4.4 - Christianity
"The whole world isn't fighting against other religions. Just the God of the Bible." - Unknown
a. Pride
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If you're looking for answers to the most important questions in life the Bible can help. The Devil hates two books in the bible the most. Genesis and Revelation. Genesis describes his devices, and Revelation describes his doom.
"Blessed are the meek: for they shall inherit the earth." - Matthew 5:5 KJV
How can the meek inherit the earth in a world of survival of the fittest? Because evolution is in direct opposition to the Bible. We are fallen creatures. We would do well to remember that.
It's been the same story since the beginning of time. We must choose between being meek and being proud. Adam's pride caused humans to be cast out from the Garden of Eden, leading to man's fall.
"And the serpent said unto the woman, Ye shall not surely die: For God doth know that in the day ye eat thereof, then your eyes shall be opened, and ye shall be as gods, knowing good and evil." - Genesis 3:4-5 KJV
Lucifer tempted Adam and Eve into thinking that they might be gods. And today, we think we are much better than our ancestors because we have ‘evolved.’ The reality is we echo the men that came before us. And that echo fades with each passing generation.
b. Christianity vs. Paganism
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"One must choose between God and Man, and all 'radicals' and 'progressives' from the mildest liberal to the most extreme anarchist, have in effect chosen Man." - George Orwell
"[The New Age is] a universal open arms religion that excludes from its ranks only those who believe in Jesus Christ and a personal God. Budhists, Shintoists, Satanists, Secular, Humanists, witches, witch doctors, and shamans all whom reject Christianity are invited to become trusted members of the new age family. Worshippers of separate faiths and denominations are to be unified in a common purpose [which is] the glorification of man. While paganists and occultists openly declare themselves to be new agers the religion is also broad based enough to include those in the most respectable professions." - Teks Mars, Dark Secrets of the New Age
"From now on, men will divide themselves into two religions, understood again as surrender to an absolute. The conflict of the future is between an absolute who is the God-man and an absolute which is the Man-god; between the God who became man and the man who makes himself God; between brothers in Christ and comrades in anti-Christ. "- Venerable Archbishop Fulton J. Sheen
"As CS Lewis and many other experts have concluded, there are only two religions in the world:
1) Christianity - Separated from one true God by sin and that God became a man to die for our sins
2) Paganism - Men are not separated from God, but each person has within himself the power to overcome evil and, thus, the power to become God or at least a god. [Paganism] embraces and absorbs everything except Biblical Christianity which is its only genuine rival... [Pagan gods] declare that they come forth to save the righteous and condemn sinners. This is exactly the opposite of the Biblical Christ who came to save sinners. The great complaint of Paganism and all occult secret societies is one must be worthy of joining them. Christianity deliberately embraces the unworthy." - Ed Decker and Dave Hunt, The GodMakers - The Mormon Dilemma - The Pagan Connection, pg. 60
“They always give some credit to Jesus Christ. The Muslims say that he was a prophet. The Krishnas say he was an incarnation of the godhead in his age. Yogananda and all these different Eastern teachers say that he had Christ consciousness. You know they always use words like Christ consciousness. Christ this. Jesus that. The Buddhists would even say he was a Budha. Another incarnation of God like Budha was. And all my searchings I saw that all these people were pointing to Jesus. Well, yeah, Jesus is one of the ways, but we're one of the ways. And they wouldn't all agree on anything except that Jesus was one of the ways. And then I looked into the Bible in John chapter 6 where he says 'I am the way. I am the truth. I am the life. No one gets to the Father, but by me.' So they all gave him credit, and he only gave himself credit. And I went, well that kind of eliminates everybody. They all say he's cool, and he says he's the only one that's going to get you there so I guess I'm safe. So I started praying to Jesus. I did this all through intellectual reasoning and laid it on the table and figured it out. If they all gave him credit and he only gave himself credit and they all agreed on one thing that he was one of the ways. And he only agreed that he was the only way. So I figured I had no choice, but to go with him. And then I started praying to Jesus." - Keith Green
"Enter ye in at the strait gate: for wide is the gate, and broad is the way, that leadeth to destruction, and many there be which go in thereat: Because strait is the gate, and narrow is the way, which leadeth unto life, and few there be that find it." - Matthew 7:13-14 KJV
Muslims -->
"In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God." - John 1:1 KJV
"The angels called out to him, while he stood praying in the sanctuary, ‘God gives you news of John, confirming a Word from God. He will be noble and chaste, a prophet, one of the righteous." - Quran Surah Ali'Imran 3:39 Abdul Haleem translation on angels telling John of the coming of Jesus Christ (a prophet according to them).
Krishnas -->
Christ - noun - the title, also treated as a name, given to Jesus. From Greek Khristos meaning ‘anointed.'
"'Christ' is another way of saying Krsta and Krsta are another way of pronouncing Krishna, the name of God…the general name of the Supreme Personality of Godhead, whose specific name is Krishna. Therefore whether you call God 'Christ', 'Krsta', or 'Krishna', ultimately you are addressing the same Supreme Personality of Godhead…Sri Caitanya Mahaprabhu said: namnam akari bahu-dha nija-sarva-saktis. (God has millions of names, and because there is no difference between God's name and Himself, each one of these names has the same potency as God.)" - AC Bhaktivedanta Swami Prabhupada, The father of the Krishna Consciousness Movement on Jesus being an incarnation of the godhead.
Yogananda -->
"Let us meditate until we perceive the Infinite Christ reigning in our own hearts. Let us learn to love those who love us not; and to forgive those who do ill against us. Let us break all our mental boundaries of color, creed, and nationality, and receive all - even our inanimate and animal brothers - in the endless, all embracing arms of Christ Consciousness. This will be a true and fitting celebration of the coming of Jesus Christ to this earth." - Paramahansa Yogananda
Buddha -->
"Jesus Christ also lived previous lives... So, you see, he reached a high state, either as a Bodhisattva, or an enlightened person, through Buddhist practice or something like that." - Dalai Lama 2001
Jesus and Buddha: The Parallel Sayings
"Do unto others as you would have them do unto you” - Luke 6:31 KJV
“Consider others as yourself” - Buddha Dhammapada 10.1.
"Blessed are you who are poor, for yours is the kingdom of God." - Luke 6.20 KJV
"Let us live most happily, possessing nothing; let us feed on joy, like radiant gods." - Buddha, Dhammapada 15.4
"If anyone strikes you on the cheek, offer the other also." Luke 6.29 KJV
"If anyone should give you a blow with his hand, with a stick, or with a knife, you should abandon any desires and utter no evil words." - Buddha, Majjhima Nikaya 21.6
c. The Narrow Gate
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Christianity is unique. There is only one way to God. The religion of the antichrist seeks compromise. Unity. Middle ground. There is no middle ground in Christianity. Paganism cannot be blended into Christianity to produce something better. Pagans believe that all paths lead to God. They fault Christians for being intolerant and narrow-minded. But God's word anticipates this:
"Enter through the narrow gate. For wide is the gate and broad is the road that leads to destruction, and many enter through it. But small is the gate and narrow the road that leads to life, and only a few find it." - Matthew 7:13-14 KJV
My favorite part of Christianity is that Jesus is the ultimate anti-hero, continually humbling himself and leading by serving. As is often said, "Jesus was either a liar, a lunatic, or Lord." The evidence demands that we choose one. He was born in a stable. Traveled on a donkey. Fed his followers fish and bread.
"Then shall the King say unto them on his right hand, Come, ye blessed of my Father, inherit the kingdom prepared for you from the foundation of the world: For I was an hungered, and ye gave me meat: I was thirsty, and ye gave me drink: I was a stranger, and ye took me in: Naked, and ye clothed me: I was sick, and ye visited me: I was in prison, and ye came unto me. Then shall the righteous answer him, saying, Lord, when saw we thee an hungered and fed thee? Or thirsty, and gave thee drink? When saw we thee a stranger, and took thee in? or naked, and clothed thee? Or when saw we thee sick, or in prison, and came unto thee? And the King shall answer and say unto them, Verily I say unto you, inasmuch as ye have done it unto one of the least of these my brethren, ye have done it unto me." - Matthew 25 34:40 KJV
"Then Jesus said to his host, ‘When you give a luncheon or dinner, do not invite your friends, your brothers or sisters, your relatives, or your rich neighbours; if you do, they may invite you back and so you will be repaid. But when you give a banquet, invite the poor, the crippled, the lame, the blind, and you will be blessed. Although they cannot repay you, you will be repaid at the resurrection of the righteous.’" - Luke 14:12-24 KJV
"For God loved the world so much that he gave his one and only Son, so that everyone who believes in him will not perish but have eternal life. God sent his Son into the world not to judge the world, but to save the world through him." - Jesus Christ, John 3:16-17 KJV
d. Prophecy
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Nothing less than the One could weave all prophecy and all the gospel together seamlessly at multiple levels. This is simply beyond mankind. The scripture itself is the witness. That is the miracle. It testifies impossibly to far too many truths that bear out. There is nothing else like it because it didn't come from us. It came to us.
Tet·ra·gram·ma·ton - noun - the Hebrew name of God transliterated in four letters as YHWH or JHVH and articulated as Yahweh or Jehovah. From the Greek tetra meaning ‘four’ and grammat meaning ‘letter.'
"YHWH - Hebrew name for God meaning 'I am that I am'. Each letter in Hebrew has a symbolic meaning:
Yodh - Arm / Hand
He - Revelation / Behold
Waw - Nail / Peg
He - Revelation / Behold
Behold the Hand / Behold the Nail -or- The Hand Reveals / The Nail Reveals" - Unknown, incredibly prophetic that the same letters in God's name symbolically illustrate the coming of Jesus Christ and that he would be crucified on a cross with nails through his hands
"And I will fasten him as a NAIL in a sure place; and he shall be for a glorious throne to his father's house. And they shall hang upon him all the glory of his father's house, the offspring and the issue, all vessels of small quantity, from the vessels of cups, even to all the vessels of flagons. In that day, saith the LORD of hosts, shall the NAIL that is fastened in the sure place be removed, and be cut down, and fall; and the burden that was upon it shall be cut off: for the LORD hath spoken it." - Isaiah 22:23-25 KJV, written by Isaiah in 700BC on the coming Messiah. The fact that nail is spoken twice in the same verse means it has vast symbolic importance and is remarkably similar to the verse written 730 years later, as shown below.
"Then saith he to Thomas, Reach hither thy finger, and behold my HANDS; and reach hither thy hand, and thrust it into my side: and be not faithless, but believing." John 20:27 KJV, Jesus’ words to Thomas when he didn’t believe that Jesus had risen from the grave after being crucified on the cross.
"I am poured out like water, and all my bones are out of joint: my heart is like wax; it is melted in the midst of my bowels. My strength is dried up like a potsherd; and my tongue cleaveth to my jaws; and thou hast brought me into the dust of death. For dogs have compassed me: the assembly of the wicked have inclosed me: _THEY PIERCED MY HANDS AND FEET_. I may tell all my bones: they look and stare upon me. They part my garments among them, and CAST LOTS FOR MY VESTURE." - Psalm 22:14-18 KJV, written by David in 587 BC and strikingly similar to the crucifixion and death of Jesus Christ described below.
"And when they had crucified him, they PARTED HIS GARMENTS, CASTING LOTS UPON THEM, what every man should take." - Mark 15:24 KJV written by Mark in 70 AD.
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