GUIDELINES

WHY HAVE ENTRIES BEEN REMOVED FROM THE VISITORS BOOK?

Certain postings have been removed from the Visitors Book for the following reasons.

Firstly, people are not meant to advertise anything in church Visitors Books, so advertising of any kind should not be placed here. Quite simply, Visitors Books are meant for people who visit a church and wish to say something about it, not to advertise something else. Church Visitors books are pleasant because they generally emanate altruism, and when self plays a part then that altruism is diluted.

Secondly, people who are determined to 'poo-poo' what others have had proven to them time and again, i.e. the reality of the Spirit World, should find a forum to cater for their own beliefs if they wish to put the beliefs of others down, rather than post them in the online Visitor's Book of this church.

Thirdly, this is a church Visitors Book, albeit an electronic one. People do not usually go into churches and write in the Visitors Book that everyone in that church is, for instance, practising 'abominations' or perhaps some form of Satanism - so why do it here? It is ill-mannered and offensive to many.

It would not be considerate or desirable to leave the posters' personal details in the book and then append explanations to their entries as to why their condemnation is erroneous, as there is no intention of belittling anyone who is probably very sincere; nor is it intended or desirable that the Visitors Book is converted into a disharmonious bulletin board where love is sacrificed - harmony is of God.

However, it is perhaps necessary to take this opportunity to respond here to objections in the deleted posts (as they are the most common objections made by a fairly large number of people naming themselves Christians), and posters who enter their condemnation of our way of life in the Visitors Book have a right to know why their entries have been removed. It will also give the genuine seeker of Christ's Truth the opportunity to see what it is that they will encounter if they walk along this path.

I must also say that I have good friends who attend churches where the teaching is comparatively liberal and they do not really believe those parts of their theology which state that non-believers in their creed shall "pass into an everlasting punishment", and so this response should only be considered relevant to truly dogmatic Literalist-Fundamentalists who would post entries in the Visitors Book.

1) The poster states: "God has said there is only one way, and that way is to believe in Jesus Christ and to follow his teachings, therefore..." (states the poster) "...to believe in Universalism (universal salvation) is to side-step what God has said about salvation, thus it is denying that the Bible is God-breathed and it is also calling God a liar!"

This is saying far more than just one thing. Such posters should spend more than a cursory glance at the content of the site before they make such assumptions. It is already understood how the Literalist interprets the Bible, and that is why there are certain articles on this site to show that there is a less literal and more liberal way of interpreting the Bible concerning these very points.

Nobody here is calling God a liar - it is merely the Literalists' interpretation of the Bible that produces the idea that any other way of Biblical interpretation must be calling God a liar. The Literalists' say that nobody comes to eternal life except through Christ - we say the same, except that we do not look at it in the same manner as the Literalists but in a less literal and more spiritual manner...

"NO MAN COMETH UNTO THE FATHER, BUT BY ME"?

The poster says that the Bible is God-inspired. We do not deny that the Bible is God-inspired, but that does not mean that man has not interfered with it - God has given free-will and while He can influence freewill, He does not interfere with freewill. Literalists have a sincere belief that the Bible should be accepted as read, literally and unquestioningly; we understand this, but the Literalist has forgotten to take into account man's limitations.

However, we believe that God has given us both reasoning faculties and spiritual discernment as part of our individuality and spiritual make-up, in order that we can assess matters intelligently as well as discern matters spiritually, and not simply accept everything in an unquestioning and blind manner - which would really be abusing the above mentioned gifts that God has given through inactivity...

INSPIRED DOES NOT NECESSARILY MEAN PERFECT

A LITERALIST WHO IGNORES LITERALISMS?

Literalists side-step a very important issue, that without universal salvation, God becomes a thoughtless and immoral sadist. Eternity is an infinitely long time to be subjected to torture for failing to accept a dubious metaphysical concept during a few finite decades of existence - eternity it is not a million years, nor a million, million years, it is forever...

MISTRANSLATION (summaries)

MISTRANSLATION (in depth)

Indeed, investigating carefully the original intent of the New Testament writers, only since about 420 A.D., mankind has begun to follow dogmas based upon words that were never actually there in the Greek text. This should cause alarm bells to ring among anyone who wishes to believe in a literalistic approach to the Bible as well as a limited salvation, as it would be based upon a complete mistranslation and misinterpretation.

MISINTERPRETATION

It is demonstrated to anyone with an open mind, that the probability that man has interfered with, and altered truth, is so strong that it becomes a certainty.

There is nothing of substance based on the etymology, lexicography, usage and historicity of Greek and Latin texts and records, Biblical or otherwise, of the 0 - 500 A.D. period, which offers even a minimal, let alone a serious and comprehensive opposing criticism to the fact that the doctrine of Universal Salvation was the prevalent sentiment of the early Christian Church; the only argument against Universal Salvation is based on the more modern mistranslation of a word!

The doctrine of limited salvation all comes from man's mind, and God never intended it to be made into a theology - man alone has done that. However, Christ Jesus taught Universal Salvation and so did His early followers.

2) The poster states that we should pray to God to find out how misguided we are and that we have been tricked by the Devil.

Personally, I have, years ago, been a sincere attendee in Evangelical and Pentecostal churches, and have attended their home Bible nights on a regular basis. I also spent a number of years going into a little chapel every day, praying fervently to Christ that He show me the truth regarding the Greater World. There is no end to learning and revelation comes all the time. What seems to some difficult to reconcile becomes as clear as day, moreover, I am happy to say, the sunniest, brightest day ever experienced, and it is my desire that others should also have the opportunity to experience the rays of the Spirit in such a way. But I do wonder what kind of effort the posters have put into both searching the truths of the Greater World and also praying about them.

3) The poster states that God detests astrologers therefore we are misguided.

With regard to the Christ Messenger who uses the name "Zodiac" (we could neither pronounce his real spiritual name or understand it's meaning), he has mentioned a number of times that it is to encourage us to raise our hearts and minds away from earthly matters and towards the heavens and therefore spiritual matters. In all of the hundreds of Zodiac Messages I have read, I have not encountered any reference to the authenticity or otherwise of astrology. The same can be said about the literature which is held in trust by the Greater World in the "Classics" section. Perhaps if the poster had made a genuine effort investigating this channel of Truth, then perhaps no such statement would be made.

4) The poster objects that in the Old Testament, God has declared that He detests people talking to the dead, and we are therefore consciously choosing to following Satan.

A theology which contains a "go-to-Hell-or-Heaven-forever" doctrine based upon the acceptance of a concept alone, by definition, cannot entertain the fact that there exists spiritual evolution and involution of the soul after "death" - it is either Heaven or Hell forever after this short life on Earth according to such limited tenets. Such theologies therefore cannot consider that there are manifold stages of development for the soul, and therefore it is not possible to understand that if a society and all of its members are debased then they will "draw" debased spirits, especially if consciously invited. In other words, those with mutual sympathies are drawn together and, again, those with distorted and immoral desires ally themselves to those who have found themselves - after physical death - placed in the dark regions according to the state of involution of their souls caused through the selfishness and wickedness in their hearts and minds. This alone should be an obvious explanation for the prohibition placed on the wayward and debased Israelite population in the Old Testament, who, even after a miraculous release from slavery, reverted to a degraded way of living.

However, there is a more profound aspect to consider in connection with the above objection. The Literalist cannot see how his or her theology is self-contradictory; this has been dealt with in a few places on this website. It would be worth contemplating what the following Biblical statement means and what the linked web page is declaring:

"If you follow the (Old Testament) law then Christ has become of no effect to you" (Gal.5:3,4)

5) The poster states that the living cannot talk to the dead because Jesus said so.

Again, this is a common Fundamentalist conclusion drawn from a parable told by Jesus: Lazarus and the rich man, and is explained in part here:

"Jesus said the dead and the living cannot communicate"?

6) The poster states that we cannot know what happens at death and that God has chosen not to tell us (or He would have put it in the Bible).

The Literalist often states that it violates God's law by "adding" to the Bible and to what He wants us to know about the Afterlife. But the Fundamentalist-Literalist who says this is the one who is making a mistake because God does in fact desire us to know about life after death - that is the kind, considerate and loving God we have. He never meant that the Veil between His Spiritual World and us should be so thick - it is man's constant abuse of Spiritual Law that has built up the wall:

"Cursed for adding to the Bible"?

7) The poster states that we should ask ourselves the reason for seeking God this way, is it fascination or perhaps vainglory?

In the Greater World we are forever being lovingly reminded to ask ourselves the motive behind anything and everything we do in life as a whole. Does the motive for anything serve the higher Self alone, or has anything of the lesser self crept in? Is the motive out of a selfless love for God or does anything of selfishness come into play? One must be rigorously honest with oneself. The first warning everyone on this path should be given is to "test the spirits to see whether they are of God" (1 John 4:1). Indeed, "the discerning of spirits" (1Cor. 12:10) is to be treated with a dedicated and serious outlook at all times where complacency finds no place. The Fundamentalist, however, has assumed this Biblical warning means to "test" people in the flesh, because the Fundamentalist has ruled out the sacred gift of Spirit Communion. It should be remembered that Jesus warned not to judge less we be judged.

As for the charge of "vainglory", anyone who has seriously committed himself or herself to the Greater World has opened up himself or herself to the beauty of the Christ and an intimate knowledge of Jesus, and will always keep himself or herself centred on the exquisite Example of humility, and all will realise that they fall far short of that ideal. However, if ones footsteps wander even slightly from the path of humility, the Christ within - which has been awakened - will quickly bring awareness of any deviance. This is true spirituality, and such laws are written in the heart, not on parchment. This is the unthinkable redemptive Spirit at work, it is the reason for God coming as Man - to bring wholesale spirituality to this world and redeem in all areas; it is the great change which was brought about with His Incarnation - contrition replacing attrition. This will save untold expiation when this life in the flesh is over. Jesus the Christ is the true Saviour indeed.

But the Fundamentalist has masked off the simplicity of this wondrous gift, missing its colossal import, and instead thrusting manmade dogmatic theologies in front of people as the reason for His birth, life, death and resurrection.

As for why we are on this pathway, the reasons are simple. God has always used spiritual beings to reveal His Truth, indeed, the Bible as we know it would not exist if this were not so. But most importantly, our God is so loving and considerate and we desire to know more of Him and to get closer to Him because we have real love for our God, and the Truth has a way of making the sincere seeker of Truth seek even deeper:

A truly loving and caring God

It is strange how people can have a relationship with Christ and yet tell others that they don't have a relationship with Christ, and moreover, are practising Satanism. Who are they to say? We do not say that they do not have a relationship with Christ. Surely if a relationship exists between an individual and Christ, it is not for anyone else to say that they do not have a loving and understanding relationship? What the Fundamentalists say of our way of life means only one thing: They rigidly rule out things that they don't know about.

It may be that some of them have had an experience with the supernormal, perhaps what is named in modern charismatic churches as tongues (which is not the same as the definite description given of the gift of tongues in the Bible). I have yet to hear anyone belonging to a Pentecostal church speak to foreigners in their own language, without any prior knowledge of that foreign language (Acts 2:6) - and while I certainly will not limit the power of the Holy Spirit to redeem, speaking in foreign tongues to foreigners at Pentecost is, after all, what happened at Pentecost according to the Bible, and there is no specific (literal) mention of a "more exalted" non-human unintelligible utterance (practised by charismatic Christians) being introduced. And surely a Literalist would expect to find that the Bible writers had specifically mentioned that the phenomenon he or she practised was more exalted than the gift of tongues received at Pentecost. How then can professed Biblical Literalists ("charismatic" ones at least) be so certain of something that is not Biblically literal?

Fundamentalists does not have ears to hear other teachings about salvation because their way is the only way - it must be, they assume, because of the supernormal happenings which they have experienced and of which they are deeply impressed. Anything else concerning the so-named supernormal is Satanic to them. They have chosen to accept a certain spiritual philosophy which limits themselves (and the power of the Holy Spirit) and which allows nothing else to be possible. And it's this manmade dogmatic teaching that hides the true love of God.

Which is morally Divine, limited or universal salvation?

Fundamentalists then propagate their deeply ingrained belief and affect others who have not had such experiences, and if they are not strong they cannot fight their way through the haze. This constraint on spirituality, we are told by the Literalist, is the narrow way spoken of by Christ (Matt. 7:14):

"It's not narrow-minded but..."

So why is open-mindedness so important? Surely if people want to adhere to being Literalists then that is their choice even if it they happen to be wrong? Well, not really. It's not simply the fact that they cast impediments over the fuller release of God's love into this world by speaking their Literalism so loudly in the name of Christendom, but by ruling out all others and condemning their different spiritual pathways, they are building up within themselves something which will be very hard to change when they pass over into their Next World.

They will have to "unlearn" the way they think and learn to accept others who have worshipped differently to themselves. This can take a long time as that kind of humility is not something learnt quickly by those who have been so sure in their belief while maintaining such a closed mind. Until God has them truly back in His one Fold, His free workers must use their time to minister to them and teach them acceptance. This time could have been used for fallen souls groping around in the dark planes instead, and it really is something of a pity that the Fundamentalists were so intolerant of different spiritual beliefs held by others while still in the flesh.

It is saddening, especially for God, that we all have so much in common, not least that we are born of the same God, but also that we have touched the hem of the Christ, and yet millions of Fundamentalists propagate teachings and literature which bolsters the idea that we are following their devil. So we should pray that the light comes to them with regards to this Truth.

However, when the seeker of Christ's Truth is told by the religionists that he or she is practising Satanism, he or she can take comfort in the fact that he or she is experiencing in miniature the same thing that was said to the Beloved Christ Jesus, and is thereby closer to understanding their God than before.

Indeed, one who takes this Way may find even those they thought were friends turning against them or treating them differently. The tests must come. One must hold close to Christ through thick and thin - hold fast to Christ and not to religionist theory. And when all is said and done, one is left with an ever-strengthening faith in Christ that nothing or nobody can take away, and as the words of condemnation pour forth from the lips of others they are seen as their hindrance and our gift, for it is as a gift to strengthen faith in Christ; and one is left with Christ, and only Christ. Gone the dogmas, the tenets, the theories of the mind of man sewn together from passages in the Bible - just you and Christ, Christ and you - living in unity with Christ for ever more. That is what He wants.

Peace and God Bless.

T. Bisson

E-mail