It is so funny to me how believers pick and choose what things they think are “New Age” and what things are “Christian.” For example, are trances “New Age” or Christian? Well, the Apostle Peter fell into a trance. Here is the reference: “I was in the city of Joppa praying; and in a trance I saw a vision, an object coming down like a great sheet lowered by four corners from the sky; and it came right down to me…” (Acts 11:5)
The Apostle Paul also experienced a trance. Here is his reference; “It happened when I returned to Jerusalem and was praying in the temple, that I fell into a trance…” (Act 22:17)
Are angel visitations “New Age” or Christian? Are you aware that angels are mentioned 185 times in the New Testament alone? There were at least 20 angelic visitations just in the book of Acts. In contrast, the Holy Spirit is mentioned 223 times in the New Testament.
When some people read the words of Jesus like these, “For false Christs and false prophets will arise and will show great signs and wonders, so as to mislead, if possible, even the elect,” (Matthew 24:24) they are convinced that Jesus said, “In the last days all the prophets will be false.” Nobody would be fooled if there were no real prophets. Most of the heresy hunters don’t believe there are prophets in the last days, so they deem all signs and wonders as false.
Of course there are false prophets, false signs and wonders, demonic trances, demonic tongues, etc., but the devil only counterfeits things that are valuable! Nobody ever counterfeited a penny or a dollar bill; it’s just too much work for very little impact. But in their zeal to not be deceived, some Christians take anything that is counterfeited and assign it to the New Age movement; consequently, what’s left is a powerless church. Paul warned Timothy about these people when he said, “But realize this, that in the last days difficult times will come…people will “hold to a form of godliness, although they have denied its power; Avoid such men as these.” (2 Timothy 3:1, 5)
THE GOSPEL IS POWERFUL
The truth is that you can’t separate the gospel from the power of God! Paul put it like this: “In the power of signs and wonders, in the power of the Spirit; so that from Jerusalem and round about as far as Illyricum I have fully preached the gospel of Christ.” (Romans 15:19)
If someone teaches that there are no longer gifts of the Spirit – prophecy, healing, deliverance are not for today – all spiritual experiences and/or supernatural encounters have passed, are not these people false teachers? Is it just not just as dangerous to remove the power of God from the people of God as it is to be deceived? In fact, isn’t this deception?
Peter said, “…just as there will also be false teachers among you, who will secretly introduce destructive heresies…” (2 Peter 2:1)
For if you were to have countless tutors in Christ, yet you would not have many fathers, for in Christ Jesus I became your father through the gospel. But I will come to you soon, if the Lord wills, and I shall find out, not the words of those who are arrogant but their power. For the kingdom of God does not consist in words but in power. (1 Corinthians 4:15, 19-20)
Many of the heresy teachers have become the very thing that they are warning everybody about. As Job said, the thing they feared came upon them. (See Job 3:25)
The devil has a great strategy to disarm the church – convince her that the weapons of warfare are of the devil.
MY SPIRIT GUIDE
I have a Spirit Guide; His name is Holy and he guides me into all truth! “But when He, the Spirit of truth, comes, He will guide you into all the truth…” (John 16:13)
How has this blog impacted you? Let me know in the comments below.
