GOD VS RELIGION
! Elisabeth C. Pointer & Evelyn C. Pointer
INTRODUCTION So what's your religion? Ever heard that question
before? Sure you have, by co-workers, friends or strangers alike. Your beliefs supposedly define who you are and what you do. But in this world, we know that's not always the case. In fact, religion has gotten a bad name. It's not hard to see. Look at all of the child molestation cases that the Catholic priests have been accused of, or the many corrupt preachers under federal investigation due to their greed, or terrorist crimes committed all in the name of Allah! It is no wonder that religion has left a bad taste in the mouths of many. So many have abandoned religion and more importantly, they have abandoned God because they are considered one in the same. Herein lies the mistake because there are the religions of this world and then there is God's holy truth. Religion cannot save you. It is God's word and law that saves you.
Look at the major religions of western civilization, that of Christianity, Islam and Judaism. Each faith uses God's name as well as advocates certain parts of the bible that are indeed true. But intermingled in the truth are their own man made traditions and lies, misleading the masses. Most people in this world don't know their left hand from their right hand. They believe their pastor before they believe God. And if they are discontent with religion they may fail to seek God all together, becoming completely blind to the truth. In fact, we live in a world of darkness because the truth, which is light, is scarcely being preached. But we must open our eyes, study the scriptures that we might be true discerners of the law. Why? So that we are not easily deceived by the doctrine preached by major religions in the world. Let us look at some popular ideologies and traditions of Christianity, Islam and Judaism and whether they support or contradict God's law.
CHRISTIANITY True Christianity, in its purest form, embodies the entire word of God, both new and old testaments alike. The holy word, which we find in the bible, is Christ (St. John 1: 1). To be a Christian is to obey and follow after Jesus, not in part but completely. His life, teachings, death and resurrection has set a pattern for all who seek to gain salvation from sin and death. So what are some of Christ’s teachings? Let us explore this matter with scriptural proof.
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Christ taught us that to love him was to obey his commandments.
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“If ye love me, keep my commandments,” (St. John 14: 15) “He that hath my commandments, and keepeth them, he it is that loveth me: and he that loveth me shall be loved of my Father, and I will love him, and will manifest myself to him.” (St. John 14: 21)
Christ further expounds upon love, indicating that by law, we must love God first and then love our fellow man.
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“And Jesus answered him, The first of all the commandments is, Hear, O Israel; The Lord our God is one Lord: And thou shalt love the Lord thy God with all thy heart, and with all thy soul, and with all thy mind, and with all thy strength: this is the first commandment. And the second is like, namely this, Thou shalt love thy neighbour as thyself. There is none other commandment greater than these,” (Mark 12: 29-31)
Christ led by example and showed us the importance of keeping the seventh day Sabbath holy:
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“And Jesus returned in the power of the Spirit into Galilee: and there went out a fame of him through all the region round about. And he taught in their synagogues, being glorified of all. And he came to Nazareth, where he had been brought up: and, as his custom was, he went into the synagogue on the sabbath day, and stood up for to read.” (Luke 4: 14-16)
CHRISTIANITY When Christ was on this earth, he never proclaimed that we should disregard what is coined as the “Old Testament” in the bible. He stated just the opposite in Matthew 5: 14-19:
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“Think not that I am come to destroy the law, or the prophets: I am not come to destroy, but to fulfill. For verily I say unto you, Till heaven and earth pass, one jot or one tittle shall in no wise pass from the law, till all be fulfilled. Whosoever therefore shall break one of these least commandments, and shall teach men so, he shall be called the least in the kingdom of heaven: but whosoever shall do and teach them, the same shall be called great in the kingdom of heaven.”
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This Old Testament includes the 10 commandments of God, our history, prophecies, the keeping of the holy convocations and more. Christ often read from the book of the prophets, found in the “old testament” when teaching in the synagogue. He also kept the Feast of the Passover, which is a holy convocation that we are commanded to keep, which is first taught to us in the “old testament.”
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Look carefully at some of these teachings. You may notice that they indeed differ from much of the doctrine taught in modern so-called Christian churches. Instead you may hear these teachingS: 1)the old testament has been done away with; 2) you don’t have to keep the law all you have to do is believe; 3) instead of Passover we keep Easter and 4). Sunday is the modern day Sabbath.
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So why are many “modern” day Christians advocating teachings that differ from Christ? Lets take a look back at history.
CHRISTIANITY A key point to remember is that Christianity is actually of Jewish origin. After Ad 70 there was intense persecution by Rome on all things that was considered Jewish. The early Christians all kept the seventh day Sabbath holy, and this belief continued to spread like wild fire. It could not be stopped. Even when the Jewish leaders of the church and the first and true Christian leaders died out the name of Christ continued to grow. The Romans persecuted the Jews and also persecuted the Christians. They felt that everyone should show reverence for the Roman gods for prosperity to remain in the land. Rome was having lots of struggles and the Christians became a convenient scapegoat. At first every one kept the Sabbath day holy. Later, with intense pressure to honor the Roman gods and high days, they began to keep Sabbath and Sunday calling the Sabbath the end of the creation and Sunday the Lord’s Day. The term Lord’s Day is found one time in the bible in Revelations 1:10. Nowhere in the bible does it indicate or even suggest that this is referring to Sunday. This term was used as an excuse to justify the changing of the most holy law of God and the fourth commandment by wicked men for their own purposes. They also use one scripture showing that they broke bread together on the first day Acts 20:7. However we know that the apostles broke bread together every day, Acts 2:46.
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Around 313 AD Constantine purportedly converted to Christianity but made an edict that we will not Judaise. The council of Laodicea in 364 by the Eastern Church threatened to excommunicate anyone who rested on the seventh day. Throughout the following centuries a common tradition, the day of the sun grew to take precedence over the Sabbath day though there were always some who continued to worship God on the Sabbath. There were people in Great Britain and France who purportedly kept the Sabbath, and also in Spain and other parts of the west. Part of the work of the inquisition was to enforce the Catholic Church’s edicts pertaining to the Sabbath day. The Catholic Church said that anyone keeping the Sabbath holy was a heretic and anti-Christ. The keeping of the Sabbath day was considered an infestation of Judaism.
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CHRISTIANITY As the Catholic church and other so-called
Christian churches became more wealthy and powerful, God’s law and truth continued to be eclipsed by man-made beliefs and traditions. We can see that many holidays, such as Easter and Christmas, that are deeply rooted in idolatry and paganism, are placed way above feast days that God commanded us to keep in the bible (i.e. Passover or Feast of Pentecost). People justify this by saying that the law and old testament was done away with. They misconstrue the scriptures of Apostle Paul, whose teachings are a stumbling block to many, to support their flawed ideologies. Looking at the Christian churches of this world, its seems to be more about what makes people feel good as opposed to teaching them the law because that is what gets people in the pews. And the larger your congregation is the more profitable your church is. When attending these “modern” day Christian churches, it is not the tithe that is your biggest cost, it is the risk of losing your salvation.
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JUDAISM In this day, many people that claim to be of Jewish
descent and faith deny that Jesus is God. But when Christ came to the earth in the flesh, he was from the lineage of Judah, an Israelite tribe (Matthew Ch.1). He was also referred to as King of the Jews in the scriptures. The 12 apostles, all of Jewish lineage, followed after Christ, believed that he was God and preached his word. And as we stated prior, Christianity is of Jewish origin. So given these facts, how did this Jewish religion come to what it is today and what caused this religion to separate from Christianity? We must first look at our history as outlined in the bible.
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The nation of Israel, also referred to as the Jews or Hebrews, are descendants of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob. It was because of Abraham’s faith and righteousness that God established a covenant with him, promising Abraham that he would make him a nation like unto the stars in heaven if he remained obedient to the Lord. In his old age, Abraham and his wife Sarah conceived and bared a son by the name of Isaac. When Isaac was a child, God tested Abraham’s obedience and commanded him to sacrifice his son. But before Abraham sacrificed Isaac, God stopped him and was well pleased with him. So the Lord kept his promise, blessing Abraham as well as his son Isaac and later his grandson, Jacob. It was Jacob who had 12 sons. The seed that descended from these sons would be the 12 tribes of Israel. The people of Israel grew greatly in number. They had strength, beauty and most importantly, the word of God. This provoked envy and hatred from other nations. Also, Israel was a very rebellious nation. Instead of obeying God, they would try to emulate other nations and corrupt themselves with idolatry and the ways of the heathen.
JUDAISM This angered the Lord and caused Israel to be punished many times. The children of
Israel suffered under several captivities. Ten tribes were taken away during the Assyrian Empire, never to be seen again. These are the so called lost tribes of Israel.
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The ones that remained, of the tribes of Judah, Benjamin, and Levi were occupied by foreign nations and by many captivities, including the Roman Empire. It is during the Roman Empire that Christ was born in the flesh from the seed of Judah. When Christ grew older and began to preach the word, he was not readily accepted by everyone. In particular, the Jewish leaders including the Pharisees and Sadducees often challenged the gospel of Christ, labeling him as a blasphemer. They proclaimed they followed the laws of Moses, which included the 10 commandments. However, in reality they placed their own man-made traditions above God’s laws. You see Christ made a huge impact on the lives of many. He preached the word as it had never been preached, he healed the sick and afflicted and raised the dead. And with the help of his apostles, his word began to gain momentum throughout the world. The Jewish leaders were threatened by Christ and envious. They rejected him and his word and sought to take his life. Indeed, Christ was crucified by the hands of man but his death and resurrection was by the will of God the Father. As years passed, after the death of Christ and the apostles, Jerusalem was sieged and destroyed by the Romans in AD 70.
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As was the custom in those days, especially with Rome, conquered nations were taken as slaves, those who survived. These poor slaves were naked and shackled by Rome and taken in ships to Egypt where they were sold. Later they were taken down the Nile in boats to Ethiopia and continued down the Nile to Central Africa. Slaves were valuable and the slave trade was a lucrative business. The peoples of Europe needed manpower to work in their fields and plantations so made their way to the western coasted called the Slave Coast. Between AD 70 and 1600 any visible difference between the African Black and Israelite was lost. By this time, they had forgotten their language, their history and their laws. As was customary, women had no choice; they were raped and married to whoever wanted them. Children were born that looked just like the Africans.
JUDAISM The men of Israel, just like any slave would either have
to submit or be killed. The Israelites were completely hidden or lost. By all accounts the true children of Israel ceased to be.
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Why would something so terrible happen to the children of God? God punished his people because they would not obey him. Deuteronomy Chapter 28 delineates line by line the curse that God put upon the children of Israel because of disobedience. In Deuteronomy Ch. 28 it describes a people brought in ships as slaves, that became the tail and not the head, a people that were a byword and proverb. Consider that the black man is a proverb and a byword. Consider that the iron yoke of slavery was put on them. Consider that they were scattered among the nations. Even today, after the Civil Rights movement, they still remain far behind the white man and other minorities no matter how hard some may work. Racism is alive and well in this country. It is only because of the mercy of God that slavery ended and the black man was allowed to become educated, allowing us a chance to survive and grow and return to God.
JUDAISM The people who occupy the land of Israel now, and the so called Jews around the
world do not fit the description of the remnant of Israel as outlined in Deuteronomy Ch. 28. Yet the whole world acknowledges them as Jews? How did this come to be. We can look at our history in the bible to find out.
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• During the reign of King Hezekiah of Judah, the 10 tribes of Israel were taken
captivity by the King of Assyrian (II Kings 17: 7-34). They were replaced by the worst of the people in the Assyrian Kingdom. Because of the wickedness of these people’s ways, the Lord sent lions out to kill some of them until a priest of Israel was brought back to teach these people how to keep the laws. These people then practiced some of these laws without giving up their heathen ways. Some of the people in Israel today are the descendants of those people.
• Recall Esau. He was the eldest son of Isaac and brother of Jacob. God chose
Jacob instead of Esau to receive the firstborn blessing and birthright. A group of people called the Edomites descended from Esau. And just as there was enmity between Esau and Jacob over the birthright and firstborn blessing there forever remained enmity between Israel and Edom. During the time of the Maccabees, John Hyracannus (the son of Simon Maccabees) forced the Edomites to become “Jews.” They had to obey the laws of the Jews. They called themselves Jews. This is how Herod, an Edomite, became King of Judea. From this point on, Edom as a separate nation disappeared from history. The Edomite were said to be opportunists. When things went well in Israel, they called themselves Jews. When things went bad in Israel they turned against the true Jew and helped the enemies of Israel destroy them, (Psalms 137: 7) During the destruction of Jerusalem in AD 70, the Edomites led the Roman soldiers to all of the hiding places of the real Jews. They lauded and jeered as the people were slaughtered, burnt alive and taken out in captivity. Many of the so-called Jews, perhaps most are descendants of Edom, (Ezekiel 3: 10).
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• Many of the Jews, especially the Pharisees loved to convert people of other nations
into the Jewish faith. Christ said these words about them, “Woe unto you, Scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! For ye compass sea and land to make one proselyte.” A proselyte is a new convert. The proselytes that the Pharisees travelled long distances to convert, called themselves Jews.
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• Lastly, many nations claimed a piece of the soil in Israel including the Arabs, the Europeans during the crusades, the Turks and Great Britain. Some of their descendants remain in Israel.
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It is not only the heritage of the Jews that has been misrepresented but their true doctrine and belief. Today, the so-called Jewish faith or Judaism has transformed into a doctrine that denies Christ all together as God. Here are some principle beliefs of Judaism.
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• They believe that there is only one living God. The Hebrew name for him is
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Yahweh.
• The Talmud is said to be the central and most important written works in Judaism.
It is a record of rabbinic teachings that interpret the Hebrew scriptures, spanning a period of about six hundred years. Many dedicated pseudo-Jews use the Talmud as their primary guide to their everyday spiritual and common lives. It should be emphasized that this book is NOT actually the bible, but is instead man’s interpretation of some of the scriptures in the bible.
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• Can you see a problem with this? God wants his word, which is found in the
bible, to be our daily guide. It is from his word that we come to know God, who he is and how to obey him. “Then said I, Lo I come: in the volume of a book it is written of me,” (Psalms 40:7). And it says in Isaiah 34:16, “Seek ye out the book of the Lord, and read.” The bible is the book of the Lord and was written by holy men, inspired by the Holy Spirit. It was not their own personal work or ideas, instead, it was God’s word and truth that these chosen men wrote down per His guidance and instruction. The men who wrote the bible died, but God’s word did not pass away, (Matthew 24: 35) “Heaven and earth shall pass away, but my words shall not pass away.”
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• Also, the Talmud is an interpretation of what is called “Hebrew or Jewish” scriptures or what is commonly referred to the “Old Testament,” which includes the 5 books of Moses (Torah), the prophets (Nevi’im) and the writings (Ketuvim). They completely disregard what is commonly called the “New Testament,” which should never be ignored as this body of work discusses the life and works of Jesus Christ plus so much more.
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• Orthodox Jews are said to follow strict Kosher food laws. It should be noted that these food laws include some of the instructions written out in Leviticus Ch. 11 (i.e. refraining from eating pig’s which is unclean). However, they have also added their own man-made ideologies, deeming it as law. For example: 1) grape products made by non-Jews cannot be eaten; or 2) meat and fish cannot be cooked together or even placed on the same plate. These rules did not come from God and his word. These are man-made rules proclaimed to be law.
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• Mainstream pseudo- Jews do NOT believe that the Messiah has come. According to Judaism interpretation, the Messiah must fulfill the following criteria: 1) be a paternal descendant of King David through Solomon; 2) he must return the Jews to their homeland; 3) rebuild the Temple; 4) reign as King and 5) bring about an era of peace. According to the Pseudo-Jews, because Christ did not fulfill each criteria during his first coming he could not be the Messiah. However, what they disregard is that there will be a second coming of Christ, in which he will bring salvation to completion. The first coming, however, was necessary for us to have an opportunity to gain salvation. Why? Because through his death and resurrection we gained grace, an opportunity to repent for our sins and obey his commandments. If you delve further into the scriptures, we can see that Christ indeed fits this criteria outlined above.
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• Paternal descendent of King David via Solomon: • “Concerning his Son Jesus Christ our Lord, which was made of the seed of David according to the flesh,” (Romans 1: 3). Also, in Matthew 1 it begins by stating, “The book of the generation of Jesus Christ, the son of David, the son of Abraham.” As you read further in this chapter it goes into to detail of the lineage of Christ, beginning with Abraham, Isaac and Jacob. You should know that Jacob had 12 sons, from which the 12 tribes of Israel descended. One of those notable tribes was Judah. King David came from the line of Judah who later had Solomon. As this seed continued down the line, eventually a man by the name of Joseph was born, he later becomes the husband of Mary who was chosen to carry Jesus Christ in her womb. • Return the Jews to their homeland and rebuilding the temple. • Christ will indeed gather the remnant of Israel and return them home. How do we know? In Isaiah 11: 10 -12, And in that day there shall be a root of Jesse, which shall stand for an ensign of the people; to it shall the Gentiles seek: and his rest shall be glorious. And it shall come to pass in that day, that the Lord shall set his hand again the second time to recover the remnant of his people, which shall be left, from Assyria, and from Egypt, and from Pathros, and from Cush, and from Elam, and from Shinar, and from Hamath, and from the islands of the sea. And he shall set up an ensign for the nations, and shall assemble the outcasts of Israel, and gather together the dispersed of Judah from the four corners of the earth.” This root of Jesse is another name for Christ. Why? Again, Christ was made of the seed of David according to the flesh. David was the son of Jesse. The pseduo-Jews place emphasis on the rebuilding of God’s temple, which is also synonymous with the word ‘church.’ Know that the word church or temple not only depicts a physical structure but people. God’s people are his church. And he will rebuild and restore first Israel and then all other saints of God. Instead of rebuilding an old structure, Christ will bring down a temple from heaven, not made by the hands of man but God, onto Mt. Olives in Jerusalem, (Zechariah Ch. 14). • Reign as King. Christ has been deemed King of Kings and Lord of Lords (Revelations 19: 11-16). He sits on the right hand of God the Father and his been anointed above the angels (Hebrews 1: 8-14). He is indeed God and rules over us all (John 1: 1-5).
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• Bring an Era of Peace Did you know that one of Christ’s names is the Prince of
Peace. “For unto us a child is born, unto us a son is given: and the government shall be upon his shoulder: and his name shall be called Wonderful, Counsellor, The mighty God, The everlasting Father, The Prince of Peace,” (Isaiah 9: 6). In Isaiah 11 it talks about Christ’s return to the earth for the second time. He will bring peace to his people and to the land of Jerusalem where his temple will be. There will be no more violence or evil for the Lord states, “They shall not hurt nor destroy in all my holy mountain: for the earth shall be full of the knowledge of the LORD, as the waters cover the sea,” (Isaiah 11: 9). Even the animals will be at peace with one another as it states here, “The wolf also shall dwell with the lamb, and the leopard shall lie down with the kid; and the calf and the young lion and the fatling together; and a little child shall lead them, (Isaiah 11: 6).
ISLAM The Islamic faith began in the seventh century by a man name Muhammad, who claims that the angel Gabriel visited him and revealed the words of Allah, which is the Muslim name for God. These visits reportedly lasted for 23 years. The revelations that Muhammad allegedly received from the angel Gabriel is what composes the Qu-ran, Islam’s holy book. Now Islam means submission which derives from the root word that means peace. The word Muslim means “one who submits to Allah.”
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• Muslims believe in one Allah or God who has complete sovereign, power and authority. They reject the trinity of God the Father, the Son and the Holy Spirit even though it states in the bible, “For there are three that bear record in heaven, the Father, the Word, and the Holy Ghost: and these three are one,” (I John 5: 7).
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• They believe in the prophets but accept Muhammad as Allah’s final prophet.
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• Muslims only except certain portions of the bible including for example the 5 books of the law as well as the gospel. However, the Qu’ran has been deemed the perfect word of Allah, even over the bible. Again, we see man placing their doctrine over the doctrine of God, which leads to the dilution of the law.
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• Generally speaking, Muslims believe that when one dies, their soul remains in the grave unto the day of judgement in which God will determine whether you will be admitted to Paradise or Hell. However, the Qu’ran specifies exceptions to that rule. Those individuals or ‘warriors’ as they are referred to, who die for God’s cause, will be immediately ushered into God’s presence and go to Paradise. Individuals who are deemed enemies of Islam and die, will immediately go to Hell.
ISLAM • You can see how terrorists who claim they are of Muslim faith would use this belief to justify killings and murders throughout the world. This is not to say, however, that all individuals of the Islamic religion believe in terrorist activity. But what does the bible say? Remember that Christ set the pattern and example for us. When he died, his body went into the grave. He stayed there three days and three nights until he was resurrected and ascended to heaven with no sin or death in his flesh. We follow this example. When we die in the flesh, we die the common death. It is sometimes called a sleep in the bible. We do not go to Paradise or Hell. Our bodies remain in the ground awaiting the day of judgment. There are two resurrections. During the first resurrection, the saints that have died, will rise again but in bodies of immortality just like Christ did. They will no longer be subjected to sin and death, because it has been permanently removed from their minds and bodies. At this time, all of the children of God will be united and go to heaven to partake in the marriage supper of the lamb where they will rejoice and gain crowns of life. Paul talks about the first resurrection in I Corinthians 15: 50-58. There will also be a second resurrection. This resurrection includes the raising of the sons of men who did not obey God’s word. When they are called from the dead they will be judged and suffer eternal damnation. They will die the final or second death and will never live again. So there will not be this afterlife in hell. They will be destroyed by the lake of fire. The bible talks about this resurrection in Revelations 20: 12-15.
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• In order to get into paradise you must adhere to the five pillars of Islam which includes: 1) there testimony of faith, that is, there is not deity but Allah; 2) 5 ritual prayers everyday; 3) Muslims must fast during Ramadan in the ninth month of the Islamic calendar in which they refrain from eating or drinking from dawn until sunset; and 4) if physically and financially possible, a Muslim must make the pilgrimage to Mecca in Saudi Arabia at least once. Note that these five pillars are man-made, taking some points from the word of God and then adding their own ideologies. For example, God states the importance of prayer. We should pray everyday but the bible does not state that we must have 5 ritual prayers each day in order to be saved. It is equally important for us to fast, but the holiday of Ramadan was created by the Muslims not God.
ISLAM • The Islamic faith rejects Christ as the son of God. Instead they view him as one of the most important prophets in the bible. They also reject the belief that Christ died on the cross, stating that God would never let a torturous death happen to one of his prophets. This means that they reject significant portions of the bible that talk about the death and resurrection of Jesus Christ. As we have reiterated, without the death and resurrection of Christ, we would not have grace and therefore would not have hope to gain salvation.
CONCLUSION So what do we take from all of this? These major religious systems of the world have taken portions of God’s word and have polluted it with lies. The result, the world is in darkness, few know the truth and masses of people lead of life of disobedience. People have chosen their own truths and have set their own paths. But truth is not in the eye of the beholder nor is it subject to personal interpretation.
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• Fact. There is only one truth and this is found in the bible (“Then said I, Lo, I come: in the volume of the book it is written of me,” - Psalms 40: 7).
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• Fact. There is only one way to serve God (“Let us hear the conclusion of the whole matter: Fear God, and keep his commandments: for this is the whole duty of man,” Ecclesiastes 12: 13 & “There is one body, and one Spirit, even as ye are called in one hope of your calling; One Lord, one faith, one baptism,” Ephesians 4: 4-5)
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• Fact. It is not religion that saves, it is God that saves (“Salvation belongeth unto the LORD: thy blessing is upon thy people. Selah,” - Psalms 3: 8)
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• Fact. Man changes but God does not change, (“For I am the LORD, I change not; therefore ye sons of Jacob are not consumed,” - Malachi 3: 6).
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• Fact. Man lies but God does not lie (“God is not a man, that he should lie…” Numbers 23: 19).
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Let us follow and obey God who is truth and unwavering. Amen.
QUESTIONS?
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