A New Earth: Chapter Five

I find it difficult to continue to read this book - there are so many untruths about Christ and christianity that I can hardly go on.
(new Pages have been added)

Page 129 Tolle refers to the voice in his head again. I’m beginning to think this guy is schizoid. He also refers to karma on this page, which is a Buddhist/Hinduistic term. There is no such thing as karma in Christianity.

Page 130 Nothing of consequence.

Page 131 Tolle writes about ‘phonies.’ Is this a subliminal fear that Oprah has? Is she afraid of her work being ‘superficial?’

Tolle talks about modern people ‘always trying to get home, but never reach it.’ Perhaps if Tolle and his readers were to read John 14, they might suddenly find it!

Tolle writes about modern writers writing about the modern human dilemma, but never offering a solution. He doesn’t seem to understand that this comes about because most of them lacked faith.

Page 132 Tolle expresses emotions in a holistic sense. His material on this page could have been written from a manual of the Christian Scientists.

Page 133 Tolle refers to Gaia…the complex being that is planet earth. This is definitely New Age stuff.

Refers to primordial fear and anger…fight or flight…nothing new here.

Tolle suggest that emotion is the body’s respond to thought. An inward reaction to an outward circumstance.

Page 134 Tolle suggests that toxic energy in our system is built up through anxious thoughts. This is New Age hooey. There is no scientific evidence for any of this. Tolle is waffling here and wallowing in his own thoughts. Is he suffering from the same self-promulgated narcissism that he talks about through like his own suppositions and thoughts, rather than the ones he can actually prove?

Page 135 The voice in the head tells the story that the body believes…this is what he calls emotional storytelling. Is Tolle making a negative inference about the Church and its teaching?

“Life always lets you down”…is this a great part of Tolle’s personal reality?

He talks about self-esteem being low…is he empathizing with his women readers????

Page 136 Tolle lists a whole lot of negative qualities/experiences and claims that they all disrupt the energy flow through the body, heart, and immune system. Almost same kind of list of sins against the Spirit. Galatians.

All negative emotions equals unhappiness to Tolle. But is a lack of happiness really unhappiness?

Page 137 Love is a possessiveness and addiction that can turn to hatred…is Tolle reaching out to his readers who have bad relationships???? Clever, very clever…

There is not good without bad, no high without low. This is dualism, which is not Christian. God is good – He was when bad did not exist, and He will continue to be when bad ceases to exist.

States of Being positively emanate from love joy, peace…Tolle almost lists the fruits of the Spirit found in Galatians.

Page 138 We are a species that has lost its way…which is why Jesus came into the world – to show us the way back through Him.

Page 139 the present moment is where we find power…the experience of now. This is Buddhist teaching. In Christianity, the only real now is God…I AM WHO I AM. Tolle is once again displacing God for our own existential experience.

Relates story about two monks – Tanzan and Ekido. Old story…good point.

Page 140 memories become our emotional prisons. If we don’t let go of the past, our past won’t let go of us. Is Tolle talking about the past, or is he surreptitiously meaning ‘tradition?’

We hang on to our old emotions and they become our identity…which is why Christ invites us to come to Him…to liberate us from the past and find our new identity in Him.

Page 141 …nothing ever happened in the past etc….this is sophistry. He’s trying to sound clever, but as Ecclesiastes might say…it’s just vanity.

Tolle talks about children growing up with negative emotions…he’s linking to mothers who worry about their kids…clever reader prospecting here.

Page 142…nobody can go through childhood without suffering emotional pain. This is true.

Remnants of pain and negative emotion forms an energy field…this is Star Trekking again. Perhaps Tolle has accumulated most of his ideas through the imagination of Gene Roddenberry.

Page 143 … the collective pain-body is probably encoded within every human’s DNA…although it hasn’t been discovered yet….WOW! This is mythical, NEW AGE stuff…

Emotional pain-body is carried by every new born….is Tolle equating this with original sin??? Human pain…isn’t this what we Christians call separation or alienation from God?

People with pain bodies are better equipped to awaken spiritually…clever, Tolle, clever. He’s sympathizing with his readers.

Page 144…WOW! Tolle refers to Jesus as CHRIST. …with regard to His suffering…Tolle sees Christ as the archetypal human, embodying pain and the possibility of transcendence. In other words, Tolle is equating Christ’s pain with our own and nothing more. There’s no sacrifice for the world to redeem it for God.

Pain body is a semi-autonomous energy form…this is absolute baloney…talks about this needing to be fed…and vibrating at a certain frequency. This is some wild stuff, although some forms of Buddhism talk about vibrations drawing forth dark evil forces…

Page 145 The pain body is an addiction to unhappiness…misery loves company??

Pain body, negativity, and depression…is Tolle relating to a lot of women???

Page 146: Pain body feeds on thought energy…thoughts operate and vibrate at a higher frequency…there is no scientific evidence of this. This sounds like something from Reno:The Excutioner stories…

Page 147: A lot of this page is like an episode of Deep Space Nine where a character (Jake) is taken over by the MUSE.

Voice in head tells sad, anxious or angry stories about self, other people, and situations…This is schizoid…this makes me very wary about Tolle and his own mental stability.

Pain body devours negative thoughts…this is absolute garbage…

Page 148 Pain body – a psychic parasite….emotional vampirism.

Pain body pushes other people’s buttons…in other words, no responsibility…I can hear it now: It wasn’t me, it was my pain body that did it!

Tolle lays on a guilt trip for unstable parents when he writes about millions of children going through upheaval because of their parents’ agitated pain bodies…This guy piles on guilt like an old Irish priest, which is a method of gaining control. If Tolle can make his readers feel guilty, then he can also hold out the carrot of absolution, salvation, etc…

Page 149: Pain body is the reason for alcoholism and violence in men…The person who is talking and making promises, however, is not the entity that commits the violence…This is transference. Tolle is condoning violence by suggesting it is not a personal choice but an activation of the pain body…

People think they fall in love, but actually their pain-bodies compliment each other…Tolle must have had some bad relationship experiences. This sounds more like sour grapes to me.

Page 150: Pain bodies keep dormant and then jump into action when triggered….Tolle writes a stereotypical page about honeymoon arguments. This is not good psychology…this is pseudo-psychology…Tolle appears to blame all conflicts on pain bodies, instead of blaming it on people themselves.

Page 151: Pain body distorts reality with fear, hostility, and anger…blinded by emotions. All of a sudden the person you love has a different face…the pain-body has taken possession. Choose someone as your partner whose pain body is not excessively dense.???

The only excessively dense people are the ones who think this book will transform them.

(Still to be finalized)

A New Earth - Part 4

(Continuing a page by page critique of Tolle's book "A New Earth.")

This chapter is long and tedious - I'll post the critique in stages...honestly folks, there's only so much of this stuff that I can take in...

P85: Tolle refers to the ego as psychic energy – that will please some New Agers.
The ego does not seek the formless attention which is presence – Buddhism.

P86 Tolle writes about the fear of not being good enough. Paul would talk about this as falling short of God’s glory.

He also writes about the ego’s constant need of feeling superior – so why does this book attack and dismiss religion, especially the church?

P87 Eckhart writes about children wanting attention – he’s writing to his readership. Very clever. He’s identifying with their identity – which goes against what he is supposed to be proclaiming.

Talks about victimization which leads to complaining, being offended, and outraged. Somehow I get the feeling he is going to strap this one onto the Church.

P88 – Complainers feel they are being treated unfairly by life, fate, or God – this is interesting. Perhaps Tolle should have quoted some psalms of complaint, or verses from the Book of Job.

Talks about role play in relationships and how partnerships fail – this makes me wonder about Tolle’s failed relationships – is he making general observations, or is this coming from his own egoic experiences?

P89 Finishes with absurd argument about the Spanish form of “te quiero”, as opposed to “te amo”. True love is rare according to Tolle…in his life?

He suggests that Jesus saw the ultimate irrelevance of caste or social class – so how does this explain Jesus saying that soldiers should not complain about their pay, or how people should pay their taxes to Caesar, etc.

People are confused about who they are and how they fit in today’s world – this is true…but it always has been.

P90 Tolle rambles on about confusion and comes up with the idea that if we accept that we don’t know who we are, we will find peace – this is sophistry – it sounds mysterious and enlightened, but it’s really just a delusion. It kind of reminds me about a James Thurber story…

Tolle says our roles are unimportant and we should resist becoming identified with this – what about doctors, surgeons, paramedics, etc…what about Oprah? Talk show host?

P91 Don’t take ourselves seriously, if we want to be free of our roles. Which begs the question: if you are seriously ill, do you want a surgeon who is serious about his skills, or one that couldn’t care less?

Tolle insists that authentic human relationships can exist when we adopt role identities. Yes they can…doctor – patient, teacher – student; shopkeeper – customer…

Social archetypes…Tolle uses these to connect with his readers…which is another relationship…writer – readers!

P92 Playing roles leads to less spontaneity, light-heartedness, and joy – (Tolle is hitting upon the main heartfelt wishes of housewives…)

Talks about hippies as refusing to play stereotypical roles…but they became rebels…Talks about collective insanity of 1950s society…but wasn’t the hippie movement based upon insane collectives??? (Charles Manson…) Hippie movement degenerates because they had to feed their drug ridden habits…Eastern wisdom introduced by hippy culture…but it was mainly the Beatles who did that.

P93 We speak to people in different ways – Tolle suggests this is inauthentic….but most of the situations are perfectly natural. He suggests that we are playing roles, but he misses the point: we are communicating and sometimes deference to someone in authority is the only way to accomplish this.

P94 Tolle suggests that we are not relating to people when we play roles; here’ a key question: how is Tolle writing/relating to his readers???? Is it inauthentic?

A lot of what Tolle is teaching in the part of the chapter is borrowed from Martin Buber’s I-Thou theories.

He tells the tale of Kasan’s sweaty palms, in deference to his superiors. In the end though, Kasan still becomes master to his students…

P95 “Just Fine” – a lot of people live in denial with their unhappiness…true.

Tolle writes that unhappiness has nothing to do with who you are. This is absurd. Unhappiness has everything to do with how you feel, therefore it has everything to do with who you are at any given time.

P96 Separate yourself from unhappy thoughts – this is a bit like Tinkerbelle in Peter Pan.

Don’t seek happiness – if you do, you wont’ find it. This is Tolle’s opinion…What does he think about the Declaration of Independence…life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness…

P97 Tolle writes about parents and their roles. He’s reaching out to mothers stuck in their role…this is very clever targeting.

Tolle cautions parents about being overbearing and controlling…this obstructs kids from exploring and finding out for themselves. But parenting is about setting safe boundaries, as well as ethical ones for our children.

P98 Role of parent can become compulsive and ruins relationship with child. This section makes me wonder if Tolle has ever been a parent. Is he speaking from theory or practice?

The ego motivates itself to enhance itself and look after its self interest. This used to be called ambition. Is Oprah not one of the most ambitious women in the world?

P99 Tolle writes about manipulative parents using guilt trips to get what they want. Did Tolle have a bad childhood?
Awareness is the greatest agent for change – but change for what?

He also suggests that egoic patterns miraculously dissolve when you don’t oppose them. What does he mean by miraculous?
P100 Tolle describes the generational conflict between parent & child. He writes about old thoughts and old ways…is he subtly using this as a continuing argument of breaking from the past?

A New Earth - Part 3

Continuing the page by page critique of Eckhart Tolle's book "A New Earth." Why Christians should be aware of the heretical implications of Tolle's message.

P 59: Tolle identifies the egoic mind with the inner voice we use for thinking and reading. Funny how this is a bad thing and yet it is absolutely necessary to read his book.

He tries to make thinking out to be something un-natural which possesses us, stopping us from being ‘aware.’ This unconsciousness (Jung) blocks out the true spiritual awareness. Hans Christian Andersen could have written a better plot.

P60: Tolle tries to separate ourselves from the I (ego) that we are. He insists that we are not the “I” that we refer to in the first person. This will dissolve any personal responsibility for mistakes that we make. If we are separate from the egoic “I,” then how can we be held accountable?

This egoic “I” is the source for us being opinionated – Tolle is doing 2 things here: he’s trying to diminish other opinions and secondly, he is expressing his own opinion! This gets crazier and crazier. Instead of “A New Earth”, he should have called his book, “A New Wonderland for Alice.”

Egos deep down are all the same – this echoes some Jungian psychology.

“Others are most other when I see them as my enemies” – Tolle has just dismissed his opposition in egoic terms…

P61: He quotes Christ’s lesson about the speck and log in the eye, equating Christ’s message with Tolle’s philosophy. Jesus is talking about hypocrisy, not opposition. (Matthew 7:3-5).

Tolle writes that name calling is the crudest form of labeling and the ego’s need to be right…and yet he is going to use this process when condemning religion, especially Christianity.

P62 Tolle gets it right when he talks about resentment – it does cause bitterness and offense.

Focusing on other’s faults only amplifies resentment – also true.

Tolle proscribe a ‘state of nonreaction’ to overcome dysfunction of resentment – Buddhist & Christian teaching.

P63: Nonreaction equals forgiveness in Tolle’s book – but forgiveness is a very proactive event. He sees it as a means of not reacting to the injury, insult, or offense. But that is being passive, not forgiving.

P64: Tolle urges his readers to try to catch the voice inside their heads and suddenly realize that you are not the voice. But you can no more separate the voice from self as you can the heart from the body. Is Tolle schizoid?? Also, by disassociating oneself from the “voice in the head” you once again avoid any responsibility for wrong thinking, wrong choices, and wrong deeds.

The old mind pattern is the ego…the new one is awareness.

P65: People can become addicted to resentment and anger as other are to a drug. This is absolutely true. Ask marriage guidance counselors…

Collective grievances can survive for centuries and fuel cycle of violence…this is true, but is Tolle going to use this against the institutionalized church?

Grievances contaminate other areas of life. Tolle is making some very good psychological points here.

P66: Tolle writes that Christ’s teaching to “Forgive your Enemies” is about undoing the egoic structure in the mind. This is bunkum! Jesus was relating to His culture and the hatred that His people espoused against the Gentiles, and in particular, the Roman occupiers of Judea.

P67: Tolle suggests that when we complain we are egoically implying that we are right and someone else is wrong – this is too general…usually we complain when something is wrong, not necessarily someone.

Being right makes us morally superior and highly judgmental. Tolle does not therefore seem to believe in boundaries, which makes his philosophy morally ambivalent or even amoral. He’s going to develop this argument of being morally superior against the boundaries and standards set by the Church.

P 68: ‘Ego takes everything personally.’ – Amen, so why do Tolle and Oprah get so defensive about their new earth philosophy? Why are their followers so visceral in their attacks?

The truth needs no defense – yet Tolle is not going to accept that Christ is the Truth.

P 69: ‘Only through awareness are you able to see’ – yet you need to think through to that awareness level. If it was all natural as Tolle suggests, you wouldn’t need a book to describe the process.

‘I am right and you are wrong is a dangerous thing in personal relationships’ – this may have been Tolle’s partnership experience, but a healthy marriage is willing to compromise and let each partner be right at different times.

Tolle is advocating his no boundaries, no absolutes again…calling right a mental dysfunction. He then starts to talk about moral relativism seen as a great evil by Christian teachings…but he never finishes the thought.

P70: Tolle begins to question, attack and diminish the Church. He talks about people being killed in the past – yet we’re more enlightened today. He talks about the truth being a story you had to believe in – he is calling the Gospel a story, rather than the word of God.

He suggests that we cannot find absolute truth in doctrines, ideologies, sets of rules or stories…in other words the Bible, ten commandments, the Gospels and teachings of the Church.

“All religions are equally false and equally true, depending how you use them” – this is universalism…in other words, anything goes.

P71: To believe in your religion as the truth is to use it to build up your ego and make yourself superior. He’s missed the point entirely. Believing in Christ’s words is to worship God faithfully.

There is one absolute truth according to Tolle, but it is not Jesus Christ.

The truth is inseparable from who you are. Yes, you are the truth. This is new Age narcissism. It points us away from Christ and puts ourselves in the place of God This is exactly why Christians should not embrace the teachings of this book.

Tolle even suggests that this is what Christ was teaching when He said “I am the way and the truth and the life.” He’s making Jesus conform to his philosophy. This truth is about the I Am within us all according to Tolle. THIS IS ABSOLUTELY WRONG!

Jesus was referring to the way in which people come to God. Again Tolle only half quotes the verse:

John 14:6 Jesus answered, "I am the way and the truth and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me.

It’s about the exclusivity of Christ being the True way to God, not an inner awareness of our own existence.

P72: Love is above the Law, etc…this is true. Quotes Augustine, who is referring to 1 John.

He writes about both sides believing to be in possession of the truth – which is egoic. But Tolle, Oprah, and their followers do this all of the time…not practicing what they preach.

P 73: Talks about religious and ideological conflicts inflicting suffering upon humanity, ‘even on children.’

Them and us mentality = insanity to Tolle. Normal equals insane on planet earth…this is Tolle’s opinion. (Did someone steal his candy when he was a baby????)

Sin is insanity, thus there is no accountability. John & Augustine however would agree, “If we claim to be without sin, we deceive ourselves and the truth is not in us.” 1 John 1:8

P74: TYPICAL NEW AGE STATEMENT: our common divinity is rooted in the one Life – in other words, we are all gods.

Mission to eradicate evil – you are likely to turn into what you are fighting against…the story of Dune comes to mind again…Paul.

P75: Whatever you fight, you strengthen, and whatever you resist, persists. Psychology of addiction. Also echoes Paul’s own words - Romans 7:19 For what I do is not the good I want to do; no, the evil I do not want to do-this I keep on doing.

The war against – Tolle : I know that it is condemned to failure…Tolle applying his egoic mind…believe me, I know, etc…he going against his own philosophy again. Being judgmental before issue is experienced.

P 75/76: Tolle talks about diseases re-emerging and new ones evolving because of modern day medicine. He goes on to say that Homeopathy and Chinese medicine do not create new diseases…this is his opinion and not based upon facts at all.

Ego is a collective dysfunction, the insanity of the human mind. Once again, no responsibility for our actions. Tolle than states that “Nobody is wrong.” – this is moral relativism – so Hitler wasn’t wrong when he gassed 6 million Jews?? This is a dangerous, fascist type of philosophy that could go horribly wrong if adapted and adopted by our society – which is why the Church needs to counter it.

P77: Tolle talks about the enormous surge moving through during times of fear, anger or hostility. This is ego…but it is also adrenalin!

Can you feel something within you driving this fear or hostility?

P78: Presence will overcome ego and bring about peace. Awareness is the power concealed in the present moment. This is Buddhist teaching.

Ultimate purpose of human existence is to bring that awareness/presence into the world. This leaves it to us to take the initiative, instead of allowing God to usher in his presence and Kingdom. It also makes us the ones who bring salvation into the world, instead of Christ. THIS IS WHY THIS TEACHING IS HERETICAL.

P79: Tolle uses Jesus again to strengthen his argument. He quotes Christ’s saying “Deny Thyself,” but once again Tolle half quotes the statement. Tolle uses Christ’s words to deny ego and find awareness. Christ uses His own words to have people deny themselves and follow Him. It’s about sacrificial discipleship, not spiritual navel gazing.

Matthew 16:24 Then Jesus said to his disciples, "If anyone would come after me, he must deny himself and take up his cross and follow me.

Tolle calls the essential beingness the “I Am that I Am” – this is blasphemy. Whether he intends it or not, Tolle is equating himself and devotees with God – this is the sacred name of God.

Exodus 3:14 And God said unto Moses, I AM THAT I AM : and he said, Thus shalt thou say unto the children of Israel, I AM hath sent me unto you.

Tolle writes about the phantom self that comes into existence when thought takes over. I think he is drinking to much kool aid and watching too many episodes of Star Trek here.

P80: Ego uses people to get what it wants – underlying emotion that governs ego is fear – the fear of being nobody, nonexistence and of death. I get the funny feeling that Tolle is going to use this line of argument against Church control.

“Only the truth of who you are, if realized, will set you free.” – This goes against Christ’s own statement, only the truth will set you free meaning Himself. (When talking to the Jews about His teaching)

John 8:31-32 To the Jews who had believed him, Jesus said, "If you hold to my teaching, you are really my disciples. Then you will know the truth, and the truth will set you free."

P81: DANGER: ALL STRUCTURES ARE UNSTABLE - a sutra – Buddhist word for sacred lesson – but this is also anti-disestablishmentarianism

Tolle equates formlessness – NIRVANA – with Jesus’ teaching on eternal life. But this is what Christ Himself had to say: John 17:3 Now this is eternal life: that they may know you, the only true God, and Jesus Christ, whom you have sent. Faith and devotion to God in Jesus Christ is the key to eternal life, not Tolle’s formlessness.

P82: Tolle talks about the egoic superiority that people feel when they pass on gossip. This is true.
P83: This page may contain why the book is so appealing to Oprah – the bane of being famous…people believe that through celebrities and famous personalities, they can become more than what they are. It’s called idolization in the Bible.

Famous people become more alienated from themselves and others – also become more unhappy and more dependent on their popularity – is Tolle speaking to Oprah here????

Calls Albert Einstein superhuman and humble…does Tolle idolize Einstein here…like everyone else, Einstein was quite conceited…and Einstein’s fame was based upon his thinking…seems like an unusual choice for Tolle to make, because his book seems to want to avoid thinking altogether.

P84: Genuine relationship – outward flow of open, alert attention with no wanting in between. Tolle is describing what Martin Buber called “I-Thou” relationship.

Egoic relationships are predominantly – wanting, thwarted wanting and indifference. Gluttony, lust and sloth – three of the seven deadly sins.

A New Earth - Part 2

A New Earth - Part 2

Continuing a page by page critique of Eckhart Tolle's book "A New Earth", which Oprah is promoting. Christians should be aware of the unChristian theology and heresy that is being presented throughout this book.

A New Earth: Critique on Chapter Two

Page 25: Tolle suggests that words are mere labels, and totally ineffective when it comes to knowing something truly. It fascinates me that Tolle insists in using words to describe this. I think he is beginning to use this for a later argument that the words we use to label God are useless because God is totally unknowable.

We know something of this from scripture: God’s ways are mysterious, yet because His thoughts and ways are not our own, He uses scriptural words and sacred history to reveal Himself to us. Tolle also forgets that God (Genesis 2) gives man the gift of naming animals, thus the source of these ‘labels” comes from God.

Tolle is using this line of argument to show us that there can be no absolutes, i.e. we only know the tip of the iceberg, so therefore we cannot be certain of anything.

Page 26: Tolle talks about the Source of all life (this is an oblique form of Deism), however he then talks about objects pointing back to this Source, to God, to yourself. This is new Age stuff…of equating ourselves with God ( which, BTW, was the original sin in the Garden of Eden).

Talks about essence being communicate from all types of objects. Tolle should perhaps read Isaiah 46!

Uses an illustration of Van Gogh feeling the Beingness of the Chair in his painting…but the painting is about VG’s genius and artistic talent, not the chair!

Tolle talks about us becoming obsessed by thoughts and words, and losing our transformational spirituality in the process…but the intricacy of our language is what makes us distinctly human!

Talks about our essential self, which can only be discovered if we disentangle ourselves from all labels and images….this sounds very like Buddhism.

Page 27: Tolle insists that labels make us shallow; we may know words but lose wisdom. This is absurd. Almost all of human wisdom has been saved with words. Without the words of previous generations, we would have lost wisdom! E.g. Renaissance occurs when Greek literature is rediscovered.
We also establish relationships with others through the knowing of our names.

Tolle is beginning to say that we are imprisoned by words…he’s going to use this as a means for rejecting scripture. He also says that the human mind does not amount to much…as compared to the mind of God perhaps, but to other planetary species, the human mind is amazing.

Tolle starts to talk about the “primordial error,” which is too much of a focus on “I.” This is what we would call original sin.

Page 28: Tolle quotes Einstein and follows his thoughts upon being isolated from the whole of existence – that we are aware of everything around us as part of an optical illusion of consciousness. But the writer of Psalm 8 went there before Einstein and Tolle – “when I consider that stars & the heavens, the works of your fingers, what am I…?” It’s called ontology – why do we exist?

Tolle suggests that everything is an illusion and that when we recognize this, the illusion will cease to exist. This is classic Buddhism – Nirvana
Paul however would suggest that now we see through a glass darkly, but then face-to-face…the illusion will not dissolve, but that which we poorly see will become more real. Calvin talks about this with regard to sunflowers – people look at them and see the glory of the flowers, but they forget to look above and see the actual sun!

Tolle continues to insist that using the book will lead to enlightenment – I can hear Obi wan Kenobi saying it: “Use the Book, Luke!”

Tolle suggests that when we use the word “I” we are not talking about ourselves – then who are we talking about? This could have moral consequences of personal disassociation e.g. George Washington: I cannot tell a lie, father. It was I (but not really who I am)????

Page 29: Tolle begins to talk about the I-thought as something separate from ourselves. This may be something similar to Martin Buber’s teaching in I-Thou.

Tolle states that we built up our identities through the things we claim as our own. This is called materialism. Jesus would teach against this as follows: “Where your heart is, there your treasure lies.”

He talks about our I-dentity as being precariously bundled together to form an illusory sense of self. But this is not precarious at all; all of this is natural.

Page 30: Tolle talks about a new awakening, a deeper sense of “I” – this is self-centered spirituality, which once again displaces God for ourselves.

Talks about materialistic “I” superseding the deeply, spiritual “I.” There is almost something Jungian in this. Thought begins to possess the mind, heart, and soul. The “I” takes over everything – Greek Orthodox mysticism has something similar – the eo?

Tolle writes about the process of dis-identifying from your thoughts. Instead of being thought-entangled, you experience peace. This is Buddhism, compartmentalism, or border-line schizophrenia. I’m beginning to wonder if Tolle suffers from this.

Pages 30-33: After arguing against being identified with the ego “I,” Tolle then proceeds to give an autobiographical account of an event in his life…isn’t he arguing against himself here?????

Page 33: Tolle writes about experiencing a detachment from his mind. “Life isn’t as serious as my mind makes it out to be.”

Jesus would say: Come to me, all of you who are burden and rest in me.”

Tolle talks about three years of anxiety, depression, and suicidal tendencies….uh oh! He becomes free of compulsive thinking and of the false, mind-made I. This could be psychologically serious, folks.

Page 34: Tolle doubts the absolute validity of the human intellect – here it comes: there are no absolutes. Thinking is only a tiny aspect of the consciousness that we are…???? And yet, isn’t Tolle using his tiny thinking capacity to write this book?

Egoic mind conditioned by the past – subtle implication that if religion drives the mind, then it is out-dated too.
Page 35: The mind unconsciously wants to identify with something other than itself – whereas Christians would say that we strive for completion, but will only find it when we discover God.

Tolle writes that people do perceive the success of themselves through the objects they possess. True.

Page 36: We buy things to enhance our identity – build our esteem…true. The egoic mind unconsciously wants to identify with structure (Tolle will use this to reject institutionalized religion).

Ego-satisfaction is short lived – keep looking for more, something better: but couldn’t the same be said for Tolle’s followers? Aren’t they looking for something better than the past? Is it the novelty of this philosophy that is driving millions towards it? He’s arguing against himself.

Page 37: Each thing has beingness and origin in the formless one Life – Buddhism. Again, read Isaiah 46, Tolle.

Most people don’t inhabit a living reality, but a conceptualized one. This is Buddhism – why doesn’t he call it this?

The unchecked striving for more, for endless growth is a dysfunction and a disease. Anti-materialistic. Also Hinduism. Christians would call this the sin of avarice and greed.

Pages 38-41: Tolle’s first person story about the Lost Ring. Letting go of the things we possess, or that posses us.

Page 40: Tolle now calls beingness “I AM-ness” This is highly controversial. “I AM” is the sacred Name of God. Tolle is discarding God for himself. Christians should understand what is happening here. God is being replaced totally. Instead of being Christo-centric, Tolle is, funnily enough, urging his readers to become ego-centric!

Page 41: Life will give you whatever experience is most helpful for the evolution of your consciousness…Paul would say that troubles lead to endurance, and in turn to faith in Christ. Tolle is advocating that our life experiences are meant to give us a higher spirituality, whereas, for the Christian, we go through experiences to lead us closer to Christ. It’s not about us; it’s about glorifying Jesus.

Page 42: Tolle insists that the ego isn’t wrong: it’s just unconscious. He is absolving us from accountability and responsibility for our sins. We’re all absolved from our greed…this isn’t Christian. This is self-centered pandering to our pride which doesn’t want to be humbled by any divine absolutes.

Page 43: Tolle suggests that on our death bed everything falls away and that no thing has anything to do with who we are/were. However, to Christians, this is not true. It’s what we do with what we have that is very important to who we are to God. NB – Christ’s Parable of the Hidden Talents.

Tolle again quotes Jesus and insists that the poor in spirit are those with no internal baggage, no “identifications.” Once again he is twisting Christ’s words to suit his theory. When Jesus mentions the poor in spirit he is referring to those who are spiritually poor and sincerely faithful – it’s nothing to do with what Tolle alludes. He also describes the kingdom of heaven as being the “simple but profound joy of Being” – this is so trite and diminishes what Christ means by the Kingdom of God – once again it’s not about us or our existence, it’s about God.

Page 44: Tolle states that the egoic mind patter sees itself as right and others wrong. He is trying to disarm his opponents, whilst at the same time bolstering his followers with the old argument of “they’re out to get us” type of cult mentality.

Mentions absurdity of land ownership & talks of the “white” settlement – isn’t this racist? Also, how much “land” does Oprah possess? And what about Tolle himself with the success of his books? Is this a barb of land-envy, or will it lead to a one world, one belief, one path viewpoint?

Page 45: Ego = the more I have, the more I am…Oprah: the more I have, the less I need to believe in God????

Collective delusion and chasing after things…anti-materialism, Buddhist??? Christian vow of poverty???

Page 46: “I am the awareness that is aware…” ego-centric theism. Tolle should read Daniel 4 – Nebuchadnezzar’s awareness story….

I don’t have enough yet…= I am not enough yet. Parallel with Christ’s parable about the successful farmer who wants to build bigger barns.

Ownership is a fiction – delusion which is Buddhist. However, you could argue Psalm 24…”the earth is the Lord’s and all that is contained therein”

Greed is an addictive need – but people like Tolle can also be spiritually greedy – I want more than Christ can give me…

Page 47: Tolle has a few good paragraphs about bulimia – is he trying to connect with women who have eating disorders? Is this a sincere example or a way of exploiting the problems of his readers????

Unfulfilled wanting leads to unease, restlessness, boredom, anxiety, and dissatisfaction. Paul would counter these with the fruits of the Spirit from Galatians.

Page 48: Tolle rants against the large corporations which is ironic because his patron, Oprah, has managed to market herself into becoming a corporation….

He talks about the egoic structures never satisfying you…will he transfer this onto the Church???

Page 49: gender = identity: fulfilling our gender identity is the means of fulfilling our lives. Talks about good looks, strength, and appearance…and how we have become obsessed with such. Appealing to his readers and the pressure they put themselves under????

Page 50: Talks about Bulimia and anorexia addicts having egoic dysfunction…healing can only come from within. Self transformation.

Tolle starts to express his view of the body not being important…this is both Buddhist and Gnostic.

Page 51: As the body weakens, the light of consciousness begins to shine – Buddhism and Gnosticism again. Also Hinduism. Whereas Christianity – the resurrection of the Body.

When ego finds an identity, it doesn’t want to let it go…same could be said about Tolle’s philosophy & Oprahism.
Page 52: You can go beyond body-identification – this is classic Gnosticism

Body is just an appearance – our outer forms are intensely alive energy fields. Too much Star Trek here…NB genesis – we have the breath of God within us…not on the outside.

Tolle does the hand imagining thing…Sci Fi writer Frank Herbert wrote about this in Dune decades ago. Tolle is borrowing from Herbert!

Page 53: Inner body & life energy are the same. When we are in touch with the inner body, we move away from form…we are no longer imprisoned by the body ( Gnotsicism). This awareness strengthens our immune system…this is dangerous for anyone who is seriously ill. Also, this is like theories practiced by Church Scientists.

Ego causes us to lose ourselves…Christ asks us to lose ourselves in order to find God.

Page 54: Tolle talks about other forms of consciousness – but there is no scientific data for this…it’s his ideas, something similar to what Uri Geller described about 20 years ago talking about Brahams.

Page 55: Tolle talks about Descartes “I think, therefore I am.” If there were nothing but thought in you, you wouldn’t even know you are thinking…C.S. Lewis writes something similar in either mere Christianity or the Problem with Pain.

An emerging new dimension of consciousness…but how can it be new if it is already there????

Page 56: Tolle ends the chapter with a discourse on peace – an elusive, ethereal, transformational peace. He backs up his opinion by quoting Paul, but he only half quotes the verse (Philippians 4:7)…Tolle calls this transformation a peace that passes all understanding, using Paul’s words, but what he deliberately cuts from the verse is the following phrase…the peace of God which passes all understanding…will guard your hearts and minds in Christ Jesus!...in other words, Paul is talking about a peace that leads us to Christ, not Tolle’s transformation consciousness! This is one of the worst usages of scriptures in the book.

Page 57: Spirit is released from the its imprisonment through death….Buddhism & Gnosticism together. This leads us to this great self-awareness, this I AMness which is the peace of God. But this is not what Paul states…this peace of God can only be found in Jesus Christ.

Talks about the old ego becoming contracted, more rigid, impenetrable, bitter and resentful. He’s laying the groundwork for identifying Church and Christianity with this ego. Clever move by Tolle.

Page 58: Resistance means you are closed to the transformation and that the universe will not be on your side. Has Tolle suddenly become God? How does he know what the universe will or won’t do?????

Starts to talk about creative intelligence…is this back door theism/ Deism????

You rest in God when you surrender. God = peace. There is no need for confession or conviction, judgment or absolution – just the right transformational awareness. For Tolle, this is the equivalent of being justified through faith…but not faith in Christ, faith in our own awareness, beingness, and I AMness.

A New Earth - Part 3

A New Earth - Part 1

Oprah is pitching a new book called "A New Earth" by Eckhart Tolle. Her advocacy is causing millions of viewers to buy into Tolle's philosophy. He presents his ideas as a necessary spiritual transformation that will take place this century, whether we like it or not. He also uses the Bible and teachings of Jesus to validate his points.

But Tolle's book is not Christianity and in many ways, it opposes Christ's teaching, diminishes His divinity, and replaces God with our spiritual selves. Our church is studying the book on Monday nights and Sunday mornings. This blog will reflect the teaching that Tolle presents and how it differs from actual Christian beliefs. I hope that readers of the blog will use these page by page reflections as a means to teach their own people about this new movement.

Chapter One

Page 1: Tolle begins with his opinion about what happened on earth 114 million years ago. Obviously because he wasn’t there, this is just his fanciful opinion. This sets the tone for the whole book: he is making up his own reality about the world.

Tolle suggests that there was no perceiving consciousness to witness the flowering of the world: in other words, God was not there and doesn’t seem to exist for Tolle.

Page 2: Tolle writes that flowers were the first things that human beings were drawn and fascinated to, outside of themselves – but where did that facility to be fascinated originate? From the flowers? From human beings? Or endowed by the Creator in our DNA?

He also states that Jesus told us to contemplate the flowers and learn from them how to live. When Jesus taught His “Consider the Lilies” lesson, He was using it to express our dependency on the providence and mercy of God. The parable is not about us – it’s about God.

(Note: Tolle will often use Christ’s teachings to express his own opinions, and not those of Jesus Himself.)

Flowers lead us to an appreciation of our own inner beauty. This will be a common theme throughout the book. This is spiritual narcissism – the love of ourselves as the source of our spirituality. This seriously opposes our love, wonder, and fascination with God.

Page 3: Flowers are messengers from another realm…and fragrance comes from the realm of the spirit. This sounds like New Age stuff.

He widens the conventional accepted meaning of ‘enlightenment’ to incorporate his own ideas…and yet his teaching is unconventional.

Tolle: enlightenment brings about discontinuity with the old, helping us leap beyond the past into experiencing a new evolved level of Being and Self Awareness .

Christian teaching ( Calvin) would suggest that enlighten is the process by which we are over-awed with the wonder of God and attracted to Him. Tolle is substituting our own self-awareness in place of becoming truly aware of God.

Page 4: Tolle talks about One Life, One Consciousness. This is not original. This is more Jungian (Carl Jung) than Tollian.

Tolle emphasizes “Presence” – Hebrews would call this shekinah – the glory of God, the sacredness of His presence. Tolle believes that we recognize this Presence within us and love it as ourselves. Once again, God is being displaced in favor of narcissism.

Page 5: Mainly deals with enlightenment in a Buddhist way of thinking.

Tolle states that the Holy Spirit is preparing the ground for a planetary shift of consciousness. This is very serious because this is blasphemy. The purpose of the Holy Spirit is to reveal Christ to the world, not to bring about an evolutionary consciousness.

Page 6: Tolle references Jesus as a great teacher and messenger. He will very rarely use the term Christ and never refer to Jesus as the Son of God.

Tolle also infers that Christ’s ministry was a failure because of the opposition to Him. His teachings did not transform many lives…and yet there are about 2 billion followers of Christ in today’s world.

Tolle describes his book as a ‘transformational device’ => he is trying to canonize his own text.

Reading the book will transform you….this is a frequent mantra in the book. Subliminal message and auto suggestion…also known as brainwashing.

Page 7: This book is about you. Tolle stroking the ego of his readers to gain their patronage and appreciation. Narcissism. In contrast, the Bible is not about you…it’s about God.

Tolle states that the book can only awaken those who are ready….this is the old Emperor’s New Clothes argument.

Begins to write about ego – becoming Freudian and will start to apply pseudo-psychology here.

Tolle states that the ego tricks the mind into identifying with it with no flexibility…this is going to morph into an argument against absolutes and Truth.

Page 8: Author suggests that when we triumph over ego, we become the light of consciousness – in other words, we are the light that we are looking for.

In contrast, Jesus would say that we are the Light of the world and that he is the Light we are looking for.

Tolle begins to reference religions as ancient…by implication, he is suggesting that they are outdated, instead of timelessly relevant.

He also begins to reference his idea that sin is a madness, a dysfunction of who we truly are.

Page 9: Equates sin with dysfunction => it is not a selfish choice.

He also interprets the NT Greek word “sin” as something that means missing the point of our human existence. This shows his shallowness of New Testament knowledge. The word for sin actually means to miss the mark – standard or expectation – that God has set for us. It’s not about our human existence; it’s about disappointing God.

Page 10: SIN = MADNESS…which will mean that we are not personally accountable for our sinful actions. This is New Age Narcissism.

Tolle begins the old argument that religion breeds violence and conflicts.

Page 11: Talks about the horrors of Stalin, Hitler and Pol Phot – Agreed. He also emphasizes the environmental wreckage of the planet that is brought about by our greed.

Page 12: Fear, greed, and the desire for power are the psychological forces that cause most conflicts. Tolle believes that they cause a misconception and distortion of our true human perception.

Dysfunction entirely replaces sin. Tolle suggests that we cannot get rid of this dysfunction without a shift in our consciousness. This means that there is no room for Christ as our Savior.

Page 13: We cannot be good by trying to be good; we can only do this by finding the good within ourselves.
This opposes Christ’s teaching: only God is good. For Tolle, there is no source of good outside of us…therefore Man replaces God.

Tolle: Good News – radical transformation of human consciousness. He is deliberately using the Gospel term to proclaim his own philosophy. This is in direct contrast to Christian teaching and promotes a false gospel.

Tolle suggests that Jesus called enlightenment ‘salvation.’ Tolle: salvation is truly understanding yourself….but for Christ salvation is the realization of needing to be rescued from God’s wrath and the process through Christ’s sacrifice in which it is done.

Page 14: Self-recognition is the greatest human achievement --- narcissism all over again.

Recognizing our insanity/dysfunction is the beginning of healing and transcendence….Jesus is kicked into the gutter and the Cross is absolutely useless.

Page 15: Tolle writes about the original teachings of religious leaders being changed through the generations and were not part of the original ministry. He is subtly attacking the veracity of the Gospels. He furthers expresses his own opinion that the unpopularity of the teachers’ teaching got them killed, which made others worship them as gods.

This is an attack on Christ’s ministry of atonement through sacrifice and His divinity as the Son of God.

Tolle also states that religions are more divisive than unifying – that’s an old argument which doesn’t hold water. Religions unify millions upon millions of people.

Tolle then expresses his rejection of some being right and others wrong. This is the modern non-absolutionists’ argument…there are no rights or wrongs…Goes against Gospel teaching.

Tolle suggests that Man made God in his image. Humanism. This is a direct attack on our Creator. He suggests that we have reduced the infinite and un-nameable to a mental idol. Christians, however, worship God as Christ’s Father.

Page 16: Tolle writes that the real message is the truth that lies within us…narcissism again. As opposed to Christ being The Truth.

Tolle references Gnosticism as a rediscovery of the real truth and intensification of the light. Obviously, he has not read the texts and is caught up in a false Da Vinci Code moment.

Gnosticism is emphasized as a true realization and inner transformation of self…and yet they rejected the physical self and believed that the body is bad.

Page 17: Tolle belabors the point that only a small minority had access to these truths because the Church oppressed and suppressed them. Obviously he hasn’t read the history of Gnosticism and its cultic practices.

Tolle extols the differences between spirituality and religion. This is what Christ also taught, BUT Jesus did not abandon His religion – He still went to synagogue to teach and to worship on the Sabbath.

Tolle suggests that our religious beliefs systems separate us from the spiritual dimensions within ourselves…Tolle is subtly enticing people away from God…our spiritual navels are more important that our relationship with God.

Page 18: Tolle writes about new spirituality movements arising out of the existing religious structures…for example, the New Emergent Church in Christianity.

Tolle describes the Western Church as the most mind dominated faith on the planet…he is going to equate this with egotism. He does not however, suggest that the Church’s domination saved civilization and actually engendered enlightenment.

Begins to state the old New Age argument that ancient Eastern wisdom is beginning to influence the West, as if the Eastern ways were better….but look at the state of most countries with Eastern wisdom…they are practically the poorest and most oppressed on earth! Did Eastern wisdom spawn documents like the Magna Carta or Declaration of Independence? Liberty and life are more valued in Western Church countries than in Eastern wisdom nations.

Tolle suggests that we let go of dogma in order to discover the true spiritual depth within ourselves…in other words experience spiritual narcissism over the teachings of the Church.

Page 19: Any opposition to Tolle new transformational conscious is called the ‘entrenchment of ego.’ He is stating that institutionalized religion is about idolizing the institution, but he has missed the point altogether. Religious institutions normally exist to serve God, not the believer.

Tolle writes that the collective ego will fight back…in other words, churches will oppose his philosophy.

They will be mentally closed to his ideas…no, we disagree with them. It comes down to this: whom do we trust? Tolle and Oprah, or Christ and God?

Tolle declares that religious institutions will disintegrate from within…but we’ve heard this all before – Voltaire & the French Revolution, as well as Soviet Communism (which lasted 100 years), but the Church still survives and thrives. Atheism & New Age keep declaring the death of God and the Church…but the fact is this: the Church is still growing worldwide.

Page 20: Tolle argues that through the process of evolution, species & life forms will either become extinct or rise above their limitations…to survive requires an evolutionary leap.

He writes about evolutionary processes…but these are physical changes, not spiritual ones.

Page 21: Tolle’s controversial statement about spiritually evolving or dying – This is fascism…submit or die…spiritual eugenics. He then claims that he is not promoting a new belief system…but that is precisely what he and Oprah are establishing.

Page 22: Tolle urges his readers not to take their identity from the old ways of consciousness. Yet Christians belong to Christ. Our spiritual identity is established in Him. Tolle is subtly arguing that we ditch Christ for ourselves.

Tolle then questions the reality of evil. It’s a matter of dysfunction and madness for him. If evil is not real according to Tolle, then Christ is the Savior of nothing and His death is meaningless.

Page 23: Tolle states that he took the title of his book from scriptural references…Isaiah 65:17 and Revelation 21:1. He argues that the new heaven and new earth represent his transformational consciousness as reflected in the physical realm. He believes that this is what Christ taught…that the new heaven and new earth are not places, but new transformational ideas.

However, both scriptures emphasize places…

Isaiah 65:17-18 "Behold, I will create new heavens and a new earth. The former things will not be remembered, nor will they come to mind. But be glad and rejoice forever in what I will create, for I will create Jerusalem to be a delight and its people a joy.

Revelation 21:1-2
21:1 Then I saw a new heaven and a new earth, for the first heaven and the first earth had passed away, and there was no longer any sea.

Tolle is falsely advocating his view as being the same as Christ’s.

He ends the chapter with a suggestion that human life and human consciousness are intrinsically one with the planet…but this is not what Genesis teaches.

Tolle suggestion is perhaps borrowed more from the movie “Excalibur,” when the secret of the Holy Grail is discovered…that Arthur and the Land are one.

4 Minute Devotions: A New Oprah - why Christians should be wary.

In the next couple of weeks, our church will be studying a book that has been highly recommended by Oprah Winfrey. It’s called “A New Earth” and is written by Eckhart Tolle. He writes about a new evolutionary spiritual transformation that he believes will take place this century amongst enlightened people. He draws from the teachings of Christ and Buddha, as well as the theories of Carl Jung. It’s a typical new age type of book, but his hope is that it becomes sacred scripture in the years to come.

Podcast version here

I’ve read the first chapter and already I’ve come across several areas where Tolle’s teaching misinterprets Christ. He relies upon his own feelings about Jesus as a great teacher and messenger to make his points. He does not proclaim Christ as the Son of God or Lord of all creation. Tolle also avoids calling our mistakes sinful; instead he declares them to be a form of madness which, in effect, does two things: it takes away personal accountability and it discards the need for Jesus to die for our sins.

John 16:33 "I have told you these things, so that in me you may have peace. In this world you will have trouble. But take heart! I have overcome the world."

The book troubles me and I am sincerely sorry that Oprah has become involved and infatuated with this false teaching. It is countering Christ’s message and duping many women into believing the old heresy that salvation comes from within us.

I will be leading a ten week discussion about the book to show people where it dangerously digresses from Christian teaching, in order to help them avoid the pitfall of accepting popular superficial spirituality, as opposed to the deep meaning of Christ’s Gospel.

The discussions will take place at the church on Monday nights beginning May 5 and on Sunday mornings on May 11. I’ll also be starting a new online study class during the week of May 5 -11, so if you would like to be included, please send me an email at pastor@erinpresbyterian.org. Put “A New Earth” in the subject line of your email.

Some people may wonder why I am tackling this. It’s because in every generation, we have to defend our faith from misconceptions, mistaken beliefs, and misleading spiritual teachers. It’s properly called Apologetics, and has been in existence ever since the New Testament was written down.

Prayer: Lord Jesus, You are our Holy Teacher and Sacred Guide. You are the Prophet and Messenger of the Gospel. But You are also much more than these – You are the Christ, the Messiah, the Son of the Living God, and the Only One with the words of eternal life. Keep us focused on Your ways and keep us away from false teachers and superficial celebrities, whose teachings are not Your own. In Your Holy Name, we pray. Amen.

Jesus Screensaver: A New Earth

A stained glass rendering of Christ's new heaven and earth, as opposed to Eckhart Tolle's new age nonsense and Oprah's weird ways.



Digital glass design for a new Church window

Sunday Sermon: Hearing His Voice John 10:1-10

Someone broke into a car in our neighborhood last week. It happened during the day when the subdivision was empty and quiet. The thieves broke the lock and stole some important items out of the car. No one heard or saw it happening, but it has left our street feeling vulnerable. People are now wary of leaving their cars on the subdivision roads and everyone is suspicious of strangers coming into the neighborhood. It was a rotten thing to happen to a happy neighborhood. It has left us all feeling insecure and unprotected.

Thieves violate the common trust of the neighborhoods and communities that they rob. They disturb the peace of the people and tear up neighbors emotionally. They become a scourge of society and sadly, because of the times we are in, theft and robbery are increasing. It’s a form of domestic terrorism and it’s something that we all have to combat by being good neighbors and looking out for one another.

1 "I tell you the truth, the man who does not enter the sheep pen by the gate, but climbs in by some other way, is a thief and a robber.

In today’s passage, Jesus talks about thieves raiding the spiritual sheep pen of His followers. He’s talking about quack preachers and con-artists, phony gurus and shady characters who seek to fleece the flock and mislead the faithful. They come into the church with their own credentials and ambitions, their own personal creeds and twisted gospels. Instead of being committed to Christ, they are committed to their own esteem and well-being. Instead of following His words and ways, they do what they like and love what they do for themselves. They’ve got no interest in being servants of God and followers of Christ; they’re just in it for themselves and they end up in preaching their own Gospels to justify their own lifestyle choices.

Who do you mean, John? I hear you ask: Joel Osteen is one – he preaches a prosperity Gospel that is more about realizing the American Dream than getting into the Kingdom of God. He mesmerizes thousands of people in his church each week and millions of folk on TV across the country. He uses his $20 million smile and preaches to the camera. He talks about people getting blessings from God and becoming rich through being faithful. He parades about like a marionette puppet expressing a glossy magazine type of Gospel that has nothing to do with the real Christ. And the trouble is this: millions of folks lap it up and pledge their souls to Osteen’s Gospel, not realizing that they have given up faith in the One, True and Living God.

And whilst I’m meddling here instead of preaching, I may as well mention Oprah Winfrey. She used to be a Christian, but all her wealth, fame and popularity has gone to her head and ruined her heart. She’s now promoting a book called “The New Earth” by a new-age spiritual guru called Eckhart Tolle, who wants to start a new religion in which people will no longer be overwhelmed by the Cross of Christ, but will overcome the Cross and live by their own spiritual enlightenment. In other words, Oprah and Tolle are sidelining Christ and His sacrifice in order to promote their own devilish ideas and unchristian opinions. If ever there was a living example of Matthew 16 v 26, it’s Oprah – what good will it be if a person gains the whole world, yet forfeits their own soul?

Do not be deceived folks, Osteen and Oprah have this in common – they are spiritual thieves who will rob you of your faith and lead you away from Christ. Starting soon, on Monday nights and Sunday mornings, I’m going to lead classes on this book “the new Earth” and show you where the dangers lie. And I’m not doing it because I’m jealous of their wealth, influence and popularity, I’ll be doing it because I’m called to guide you through these snakes and vipers, lions and wolves that come to us in sheep’s clothing.

4 When he has brought out all his own, he goes on ahead of them, and his sheep follow him because they know his voice.

The best way to avoid these false prophets is to keep listening for Christ’s voice in their messages. If He isn’t honored, respected, worshiped and glorified by these kind of preachers and celebrities then you can guarantee that Christ is not speaking through them.

That’s why I preach from the New Testament and the Gospel week after week. It’s to tell you about Christ, His message, His ways, and His lessons. I’m an Old Testament scholar with an Honors degree in Hebrew and was first in my class for translation. I could stand up here Sunday by Sunday and tell you the OT stories in ways that you’ve never heard and give you great linguistic insights into Hebrew words that you’ve never known, but that’s not what I was called to do –

My name is John Stuart and I am a preacher of the Gospel. I’ll preach about His words, not mine. I’ll talk to you straight about Christ being the Only Way, not Oprah’s way; of Him being the Only Truth, not Tolle’s truth, and of being the Only Life, not Osteen’s lifestyle. My purpose of being the preacher at this church is to give you enough information about Jesus, so that you’re attracted to Him, and can begin to hear His Voice in your lives.

When Jesus talks about the sheep knowing and listening to the shepherd’s voice, He’s talking about us hearing Him in our lives. When he teaches His people about the sheep following the shepherd, He’s trying to make them understand that they should follow Him if they want to be with God. It’s plain and simple, and it’s not difficult to see, but it’s too simple for some people, too common and too easy to believe. They want something complicated, unique and individual. They want something elite, exceptional, and edifying to themselves. They don’t want to listen to a mere Shepherd, and they certainly don’t want to be followers. If anything, like Oprah, they want to be their own gods, where they become the Center of the universe and not mere followers, servants or slaves of Christ.

It’s like a billboard that I read this morning coming to church. It’s promoting a new church and has a picture of a sofa on it. It boldly proclaims that Redemption is a real, comfortable church. Comfortable? There’s nothing comfortable about the Gospel or Christianity! The teachings of Jesus Christ are the most meddlesome, confrontational, in your face religious teachings that the world has ever known. If church becomes comfortable, then we have allowed spiritual thieves and congregational robbers to come into our midst.

I wonder how comfortable Jesus was when He was dying in agony on the Cross? I wonder how comfortable the first Christians were when they were plunged into boiling oil or ripped apart by wild beasts in the Coliseum? I wonder how comfortable Christian missionaries were when they were attacked and beaten, tortured and killed no matter where they took the Gospel too? If you want a comfortable church, then go visit Redemption Church , but don’t expect to be redeemed or saved there – that would be too uncomfortable.

The trouble with people today is this: they want to create their own enlightenment, their own faith, their own religion. They don’t want something that is old and outdated, tested and tried, used and second hand. They want to be different from previous generations and better than traditional ways. They want to ditch the baby, the bath water, as well as baptism and beliefs. They just want to do their own thing. In others, they want freedom from faith and religion, demanding it as a constitutional, civil, and universal right.

Which reminds me, today is Thomas Jefferson’s birthday. He was born April 13, 1743, which would make him 265 years old, had he lived. People these days are very quick to point out Jefferson's wall of separation' letter to a Danbury Baptist Church meant that Christianity had no place in the heart of the writer of the Declaration, but are they aware of what is written in Jefferson's personal Bible: "I am a real Christian, that is to say, a disciple of the doctrines of Jesus. I have little doubt that our whole country will soon be rallied to the unity of our creator." To say that Christianity had no influence over his writing is to diminish Jefferson's personal faith.

We can make up our own ideas about faith in God, but in the end we’re only fooling ourselves and missing out on the greatest gift in the entire universe. Christ says it plainly in this Gospel passage:

9 I am the gate; whoever enters through me will be saved.

You can’t get any plainer, more direct, or simpler than that. If we want to be saved from the eternal consequences of our sin, if we want to be restored to God’s favor, if we want to enjoy everlasting life in God’s Kingdom, then we can only find it in, through, with and by Jesus Christ.

We don’t get it by watching Oprah and buying into her wacky ways: we get it by Christ.

We don’t get it through Tolle’s book or new age mumbo-jumbo, we get it through Christ.

And we don’t get it through Joel Osteen’s smiley and smarmy, sugary and barmy prosperity gospel, we get it through the Gospel of Jesus Christ, whose voice we listen to, whose Cross we cling to, and whose grace we adhere to for our salvation, our pardon, and our eternal life. There is no other way; there is no other gospel, there is no other gateway; there is only Christ.

Prayer

Amen.