House of Truth Ministries
January 2021
House of Truth Ministries is about sharing the Gospel in various venues.
January 2021
House of Truth Ministries is about sharing the Gospel in various venues.
- Jesus said to him, "I am the way, and the truth, and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me.” John 14:6 (ESV)
We hope you had a blessed Christmas as well as a blessed New Year.
We have another interview with Kurt Van Gorden.
Q How do we answer New Age and occult groups when they claim that the appearance of the Magi, who were astrologers and whose appearance in the Matthean account of Jesus’ nativity is a biblical endorsement of astrology? For example, the Yoga Journal (May/June 1996), carried an article by Linda Johnsen, “Science of Light,” where she claimed, “The most magnificent example of the practice of astrology in all world history occurs in the Bible (Matthew 2:1), where the Magi ‘follow the star’ to Bethlehem. . . . early versions of the legend state that these ‘wise men from the East’ arrived from India. If that is true, it is almost certain that their pilgrimage was guided by the art of Vedic [ed., Hindu Veda Scriptures] astrology, whose purpose had always been to lead the soul to the living presence of the divine.”
A From the outset, we must separate the ideas of astronomy and astrology, which terms are sometimes confused by the inquirer. Astronomy is the scientific charting of the heavenly bodies in their mass, constitution, movement, and distance. In contrast, astrology is unscientific and makes use of only a selected few stars for interpretation of human destiny or working divination, therefore its practice is occultic. The Magi in Matthew were from the east. There is nothing in the Matthean account that hints at the personal beliefs of the Magi outside of them coming to worship the King of the Jews and that God spoke to them in Matthew 2:14. To project that they were Hindu, Zoroastrian, or ancient Babylonian, goes beyond what is offered in the text and, hence, goes too far. To say that God spoke to them in a dream (2:14) aligns more with God’s personal dealing with man rather than any supposed endorsement of astrology. All we know with certainty is that they followed “His star” from the east and that they came to worship Christ. What stands out as most unique, and in opposition to astrology, is that these men knew too much. Jesus was born. Jesus was King of the Jews. Jesus was worthy of worship. From where did they get that information? What is obvious in the text is special knowledge that they could have only obtained from God, which knowledge is unobtainable from astrology, Hinduism, Babylonian writings, or any other revelation outside of God and His Word. In further refutation to the New Age and Occult beliefs that the Magi followed some sort of astrological sign, we find that Christ’s “star” was a unique “sign.” It was not an astrological devise that they followed. When Herod challenged them, they did not turn to the Vedas, Babylonian charts, astrology, or anything of the sort, they simply said that they followed the star, which is antithetical to what astrologers do and it confirms that the star was a unique act of God. Astrologers typically forecast events, they don’t transverse hundreds of miles, taking in two years time, to worship a baby born in Bethlehem as King of the Jews. That is what a worshipper does, not an astrological forecaster. I used to have a bumper sticker on an old van in the 1970s that said, “Wise men still seek him.” These wise men sought out the Savior, which encourages us to continually seek Him today.
Q What about Christ's Virgin Birth? Was Jesus begotten by a miraculous conception by the Holy Spirit overshadowing Mary, or was this account merely allegorical for a different kind of “virgin birth,” such as the concept offered by Brigham Young and the Mormon Church?
A Brigham Young flatly denied that Jesus was begotten by the Holy Spirit in direct contrast to what the New Testament says in the Matthean and Lukan accounts, therefore, Young is a false prophet by denying inspired Scripture. Brigham Young, who is esteemed as a Mormon prophet, and more so, one of the greatest Mormon prophets, preached “When the Virgin Mary conceived the child Jesus, the Father had begotten him in his own likeness. He was not begotten by the Holy Ghost.” (Journal of Discourses, 1:50, emphasis added). Again, Young said, “Now remember from this time forth, and fore ever, that Jesus Christ was not begotten by the Holy Ghost.” (Journal of Discourses, 1:51, emphasis added). For sake of argument, just in case one rises to Young’s defense and claims that he merely spoke as a man and not as a prophet, we also have the thirteenth prophet, Ezra Taft Benson, espousing the same thing. Benson wrote, “The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints proclaims that Jesus Christ is the Son of God in the most literal sense. The body in which He performed His mission in the flesh was sired by that same Holy Being we worship as God, our Eternal Father. Jesus was not the son of Joseph, nor was He begotten by the Holy Ghost. He is the Son of the Eternal Father.” (Teachings of the Prophet Ezra Taft Benson, 7).
In the New Testament, however, we find, “Now the birth of Jesus Christ was on this wise: When as his mother Mary was espoused to Joseph, before they came together, she was found with child of the Holy Ghost” (Matt. 1:18, KJV). Luke adds, “Then said Mary unto the angel, How shall this be, seeing I know not a man? And the angel answered and said unto her, The Holy Ghost shall come upon thee, and the power of the Highest shall overshadow thee: therefore, also that holy thing which shall be born of thee shall be called the Son of God” (Luke 1:34-35, KJV). We must keep in mind that the Latter-day Saints distinguish between the concepts that Jesus was begotten by the Holy Spirit and that He was “sired” by the Father. This correlates with their view that God the Father is an exhaled man and, as a physical being in human form, he can sire and produce offspring with Mary. Therefore, they deny the Bible on this subject from the days of Brigham Young until today. Young spoke with no biblical authority; therefore, the Bible nullifies his word.
We have another interview with Kurt Van Gorden.
Q How do we answer New Age and occult groups when they claim that the appearance of the Magi, who were astrologers and whose appearance in the Matthean account of Jesus’ nativity is a biblical endorsement of astrology? For example, the Yoga Journal (May/June 1996), carried an article by Linda Johnsen, “Science of Light,” where she claimed, “The most magnificent example of the practice of astrology in all world history occurs in the Bible (Matthew 2:1), where the Magi ‘follow the star’ to Bethlehem. . . . early versions of the legend state that these ‘wise men from the East’ arrived from India. If that is true, it is almost certain that their pilgrimage was guided by the art of Vedic [ed., Hindu Veda Scriptures] astrology, whose purpose had always been to lead the soul to the living presence of the divine.”
A From the outset, we must separate the ideas of astronomy and astrology, which terms are sometimes confused by the inquirer. Astronomy is the scientific charting of the heavenly bodies in their mass, constitution, movement, and distance. In contrast, astrology is unscientific and makes use of only a selected few stars for interpretation of human destiny or working divination, therefore its practice is occultic. The Magi in Matthew were from the east. There is nothing in the Matthean account that hints at the personal beliefs of the Magi outside of them coming to worship the King of the Jews and that God spoke to them in Matthew 2:14. To project that they were Hindu, Zoroastrian, or ancient Babylonian, goes beyond what is offered in the text and, hence, goes too far. To say that God spoke to them in a dream (2:14) aligns more with God’s personal dealing with man rather than any supposed endorsement of astrology. All we know with certainty is that they followed “His star” from the east and that they came to worship Christ. What stands out as most unique, and in opposition to astrology, is that these men knew too much. Jesus was born. Jesus was King of the Jews. Jesus was worthy of worship. From where did they get that information? What is obvious in the text is special knowledge that they could have only obtained from God, which knowledge is unobtainable from astrology, Hinduism, Babylonian writings, or any other revelation outside of God and His Word. In further refutation to the New Age and Occult beliefs that the Magi followed some sort of astrological sign, we find that Christ’s “star” was a unique “sign.” It was not an astrological devise that they followed. When Herod challenged them, they did not turn to the Vedas, Babylonian charts, astrology, or anything of the sort, they simply said that they followed the star, which is antithetical to what astrologers do and it confirms that the star was a unique act of God. Astrologers typically forecast events, they don’t transverse hundreds of miles, taking in two years time, to worship a baby born in Bethlehem as King of the Jews. That is what a worshipper does, not an astrological forecaster. I used to have a bumper sticker on an old van in the 1970s that said, “Wise men still seek him.” These wise men sought out the Savior, which encourages us to continually seek Him today.
Q What about Christ's Virgin Birth? Was Jesus begotten by a miraculous conception by the Holy Spirit overshadowing Mary, or was this account merely allegorical for a different kind of “virgin birth,” such as the concept offered by Brigham Young and the Mormon Church?
A Brigham Young flatly denied that Jesus was begotten by the Holy Spirit in direct contrast to what the New Testament says in the Matthean and Lukan accounts, therefore, Young is a false prophet by denying inspired Scripture. Brigham Young, who is esteemed as a Mormon prophet, and more so, one of the greatest Mormon prophets, preached “When the Virgin Mary conceived the child Jesus, the Father had begotten him in his own likeness. He was not begotten by the Holy Ghost.” (Journal of Discourses, 1:50, emphasis added). Again, Young said, “Now remember from this time forth, and fore ever, that Jesus Christ was not begotten by the Holy Ghost.” (Journal of Discourses, 1:51, emphasis added). For sake of argument, just in case one rises to Young’s defense and claims that he merely spoke as a man and not as a prophet, we also have the thirteenth prophet, Ezra Taft Benson, espousing the same thing. Benson wrote, “The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints proclaims that Jesus Christ is the Son of God in the most literal sense. The body in which He performed His mission in the flesh was sired by that same Holy Being we worship as God, our Eternal Father. Jesus was not the son of Joseph, nor was He begotten by the Holy Ghost. He is the Son of the Eternal Father.” (Teachings of the Prophet Ezra Taft Benson, 7).
In the New Testament, however, we find, “Now the birth of Jesus Christ was on this wise: When as his mother Mary was espoused to Joseph, before they came together, she was found with child of the Holy Ghost” (Matt. 1:18, KJV). Luke adds, “Then said Mary unto the angel, How shall this be, seeing I know not a man? And the angel answered and said unto her, The Holy Ghost shall come upon thee, and the power of the Highest shall overshadow thee: therefore, also that holy thing which shall be born of thee shall be called the Son of God” (Luke 1:34-35, KJV). We must keep in mind that the Latter-day Saints distinguish between the concepts that Jesus was begotten by the Holy Spirit and that He was “sired” by the Father. This correlates with their view that God the Father is an exhaled man and, as a physical being in human form, he can sire and produce offspring with Mary. Therefore, they deny the Bible on this subject from the days of Brigham Young until today. Young spoke with no biblical authority; therefore, the Bible nullifies his word.
House of Truth Ministries
Box 729
La Habra, CA 90633
Our E-mail address is below should you have questions or comments:
My E-mail
jeff@HouseOfTruthMinistries.org
Our website
http://www.HouseOfTruthMinistries.org
House of truth Blogs
http://houseoftruthministries.org/blogs.html
House of Truth Ministries YouTube Channel
https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCQtvAk11yMYsOfFhy3W81jw
Box 729
La Habra, CA 90633
Our E-mail address is below should you have questions or comments:
My E-mail
jeff@HouseOfTruthMinistries.org
Our website
http://www.HouseOfTruthMinistries.org
House of truth Blogs
http://houseoftruthministries.org/blogs.html
House of Truth Ministries YouTube Channel
https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCQtvAk11yMYsOfFhy3W81jw