How to Respond to New Age Spirituality

A friend of mine believes in New Age teachings about spirituality and she says they're compatible with Christianity. How should I respond that just one of the questions will be answering on today's addition of core Christianity hi this is Bill Meyer along with Pastor Israel Sanchez and this is the radio program where we answer your questions about the Bible and the Christian life every day.

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Here's a voicemail that we received yesterday Mike and I really been trying to help out someone who is an acquaintance, friend that had been asking me lead her to the Bible and she had been hauled only by some new age.

That she had been reincarnated from Mary Magdalene and met her husband and she and I tried telling her that that is all you know it kind of pulled my heart.

Looking at first John howitzer that were supposed to be loving to others and share the gospel but that also talking about discernment.

She keeps arguing with me and publicly saying things that lay under the name of Jesus Christ and it's hurtful and I just don't know if I should completely walk away from trying to help her be saved or if there is some kind of angle that I could combat her to help her see that this is a delusion, and that reincarnation does not go hand-in-hand with the Bible. Think you thank you for that question, sister, and I'm encouraged by the fact that your your wanting to share the faith with this friend of yours and I know that sometimes it can be frustrating when were were having conversations with people and they clearly reject what the Bible teaches about Jesus and in sometimes it communicating argumentative and that's what I think one prayer is so important. We have to remember when were having conversations with friends and family members. We want to understand the gospel that really understanding comes from the Holy Spirit. Acts chapter 16 I love this this passage of Scripture. Paul is preaching at Philippi and in verse 14 it says one who heard us was a woman named Lydia from the city of Thyatira, a seller of purple goods, who was a worshiper of God and the Lord opened her heart to pay attention to what was said by Paul as I would say you know you pray that the Lord opens the heart of your friend. Knowing that this is first and foremost a work of the Holy Spirit and that as you're having conversations with her, your your dependent upon the Holy Spirit, but you also want to bring her to an understanding of what the Bible actually says about Jesus and I like that you mention.

First John their first John chapter 4 says, beloved, do not believe every spirit, but test the spirits to see whether they are from God, for many false prophets have gone out into the world by this you know the Spirit of God. Every spirit that confesses that Jesus Christ has come in the flesh is from God, and every spirit that does not confess Jesus is not from God. This is the spirit of the antichrist, which you heard was coming and now is in the world already, but you don't. It's heartbreaking. But the fact of the matter is today in the world that the spirit of the antichrist is clearly at work and here's what the antichrist wants. Here's ears of the spirit of the anticrisis is seeking to do in the world today confuse people about the identity of Jesus. Right. First and foremost the most important thing for for each of us the most import question.

You can Everett answer is who is Jesus Christ getting that right is key and it sounds like your friend is getting that really wrong. Right now she's she's listening to some spiritual teachers that that are leading her astray and so I would say focusing on the person and on the work of Jesus Christ, as you have conversations with her sale of Jesus. Jesus is not just another person at a good spiritual teacher. He is the Christ the Savior, the son of God who came to pay for our sins so that when we stand before God on the day of judgment. We can be forgiven. We can have the hope of eternal life in the Scripture is absolutely clear in places like Hebrews chapter 9 verse 27. It is appointed for man to die once and after that comes the judgment is a all of us are to stand before the Lord on judgment day and the question is, are we standing with Jesus, or are we standing in our own righteousness. And if we have a false understanding of who Jesus is. Then were lost. If we think that he was just some some other person or her reincarnated husband and her husband cannot save her. Only the true Jesus can and so you want to pray for her and have conversations around who Jesus is and what he came to accomplish and may the Lord bless you as you have those conversations sister interesting question.

I'm glad you said her husband can't say for because you know sometimes people think their spouses can say you had my white eyes again.

My wife knows for sure that I can savor you now that that we pointed to Jesus and that's the only hope that we have.

This is core Christianity with Pastor Israel Sanchez.

Let's go to David is calling in from Branson, Missouri David, welcome to core Christianity after a David, welcome to the program what your question rather story 10 years ago.

It was 14 years old. They lived with his mother. As a product of pure self absorbed people who never got married on my knowledge, he never was introduced to Jesus Christ in any way.

I am reason for Psalms and some problems but other. I don't know that he ever was introduced to Jesus Christ is gone under. Assume I don't know if he is in heaven or other laws and are I just I wish you could clarify that for me if you would please David, I'm so sorry to hear about the debtors and I know you said was 10 years ago, but I'm sure that the pain is still very real and so the first thing I want to do for you is pray for you brother, father, I lift David up to you and I ask God that you would comfort him that you would be with him that you would help him Lord to rest in the fact that you know all things God that that you are absolutely sovereign that year that you're bigger than we are that our days are numbered. Each one of them. The days that that we have Lord even before there were any. That's what the psalmist says in Psalm 139 Lord you are in control and that not one sparrow falls to the ground apart from your sovereign will and that you care for us Lord you care for us more than the sparrows and and so I pray that you would comfort my brother with that reality with the fact that you are the Lord and we can trust in you.

We can look to you, even in the midst of of the pain that we experience in in this world and so would you be with him and comfort him and draw near to you to but through your son Jesus in whose name we pray.

Amen. In a David I'm I'm not the judge of heaven and earth and and I can't tell you, you know whether you know are not your son is in the presence of what I do know that God is good and I do know that Christ is merciful and I know that all those who turn to him by faith are saving.

We don't know what what happens in an individual's life is there, you know, moving towards death. We don't know we just don't know.

In it, so I think it's wise for us to reserve judgment. In fact, that's precisely what the apostle Paul said in first Corinthians chapter 4, but it's it's is not up to us to make that judgment will we do know is that God knows all things. I mentioned to you know Psalm 139 and I just think the words there are are so powerful, especially when were wrestling with these kinds of questions in Psalm 139.

The psalmist is reflecting on the fact that the Lord is and in total control and he says this, verse 13 for you formed my inward parts, you knitted me together in my mother's womb. I praise you for I am fearfully and wonderfully made. Wonderful are your works, my soul knows it very well. My frame was not hidden from you when I was being made in secret, intricately woven in the depths of the earth. You saw your eyes saw my unformed substance in your book were written every one of them. The days that were formed for me, when as yet there was none of them. In other words, something God you know me better than I know myself. You knew each and every one of the days that I would have on this earth, and David God knew that for your son is will he knows that for you. You can look to him. You can trust in him, you can put your hope in him and and it doesn't help to speculate what you can rest and is in the fact that God is just and that God is good and the God is merciful to us through Jesus.

And so I would. I would just say cast yourself on the mercies of God, and on the hope that God knows all things, and ultimately is good and and so brother I think I think that's that's where you have to go in again.

I also mentioned that passage were Jesus and he talks about the sparrows how God cares for even the sparrows. God loves you, love your family and you can rest in that. David may the Lord bless you difficult situation. This is core Christianity with Pastor Israel Sanchez and we want to remind you that you can listen to this program any time, and her previous episodes by subscribing to our podcast. Now, if you subscribe on the podcast app and leave us a five star review even more people will be able to hear about the podcast and also have a chance to learn about the core truths of Christianity. So download the podcast app you don't already have it and check out core Christianity. Either today's episode or past episodes let's go to Duncan from Ottawa, Canada, Donald Duck, and welcome to core Christianity hold your your your program blesses me more than you'll ever know.

Thank you, Duncan Sanchez, I've a question relating to the song of Solomon or song of songs called. I bought times wondered why this book is the seldom studied. Now some some folks say it's pornographic. I don't believe that for a second if that were the case, it wouldn't belong to the canon of Scripture.

Now it is said that the Jewish young people under the age of 30 were the discourage students from from my reading the song of Solomon, and David is there any truth to that.

Thank you for this question.

You're totally right. You oftentimes hear sermon series on the song of Solomon, and I think that there are a few reasons for that one to me. What we have here in this in the song of Solomon. This is very poetic and so I wonder if pastors don't don't avoid it just because they're trying to think about you. How can I actually apply this to my congregation. It seems difficult to understand all of these images. All of these allegories what's going on here and so there a lot of people don't want to touch it with with a 10 foot bull. For that reason, but also because in in the song of Solomon. You have erotic poetry and in some places and and that was understood historically and so you know how how we can address address that hidden in the context of the local church and from the pulpit but the fact of the matters it gets really important for us to think about this book and there so much for us to glean from it. Historically it's it's been interpreted in different ways I mentioned, you know, the idea of it being erotic love poetry be celebrating human love others have interpreted it primarily as an allegory of the love that exists between God and the human soul you saw this a lot in the medieval church.

For example, traditionally the Jewish view was that it was an allegory of God's spousal love for Israel that's a bit we see throughout the Old Testament it really is quite beautiful that one of the pictures that God gives us for his relationship with his people is he is the bridegroom of his people. He took Israel to be his wife. Now what happened in the context of redemptive history, Israel turned her back on the Lord, she committed spiritual adultery.

Think about that scene in Exodus, where where the people of God created the golden calf and and turn their backs on the Lord and yet God continued to pursue his bride. And when Jesus shows up on the scene in the Gospels. He refers to himself as the bridegroom. You see this it in particular in the Gospel of John.

And so I think you know there's a wealth on the surface it we can we can see it as celebrating the human relationship between a husband and a wife. The intimacy that exists there something that's given to us by God as a gift and I think it's important that we see that because one thing that we can do and I've seen happening in Christian churches. As these topics become sort of taboo and we don't know how to talk about them when in reality it's okay to talk about these things and that mean marriage intimacy.

Those are gifts given to us by the Lord that can be celebrated, or they can be abused and misused. And so, song of Solomon is helping us see how this ought to work and how this ought to look but also as this allegory of God's love for his people. I think it communicates to us so much, you know that this vivid picture of the kind of relationship. The kind of intimacy that the Lord wants with his people that Christ has with his bride were united to him in this organic way by faith every time we take the Lord's supper. For example, what I think that's one of the things it that were participating in and experiencing it is, is this beautiful thing. And yet, like you said a lot of times we just don't talk about the song of Solomon and so yeah I think I think it's for the reasons that already mentioned, and hopefully you know this. The short answer is in encouraging some pastors out there to consider digging up this book and maybe doing a Bible study on it because the song of Solomon really is a beautiful book and one that we should be encouraged to study as believers in order. My pastor a priest on this about a year ago did have a little I guess warning to parents and the congregation saying you know there are some things in this this particular book that if you know if you got younger kids.

You may want to make sure they're in Sunday school that day. It is a beautiful book on so many levels. As you said this is core Christianity with Pastor Israel Sanchez and we been talking this week about a wonderful resource that Israel has created is called seeing Jesus and we love to make a copy of that available to you today yes you not just going back to the earlier caller that we had David thinking about death and just that the pain and the sorrow associated with death.

You know one thing about Jesus Christ is he is the high priest who came to deal with the problem of death we don't often think about that, but that's that's actually something that's very clearly communicated in the Gospels and one of the chapters in seeing Jesus out of focus is on. It focuses on Jesus, the priest who deals with death, and so if you're someone who's who's wrestling with that very question them in trying to think about faith in the light of death and mourning this resource.

It's it's yours for free. I think it'll be an encouragement to you in your walk with the Lord and it'll fix your eyes on Jesus, the one who conquered death to sign up to receive your free copy of seeing Jesus just head over to core Christianity.com/Jesus. You can also call us at 833-843-2673 or help getting any one of our offers. Again, our number is 833. The core let's go to Rachel who's calling in from West Hartford, Connecticut. Rachel welcome the core Christianity.

Thank you, thank you, Rachel. Welcome to the program. What's your question now my question has to do what they're two things that I was helping that I could get answer for some idea about scripturally and my son is an adult he no longer has a nice independent and he is a part in a call called the Freemasons and it's been really difficult for our family because our Baptist Christian, and we clearly there upset and he has been actually trying to convert us in believing in and that system and so there has been many arguments and trying different ways to two minute being nice trying to show or send along a chart of evidence. How do we really deal with these kind of situations where families are being torn apart from the different systems that are from from his belief system versus biblical are our faith. Yeah well one I'm I'm just so sorry for the tension I think about what our Lord Jesus said I didn't come to bring peace on earth, but a sword and he talked about how following him and embracing the gospel at times would create divisions, even within families, sometimes following Jesus displeases the people that we love the most. Our parents, our children, our friends, and yet were still called to follow the Lord but but the. The difficult thing in and I can hear it in your voice Rachel… We want to see the people that we love know Jesus and experience his grace and especially when our loved ones are caught up in in another system of belief that is crushing the colt then you think of of all the cults, but something that's knocking to be life-giving for them, but is ultimately going to take from them well.

It breaks our hearts into the first thing Rachel is is I would say you have to be committed to praying for your son. I said this earlier.

It really is so important. Sometimes we think of prayer is not really accomplishing anything.

But at the end of the day. It's the main ingredient in terms of sharing the faith with others because it's only by the grace of the Holy Spirit.

It's only through the work of God, that our hearts are open their eyes are open, there is that there's a veil there's is blindness there that we need the Lord to remove that you need the Lord to remove for your son and so pray for him and then I think focusing on its image is really easy to get caught up in always different arguments say about religion, about faith, about the Bible, focusing on the gospel see what what cults can never give an individual false religion can never give an individual is the gospel will give you a laundry list of things to do of ways to better yourself of how to be spiritual. That kind of a thing, rules and regulations that ultimately burden people down. What we have in the Christian faith is something so much better than that. We have the good news of the gospel that God has borne our sins at the weight of the law. He has carried for us and so focusing I think Rachel on the goodness of the gospel on what God has accomplished for us and offering that extending that to your son and it's it's so clear it's it's so important for us to grasp the site. I was just thinking about this passage in first John chapter 5, some currently preaching through first John and John says, and in first John chapter 5, if we receive the testimony of men. This is verse nine. The testimony of God is greater. This is the testimony of God that he is born concerning his son whoever believes in the son of God has the testimony in himself.

Whoever does not believe is made him to be a liar because he is not believed in the testimony that God is born concerning his son, and this is the testimony that God gave us eternal life, and this life is in his son. Whoever has the son has life. That's what you get before your son is the life that God extends to us freely through his son and so pray for your son Rachel and focus on Jesus focus on the gospel focus on what God has done to rescue us and Rachel. Can I pray for your son right now only the me pray for him.

Father had a great father, we come before you and we do know Lord that it is only by the grace of your Holy Spirit, that our eyes were opened to see the light of your son Jesus, and we pray for for this young man we pray Lord that you would do that work for him that you would open his heart that you would give Rachel and her family wisdom and grace as they communicate Lord for you would help her Lord in the conversations that she has just us to speak the word clearly for her son to hear and that he would have ears to listen. Lord be with them. We pray, open his heart.

We ask in Jesus name amen Rachel thank you for calling us that you, Rachel. We appreciate so much your concern for your son writer.

All I was think about as we close out the program. There are some resources that our listeners should probably get their hands on in there if they're dealing with situations like this. We've had people calling in about cults, about dealing with the New Age person want of course we talked about many times before is is mere Christianity, which is a great book that can help you really understand the core concepts of the faith by CS Lewis. And then of course the book by our founder that this program is based on core Christianity by Dr. Michael Horton yeah those are all really wonderful resources and reminded of why it's so important for us to know what we believe to have our our understanding rooted in the Scriptures, and to be able to articulate that to others people right now desperately need to know the truth and and if they don't know if they'll be swept away by all the false teaching that out there in the world and so we need to be grounded in God's word. That's what we have this program to help ground you and in in the Scriptures so look to the Lord and rest in his word and know it. Thanks for listening to core Christianity request your copy of today's special offer. Visit us at core, Christianity.com and click on offers in the menu or call us at 1-833-843-2673. That's 833 when you contact us.

Please let us know how you been encouraged by this program and be sure to join us next time. As we explore the truth of God's word together