Thursday, October 29, 2009

# 289: The Paranormal, Psychics and Halloween

This topic is mystifying, to say the least. And yet, we may learn something about ourselves that may help explain why certain things happen to others and us.

Our intrinsic nature is being silently but continually emitted outside of our bodies. The vast majority of humans cannot tap into those vibes unless they are psychics. (A psychical person is sensitive to forces beyond the physical world.) The Lord God through the Bible is adamantly opposed to all types of psychics. They have different titles: mediums, soothsayers, sorcerers/sorceresses, witches, spiritists, and a few more. All of these people have the spirits of demons, and therefore they are condemned by God.

Let me give just a few Bible verses to prove that they are driven by evil forces: Exodus 22:18. “Do not allow a sorceress to live.”

Leviticus 20:27. “A man or woman who is a medium or spiritist among you must be put to death. You are to stone them: their blood will be on their own heads.”

Deuteronomy 18:10-11. “Let no one be found among you . . . who practices divination or sorcery, interprets omens, engages in witchcraft, or casts spells, or who is a medium or spiritist or who consults the dead.”

Acts 13:6, 10. “There they met a Jewish sorcerer and false prophet named Bar-Jesus . . .” The apostle Paul said to him, “You are a child of the devil and an enemy of everything that is right!”

Acts 16:16. “‘. . . we were met by a slave girl who had a spirit by which she predicted the future.’ Paul said: ‘In the name of Jesus Christ I command you to come out of her!’ At that moment the spirit left her.” Some animals are good at sensing what types of vibes some people are giving off since they do not have verbal communication. They are this way for their own protection to stay clear of those who intend to do them harm.

To prove my point, let me tell you a story of what happened to me a few days ago: I “dog-sit” for my five-year-old granddaughter’s puppy, Cooper, several days a week while she is in school. He is only about nine months old. Every time he is with me, we go on a run, jog, sniff, walk and squirrel-chase around a public park and continue around several blocks. On Wednesday, the 21st of October, while on our trek, I saw an older lady walking around the park. I said to myself, “She looks like a witch.” No sooner did I think that thought than Cooper started to bark and lunge toward this lady. We meet dozens of people each day and Cooper never, ever barks at people or dogs. At this time, we must have been about 30 feet away from this lady. Although Cooper is a Yorkshire terrier and weighs about 9 pounds, he was pulling so hard that I could hardly constrain him with the leash. He barked until she was out of sight.

In the matter of a minute, another person came walking his dog. I said to him, “Did you see that lady that looked like a real live witch?” He said, “Yes, she is here walking quite frequently, and when my dog sees her, he goes berserk.” What was it about this lady that made these two dogs act out of the normal? Let me finish first. As we were on the other end of the park, as we were leaving the park area, Cooper saw only the back of this same lady and started barking again. This time we were a good 100 feet away from her.

We as adults know that there is no such thing as a witch like we see depicted at Halloween. So I ask myself, “What type of vibes was the witch-lady emitting?” I am guessing that she had an intense hatred for all dogs, and the dogs knew it; or, perhaps, she might have been a medium. End of story.

Now we will go again to the Old Testament of the Christian Bible: 1Samuel 28:6-15. Samuel was one of the greatest prophets of God in the Bible. This chapter is named “Saul and the Witch of Endor.” King Saul had been the king of Israel for a number of years but he lost favor with the Lord, and because of disobedience, the Lord did not respond to King Saul’s request of an answer to an immediate problem.

Starting with verse 6: “He inquired of the Lord, but the Lord did not answer him by dreams or Urim or prophets. Saul then said to his attendants, ‘Find me a woman who is a medium, so I may go and inquire of her.’”

“‘There is one in Endor,’ they said.”

“So Saul disguised himself, putting on other clothes, and at night he and two men went to the woman. ‘Consult a spirit for me,’ he said, ‘and bring up for me the one I name.’”

“But the woman said to him, ‘Surely you know what Saul has done. He has cut off the mediums and spiritists from the land. Why have you set a trap for my life to bring about my death?’”

“Saul swore to her by the Lord, ‘As surely as the Lord lives, you will not be punished for this.’”

“Then the woman asked, ‘Whom shall I bring up for you?’”

“‘Bring up Samuel,’ he said.”

“When the woman saw Samuel, she cried out at the top of her voice and said to Saul, ‘Why have you deceived me? You are Saul!’”

“The king said to her, ‘Don’t be afraid. What do you see?’”

“The woman said, ‘ I see a spirit coming up out of the ground.’”

“‘What does he look like?’ he asked.”

“‘An old man wearing a robe is coming up,’ she said.”

“Then Saul knew it was Samuel, and he bowed down and prostrated himself with his face to the ground.”

“Samuel said to Saul, ‘Why have you disturbed me by bringing me up?’”

This section of Scripture tells me two things: there may be present-day mediums (witches) who still can do such things. And the second is this: even when the holiest of holy die, they don’t go straight to heaven but to the ground.

My curiosity got the best of me as to how these modern-day psychics work. Therefore, I went to the office of a well-advertised one in my hometown of Fort Collins, CO. As she answered the door, I gave her my name and told her that I have a spiritual blog and am in the process of writing an article (post) and would like to interview her. She said she was with a client, and that I must make an appointment. She gave me her card and I was on my way.

Let me tell you, she must have been about between 35 and 40 years old. I am an old man and have seen many faces, but this lady had such a demonic face that I was momentarily frightened, though I had no cause to be.

When I got home, I checked out her website. One of the first things I read was that her family goes back eight generations with natural psychic abilities. I wonder if it runs in the family of all psychics. She had a superbly excellent website, which was obviously done by professionals. She charges by the minute, and for an hour it would cost $120.00.

When I went to the testimonial section, I noticed something: all of the clients providing testimonials were from out of state and evidently contacted her by phone. This was new to me: that she could predict the future from hundreds of miles away, and over the phone. I finally put two and two together and figured anyone who came to her in person might be frightened by her demonic appearance. And most likely, most of her income is made over the phone. On her flier, she stated that her predictions were 98% accurate. We know that Satan knows some of the future and that he knows that his demise is pending. So it is no wonder that psychics in contact with Satan’s demons can almost accurately tell the limited future.

Halloween must have been created for children who love to go door-to-door collecting baskets full of goodies. I now realize that Halloween in reality is witches and goblins doing the work of the devil and his demons. It is, so to speak, Satan’s Christmas.

When I was visiting with my 5-year-old granddaughter and my daughter, I told them about the old witch in the park that Cooper barked at. My granddaughter quickly said, “There is not such a thing as witches.” I didn’t want to say anything that contradicted what my daughter had taught her, so I said nothing. After all, little kids would be frightened if they knew that witches do really exist. However, they don’t go flying around on a broom wearing a black dress, and they don’t have a big humped nose.

In conclusion: it is good advice to stay away from witches (psychics), especially if you are a Christian, because it is the work of demons and their boss.

Wednesday, October 21, 2009

# 288: Examining Hell

The word “hell” is used quite often in informal and slang ways, but not very often in its true meaning. Hell originated in the New Testament writings; oddly enough, it was never once mentioned in the Old Testament. Hell is described in several different ways, but always as an undesired place in the afterlife.

I will quote the majority of biblical and associated verses on hell, and tell how many similar verses there are to see if we can come to a consensus as to what hell is/will be.

Matthew 5:22. “But anyone who says . . . will be in danger of the fire of hell.” No where in the New Testament or elsewhere does it tell if this fire, which is mentioned a number of times, is a physical fire that never burns out or a spiritual fire (hot like a physical one but spiritual in nature). I personally believe it will not be a physical fire.

There are four verses that mention hell will be a place of darkness. 2 Peter 2:17. “Blackest darkness will be reserved for them.” Can darkness and glowing fire be in the same location (hell)?

And in Matthew 8:12, it says, “But the subjects of the kingdom will be thrown outside, where there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth.” Presumably hell. There are seven verses that mention how hell will be a place where there will be gnashing of teeth.

The book of Revelation gives a slightly different version of hell. Revelation 19:20. “The two of them were thrown alive into the fiery lake of burning sulfur.” There are five more verses in Revelation that teach the same thing concerning what hell will be. Revelation 20:15. “If anyone’s name was not found written in the book of life, he was thrown into the lake of fire.” (The lake of fire is the second death.) Is your name and mine written in the book of life?

Now the question arises as to whether this second death means that they will not suffer eternal punishment in hell, but rather an actual spiritual death. Or is the second death a different place altogether? There are two verses in Matthew’s Gospel that mention eternal punishment. Matthew 25:46. “Then they will go away to eternal punishment, but the righteous to eternal life.”

There is one denomination (and I am certain there are even more) that believes that those going to hell will actually die and not have to endure eternal suffering. This seems more humane, but it contradicts some Scriptures.

I will bring up an extremely controversial subject: The vast majority of Christians and even non-Christians believe that when a person dies, they will immediately go to either heaven or hell. According to the NT, that is a false belief. The reason this belief gained universal support all stems from only one section of Scripture: Luke 16:19-31. Jesus was telling the crowds a parable and modern religions in general took it as an actual present-day happening. Matthew 13:34. “Jesus spoke all these things to the crowd in parables; he did not say anything to them without using a parable.” The point that Jesus was making is that just because a person was rich and esteemed by the common people, it did not mean that he or she was automatically going to heaven. And the next point he was making is that beggars and the poor were not going to hell because they were looked down on by the wealthy. Oh yes, this was the common belief of all the religious leaders who were rich and loved money. Jesus was about to dispel that belief with this parable.

Here are the reasons why: first, if you have a Bible, read Luke 16:19-31 to see the flaws in it, as if this section was the legal precedent that overrode all other Scriptures concerning this subject. I will try to be as brief as possible. Verse 22: “The time came when the beggar died and the angels carried him to Abraham’s side. The rich man also died and was buried. In hell, where he was in torment, he looked up and saw Abraham far away, with Lazarus by his side.”

The question I pose is this: as Scripture teaches, everyone will be judged on the last day at the resurrection. So how did these two individuals bypass the resurrection and the Judgment? Acts 24:15. “ . . . that there will be a resurrection of both the righteous and the wicked.” Also, John 11:24. “Martha answered, ‘I know he will rise again in the resurrection at the last day.’” Besides these few Scriptures, nowhere in NT Scripture does it teach that it was the angel’s responsibility to carry the saved people to heaven to Abraham’s side, before they were even judged after their/the resurrection. There is also much more evidence to prove that this event could not have happened as modern religion believes. I believe I gave enough Biblical hard-core evidence that Jesus was telling the crowd a parable. This story is only one of religion’s stupid non-biblical beliefs.

If anyone can prove the NT and me wrong, please leave me a comment. If you are a church person, let your minister read this post, and see his/her reaction. I am certain he/she will have a ready-made excuse to prove that I am wrong. How can so many millions of people be tricked by an obvious hoax?

Getting back to what hell will be like, since the Scriptures give several various scenarios as to what hell will be, I must leave the question unanswered, other than it is an undesirable place that is waiting for all who don’t believe and obey the NT.

Let me leave you with this truth: according to Revelation 20:12-14, “The dead were judged according to what they had done as recorded in the books . . . and each person was judged according to what he had done.” This will happen on judgment day after the resurrection. Here is a worthy comment: what a person does in life will correspond to what they believe. If they believed they could get away with murder, as it were, and still go to heaven, what they did in life will correspond to that believed. Many “Christians” will say, “It is faith that saves us.” And that is true, as common sense teaches, that what we did in life, good or bad, will verify whether our saving faith was genuine.

Also, what truly bothers me is that many denominations believe that if a person gave their life to Jesus Christ and believes He is their Savior, what they have done or will do will not be held against them at the judgment. They teach that their good actions/deeds are only for rewards. What a mother/father of all lies. A very hot hell is waiting with an open mouth for these religious deceivers.

In conclusion, just because pastors are religious and are honored in the community, what they believe and teach may not be according to the NT. Your only protection against unbiblical beliefs is to study the NT without any preconceived beliefs. This blog may also be a big help.

The reason for the necessity of hell is this: When children continue to disobey their parents, what is needed is a good spanking. Of course, now that is considered as child abuse. Wrong! Proverbs 13:24. “He who spares the rod hates his son, but he who loves him is careful to discipline him.” The Bible is correct.

When people commit misdemeanors, the city or county jail is waiting for them. When they commit a serious crime, the penitentiary will be waiting for them. In Old Testament times, when people committed a crime such as adultery or working on the Sabbath, etc., they were stoned to death; that is to discourage others from doing the same. For that reason, the crime rate was always low.

America has more inmates per capita in jails than any other country. What does that tell us? It seems our deterrents are not sufficient.

Since our God is a God of love, all His people must obey the rules of love. Now, what is to be done with those who did not adhere to that rule? God’s deterrent had to be severe, actually the most severe of all punishment: a fiery hell for all eternity.

However, hell does not frighten those who don’t believe in our Almighty God, whose name is Jehovah. It will be a big hot surprise for all of them on judgment day.

As one can tell, hell is as necessary as love. What would Christianity be without the fear of hell? Actually, Satan got around that deterrent. But then, that is not the best motive for belief in God, though it will do. God would prefer the motive to believe in Him as their Lord (Boss) and Savior, because He is the epitome of love.

I don’t desire to be labeled a hell-fire Christian; nevertheless, it is of great importance that all people who call themselves Christians do everything in their power to somehow let it be known that hell is awaiting for millions, possibly including themselves if they remain silent. And that is what we have been doing: keeping silent since who knows when. That is the problem in Christianity as a whole. We are not spreading the message of hell, most likely because people will call us judgmental, etc. Talking about hell infers that we are talking about them, especially to friends, who will make us instant enemies. And everyone knows that we desire to be loved and accepted, and not hated. Nowhere in the entire Bible does it teach that we will win a popularity contest if we are good and obedient followers of Christ. In fact, Jesus Christ was killed because he told the religious leaders what they didn’t want to hear. Religious people may want to kill us. There are more than a few who want my neck.

Repeating, for our silence we may have to pay the ultimate price, because silence is pretty good evidence that we are dead “Christians.” If they are actually experiencing the goodness of Jesus Christ, it is literally impossible to keep it to themselves.

Evidently, it must be people who call themselves Christians who aren’t concerned if others who don’t know Christ are going to hell; as long as they think they are saved. Ouch!

I hope and pray that God will be merciful and compassionate to many silent Christians who are good, loving and God-fearing. And then, I hope that God will forgive me for writing the aforementioned sentence, because by our silence we are nonverbally denying Jesus Christ as Lord and Savior.

Sunday, October 11, 2009

# 287: Why Death?

Death is an unpleasant topic most people don’t care to talk about, yet in the Christian life it is of importance. Death is something most people fear and would like to postpone as long as possible, and I can understand that. And yet, according to the New Testament (NT), death can be something to look forward to.

I will bring up Biblical verses that speak positively about death, of course meaning only for genuine Christians. Yes, death is the end of life as we know it. But according to the NT, after physical death, we will have what will seem like a momentary sleep until the judgment day, and then we will start to experience a glorious life that we could not imagine at this time. But for all atheists and “Christian” hypocrites, death is the dreaded end of all life.

Since this is true, why do the vast majority of Christians still fear death? I do understand that many have families to care for and have other earthly obligations, and that they are the only ones with certain responsibilities, which is why they do not want to leave this earth at the present time. And still, I believe that even with many worldly obligations, death should not be feared. Many times, those left behind are the ones affected the most by the loss of their loved one.

Did you know that in the complete animal kingdom, though they all engage in survival of the fittest, not one of them fears death or is concerned about it, because they know nothing about death or even the existence of death? Their intellect cannot comprehend it; they are great at living in the moment.

To my knowledge, humans are the only group of living beings who fear death and the fact that we will all eventually die. Actually, death is a foreign invader to our intellect. It is the most feared and unnatural enemy of all. In fact, even though we take it for granted that we will eventually all die, it makes no sense to die; it is stupid.

Physical death infers that we are dispensable, regardless of how important we think we are. But when we become genuine Christians, we become extremely valuable to God and therefore are indispensable, where death cannot violate our existence any more than it can destroy the eternal life of Jesus Christ.

Death is natural to the animal kingdom, and even though we are part of that kingdom, our intellect causes us to elevate ourselves above them. We also will die and accept it as natural. Therefore, it is the fear of death that must be destroyed. As President F. D. Roosevelt stated after the Japanese invaded Pearl Harbor, “The only thing to fear is fear itself.”

Here is the answer to the mystery that has been hidden for ages regarding why no one really wants to die: not wanting to die strongly implies, without ever thinking it, that we all desire to live forever. That tells me that every human being on earth was made with the potential to live forever; all they need to do is live and believe as God through Christ commands, and it’s a done deal. That means that eternal life agrees with our innermost being (our intellect), and the devil (the personification of the death) is our enemy, who attempts to deny us eternal life.

That is why it is imperative that all Christians must, through Christ, destroy the fear of death. Death keeps us prisoner to this animalistic, carbon-based, me-first world.

That is why as Christians, our assurance of having eternal life and our knowledge and obedience to Gospel truths is the basis for destroying the fear of death.

Hebrews 2:14-15. “… so that by his death he (Jesus Christ) might destroy him who holds the power of death—that is, the devil—and free those who all their lives were held in slavery by their fear of death.” Death without faith in Christ is Satan exerting his satanic power.

1st Corinthians 15:54-55. “When the perishable has been clothed with the imperishable, and the mortal with immortality, then the saying that is written will come true: ‘Death has been swallowed up in victory.’ ‘Where, O death, is your victory? Where, O death, is your sting?’ The sting of death is sin . . .”

1st John 3:14. “We know that we have passed from death to life, because we love our brothers. Anyone who does not love remains in [spiritual] death.”

The above verse is saying that when we have an active Divine love for others, which is evidence, that fear of death will no longer hold us captive. And those without that special Divine love will still have the fear of death as something that must be avoided at all costs.

2nd Timothy 1:10. “but it has now been revealed through the appearing of our Savior, Jesus Christ, who has DESTROYED DEATH and has brought life and immortality to light through the gospel.” [emphasis added].

Romans 6:23. “For the wages of sin is death, but the gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord.” Anyone whose sins have not been taken away by Christ will still have fear of death, and with good reason.

There is no doubt that I am not a run-of-the-mill Christian; still, let me tell you how my personal life is intertwined with death. Before I do, let me quote how the great apostle Paul is torn between life and death: Philippians 1:21-25. “For to me, to live is Christ and to die is gain. If I am to go on living in the body, this will mean fruitful labor for me. Yet what should choose? I do not know! I am torn between the two: I desire to depart and be with Christ, which is better by far; but it is more necessary for you that I remain in the body.”

I also, at this time, wholeheartedly desire to depart from this senseless, demonic, greedy world to be with the one I love (Jesus Christ). And yet, it is better for the cause of Christ that I remain just a little longer because there are multitudes of people who call themselves Christians, but don’t know what is expected of them as the NT commands. I continually pray that by word of mouth or through this blog, Christ—through me—might snatch a few more from the fire so that they may be saved.

Jude, the brother or half-brother of Jesus, is believed to have written the short book of Jude. In Jude 22-23, he writes, “Be merciful to those who doubt; snatch others from the fire and save them . . .”

It is everyone’s solemn duty as disciples of Christ to make a wholehearted effort to snatch as many as possible from the pending fire. Some may say, “That is not our job, but belongs to the ministers, etc.” That is a blatant lie. If anyone is in possession of something very valuable and special (eternal life), a team of wild horses couldn’t stop them from sharing it with every Tom, Dick and Mary, so that they can have it also. Not having a desire to share the gift of life implies that they may have nothing to share.

In conclusion, death will have a dramatic effect on everyone. To those who are God’s children, death should/will be a joyful experience; if they are not, they will have a fearful and dreadful ending to their lives.