The most quoted verse these days is not “For God so loved the world,” but “Judge not.” Unfortunately, we often fail to understand what this means. With the age of the P.C. (politically correct) police and social liberalism, we gotten far from what the Bible teaches on a lot of issues as to keep from offending people.
We all know that one of the ways we fail each other in the body of Christ is by our judgmental and self-righteous attitudes. What we don’t seem to realize is how often we fail each other by looking the other way and not going to each other to give warning and wisdom and edification. (For example, a pastor who ends up leaving his wife and kids for his secretary, and dozens of church people, including leaders, saying, “I knew they were involved, or headed that way; I could just see it.”) Well, it wasn’t grace and non-judgmentalism that kept them from speaking up—it was indifference or cowardice or the lie that we are not our brother’s keeper, that we don’t have a responsibility to each other and to God.
Sometimes we assume people know that they are wrong. We think we’re being nonjudgmental and gracious to them by not sitting down with them and kindly sharing what God says about sex, marriage, finances, lifestyle, etc… In fact, we are being neglectful or cowardly. We fall for the lie that sin can be in someone’s true best interests. It can’t be. It never is. Matthew 7 doesn’t tell us not to help remove the splinters from our brother’s eye. It tells us to remove the log from our own eye, so we can see more clearly to remove the splinter from our brother’s eye.
We owe it to each other to do what Scripture commands: “Speak the truth in love.” (Ephesians 4:15)
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2. Memorize John 14:6
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Here is a link to ABC’s Nightline program. This will give you an in depth look at the Church of Scientology, how it attracts superstars, and accusations against the church.
Here is the Tom Cruise Scientology Video (Scary stuff):
This week we continued with Part 2 of our series God on Film (Listen Here – Posted on Monday nights). We studied the Church of Scientology and it’s belief structures verses the Bible. Members of the Church of Scientology include: Tom Cruise and Katie Holmes, John Travolta, Kirstie Alley, Greta Van Sustern, Lisa Marie Presley, and Nancy Cartwright (The voice of Bart Simpson).
The COS was founded by L.Ron Hubbard. He was an admitted adulterer, drug user, and believed he was a god himself. Hubbard was discharged from the Navy for various things. He also practiced witchcraft is in spare time. Below is a picture of Hubbard.
Lets now take a look at the major beliefs of Scientology and how it compares with the Bible.
4 MAJOR BELIEFS OF SCIENTOLOGY
1. There are multiple gods
The Church of Scientology believes in Thetans. Thetans are souls incarnate that live on other planets before coming to earth. Thetans are named after the Greek letter theta meaning “source of life”. The Thetans come to earth to inhabit us, and they become the true identity of a person – an intrinsically good, omniscient, non-material core capable of unlimited creativity. They have about the same capabilities as those who have been assigned by a supreme being (god like).
THE BIBLE Romans 3: 29-30 – 29 After all, God is not the God of the Jews only, is he? Isn’t he also the God of the Gentiles? Of course he is. 30 There is only one God, and there is only one way of being accepted by him. He makes people right with himself only by faith, whether they are Jews of Gentiles.
2. Man is basically good
Scientologists believe man is born with inherent goodness and decency and we have personal force. They believe that absolute evil does not exist but all matter, space, and time in the universe is all good.
THE BIBLE Romans 3: 10 – 12 - 10 As the Scriptures say, “No one is good—not even one. 11 No one has real understanding, no one is seeking God.12 All have turned away from God; all have gone wrong, No one does good, not even one.”
3. We are clean by human efforts
Scientologists believe we all have engrams which are mental recordings of all past negative experiences that lurk in our mind and need to be fixed. They are removed by using an e-meter (see image below).
THE BIBLE Romans 3:27-28 – 27 Can we boast then that we have done anything to be accepted by God? No, because our acquittal is not based on good deeds. It is based on our faith. 28 So we are made right with Godthrough faith…
Romans 10:9 – That if you confess with your mouth, “Jesus is Lord,” and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead, you will be saved.
4. There is a cost to salvation
Scientologists believe that nobody but the individual could die for his own sins – to arrange things otherwise is to keep a man in chains. They also believe it is despicable and utterly beneath contempt to tell a man he must repent, that he is evil. It costs between $400,000 to $500,000 to join the Church of Scientology.
THE BIBLE Romans 3: 21-26 – 21 but now God has shown us a different way of being right in his sight—not by obeying the law but by the way promised in the Scriptures long ago. 22 We are made right in God’s sight when we trust in Jesus Christ to take away our sins. And we all can be saved in this same way, no matter who we are or what we have done. 23 For all have sinned; all fall short of God’s glorious standard. 24 Yet now God in his gracious kindness declares us not guilty. 25 For God sent Jesus to take the punishment for our sins and to satisfy God’s anger against us. We are made right with God when we believe that Jesus shed his blood, sacrificing his life for us. God was being entirely fair and just when he did not punish those who sinned in former times.
These 4 comparisons are just the tip of the iceberg when it comes to the differences between the COS and the Bible. For more study on the COS click here…
I see an alarming trend happening in America. It is a trend that says there is no fundamental truth, but whatever you choose to believe is real. In John 14:6 Jesus tells us the opposite when he answered, “I am the way and the truth and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me”. Call me old school, but I believe this still stands true today. There is only one way to heaven and that is through Jesus Christ crucified and risen, and His word, the Bible.
Yesterday we began a series entitled God on Film. Over the next 5 weeks we will be taking a look at the different religions found in Hollywood and what the stars really believe. Yesterday’s star was Oprah Winfrey and her religious beliefs of new age. The new age movement stands in direct conflict with the Bible. Below I have outlined some of the major beliefs of the new age movement and the scripture that stands in direct contrast to it.
5 Main Beliefs of the New Age Movement
1. THERE IS NO SPIRIT WITHIN US
THE BIBLE:
93 references to the Holy Spirit in the Bible
2Timothy 1:14 – Guard the good deposit that was entrusted to you—guard it with the help of the Holy Spirit who lives in us.
2. WE ARE ALL GODS – pan·the·ism – the belief that God and the material world are one and the same thing and that God is present in everything
THE BIBLE:
Isaiah 44:6 – “This is what the LORD says— Israel’s King and Redeemer, the LORD Almighty: I am the first and I am the last; apart from me there is no God.”
3. THERE IS NO EVIL – NO SATAN (The Oprah Philosophy)
THE BIBLE:
435 references to evil in the Bible
2Th. 3:3 – But the Lord is faithful, and he will strengthen and protect you from the evil one.
1Thess. 5:22 – Avoid every kind of evil.
4. OUR DEEDS DETERMINE OUR KARMA
Karma – The good and bad deeds that we accumulate on our record that determines the quality of our next life
THE BIBLE:
Ephesians 2:8-9 For it is by grace you have been saved, through faith—and this not from yourselves, it is the gift of God. 9 – not by works, so that no one can boast.
5. REINCARNATION
THE BIBLE:
Heb. 9:27 – Just as man is destined to die once, and after that to face judgment,
Heb. 9:28 – so Christ was sacrificed once to take away the sins of many people; and he will appear a second time, not to bear sin, but to bring salvation to those who are waiting for him.
Please feel free to let me know of any “Oprah moments” that may have gotten your attention. Just comment on this post and I will respond as soon as possible.
Next week we will be taking a look at Tom Cruise and the church of scientology.
NEXT STEPS THIS WEEK: Invite a friend to Friends Day
We have only 6 more days left until Friends Day. I want to encourage you this week to invite all of your un-churched friends and family to Friends Day. Check out this DID YOU KNOW:
DID YOU KNOW: Building relationships in a Christian community is a strong motivator for coming to church. Thirty-two percent of those surveyed want to “be around those with similar values” and 31 percent would consider returning to church “to make friends.” Finally, a similar number would return “to make a difference/help others” (30 percent) in their community.
Recently I found some statistics about Americans and invitations to church. Take a close look at #1 and let this motivate us all to invite people to Clearview on Friends Day.
1. Over half of Americans say they would visit a church if they receive a personal invitation from a family member, friend or neighbor.
2. The latest LifeWay Research survey found that people are most willing to hear about a local congregation through a family member (63 percent) and through a friend or neighbor from the church (56 percent)
3. According to one survey, 48 percent of Americans are willing to receive information about a local congregation through an informative ad in the newspaper, 46 percent are willing through an outdoor sign or billboard, and 45 percent are willing through letters mailed to the home.
All this news should be great motivation to invite people THIS SUNDAY. The bible says “God has set eternity in the hearts of men”. God is already doing the work for us. We just have to capitalize on His leading.
One way you can invite people is by using our website and the Invite a Friend page to invite a friend by email. You can check it out here.
I will see you Sunday and I am looking forward to God doing great things.
Sincerely,
Rob
P.S. – I have included a funny video below on how NOT to invite people to church. Enjoy!
