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Reincarnation: Fact Or Fiction?
What is Reincarnation? Before the 1960s, it was called "Transmigration of the Soul". This belief is rooted in Eastern religions such as Hinduism and Buddhism. What does "Transmigraton of the Soul" teach? Basically it taught that at death the soul would be reborn into another animal, human, plant, or god. According to this teaching, the lowest life form was a clod of dirt. There was only one thing worse than that...being reborn as a woman. This "sexist" belief did not sit well with Western society, so the belief was modified into what we now know as "Reincarnation". Easterners who believed in "Transmigration of the Soul" would often refuse to kill a cockroach because of their belief that the roach could have been one of their ancestors. Westerners who believe in "Reincarnation" don't have this same regard for the animal and plant kingdom. Basically, their belief is that we only come back as someone else. What the belief in Reincarnation does do is that it denies any form of judgment after death. What does the bible say? Hebrews 9:27 states "It is appointed unto man to die once, then judgment." Since the Bible is God's spoken word to man, then this verse should emphatically prove that reincarnation is a myth. What are some other Bible verses that plainly show "Reincarnation" to be a lie. How about Second Corinthians 5:8 which says We are confident, I say, and willing rather to be absent from the body, and to be present with the Lord. What does this mean? That at death, believers in Christ are immediately in the presence of God..their bodies go to the grave but their spirit and soul go to God. Non-believers go to a place to await judgment. Revelation 20:11-15 refers to the Great White Throne judgment when all non-believers are judged for their works and then cast into the lake of fire. 1st Corinthians 3:11-15 is the Judgment Seat of Christ in which believers are judged for their works which will determine what their role in eternity will be. Reincarnation has no place in the bible and should have no place in your life. Plato believed that all souls existed in harmony with God in some kind of an energy state. Then as the love towards God from these souls faded, they were cast out into a human body. This was called sin. In order for the soul to reconcile itself to God, it had to be purified through reincarnation. This belief spits in the face of what Jesus did on the cross. He willingly gave his life to atone for our sins and it was his sacrifice that reconciles us to God. Some argue that since Jesus is coming a second time, then that is proof of reincarnation. Scripture does not say anything about Jesus being reborn a second time. What it does say is that He will return as "King of kings, and Lord of lords" Rev 19:16. Matthew 24:30 states "and then all the tribes of the earth will mourn, they shall see the Son of man (Jesus) coming in the clouds of heaven with power and glory." Jesus WILL NOT be born a second time....He is in heaven now returning to Earth when His will has been fulfilled.
Through him all things were made: without him nothing was made that has been made. Verse 10 - He was in the world, and though the world was made through him, the world did not recognize him. Verse 14 - The Word became flesh (Jesus Christ) and made his dwelling among us. In John Chapter 17, Jesus is praying and he says these words And now, Father, glorify me in your presence with the glory I had with you before the world began.. Obviously, Jesus existed before he came into the world as man. Scriptures are very clear that after you die, that judgment is held...your soul and spirit instantly go to God or they instantly go to Hades to await the Great White Throne Judgment. Does this mean that your soul and spirit didn't exist before you were born? The bible does not answer that question. You could very well have "preexisited" before you got an earthly body. The bible is clear however that every human is unique and reincarnation is a lie. What about "past life" regressions so commonly used in "hypnotherapy"? Hypnotism is the power of suggestion and certainly not in any way, shape, or form a valid science. Those who undergo "past life" regressions have their mind opened up to suggestion due to being hypnotized. Who is to say that demons themselves aren't putting false memories into their minds? Reincarnation is an invention of man so he can fool himself into thinking that he doesn't have a sin problem that needs to be reckoned with. What about those feelings of Deja Vu? I've had them...the feeling like you have already been where you are before or the feeling that the life you are currently experiencing has hapened before. Does that mean we are reincarnated? Hardly. Everybody dreams and who is to say that we don't catch glimpses of the future when we dream. We hardly understand the purpose of dreams...but we would go insane if deprived of "dream sleep" too long. Dreams may account for why some people believe they are reincarnated. Another possibility that may account for the beleif in reincarnation is "genetic memory". Our DNA and RNA codes determine our personalities..it is very possible that our "genes" retain memories of our ancestors. The "memories" we have may be the memories of another person's life and our bodies have somehow extracted those memories from our gene pool. One thing is for certain...reincarnation is a myth according to the bible. Personally, I find the idea of having to live an earthly life over and over again until I reach "Nirvana" or bliss repulsive. I don't want another earthly life...there is too much pain, sorrow, and grief in this world. I'm ready to be go home to heaven to be with my Lord, Savior, and Creator: Jesus Christ. Copyright 2003 by Gary Goodworth
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