FALSE DOCTRINES, MYTHS AND LIES EXPOSED Part 2
For accuracy Bible translations recommended - Authorized King James Version or New King James Version. This page is long and difficult to navigate, so the plan is to eventually make this material easier to access with perhaps each of, or most of the topics listed having their own page. If the topic has a hyperlink then it has its own page, but may still be on this page as well. Please have patience.
Table of Contents
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False Gods - myth you can worship the true God and idols at the same time.
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God the Father - myth that God the Father was the God of the Old Testament.
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Greatest Sin - myth that the greatest sin is pride.
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Myth that Heaven is the Reward of the Saved
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Holy Days - false doctrine that men have the authority to declare certain days as Holydays.
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Homosexuality - falsehoods, lies and myths regarding homosexuality.
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Imminence of Christ's Return - exposing the false doctrine that Christ could return at any moment.
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Exposing the False Doctrine of the Imortality of the Soul
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Jehovah's Witnesses false teaching that most of the saved will live forever with fleshly human bodies in the Kingdom - on an earthly paradise with human bodies that will never get old, or die.
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False Doctrine that the Jews Represent All of Israel
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Law - exposing the myth that Jesus Christ did away with the Law.
1. False Gods - myth that you can worship God (as explained in the Bible) and idols at the same time. Myth that Christ doesn't mind if you share your worship of Him with idols, false gods and images.
With many Churches today we have promoted the " inclusive " Jesus. This " inclusive " Jesus loves everyone, so, so very much - just the way they are. This sort of Jesus doesn't expect anything much from us, why we don't even have to believe in Him too much. This " inclusive " Jesus died for everybody, and wants everyone to go to heaven - even pets.
There seems to be about as many versions of Jesus as there are various conflicting denominations of professing Christianity. There are also the versions of Jesus promoted by all various other religions like Islam for example.
I am here to tell you the truth. I am here to tell you about the real Jesus. How long will people keep misrepresenting Jesus ? How long will too many keep twisting His words, and claiming they know Him - when they never have ? The Jesus so very, very many of these various churches and denominations preach about and teach about is a false Christ - a Jesus they have invented and can change and control - a false God. The real Jesus is not someone we can control. I know the real Jesus. If I were to say I didn't then I would be lying.
The real Jesus is the Word, the Creator - the God of the Old Testament.
John 1:1-3 " In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. The same was in the beginning with God. All things were made by him; and without him was not any thing made that was made. "
John 1:14 " 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. "
The real Jesus was alive forever, and dealt with and conversed with people like Moses and Abraham.
John 8:53-58 " Art thou greater than our father Abraham, which is dead? and the prophets are dead: whom makest thou thyself? Jesus answered, If I honour myself, my honour is nothing: it is my Father that honoureth me; of whom ye say, that he is your God: Yet ye have not known him; but I know him: and if I should say, I know him not, I shall be a liar like unto you: but I know him, and keep his saying. Your father Abraham rejoiced to see my day: and he saw it, and was glad. Then said the Jews unto him, Thou art not yet fifty years old, and hast thou seen Abraham? Jesus said unto them, Verily, verily, I say unto you, Before Abraham was, I Am. "
The real Jesus will not put up with us worshipping idols and Him at the same time. The real Jesus was the one who thundered the Ten Commandments to the children of Israel from Mt. Sinai.
1 Corinthians 19:1-4 " Moreover, brethren, I would not that ye should be ignorant, how that all our fathers were under the cloud, and all passed through the sea; And were all baptized unto Moses in the cloud and in the sea; And did all eat the same spiritual meat; And did all drink the same spiritual drink: for they drank of that spiritual Rock that followed them: and that Rock was Christ. "
The real Jesus was the Word, the Creator, who willingly humbled Himself and came to this earth as the human being Jesus Christ, so He could carry out God's will and die for our sins.
Philippians 2:5-11 " Let this mind be in you, which was also in Christ Jesus: Who, being in the form of God, thought it not robbery to be equal with God: But made himself of no reputation, and took upon him the form of a servant, and was made in the likeness of men: And being found in fashion as a man, he humbled himself, and became obedient unto death, even the death of the cross. Wherefore God also hath highly exalted him, and given him a name which is above every name: That at the name of Jesus every knee should bow, of things in heaven, and things in earth, and things under the earth; And that every tongue should confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father."
The real Jesus came from heaven, and returned to the heavens again. The real Jesus was not of this world.
John 8:23 " And he said unto them, Ye are from beneath; I am from above: ye are of this world; I am not of this world. "
The real Jesus is not some weak, suffering, long haired effeminate man - which the images and idols claim. The real Jesus commands us not to worship idols, or bow down before images.
Exodus 20:1-6 " And God spake all these words, saying, I am the LORD thy God, which have brought thee out of the land of Egypt, out of the house of bondage. Thou shalt have no other gods before me. Thou shalt not make unto thee any graven image, or any likeness of any thing that is in heaven above, or that is in the earth beneath, or that is in the water under the earth: Thou shalt not bow down thyself to them, nor serve them: for I the LORD thy God am a jealous God, visiting the iniquity of the fathers upon the children unto the third and fourth generation of them that hate me; And shewing mercy unto thousands of them that love me, and keep my commandments. "
The real Jesus is alive for ever more, and John was given a vision of how He looks right now.
Revelation 1:10-18 " I was in the Spirit on the Lord's day, and heard behind me a great voice, as of a trumpet, Saying, I am Alpha and Omega, the first and the last:.................. And I turned to see the voice that spake with me. And being turned, I saw seven golden candlesticks; And in the midst of the seven candlesticks one like unto the Son of man, clothed with a garment down to the foot, and girt about the paps with a golden girdle. His head and His hairs were white like wool, as white as snow; and His eyes were as a flame of fire; And His feet like unto fine brass, as if they burned in a furnace; and His voice as the sound of many waters. And He had in His right hand seven stars: and out of His mouth went a sharp two-edged sword: and His countenance was as the sun shineth in his strength. And when I saw Him, I fell at His feet as dead. And he laid His right hand upon me, saying unto me, Fear not; I am the first and the last: I am He that liveth, and was dead; and, behold, I am alive for evermore, Amen; and have the keys of hell and of death. "
This is how the real Jesus looks today.
The real Jesus expects, and demands we put Him first in our lives, because He is God too, just like God the Father is God. Jesus is part of the Godhead.
Matthew 10:37-39 " He that loveth father or mother more than me is not worthy of me: and he that loveth son or daughter more than me is not worthy of me. And he that taketh not his cross, and followeth after me, is not worthy of me. He that findeth his life shall lose it: and he that loseth his life for my sake shall find it. "
The real Jesus will not share our affections with idols.
2 Corinthians 6:14-17 " Be ye not unequally yoked together with unbelievers: for what fellowship hath righteousness with unrighteousness? and what communion hath light with darkness? And what concord hath Christ with Belial? or what part hath he that believeth with an infidel? And what agreement hath the temple of God with idols? for ye are the temple of the living God; as God hath said, I will dwell in them, and walk in them; and I will be their God, and they shall be my people. Wherefore come out from among them, and be ye separate, saith the Lord, and touch not the unclean thing; and I will receive you, "
1 Corinthians 3:16-17 " Know ye not that ye are the temple of God, and that the Spirit of God dwelleth in you? If any man defile the temple of God, him shall God destroy; for the temple of God is holy, which temple ye are. "
Revelation 9:20-21 " And the rest of the men which were not killed by these plagues yet repented not of the works of their hands, that they should not worship devils, and idols of gold, and silver, and brass, and stone, and of wood: which neither can see, nor hear, nor walk: Neither repented they of their murders, nor of their sorceries, nor of their fornication, nor of their thefts. "
The real Jesus will not share our affections with foolish, lifeless images and idols.
1 Corinthians 10:20-21 " But I say, that the things which the Gentiles sacrifice, they sacrifice to devils, and not to God: and I would not that ye should have fellowship with devils. Ye cannot drink the cup of the Lord, and the cup of devils: ye cannot be partakers of the Lord's table, and of the table of devils. "
Simply put ladies and gentlemen - Jesus Christ demands we put away our idols and images. He expects and commands we put Him first in our lives, because He is part of the Godhead along with God the Father.
If you want to be a follower of the true God then you must put away your false gods and idolatry. God is a jealous God, who simply will not share our affections with idols. He will not change to please us. We must change to please Him.
2. God the Father - false doctrine that God the Father was the God of the Old Testament.
The Bible teaches that Christ never sinned. The Bible teaches that it is a sin to lie. If God the Father was the God of the Old Testament, who revealed Himself to Israel, and who spoke face to face to Moses - then Jesus Christ is a liar. Christ is no liar.
John 5:37 " And the Father Himself, which hath sent me, hath borne witness of me. Ye have neither heard his voice at any time, nor seen his shape. "
These are the very words of Jesus Christ.
1 John 4:12 " No man hath seen God at any time. If we love one another, God dwelleth in us, and his love is perfected in us. "
John 1:18 " No man hath seen God at any time; the only begotten Son, which is in the bosom of the Father, he hath declared Him. "
The scriptures are very plain here. However, some might mention some scriptures that appear to contradict this. Let us list and refute some of these now.
Matthew 3:16-17 " And Jesus, when he was baptized, went up straightway out of the water: and, lo, the heavens were opened unto him, and he saw the Spirit of God descending like a dove, and lighting upon him: And lo a voice from heaven, saying, This is my beloved Son, in whom I am well pleased. "
Whose voice was this ? Many assume this was the voice of God the Father, since the voice said " this is my beloved son." Now remember that Christ taught plainly that no man (except Christ of course - who was part human, and God in the flesh) has ever seen God the Father's shape or heard His voice.
The explanation should be very simple. God the Father sent one of His Angels to deliver a message from Him. The message was from God the Father, but it wasn't delivered directly by God the Father, but by one of His servants - and this almost certainly was one of the Angels - perhaps Gabriel, or Michael.
John 12:28-30 " Father, glorify thy name. Then came there a voice from heaven, saying, I have both glorified it, and will glorify it again. The people therefore, that stood by, and heard it, said that it thundered: others said, An angel spake to him. Jesus answered and said, This voice came not because of me, but for your sakes. "
Once again this is a message being delivered by an Angelic being. Just because the voice used the personal pronoun " I " doesn't automatically mean it was God the Father's voice they heard.
The Word Was the God of the Old Testament
The God who humbled Himself and came to this earth in the form of the human being Jesus Christ, was the one who revealed Himself to Israel, and who spoke face to face with prophets like Moses and His servant Abraham.
John 1: 1-5 " In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. The same was in the beginning with God.All things were made by Him; and without Him was not any thing made that was made. In Him was life; and the life was the light of men. And the light shineth in darkness; and the darkness comprehended it not. "
John 1: 9-14 " That was the true Light, which lighteth every man that cometh into the world. He was in the world, and the world was made by him, and the world knew him not. He came unto his own, and his own received him not. But as many as received him, to them gave he power to become the sons of God, even to them that believe on his name: Which were born, not of blood, nor of the will of the flesh, nor of the will of man, but of God. 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. "
The Word was with God, and the Word was God. This may sound perplexing, but it isn't. The Godhead consists of two Gods. When the Word was born as the human being Jesus Christ - then the other member of the Godhead became God the Father. Before that He wasn't God the Father - the family relationship began when the Word came to earth as God in the flesh.
The Gods are creating a family, and they are doing it through Jesus Christ. We can be born into that family as children of God.
Hebrews 1:8-12 " But unto the Son He saith, Thy throne, O God, is for ever and ever: a sceptre of righteousness is the sceptre of thy kingdom. Thou hast loved righteousness, and hated iniquity; therefore God, even thy God, hath anointed thee with the oil of gladness above thy fellows. And, Thou, Lord, in the beginning hast laid the foundation of the earth; and the heavens are the works of thine hands: They shall perish; but thou remainest; and they all shall wax old as doth a garment; And as a vesture shalt thou fold them up, and they shall be changed: but thou art the same, and thy years shall not fail. "
It was the Word (the one who was born as the human being Jesus Christ) who appeared to the prophets, and who thundered the Ten Commandments to the children of Israel, from Mt. Sinai.
1 Corinthians 10:1-4 " Moreover, brethren, I would not that ye should be ignorant, how that all our fathers were under the cloud, and all passed through the sea; And were all baptized unto Moses in the cloud and in the sea; And did all eat the same spiritual meat; And did all drink the same spiritual drink: for they drank of that spiritual Rock that followed them: and that Rock was Christ. "
Exodus 20:18-23 " And all the people saw the thunderings, and the lightnings, and the noise of the trumpet, and the mountain smoking: and when the people saw it, they removed, and stood afar off. And they said unto Moses, Speak thou with us, and we will hear: but let not God speak with us, lest we die. And Moses said unto the people, Fear not: for God is come to prove you, and that his fear may be before your faces, that ye sin not. And the people stood afar off, and Moses drew near unto the thick darkness where God was. And the LORD said unto Moses, Thus thou shalt say unto the children of Israel, Ye have seen that I have talked with you from heaven. "
Jesus Christ claimed to have been alive during the time of Abraham, and actually claimed to have conversed with Abraham. Abraham lived about 2,000 years before the time of Christ.
John 8: 53 -59 " Art thou greater than our father Abraham, which is dead? and the prophets are dead: whom makest thou thyself? Jesus answered, If I honour myself, my honour is nothing: it is my Father that honoureth me; of whom ye say, that he is your God: Yet ye have not known Him; but I know Him: and if I should say, I know Him not, I shall be a liar like unto you: but I know Him, and keep His saying. Your father Abraham rejoiced to see my day: and he saw it, and was glad. Then said the Jews unto him, Thou art not yet fifty years old, and hast thou seen Abraham? Jesus said unto them, Verily, verily, I say unto you, Before Abraham was, I am. "
Exodus 33:11 " And the LORD spake unto Moses face to face, as a man speaketh unto his friend. And he turned again into the camp: but his servant Joshua, the son of Nun, a young man, departed not out of the tabernacle. "
It should be quite clear from the scriptures. God the Word was the God of the Old Covenant. The Word became flesh and dwelt among us as the human being Jesus Christ.
Many people don't like to hear this. They have this image of Jesus, which is a false image, and a false Christ. The effeminate, long haired hippie looking white man, is the false image they convey of Jesus. The false image of a homeless vagabond, who did away with His Father's mean old laws.
It is time we started having a more realistic image of Christ.
Revelation 1:10- 11 " I was in the Spirit on the Lord's day, and heard behind me a great voice, as of a trumpet, Saying, I am Alpha and Omega, the first and the last: ..........
Revelation 1: 12-18 " And I turned to see the voice that spake with me. And being turned, I saw seven golden candlesticks;
" And in the midst of the seven candlesticks one like unto the Son of man, clothed with a garment down to the foot, and girt about the paps with a golden girdle.
" His head and His hairs were white like wool, as white as snow; and His eyes were as a flame of fire;
"And His feet like unto fine brass, as if they burned in a furnace; and His voice as the sound of many waters.
" And He had in his right hand seven stars: and out of His mouth went a sharp two-edged sword: and His countenance was as the sun shineth in his strength.
" And when I saw Him, I fell at his feet as dead. And he laid His right hand upon me, saying unto me, Fear not; I am the first and the last:
" I am he that liveth, and was dead; and, behold, I am alive for evermore, Amen; and have the keys of hell and of death. "
3. Greatest Sin - false teaching that the greatest sin is pride.
Catholic doctrine teaches that there are seven capital , or chief sins. Let me quote from " THIS IS THE CATHOLIC FAITH " by Director: R.N. Mugford , Session11 page 3:
" Capital (Chief Sins)
" Seven in number. Not so much acts of sin, but leading tendencies toward sin. (a good self-examination list before confession). Each of these has its opposite virtue.
- Pride
- Lust
- Avarice (Greed)
- Anger
- Gluttony
- Envy
- Sloth "
So there you have it. Pride tops the list of the seven chief sins according to Catholic doctrine.
A lawyer once asked Christ a question, " Master what is the great commandment in the law ? "
Matthew 22:35 - 40 " Then one of them, which was a lawyer, asked Him a question, tempting Him, and saying, Master, which is the great commandment in the law? 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. This is the first and great commandment. And the second is like unto it, Thou shalt love thy neighbour as thyself. On these two commandments hang all the law and the prophets. "
Luke 10:25-28 " And, behold, a certain lawyer stood up, and tempted him, saying, Master, what shall I do to inherit eternal life? He said unto him, What is written in the law? how readest thou? And he answering said, Thou shalt love the Lord thy God with all thy heart, and with all thy soul, and with all thy strength, and with all thy mind; and thy neighbour as thyself. And he said unto him, Thou hast answered right: this do, and thou shalt live. "
Luke 14:25-27 (from the Living Bible) " Great crowds were following him. He turned around and addressed them as follows: Anyone who wants to be my follower must love me far more than he does his own father, mother, wife , children, brothers, or sisters - yes more than his own life - otherwise he cannot be my disciple. And no one can be my disciple who does not carry his own cross and follow me. "
Deuteronomy 6:4-5 " Hear, O Israel: The LORD our God is one LORD: And thou shalt love the LORD thy God with all thine heart, and with all thy soul, and with all thy might. "
So what is the greatest sin ? It should be obvious. The greatest command is to love God with all our hearts, soul, strength and mind. Therefore the greatest sin is to break the greatest commandment.
The greatest sin is to love something, or someone more than you love God.
The greatest sin is to put something or someone ahead of God and Christ in your life.
4. Exposing the Myth the Heaven is the Reward of the Saved
It is a common doctrine among most churches that Christians go to heaven after death. The mainstream teaching is basically, if you have been good you go to heaven, and if bad you go to hell.
There are various denominational twists to this accepted dogma. There is the idea of purgatory for example. Some will teach you must believe in Christ , and if you don't you are damned. Others are much more inclusive, and believe God accepts all mankind into heaven as long as they are a good Muslim, Christian, Buddhist, etc.
To avoid confusion let us look into the Bible, which is the inspired word of God and the authority on the subject.
What happens to us when we die ? Well this has been explained in the previous section entitled Exposing the False Doctrine of the Immortality of the Soul. We go into the grave, and our bodies rot. We return to dust. But there is the hope of the resurrection. We are saved through faith. Christ and His living word the Bible promise us that there is a resurrection, and therefore there is hope (Luke 20: 34-37) (1 Corinthians 15:42-58) (John 11: 23-27).
The resurrection of the saints has not happened yet. This will occur at the last trump. At the blowing of the 7th Trumpet, which heralds the return of Jesus Christ and the setting up of His kingdom.
1 Corinthians 15:51-52 " Behold, I shew you a mystery; we shall not all sleep, but we shall all be changed, In a moment, in the twinkling of an eye, at the last trump: for the trumpet shall sound, and the dead shall be raised incorruptible, and we shall be changed."
Matthew 24:30-31 " And then shall appear the sign of the Son of man in heaven: and then shall all the tribes of the earth mourn, and they shall see the Son of man coming in the clouds of heaven with power and great glory. And He shall send His angels with a great sound of a trumpet, and they shall gather together His elect from the four winds, from one end of heaven to the other. "
1 Thessalonians 4: 16-17 " For the Lord himself shall descend from heaven with a shout, with the voice of the archangel, and with the trump of God: and the dead in Christ shall rise first: Then we which are alive and remain shall be caught up together with them in the clouds, to meet the Lord in the air: and so shall we ever be with the Lord. "
Zechariah 14: 3 -4 " Then shall the LORD go forth, and fight against those nations, as when he fought in the day of battle. And his feet shall stand in that day upon the mount of Olives................ "
1 Corinthians 15: 20-23 " But now is Christ risen from the dead, and become the firstfruits of them that slept. For since by man came death, by man came also the resurrection of the dead. For as in Adam all die, even so in Christ shall all be made alive. But every man in his own order: Christ the firstfruits; afterward they that are Christ's at his coming. "
Revelation 20: 4-6 " And I saw thrones, and they sat upon them, and judgment was given unto them: and I saw the souls of them that were beheaded for the witness of Jesus, and for the word of God, and which had not worshipped the beast, neither his image, neither had received his mark upon their foreheads, or in their hands; and they lived and reigned with Christ a thousand years. But the rest of the dead lived not again until the thousand years were finished. This is the first resurrection. Blessed and holy is he that hath part in the first resurrection: on such the second death hath no power, but they shall be priests of God and of Christ, and shall reign with him a thousand years. "
The last trumpet shall sound, and then the resurrection of the dead saints happens. This coincides with the return of Christ to the earth. His feet shall stand upon the mount of Olives.
In the Bible there are three meanings for the word ' heaven.'
- One refers to God's throne, or home where He lives - this is in the spiritual realm.
- Another refers to the universe with all its galaxies and stars.
- Another refers to the sky, which surrounds our earth - the atmosphere.
So when it says, " and they shall gather together His elect from the four winds, from one end of heaven to the other " - this doesn't mean the saints will be gathered up in heaven where God lives, but rather they will meet Christ in the air - the sky, after having been resurrected. Christ won't shoot up to heaven, but His feet will stand upon the mount of Olives.
When we die we return to the earth, but there is hope in the resurrection.
God described David as a man after God's own heart (Acts 13: 22)(1 Kings 11:4). It is prophesied that David will be resurrected and be in God's Kingdom (Jeremiah 30:9) (Ezekiel 34:24) (Ezekiel 37:23-24).
Yet it is clearly stated in the Bible that David is still dead and buried, and is not in heaven.
Acts 2: 29 " Men and brethren, let me speak freely unto you of the patriarch David, he is both dead and buried, and his sepulchre is with us unto this day. "
Acts 2:34 " For David is not ascended into the heavens....."
If the righteous go to heaven at death, then why does the Bible say plainly that David is not ascended into the heavens, and that he remains dead and buried ?
It is because the resurrection of the saints won't happen until the seventh trumpet sounds. As well the saints will be with Christ and Christ will be here on the earth, setting up His Kingdom. They will rule with Christ in His Kingdom, and will be here on earth (Daniel 7:27) (Matthew 19:28) (Luke 19:17-19).
Christ will rule the world from Jerusalem, which will be the world capital. The saints ain't going to heaven, except for maybe a brief official ceremony before God the Father's throne in heaven (Revelation 14:1-5).
The saints follow Christ and Jesus will be busy here on earth setting up His Kingdom and ruling the earth (Zechariah 8:1-3 , 14:9)
Micah 4:1-3 " But in the last days it shall come to pass, that the mountain of the house of the LORD shall be established in the top of the mountains, and it shall be exalted above the hills; and people shall flow unto it. And many nations shall come, and say, Come, and let us go up to the mountain of the LORD, and to the house of the God of Jacob; and he will teach us of his ways, and we will walk in his paths: for the law shall go forth of Zion, and the word of the LORD from Jerusalem. And he shall judge among many people, and rebuke strong nations afar off; and they shall beat their swords into plowshares, and their spears into pruninghooks: nation shall not lift up a sword against nation, neither shall they learn war any more. "
The reward of the saints is of course eternal salvation, but among other things it is also a job here on earth in Christ's Kingdom. There will be a lot of work to do. No the saints don't float around heaven on clouds for all eternity, playing on harps. God plans to eventually set mankind over the work of His hands (Hebrews 2:6-9).
Eventually, after the 1,000 years and the judgment period the earth will turn into a ball of fire. The incorrigibly wicked will be thrown into this lake of fire and burned up - this is the second death (Revelation 20:14-15).
God then creates a new heaven and a new earth. This will be on the spiritual plane, because there will be no more death, tears, pain or crying. Death, tears, pain and crying are part of this physical existence, and are associated with the physical bodies we now have. But when we have the spiritual bodies God has promised us, and after God is finished with this physical earth, then we will be living in the spiritual realm and so won't suffer pain, and won't cry.
There won't be any sin in the New Heaven and the New Earth, so there won't be any sorrow. There won't be any Devil and Fallen Angels around to cause trouble, and pain. The rebellious sinners will have been burnt up, so won't be around to cause others sorrow. All of the resurrected saints will have proved in this physical life that God can trust them to remain loyal and faithful to Christ and God the Father in God's Kingdom.
God the Father will come to live on this new earth, which then will become the seat of God's throne. So actually God's home (heaven) will be here on the new earth.
Revelation 21:1-4 " And I saw a new heaven and a new earth: for the first heaven and the first earth were passed away; and there was no more sea. And I John saw the holy city, new Jerusalem, coming down from God out of heaven, prepared as a bride adorned for her husband. And I heard a great voice out of heaven saying, Behold, the tabernacle of God is with men, and he will dwell with them, and they shall be his people, and God himself shall be with them, and be their God. And God shall wipe away all tears from their eyes; and there shall be no more death, neither sorrow, nor crying, neither shall there be any more pain: for the former things are passed away. "
Revelation 21:5-7 " And he that sat upon the throne said, Behold, I make all things new. And he said unto me, Write: for these words are true and faithful. And he said unto me, It is done. I am Alpha and Omega, the beginning and the end. I will give unto him that is athirst of the fountain of the water of life freely. He that overcometh shall inherit all things; and I will be his God, and he shall be my son. "
Revelation 21:8 " But the fearful, and unbelieving, and the abominable, and murderers, and whoremongers, and sorcerers, and idolaters, and all liars, shall have their part in the lake which burneth with fire and brimstone: which is the second death. "
The New Jerusalem descends down to the New Earth from heaven.
Revelation 21:9-27 " And there came unto me one of the seven angels which had the seven vials full of the seven last plagues, and talked with me, saying, Come hither, I will shew thee the bride, the Lamb's wife.
" And he carried me away in the spirit to a great and high mountain, and shewed me that great city, the holy Jerusalem, descending out of heaven from God,
" Having the glory of God: and her light was like unto a stone most precious, even like a jasper stone, clear as crystal;
" And had a wall great and high, and had twelve gates, and at the gates twelve angels, and names written thereon, which are the names of the twelve tribes of the children of Israel:
" On the east three gates; on the north three gates; on the south three gates; and on the west three gates.
" And the wall of the city had twelve foundations, and in them the names of the twelve apostles of the Lamb.
" And he that talked with me had a golden reed to measure the city, and the gates thereof, and the wall thereof.
" And the city lieth foursquare, and the length is as large as the breadth: and he measured the city with the reed, twelve thousand furlongs (somewhere around 1,500 miles). The length and the breadth and the height of it are equal.
" And he measured the wall thereof, an hundred and forty and four cubits (which is about 216 feet) , according to the measure of a man, that is, of the angel.
" And the building of the wall of it was of jasper: and the city was pure gold, like unto clear glass.
" And the foundations of the wall of the city were garnished with all manner of precious stones. The first foundation was jasper; the second, sapphire; the third, a chalcedony; the fourth, an emerald;
" The fifth, sardonyx; the sixth, sardius; the seventh, chrysolite; the eighth, beryl; the ninth, a topaz; the tenth, a chrysoprasus; the eleventh, a jacinth; the twelfth, an amethyst.
" And the twelve gates were twelve pearls; every several gate was of one pearl: and the street of the city was pure gold, as it were transparent glass.
" And I saw no temple therein: for the Lord God Almighty and the Lamb are the temple of it.
" And the city had no need of the sun, neither of the moon, to shine in it: for the glory of God did lighten it, and the Lamb is the light thereof.
" And the nations of them which are saved shall walk in the light of it: and the kings of the earth do bring their glory and honour into it.
" And the gates of it shall not be shut at all by day: for there shall be no night there. And they shall bring the glory and honour of the nations into it.
" And there shall in no wise enter into it any thing that defileth, neither whatsoever worketh abomination or maketh a lie: but they which are written in the Lamb's book of life. "
Revelation 22: 20-21 " He which testifieth these things saith,Surely I come quickly. Amen. Even so, come, Lord Jesus. The grace of our Lord Jesus Christ be with you all. Amen.
5. Holy Days - Myth that human ministers and priests have the authority to add and make up Holy Days.
The truth is they have never been given such authority. God's Holy Days are listed in the 23rd chapter of the book of Leviticus in your Bible.
Leviticus 23:1-2 " And the LORD spake unto Moses, saying, Speak unto the children of Israel, and say unto them, Concerning the feasts of the LORD, which ye shall proclaim to be holy convocations, even these are my feasts. Six days shall work be done: but the seventh day is the Sabbath of rest, an holy convocation; ye shall do no work therein: it is the Sabbath of the LORD in all your dwellings. These are the feasts of the LORD, even holy convocations, which ye shall proclaim in their seasons."
The weekly Sabbath is not the Jewish Sabbath - it is the Sabbath of the Lord.
These holy days do not belong to any particular religion, or race of people. They are the Feasts of the Lord. They do not belong to man. They are not Jewish. They are God's holy days. God revealed these holy days to Israel, but that did not mean Israel was the exclusive owner of them. That did not give Israel the right to alter or change them.
These days are holy days, because of the presence of God in them. That is what makes them Holy. If anyone will keep these days in the proper spirit they will quickly discover that God's presence is in them. God and Christ will teach you on these days. Of course they are all prophetic and point to Jesus Christ. Days cannot save us. Days cannot wash away our sins. It is Jesus Christ who saves us and washes away sins through His sacrifice.
- Leviticus 23:5 " In the fourteenth day of the first month at even is the LORD'S Passover. " Once again this is the Lord's holy day. It was instituted by God Himself. Man did not invent or create the Passover, and have no authority to change, or add anything to it. Christ changed and fulfilled the Passover, when He died on the Passover for our sins. He changed the ceremonies associated with this holy day (Luke 22:14-20). " This do in remembrance of me, " Jesus said.
- Leviticus 23:6-7 " And on the fifteenth day of the same month is the feast of unleavened bread unto the LORD: seven days ye must eat unleavened bread. In the first day ye shall have an holy convocation: ye shall do no servile work therein. "
- Leviticus 23:15-16 " And ye shall count unto you from the morrow after the Sabbath, from the day that ye brought the sheaf of the wave offering; seven Sabbaths shall be complete: Even unto the morrow after the seventh Sabbath shall ye number fifty days; and ye shall offer a new meat offering unto the LORD. " This is the Day of Pentecost. You count 7 weeks from the last weekly Sabbath in the Feast of Unleavened Bread and then add one day to come to fifty. The Day of Pentecost is therefore always on a Sunday.
- Leviticus 23:24 " Speak unto the children of Israel, saying, In the seventh month, in the first day of the month, shall ye have a Sabbath, a memorial of blowing of trumpets, an holy convocation. " This is the Feast of Trumpets.
- Leviticus 23:27-28 " Also on the tenth day of this seventh month there shall be a day of atonement: it shall be an holy convocation unto you; and ye shall afflict your souls, and offer an offering made by fire unto the LORD. And ye shall do no work in that same day: for it is a day of atonement, to make an atonement for you before the LORD your God. "
- Leviticus 23: 34-3 " Speak unto the children of Israel, saying, The fifteenth day of this seventh month shall be the feast of tabernacles for seven days unto the LORD. On the first day shall be an holy convocation: ye shall do no servile work therein. "
- Leviticus 23:26 " Seven days ye shall offer an offering made by fire unto the LORD: on the eighth day shall be an holy convocation unto you; and ye shall offer an offering made by fire unto the LORD: it is a solemn assembly; and ye shall do no servile work therein. " The is the Last Great Day.
The myth is that these days are Jewish. We have already dispelled that myth. These are the Feasts of the Lord. They are God's holy days, because God's presence is in them. Believe me, I have kept these holy days in their proper spirit, and I can tell you from personal firsthand experience that God and Jesus Christ will teach you during this time. This is especially so regarding the Feast of Unleavened Bread, because this has to do with us putting away our sins, and Jesus is very eager to help us do this and show us our sins, so we can work on them to overcome them. You have to keep them properly and in the correct spirit - then you can expect to feel God's presence in your life in a real way during this time.
Jesus Christ and His disciples kept these holy days. There are seven of them, which shows us they are complete the way they are.
6. Homosexuality - falsehood that the Bible doesn't condemn homosexuality.
The argument many professing Christians will make in defense of homosexuality is that even though the Bible condemns homosexuality in the Old Testament we are under the New Covenant, and now have only one commandment (in their opinion), which is to love one another, and so if homosexuals love each other then the relationship has God's blessings (goes the twist) . However these people forget that homosexuality is thoroughly condemned in the New Testament.
Romans 1:21-28 " Because that, when they knew God, they glorified Him not as God, neither were thankful; but became vain in their imaginations, and their foolish heart was darkened. Professing themselves to be wise, they became fools, And changed the glory of the uncorruptible God into an image made like to corruptible man, and to birds, and fourfooted beasts, and creeping things. Wherefore God also gave them up to uncleanness through the lusts of their own hearts, to dishonour their own bodies between themselves: Who changed the truth of God into a lie, and worshipped and served the creature more than the Creator, who is blessed for ever. Amen. For this cause God gave them up unto vile affections: for even their women did change the natural use into that which is against nature: And likewise also the men, leaving the natural use of the woman, burned in their lust one toward another; men with men working that which is unseemly, and receiving in themselves that recompence of their error which was meet. And even as they did not like to retain God in their knowledge, God gave them over to a reprobate mind, to do those things which are not convenient; "
1 Corinthians 6:9 (from Living Bible) " Don't you know that those doing such things have no share in the Kingdom of God ? Don't fool yourselves. Those who live immoral lives, who are idol worshippers, adulterers or HOMOSEXUALS -will have no share in His Kingdom. Neither will thieves, or greedy people, drunkards, slanderers or robbers. "
1 Timothy 1:10-11 (from Living Bible) " Yes, these laws are made to identify as sinners all who are immoral and impure: HOMOSEXUALS, kidnappers, liars, and all others who do things that contradict the glorious Good news of our blessed God, whose messenger I am. "
2 Peter 2:4-8 " For if God spared not the angels that sinned, but cast them down to hell, and delivered them into chains of darkness, to be reserved unto judgment; And spared not the old world, but saved Noah the eighth person, a preacher of righteousness, bringing in the flood upon the world of the ungodly;And turning the cities of Sodom and Gomorrah into ashes condemned them with an overthrow, making them an ensample unto those that after should live ungodly; And delivered just Lot, vexed with the filthy conversation of the wicked: For that righteous man dwelling among them, in seeing and hearing, vexed his righteous soul from day to day with their unlawful deeds; "
Jude 1: 7 " Even as Sodom and Gomorrah, 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. "
Genesis 19: 1-13 " And there came two angels to Sodom at even; and Lot sat in the gate of Sodom: and Lot seeing them rose up to meet them; and he bowed himself with his face toward the ground; And he said, Behold now, my lords, turn in, I pray you, into your servant's house, and tarry all night, and wash your feet, and ye shall rise up early, and go on your ways. And they said, Nay; but we will abide in the street all night.
" And he pressed upon them greatly; and they turned in unto him, and entered into his house; and he made them a feast, and did bake unleavened bread, and they did eat. But before they lay down, the men of the city, even the men of Sodom, compassed the house round, both old and young, all the people from every quarter: And they called unto Lot, and said unto him, Where are the men which came in to thee this night? bring them out unto us, that we may know them (rape them).
" And Lot went out at the door unto them, and shut the door after him, And said, I pray you, brethren, do not so wickedly. Behold now, I have two daughters which have not known man; let me, I pray you, bring them out unto you, and do ye to them as is good in your eyes: only unto these men do nothing; for therefore came they under the shadow of my roof.
" And they said, Stand back. And they said again, This one fellow came in to sojourn, and he will needs be a judge: now will we deal worse with thee, than with them. And they pressed sore upon the man, even Lot, and came near to break the door. But the men put forth their hand, and pulled Lot into the house to them, and shut to the door. And they smote the men that were at the door of the house with blindness, both small and great: so that they wearied themselves to find the door.
" And the men said unto Lot, Hast thou here any besides? son in law, and thy sons, and thy daughters, and whatsoever thou hast in the city, bring them out of this place: For we will destroy this place, because the cry of them is waxen great before the face of the LORD; and the LORD hath sent us to destroy it. "
Genesis 19:23-25 " The sun was risen upon the earth when Lot entered into Zoar. Then the LORD rained upon Sodom and upon Gomorrah brimstone and fire from the LORD out of heaven; And he overthrew those cities, and all the plain, and all the inhabitants of the cities, and that which grew upon the ground. "
Leviticus 18:22 " Thou shalt not lie with mankind, as with womankind: it is abomination. "
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. "
Deuteronomy 23:17 " There shall be no whore of the daughters of Israel, nor a sodomite of the sons of Israel. "
2 Kings 23:7 " And he brake down the houses of the sodomites, that were by the house of the LORD, where the women wove hangings for the grove. "
1 Kings 14:24 " And there were also sodomites in the land: and they did according to all the abominations of the nations which the LORD cast out before the children of Israel. "
The evidence is overwhelming. The Bible absolutely condemns homosexuality in both the Old and New Testaments. There can be no doubt whatsoever.
7. Myth of Christ's Imminent Return - myth Christ may return anytime, perhaps tonight.
There has been tremendous confusion regarding when Jesus Christ will return to set up His Kingdom. I have put together a web site on this very subject, which is specifically designed to make simple an extremely complicated and misunderstood subject. To reach this page go to Signs of Christ's Return.
Some folks believe Christ could return at any moment, and rapture them to heaven. Yet there is no scriptural evidence to support that assumption.
I will just quote some scriptures that so many attempt to twist around to prove their belief that Jesus may return at any moment, perhaps even tonight or tomorrow.
Matthew 24:36-39 " But of that day and hour knoweth no man, no, not the angels of heaven, but my Father only. But as the days of Noe were, so shall also the coming of the Son of man be. 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, And knew not until the flood came, and took them all away; so shall also the coming of the Son of man be. "
Matthew 24:40-44 " Then shall two be in the field; the one shall be taken, and the other left. Two women shall be grinding at the mill; the one shall be taken, and the other left. Watch therefore: for ye know not what hour your Lord doth come. But know this, that if the goodman of the house had known in what watch the thief would come, he would have watched, and would not have suffered his house to be broken up. Therefore be ye also ready: for in such an hour as ye think not the Son of man cometh. "
If you have gone over my article on the Signs of Christ's Return you will have a fairly accurate picture of the events that must precede the return of Christ.
I will just like to point out that we could die at any moment. None of us knows the exact hour of our death (unless we plan on committing suicide or something unthinkably horrible and terrible like that). Hopefully most of us will live to a ripe old age, but still we do not know when we shall meet our Maker.
This is why Christ said that we should always be ready for Christ's unannounced return, because none of us hopefully knows when we will die.
Death is like going to sleep sort of. In the next moment of consciousness we will meet Christ. We will be unaware of the passage of time. Perhaps hundreds and indeed thousands of years will have gone by since we had died, but at our resurrection we will not be aware of the length of time of our ' sleep'.
I feel there are quite a few people who want Christ to return so desperately that they start to read things into the scriptures that really are not there. Christ will return when God the Father decides - not us. God has revealed certain events or prophecies that need to come to pass first before Jesus returns, and you can read them by gong to my web site Signs of Christ's Return.
There isn't a shred of Biblical evidence that there will be a sudden rapture of the saints to heaven.
My educated guess as to the approximate date of Christ's return is probably sometime between the years 2040 and 2070.
8. Exposing the False Doctrine of the Immortality of the Soul
The Bible does not teach that human beings have an immortal soul.
Genesis 2:7 " And the Lord God formed man of the dust of the ground, and breathed into his nostrils the breath of life; and man became a living soul. "
We are living souls.
Our human ancestors, Adam and Eve, were given a choice by God. They could leave it up to God to make the rules, and set the standards of what was right or wrong. On the other hand they could rebel against God and decide for themselves what they figure is right and wrong. They were given free moral agency.
Genesis 2: 16-17 " And the Lord God commanded the man, saying, Of every tree of the garden thou mayest freely eat: But of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil, thou shalt not eat of it: for in the day that thou eatest thereof thou shalt surely die. "
Genesis 3:2-3 " And the woman said unto the serpent, We may eat of the fruit of the trees of the garden: But of the fruit of the tree which is in the midst of the garden, God hath said, Ye shall not eat of it, neither shall ye touch it, lest ye die." This was the tree of the knowledge of good and evil and the writer feels this may not be a literal tree, but merely symbolic of our two human ancestors given the choice of letting God set the standards, or rebelling against God's rule and they deciding for themselves what they thought was right or wrong.
The first recorded lie in the Bible is in Genesis 3:4 " And the serpent said unto the woman, Ye shall not surely die. " The woman was deceived into believing she would not die, if she rebelled against God's standards of right and wrong. Eve was deceived and rebelled against God's rules. Adam was not deceived, but he followed Eve rather than God, and so in the process also rebelled against God's rule (Genesis 3:6,12,17-19).
There is mentioned in Genesis 2:9 that there was also the tree of life in the garden. Adam and Eve could have eaten from that tree and lived forever ! Whether this tree of life was a literal tree is debatable. The writer feels this tree of life was symbolic of the Holy Spirit, and the fact that Adam and Eve had access to the Holy Spirit. But in rebelling, their personal access to eternal life was cut off. This is just the writers own interpretation. There is a lot of symbolism in the Bible. It could have been a literal tree.
So our first parents broke God's specific commandment. The wages of sin is death (Romans 6:23).
Genesis 3:17-19 " And unto Adam He said, Because thou hast hearkened unto the voice of thy wife, and hast eaten of the tree, of which I commanded thee, saying, Thou shalt not eat of it ......................................In the sweat of your face shalt thou eat bread, till thou return to the ground; for out of it wast thou taken: for dust thou art, and unto dust shalt thou return. "
So death came upon the human family, upon those made in the image of God.Therefore we the descendants of Adam and Eve have inherited this death from them. As well we all commit our own sins, and the wages of sin is death.
Romans 5:12 " Wherefore, as by one man sin entered into the world, and death by sin; and so death passed upon all men, for that all have sinned: "
The Bible teaches that we are living souls, and that we are of the earth, and return to it at death. The human body is made up of 20-odd commonplace elements that are all present in the earth's dry dust. This is a scientific fact.
Chemical Composition of the Human Body
- Oxygen (65%)
- Carbon (18%)
- Hydrogen (10%)
- Nitrogen (3%)
- Calcium (1.5%)
- Phosphorus (1.0%)
- Potassium (0.35%)
- Sulfur (0.25%)
- Sodium (0.15%)
- Magnesium (0.05%)
- Copper, Zinc, Selenium, Molybdenum, Fluorine, Chlorine, Iodine, Manganese, Cobalt, Iron (0.70%)
- Lithium, Strontium, Aluminum, Silicon, Lead, Vanadium, Arsenic, Bromine (trace amounts)
The Bible and true science agree on this point. Genesis 2:7 " And the Lord God formed man of the dust of the ground, and breathed into his nostrils the breath of life; and man became a living soul. "
Ecclesiastes 3: 19-20 " For that which befalleth the sons of men befalleth beasts; even one thing befalleth them: as the one dieth, so dieth the other; yea they have all one breath; so that a man hath no preeminence above a beast: for all is vanity. All go unto one place; all are of the dust, and all turn to dust again. "
Psalm 103: 14-16 " For He knoweth our frame; He remembereth that we are dust. As for man, his days are as grass: as a flower of the field, so he flourisheth. For the wind passeth over it, and it is gone; and the place thereof shall know it no more."
All the various teachings like the wicked suffering forever in hell, transmigration of the soul, and reincarnation are simply beliefs that cannot be proven. There is no proof of these. They are simply belief systems not based on reality.
There are even people who believe pets go to heaven and live forever. Yet there isn't one shred of evidence this is so. This is just a cozy myth some people use to soothe themselves and deal with the difficult questions children bring up about death.
So is there nothing after death? Is there just a void ?
The Bible teaches that Christ won the victory over sin and death.
Romans 6:23 " For the wages of sin is death; but the gift of God is eternal life through Jesus Christ our Lord. "
Very many of the Old Testament prophecies point to Christ. These are many powerful proofs that the Bible is true. Christ died and was in the tomb. After three days and nights the body was gone. There was an empty tomb. There were numerous eye witnesses that confirmed that Christ had actually risen from the dead.
1 Corinthians 15: 3-8 " For I delivered unto you first of all that which I also received, how Christ died for our sins according to the scriptures: And that He was buried, and that He rose again the third day according to the scriptures: And that He was seen of Cephas, then of the twelve: After that, He was seen of about five hundred brethren at once; of whom the greater part remain unto this present, but some are fallen asleep. After that, He was seen of James; then of all the apostles. And last of all He was seen of me also, as of one born out of due time. "
Through Christ's sacrifice, His shed blood, His death and His resurrection we can have forgiveness of sins. We can receive the gift of the Holy Spirit. There is the hope of the resurrection and eternal salvation. Of course there are conditions we must meet before we are saved. Among these are that we must grow spiritually and produce spiritual fruits.
There is no where else to go for salvation.
Acts 4:10-12 " Be it known unto you all, and to all the people of Israel, that by the name of Jesus Christ, whom ye crucified, whom God raised from the dead, even by Him doth this man stand here before you whole. This is the stone which was set at nought of the builders, which is the head of the corner. Neither is there salvation in any other: for there is none other name under heaven given among men, whereby we must be saved. "
The Holy Spirit is given to those who meet God's conditions (Acts 2:37-39) (Mark 16:16) (Luke 13:1-5) (John 8:23-24) (Acts 5:32).
If the wicked suffer forever in hell then the Bible is a fraud. The wages of sin is death (Romans 6:23). The wages of sin is not eternal life in hell. Death is the absence of life.
There is the hope of the resurrection. We are saved through faith. It is appointed unto men once to die (Hebrews 9:27). We will all die once, but if we meet God's conditions for salvation then there is the hope of eternal salvation, and victory over death. And this is not a groundless hope. It is very real, because it is based on the truth that Jesus died and was resurrected.
1 Corinthians 15:16-17 " For if the dead rise not, then is not Christ risen: And if Christ be not raised, your faith is vain; ye are yet in your sins. "
1Corinthians 15:20-21 " But now is Christ risen from the dead, and become the firstfruits of them that slept. "
The fate of the incorrigible wicked is to return to dust. They will be burnt up and turn into ashes (Malachi 4:1,3).
The ones who will be tormented forever and forever in hell are Satan and the fallen angels (Revelation 20:10) (Matthew 8:28-34 note verse 29) (Luke 8:26-40 note especially verses 28 and 31). Satan is the one responsible for the lie that the incorrigible wicked human beings will live forever in hell fire, being tormented forever and ever. The truth is that this is the fate of the Devil and his fallen angel followers.
The false doctrine of the immortality of the soul is a huge lie. If people believe this myth then they can't understand the need for the receiving of the Holy Spirit. They become completely confused about the nature of the Holy Spirit. They believe they have eternal life already, and it is just a matter as to where their eternal soul will end up.
