Tag: Bible

A Love Letter From Our Father

An Intimate Message from God to Each of Us

You may not know Me, but I know everything about you. (Psalm 139:1) You are unique and special, I know when you sit down, when you rise up, (Psalm 139:2) and I am familiar with all your ways. (Psalm 139:3) I made youin My image, (Genesis 1:27) and even numbered the very hairs on your head. (Matthew 10:29-31)

I chose you when I planned creation, (Ephesians 1:11-12) and knew you even before you were conceived. (Jeremiah 1:4-5) You were fearfully and wonderfully made asI knit you together in your mother’s womb. (Psalm 139:13-14) I have even written all your days in My book. (Psalm 139:15-16)

My plan for your future has always been filled with hope (Jeremiah 29:11) because I love you with an everlasting love. (Jeremiah 31:3) Only in Me will you find true peace. In the world you will have tribulation; but be of good cheer, I have overcome the world. (John 16:33)

I am your Father, and I love you even as I love My Son, Jesus. (John 17:23) He died for your sins so that you, a sinner, and I, the most Holy God, could be reconciled. (2 Corinthians 5:18-19) His death was the ultimate expression of My love for you, (1 John 4:10) and His resurrection sets you free from the fear of death and slavery to sin. (1 Corinthians 15:54-57)

When you repent of your sins and receive My Son Jesus as your Savior, you will receive power as the Holy Spirit indwells and works through you, bearing much spiritual fruit and even miracles. (John 15:5)

If you draw close to Me by spending time with Me in My Word and in prayer, you will be transformed by the renewing of your mind. (Romans 12:2) You will come to KNOW Me, not just KNOW ABOUT Me, and I will answer the two greatest questions in your life: “Who am I?” and “Why am I here?” (Ephesians 2:5, Matthew 28:19-20)

This means no matter what age you are, young or old, you can live these days with great purpose and meaning, for I have something in mind to accomplish in and through you in every season of your life. This is incredibly powerful when you begin to grasp it. It means life is never over. Never. You have stepped into the stream of eternal life where you live real life with Jesus from now on into heaven. (Isaiah 58:10-11)

You will be coming out of the darkness to join Christ, the light of the world,  who overcomes darkness and evil so that all who follow Him will become free of sin and spiritual darkness. (John 8:36)

You are not here by chance, but for such a time as this, (Esther 4:13-14) created to do good works which I have prepared in advance for you to do. (Ephesians 2:10) I am calling you, (Ephesians 4:1) equipping you, (Ephesians 6:10-20) and sending you out to reach the lost souls who don’t know Me, with My Truth, Compassion, and Love. (Matthew 28:18-20)

Time is short, and I am inviting you to join Me in a great spiritual adventure. It is truly exciting, it is the most important thing you will ever do in your life, and you will never be the same. (Romans 12:2)

Then I will welcome you home through the gates of heaven, where I will throw the biggest party heaven has ever seen. (Luke 15:7) My great desire and passion has always been to live with you forever. Won’t you join Me?

Love,

Your Dad, Almighty God

To God be the glory

LifeintheSpirit.net

Adapted from www.fathersloveletter.com

Source of image: Pixabay

Satan, You Can’t Have My Family

Satan is destroying families at an alarming rate.  We must stand up and resist the enemy.  Fight for your family! Stand in the gap.  Your prayers are powerful.  To resist is to take action; it is not being passive.  It means you take a stand and don’t budge, come wind or high water.  You stand on God’s promises while confessing His Word.  When you do this, then God does the rest.

Many believers continue to live in defeat, worry, anxiety, depression, and unbelief. They lack knowledge of who they are in God and what position and identity they have in Christ. Lack of faith and trust in God has them living in defeat. Ignorance in this area leads to failures.

The battle must be waged against the devil and demonic forces, and not against the person who is behaving in an ungodly manner. It is the devil who is the spiritual enemy. Spiritual warfare should not be waged against a mate, a child, a loved one, or a boss. The loved one should be treated with unconditional love, while Satan is being engaged in spiritual warfare. In order to wage spiritual warfare successfully, a Christian must continually submit himself/herself to God, put on spiritual armor (see Ephesians 6), and continually resist the devil.

The good news is that we can appropriate our freedom in Christ Jesus by the power of God’s Word and the blood of Jesus Christ. To appropriate means “to take possession of, secure, allocate, assign, appoint, and so forth.” God wants us to take possession of all of the kingdom’s rights and benefits that He has already deeded and guaranteed to us. We have been delegated power and authority over all the power of the enemy. I firmly believe that lack of knowledge will keep a Christian from enjoying the blessings and the peace of God.

Weapons for spiritual warfare include the name of Jesus, the blood of Jesus, the power of the Holy Spirit, keys of binding and loosing, the power of praise and worship, effective prayer, the power of agreement, and the Word of God.

Take Action

  1. In the Spirit, be bold as a lion.  Learn to pray, intercede, and wage war.  Remain connected to the Holy Spirit.
  2. Pray for discernment.  Pray with power.  Pray fervently. Pray without losing heart.  Pray all the time.  Tie your heart, mind, and emotions to God’s heart.
  3. Always begin praying with thanksgiving to God for people who need our prayers.
  4. Thank God for your loved one and for God’s awesome plan for their lives.
  5. Avoid controlling prayers that focus on the negative and ask God to change, sever, transform, stop, bind, and remove.  They tend to bring upon the person a burden of guilt and condemnation.
  6. Pray in faith, trusting God to intervene in their lives. Confess and declare all of those good things that you expect to see manifested in their lives.
  7. Refuse to be moved by what you see, hear, or feel. 
  8. Bind all strategies of the enemy from becoming effective in their lives.
  9. Pray in a positive way with thanksgiving.  Pray scriptures, not your own words.  Allow God to be God.

The Holy Spirit will be your helper and guide. Forget about your feelings, and walk by faith. Embark on a journey to wholeness that will restore your life and the lives of your family members. Satan does not have to take your family or your mind. God has enabled us to triumph and to overcome evil with good.

Seek God’s Word about these principles and apply them to your everyday life through prayer. Applying these principles in my [Iris Delgado’s] life, my husband’s life, my daughters’ lives and into the lives of countless others, I have seen miracles of deliverance from manic depression, sickness, disease, fear and torment, destructive thought patterns, rejection, unbelief, and wrong relationships.

Prepare your heart. If you submit to God with all your heart, put on your spiritual armor, and aggressively resist the devil, the devil will have to flee from you, your household, and from those for whom you pray. The key is to yield your life to God completely and to be obedient to His Word. Once you experience the love and the power of God in your life, you won’t desire anything else.

“Behold, I give you the authority to trample on serpents and scorpions, and over all the power of the enemy, and nothing shall by any means hurt you.” Luke 10:19

“Therefore submit to God. Resist the devil and he will flee from you.” James 4:7

Excerpts from “Satan, You Can’t Have My Children”, by Dr. Iris Delgado

To God be the glory

LifeintheSpirit.net

Source of image: Unsplash

Start Each Day in the Third Heaven

START EACH DAY IN THE THIRD HEAVEN

Source of image: Freepik.com

For many years, I would get up in the morning, have breakfast, and go to work. But I discovered that our Lord calls us to a higher calling and purpose for our lives:

  • a love for us to experience that can transform us,
  • a battle for us to engage in that is worth fighting, and
  • a story for us to live in that is far bigger and better than we have known.

Furthermore, when we receive Christ, we become indwelt with the Holy Spirit. And when we spend time each morning in His Word and prayer, we can experience the three heavens. We receive a clue about the third heaven from the apostle Paul in II Corinthians 12:2:

“I know a man in Christ who fourteen years ago—whether in the body I do not know, or whether out of the body I do not know, God knows—such a one was caught up to the third heaven.”       

THIRD HEAVEN

When we repent of our sins, forgive others, and get into the Word of God and prayer, we can commune with our Lord in the third heaven, where the sovereign, living God of the universe resides on His throne, with Jesus Christ on His right side. This is also called the secret place:

“He who dwells in the secret place of the Most High shall abide under the shadow of the Almighty.” Psalm 91:1

Our Lord teaches, convicts, equips, encourages, and loves us. He also illumines and transforms our minds so that we can see the world as He does and walk in the Spirit.

But then He says – it is time for you to go and carry on My work on earth, because there are many souls who don’t know Me and are headed for the Lake of Fire. So put on your spiritual armor and go forth.

SECOND HEAVEN

Then we can enter the second heaven – the realm of angels, demons, and spiritual warfare, where we can:

  • Ask our Lord to bind the demonic forces harassing us and our loved ones, and command them to go into the Lake of Fire,
  • Plead the blood of Jesus over our family and friends and ask our Lord to protect us with His mighty angels,
  • Rebuke all curses upon us and our loved ones, including generational curses upon our family to the 4th generation,
  • Ask our Lord to touch their lives of particular individuals, our leaders, and the lost.

Interceding for others is like SPIRITUAL ARTILLERY. Just as armies shoot artillery shells into enemy territory, we are asking our Lord to send His Presence into the lives of loved ones – for healing, comfort, direction, and peace.

You don’t think demons are active today? Then you are misled by our culture and Lucifer. Here is what the apostle Paul said:

“Put on the whole armor of God, that you may be able to stand against the wiles of the devil. For we do not wrestle against flesh and blood, but against principalities, against powers, against the rulers of the darkness of this age, against spiritual hosts of wickedness in the heavenly places.”  Ephesians 6:11-12

FIRST HEAVEN

Now we go out into the world to carry out the work that He has set before us:

“For we are His workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared beforehand that we should walk in them.” Ephesians 2:10

We are also to look for the divine appointments our Lord has for us each day. And we should always be ready to give a reason for the hope that is within us, imparting some spiritual gift to them, or receiving a spiritual gift from them.

If we don’t spend time with our Lord in the third heaven, we won’t have anything supernatural to share with others. And we will miss the joy of the Lord that comes from fulfilling His purpose for our lives.

If we don’t do spiritual battle in the second heaven, we will be going into enemy territory without armor, unaware of the evil that attacks us and our loved ones.

And if we don’t know God’s calling on our life, we will live in the first heaven, oblivious to the spiritual battles around us that seek to rob us and those around us of the joy and salvation of the Lord.

So let us go forth with the truth and love of Christ and witness to all whom the Lord brings across our path, for time is short, eternity is a very long time, and we are not guaranteed tomorrow.

To God be the glory

Mark Peterson

LifeintheSpirit.net

Every One Dies Twice

This may sound strange, but everyone dies twice:

He who has an ear, let him hear what the Spirit says to the churches. He who overcomes [trials and tribulations] shall not be hurt by the second death. Revelation 2:11

Blessed and holy is he who has part in the first resurrection. Over such the second death has no power, but they shall be priests of God and of Christ, and shall reign with Him a thousand years.  Revelation 20:6

But the cowardly, unbelieving, abominable, murderers, sexually immoral, sorcerers, idolaters, and all liars shall have their part in the lake which burns with fire and brimstone, which is the second death.  Revelation 21:8

Christians: respond to the prompting of the Holy Spirit, repent of our sins, surrender to the Lord, and die to self when we receive Christ as our Savior. Then at some point in time our bodies die physically, and our soul goes to heaven to be with the Lord for eternity. Dying to self is a continual process and leads to a life of joy with no fear of death, looking forward to stepping into eternity to be with the Lord and loved ones who went before us.

Non-believers in Christ: when their bodies die physically, their soul goes to heaven to be judged, and then die a second time as they are sent to the Lake of Fire. It is their spirit that dies in the second death – their ability to commune with the Lord. They fear death, go to heaven to be judged, and it goes downhill from there.

So which will it be:

  • Are you so involved in and enjoying the enticements and pleasures of the world that you cannot imagine – are just unwilling to – die to self for something that appears to be a long way off? You can always receive Christ LATER, right? (This is one of Satan’s most favorite lies.) OR
  • Do you acknowledge the reality of the sovereign, living God of the universe and respond to His call upon your life, knowing that the choice you make now will have eternal consequences?

“Choose you this day whom you will serve. But as for me and my house, we will serve the Lord.” Joshua 24:15

To God be the glory

LifeintheSpirit.net

Seven Keys to an Abundant, Spirit-filled Life

Walking With the Lord

These are tumultuous times, with many ominous threats on the horizon for this new year of 2024, relating to our economy, national security, and war, to name just a few. And the pace of change is accelerating. So how can we live in this perilous environment and still have peace of mind and joy in our hearts?

In John 10:10, Jesus describes how He came that we may have AN ABUNDANT LIFE:

“The thief does not come except to steal, and to kill, and to destroy. I have come that they may have life, and that they may have it more abundantly.”

In Greek the word life is Zoe, and refers to the principle of life in the spirit and soul. Distinguished from Bios, or physical life, Zoe describes how Jesus’ followers shall not merely have a bare existence of life, but they shall have those things which make life eminently blessed and transcendent of circumstances – joy, fellowship with other believers, the peace of God, and eternal life. And this can happen even in the midst of suffering.

The following are seven keys that I have found that enable us to live an abundant, Spirit-filled life. These keys are not merely interesting; they lead us to the narrow path, which Christ spoke about:

“Enter by the narrow gate; for wide is the gate and broad is the way that leads to destruction, and there are many who go in by it. Because narrow is the gate and difficult is the way which leads to life, and there are few who find it.”            Matthew 7:13-14

These keys can open our hearts, minds, and souls to a vibrant life where we can live lightly and freely. And they may save your life.

Seven Keys to an Abundant, Spirit-filled Life

KEY #1: REPENT of our sins to become spiritually clean

  • When we repent of our sins, we become SPIRITUALLY CLEAN. God is holy, and He will not tolerate sin in His presence. So if we approach Him with petitions (which He encourage us to do) with unconfessed sin on our hearts (a form of idolatry), He won’t hear us.
  • This includes sins we willfully commit, sins of omission (good actions we fail to perform), and unknown sins that we commit without knowing they are sin. (And yes, that includes taking the Covid-19 “vaccine”, because it is not a vaccine, but a gene-modifying operating system that alters our very genetic make-up – the essence of who we are, created by God.)
  • But God is merciful, and He forgives ALL sins from those who approach Him with a contrite heart.
  • Spirit-led Christians repent quickly and often, because they want to be spiritually free and clean, which is necessary to discern the still, small voice of the Holy Spirit.
  • Repentance is not a burden or embarrassing; it is the natural (or supernatural) means to live a life of freedom and joy, with no fear of death. We even need to ask the Lord to show us any sin in our hearts, so we can repent and get rid of it, lest it grow into a cancer of the soul.

KEY #2: FORGIVE others of sins they have committed against us.

  • None of us are perfect, and sooner or later someone will sin against us. We are to forgive them, regardless of what the sin was, and regardless of whether they ask for forgiveness.
  • If we don’t forgive those who sin against us, God will not forgive us of our sins, and we will be judged guilty under the law, a very serious matter.
  • The sin of unforgiveness in our heart can even become a doorway for demonic influence into our lives.
  • Unforgiveness also sprouts a root of bitterness that can grow into a cancer of the soul. Not forgiving another is like the guy who swallows poison and waits for the other guy to die.

KEY #3: SURRENDER to Christ and receive salvation – eternal life in heaven.

  • “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
  • While He was here on earth, Jesus performed many miracles and fulfilled many Old Testament prophecies. He even rose from the dead, attested to by many witnesses. No other religion has such a supernatural track record, thoroughly documented by many credible sources.
  • God doesn’t want to fight with us (He would win); He wants us to surrender and come out our hands up.
  • We need to die to self to live for Christ. And when we receive Christ, we even become new creations: “Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation; old things have passed away; behold, all things have become new.” II Corinthians 5:17

KEY #4: SPEND TIME WITH THE LORD and seek Him with all our heart, mind, soul, and strength.

  • If we spend all day in the world and no time with the Lord in His Word, prayer, worship, and fellowship with other believers, we will be starved spiritually, and will operate in the flesh and by worldly principles.
  • “And do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewing of  
  • your mind, that you may prove what is that good and acceptable and perfect will of God.” Romans 12:2
  • It is when we spend time in the Word of God that our minds become transformed, we begin to see the world and other people as the Lord does, and we can begin to discern the still, small voice of the Holy Spirit.
  • Jesus even promises that we will find Him: “Then you will call upon Me and go and pray to Me, and I will listen to you. And you will seek Me and find Me, when you search for Me with all your heart. I will be found by you, says the Lord.      Jeremiah 29:12-14

KEY #5: LISTEN for the still, small voice of the Holy Spirit.

The Word of God states that God desires to communicate to us, primarily through the Holy Spirit:

  • “My sheep hear My voice, and I know them, and they follow Me.”  John 10:28
  • “But the Helper, the Holy Spirit, whom the Father will send in My name, He will teach you all things, and bring to your remembrance all things that I said to you.” John 14:26
  • “Therefore, the Holy Spirit says: ‘Today, if you will hear His voice, do not harden your hearts as in the rebellion, in the day of trial in the wilderness.’” Hebrews 3:7-8
  • “I still have many things to say to you, but you cannot bear them now. However, when He, the Spirit of truth, has come, He will guide you into all truth… and He will tell you things to come.” John 16:12-13
  • You want to hear the voice of God? Start by reading the Word of God and asking the Holy Spirit to speak to you, because that is one of the primary ways He does.
  • Being able to discern the still, small voice of the Holy Spirit enables us to go from BELIEF in Christ to having a RELATIONSHIP with the Lord, from KNOWING ABOUT GOD to KNOWING GOD.

KEY #6: OBEY the Lord

  • We need to obey the laws of the land, unless they contradict the Word of God and His commandments.
  • And if we are prompted by the Holy Spirit to do something, such as reach out to someone and minister to their needs, we should do so as soon as possible, because often there is a window of time that will close and it will be too late.
  • There are many stories of how people’s lives were saved because they were in life-threatening situations and they heard and responded to the still, small voice of the Holy Spirit. (I am one of those, as I believe the Holy Spirit nudged me several years ago to slow down on a dark, slick highway, thus narrowly missing hitting a huge deer that passed right before my car.)

KEY #7: REJOICE IN THE LORD and let the truth and love of God flow through you to others around you.

  • Rejoice is to feel and show great joy or delight. When we were born, our family expressed JOY that we were born. When we receive Christ, we are born again (spiritually), and the angels in heaven and our brothers and sisters in the Lord REJOICE that we are now in God’s family as a child of God.
  • And we are to love the Lord our God with all our heart, mind and soul, and our neighbor as ourselves, with the truth and love of Christ flowing through us to all who come across our path.

Summary

These are Biblical times, as we see events prophesied in the Bible taking place before our very eyes. And the safest place to be is in the center of God’s will for our lives, which we discover when we are living Spirit-filled lives.

Furthermore, each of us was created to live at this time. So no matter how hopeless our circumstances may seem, God is calling us to a higher, transcendent calling and purpose in our lives, beyond merely accumulating stuff and worldly acclaim:

  • a love for us to experience that can transform us,
  • a battle for us to engage in that is worth fighting, and
  • a story for us to live in that is far bigger and better than we have known.

Our Lord tells us we are not to fear:

“Fear not, for I am with you; be not dismayed, for I am your God. I will strengthen you, yes, I will help you; I will uphold you with My righteous right hand.”  Isaiah 41:10

But we are to trust Him with all our heart and He will direct our paths:

Trust in the Lord with all your heart, and lean not on your own understanding; in all your ways acknowledge Him, and He shall direct your paths. Proverbs 3:5-6

And finally, when facing trials and tribulations, read the 23rd Psalm out loud:

The 23rd Psalm

The Lord is my shepherd; I shall not want.
He makes me to lie down in green pastures;
He leads me beside the still waters.
He restores my soul;
He leads me in the paths of righteousness for His name’s sake.

Yea, though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death,
I will fear no evil, for You are with me;
Your rod and Your staff, they comfort me.

You prepare a table before me in the presence of my enemies;
You anoint my head with oil; my cup runs over.
Surely goodness and mercy shall follow me all the days of my life;

And I will dwell in the house of the Lord forever.

Life is short. God is great. Walk with the Lord.

Mark Peterson, Ph.D.

LifeintheSpirit.net

Welcome to the Life in the Spirit Blog

The purpose of the Life in the Spirit blog is to prepare Christians and non-Christians for major events that will take place in the U.S. in 2020 and 2021.  A “Global Reset” has begun – a reinvention of our political, economic,  financial, and religious systems in the United States and in the world.  This will bring in a New World Order, prophesied in the Bible as a one world government, one world economy, and one world religion, controlled by Satan and his minions, including the Anti-Christ and false prophet.  The coronavirus pandemic, the punishing economic shutdowns, the engineered riots and the violent left-wing mobs running loose in America’s cities are all part of the global reset. 

And this is just the beginning; look for a vaccine and chip to be rolled out soon.  They are already rolling out the chip in Sweden, with thousands of people chipped.  They even have chipping parties, where people celebrate getting the chip.  (Shows what happens when a nation abandons God).

A glimpse into the future for Christians: in spite of many challenges and even persecution, the Lord promises to watch over us, guide us, and protect us during these times. Jesus promised that Christians led by the Holy Spirit can do the works that He did and even more. But it requires us to seek the Lord with all of our heart, mind, and soul, and resist taking the vaccine and chip that is coming our way. We can experience the joy of the Lord, in spite of circumstances, until the Lord takes us home.

A glimpse into the future for non-Christians: perhaps you enjoy your life and lifestyle in the world and don’t want to give it up, or are attracted to other religious beliefs. If you persist in resisting Jesus Christ as your Lord and Savior, you most likely take the vaccine and chip. These which will alter your consciousness and DNA forever, and you will end up in the lake of fire. All of which is a good reason to seek out the Lord Jesus Christ; your eternal destiny is at stake.

So how can we cope with these tumultuous events that are beginning to take place that threaten our freedoms, our livelihoods, and our very lives?  The Word of God provides direction and comfort for Christians in this time.  (If you are not a Christian, repent of your sins, cry out to Jesus Christ, and He will save you).  The Word reveals that God will direct our paths if we seek Him with our whole hearts:

Trust in the Lord with all your heart, and lean not on your own understanding; in all your ways acknowledge Him, and He shall direct your paths.  Proverbs 3:5-6

 I will instruct you and teach you in the way you should go;
I will guide you with My eye.  Psalm 32:8

The tumultuous events happening every day raise the question – where is safety and security in this time of chaos?  The Word of God tells us that the safest place to be is in the center of God’s will for your life – to live Life in the Spirit.  You can learn more about life in the Spirit here: https://lifeinthespirit.net/2020/07/31/life-in-the-spirit/.

The Bible, God’s instruction manual, tells us that the Holy Spirit communicates with His people – the true church, during the church age.  Therefore, we shouldn’t be surprised that the Lord has raised up watchmen and women to warn us about the times we are in, the judgement coming to America, and to encourage us to draw close to Him.  These are humble servants of God who quote scripture often and tell us how these scriptures are and will be fulfilled.  Most are not famous, do not seek fame, and do not ask for money.  As always, we are to test the spirits (and everything we hear or say) against the Word of God, which is our standard.  This Life in the Spirit blog will feature several of these people, with occasional articles that address physical and financial preparation.

So the purpose of the Life in the Spirit blog is to prepare Christians and non- Christians for major events that will take place in the U.S. in 2020 and 2021.  This will include regular updates from myself and fellow believers about how we can and should live in this time, as well as valuable tools that you can use in your walk with the Lord:  incredible stories, articles, resources, letters that address important issues, and action steps you can take: https://lifeinthespirit.net/category/action-steps-you-can-take.

In these end times, we will see exciting things happen in the body of Christ as the Lord guides and directs His people to shine the light of Christ on an endarkened world.  He has set us free from sin and the fear of death, and invites us to join Him in a great spiritual journey – here and into eternity.  He will take some of us home, He will lead some of us into the wilderness, and He will be with some of us in the fire.  Let us rejoice and be glad in it.

He who has ears, let him hear!  Matthew 11:15

To God be the glory

Mark Peterson

Lifeinthespirit222@gmail.com

P.S. I would encourage you to click on “Join my E-mail List” to receive notices of new blog posts as they are uploaded.  Hope you can join us.

We Are Not to Judge Other Religions – a Window Into the One World Religion

“We are not to judge other religions; we just know that Jesus Christ died for us.  Besides, what about all those people who have never heard of Jesus?”

Response: Thank you for the stimulating conversation on our recent road trip.  I wanted to pursue the issue we discussed about Christians judging other religions. 

The Bible is clear that there were other religions in place at the time of the Old and New Testaments, and they were judged and condemned by prophets in the Old Testament and Christ and His apostles in the New Testament. 

  • Moses directly confronted the spiritual leaders of Egypt, who espoused another religion.  He could have said: “Perhaps you worship God in other ways, so who am I to judge?”  No, he rejected their religion and their gods, and each of the plagues brought upon the Egyptians demonstrated that their gods were impotent against the God of Israel. 
  • There are many other examples of Old Testament prophets rejecting pagan gods and their practices such as sacrificing their children by passing them through the fire.  (In similar fashion, since 1973, our nation has sacrificed over 50 million unborn babies to the gods of convenience, lifestyle, and reputation.)
  • The famous scene where Elijah challenged the priests of Baal to a contest to see whose god would prevail in burning the sacrifice of a bull is another example.
  • The New Testament is also full of examples of Christ and His disciples rejecting other religions.  Christ clearly taught that the (Talmudic) Judaism taught by the Pharisees and Sadducees was insufficient to go to heaven.  He told Nicodemus, a Pharisee, that he must be born again to go to heaven. 
  • When Paul spoke to the Greek philosophers in Athens, he noted that they had statues to many gods, then expounded on their “unknown god”, making the case that their unknown god was really the God of the Bible.

There is no reason to believe that this rejection of other religions does not apply to today as well.  Jesus stated:  “I am the way, the truth, and the light; no one goes to the Father but through Me.” John 14:6  This claim to exclusivity is either true or false; there is no middle ground.  He was either who He said He was – the Son of the sovereign, living God and is the only way to heaven, or he was a false teacher and charlatan.  His statement speaks directly to  other religions today as well as then.

The Great Commission, the command of Christ to go therefore and make disciples of all nations is nonsensical if other religions are of equal value to Christianity.  Furthermore, there is compelling evidence that we are approaching the end times – a time of a one-world economy, one-world government, and one-world religion.  The notion that all religions are pathways to God provides a perfect rationale for the one-world religion, which is fundamentally anti-Christ. 

“Besides, what about all those people who have never heard of Jesus?”

Response: Regarding the eternal destination of those who have never heard the Gospel of Christ, I see two possible explanations:

  1. General revelation, the notion that God reveals Himself and His nature through the created world, is taught in both the Old Testament and the New Testament:

“The heavens declare the glory of God; And the firmament shows His handiwork.
Day unto day utters speech, And night unto night reveals knowledge.” Psalm 19:1-2

“For since the creation of the world God’s invisible qualities—His eternal power and divine nature—have been clearly seen, being understood from what has been made, so that men are without excuse.”  Romans 1:20   

This passage teaches that God’s eternal power and divine nature are “clearly seen” and “understood” from what has been made, and that there is no excuse for denying these facts. With these Scriptures in mind, perhaps a working definition of general revelation would be “the revelation of God to all people, at all times, and in all places that proves that God exists and that He is intelligent, powerful, and transcendent.” (quote from Wikipedia)

  • The second response is that God is merciful, and ultimately we throw ourselves upon His mercy in this life and the next.  This is certainly true for babies (born and unborn), and may apply in other cases as well.

Finally, looking at these issues from an overall perspective, what difference does it make?  One’s eternal destiny is a very serious thing, because eternity is a long, long time and the consequences are beyond description.  I have learned that the Lord also takes it very seriously. His Word not only articulates a coherent world view and theology that is exclusive, it provides a strong admonition against those who teach other views: 

“I marvel that you are turning away so soon from Him who called you in the grace of Christ, to a different gospel, which is not another; but there are some who trouble you and want to pervert the gospel of Christ.  But even if we, or an angel from heaven, preach any other gospel to you than what we have preached to you, let him be accursed.  As we have said before, so now I say again, if anyone preaches any other gospel to you than what you have received, let him be accursed.”                                         Galatians 1:6-9

Life is short.  God is great, and He invites us to walk with Him every day.

Best regards,