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#311.19
OF
RELIGION
Elwin R. Roach
Religious practice was initiated during the early hours after man was driven
into the dark of night outside the bright day of paradise. For the most part,
that seed of religion was to either appease an angry God, to regain a listening
ear from Him, or to show love and reverence to their creator:
Cain brought to the Lord an offering of the fruit of the ground, of which
the LORD rejected. Abel brought the firstlings of his flock and the fat
thereof, and his was accepted.
Genesis 4:3-4.
Although no reason is
given why one's offering was accepted while the other's wasn't, it
is believed that the condition of Cain's heart was the issue. Regardless, it seems
that Abel's religious ceremony was pure religion from above, and Cain's was not.
There is something in man as a whole that had him grasping
for his roots, wanting to touch that from where he came. The human creature
innately knows he came from something greater than himself, and there is a
burning desire to reconnect with Him. Religious practices has, therefore, been
the primary mode of attempting to make that connection.
Since its inception, religion has been sewn into the fabric of every tribe,
culture and nation with each having its own specific character and form. To
name a few: Hinduism, Buddhism, Islam, Judaism, and, of course, Christianity
which has countless denominations under her roof. It seems as if a book has
been written by a mystery writer upon every heart and each soul which is driving
a force that causes them to search for and feel after its author, expect, perhaps,
atheists. However, even though they disavow the existence a God, they have a
religion, and it is humanism, the worship of man who they esteem to be the
highest level of existence. But for today, that is a mute point and we'll not say
more about the obvious self-aggrandized delusion.
It is in man's nature to gather together with those of like beliefs. It is also in
his nature to rule over those who have gathered, and the strong are the ones who
rise to the top and guide or drive the others; thus, religious orders are formed
whether small in numbers or great, and they all have their unswayed beliefs and
points of faith. The extremes to which the churches and their leaders have gone
in order to protect and justify those beliefs are fascinating.
History has shown that coercion, greed, lust, and propaganda were the order
of the day when the major items of doctrine were being invented and practiced.
What the early church held as truth, many doctrines went way beyond them, and
still remain to this day.
Regardless of who is reigning over the flocks, or what sect it might be,
religion is one of the most loved as well as the most hated things on the face of
the earth. The members of religious organizations generally love their church and
creeds with all their might, and sometimes with such love that it appears to be
greater than the love they have for their wife/husband and children or anyone
else. This must be true, for we know people whose religion is foremost in their
lives. It virtually towers over all things.
Hatred toward Christian religions and their members is very common today,
and reflecting on some of its infamous history, this is understandable.
Throughout the ages, many religions were the cause of wars, and it is no secret
that millions have been persecuted, imprisoned, tortured, and martyred by
religious factions, and Christianity is not exempt from this evil lineup. This
includes Catholic and Protestant alike.
One such Catholic atrocity took place in 1209 A.D. in Béziers, France.
Arnaud Amalric (later to become archbishop of Narbonne) was named a papal
legate and inquisitor and was sent by Pope Innocent the III with Peter of
Castelnau to attempt the conversion of the Albigensians. Failing in this, he
distinguished himself by the zeal with which he incited men by his preaching to
the crusade against these heretics. He was in charge of the crusader army that
sacked Béziers.
When it was discovered that there were Catholics mingled with the heretics,
Arnaud Amalric, was asked: “Sir, what shall we do, for we cannot distinguish
between the faithful and the heretics.” The abbot is said to have replied “Kill
them all and let God sort them out.” So they killed everyone, even those who
fled into the church. No cross or altar or crucifix could save them. They killed
the clergy too, as well as the women and children. From 10,000 to 20,000 were
slaughtered that day, and this was done in the name of God. Events such as this
are easily seen for what they are; at least those who have not been thoroughly
seduced and hardwired by the spirit of religion. Unfortunately, the works and
words of the serpent are not always so obvious.
For instance, the Catholics' rule of law forbidding priests to marry. The
Church was a thousand years old when it took a stand in favor of celibacy. This
took place at the Second Lateran Council held in 1139, when a rule was
approved forbidding priests to marry. In 1563, the Council of Trent reaffirmed
the rule of celibacy.
Several explanations have been offered for the decision of the Church to
adopt celibacy. Barry University's Ed Sunshine said that the policy was
initiated to distinguish the clergy as a special group, that a celibate clergy
became the paradigm of separation from the sinful world. A.W. Richard
Sipe, a former priest and author of Sex, Priests and Power: The Anatomy of
Crisis (1995), said that "...the question at the time was who is the final
power—the king or the church. If [the church] could control a person's sex
life, it could control their money, their employment, their benefice." Garry
Wills suggested in Under God that the ban on marriage was adopted to lift
the status of priests at a time when their authority was being challenged
by nobles and others.
Such is a mere glimpse at the richest, most powerful religion in the world; but
each has its own way of controlling the people of whom they rule. One of the
earmarks of quite a number of Protestant religions is their perpetual war against
Satan. This Satan is usually viewed by them as having to do with sins of the
flesh, such as drunkenness, drug addiction, adultery, prostitution, homosexuality,
rape, incest, murder, and the likes. This devil is accused of tempting men,
women, and children to commit mild sins such as telling little white lies as well
as mortal sins. But let us be reminded of what one of the apostles said: “Blessed
is the man that endureth temptation: for when he is tried, he shall receive
the crown of life, which the Lord hath promised to them that love him. Let
no man say when he is tempted, I am tempted of God: for God cannot be
tempted with evil, neither tempteth he any man: But every man is
tempted, when he is drawn away of his own lust, and enticed.”
James 1:12-14.
So you see, the temptations of lust may be enhanced by the devil, but its
origin is from a man’s own lust, which is rooted in his own nature, his own
carnal mind. The apostle did, however, say something of the devil one time in
his letter, but it had to do with ones lust of envy (jealousy, pride). He wrote:
"Submit yourselves therefore to God. Resist the devil, and he will flee
from you." James 4:7. the devil he warned about in this verse had nothing to
do with lust of the flesh but religious or worldly jealously.
In conjunction with that which he said about temptation being that of man's
own lust, Paul said much the same, but drew it out as a personal ongoing war,
and throughout those dreadful battles neither did he cite the devil! Let us see as
we read from his own testimony:
"For we know that the law is spiritual: but
I am carnal, sold under sin.
For that which I do I allow not: for what I would, that do
I not; but what I
hate, that do I. If then I do that which I would not, I consent unto the law
that it is good. Now then it is no more I that do it, but sin that dwelleth
in me. For I know that in me [that is,
in my flesh,] dwelleth no good
thing: for to will is present with me; but how to perform that which is good
I find not. For the good that would I do not: but the evil which I would not,
that I do. Now if I do that I would not, it is no more I that do it, but sin
that dwelleth in me. I find then a law, that, when I would do good, evil
is present with me [evil, not the devil]. For I delight in the law of God after
the inward man [must be an outward man]: But I see another law in my
members, warring against the law of my mind, and bringing me into
captivity to the law of sin which is in my members [sin, not the devil].
O wretched man that I am! who shall deliver me from the body of this
death? I thank God through Jesus Christ our Lord. So then with the
mind I myself serve the law of God; but with the flesh the law of sin."
Romans 7:14-25.
Most can identify with Paul's struggle between serving God's law of life and
the law of sin and death. Even after reading his answer to it, that the war would
be won through Jesus Christ, they are still troubled. Understanding that this
victory will eventually come is great; but not knowing the dynamics of the war
makes it very difficult to experience the victory.
It is not our purpose at this time to go into detail concerning these battles,
only to say that there are two minds at war against the other: the spiritual mind
in the heavens that desires that which has its origin in Jesus, and the carnal mind
that desires that which has its origin in Adam, the earth.
Can it get any clearer than this? It is the natural, carnal man, and body of flesh
that is the culprit wherein lies the lust and sin. There was no devil lurking around
every corner waiting for Paul to drop his guard so he could draw this righteous
man of God into temptation that would perhaps land him into the arms of a
harlot. If by some remote chance that Paul had done something like that, it would
have been due to having been drawn away by his own lusts, not the luring
temptations of Satan. Please know, brethren, the body of flesh coupled with the
carnal mind needs no outside help from anyone, not even the devil.
Some may question: "If this is true, just how does this enemy fit into the
scheme of things? And if he is not tempting people to stomp on their own
moral characters, and he is not influencing despots to slaughter millions,
including babies, what is Satan’s role in the affairs of man?"
The truth has been speaking to us from the scriptures for
centuries; but religion has done a remarkable job of blinding their subjects from
seeing what it is, and the façade has made it way into the world.
When the scriptures speak of either Satan, the devil, or the serpent, each one
always has to do with spiritual matters between man and God, and it is apparent
that the primary objective is to sever our bond between Him and us. When this
is done, man becomes his own god and sole provider of his livelihood and
destiny, which ultimately ends in destruction and death.
Before continuing, let us note that our English word, Satan, is the
transliterated Hebrew word "satan." It is the same word and is pronounced saw-tawn, which means "opponent or adversary".
In the Hebrew language, as it is in English, proper names neither have a
definite article (the) nor an indefinite article (a/an) associated with it. For
example, Margit is the name of my darling wife, and no definite or indefinitie
article is ever used in connection with her name. We never call her the Margit,
but simply Margit. However, if we spoke of her gender, we might say the
woman's name is Margit, but never, the woman's name is the Margit. It just does
not work that way, neither in today’s English nor in times past of the Greek or
Hebrew scriptures.
The Hebrew word, satan, of the Old Testament occurs 19 times, and the
Greek, satanas, in the New Testament 37 times. Each instance is with a definite
or indefinite article, never once as a proper name. Therefore, the satan, or a
satan is not the Name of an opponent but indicates that a certain entity is an
opponent. For example, God Himself was called a satan, not Satan as a proper
name, but a satan, an opponent or adversary: "And he was an adversary
[Hebrew: a satan] to Israel all the days of Solomon....”
1 Kings 11:25.
In both the Old Testament and New Testament, satan is a term that never
refers to a named individual and should, therefore, be correctly translated rather
than transliterated as a proper noun. Whether intentionally or out of ignorance,
by transliterating a satan as Satan, a grave injustice has been done.
People are in error when they link all the evil in the world to Satan; for
outside of religion and God using this opponent as a chastening rod of judgment,
worldly evil is generated by the carnal mind of man and should not be associated
with the devil. Please search this out on your own; but I have found no place in
the Bible where it states that a personage of Satan has nothing to do with
anything but religion and judgment. This devil is the lying master of man’s
religion, the father of it, with the primary role of severing people from their
living God by saying "Eat of this religious tree. You will like it."
This serpentine devil deceives them by transforming himself into an angel of
light, so much so, that multitudes submit routinely to its doctrines, rituals,
pompist regalia, teachers, preachers, pastors, bishops, and popes. What a tree
from which to dine. Rolaids or baking soda won't help the acid reflux that it
brings about.
The devil's ground work and inspiration is rooted in the carnal mind. This
enemy is not a two-horned diabolic monster who is in charge of torturing billions
in sulfuric flames of hell, as this transducer has been portrayed. As it is with his
offspring, the Pharisees, this nefarious creature is very religious, and is one you
would want to be your neighbor.
Oh, you thought Satan worked in dives of immorality and crack-houses, or
he drew his servants into heinous rituals under the cloak of darkness, and he
thirsts for the blood of babies that is poured upon crude altars with upside-down
pentagrams carved in them as impish demons gleefully dance around midnight
fires! Brethren, if that is your image of Satan and his followers, you have been
grossly misled, and I challenge you to produce one scripture that remotely relates
to such foolishness. People surely do such things in the misnomer name of
"Lucifer" but it does not make is so.
You may draw our attention to the babies that were sacrificed to Molech; but
that was a heathen practice of people who did not know God, and having been
totally carnal, their world was in the pit of ignorance and fear. Israel was enticed
to join them in their idol worship, which they often did. Even so, this was
inspired by the spirit of religion—a satan. It was a religious practice, and it
served its purpose very well by keeping the people very far from their living
God, and there were no indications that immoral lusts of the flesh were litigating
influences.
Simply put, the scriptures do not indicate to any degree that this adversary
is the instrument that tempts people to immoral things of the flesh in individuals’
lives. Nor do they suggest the devil is the root of famines, drug addiction,
prostitution, and murder throughout the world. Frankly, the devil is much more
sinister and covert than this. Even though religious men and regimes involve
themselves in these things, it is the carnal mind that brings them into the picture,
not the serpent.
For instance, do we see any of these characteristics in the beginning when he
became the first liar, the father of the lie, and murderer—not a murderer like we
see of those in the streets in Juarez, Mexico by the drug cartels, but a murderer
just the same? He did not come to Eve with an AK-47 in a rage of violence, but
in serenity, speaking soft words of logic that gave her cause to doubt God,
thereby, indicating that God may have lied.
Let us list a few times that Satan had a role to play and see that it had nothing
to do with tempting people to inordinate sex, murder, rape, adultery, incest, and
the likes, but had everything to do with false religion:
1. The first record of this opponent is in the third chapter of Genesis and
is portrayed as a subtle serpent that persuades Eve to eat the fruit from
the tree of the knowledge of good and evil. She then gave it to her
husband to eat. This in turn resulted in them having been separated
from God in the same manner that religious legalism will do. It was
man’s way of being like God by his own hand, wit, and might. Self-righteousness!
2. It was not until 1 Chronicles that the word, satan, was first used. This
instance caused David to trust in numbers rather than God: "And
Satan stood up against Israel, and provoked David to number Israel.
And David said to Joab and to the rulers of the people, go, number
Israel from Beersheba even to Dan; and bring the number of them to
me, that I may know it.”
1 Chronicles 21:1-2. David’s act was a
religious one that may have been prompted by fear. When there are
enemies at your backdoor that could potentially take your kingdom,
the adversary of fear can be a strong motivating factor to trust in the
arm of flesh, horses and chariots, and vast numbers watching your
back. Or if not fear, the adversary could be pride, being lifted in
oneself due to having such a mega church of 10,000 or more members.
When kings or preachers count their members, it can lead to self-sufficiencies and the lack of need for God. This is religion, and it will
surely sever men from their fellowship with God. In essence, it is
telling Him that now that He has brought them this far, we don’t need
You. We can do the rest on our own; for with such numbers, we
cannot fail.
3. The third time the word, Satan, is mentioned makes it very clear that
it is a religious event. It is in the first chapter of Job when the sons of
God presented themselves before the LORD, and Satan (The
Septuagint has ὁ διάβολος the devil) came among them. What a
Spirit-filled church conference that must have been! Imagine the sons
of God coming together in one place, and, no doubt, in one mind and
in one accord! Not only then, but to our present day, this is where you
can count on the religious foe to show up in full regalia for the trial of
the saints’ lives. With the adversary’s hand upon Job, religion began
its due process. The heavens became silent, all was lost, his boil-ridden body was a painful, loathsome mess; thus some of the fruits of
the whispering serpent.
We will not go into detail; but there are other places of the Old Testament that
this satan is called into service; such as, in Psalms 109:6-7 where the wicked
who came against David were condemned and a satan was a part of it. And then
in Zechariah 3:1-2 the adversary resisted Joshua. In the New Testament, the
fourth chapter of Matthew, the third chapter of Mark, and Luke the fourth
chapter is the record of the devil tempting Jesus in the wilderness. In 2
Corinthians 11:14 we are told that he transforms himself into an angel of light
and his ministers into righteousness. In doing so, they would appear to be very
holy and with Christ-like illumination. But in all this, and the other references
of "Satan,” there is not one place where he tempts people to commit adultery,
homosexuality, promiscuity, pornography or sins that find their roots in the
flesh.
You see, the satan is very religious. It is the realm in which he works. Some,
however, may contest this by quoting Jesus’ words from
John 8:44—"Ye are
of your father the devil, and the lusts [longing] of your father ye will do. He
was a murderer from the beginning, and abode not in the truth,
because there is no truth in him. When he speaketh a lie, he speaketh of
his own: for he is a liar, and the father of it.” However, if you will notice,
Jesus was speaking to the religious Pharisees and was not saying that their
natural birth was from some sort of diabolical conception in their mother’s
wombs. We all know that He was speaking of spiritual matters, that the religious
spirit by which they lived and imposed on others was that of the adversary which
is always opposed to Jesus Christ. That is simply the nature of the carnal mind.
The first lie ever told was instrumental in the first murder in the history of
mankind, and it had to do with religion, that is, man’s relationship to God. It was
committed by the serpent when he told the woman that she would be like God
and not die if she ate the fruit from the tree she and her husband were
commanded not to eat. She was drawn away from God and enticed as she began
to believe the lie. When her lust (Grk. epitumia, longing) had been
conceived, it brought forth sin, and when the sin was finished, it brought
forth death James 1:15, and finally to her physical body after death had
finished its course a few hundred years later. The second murder was when Cain
killed his brother Abel, which was also a religious murder due to sacrifices
offered to God and His acceptance of Abel’s sacrifice, and rejection of Cain’s.
It is realized that even in light of what the scriptures say, or do not say, such
a thought is inconceivable to some; for there is a certain mystical intrigue about
a devil, and many are reluctant to release their fabled grip on him. For them to
not believe in Satan as a fallen angel the way they have been taught would be
almost an unforgivable blasphemy. Sadly, but it is true, it is not unusual for
Christian people to view their beliefs about Satan as sacred as their beliefs about
God, and to forsake such would be unthinkable.
Notwithstanding, rather than those age-old, religious images being real, this
enemy goes about as a roaring lion devouring everybody possible. This is done
by arraying himself with religious garments and acting righteous. With such a
non-threatening appearance, people are easily drawn into those religious lairs.
Once this is done, those proselytized are made two-fold more the sons of
religious hell than their leaders, as Jesus accused them of doing in
Matthew
23:15. Although the pretense is to bring people closer to God, everything about
the *imposters steers people away from Him. This enemy is steadily deceiving
them by replacing a living relationship in Christ Jesus with legalism, rituals,
programs, and unprofitable works. To put it plainly—they are eating deadly fruit
of religion from the tree of the knowledge of good and evil.
*Please note: We believe that most of the imposters do not know they are
believing and teaching lies. They are just as deceived as their
congregations. Some, however, know what the truth is, but refuse to
teach it.
Religion is an interesting word. It comes from the "Latin, religio which
means, to bind anew; re and ligo, to bind again. This word seems originally to
have signified an oath or vow to the gods, or the obligation of such an oath or
vow, which was held very sacred by the Romans.” Webster’s 1828 Dictionary.
Although ignorance of knowing the true God was common place with the
Romans, they were just as bound as if they had been captured by an enemy,
shackled by chains, and cast into prison. The apostle Paul said something along
these lines when he wrote: "Which things have indeed a shew of wisdom in
will worship, and humility, and neglecting of the body; not in any
honour to the satisfying of the flesh.”
Colossians 2:23. They became
bound again in their will worship.
The Greek used for will worship is a compound word, ethelothrēskeia. The
Strong’s definition is: "voluntary (arbitrary and unwarranted) piety, that is,
sanctimony.” And to be reminded, sanctimony is the quality of being
hypocritically devout. Such is clear evidence that they have been bound again
to the carnal man.
Peter said that they were willingly ignorant of the word of God.
2 Peter 3:5.
They were twice bound by their religion of rejecting the truth that would make
them free.
There is a pure religion, James wrote about it, saying, "Pure religion and
undefiled before God and the Father is this, To visit the fatherless and
widows in their affliction, and to keep himself unspotted from the world.”
James 1:27. This type of religion is ministering to the fatherless and widows,
caring for them as if they are your own, and that comes by being joined to the
Lord (re-ligo, bound again).
If we are bound again, when were we bound before? I believe it was when we
were created in Him before the foundations of the earth were laid. Therefore, the
only way the sons of God can be religious is to be bound again to He in Whom
we were originally created, and that religion is a holy union. It is pure! It has
nothing whatsoever with going to church and being exercised in routine religious
practices! However, this union in Christ can be experienced during church
services; but going through the motions is not what causes it. Going through the
motions alone is being religious/bound again to that which is of the old man.
The English words, religious and/or religion, are used a total seven times in
the Bible and are all in the New Testament. They come from three Greek words:
sebomai (once), Ioudaismos (twice), and thrēskeia (4 times).
Sebomai means to revere, adore and is used in
Acts 13:43, "Now when the
congregation was broken up, many of the Jews and religious proselytes
followed Paul and Barnabas: who, speaking to them, persuaded them to
continue in the grace of God.” It is not clear to whom reverence/adoration was
directed, to God or to Paul and Barnabas; but it is obvious that "religious” is not
the best English word to have been used here.
In both cases where
Ioudaismos is used is in reference to the
Jews religion,
or Judaism.
Thrēskeia, the religion we are mostly addressing today, always
speaks of an outward demonstration of ceremonious worship, according to
Strong’s Exhaustive Concordance. Thayer’s Greek Dictionary confirms this
by saying: "especially external, that which consists of
ceremonies...religious discipline....”
The root word for thrēskeia is throeō and means: to wail, to clamor, that
is, to frighten. Do we know anything that produces more wailing souls,
clamoring to appear righteous, and striking fear into the hearts of people than
religion? I can think of none. For instance, Islam is a religion that incites a
tremendous amount of fear. We have read reports and seen news clips of the
atrocities committed by the leaders and the men toward their wives and children.
They recruit children, teens, young men, and sometimes women to become
suicide bombers that kill and maim hundreds, thousands.
These unspeakable things are all done in the name of Allah, and supposedly
for His glory. It is difficult for us to understand how people could remain in such
a religion, or if not born into it, how could they willingly join it? Fear! Out of
fear! Fear of eternal torment in the afterlife and/or fear of the religion’s wrath
upon them if they leave or disobey. Non-Muslims, especially Christians,
condemn this system of unbendable, merciless laws and arcane beliefs, and
rightly so. For the adversary is a master in that religion as well. Those members
are also twice bound. However, their doctrine of eternal torment in
unquenchable fire is very much the same. You will notice that the following
quotes from their Koran sound very much like the beliefs of various Christian
denominations:
"Even so God shall show them their works. O bitter regrets for them!
Never shall they issue from the Fire. S. 2:167"
"As to those who reject Faith, - if they had everything on earth, and
twice repeated, to give as ransom for the penalty of the Day of Judgment,
it would never be accepted of them, theirs would be a grievous penalty.
Their wish will be to get out of the Fire, but never will they leave: their
penalty will be one that endures.
S. 5:36-37"
"Such is the requital of the enemies of Allah, the Fire: therein will be
for them the Eternal Home....
S. 41:28"
"If they accuse thee of falsehood, say: ‘Your Lord is full of mercy
all-embracing; but from people in guilt never will His wrath be turned
back.’ S. 6:147"
Sounds very familiar, doesn’t it? And it should; for that diabolical doctrine
has been flooding the souls of men since Jerome wrote the Latin Vulgate around
400 A.D. It was in that Latin version of the Bible that the Greek and Hebrew
words, aion, and olam (an age or eon), were first translated aeternum
(eternal) rather than
aetatis (an age or eon) as it should have been.
Augustine (354-430 A.D), the Bishop of Hippo in North Africa, accepted
Jerome’s Latin translation as being true, and was also responsible for making
Hell eternal in the Western Church. He did not know Hebrew or Greek, and his
ignorance of those languages helped to cement him in the concept of Jerome’s
eternal hell. Augustine not only said that Hell was eternal for the wicked but
also for anyone who wasn't a Christian. So complete was his thought of
God's exclusion of non-Christians that he considered un-baptized babies
were also damned. (Ref. The Salvation Conspiracy: How Hell Became
Eternal by Dr. Ken R. Vincent).
The concept of eternal hell spread and was embraced throughout the Roman
Catholic church which was also a common belief with all the pagan religions in
the middle east. It is, therefore, no small wonder that Islam’s prophet,
Muhammad, broadcasted the same in his Koran, as the angel, Jibril/Gabriel,
supposedly revealed to him verbally. Think of that! Muhammad was most likely
influenced by the church of Rome, and he used the similar tactics that worked
for it to gain control over those of the Arab world, Ishmael’s decedents. There
is another story here, but it will have to wait.
We noted four verses from the Koran that speak of God’s vengeful,
unforgiving, wrathful judgment of eternal flames and torment upon unbelievers.
The Christian community has their share of like-minded men. They have also
instilled the spirit of fear in the hearts of the people, and we do not have to look
far to find them. For example:
Jonathan Edwards (Newspapers reported people leaving his sermons and
committing suicide from the fear he instilled in them.):
"The world will probably be converted into a great lake or liquid globe
of fire, in which the wicked shall be overwhelmed, which will always be in
tempest, in which they shall be tossed to and fro, having no rest day and
night, vast waves and billows of fire continually rolling over their heads,
of which they shall forever be full of a quick sense within and without; their
heads, their eyes, their tongues, their hands, their feet, their loins and
their vitals, shall forever be full of a flowing, melting fire, fierce enough to
melt the very rocks and elements; and also, they shall eternally be full of
the most quick and lively sense to feel the torments; not for one minute,
not for one day, not for one age, not for two ages, not for a hundred ages,
nor for ten thousand millions of ages, one after another, but forever and
ever, without any end at all, and never to be delivered.
"Here all judges have a mixture of mercy, but the wrath of God will be
poured out upon the wicked without mixture. Imagine yourself to be cast
into a fiery oven…and imagine also that your body were to lie there for a
quarter of an hour, full of fire, as full within and without as a bright coal
fire, all the while full of quick sense; what horror would you feel at the
entrance of such a furnace? Oh! Then how would your heart sink if you
knew that after millions and millions of ages your torment would be no
nearer to an end than ever it was. But your torment in hell will be
immensely greater than this illustration represents." The Works of
Jonathan Edwards -1785
"It is not a terrible thing to a wretched soul, when it shall lie roaring
perpetually in the flames of hell, and the God of mercy himself shall laugh
at them; when…God shall mock them instead of relieving them; when
none in heaven or earth can help them but God, and he shall rejoice over
them in their calamity" Richard Baxter "The Saint's Everlasting Rest"-
1846.
"Forever harassed with a dreadful tempest, they shall feel themselves
torn asunder by an angry God, and transfixed and penetrated by mortal
stings, terrified by the thunderbolts of God, and broken by the weight of
his hand, so that to sink into any gulf would be more tolerable than to
stand for a moment in these terrors. John Calvin (Who had some of his
theological enemies burned to death in green slow-burning wood.)
"There is the cup of trembling and of wrath. Your hands must take it,
your mouth must drink it. But you can never drain it. There is no last drop.
Infinite vengeance ever fills it to the brim. Eternal wrath is ever bringing
more. What is the curse? It is the endless accumulation of all the miseries
which God's resources can command and God's power can inflict. It is the
fiery torrent from the lake of fire. It is the pain which cannot be keener,
despair which cannot be blacker, and anguish which cannot be more
bitter. It is eternity in the oneness of all torment." Dean of Glouchester -
Christ In All.
"It would be difficult to measure the waters of the sea; but it is
impossible to reckon the ages of a boundless eternity. After millions of
years it have will only begun. God's wrath in hell will be always ‘wrath to
come.' Many are so tossed in this world but they have some rest. There
are few tempests without some lull between the storm. But there is no
pause in that storm which falls upon the inhabitants of hell."
Bishop Oxenden—Late Metropolitan of Canada: Great Truths
For many more similar quotes,
visit:
http://www.tentmaker.org/Quotes/hell-fire.htm
Man’s religion is truly a work of the serpent. It is designed to focus people's
attention and energy on an unchanging, uncompromising, fearful, yet benevolent
God who created the human race for the sake of companionship. He then
supposedly imposed a set of laws on them that are impossible to keep, and if
broken, which surely will be, they will suffer unimaginable, unending
punishment.
This has proven to be effective in keeping the members of most religions in
a continual state of fear and submission. Many are afraid to question the
supposed intentions of God, and in many cases, they become almost robotic to
their indoctrination. Many are afraid to even express their frustration as well as
their own individuality. Christians, and others it seems, are taught that their
purpose for existence is to pray, worship God, and to do good deeds. Almost
everyone will say that they wished the sinners would not have to suffer in hell
throughout eternity, and if was left up to them, they would not subject them to
such a fate; but they are led to believe that their will is totally irrelevant. It seems
that they never give it a thought that even though God is a God of mercy, their
desires make them more merciful than Him.
Religious followers believe that they are yielding their will over to a loving
God who is really not very lovely, but just the same, He has their best interests
at heart. The fact is, they are handing over their will and freedoms to religions
and religious people that bind them again, but this time in a world that appears
holy rather the immoral and reprobate one they left.
Having read some of Islam’s doctrine on eternal torment of unbelievers, and
it is the same with many other religions, including quite a number that are called
Christian, what is more cruel and twice binding than religion? Can we think of
anything more horrid, heartless, and purely evil than a satan's inspired, manmade
religions? I cannot recall one example that is worse. They may have a form of
godliness, they may look holy, and they may appear righteous; but they
deny the truth, the life and power of Jesus Christ as Paul wrote in
2
Timothy 3:5. They also search the scriptures and think that in them they
have eternal life; but they will not come to the One of whom they
testify—Jesus—that they may have life!
John 5:39-40.
Thus, some of the HALLMARKS OF RELIGION! |
The Pathfinder • PO Box 4004 • Alamogordo NM 88311
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