christian world view].

Egalitarianism – A belief in human equality especially with respect to social, political and economic rights and privileges; A social philosophy advocating the removal of inequities among people.

Culture – The belief systems and value orientations that influence customs, norms, practices, and social institutions and organizations. Culture is the embodiment of a worldview through learned and transmitted beliefs, values, and practices, including religious and spiritual beliefs.

Multiculturalism & Diversity – The term multiculturalism and diversity are terms that are used interchangeably. Multiculturalism urges and even demand tolerance, yea, acceptance of racial and ethical minorities, languages, sexual orientation, gender, age, disability, class status, education, religious & spiritual orientations and practices, and other cultural manifestations.

Xenophobia – Fear or hatred of strangers or foreigners.

Homophobic – Fear or hatred of homosexuals.

• Overview

It is my belief that we, as Americans, are living in a post Christian culture. No longer do Judeo-Christian ethics serve as the compass that guide our national laws, beliefs and conduct. While it is true that in times of trouble lip service is paid to the Lord God of Heaven, it is as our Lord Jesus said in Matthew 15:8 “This people draweth nigh unto me with their mouth, and honoureth me with their lips; but their heart is far from me.”

While I do not deny that there are still multitudes that profess that they are Christians in America today, it is my contention that far too many do not hold a genuine Christian world view, but, by and large, they either have adopted, the mindset of today’s secular culture, or they are oblivious to the paradigm shift that has taken place in America. And what is the mindset of our culture today? It is a radicalized idea of freedom, that is, that freedom means the freedom to do what you please. [In reality, when everyone does that which is right in his/her own eyes, that is anarchy]. It is the idea that everything is equal, and all types of behavior are equal. As one person put it –

“The goal of equality has supplanted all other cultural and moral values and become the sole legitimating principle of this society. Today we have notions of absolute “life-style” equality [i.e. homosexuality and heterosexuality are equal options. However the Bible says marriage is honorable – Hebrews 13:4; homosexuality is vile – Romans 1:26-27]; absolute cultural equality (as in multiculturalism) [In God’s eyes, all cultures are note equal. See Leviticus 20:23-24]; absolute equality of the races (as in the demand for statistical equality of results) [The Bible rewards on the basis of diligence of the individual. See Proverbs 13:4] ; and absolute sex equality (as in the feminization of the military) [Ephesians 5:23; Titus 2:4-5]. When you press people on these issues, you find that they have an implicit feeling that normative distinctions, upon which civilization just happens to be based, are inhumane. In order to avoid being inhumane to out-of-wedlock mothers, we must say that illegitimacy is as worthy of respect as legitimacy; and we end up with a nation of fatherless children. In order to avoid being inhumane to illegal immigrants, we give illegals virtually all the privileges of citizenship; and so on.”

Listen my friend that is not what freedom really is, all things being equal and being able to do exactly as you want.

Russian dissident Alexander Solzhenitsyn knew what freedom is better than most Americans today. He said in his commencement address at Harvard in 1978:

“…[In early democracies, as] in American democracy at its birth, all individual human rights were granted on the ground that man is God’s creature. That is, freedom was given to the individual conditionally, in the assumption of his constant religious responsibility. . . . Two hundred or even fifty years ago, it would have seemed quite impossible, in America, that an individual be granted boundless freedom with no purpose, simply for the satisfaction of his whims.”

Today, increasingly we are moving from being “One Nation Under God” to many individuals and groups striving for our rights. The Judeo-Christian Ethic (the Old Testament, New Testament teachings) is being replaced with the multicultural ethic. The multicultural ethic is slowly and subtly replacing the Christian ethic that our nation was founded upon.

The obvious question is, what is the multicultural ethic? Multicultural advocates such as NAME (the National Association for Multicultural Education) begin with the assumption that truth is culturally based. They posit (speculate) since multiple descriptions of reality exist, no one view can be true in any ultimate sense. Furthermore, since they believe that truth is a function of language, and all language is created by humans, all truth is created by humans. Therefore multiculturalists say that if humans create all truth, it is all equally true. Cultural ideas or institutions, like human sacrifice or welfare systems, are equally valid if they are useful for a given group of people. In other words, multiculturalists believe and teach we live in a universe that is blind to moral choices. They believe we are the final judges of how we shall live. But, they do not stop there. Since they believe that no truth transcends culture, that no idea or moral concept might be true for every cultural group or every human being, the result is, multiculturalists seek to exert pressure and even demand that those who hold a Christian World View compromise their faith-based beliefs in moral absolutes and tolerate or even become moral relativists. Christians are being pressured, harassed, intimidated and publicly humiliated (called homophobic, puritanical, hateful, narrow-minded, intolerant) in an effort to get them to give up, or at least keep quiet about their belief that God governs the Universe and that He has an absolute standard of right and wrong. Their watchwords are tolerance, Tolerance, TOLERANCE. For the multiculturalists tolerance is the only absolute. This multicultural ethic has been preached in the public education system, believed by the public, and increasingly codified by legislators. Homosexuals, abortionists, radical feminists, etc. all promote tolerance as an absolute because that is the only way such groups can get recognition and spread their sinful views.

The result of multiculturalism ethic being believed and practiced is a decomposing effect on the character of our people, especially our young people.

I must go on record to tell you and encourage you to reaffirm your belief in these two Biblical principles…

• There IS Absolute Truth & That Truth Is Found In God’s Word
   
• Psalms 119:142 “Thy righteousness is an everlasting righteousness, and thy law is the truth.”
• Psalms 119:151 “Thou art near, O LORD; and all thy commandments are truth.”
• Psalms 119:160 “Thy word is true from the beginning: and every one of thy righteous judgments endureth for ever.”
• John 17:17 “Sanctify them through thy truth: thy word is truth.”
   
• When You Love God You Hate Evil, Not Tolerate It
   
• Psalms 97:10 “Ye that love the LORD, hate evil: he preserveth the souls of his saints; he delivereth them out of the hand of the wicked.”
• Psalms 119:128 “Therefore I esteem all thy precepts concerning all things to be right; and I hate every false way.”
• Isaiah 5:20 “Woe unto them that call evil good, and good evil; that put darkness for light, and light for darkness; that put bitter for sweet, and sweet for bitter!”

I don’t mean to sound cynical, but I believe that the multicultural ethic so permeates our culture that only a revival can save our country. May that revival begin with us and spread throughout the people of this nation. That is not to say we should sit back and silently with a defeatist attitude. On the contrary. We need to be salt and light, pointing people to their need of salvation in Christ.