One of my friends at work, who’s an atheist, and I had an interesting discussion about how one could be saved, and he had asked if hell was a cave, or lake of fire or something else entirely. It got me thinking, there are multiple descriptions in the Bible about Hell and the afterlife and where the souls of the departed go. I had to explain to my friend on the fly, but I decided to go deeper.
First, the traditional view of hell, both from Dante’s “Inferno” and subsequent pop culture depictions are not quite right. First, Satan and the demons (generally) do not reside there yet. Second, they do not and will not rule it, third they do not conduct the torture, but will be punished themselves.
Hell, and where we go when we die is a bit hard to unravel. What I can discern is that there is a slight difference of where the soul went before Christ died, and after. There also seems to be a different place for humans than for demons and fallen angels.
So, let's take a tour of Hell.
The Abyss (aka, Bottomless Pit, Tartarus) -
Jude 1:6
"And the angels which kept not their first estate, but left their own habitation, he hath reserved in everlasting chains under darkness unto the judgment of the great day."
2 Peter 2:4
"For if God spared not the angels that sinned, but cast them down to hell, and delivered them into chains of darkness, to be reserved unto judgment;"
The Greek in 2 Peter is Tartarus, akin to the Hebrew Gehenna. (Strong's G5020). Strong's suggests that this the deepest possible darkness and also emphasizes the word "gloom". Indeed, for a creature of light, used to God's light, eternal, deep darkness is a horrible and fit punishment.
But wait, angels sinned?
Besides Satan, yes. Revelation tells us that a third of the angels fell with him, which i believe happened in the past. And these fallen angels were of course up to no good.
Back around Noah’s time, we have the whole Genesis 6, (which is very probably) angels mating with human women and producing Nephilim. Not much is said about it in the Bible, and others have gone into this extensively, thus I will not.
But, the non-canonical Book of Enoch expands on the whole issue. I am not saying this is inspired scripture, but it seems to be quoted in the Bible and in this instance this is a source that I think has some good, logical answers that are backed up in the Bible. Don't build doctrine on Enoch, but perhaps think of it as a commentary or non-inspired resource. It was quoted in the Bible, so those parts at least are something God thinks we ought to know. But just be careful, Acts 17:11.
In Enoch, (and Jude, 2 Peter) the disobedient angels (who slept with human women) were bound by God’s elect angels, and imprisoned in “chains of darkness,” another term (I believe) to describe the abyss. Probably the abyss that gets opened in Revelation 9.
http://reluctant-messenger.com/1enoch01-60.htm
This place is described in Enoch as completely devoid of light and full of sharp stones. See Enoch chapter 10, 21 for the abyss.
Revelation 9 http://www.blueletterbible.org/Bible.cfm?b=Rev&c=9&t=NIV#1, 2 Peter 2:4 http://www.blueletterbible.org/Bible.cfm?b=2Pe&c=2&t=KJV#4
And Jude 1:6, 1:13 also offer some small glimpses into the abyss.
http://www.blueletterbible.org/Bible.cfm?b=Jud&c=1&t=NLT#6.
I would recommend checking out the different versions of the Blue Letter Bible, and reading some commentaries. But suffice it to say, the abyss is a place of darkness, evil and suffering.
We know this because even demons (the spirits of the Nephilim?) are afraid to be sent there. They begged Christ not to send them to the abyss before it was time.
http://www.blueletterbible.org/Bible.cfm?b=Luk&c=8&t=NIV#31
I presume this is because they know the horrors that await them there.
From the descriptions in the Bible and Book of Enoch, we can see that people do not go to the abyss when they die, nor do Nephilim. The demonic spirits of the Nephilim are here on Earth until the appointed time. That is suspicion based on a passage in Enoch. Again, not doctrine, but it explains the difference between fallen angels and demons and is a decent working theory.
The abyss, the dark pit, is reserved solely for the disobedient angels. Later on at the appointed time, it seems the Nephilim will be sent there, probably during the time when Satan will be bound there for 1000 years. This is speculation on my part.
Chuck Missler speculates that the abyss (aka bottomless pit) is a physical place in the exact center of the earth. That makes a good amount of sense, but causes a problem if you want to know where lava comes from.
Hades (aka, Sheol, the grave)
So from the beginning, when men and women died, where did they go? We know from the Bible, from our Lord Jesus’ own mouth, that there were two places where the dead went during the Old Testament times. There was Abraham’s Bosom where the righteous went, and then where the rich man went. The rich man went to the place that we might readily identify as a type of Hell. See Luke 16:20 – 31
http://www.blueletterbible.org/Bible.cfm?b=Luk&c=16&t=NIV#20.
Here, the rich man went to hell, or Hades.
There is a great break down of where the rich man went.
http://www.blueletterbible.org/faq/don_stewart/stewart.cfm?id=114
Hades seems to be just a place where bad people/the unfaithful went when they died. This is a place of torment and unquenchable fire, and it’s separated from Abraham’s Bosom by a large chasm (quite possibly this chasm is the Abyss mentioned earlier). It does seem that communication between the two was possible, but perhaps only between Abraham and those in torment, or perhaps just this one time to serve as a lesson. Many believe this was a literal event because a person, Lazarus, is named. When Christ spoke in parables, He tended to not use names.
Abraham's Bosom (Paradise)
On the other side of the chasm, Abraham’s Bosom was essentially paradise, or at least the absence of torment. This is where those who were faithful to God went when they died. Recall that it was Abraham's faith in God that saved him, not his good behavior.
See the Luke 16:20 story. Here is another link that describes Abraham’s Bosom.
http://www.blueletterbible.org/faq/don_stewart/stewart.cfm?id=150.
Not much to say here, except that one would rather go here, than to the place where the rich man went.
A little further study can be found in the Book of Enoch. Again, I’m not saying this is authoritative, but it seems to me that this might be an expanded view of the Luke 16 view of the afterlife before Christ’s death and resurrection.
See Enoch 23 – 26.
Essentially it describes a separation of faithful and unfaithful dead until the time of the final judgment. The unfaithful place is horrible, and seems to be separated by an accursed valley. This selection seems to be more of a description of the place of torment, than what would be Abraham’s Bosom. Again, it’s not scriptural, but it seems to be somewhat in line with what Christ said about the afterlife.
http://reluctant-messenger.com/1enoch01-60.htm
What about after the death of Jesus Christ?
Then Christ died, and was soon resurrected. What happened during those three days, and how does it affect us now? Here is one link that tells us one possibility.
http://www.gotquestions.org/did-Jesus-go-to-hell.html
Here they breakdown Biblical beliefs about death in general, and there are some good scripture references. It’s also a great summary of everything I just wrote. I just wanted to go over it for my own benefit I guess, and try to bring out some things that the other author may have missed. Anyways, I concur that Christ went to the place of righteous dead. Luke 23:43 (as the other author said too). I would also submit though, that Christ must have instantaneously released them from Abraham’s Bosom. Upon Christ’s death, there was an earthquake, and a number of righteous dead resurrected in the graveyards.
http://www.blueletterbible.org/Bible.cfm?b=Mat&c=27&t=NLT#52.
Upon Christ’s resurrection, those dead people went into the city! I don’t really know what happened to them, or where they went, but David Guzik has a good view of it.
http://www.blueletterbible.org/commentaries/comm_view.cfm?AuthorID=2&contentID=7892&commInfo=31&topic=Matthew&ar=Mat_27_53.
My thoughts are that these were recently dead people, but that all of the righteous dead must have went to Heaven when Christ visited Abraham’s Bosom. I don’t know that it specifically says in the Bible that Christ released the souls of the dead from paradise, but it seems logical based on the belief of where we go when we die now, after Christ. But first, a little detour.
There are some who believe that Christ also went and preached to the angels in prison, a sort of “in your face” to more or less rub it in the nose of the fallen angels that He did in fact win the victory. 1 Peter 3:19 says this.
http://www.blueletterbible.org/Bible.cfm?b=1Pe&c=3&t=NLT#19.
David Guzik’s commentary is interesting, and addresses this. My speculation is that He had three days, He probably spent time preaching to each group. Perhaps He preached to the faithful, that they would now get their reward, and the unfaithful a message of condemnation, and a similar message to the fallen angels. I don’t know. I wasn’t there, and I am sure that someone could make a case for each of those.
Back now to what happens to the dead now that Christ has come, died and resurrected. A good start will be http://www.gotquestions.org/what-happens-death.html. They actually more or less summarize what I believe to be true. I think that those who believe in Christ (myself included) we die, and our spirit goes right to the Lord. I think that Christ cleared out Abraham’s Bosom, and once it was cleared out, there’s no reason to send people there again. I could be wrong, perhaps when Christ preached to the spirits in prison, He preached to those in paradise, that He did it, and that He would resurrect them one day. Maybe people still go there when they die in Christ. The only spot I can think of that endorses the present with the Lord theory is 1) the scriptures mentioned in that article above, and 2) in Revelation, those who have been martyred are right there with Christ.
http://www.blueletterbible.org/Bible.cfm?b=Rev&c=6&t=KJV#9.
3) Paul says in 2 Corinthians 5:8, to be absent from the body is to be present with the Lord.
My belief is that we go right to God, and await the resurrection of our bodies in the presence of the Lord.
Lake of Fire (Traditional Hell, Eternal torment)
Lastly, we have the final version of hell. The lake of fire, sometimes (I believe also) referred to as Gehenna and the second death. For more on Gehena, go here
http://www.blueletterbible.org/faq/don_stewart/stewart.cfm?id=168.
It’s more or less a visual picture of the final, eternal punishment. The lake of fire,
http://www.blueletterbible.org/faq/don_stewart/stewart.cfm?id=170
is pretty much self explanatory, but it’s more or less where all of the wicked human and angel alike will go at the end of the world.
http://www.blueletterbible.org/Bible.cfm?b=Rev&c=20&t=NIV#1
and
http://www.blueletterbible.org/Bible.cfm?b=Rev&c=21&v=1&t=NIV.
It is from here that we get the pop culture view of hell as a lake of fiery sulfur and torment, and it is here we see that Satan and the demons will be tormented, not doing the tormenting. Those in the abyss, and those in the bad part of Hades will be sent to the lake of fire. As will the actual state of death and the location of Hades. How, i don't know, but God said it.
The alternative
Revelation also describes the new Heaven and new earth, for those who believe. Read Revelation 21 for more details.
The Bible is very clear, that believing in Jesus Christ, His death and resurrection are the only way to avoid torment and the lake of fire. If you have not accepted Christ as your Lord and savior, then please consider doing so.
If you would like to give your life to Christ, just pray now and accept Him into your heart and into your life as Lord. Renounce sin, and turn towards life.
http://www.gotquestions.org/become-a-Christian.html.
Once you have received Him in faith, you are free from the power of death in your life, and free to do good works for the Lord. If you accept Christ, find a good church (that follows the Bible) and get baptized.
http://www.gotquestions.org/get-right-with-God.html
Saturday, November 27, 2010
Wednesday, November 17, 2010
Buddha the destroyer
The other day, my wife and I were watching some National Geographic DVD about lost treasures in Afghanistan. It was about how horrible the Taliban had been with ancient art, and that they had destroyed a giant Buddha. There was also a search for a giant “lost” Buddha. Like with most TV specials of this sort, I have no idea what happened with the results as the program ended before they had found anything.
This isn’t a comprehensive study on Buddhism, nor is it about Gautama Buddha, but rather just some thoughts on some information I learned in the aforementioned video. I don’t want to look at Buddhism too much, as for some reason I feel some sort of bizarre attraction to it. As a Christian, I can’t believe that the Buddhist faith is truth, but for some reason, my sinful human side finds it very seductive and appealing. I don’t know why. This was the case when I went to site see some Buddhist temples in China and also when I see Buddhist artifacts in museums. Don’t know why, but it is a temptation for me it seems. I had even done a little meditation once for anger.
Anyways. Back to the point. This Nat Geo special said one sentence that blew me away. It was an offhanded remark, but as they said it, it set off warning bells in my head. Perhaps it was the Holy Spirit saying “DIG HERE!” They said something like “the first images used to portray Buddha were based on the Greek god Apollo.” Apparently Greek and Indian paganism had found a melting pot in Afghanistan.
This is sort of hinted at here “The scholars asserting the priority of Gandhara claim that the Buddha image originated in Gandhara and the Mathura image of Buddha was the result of its inspiration, although as against the dated Mathura images, none of the reported Gandhara images of Buddha has a date inscribed on it. Such claim is based primarily on three assumptions, namely, (a) India's early art was aniconic or unanthropomorphic; iconic or anthropomorphic perception of Divine image came to India from Greek art through the Indo-Greek rulers of Gandhara regions and later through Kushanas (25 AD - 150 AD); (b) early Indian art was bas-relief based and sculpture was not its style; and (c) in its modeling Buddha figure is an Indianized version of the Greek god Apollo.” (http://www.exoticindiaart.com/article/lordbuddha/) and “Buddhist characters are always represented with a dhoti loincloth before this innovation), the halo, the contrapposto stance of the upright figures (see: 1st–2nd century Gandhara standing Buddhas [1] and [2]), the stylized Mediterranean curly hair and top-knot apparently derived from the style of the Belvedere Apollo” (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Greco-Buddhist_art)
So why did this set off warning bells? Buddhism is a religion of peace, right? What’s the big deal if Buddha was based on Apollo?
Well, Apollo in Greek is Ἀπολλύων. Wikipedia says this is the oldest spelling, “The spelling Ἀπόλλων had almost superseded all other forms by the beginning of the common era, but the Doric form Απέλλων is more archaic, derived from an earlier *Απέλjων. The name is certainly cognate with the Doric month name Απέλλαιος and the Doric festival απελλαι.[3]” (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Apollo) Blue letter Bible, and most Greek concordances will give this name with the Hebrew name Abaddon, both of which mean Destroyer. http://www.blueletterbible.org/commentaries/comm_view.cfm?AuthorID=6&contentID=4064&commInfo=17&topic=Revelation&ar=Rev_9_11
This name appears in Revelation 9:11, and he is the king of the demonic armies that arise from the abyss/bottomless pit. The Greek god Apollo seems to be a demon who has sold himself as a god. Buddha was based on, at least in part, a high ranking demon (or the devil himself) from the bottomless pit!
Another interesting link (and I'm no expert in Hindu cosmology), and this bears more research, is that some Hindus consider Buddha an avatar of Vishnu. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gautama_Buddha_in_Hinduism Vishnu in turn according to some myths, becomes Shiva. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Vishnu Shiva is of course well known as the destroyer, though this is not always the case. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Shiva
Interestingly enough, others have pointed out that CERN has a gigantic statue of Shiva in front of it. http://cdsweb.cern.ch/record/782057/. You can also google CERN Shiva statue to turn it up. Interestingly, their logo looks like 666. http://public.web.cern.ch/public/
Now I am not 100% sure on whether or not this Apollyon is the Antichrist. It seems to be the case, and some prophecy scholars have said that this was the case. My thoughts, are that it might be, but please check it out for yourself in Revelation. And also check that with some good, Biblical scholars who have written on the subject.
(Update 6/3/11, I have come to the conlusion that Apollo, the angel from the bottomless pit is different than the Beast/antichrist. Read Revelation 9 - 13. Apollo leads the demons from the bottomless pit, while the beast arrives in chpt 13 and seems to be a man, who is empowered by Satan. Could they still be the same? Maybe. But we must also consider they may be different as well. Go to the scriptures see what's true and please share your thoughts in the comments. The fact does remain that Buddha's links to Apollo are indeed still there. And of course, Apollo is said to be in the bottomless pit.)
This is my speculation only. There could be, and have been whole studies done on who the antichrist is, and they’ve been done better than I have done here (http://www.lookupfellowship.com/2009/01/is-maitreya-antichrist.html and http://www.redmoonrising.com/maitreya.htm) . Yet another issue for me to pick up later I guess. The red moon rising article does a great job of comparing the Share international Maitreya with the Biblical Antichrist. Peter Goodgame, the author of red moon rising has been a guest on Future Quake a number of times.
My line of thought here is that praying to Buddha (and the Buddha Idol) is more or less praying to the demon Apollo. This can be taken one step further by including Maitreya (believed to be the future incarnation of the next Buddha). There are currently Maitreya (probably not the Benjamin Crème one) Buddha idols. Some of which even look like an ET. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Maitreya, see the Korean statue.
Whether or not this Maitreya is an “ET” (aka demon posing as an alien) is moot. My thought is that whoever is revealed as Maitreya will actually be the being from the bottomless pit, and/or the Antichrist. (See note above, I think they are actually separate entities) The image of the beast, may perhaps be a new form of Maitreya Buddha statue. My theory is that the “life” given to the image of the beast, could well be supernatural, but maybe it’s something robotic. Just a thought.
That’s just a theory anyways. If the “real” Maitreya ends up being the Antichrist, I think that there is enough evidence to make that connection. 1) Maitreya is a future Buddha. 2) Buddha (and by association) all of his incarnation and images was based on the image of Apollo at some point. 3) Apollo is revealed to be the demon in the bottomless pit.
Here’s a little more tying deified Buddha to an Antichrist likeness. At this point, I should say that I think there is some departure from the original human Buddha, and the Buddha that everyone has deified. They’ve made a man into a legend and a god. While he may have had supernatural encounters, I think some things have been embellished to make him more godlike. At any rate, here is one supernatural claim that I think came well after Buddha’s lifetime, but interestingly imitates Christ. It may have even made the rounds when Buddha was alive, but i don't know for sure. But how is it that the historical Buddha who lived around 600BC – 500 BC can imitate Christ? Ah, that's where God has the edge. Prophecy! Around 700BC, more than 100 years before Buddha, the Prophet Isaiah gave that famous prophecy about the virgin that would would conceive! God meant Christ, the Messiah. And Satan meant to twist and imitate it ahead of time by attaching the born of a virgin motif to one of his religions.
Here's the blurb about Buddha's "miraculous" birth. “Gautama is said to have developed supramundane abilities including: a painless birth conceived without intercourse” http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gautama_Buddha. Again, I don't think this is true, but it's been attached to the legend of Buddha nontheless. And I speculate that Satan started this story based on Isaiah's prophecy to muddy the waters.
So, we started with Buddha being linked to Apollo, the destroyer of Revelation. Conveniently, there is believed to be an incarnation of Buddha coming in the future, named or called Maitreya. Interestingly, Buddha was also linked to Hinduism’s Vishnu who is in turn the flipside of the same coin to Shiva. Shiva, has a large statue at CERN. Some believe that CERN could create a black hole, or bottomless pit if you prefer. That's quite a coincidence.
What does all this mean? I suppose it means that it will be easy for the Destroyer to be sold as the incarnation of all of these deities. He doesn't have to be called any of these names, but he may be sold as the newest avatar of them. Once that occurs, many will easily worship him thinking he is their god that has returned. In doing so, they merely fulfil Biblical prophecy. On the surface, these beings all seem very different, and there are differences. But in the end, the Destroyer is the Destroyer, and no matter which form he takes, he will ultimately lose to the King of Kings, Jesus Christ.
(Update 6-4-11)
First I want to apologize for my wild speculation above. I guess that's the risk we take when we comment on prophecy, but unlike others in my field, I will admit when I'm wrong. I know God will hold me accountable if I don't.
So, I'm not sure what convicted me here. Perhaps it was listening to Patty Heron say that Apollo is the Beast/Antichrist and then I looked into it further. Perhaps his interview raised a question that made me question this, and I was like "Wait a second, I said that too. Better change the blog."
I don't know. But when I looked at Revelation 9 and 13 it really doesn't seem that they could be the same. Apollyon is described as an angel, king of the bottomless pit. The Beast, a man given power by the dragon. At the end of the day though, praying to a Buddha is still 1) praying to an idol and 2) praying to a demon or his image. Even if it's not the Antichrist it's still bad.
So, at the end of the day, I don't know. There appear to be similarities, but there also seem to be difference. I do know that one day, it will become self evident, so please forgive me for perhaps being wrong.
Here's the link for Revelation 9, please read that through 13.
Rev 9
http://www.blueletterbible.org/Bible.cfm?b=Rev&c=9&v=1&t=NKJV#top
Rev 13
http://www.blueletterbible.org/Bible.cfm?b=Rev&c=13&v=1&t=NKJV
Revelation 9:11
And they had as king over them the angel of the bottomless pit, whose name in Hebrew [is] Abaddon, but in Greek he has the name Apollyon.
Revelation 13
Rev 13:1 NKJV - Then I stood on the sand of the sea. And I saw a beast rising up out of the sea, having seven heads and ten horns, and on his horns ten crowns, and on his heads a blasphemous name.
Rev 13:2 NKJV - Now the beast which I saw was like a leopard, his feet were like [the feet of] a bear, and his mouth like the mouth of a lion. The dragon gave him his power, his throne, and great authority.
Rev 13:3 NKJV - And I saw one of his heads as if it had been mortally wounded, and his deadly wound was healed. And all the world marveled and followed the beast.
Rev 13:4 NKJV - So they worshiped the dragon who gave authority to the beast; and they worshiped the beast, saying, "Who [is] like the beast? Who is able to make war with him?"
Rev 13:5 NKJV - And he was given a mouth speaking great things and blasphemies, and he was given authority to continue for forty-two months.
Rev 13:6 NKJV - Then he opened his mouth in blasphemy against God, to blaspheme His name, His tabernacle, and those who dwell in heaven.
Rev 13:7 NKJV - It was granted to him to make war with the saints and to overcome them. And authority was given him over every tribe, tongue, and nation.
Rev 13:8 NKJV - All who dwell on the earth will worship him, whose names have not been written in the Book of Life of the Lamb slain from the foundation of the world.
Rev 13:9 NKJV - If anyone has an ear, let him hear.
Rev 13:10 NKJV - He who leads into captivity shall go into captivity; he who kills with the sword must be killed with the sword. Here is the patience and the faith of the saints.
Rev 13:11 NKJV - Then I saw another beast coming up out of the earth, and he had two horns like a lamb and spoke like a dragon.
Rev 13:12 NKJV - And he exercises all the authority of the first beast in his presence, and causes the earth and those who dwell in it to worship the first beast, whose deadly wound was healed.
Rev 13:13 NKJV - He performs great signs, so that he even makes fire come down from heaven on the earth in the sight of men.
Rev 13:14 NKJV - And he deceives those who dwell on the earth by those signs which he was granted to do in the sight of the beast, telling those who dwell on the earth to make an image to the beast who was wounded by the sword and lived.
Rev 13:15 NKJV - He was granted [power] to give breath to the image of the beast, that the image of the beast should both speak and cause as many as would not worship the image of the beast to be killed.
Rev 13:16 NKJV - He causes all, both small and great, rich and poor, free and slave, to receive a mark on their right hand or on their foreheads,
Rev 13:17 NKJV - and that no one may buy or sell except one who has the mark or the name of the beast, or the number of his name.
Rev 13:18 NKJV - Here is wisdom. Let him who has understanding calculate the number of the beast, for it is the number of a man: His number [is] 666.
(Update 10-21-2011: guess what? More info that perhaps contradicts my views on Apollyon/Antichrist. Chris White has a great verse by verse here that gives an alternative of the Appollo being the antichrist. Who's right? God only knows, but I think you should at least be aware of the different views.
http://versebyversebibleteaching.com/?p=315
This isn’t a comprehensive study on Buddhism, nor is it about Gautama Buddha, but rather just some thoughts on some information I learned in the aforementioned video. I don’t want to look at Buddhism too much, as for some reason I feel some sort of bizarre attraction to it. As a Christian, I can’t believe that the Buddhist faith is truth, but for some reason, my sinful human side finds it very seductive and appealing. I don’t know why. This was the case when I went to site see some Buddhist temples in China and also when I see Buddhist artifacts in museums. Don’t know why, but it is a temptation for me it seems. I had even done a little meditation once for anger.
Anyways. Back to the point. This Nat Geo special said one sentence that blew me away. It was an offhanded remark, but as they said it, it set off warning bells in my head. Perhaps it was the Holy Spirit saying “DIG HERE!” They said something like “the first images used to portray Buddha were based on the Greek god Apollo.” Apparently Greek and Indian paganism had found a melting pot in Afghanistan.
This is sort of hinted at here “The scholars asserting the priority of Gandhara claim that the Buddha image originated in Gandhara and the Mathura image of Buddha was the result of its inspiration, although as against the dated Mathura images, none of the reported Gandhara images of Buddha has a date inscribed on it. Such claim is based primarily on three assumptions, namely, (a) India's early art was aniconic or unanthropomorphic; iconic or anthropomorphic perception of Divine image came to India from Greek art through the Indo-Greek rulers of Gandhara regions and later through Kushanas (25 AD - 150 AD); (b) early Indian art was bas-relief based and sculpture was not its style; and (c) in its modeling Buddha figure is an Indianized version of the Greek god Apollo.” (http://www.exoticindiaart.com/article/lordbuddha/) and “Buddhist characters are always represented with a dhoti loincloth before this innovation), the halo, the contrapposto stance of the upright figures (see: 1st–2nd century Gandhara standing Buddhas [1] and [2]), the stylized Mediterranean curly hair and top-knot apparently derived from the style of the Belvedere Apollo” (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Greco-Buddhist_art)
So why did this set off warning bells? Buddhism is a religion of peace, right? What’s the big deal if Buddha was based on Apollo?
Well, Apollo in Greek is Ἀπολλύων. Wikipedia says this is the oldest spelling, “The spelling Ἀπόλλων had almost superseded all other forms by the beginning of the common era, but the Doric form Απέλλων is more archaic, derived from an earlier *Απέλjων. The name is certainly cognate with the Doric month name Απέλλαιος and the Doric festival απελλαι.[3]” (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Apollo) Blue letter Bible, and most Greek concordances will give this name with the Hebrew name Abaddon, both of which mean Destroyer. http://www.blueletterbible.org/commentaries/comm_view.cfm?AuthorID=6&contentID=4064&commInfo=17&topic=Revelation&ar=Rev_9_11
This name appears in Revelation 9:11, and he is the king of the demonic armies that arise from the abyss/bottomless pit. The Greek god Apollo seems to be a demon who has sold himself as a god. Buddha was based on, at least in part, a high ranking demon (or the devil himself) from the bottomless pit!
Another interesting link (and I'm no expert in Hindu cosmology), and this bears more research, is that some Hindus consider Buddha an avatar of Vishnu. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gautama_Buddha_in_Hinduism Vishnu in turn according to some myths, becomes Shiva. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Vishnu Shiva is of course well known as the destroyer, though this is not always the case. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Shiva
Interestingly enough, others have pointed out that CERN has a gigantic statue of Shiva in front of it. http://cdsweb.cern.ch/record/782057/. You can also google CERN Shiva statue to turn it up. Interestingly, their logo looks like 666. http://public.web.cern.ch/public/
Now I am not 100% sure on whether or not this Apollyon is the Antichrist. It seems to be the case, and some prophecy scholars have said that this was the case. My thoughts, are that it might be, but please check it out for yourself in Revelation. And also check that with some good, Biblical scholars who have written on the subject.
(Update 6/3/11, I have come to the conlusion that Apollo, the angel from the bottomless pit is different than the Beast/antichrist. Read Revelation 9 - 13. Apollo leads the demons from the bottomless pit, while the beast arrives in chpt 13 and seems to be a man, who is empowered by Satan. Could they still be the same? Maybe. But we must also consider they may be different as well. Go to the scriptures see what's true and please share your thoughts in the comments. The fact does remain that Buddha's links to Apollo are indeed still there. And of course, Apollo is said to be in the bottomless pit.)
This is my speculation only. There could be, and have been whole studies done on who the antichrist is, and they’ve been done better than I have done here (http://www.lookupfellowship.com/2009/01/is-maitreya-antichrist.html and http://www.redmoonrising.com/maitreya.htm) . Yet another issue for me to pick up later I guess. The red moon rising article does a great job of comparing the Share international Maitreya with the Biblical Antichrist. Peter Goodgame, the author of red moon rising has been a guest on Future Quake a number of times.
My line of thought here is that praying to Buddha (and the Buddha Idol) is more or less praying to the demon Apollo. This can be taken one step further by including Maitreya (believed to be the future incarnation of the next Buddha). There are currently Maitreya (probably not the Benjamin Crème one) Buddha idols. Some of which even look like an ET. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Maitreya, see the Korean statue.
Whether or not this Maitreya is an “ET” (aka demon posing as an alien) is moot. My thought is that whoever is revealed as Maitreya will actually be the being from the bottomless pit, and/or the Antichrist. (See note above, I think they are actually separate entities) The image of the beast, may perhaps be a new form of Maitreya Buddha statue. My theory is that the “life” given to the image of the beast, could well be supernatural, but maybe it’s something robotic. Just a thought.
That’s just a theory anyways. If the “real” Maitreya ends up being the Antichrist, I think that there is enough evidence to make that connection. 1) Maitreya is a future Buddha. 2) Buddha (and by association) all of his incarnation and images was based on the image of Apollo at some point. 3) Apollo is revealed to be the demon in the bottomless pit.
Here’s a little more tying deified Buddha to an Antichrist likeness. At this point, I should say that I think there is some departure from the original human Buddha, and the Buddha that everyone has deified. They’ve made a man into a legend and a god. While he may have had supernatural encounters, I think some things have been embellished to make him more godlike. At any rate, here is one supernatural claim that I think came well after Buddha’s lifetime, but interestingly imitates Christ. It may have even made the rounds when Buddha was alive, but i don't know for sure. But how is it that the historical Buddha who lived around 600BC – 500 BC can imitate Christ? Ah, that's where God has the edge. Prophecy! Around 700BC, more than 100 years before Buddha, the Prophet Isaiah gave that famous prophecy about the virgin that would would conceive! God meant Christ, the Messiah. And Satan meant to twist and imitate it ahead of time by attaching the born of a virgin motif to one of his religions.
Here's the blurb about Buddha's "miraculous" birth. “Gautama is said to have developed supramundane abilities including: a painless birth conceived without intercourse” http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gautama_Buddha. Again, I don't think this is true, but it's been attached to the legend of Buddha nontheless. And I speculate that Satan started this story based on Isaiah's prophecy to muddy the waters.
So, we started with Buddha being linked to Apollo, the destroyer of Revelation. Conveniently, there is believed to be an incarnation of Buddha coming in the future, named or called Maitreya. Interestingly, Buddha was also linked to Hinduism’s Vishnu who is in turn the flipside of the same coin to Shiva. Shiva, has a large statue at CERN. Some believe that CERN could create a black hole, or bottomless pit if you prefer. That's quite a coincidence.
What does all this mean? I suppose it means that it will be easy for the Destroyer to be sold as the incarnation of all of these deities. He doesn't have to be called any of these names, but he may be sold as the newest avatar of them. Once that occurs, many will easily worship him thinking he is their god that has returned. In doing so, they merely fulfil Biblical prophecy. On the surface, these beings all seem very different, and there are differences. But in the end, the Destroyer is the Destroyer, and no matter which form he takes, he will ultimately lose to the King of Kings, Jesus Christ.
(Update 6-4-11)
First I want to apologize for my wild speculation above. I guess that's the risk we take when we comment on prophecy, but unlike others in my field, I will admit when I'm wrong. I know God will hold me accountable if I don't.
So, I'm not sure what convicted me here. Perhaps it was listening to Patty Heron say that Apollo is the Beast/Antichrist and then I looked into it further. Perhaps his interview raised a question that made me question this, and I was like "Wait a second, I said that too. Better change the blog."
I don't know. But when I looked at Revelation 9 and 13 it really doesn't seem that they could be the same. Apollyon is described as an angel, king of the bottomless pit. The Beast, a man given power by the dragon. At the end of the day though, praying to a Buddha is still 1) praying to an idol and 2) praying to a demon or his image. Even if it's not the Antichrist it's still bad.
So, at the end of the day, I don't know. There appear to be similarities, but there also seem to be difference. I do know that one day, it will become self evident, so please forgive me for perhaps being wrong.
Here's the link for Revelation 9, please read that through 13.
Rev 9
http://www.blueletterbible.org/Bible.cfm?b=Rev&c=9&v=1&t=NKJV#top
Rev 13
http://www.blueletterbible.org/Bible.cfm?b=Rev&c=13&v=1&t=NKJV
Revelation 9:11
And they had as king over them the angel of the bottomless pit, whose name in Hebrew [is] Abaddon, but in Greek he has the name Apollyon.
Revelation 13
Rev 13:1 NKJV - Then I stood on the sand of the sea. And I saw a beast rising up out of the sea, having seven heads and ten horns, and on his horns ten crowns, and on his heads a blasphemous name.
Rev 13:2 NKJV - Now the beast which I saw was like a leopard, his feet were like [the feet of] a bear, and his mouth like the mouth of a lion. The dragon gave him his power, his throne, and great authority.
Rev 13:3 NKJV - And I saw one of his heads as if it had been mortally wounded, and his deadly wound was healed. And all the world marveled and followed the beast.
Rev 13:4 NKJV - So they worshiped the dragon who gave authority to the beast; and they worshiped the beast, saying, "Who [is] like the beast? Who is able to make war with him?"
Rev 13:5 NKJV - And he was given a mouth speaking great things and blasphemies, and he was given authority to continue for forty-two months.
Rev 13:6 NKJV - Then he opened his mouth in blasphemy against God, to blaspheme His name, His tabernacle, and those who dwell in heaven.
Rev 13:7 NKJV - It was granted to him to make war with the saints and to overcome them. And authority was given him over every tribe, tongue, and nation.
Rev 13:8 NKJV - All who dwell on the earth will worship him, whose names have not been written in the Book of Life of the Lamb slain from the foundation of the world.
Rev 13:9 NKJV - If anyone has an ear, let him hear.
Rev 13:10 NKJV - He who leads into captivity shall go into captivity; he who kills with the sword must be killed with the sword. Here is the patience and the faith of the saints.
Rev 13:11 NKJV - Then I saw another beast coming up out of the earth, and he had two horns like a lamb and spoke like a dragon.
Rev 13:12 NKJV - And he exercises all the authority of the first beast in his presence, and causes the earth and those who dwell in it to worship the first beast, whose deadly wound was healed.
Rev 13:13 NKJV - He performs great signs, so that he even makes fire come down from heaven on the earth in the sight of men.
Rev 13:14 NKJV - And he deceives those who dwell on the earth by those signs which he was granted to do in the sight of the beast, telling those who dwell on the earth to make an image to the beast who was wounded by the sword and lived.
Rev 13:15 NKJV - He was granted [power] to give breath to the image of the beast, that the image of the beast should both speak and cause as many as would not worship the image of the beast to be killed.
Rev 13:16 NKJV - He causes all, both small and great, rich and poor, free and slave, to receive a mark on their right hand or on their foreheads,
Rev 13:17 NKJV - and that no one may buy or sell except one who has the mark or the name of the beast, or the number of his name.
Rev 13:18 NKJV - Here is wisdom. Let him who has understanding calculate the number of the beast, for it is the number of a man: His number [is] 666.
(Update 10-21-2011: guess what? More info that perhaps contradicts my views on Apollyon/Antichrist. Chris White has a great verse by verse here that gives an alternative of the Appollo being the antichrist. Who's right? God only knows, but I think you should at least be aware of the different views.
http://versebyversebibleteaching.com/?p=315
Sunday, November 7, 2010
Flushing your chi, or just your money down the commode?
Yet another blog where I am forced to combat my personal failings, or at least things that had me deceived. So this week, my good friend and brother in the Lord, Gaz Parker has tossed this my way. It may fit just as well over at his blog, http://www.newagedeception.wordpress.com/, but I think there may be some reasons why he thinks it would be good for me to look into. He’s probably right. At any rate, he was gracious enough to have me take a stab at it. I hope I don’t miss.
So, over at http://www.magneticdiscovery.com/ or at http://www.alexchiu.com/ there is an alleged “immortality device” for sale. The device, or devices as far as I can tell are rings you wear, a certain way on your pinky. The rings are magnetic. The theory is on the above links, but apparently the use of magnets in strategic areas on the body is supposed to somehow enhance your energy flow. The theory implies that making this energy flow well will presumably keep your body physically young and reverse aging. For a bit more info, look at this interview, but be warned of inappropriate language. Link: http://slashdot.org/article.pl?sid=01/06/07/1421238.
Now, the first time I had heard of these rings was in the back of “Fate” Magazine. I will admit that I nearly bought a set, but at the same time something told me it was a line of poodoo. But, I daresay if you read the explanations of how it works, it really sounds like it might be legitimate. Even now, I admit that it is tempting to order a pair just to try it out and regrow some hair. At this point I don’t really know what is going on here with these things. At first glance, it looks as though he is using some scientific fact, and twisting it into pseudoscience and twisting that into some way to "scientifically"explain his worldview of chi. But it’s not just to sell immortality devices, because he shows how to make them on the site. So if he shows us how to do it for free, why? My guess is a darker spiritual component.
Now, it is true that every person's body does have an electromagnetic component to it. I once used this fact to justify my belief in chi, and auras. I thought that the ability to manipulate and perceive this stuff was a natural ability in the body. When i first thought this I was a Christian, but I wasn’t really mature yet. I was also young, and confused, and interested in chi, and thinking that it was an energy field that God had created. I even thought that I could use chi, the way the Force is used in Star Wars. You wouldn't believe how many times I tried to use psychokinesis. At any rate, Wikipedia has as good of a definition of chi as I have been able to find. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Qi. After reading this definition, I do see that the energy chi is not really compatible with Christianity, and the reasons for this are detailed in my post on Qigong. Basically, any attempt to control chi or "energy fields" through meditative or other means usually opens one up to demonic contact. And believe me, contact with demons is not fun.
One last note on chi. For what it’s worth, my paraphrase of wikipedia, chi or qi literally means “air, breath, or gas” which is comparable to the latin spiritus, or Greek πνεῦμα (Pneuma?) and this is comparable to what David Guzik says in his commentary on Genesis 2 and is similar to the Hebrew "ruach," which is the word used when God created man. I am not 100% sure, but I just looked at my wife’s Chinese language Bible, and it does have the character for chi in Genese 2:7. My best guess is that chi as it relates to breath is OK. As in God breathed life into us, we have the breath of life, or "chi" of life. On the other hand Chi/Qi as it is used to describe an invisible energy field, is not something humans should have any business in trying to manipulate.
At any rate, your body’s EM field is not chi. I don’t think you can control it (chi or your EM field) in any way, and I find it incredibly hard to believe that wearing a magnetic ring would improve the flow of your EM field. Even if this device did affect the flow of your EM field, it would not make you immortal, or necessarily even younger. This device seems to be a Qi-flow enhancer masquerading as an EM field fountain of youth. For the sake of argument, let’s assume that this thing actually does allow your EM energy to flow better. That in no way would allow humans to have eternal life or even prolong it.
The Bible gives some good advice here. To save you some work, here is the link so you can look for yourself, and explore as deeply as you are led to. The Bible clearly defines how to obtain eternal life. That is Jesus Christ
Eternal life
http://www.blueletterbible.org/search/translationResults.cfm?Criteria=Eternal+life&t=NLT
We also know that the Bible says that ALL have sinned. The reward for any sin is death. (Romans 6:23) So no amount of magnet wearing is going to save you from the inevitable fact of death. God's word says so.
We also know that it is God who controls the amount of time you and I have upon this earth. I believe that God has given me a set number of days even before I was born. Nothing I do will necessarily change that. When God calls me home, you can bet there isn't going to be a thing I can do about it. A few places confirm this, or at least allude to it. Forgive me if I take these out of context, but I can’t find the exact verse I wanted. They do get the idea across though.
http://www.blueletterbible.org/Bible.cfm?b=Psa&c=39&t=NLT#4 http://www.blueletterbible.org/Bible.cfm?b=2Ki&c=20&t=NLT#6
To sum up, wearing magnets will not change your lifespan. They probably won’t improve your “energy flow” either. And if they do improve your “energy flow” you probably don’t want to do it because it will possibly open up doors into the demonic. Lastly, as far as I know there is no medical evidence that magnetic fields can improve health, and in fact excessive exposure to EM fields can have negative health effects, but this last bit is speculation on my part and perhaps warrants further examination. I have heard that those who live near power lines, with strong EM fields have high rates of cancer. Again, more speculation, and I'm sure new agers would have a convenient excuse for it.
If I find more information on these rings, I will do a round two on this. If I find more, I’ll post it.
So, over at http://www.magneticdiscovery.com/ or at http://www.alexchiu.com/ there is an alleged “immortality device” for sale. The device, or devices as far as I can tell are rings you wear, a certain way on your pinky. The rings are magnetic. The theory is on the above links, but apparently the use of magnets in strategic areas on the body is supposed to somehow enhance your energy flow. The theory implies that making this energy flow well will presumably keep your body physically young and reverse aging. For a bit more info, look at this interview, but be warned of inappropriate language. Link: http://slashdot.org/article.pl?sid=01/06/07/1421238.
Now, the first time I had heard of these rings was in the back of “Fate” Magazine. I will admit that I nearly bought a set, but at the same time something told me it was a line of poodoo. But, I daresay if you read the explanations of how it works, it really sounds like it might be legitimate. Even now, I admit that it is tempting to order a pair just to try it out and regrow some hair. At this point I don’t really know what is going on here with these things. At first glance, it looks as though he is using some scientific fact, and twisting it into pseudoscience and twisting that into some way to "scientifically"explain his worldview of chi. But it’s not just to sell immortality devices, because he shows how to make them on the site. So if he shows us how to do it for free, why? My guess is a darker spiritual component.
Now, it is true that every person's body does have an electromagnetic component to it. I once used this fact to justify my belief in chi, and auras. I thought that the ability to manipulate and perceive this stuff was a natural ability in the body. When i first thought this I was a Christian, but I wasn’t really mature yet. I was also young, and confused, and interested in chi, and thinking that it was an energy field that God had created. I even thought that I could use chi, the way the Force is used in Star Wars. You wouldn't believe how many times I tried to use psychokinesis. At any rate, Wikipedia has as good of a definition of chi as I have been able to find. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Qi. After reading this definition, I do see that the energy chi is not really compatible with Christianity, and the reasons for this are detailed in my post on Qigong. Basically, any attempt to control chi or "energy fields" through meditative or other means usually opens one up to demonic contact. And believe me, contact with demons is not fun.
One last note on chi. For what it’s worth, my paraphrase of wikipedia, chi or qi literally means “air, breath, or gas” which is comparable to the latin spiritus, or Greek πνεῦμα (Pneuma?) and this is comparable to what David Guzik says in his commentary on Genesis 2 and is similar to the Hebrew "ruach," which is the word used when God created man. I am not 100% sure, but I just looked at my wife’s Chinese language Bible, and it does have the character for chi in Genese 2:7. My best guess is that chi as it relates to breath is OK. As in God breathed life into us, we have the breath of life, or "chi" of life. On the other hand Chi/Qi as it is used to describe an invisible energy field, is not something humans should have any business in trying to manipulate.
At any rate, your body’s EM field is not chi. I don’t think you can control it (chi or your EM field) in any way, and I find it incredibly hard to believe that wearing a magnetic ring would improve the flow of your EM field. Even if this device did affect the flow of your EM field, it would not make you immortal, or necessarily even younger. This device seems to be a Qi-flow enhancer masquerading as an EM field fountain of youth. For the sake of argument, let’s assume that this thing actually does allow your EM energy to flow better. That in no way would allow humans to have eternal life or even prolong it.
The Bible gives some good advice here. To save you some work, here is the link so you can look for yourself, and explore as deeply as you are led to. The Bible clearly defines how to obtain eternal life. That is Jesus Christ
Eternal life
http://www.blueletterbible.org/search/translationResults.cfm?Criteria=Eternal+life&t=NLT
We also know that the Bible says that ALL have sinned. The reward for any sin is death. (Romans 6:23) So no amount of magnet wearing is going to save you from the inevitable fact of death. God's word says so.
We also know that it is God who controls the amount of time you and I have upon this earth. I believe that God has given me a set number of days even before I was born. Nothing I do will necessarily change that. When God calls me home, you can bet there isn't going to be a thing I can do about it. A few places confirm this, or at least allude to it. Forgive me if I take these out of context, but I can’t find the exact verse I wanted. They do get the idea across though.
http://www.blueletterbible.org/Bible.cfm?b=Psa&c=39&t=NLT#4 http://www.blueletterbible.org/Bible.cfm?b=2Ki&c=20&t=NLT#6
To sum up, wearing magnets will not change your lifespan. They probably won’t improve your “energy flow” either. And if they do improve your “energy flow” you probably don’t want to do it because it will possibly open up doors into the demonic. Lastly, as far as I know there is no medical evidence that magnetic fields can improve health, and in fact excessive exposure to EM fields can have negative health effects, but this last bit is speculation on my part and perhaps warrants further examination. I have heard that those who live near power lines, with strong EM fields have high rates of cancer. Again, more speculation, and I'm sure new agers would have a convenient excuse for it.
If I find more information on these rings, I will do a round two on this. If I find more, I’ll post it.
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