The New Age Church and Movement

The New Age Church and Movement has grown considerably to become quite a force to reckon with.

The movement itself is loosely defined as a philosophy of life guided by a system of networks and techniques. It is a religion due to its spiritual emphasis, however lacks a rigid boundary as to what it all includes.

It is difficult to name a founder, or leader of the New Age Movement. There are several people who tend to stand at the forefront but there is hesitation to call them the leaders.

The New Age Church has infiltrated all aspects of our society. This would include education, health, arts and entertainment, government, business, science, and religion. Therefore it is easy for a common face, or famous face, to spread the New Age beliefs.

For instance, the most visible “guru” of this movement has been actress Shirley MacLaine. She has used her fame as a platform to reach hundreds of thousands of people.

The New Age Church doctrine can be defined in four spiritual beliefs. Each of these will be described along with a brief refutation using the Word of God.

First, is the belief that all is God. This is called pantheism. Basically, it means that everything is partly God.

This includes good and evil, and of course man. This belief devalues human life, destroys all morality, and reduces the nature of God to an impersonal force. This is fundamentally against God’s word.

However, it represents the “original lie” of the serpent in Genesis 3:5. “For God knows that when you eat of it your eyes will be opened, and you will be like God, knowing good and evil.”

Pantheism is also against Christian beliefs because all is not God, only He is the Great I AM, (Exodus 3:14). God created the world, thus He is not part of the world, (Isaiah 45:18). God is not impersonal, (Isaiah 43:10-13); human life is very important and valuable to God, above all the animals and plants, (Genesis1:28-30).

God sets forth an absolute morality; He is good and evil comes from another source, 1 John 1:5, 2:29.

The second belief of the New Age Church is reincarnation.

This corresponds to the second lie in Genesis. Chapter 3:4 reads, ““You will not surely die,” the serpent said to the woman.” Reincarnation therefore does not believe in the heaven and hell concepts of Christianity. Their heaven is called Nirvana, or a state of good consciousness, and obviously hell is a state of bad consciousness, or an ignorance of man’s divine nature.

Each being has many chances to reach Nirvana by sowing positive energy, or Karma. If by chance you’ve sown negative Karma, you can still reach Nirvana, but it will take you longer than someone else.

This belief of reaping and sowing between lives contradicts God’s purpose for our life and death. Hebrews 9:27 reads, “Just as man is destined to die once, and after that to face judgment,”.

Thus, the idea of mankind evolving spiritually into “New Man” is not biblical because God created man for His divine purpose; once to die, then to live eternally with Christ or in damnation. Some other verses from God’s word to refute the beliefs of reincarnation are, Job 1:20-21 with Gen. 3:19 and Ps. 139:13-15.

Thirdly, the belief of relativism is important to the New Age Church and Movement. This essentially is the belief that your truth is not necessarily my truth. Therefore morality is relative, or conditional.

The interplay of God as both good and evil is apparent here. The New Age believer makes no distinction between the demonic and the divine.

In this instance, God’s word could not be clearer. Isaiah 5:20 reads, “Woe unto them that call evil good, and good evil; that put darkness for light, and light for darkness; that put bitter for sweet, and sweet for bitter!”. Christianity teaches there is one truth and that is God. (Jer. 10:10, 1 Thess. 1:9(b), and 1 John 5:20)

Also, the Bible teaches that there is only one true way (John 14:6). Truth is not relative, but definite and real.

Lastly, New Agers believe in esotericism, or “enlightenment”.

This also corresponds to the serpent’s lie in Genesis 3:5, “your eyes will be opened, and you will be like God”. All mankind can reach a level of cosmic consciousness and realize their own godhood. All mankind has the “light” within themselves.

Once again, John 14:6 reveals that Christ is the only “light”.

Often times, channeling, or contacting “spirit guides” is used on the journey of enlightenment. However, the Bible openly warns against this. 1 Timothy 4:1 reads, “the Spirit clearly says that in later times some will abandon the faith and follow deceiving spirits and things taught by demons.”

Wisdom and knowledge come through the Lord and His Holy Spirit, not by use of mystic guides, (2 Tim.3:14-15). As well, Proverbs 1 teaches about attaining wisdom, but most important here is verse seven, “the fear of the Lord is the beginning of knowledge”.

New Age Church philosophies influence every aspect of our lives today. They are responsible for a strong shift away from Judeo-Christian values towards occultic practices. One must arm themselves with the armor of God.

“Stand firm then, with the belt of truth buckled around your waist, with the breastplate of righteousness in place, and with your feet fitted with the readiness that comes from the gospel of peace. In addition to all this, take up the shield of faith, with which you can extinguish all the flaming arrows of the Evil one. Take the helmet of salvation and the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God.” (Ephesians 6:14-17).

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