Tested
See Image Here: http://www.dsimarketingsolutions.com/wpthebridgechurch/wp/wp-content/uploads/2012/09/Faith-Tested_converted.jpg
For the first time since I have really felt my life transformed
by God, my faith was tested by something I read in the bible. My Mom believes in reincarnation and spoke to
me once about how it was in the bible.
My first reaction was--I have never heard that in all the scripture I
have read? I told her that the bible speaks about resurrection many times, but never
reincarnation. She did not know the exact
verses but told me it was indeed in there….Sometime later I was reading the
book of Matthew and came upon these verses:
7As John’s disciples
were leaving, Jesus began talking about him to the crowds. “What kind of man did
you go into the wilderness to see? Was he a weak reed, swayed by every breath
of wind? 8Or were you expecting to see a man dressed in expensive clothes? No,
people with expensive clothes live in palaces. 9Were you looking for a prophet?
Yes, and he is more than a prophet. 10John is the man to whom the Scriptures
refer when they say, ‘Look, I am sending my messenger ahead of you, and he will
prepare your way before you.’ 11“I tell you the truth, of all who have ever
lived, none is greater than John the Baptist. Yet even the least person in the
Kingdom of Heaven is greater than he is! 12And from the time John the Baptist
began preaching until now, the Kingdom of Heaven has been forcefully advancing,
and violent people are attacking it. 13For before John came, all the prophets
and the law of Moses looked forward to this present time. 14And if you are
willing to accept what I say, he is Elijah, the one the prophets said would
come. (Matthew 11:7-14)
As I read verse 14, my mind began to question whether Jesus
was indeed talking about reincarnation.
I read these verses over and over and prayed and dug into the word to
try and find the answers I was seeking.
I researched all the verses that spoke about John the Baptist and Elijah
and came to these verses as well:
10Then his disciples
asked him, “Why do the teachers of religious law insist that Elijah must return
before the Messiah comes?”11Jesus replied, “Elijah is indeed coming first to
get everything ready. 12But I tell you, Elijah has already come, but he wasn’t
recognized, and they chose to abuse him. And in the same way they will also
make the Son of Man suffer.” 13Then the disciples realized he was talking about
John the Baptist. (Matthew 17:10-13 NLT)
Shattered
See Image Here: http://fc03.deviantart.net/fs70/i/2012/266/c/8/shattered_sights_by_docolucci-d5flnkk.png
I almost couldn’t believe what I was reading. Did God’s word, something that I hold to be the
absolute truth of God be speaking about reincarnation? What does that mean of my faith? Did I have it all wrong? I could feel my whole world view crack and
shatter with doubt as my faith started to fall in pieces around me. I looked to the Most High above and prayed
for the Holy Spirit to show me the truth of what He was telling us in these verses.
I believe that we should question our faith, not to test
the Father or His authority, but if the word of God is TRUTH then it should stand
up against anything that is thrown at it.
I was speaking to a leader from my bible study and he put it this way, “If
we never question our faith, then how do we even know what we believe?” Well said brother, well said!
Having spent a fair amount of time researching and studying the
bible I was still left unfulfilled. I
was unable to find the answers I was seeking and still carried a heavy heart. Later that week, I happened to be speaking to
one of my good friends about this and both of us were stumped and left
speechless over whether the Messiah was speaking about reincarnation or not. We ending up speaking for almost 2 hours and
with my brother in Christ by my side, I believe we found the answer from
scripture in the book of Luke:
[Speaking about John
the Baptist] 15for he will be great in the eyes of the Lord. He must never
touch wine or other alcoholic drinks. He will be filled with the Holy Spirit,
even before his birth. 16And he will turn many Israelites to the Lord their
God. 17He will be a man with the spirit and power of Elijah. He will prepare
the people for the coming of the Lord. He will turn the hearts of the fathers
to their children, and he will cause those who are rebellious to accept the
wisdom of the godly.” (Luke 1:15-17 NLT)
Similar Hearts of Ministry
See Image Here: http://www.charismanews.com/images/stories/featured-news/Bible-Jesus-John-the-Baptist-History-Channel.jpg
I believe something perhaps was lost in translation with the
Matthew verses regarding John the Baptist and Elijah. If you just take the words as they are in
those quick sentences then I think you could get lost like I was. However, the bible has many layers in its
pages. Jesus promised us the Advocate,
which is the Holy Spirit, after his resurrection to lead all believers into truth. I believe the Spirit has shown me that Christ
was talking about John the Baptist having the same Spirit and Heart of ministry
as Elijah and not the literal sprit as in reincarnation. Both the prophet Elijah and John the Baptist
had ministries that were very confrontational.
John called people out on their evil, saying repent of your sins for the
kingdom of heaven is at hand. The prophet
Elijah had a very similar ministry in the Old Testament with the people of Israel.
4“Remember to obey the Law of Moses, my
servant—all the decrees and regulations that I gave him on Mount Sinai for all
Israel. 5“Look, I am sending you the prophet Elijah before the great and
dreadful day of the Lord arrives. 6His preaching will turn the hearts of
fathers to their children, and the hearts of children to their fathers.
Otherwise I will come and strike the land with a curse.” (Malachi 4:4-6 NLT)
This is the prophecy from the Old Testament that the disciples
were talking about in the transfiguration chapter in Matthew 17.
9When they came to the
other side, Elijah said to Elisha, “Tell me what I can do for you before I am
taken away.” And Elisha replied, “Please let me inherit a double share of your
spirit and become your successor.” 10“You have asked a difficult thing,” Elijah
replied. “If you see me when I am taken from you, then you will get your request.
But if not, then you won’t.” 11As they were walking along and talking, suddenly
a chariot of fire appeared, drawn by horses of fire. It drove between the two
men, separating them, and Elijah was carried by a whirlwind into heaven.
12Elisha saw it and cried out, “My father! My father! I see the chariots and
charioteers of Israel!” And as they disappeared from sight, Elisha tore his
clothes in distress. 13Elisha picked up Elijah’s cloak, which had fallen when
he was taken up. Then Elisha returned to the bank of the Jordan River. 14He
struck the water with Elijah’s cloak and cried out, “Where is the Lord, the God
of Elijah?” Then the river divided, and Elisha went across. 15When the group of
prophets from Jericho saw from a distance what happened, they exclaimed,
“Elijah’s spirit rests upon Elisha!” And they went to meet him and bowed to the
ground before him.(2 Kings 2:9-15, NLT)
My friend who I spoke with on the phone put it like this in
regards to Elijah’s spirit resting on Elisha—Elijah was a great prophet and God
took him into heaven without his body having a physical death, but it was God’s
grace
not the actual spirit of Elijah that rested on Elisha. Just as John the Baptist would later have the
Holy Spirit from birth and lead a ministry that was to prepare the way for
Jesus, Elisha would become the prophet with the spirit of Elijah leading the
people of Israel in ministry with the grace of God.
Resurrection
All throughout scripture the bible speaks of
resurrection. The bible teaches that
there is only one body. After death we
go to heaven to live with the Father and the Son and later, after the Day of
Judgment, God will create everything new where we will live in His city in our
new resurrected
body.
Looking back on it now, I see how my faith was almost resurrected
in a sense from death having doubt fill my heart. I am grateful for God showing me the way to His
truth. For I believe that all the words
in the bible are true, every single one of them has “value” as my pastor would
put it and that my friends gives me great comfort and peace.
Peace be with you.
Great website on John the Baptist not being Elijah: http://www.letusreason.org/nam2.htm
See Building 429 “We Won’t be Shaken” music video here: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9BJhOgb-unI
