The events people experience can have a very profound effect on the views they hold. Many people’s views on a variety of topics are shaped or reshaped by what they experience in life. This is particularly true with religious/spiritual experiences, especially when something unusual takes place.
- For instance, Paul (Hebrew name Saul) was a major persecutor of early Christians (Galatians 1:13-14, Philippians 3:6, and Acts 8:1-3) until he encountered Jesus Christ on the road to Damascus (Acts 9:3-9). Following that life-changing experience, Paul converted to Christianity and became arguably the most prolific writer of the New Testament.
Over the weekend I read several old magazine articles about how some people automatically assume that certain religious/spiritual experiences they endure in life are divinely-inspired and reject people’s critiques of their experiences even when those critiques include biblical evidence that suggests these experiences may not have been biblical.
After reading these articles, I thought about some recent comments I’ve received in reaction to my criticism of Joe Coleman, the man in Ireland who claims to receive messages from the “Virgin Mary” and a man who claims to be a “light worker”, which is a New Age term basically describing someone who works to help evolve people’s consciousness in preparation for the New Age. I felt I could relate to these old magazine articles because I unsuccessfully tried to convince a couple of Coleman followers that their experiences being around Coleman were engineered by an unbiblical source.
- Today I want to discuss these examples in-depth to further illustrate the power that a religious/spiritual experience can have on people's thinking and how it can be dangerous for people to not test whether their experience(s) are biblical, particularly in the future .
Recently, I experienced firsthand how difficult it is to convince a person that the religious/spiritual experiences they endured did not come from God. Even after I wrote a lengthy article demonstrating how the predictions that Joe Coleman allegedly received from spiritual beings claiming to be “Jesus” and “Mary” contradicted the Bible and were biblically-impossible (like Coleman's prediction that the Antichrist will rule the world for up to 12 years), I had an email exchange with someone urging me to give the predictions a chance to be fulfilled. The person told me that they believed Coleman after they and others witnessed signs and wonders at gatherings Coleman organized. I responded by presenting the person with even more biblical evidence that the predictions Coleman relayed could not possibly take place. Unfortunately, I don’t think I convinced the person that something unbiblical is taking place after their experiences with Coleman made such a strong impression on them. The person did not reply to my final, lengthy email stating the biblical case why the predictions Coleman relayed could not possibly take place…
Another example of the power that a religious/spiritual experience can have on a person's thinking came a few weeks ago when another Coleman follower responded to my first article about Joe Coleman and his alleged Marian apparitions. In the article I cited some details about the apparitions and some messages coming from the apparitions that suggest what is taking place is not from God. Despite my critique, a person expressed how they believed in Coleman and the authenticity of the apparitions because of what they witnessed in person. This is the actual comment the person left after seeing the article:
“My boyfriend was in knock with his mother and he said that everyone was in mass in the church when someone looked out the window and seen the sun acting strange, so everyone ran out during the mass and my boyfriend said that the sun has colours and lights beaming out from it and that it was dancing in the sky. My boyfriend and myself didnt believe joe before this, now we do and i would love to know when is our lady goin to appear again as i would love to witness this for myself. :) “
These examples illustrate how some people do not think critically after being overwhelmed by a religious/spiritual experience. Some people quickly believe that what they experienced came directly from God and quickly discount the notion that something evil might be behind their experience.
- I am not saying that all religious/spiritual experiences are ungodly. Matthew 19:26 tells us that with God all things are possible, so it’s possible for a religious/spiritual experience to be inspired by God if He so chooses. I’m just trying to illustrate that some people can be so overwhelmed by the religious/spiritual experience(s) they endure that they won’t question the source behind their experience even if there is cause for concern.
I wish the people I referenced above would be more open to critiquing the religious/spiritual experience(s) they’ve endured since it's possible for some people to be misled by a religious/spiritual experience. The instruction given in Deuteronomy 13:1-3 suggests that it is possible for there to be people who use signs and wonders as a prelude to give their followers a deceptive message:
- Deu 13:1 If there arise among you a prophet, or a dreamer of dreams, and giveth thee a sign or a wonder,
- Deu 13:2 And the sign or the wonder come to pass, whereof he spake unto thee, saying, Let us go after other gods, which thou hast not known, and let us serve them;
- Deu 13:3 Thou shalt not hearken unto the words of that prophet, or that dreamer of dreams: for the LORD your God proveth you, to know whether ye love the LORD your God with all your heart and with all your soul.
I think it is reasonable to assume that Satan understands the power that a religious/spiritual experience can have on a person’s thinking since a major part of his End Times strategy is to utilize lying signs and wonders to deceive people on Earth.
Recall that Paul warned that the coming of Antichrist (“him” in verse 2:9) would come at a time when Satan will do all he can to deceive people with lying signs and wonders.
- 2Th 2:9 Even him, whose coming is after the working of Satan with all power and signs and lying wonders,
- 2Th 2:10 And with all deceivableness of unrighteousness in them that perish; because they received not the love of the truth, that they might be saved.
Furthermore, Christ warned that there will be false Christs and false prophets deceiving people with great signs and wonders.
- Mat 24:24 For there shall arise false Christs, and false prophets, and shall shew great signs and wonders; insomuch that, if it were possible, they shall deceive the very elect.
Similarly, Revelation 13:12-14 suggests that the False Prophet will deceive the people with the great wonders and miracles he will perform in their presence:
- Rev 13:12 And he exerciseth all the power of the first beast before him, and causeth the earth and them which dwell therein to worship the first beast, whose deadly wound was healed.
- Rev 13:13 And he doeth great wonders, so that he maketh fire come down from heaven on the earth in the sight of men,
- Rev 13:14 And deceiveth them that dwell on the earth by the means of those miracles which he had power to do in the sight of the beast; saying to them that dwell on the earth, that they should make an image to the beast, which had the wound by a sword, and did live.
Given the impact that religious/spiritual experiences can have on people and Satan’s apparent willingness to exploit their impact by facilitating some deceptive experiences, it is imperative that people test any religious/spiritual experiences they endure or hear about with what is found in the Bible. People should check to see whether the details of the experience and any messages coming from the experience are aligned with what is taught in the Bible. If not, a person should seriously question the source behind the spiritual/religious experience.
A person can be potentially led astray if they fail to test/critique a spiritual/religious experience they endure or hear about with what is taught in the Bible. Unfortunately, many people on Earth during the End Times will be led astray by the lying signs and wonders that Satan and his minions will engineer to deceive people because they will not make the effort to critique/test...
