Waymarks 47
Report of Open Air Preaching
Sept 13th LUTON. Town Centre. Having preached for a while by the
entrance to the Arndale I moved away only to be pounced on by a Russellite. She
could not have been listening to my preaching or she would not have been so
eager to grapple with me. It took only a few seconds to determine that she was
a Russellite, and as some of her mouthings were quite blasphemous I had no
desire to engage in debate with her. Every time she paused for breath I gave
her another verse of Scripture. She admitted she knew nothing of God’s
salvation, going so far as to say Jesus never said anything about being saved.
But she did take a tract entitled “I am the Door”.
We must not shun these poor
deceived folk. But debate is often a useless exercise. A good approach is a
word of testimony and one or two gospel verses. They will usually accept a
tract.
Oct 3rd DUNSTABLE.
Ashton Square.
I felt a greater liberty today while preaching. This was because a heckler
stared up behind me. I think he was standing in the grounds of the Methodist
church. When I finished he came round and sat next to me on the wall of the
church. He thought he might embarrass me by continuing to mock me, such was his
naivity. He didn’t believe anything apparently and was assured there is no God.
I asked how is it possible for him then to blaspheme the name of a non existent
God. He had no answer for this. This man was not going to be impressed by the
gospel. I felt I didn’t need to impress it more upon him because he had just
listened intently to 20 minutes gospel preaching. When he began to tell me that
as an intelligent being he believed in evolution (this man who didn’t believe
anything!) I thought it my turn to do a bit of mocking. A man who rejects God
doesn’t choose to believe in
evolution; his darkened mind cannot do anything else. At this the man got up
and walked away, ignoring my pleas to him to repent and believe the
gospel.
Nov 1st LUTON TC. Peter asked for counselling. He had listened to
the John Humphreys programme and was disturbed that a God of love could allow
such suffering. I reminded him that I had answered this previously. But we went
over it again. Why do men blame God for the mess they have made? There is a day
fast approaching when God will put this world right. Why does God not eradicate
disease now ....so that men can be as filthy as they wish without fear of the
consequences of their wickedness?
Then Peter asked for prayer for a
sick neighbour, which I was glad to do.
Then fifteen minutes preaching
and always a mixed multitude listening. A lad of about ten years stood
listening. He asked me “who is Jesus?” I told him as simply as I could that
Jesus was his Saviour. Then his mother arrived, not at all angry that I was
speaking to her son.
Nov 13th DUNSTABLE.
Ashton Square.
Three boys cycled past me. They stopped about 30 yards from me and looked back.
They began to move back towards me and I prepared for trouble. One then asked
me if it hurt my throat when I shouted. I wasn’t shouting. There is no need to
in this small pedestrianised precinct. But I downgraded the threat to “mild”
and answered his question. There was no
abuse; no mocking. “No it doesn’t hurt. I’m used to it.”
they stayed only a few minutes;
long enough to be challenged with the gospel. I suppose in these barmy PC days
I had committed an offence by speaking to them.
Nov 15th LUTON T.C. I
preach and my words seem lost in the wind. Nobody takes any notice, not even
glancing in my direction. This Luton T.C
Campaign is well into its 32nd year. After a few minutes my vocal
chords have warmed up and my voice is carrying farther. I see the other side of
the road an old man sitting, listening intently. He is the man introduced to me
by Peter two weeks ago as we sat here on a bench. Peter had insisted I give him
a tract and he had accepted a booklet “The Way of Salvation”.
When I finished preaching he got
up and moved away.
By the Way....
During the course of my
conversation with the female Russellite on September 13th it became
clear to me she did not know how to deal with quotes from the AV Bible. I
sought to show her that the Bible taught the deity of Christ so I quoted the
words God was manifest in the flesh. “Ah yes”, she replied. “That’s John
1: 18. I told her I was quoting 1 Timothy 3: 16. She looked perplexed. She was
not familiar with these words. For all her training, and I took her to be a key
worker, she was not trained to deal with a person quoting from the Authorized
Bible. It would be a very rare thing no doubt, to meet a member of the public
who not only quoted from the AV but had a copy with him. Russellites are at
home with modern versions. These support the devilish doctrines of the various
sects and “he who was manifested in the flesh” might be anybody.
The Russellite bible which
violently mutilates the word of God is nevertheless based on the Westcott and
Hort Greek text which is now so popular among our conservative evangelical
fundamentalist erudite apostate brethren.
We need to understand that when
the Lord said He that rejecteth me and receiveth not my words hath one that
judgeth him applies equally to those who refuse His written word by
declaring that certain words, phrases, and whole passages ought not to be
present in the Bible. The man who will not receive God was manifest in the
flesh rejects Christ. The man who rejects 1 John 5: 7,8 blasphemes the
Spirit of God Who supplied the words.
“wij moeten niet Gods Woord
veranderen maar Gods Woord moet ons veranderen”
- Woord & Getuigenis 2006
This sounds good! “We must not change God’s Word, but God’s word
must change us.”
Then we turn a couple of pages in the Dutch magazine Woord
& Getuigenis 4e kwartaal 2006, where we find this statement and we
find this; “De god van deze wereld heeft de ongelovigen met blindheid
geslagen, opdat zij het schinsel van het evangwlie vande heerlijkheid van christus
niet ontwaren” (2 Cor. 4:4)
But this is not how the Staten-Generaal Bijbel reads. (This is the
Dutch equivalent of the English Authorized Bible.) Here we read, In dewelke de god deze eeuw de
zinnen verblind heeft, namelijk der ongelovigen, opdat hen niet
bestrale de verlichting van het Evangelie der heerlijkheid van Christusw, Die
het Beeld God is. (2 Kor. 4: 4)
So the editors do the very thing they
acknowledge they must not do, and they don’t let on when quoting verses that
they have changed them. Thus changes
are not to be regarded as changes. We can make up our bible as we go. It is
our own concoction. “Verlichting” is replaced with “schinsel” So the light of the glorious gospel is
reduced to a mere glimmer.
In line with English perversions of
Scripture, the gospel in no longer glorious, doxa being wrongly linked
with Christ. Also in the quote in Woord & Getuigenis there are two serious ommissions; “Who is
the image of God” and no indication is
given as to the version quoted.
The article is addressed voor jonge
mensen but Dutch young people will
not know that they are reading a parody of Scripture. The god of this world
will have blinded their minds.
|
I had occasion to visit a Christian Bookshop on the south coast a few days ago. (Christian? How did it get saved?) It was well stocked and had a section devoted to the integrity of the AV Bible. But there was a great deal of junk on the shelves also. Well, the proprietor has to make a living and everybody knows Christians don’t buy books; Not sound doctrinal books anyway).
There were several things that struck me about this shop, which are common to most Christian Bookshops.
The noise. CCM was blaring forth. I resolved not to spend too long in the place... and I had come to buy books.
Muslim
pharmacists have convictions as to what they sell over the counter. But for
Christian Booksellers, anything goes. A further example of this will be seen on
the John Ritchie LTD website, where among the rubbish one finds
“The
Message” advertised for sale. This is a blasphemous perversion of Scripture,
and the directors of J Ritchie ought to know better than to stock it. We have
only to look at 2 Cor. 4:4 to see this where we read of “Christ, who gives us
the best picture of God we’ll ever get.”
A
woman was being helped to find Alpha Course material (how to damn your soul in
easy lessons).
Several
female customers who entered the shop were dressed like men.
A
customer notice board by the door had pinned to it a card with a request
“Christian young lady invites others to join her in forming a group for cinema
/ theatre going and dancing.” Mobile phone number supplied.
I
heard it said that these days the church is dancing with the world. I regard
this statement as false. The church is comprised solely of born again
individuals, every one of them indwelt by the Holy Spirit. While there may be
individual lapses and maybe some believers not walking as well as they might
and should, nevertheless, the believer finds the world abhorrent and cannot
find satisfaction in it for his soul.
It
is Christendom, unconverted and apostate, that dallies with the world. The
greater part of the church is already in heaven.
AV Verses Vindicated
Mark 10: 24
Children, how hard is it for
them that trust in riches to enter into the kingdom of God.
The NIV reads: “Children, how
hard it is to enter the kingdom
of God”.
Worse than this, the CEV has “So
Jesus told them again, ‘It’s terribly hard to get into God’s kingdom.”
Sinking lower, the Message [form
hell?] has “Jesus kept on: ‘you can’t imagine how difficult.’
The implication is that
possession of wealth is a sufficient
obstacle to entrance into the kingdom of heaven. But the Lord taught
that trust in riches was the hindrance. Ye cannot serve God and Mammon.
These modern versions suggest
that self effort and works are required in order to gain salvation. Thus
repentance toward God and faith in the shed blood of Christ are denied.
Friendship with the world is
enmity with God.
What is in the world? Religion
for one thing. Beware of this world’s religions Some of our brethren are all
pally with Rome.
They go into its schools and “share” the gospel with them. So their mouths are
shut as far as truth is concerned. They dare not tell the students of the once
and for all sacrifice for sin by Christ on the cross. They dare not denounce
any of the wicked blasphemous doctrines of popery. They tell us it is not their
business to pass judgments, only to preach the gospel. What gospel is this that
denies Christ? What they really want is the praise of men.
The modern gospel states “all you
have to do to be saved is to believe on the Lord Jesus Christ”. The chief
rulers, we read in John 12, believed on Him. But they were not saved as the
passage reveals (v42,43). The praise of men was all\ important to them. The
Lord warned that which is highly esteemed among men is abominatio0n in the
sight of God (Luke 16: 15).
Anything whatsoever it is, however apparently moral and legitimate, having the
approval of this world, is loathsome to our God.
So the “gospel preacher” returns
from his visit to the school and reports how well he was received by its staff
and pupils. Note 1 Thess. 2: 6, Nor of men sought we glory, neither of you.
Luke 23 : 33
....the place, which is called
Calvary, ....
Kranion, translated Calvary in
Luke is “skull” in Mtt. 27: 33 and Mark 15: 22. a place called Golgotha, that is to say, a place of a skull. Golgotha is of `Hebrew origin. Note John 19: 17, the
place of a skull, which is called in the Hebrew Golgotha.
It is not a Chaldee word as lexicons will inform us. (Trust the Bible!)
Why did the AV translators use
the word Calvary in Luke? The answer is simple. They used the latin
word calvaria which means skull. They did not wish to use the Hebrew Golgotha to translate a Greek word for English
readers.
They anglicised calvaria to
give us Calvary. It is not a Roman Catholic
word as some mischievously suggest.
The English language is full of
latin words (together with words drawn from a multitude of other languages). No
fault can be found in reading Calvary at Luke
23: 33.
Revelation 5: 10
And hast made us unto our God
kings and priests: and we shall reign on the earth.
Modern versions change “us” and
“we” to “them” and “they”.
There is no sound authority for
these changes. The Received Text is well substantiated. The context of Ch. 5
gives no indication of who “they” might be.
“Us and we refer to the 24 elders representing the church before the
throne.” – J Moorman.
Some have thought the AV reading
implies that the church will be dwelling upon the earth during the millennium.
There is no evidence that the AV translators thought this when they wrote “on”
for epi. The view that we shall live for ever on the earth is a
Russellite error.
The sphere of the reign of the
church is indeed on the earth but the preposition epi has a wide meaning
and can also be translated “over”, “upon”, “towards”
etc. J Heading points out that the case of the following noun determines the
meaning of the preposition (-From now to Eternity). Here, earth is genitive,
so epi is “on” though sometimes “in the presence of” and hence “over”.
Every Word Preserved
Man shall not live by bread
alone, but by every word that proceedeth out of the mouth of God. Matt. 4:
4.
The Lord was quoting Deut. 8: 3. This is more than physical life.
Bread may sustain the body but the soul is sustained by the word of God. If the
least part of God’s word is lost then life is defective to that extent.
We accept by faith therefore that
God has preserved in its entirety that
which proceeded out of His mouth. Breathed out─inspired, preserved in
Scripture, for all Scripture is inspired of God.
When certain scholars tell us
that certain words of Scripture have “fallen out” then by the very testimony of
the Lord, and this to the writing of Moses, we know they are lying.
Beware Double Talk
“We believe this solemn truth [a
literal hell fire] because we believe God’s holy word”.
Harold Paisley (Ian’s brother); Words in Season; * 2002.
“It is our view that this is
indeed the correct language of the text... “Death where is thy victory” 1
Cor.15: 55, RV.
Harold Paisley; Words in
Season; May 2002.
Death in v.55 is translated from thanatos
O death, where is thy sting? (AV).
But the Authorized Bible reads O
grave, where is thy victory. Hades in every other place but here is
translated hell. It is never translated death and doesn’t mean death though the
dead are there. Thus H Paisley believes his “view” to be superior to the word
given by the Holy Spirit. His “view” is that two or three Alexandrian Greek Manuscripts,
rejected by believers from the beginning, are superior to the vast majority of
manuscripts which comprise the Received Text on which our authorized Bible is
based.
When H Paisley says “we believe
God’s word” he is guilty of double talk.
He believes a bible of his own making. “Death where is thy victory” is NOT
God’s holy word. It is not His word a all.
It is double talk when a man
states publicly (in this case J Hunter,
internet audio) “we believe the Bible to be inspired” and then a few minutes
later, announces only the original manuscripts were free from error. So we
conclude he believed in a bible not free from error yet inspired of God. This view impugns the
righteousness of God, charging Him with inspiring error.
It is double talk when a man
tells his audience “the Bible can be trusted” but believes it to be less than
perfect, flawed in many places due to scribal mistakes etc. His audience
doesn’t know which are the mistakes and what is genuine.
It is double talk to suggest that
God could keep men from error in writing the autographs (original manuscripts)
but has been incompetent ever since; unable because of human fallibility, to
preserve the Scriptures from error. If this should be true then God must be
charged with dishonesty. The Bible contains numerous promises to the
preservation of Scripture. Ps. 12: 6,7; Ps. 119: 89; Mtt. 24: 35; John 10: 35;
1 Peter 1: 22-25. etc.
The Scholar’s Nearly Accurate bible
It is only in regard to one word in a
thousand that the textual critics, by laborious comparison of manuscripts, have
to determine the exact reading of the original text.¾A McD. Redwood; The Faith¾A
Symposium; p327; P & I Ltd. 1952. (This
book has now been reprinted.)
When will they ever learn? The same old lies are still being propagated.
Inspect any modern version since 1952 and see how only one word in a thousand
is changed. And how did they select that “one word” in a thousand? By turning
to seriously depraved (acknowledged to be so by themselves) manuscripts that
had been known and rejected by the early church. Of course, these men had never
seen the original text and so felt free to invent their own.
Redwood then quotes Kenyon’s book The Story of the Bible¾
It may be disturbing to some to part
with the conception of a Bible handed down through the ages without alteration
and in unchallenged authority; but it is a higher ideal to face the facts, to
apply the best powers with which God has endowed us to the solution of the
problems which they present to us; and it is reassuring at the end to find that
the general result of all these discoveries and all this study is to strengthen
the proof of the authenticity of the
Scriptures, and our conviction that we have in our hands, in substantial
integrity, the veritable Word of God.
Kenyon, along with all scholars, thought that only ignoramuses
believed in the preservation of Scripture. Kenyon thought it more noble to rely
on his own intellect to decide what is Scripture and what is not. He was proud
to announce that through all his endeavours he very nearly had a bible he could
trust.
Redwood, perhaps realizing that Kenyon’s views seriously undermine
faith, and writing in a book supposedly giving a symposium of the faith, lamely
closed his chapter How we got our Bible
with these words¾
Let it be stated categorically that all the authorities in the field of
textual criticism assure us that no single doctrine of the Gospel is affected
by any of the variations still unexplained.
Well, they would say that, wouldn’t they? But “the authorities...
assure us”? Are we not able to read for ourselves? Are we so ignorant that we
don’t know what the “doctrines of the Gospel” are? What about the variations
that are explained? Do we ignore
them? Which are these unexplained ones and why can they not be explained?
In any case we know that doctrines are affected. David Cloud in his
book Myths about the Modern Bible
Versions lists fifty doctrines removed, weakened, changed, or added in the
UBS Greek Text and the Modern Versions.
Because of these views put out by leading brethren in a past
generation we have now a situation where anything goes. A few years ago
brethren would read publicly from the AV Bible and then tell us why the JND New
Translation or the Revised Version was superior. Now we find audacious men who
mount the platform and read from the NIV or the NKJB. We have a situation of
confusion and a decline in faith.
Progressive Dispensationalism
Progressive Dispensationalism is the name given
to a new doctrine finding ground among us. It is a move away from traditional
disapensationalism which maintains a clear distinction between the Church and Israel. It is a
dispensationalism which begins to accommodate Covenant Theology. It is
progressive in that the dispensations are not viewed as distinct but rather as
successive stages in God’s revelation to men.
It is a developing teaching that started around
the 1980’s
The main teachings of PD are that Jesus,
exalted to the right hand of the Father, is already seated on the throne of
David in heaven.
The covenants of Scripture, long believed by
traditional dispensationalists to belong to Israel, now have a spiritual
fulfilment here and now for the Church and will be fully implemented in the
Millennium. A proponent of this teaching said “The blessings promised to Israel are the
blessings promised to you and to me....we are heirs to the covenants of promise.
There is only one kingdom, the Messianic kingdom, already inaugurated and in
the process of being fulfilled. The fulfilment will be when the new Jerusalem
comes down from God out of heaven, prepared as a bride.”
─N Mellish, who also informed us , “we shall
live on earth during the Millenium”. This of course brings us dangerously close
to Russellite (J W) kingdom teaching.
We were informed that concerning the “covenant
of the New Birth, Israel’s
new birth is the same as ours” . This is a reference to Jeremiah 31: 31. This
covenant, expressly described by Jeremiah as made with the house of Israel, is
ours, stated Mellish., assuring us that there is only ONE New Covenant. This is
rank heresy, because we have Christ, mediator of a new covenant made with blood
which those born again in this dispensation enter into. Jeremiah’s new birth is
that of the whole nation of Israel
and occurs at the second coming of Christ.
Mellish
told us also that the outpouring of the Spirit is one and the same for Israel and the
Church.
When questioned by myself Mellish thought that
resurrected men and women, living again on the earth, would intermingle with
non-resurrected people. He appeared to
believe that the millenial reign of the Church will merge into the eternal
state.
The Truth about Westcott and Hort. a plea to our Bible teachers to get wise.
(This article is
taken by permission from the internet.)
Brooke
Foss Westcott (1825-1901) and Fenton John Anthony Hort (1828-1892) were the men
who devised the basis for the 20th- century attempt to replace the King James
Bible with inferior translations.
The
average believer who uses an English translation of the Bible, different than
the King James, does not realize the beliefs of the men who provided the Greek
Text for those modern Bibles.
In
order to better understand the objectives of these two men who are said to have
"laid the basis for modern Biblical knowledge"—we need to understand
their personal beliefs.
We
find much information in two books: The Life and Letters of Brooke Foss
Westcott, Vols. 1-2, by his son Arthur Westcott (1903), and The Life and
Letters of Fenton John Anthony Hort, Vols. 1-2, by his son Arthur Fenton
Hort (1896).
It
is significant that the name, "Jesus," was used only nine times in
the 1,800 pages of these two books. Westcott and Hort had a secret love for
Catholicism and even paganism, but they had little patience for Christianity.
At
the age of 22, Westcott revealed his doubts on the Inspiration of Scripture.
He wanted to have a part in changing the situation in England for
something he thought was better. In a letter to his fiancée, dated Advent
Sunday, 1847, he wrote:
"The
battle for the inspiration of Scripture has yet to be fought, and how earnestly
I pray that I might aid the truth in that."—Life of Westcott, Vol. 1,
p. 95.
That
same year, he wrote from France
to his fiancée about his fascination for the Catholic doctrine of Mariolatry
(Mary worship). In the letter, he said that he loved to kneel before an
image of Mary.
"I
could have knelt there for hours."—Op. cit., Vol. 1, p. 81.
Later
he wrote:
"I
wish I could see to what forgotten truth Mariolatry bears witness."—Op.
cit., Vol. 1, p. 251.
Westcott
and Hort worked well together, for they had so many interests in common. Hort
was also a secret Mary worshiper.
"I
have been persuaded for many years that Mary worship and ‘Jesus’ worship have
very much in common in their causes and results."—Life of Hort, Vol. 2,
p. 49.
Hort
wished he could have been a Catholic priest. In a letter to Dr. Lightfoot, a member of the
Revised Version Committee who believed the same as Hort, he wrote:
"But
you know I am a staunch sacerdotalist."—Op. cit., Vol. 2, p. 86.
["Sacerdotalism" refers to the performing of the Catholic ceremonies.]
Frederick
Maurice was a close friend of Hort’s, who Hort said "deeply influenced
me" (ibid., p. 155). Maurice was a dedicated Unitarian
minister who had been discharged from King’s College because of his atheistic
teachings, yet was appointed to the Revised Version Committee through Hort’s
influence.
Hort
wrote to a friend in 1864:
"Christianity
with a substantial church is vanity and disillusion. I remember shocking you
and Lightfoot not so long ago by expressing a belief that ‘Protestantism’ is only
parenthetical and temporary."—Op. cit., Vol. 2, p. 30.
Hort
believed that many of the things in the Bible were myths.
"I
am inclined to think that no such state as ‘Eden’ (I mean the popular notion) ever
existed, and that Adam’s fall in no degree differed from the fall of each of
his descendants."—Op. cit., Vol. 1, p. 78.
Westcott
fully agreed.
"No
one now, I suppose, holds that the first three chapters of Genesis, for
example, give a literal history."—Life of Westcott, Vol. 2, p. 69.
Although
both men were salaried by the Anglican Church, Hort wrote this:
"With
that world Anglicanism, though by no means without a sound standing, seems a
poor and maimed thing besides the great Rome."—Life
of Hort, Vol. 2, p. 30.
Here
are a few additional quotations by, or about, Wescott:
"He
took a strange interest . . not very long after that time, especially in
Mormonism . . I recollect his procuring and studying the Book of Mormon about
1840."—Comment by Arthur Westcott, in Life and Letters of John
Westcott, pp. 19-20.
"Oh,
the weakness of my faith compared with that of others! So wild, so skeptical am
I. I cannot yield."—Op. cit., Vol. 1, p. 52 (August 31, 1847).
"I
dare not communicate to you my own wild doubts at times . . which I should
tempt no one to share."—Op. cit., Vol. 1, p. 94 (November 11, 1847).
"I
cannot help asking what I am? Can I claim the name of a believer?"—Op.
cit., Vol. 1, p. 92 (November 7, 1847).
"What
a wild storm of unbelief seems to have seized my whole system."—Op.
cit., Vol. 1, p. 111 (May 13, 1849).
Over
a period of time, the present writer has discovered that a number of founders
of new, devilish organizations were receiving communications with demons!
The
founder of Jesuitism, Ignatius Loyola, regularly held séances with a
spirit which would come to him in the woods, in the form of a being clothed in
shining light and speak to him as he worked on his rule books for the Society
of Jesus.
The
founder of Mormonism, Joseph Smith, also held regular communication with
a demon presence who spoke to him.
The
founder of the Jehovah’s Witnesses, C.T. Russell, was guided by
spiritualist séances in the development of his teachings.
We
know that Sigmund Freud held regular contact with spirits.
We
know that Adolf Hitler was personally guided by demons.
It
is very likely that Charles Darwin was also, but I found no definite
information on that.
All
of those men started major new organizations which had an important influence
on the lives of many in our century.
You
will recall that Buddha is supposed to have received
enlightenment—guidance—as he sat under a tree one day. Buddhism was the result.
It
is a known fact that Muhammad regularly consulted with a special demon
who guided him in his writing of the Koran.
In
the process of devising their Bible-shattering theory, both Westcott and Hort
(both of whom were Cambridge
professors) also dabbled in the occult!
I
would not want anything to do with a theory which demons helped develop! Would
you? Yet the theory which modern Bible translations are founded on was developed
by those two men.
Here is the story. The sons of the two men documented it well.
In
the year 1851, Dr. Hort founded a society for the investigation and
classification of ghosts and psychic phenomena. Westcott’s own son described
such practices as "spiritualism" (op. cit., Vol. 1, p. 119).
Westcott
and Hort called their club, which had a number of members, the Ghostly Guild.
They continued its weekly meetings for decades and were receiving guidance
throughout the 1871-1881 Revision Committee.
In
one issue of their publication, the Ghostly Circular, Westcott wrote
about the wonderful knowledge which could be gained by contact with spirits:
"The
interest and importance of a serious and earnest inquiry into the nature of the
phenomena which are vaguely called ‘supernatural’ will scarcely be questioned.
Many persons believe that all such apparently mysterious occurrences are due
either to purely natural causes, or to delusions of the mind or senses, or to
willful deception. But there are many others who believe it possible that the
beings of the unseen world may manifest themselves to us in extraordinary ways,
and also are unable otherwise to explain many facts the evidence for which
cannot [be] impeached . . [by such contacts]. Some progress would be made
towards ascertaining the laws which regulate our being, and thus adding to our
scanty knowledge of an obscure but important province of science."—Op.
cit., Vol. 1, p. 118.
Westcott
wrote as one who had been successfully making frequent contacts with the spirit
world. What were the demons teaching him? We will learn that Westcott and Hort
were taught what was needed to be done to change 20th-century Bible
translations! They had master instructors to guide them.
"The
very name of witchcraft is now held in contempt. The claim that men can hold
intercourse with evil spirits is regarded as a fable of the Dark Ages. But
spiritualism, which numbers its converts by hundreds of thousands, yea, by
millions, which has made its way into scientific circles, which has invaded
churches and has found favor in legislative bodies, and even in the courts of
kings—this mammoth deception is but a revival in a new disguise of the
witchcraft condemned and prohibited of old.
"Satan
beguiles men now, as he beguiled Eve in Eden,
by exciting a desire to obtain forbidden knowledge. ‘Ye shall be as gods,’ he
declares, ‘knowing good and evil.’ Gen. 3:5. But the wisdom which spiritualism
imparts is that described by the apostle James, which ‘descendeth not from
above, but is earthly, sensual, devilish.’ James 3:15.
"The
prince of darkness has a masterly mind, and he skillfully adapts his
temptations to men of every variety of condition and culture. He works ‘with
all deceivableness of unrighteousness’ to gain control of the children of men,
but he can accomplish his object only as they voluntarily yield to his
temptations. Those who place themselves in his power by indulging their evil
traits of character, little realize where their course will end. The tempter
accomplishes their ruin, and then employs them to ruin others."—Story
of Redemption, pp. 395-396.
Hort
"came under the spell of Coleridge," the poet and opium addict who
worked to bring a wider knowledge of German higher criticism to England.
Hort
also read avidly in the writings of John Keble, the Oxford professor who Newman later said was
"the true and primary author of the Oxford Movement" (Lee and
Stephen, National Biography, Vol. 10, p. 1180).
In
addition, Westcott liked to study ancient pagan writers.
"I
can never look back on my Cambridge
life with sufficient thankfulness. Above all, those hours which were spent over
Plato and Aristotle have wrought in me which I pray may never be done
away."—Life and Letters of Westcott, Vol. 1, pp. 175-176.
Hort
highly valued what he learned from ancient pagans. In one letter, he mentioned
that it was his atheist friend, Maurice, who urged him in that direction.
"He
urged me to give the grandest attention to Plato and Aristotle, and to make
them the central points of my reading, and other books subsidiary."—Life
and Letters of Hort, Vol. 2, p. 202.
In
1865, only five years before he began work as a member of the Revised Version
committee, Westcott visited the Shrine of the Virgin Mary at LaSalette, France. LaSalette was one of the more famous shrines of France, where
the Catholics claim that the Virgin Mary works miracles. Westcott wrote that a
miracle took place while he was there.
"An
age of faith was restored before our sight in its ancient guise . . In this lay
the real significance and power of the place."—Life and Letters of
Westcott, Vol. 1, p. 254.
When
he wrote up a paper which he wanted to publish on the thrilling experience he
had observed at the feet of Mary, Dr. Lightfoot persuaded him not to release
it, because it would hinder Westcott’s efforts to ultimately use their critical
Greek Text to change the Bible. Lightfoot was far more influential in the
Anglican Church than either Westcott and Hort, and it was he who got them into
the committee and helped get the others to vote in favor of their daily textual
recommendations.
In
July 1970, Pope Leo XIII declared himself infallible! This shocked many people
throughout the world, but not Hort. He wrote his daughter, that he was so
thankful that his mother had sent him a photograph of the pope to place on his
wall and treasure (Life and Letters of Hort, Vol. 2, p. 227)!
Six
weeks after Hort hung the picture on his wall, Leo XIII issued his encyclical, Inscrutabili,
in which he declared:
"The
Church . . is in very truth the glory of the Supreme Pontiffs that they
steadfastly set themselves as a wall and bulwark to save human society from
falling back into its former superstition and barbarism."—Leo XIII,
quoted in Avro Manhatten, The Vatican-Moscow Alliance, p. 67.
Ten
years later, Hort sent a letter from Rome
and excitedly told his daughter that he had purchased a ticket to take part in
a Pontifical Mass; he hoped to be able to kiss the pope’s foot (Life and
Letters of Hort, Vol. 2, p. 393).
Hort
wrote to Lightfoot in 1880, that he utterly rejected the infallibility of
Scripture. He considered the Bible to be just another book, less
interesting than Plato.
"The
more I learn, the more I am convinced that fresh doubts come from my own
ignorance, and that at present I find the presumption in favour of the absolute
truth—I reject the word infallibility—of the Holy Scripture
overwhelmingly."—Op. cit., Vol. 1, p. 420.
Anything
savoring of unbelief caught their attention.
"Have
you read Darwin?
I should like a talk with you about it! In spite of difficulties, I am inclined
to think it unanswerable. In any case it is a treat to read such a book."—Op.
cit., Vol. 1, p. 414.
Hort
did not believe in the existence of Satan or the atonement (op. cit., Vol. 1, p. 120).
He believed that a person could repent of sin after he died (op.
cit., Vol. 1, p. 275) and that there was a purgatory (op. cit.,
Vol. 2, 336).
Westcott
believed he could efficaciously pray for the dead (Life and Letters of
Westcott, Vol. 2, p. 349).
Neither
one liked to preach from the pulpit, for they really had little interest in
Christianity. A
personal experience with Christ was something neither ever had.
Unbelief,
spiritualism, Catholicism, higher criticism, and pagan lore were the deep loves
of Westcott and Hort. And his satanic highness used them both as polished
instruments to tear down confidence in the King James Bible and the manuscripts
on which it was based.
It
is important that we spend time on the above, discovering the beliefs of those
two men—for much that followed in 20th-century Protestant Bible history has
been based on a theory they devised.
Prior
to Westcott and Hort, all translations of the Bible had been made from the
Majority Text (the Received Text, or Textus Receptus, family of
manuscripts). Because of their influence, all translations since then (from
1881 onward) have been based on the Sinaiticus / Vaticanus family.
Their
theory is essentially this: The very small Sinaiticus / Vaticanus manuscript
family should be preferred in all instances in which it conflicts with the very
large Majority Text family. It is said that the Sinaiticus / Vaticanus
family was written before the others; therefore it is more accurate.
But
we will find that this is not true.
In
this book, we are going to learn that the Sinaiticus / Vaticanus family is not
earlier; and, because that family is smaller, its excessive, mutually exclusive
variants are not as trustworthy.
In
order to properly understand the Westcott-Hort theory, we need to go back to
the first centuries after Christ’s time, when the early manuscripts were
produced.
Hort
himself grudgingly conceded, "A theoretical presumption indeed remains
that a majority of extant documents is more likely to represent a majority of
ancestral documents at each stage of transmission than vice versa."
—B.F.
Westcott and F.J.A. Hort,
THE DEVIL'S VISION
Galatians Ch. 6 verses 7 and 8. 2 Thess. 2
Verses 8-12
THE devil once said to his demons
below,
Our work is progressing entirely
too slow,
The holiness people stand in our way,
Since they don't believe in the
show or the play,
They teach that the carnival,
circus and dance,
The tavern and honkey-tonk with game of
chance,
Drinking and smoking, these things are all
wrong,
That Christians don't mix with
the ungodly throng.
They're quick to condemn everything that we
do,
To cause unbelievers to be not a
few.
They claim that these things are
all of the devil,
That Christian folk live on a
much higher level.
Now fellows, their theology while perfectly
true,
Is blocking the work we are
trying to do.
We'll have to get busy and figure a plan,
That will change their standards
as fast as we can.
Now I have a vision of what we can do,
Harken-I'll tell this deception
to you.
Then find me a wise, but
degenerate man,
Whom I can use to help work out
this plan,
There's nothing so real as the
thing you can see,
The eyes and the mind and the
heart will agree.
So what can be better than an
object to view,
I say it will work and convince not a few.
The home is the place for the
sinful device,
The people deceived will think it quite nice.
The world will possess it, most
Christians can't tell,
That it's all of the devil and was plotted in
Hell.
We'll sell them with pictures of
the latest News,
And while they're still looking
we'll advertise booze.
At the soul-damning cigarette also they'll
look,
Until they forget what God says in His Book.
At first it will shock them, they'll seem in a
daze,
But soon they'll be hardened and
continue to gaze.
We'll give them some Gospel that
is not too strong
And a few sacred songs to string
them along.
They'll take in the ads with the
latest of fashions,
And soon watch the shows that
stir evil passions.
Murder and love-making scenes they'll behold,
Until in their souls they'll be
bitterly cold.
The "old family altar"
which once held such charm,
Will soon lose its place without much alarm.
Praying in secret will also be lost,
As they look at the screen
without counting the cost,
The compromise preachers who
don't take their stand,
Will embrace this new vision and
think it is grand,
They'll help fool the people and
cause them to sin,
By seeking this evil and taking
it in.
Influence is great and this you can see,
Just look at my fall and you'll have to agree.
~. It won't take too long, my
demons to tell,
That the vision of Satan will
populate Hell.
Divorce will increase, sex crimes will abound,
Much innocent blood will be
spilled on the ground.
The home will be damned in short
order, I say,
When this vision of mine comes in to stay.
Get busy, my cohorts, and put this thing out,
We'll see if the Church will
continue to shout.
The holiness people who stand in
our way
Will soon hush their crying
against show and play,
We'll cover the earth with this devil's vision,
Though we'll camouflage it with
the name "Television."
The people will think they're getting a treat,
-till the antichrist comes and
takes over his seat,
He'll then rule the world while the viewers
behold
The face of the Beast to whom
they were sold.
We'll win through deception, this
cannot fail,
Though some holy preachers
against it will rail.
anon
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