Welcome to Basil Evans, a new contributor of great and varied Christian and commercial experience. Basil has run various companies in the pharmaceutical field and also has started Churches. He is writing a series of articles about the different religions which I plan to publish bi-weekly. This is the first article of the series. Many thanks ro Basil for sharing his experiences with my raeders.

Gibber! Gibber!

Chugley

Number 1 Definitions

We started a church in Sydney and we needed a logo that reflected what we stood for so I sat down with my company’s commercial artists and came up with the above in the heading..
It is important that we get our priorities right in every aspect of our lives but a church must believe and practice the right things. This badge says that the cross of Christ must be central, the Bible must be our text book and the Holy Spirit must guide us.
When we look at cults they must get these three things right to be considered as Christian.

Of course before we look at what they say we need to check they actually believe in the God of the Bible.
This rules out all the Eastern religions, Islam, Mormonism and the many non-trinitarian groups who do not believe that Jesus is God.

What is a false religion?
A false religion is one who worship a different god from Christianity as revealed in the Bible. Some specific examples we will examine are :
1 JUDAISM 2 ISLAM
3 HINDUISM 4 BUDDHISM
5 NATURE RELIGIONS
6 MORMONISM 7 SCIENTOLOGY

What is a cult?
A cult is one that claims to be Christian but denies basic Bible doctrines.
.
Cults usually have buildings and call them churches, quote the Bible, sing the same hymns, use the same wording in prayers, but deny the divinity of Jesus. They are usually good living relying on good works for salvation and often carry out extensive charitable works.

Others
Then there are churches who believe in Jesus but concentrate so much on their special doctrines that it can be difficult to hear the real gospel.
Some churches may have odd beliefs that are extremely important to them. They concentrate on these secondary beliefs which can be like the thorns in the parable of the Sower. Some seed fell among thorns and the thorns choked them. It does not say the thorns killed the new plants but they would bear no fruit.
Jesus said “he who receives the seed among the thorns is he who hears the word, and the cares of this world and the deceitfulness of riches choke the word and it becomes unfruitful” Matt. 13:22 NKJV
FALSE RELIGIONS.
False religions have a false god.

     In part 1 of this study we will only consider Judaism and Islam

I may get some critical feedback on my first selection –

Judaism

God revealed Himself to the Children of Israel through Moses as JHWH (Jehovah) at Mount Sinai and set up the religion of Judaism which was based on the Law which was not just the 10 commandments but a complex set of rules that God spent 40 days giving to Moses as “the book of the Law”. The Law included feasts, fasts, holy days and associated Sacrifices. These all looked forward to the coming Messiah.
For Judaism to operate it required a Temple on Mt. Zion, an ordained high priest and full priesthood and Levites, a system of animal sacrifices which had to be in the temple, the Ark of the Covenant in the Holy of Holies in the temple.
When the Messiah came as Jesus the Jews should have accepted Him as the fulfillment of Judaism and changed the requirement to the worship of JHWH to worshipping the Trinity as Jesus revealed it to them and to living by faith not just by obeying the Law.
Instead of accepting Him they crucified Him God split open the veil in the temple signifying that the old religion was over. The temple was destroyed in 70 AD so no more temple ceremonies or sacrifices could be made. Judaism was over and the gentiles were able to join God’s family.
Jews are now saved by accepting their Messiah who fulfilled all the need for further sacrifices.
Many main line churches accept that when God split the veil of the temple Judaism as a religion was finished and Jews had to accept Jesus as the final sacrifice. But God has not rejected Israel as the replacement theology believes but Gentiles and Jews are now all members of one family – the body of Jesus the Messiah. – Romans 11:1-2  “For I too am an Israelite, a descendant of Abraham, from the tribe of Benjamin. 2 God has not rejected His people whom He foreknew.”
In Genesis 17:8 (and Genesis 15:12-19) God re-iterated his commitment to Abraham and added his everlasting promise that he would give Abraham’s descendants the land of Canaan: “The whole land of Canaan, where you now reside as a foreigner, I will give as an everlasting possession to you and your descendants after you; and I will be their God.”
God always keeps His promises so at the end of the Tribulation they will set up a kingdom based in Jerusalem and including all the land He promised them from the Euphrates river to the Mediterranean sea and from Lebanon to Egypt.
Read all about it in Zechariah 12 particularly look at verse 10 – 11 and Zech. 14.
Israel in general will not accept Jesus until they see Him return and they “look on Him they pierced”
Then Judaism will vanish and they will worship their Messiah Jesus for 1000 years (Read Revelation 20)
Having said all that, the religion of Judaism is no longer a way to salvation. Also all the Feasts and holidays Israel had to keep have been fulfilled by Jesus so are no longer meaningful for the church. One last contentious point – Christians do not have to keep the 10 commandments since to keep them required animal sacrifice if broken..
The Old Law was based on what one did. Jesus has instituted a new far tougher law for Christians. It is not what you do but how you think.
Jesus said (Matthew 5:27-28 NKJV ) – “But I say to you that whoever looks at a woman to lust for her has already committed adultery with her in his heart.”
All the commandments principles except the Sabbath are repeated in principle in the New
Testament where the implication is that we are Christ’s slaves so all day every day must be given to Him. Lord. Similarly tithing is not bound on Christians but if a tenth is what God required of Israel that mist be bare minimum for Christians for whom He has done so much.
Romans 12:1 says we should give our whole being to God which is just our “reasonable service.”
In the context of Christianity, “presenting your body as a living sacrifice” (Romans 12:1) means offering your entire life, including your thoughts, actions, and desires, as a dedicated act of worship and service to God, rather than conforming to worldly ways.  Not just one day a week or a tenth of our income but 100% of our time and belongings.
If you try to live under Judaism of being justified by what you do, you are outside the New Covenant in Christ.

Islam 622 AD

There is little doubt that Mahommed, see artist’s impression above) had an angelic visit ( but not from God’s Gabriel ) or that he received the Koran which is a supernatural and evil book which has influenced the world religions and culture second only to the Bible.
Mahommed claimed that Allah and Jehovah are the same being but this is far from true. It is generally accepted (by all except Muslims) that Allah was a Mesopotamian moon god hence the universal symbol of Islam is the crescent

Allah is unapproachable and does not promise to answer any prayers.
Allah has no set standard for one to be admitted to Paradise (except martyrdom automatically gains entry) however there are 5 Pillars of Faith that the Muslim religion demands.
While Allah offers no guarantees that a person will reach paradise , it is certain they will not if they don’t keep these 5 pillars.
⦁ Profession of Faith (shahada). The belief that “There is no god but Allah, and Muhammad is the Messenger of God” is central to Islamic practice and must be recited regularly with all prayers. …
⦁ Prayer (salat).Must pray 5 times a day facing Mecca…
⦁ Alms (zakat) There is no set amount but believer must share wealth with other Muslims (At least 2.5%)
⦁ Fasting (sawm) During the 9th month of the Islamic calendar is the Feast of Ramadan and no one may eat or drink between sunrise and sunset.
⦁ Pilgrimage (hajj) ) All Muslims who are able should visit Mecca at least once in their lives.
⦁ Some of the stricter sects add a 6th requirement of Jihad which is perpetual war against all non Muslims – especially Jews and Christians. The USA is called the Great Satan as the biggest supporter of Christianity.

Can a good Muslim be a good Australian?

The answer is no in every respect because the Koran rules that a Muslim must obey the Islamic law (Sharia) and leaders/mullahs ahead of non Islamic laws and government officials..
The Islamic definition of peace is when all people and countries come under Shaia law which means destruction of all non Islamic governments and societies. This can be accomplished in two ways – war or jihad or outbreeding other populations. This can be seen in the UK where it is estimated that at the current birthrates Islam will be a majority in the 2050’s

The following article comes from Chugley’s Chatter, a Blog by Chugley, the Thinking Chimp, and is so relevant I had to copy it for you.

England is being conquered “This is not immigration. This is invasion” – The Muslim plan is the same in all nations…(Including Australia???)
– The mayor of London is Muslim – The mayor of Birmingham is a Muslim – The mayor of Leeds is Muslim – The mayor of Blackburn is Muslim – The mayor of Sheffield is Muslim – The mayor of Oxford is a Muslim – The mayor of Luton is a Muslim – The mayor of Oldham is a Muslim – The mayor of Rochdale is a Muslim – All of this was achieved by only 4 million Muslims out of the 66 million people in England – Today, in England, there are over 3000 mosques. – There are over 130 Sharia courts in England – There are more than 50 Sharia councils – 78% of Muslim women do not work and receive state support and free accommodation – 63% of Muslims do not work and receive state support and free housing – State-supported Muslim families have an average of six to eight children who all receive free accommodation – Every school in the UK is re is required to teach about Islam – The number one most common baby name in England is Muhammad This is not immigration. This is invasion.

BASIL’S BIOGRAPHY

Basil De Lacy Evans has had a rich and successful life. Born in Sydney, Australia in 1933. He attended Canterbury Boys High School, Scots College and Sydney University, where he graduated with a degree in Pharmacy. He obtained further qualifications in International Business and management from the USA and Australia.

Basil’s commercial career included time as Assistant Chief Pharmacist at Royal Alexandra Hospital Sydney in 1958 to being Planning Manager for the international division of a major multinational pharmaceutical company based in New Jersey USA. There were many highly responsible appointments in between including running a marketing division employing 120 staff in Sydney.  Locations included Australia,  Indonesia,  New Zealand and Hong Kong.

He retired from the multination group in 1988 to start his own Medical Regulatory Affairs consultancy which is now still operating owned and  managed by one of his daughters.

Basil’s Christian walk has included serving as Deacon, Youth Leader and adult Bible teacher in Sydney Petersham AOG from 1956 – 1967. Attending Livingstone NJ  AOG USA from 1967-1970. Founder and Pastor of Dural Christian Assembly, 1990-2004. Basil moved to Port Macquarie in 2010 where he founded and  Pastored Emmanuel Fellowship until 2020 when he retired to the Queensland Sunshine Coast.