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By Tamara Hartzell, author of In the Name of Purpose and her newest book: “Reimagining” God: Turning the Light off to Look for “Truth” in the Corner of a Dark Round Room |
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“For ye are all the children of God by faith in Christ Jesus.” (Galatians 3:26) |
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In today’s shifting Christianity, people think it is simply a matter of “moving the fence” in order to be more inclusive. They don’t understand that we can’t broaden the truth of Who the Lord Jesus Christ is any more than we can broaden the truth of Who God is. The Word of God tells us the truth of Who the Lord Jesus Christ is, and, again, the truth and faith that are in the Word of God give us the Christian faith, not the faith of another religion.
In other words, the truth of Who the Lord Jesus Christ is gives us the Christian faith. This is the faith that is given to us by God through His Word. The Lord Jesus Christ does not “move the fence.” That is, He does not change the truth of Who He is to be more inclusive. The truth is what it is whether people believe it or not.
"For if he that cometh preacheth another Jesus, whom we have not preached, or if ye receive another spirit, which ye have not received, or another gospel, which ye have not accepted, ye might well bear with him. (2 Corinthians 11:4)
Only “another Jesus” will change the truth and “move the fence” to broaden the narrow way to include the broad way. This broadened way is not the narrow way but obviously the broad way.
For instance, the false “Jesus” of The Shack wants his followers to “grow in the freedom to be inside or outside all kinds of systems and to move freely between and among them.” This false “Jesus” conveniently includes “religious” “systems” in this freedom, and he says of his followers who “were Buddhists or Mormons, Baptists or Muslims” – “I have no desire to make them Christian, but I do want to join them in their transformation …”
Since true Christians believe the truth and faith of the Word of God, which includes the truth of the true Lord Jesus Christ, of course a false “Jesus” doesn’t want people to be Christian. Besides, this way his followers can come to “view God [as] being MUCH bigger than any particular religion,” and particularly “bigger” than the Word of God and Christian faith. In other words, in their transformation away from the Christian faith and Christian God they can come to view different religions as having “the same God.” This is what is being taught here by this false “Jesus,” who is clearly “moving the fence” to include the broad way (and even himself).
Now the Spirit speaketh expressly, that in the latter times some shall depart from the faith, giving heed to seducing spirits, and doctrines of devils. (1 Timothy 4:1)
“Moving the fence” does not move or change the truth, it only moves and changes one’s faith. Faith in the truth is true faith, and faith in untruth is faithlessness because faith in untruth moves and changes one’s faith from faith in the truth to faith in untruth. But, naturally, those who are undergoing the transformation of the broad way don’t see it that way. They prefer to believe that the truth is untruth and untruth is “truth,” so if their faith is in untruth their “faith” is in “truth,” and then faith in the truth becomes faith in untruth, and faith becomes faithlessness and faithlessness becomes “faith.”
This way, this broader untruth (“truth”) of a broader “Jesus” can now fit inside other religions so they, too, can have faith in untruth and believe it is faith in the truth. And this is man’s idea of “love”?! Yet they see it as having faith in a “reimagined” Jesus and a “reimagined” way and a “reimagined” truth that gives everyone a “reimagined” life, because then there will be no problem for anyone, right? Only in the blinding absurdity of make-believe, which is all they will have left since they are making it taboo to believe.
"Jesus Christ the same yesterday, and today, and for ever." (Hebrews 13:8)
"For I am the LORD, I change not." (Malachi 3:6)
"If we receive the witness of men, the witness of God is greater: for this is the witness of God which he hath testified of his Son. He that believeth on the Son of God hath the witness in himself: he that believeth not God hath made him a liar; because he believeth not the record that God gave of his Son." (1 John 5:9-10)
"And we have seen and do testify that the Father sent the Son to be the Saviour of the world. Whosoever shall confess that Jesus is the Son of God, God dwelleth in him, and he in God." (1 John 4:14-15)
"Jesus saith unto him, I am the way, the truth, and the life: no man cometh unto the Father, but by me." (John 14:6)
Contrary to the devious false teachings of The Shack’s “reimagined” “God” of untruth, neither the true Father nor the true Holy Spirit are “the Son of God.” It used to be common knowledge in Christianity that the Father is not “the Son of God;” the Father is not the way to the Father.
Likewise, it used to be common knowledge that the Holy Spirit is not “the Son of God;” the Holy Spirit is not the way to the Father. The Lord Jesus Christ, Who is the true Son of God, is the only way to the Father. And only those who believe on the true Son of God receive the Holy Spirit. We cannot bypass believing on the true Son of God to come to the true God.
Incidentally, in the New Age everyone is “the Son of God.” Very convenient. This way everyone is their own way to God. This is also why people choose to “reimagine” God. Although today’s shifting Christianity now “reimagines” otherwise, the true Lord Jesus Christ, the true Son of God, is not “the best way” to God but the only way. There is no relationship with (or “relating” to) the true God apart from the true Lord Jesus Christ.
On the other hand, The Shack’s “reimagined” “Jesus” naturally claims to be “the best way” to “relate to” its “reimagined” “God.” Of course a false “Jesus” is “the best way” in every sense to a false “God”! In truth, the true Lord Jesus Christ is the only way to the true God. Think about it.
Although it all used to be obvious, sadly, nothing is obvious anymore for those who are rejecting the faith behind the certainty of God’s truth to believe the faithlessness of the uncertainty of man’s untruth, and then absurdly flipping it all upside down and backward, spinning in the never-ending circles of man’s “reimaginations.”
Their defense against the light is quite an effective defense. They just are not willing to accept that in the true truth of God’s truth—as opposed to the untrue “truth” of man’s untruth—we are born again through the Holy Spirit by the Word of God that gives us the truth of Who the Lord Jesus Christ is, which is indispensable to the true Gospel of Christ.
"Jesus answered and said unto him, Verily, verily, I say unto thee, Except a man be born again, he cannot see the kingdom of God.… That which is born of the flesh is flesh; and that which is born of the Spirit is spirit. Marvel not that I said unto thee, Ye must be born again.… He that believeth on the Son hath everlasting life: and he that believeth not the Son shall not see life; but the wrath of God abideth on him." (John 3:3, 6-7, 36)
"Sanctify them through thy truth: thy word is truth." (John 17:17)
"Being born again, not of corruptible seed, but of incorruptible, by the word of God, which liveth and abideth for ever. For all flesh is as grass, and all the glory of man as the flower of grass. The grass withereth, and the flower thereof falleth away: But the word of the Lord endureth for ever. And this is the word which by the gospel is preached unto you." (1 Peter 1:23-25)
"For I am not ashamed of the gospel of Christ: for it is the power of God unto salvation to every one that believeth; to the Jew first, and also to the Greek. For therein is the righteousness of God revealed from faith to faith: as it is written, The just shall live by faith." (Romans 1:16-17)
"Therefore being justified by faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ." (Romans 5:1)
This all used to be common knowledge in Christianity, when God's Light was still the preferred light, Truth was still the preferred truth, faith was still the preferred faith, and the Gospel of Christ was still the preferred Gospel. Now everything has changed. And the self-proclaimed “change agents” have changed it all on purpose. Congratulations on their success. Now, the true God is no longer the preferred “God,” and the true Lord Jesus Christ is no longer the preferred “Jesus.” But, naturally, they don’t see it that way.
"Be not deceived; God is not mocked: for whatsoever a man soweth, that shall he also reap." (Galatians 6:7)
This article is an extract from Tamara Hartzell’s newest book, “Reimagining” God: Turning the Light off to Look for “Truth” in the Corner of a Dark Round Room, from Part 2. This is a free online PDF book. She is also the author of In the Name of Purpose. Used with permission.