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What New Ager’s teach
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What the Bible teaches
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Supporting Scripture References
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Monism
All that exists is derived from a single source of divine
energy.
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God created the universe through Jesus
Christ. Contrary to divine energy, God spoke the universe into existence.
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All things were made through Him, and without Him nothing was
made that was made. (John 1:3)
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God
God is an impersonal energy/force, immanent in all things. He
(it) pervades all nature. This view of god is similar to the pantheistic
beliefs of Hinduism. In pantheism everything that exists is God, and God is
thought of as being in everything that exists. This leads on to the idea that
we are individually divine. We are all gods and just have to completely
realize our own goodness. It can be said that God and I do not just
communicate; we commune and are one.
Shirley MacLaine’s book, Out on a Limb, asserts: “I
know that I exist, therefore I AM, I know that the
God-source exists. Therefore IT IS. Since I am part of that force, then I AM
that I AM.”
“We are at any given moment living the totality of everything;
the vibrational oscillation of nature is quickening; just remember that you
are God, and act accordingly.”
Shirley Maclaine
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There is one God, manifested in
three persons, God the Father, God the Son, and God the Holy Spirit. All that
exists is not God. It was created by Him, who is Holy and Sovereign over all
things.
God is always referenced in the
masculine gender.
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For there is one God and one Mediator between God and men, the
Man Christ Jesus, (1 Timothy 2:5)
God is Spirit, and those who worship Him must worship in
spirit and truth." (John 4:24)
For in Him dwells all the fullness of the Godhead bodily;
(Colossians 2:9)
But we are all like an unclean thing, And all our
righteousnesses are like filthy rags; We all fade as a leaf, And our
iniquities, like the wind, Have taken us away. (Isaiah 64:6)
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Reincarnation
After we die, we are reborn and have another human life. This
closely resembles the concept of transmigration of the soul in Hinduism.
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The Scriptures reject
reincarnation. We die once, and them the judgment. We do not return as
another person or in some other form.
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And as it is appointed for men to die once, but after this the
judgment,
(Hebrews 9:27)
"There was a certain rich man who was clothed in purple
and fine linen and fared sumptuously every day. But there was a certain
beggar named Lazarus, full of sores, who was laid at his gate, desiring to be
fed with the crumbs which fell from the rich man's table. Moreover the dogs
came and licked his sores. So it was that the beggar died, and was carried by
the angels to Abraham's bosom. The rich man also died and was buried. And
being in torments in Hades, he lifted up his eyes and saw Abraham afar off, and Lazarus in his bosom. "Then he cried and
said, 'Father Abraham, have mercy on me, and send Lazarus that he may dip the
tip of his finger in water and cool my tongue; for I am tormented in this
flame.' But Abraham said, 'Son, remember that in your lifetime you received
your good things, and likewise Lazarus evil things; but now he is comforted
and you are tormented. And besides all this, between us and you there is a
great gulf fixed, so that those who want to pass from here to you cannot, nor
can those from there pass to us.' "Then he said, 'I beg you therefore,
father, that you would send him to my father's house, for I have five brothers, that he may testify to them, lest they also come
to this place of torment.' Abraham said to him, 'They have Moses and the
prophets; let them hear them.' And he said, 'No, father Abraham; but if one
goes to them from the dead, they will repent.' But he said to him, 'If they
do not hear Moses and the prophets, neither will they be persuaded though one
rise from the dead.' "
(Luke 16:19-31)
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Personal Transformation
This may be brought about by a mystical experience and by following
New Age beliefs and practices. To achieve this end, a number of practices may
be adopted, such as hypnosis, meditation, and even the use of
hallucinogen-genic drugs.
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Humans are incapable of
transforming themselves. We are born in sin, and we sin our entire lives.
Resolutions, meditations, they all fail. The flesh cannot be reformed or
transformed.
Only in salvation through Jesus
Christ can one be made new. At that time we are recreated in Christ Jesus.
The Bible uses the term 'born again'. It is a work of God, not humanity.
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knowing that a man is not justified by the works of the law but by
faith in Jesus Christ, even we have believed in Christ Jesus, that we might
be justified by faith in Christ and not by the works of the law; for by the
works of the law no flesh shall be justified. (Galatians 2:16)
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Care for the Earth
The New Agers call the earth Gaia. It is to be revered and
respected, and is even worshiped by some New Agers.
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Worshiping the earth in any form
is idolatry. It is clearly spelled out in the Ten Commandments, as well as
other places in Scripture.
We are to take care of the earth
as stewards, but not worship it.
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"You shall not make for yourself a carved image--any likeness
of anything that is in heaven above, or that is in the earth beneath, or that
is in the water under the earth; you shall not bow down to them nor serve
them… (Exodus 20:4-5)
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A Universal Religion
New Agers have no desire to promote one religion over against
another, or one set of religious beliefs against any other set of religious
beliefs. Rather, they are more interested in a synthesis of religions and in
some kind of unity among the different religions.
They look forward to the day when a new universal religion,
containing elements of all current faiths, will develop into a widely
accepted global religion.
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There is no universal religion.
There is only one way to God, and that being through His Son, Jesus Christ.
All other religions on earth are
man-made and false.
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Jesus said to him, "I am the way, the truth, and the
life. No one comes to the Father except through Me. (John 14:6)
Nor is there salvation in any other, for there is no other
name under heaven given among men by which we must be saved." (Acts
4:12)
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New World Order
New Agers believe that as the Age of Aquarius becomes
established, so a New Age will be ushered in. This will be some kind of
utopia. There will be no more discrimination, and such present horrors such
as wars, disease, hunger, pollution, and poverty will be swept away by a new
world administration.
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There is an element of truth
here. There is going to come a new world order. A
one world government, currency, and military, headed by the Anti-Christ.
Those bound by the New Age
Movement will play a vital role in bringing this to pass, to their own
demise.
Scripture speaks of a later New
Heaven and New Earth. However, by reading its passages it becomes clear it is
not referencing this.
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By this you know the Spirit of God: Every spirit that
confesses that Jesus Christ has come in the flesh is of God, and every spirit
that does not confess that Jesus Christ has come in the flesh is not of God.
And this is the spirit of the Antichrist, which you have heard was coming,
and is now already in the world. (1 John 4:2-3)
For many deceivers have gone out into the world who do not
confess Jesus Christ as coming in the flesh. This is a deceiver and an antichrist.
(2 John 1:7)
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The Devil
The NAM thinks more of a “force,” as in Star Wars, than any
form of personal devil, which they view as a mere illusion.
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The Devil does exist. He is the
fallen angel Lucifer, and carries out his bidding to lead men and women way
from the Truth … away from any hope of salvation.
Those dedicated to this New Age
Movement are unwittingly doing so at his bidding.
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You are of your father the devil, and the desires of your father
you want to do. He was a murderer from the beginning, and does not stand in
the truth, because there is no truth in him. When he speaks a lie, he speaks
from his own resources, for he is a liar and the father of it. (John 8:44)
Speaking of Lucifer the Devil, "How you are fallen from
heaven, O Lucifer, son of the morning! How you are cut down to the ground,
You who weakened the nations! (Isaiah 14:12)
Speaking of the Devil’s influence over others, “whose minds
the god of this age has blinded, who do not believe, lest the light of the
gospel of the glory of Christ, who is the image of God, should shine on
them.” (2 Corinthians 4:4)
He laid hold of the dragon, that serpent of old, who is the
Devil and Satan, and bound him for a thousand years; (Revelation 20:2)
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Salvation
There is no concept of original sin in the NAM, so salvation
means enlightenment.
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Man by nature is a sinner. All
men and women sin. Only by receiving God’s saving grace trough faith in Jesus
Christ as having made payment for our sins on the cross, can we find
forgiveness from sin.
Salvation is not possible by any
works on our part, whether in mental devotion or physical works.
SEE TOPIC ON SALVATION
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For by grace you have been saved through faith, and that not
of yourselves; it is the gift of God, not of works, lest anyone should boast.
(Ephesians 2:8-9)
For God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son,
that whoever believes in Him should not perish but have everlasting life. For
God did not send His Son into the world to condemn the world, but that the
world through Him might be saved. (John 3:16-17)
For "WHOEVER CALLS ON THE NAME OF THE LORD SHALL BE
SAVED." (Romans 10:13)
The Lord is not slack concerning His promise, as some count
slackness, but is longsuffering toward us, not willing that any should perish
but that all should come to repentance. (2 Peter 3:9)
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Moral Absolutes
There are no moral absolutes in the NAM. All truth systems
should be embraced and everyone should work towards harmonization and unity.
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This is diametrically opposed to
what the Bible teaches. We are a moral being, with a moral God. The moral law
applies to all, and they who refuse to trust in Christ for salvation will one
day be judged by that same moral law.
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... nor thieves, nor covetous, nor
drunkards, nor revilers, nor extortioners will inherit the kingdom of God. (1
Corinthians 6:10)
"You shall not murder. "You
shall not commit adultery. "You shall not steal.
"You shall not bear false witness against your neighbor.
"You shall not covet your neighbor's house; you shall not covet your
neighbor's wife, nor his male servant, nor his female
servant, nor his ox, nor his donkey, nor anything that is your
neighbor's." (Exodus 20:13-17)
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Jesus Christ
Christ is a reincarnated avatar, Messiah, or messenger,
sent to give the living on earth spiritually advanced revelation. He is not
thought of as being the God, the Son of God, but is one of many historical
teachers or “christs.” He is viewed in the same light as other teachers, such
as Hercules, Hermes, Rama, Mithra, Confucius, Muhammad, Vyasa,
Sanskaracharya, Krishna, and Buddha.
One greater than all these teachers will soon come to usher in
the New Age.
The Christian teaching of Christ’s crucifixion as atonement
for sin is completely rejected.
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This is the ‘crux’ of the issue.
What one thinks of Christ has eternal ramifications.
Jesus was not just a great
teacher. He was God incarnate, the Son of God, come
to save men and women from their sins by being crucified on the cross. He
died our death. He made payment for our sin. And, on the third day, He rose
from the grave.
He was not created. He has no
beginning. He is the Alpha and Omega, the first and the last, the eternal God
All thing
were created through and for Jesus Christ, and are sustained by Him. He
created Buddha. He created Muhammad. He created all of the self-proclaimed,
self-righteous men. He also died for their sins, regardless of the fact that
they reject Him as having done so. All of these men, in their pride, refused
to echo three simple words … ‘I have sinned.’
All men, who do not turn to
Christ, will one day stand in judgment for their sin.
Jesus Christ is coming again to
this earth in great power and glory.
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Jesus said, "I am the Alpha and the Omega, the Beginning
and the End," says the Lord, "who is and who was and who is to
come, the Almighty." (Revelation 1:8)
I am the Alpha and the Omega, the Beginning and the End, the
First and the Last." (Revelation 22:13)
Speaking in reference to Jesus’ birth, "BEHOLD, THE
VIRGIN SHALL BE WITH CHILD, AND BEAR A SON, AND THEY SHALL CALL HIS NAME
IMMANUEL," which is translated, "God with us." (Matthew
1:23)
Speaking of Jesus, “In the beginning was the Word, and the
Word was with God, and the Word was God. He was in the beginning with God.
All things were made through Him, and without Him nothing was made that was made. In Him was life, and the life was the light of
men.” (John 1:1-4)
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Astrology
Astrology is an important part of the New Age movement.
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There is no place in astrology
for Christians. They are forbidden to practice such.
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Thus says the LORD: "Do not learn the way of the Gentiles;
Do not be dismayed at the signs of heaven, For the Gentiles are dismayed at
them. (Jeremiah 10:2)
Speaking of astrologers and Sorcery, “So the seers shall be
ashamed, And the diviners abashed; Indeed they shall all cover their lips;
For there is no answer from God." (Micah 3:7)
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UFOs
The belief in UFOs links with the NAM’s belief in masters who
guide us on to a higher evolutionary plain.
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Just as there is no evolution,
there are no UFO’s guiding us. Not one word in Scripture supports this. Those
looking for or claiming to have seen a UFO cannot support their claims.
Scripture is silent in regard to
any life outside earth. God created the universe, but makes no mention of
extra life.
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Channeling
Mediumship, or spiritism, is the ancient practice of
attempting communication with either departed human spirits or other
spiritual entities. Today, this practice has been revived under the banner of
“channeling,” a practice wherein Ascended Masters (persons who have allegedly
died and progressed to higher levels of knowledge) and other departed
individuals transmit “truths” to help those searching for enlightenment. It
is the “process of receiving information from either the ‘higher self [one’s
most spiritual part lying beyond the conscious mind] or a metaphysical
entity.”
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God forbids this kind of
behavior. Anyone involved in this will meet His judgment.
To look to another ‘medium’ if
you will, is to steal His glory. He created us, and He wants us to turn to
Him.
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'Give no regard to mediums and familiar spirits; do not seek
after them, to be defiled by them: I am the LORD your God. (Leviticus 19:31)
'And the person who turns to mediums and familiar spirits, to
prostitute himself with them, I will set My face
against that person and cut him off from his people. (Leviticus 20:6)
I am the LORD, that is My name; And My glory I will not give
to another, Nor My praise to carved images. (Isaiah 42:8)
For the LORD your God is a consuming fire, a jealous God.
(Deuteronomy 4:24)
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THE NEW AGE MOVEMENT
