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Yeshua personally warned His disciples to be on guard for false prophets and teachers who would appear in the "end times":
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Matthew 24: 4 Yeshua replied: "Watch out! Don't let anyone fool you! 5 For many will come in my name, saying, 'I am the Messiah!' and they will lead many astray.
Matthew 24: 11 Many false prophets will appear and fool many people; 12 and many people's love will grow cold because of increased distance from Torah. 13 But whoever holds out till the end will be delivered. 14 And this Good News about the Kingdom will be announced throughout the whole world as a witness to all the Goyim. It is then that the end will come.
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Since those prophetic words were uttered many have claimed to be the Messiah - and many people have indeed been deceived. Some of the most recent examples include the following:
- Jim Jones, in 1978 caused 913 of his followers to commit mass suicide in Jonestown, northern Guyana.
- In 1993 David Koresh led about 80 of his "Branch Davidian" followers into a firey death after a standoff with the U.S. Government, in Waco, TX.
- Sun Myung Moon, a South Korean citizen and controversial religious leader, was given permanent residency status in the U.S. in 1973. Moon is the founder and leader of the Unification Church, a world-wide organization that believes him to be the "Messiah" sent by God to complete the earthly mission of Jesus. Briefly imprisoned for tax evasion, conspiracy and "shady" business dealings, his church is supposedly still thriving today. In a single ceremony in 1995 Moon claimed to have given 360,000 couples the marriage blessing of God, with him and his wife in the role of the "True Parents" of humanity...
- Marshall Applewhite and Bonnie Nettles led the "Heaven's Gate" New Age cult in which some male members underwent voluntary castration. The cult's end coincided with the appearance of the Hale-Bopp Comet in 1997, when Applewhite convinced 39 followers to commit suicide so that their souls could take a ride on a spaceship which they thought was hiding behind the comet.
- The Raelians, an atheist religion led by Claude Vorilhon (who calls himself Rael - the last four letters of "Israel") are a group consisting of at least 60,000 followers worldwide. "Raelians" believe that scientists from another planet created the human race, and that monotheism should be totally replaced by science. Vorilhon started his movement after being visited by a four-foot space alien from the planet "Elohim". In 2002, the Raelians announced to the world that they had cloned the first human baby. Rael has written a book about himself in which he insists that, in Asia, he is known as the Maitreya, the long awaited Buddha from the West....
- The latest wave of false messiahs include the Muslim "Mahdi" and the New Age entity "Matreya". And in October 2005, Rabbi Yitzhak Kaduri, the 104-year-old leading known Kabbalist rabbi in Israel, announced: "With the help of G-d, the soul of the Mashiach has attached itself to a person in Israel" (In the original Hebrew: 'Hit'abra bezrat hashem nishmat mashiach b'adam m'yisrael'). He wrote down the name of the Mashiach and left instructions that the envelope was not to be opened until a year after his death, which was in 2006. The recently opened note revealed that the coming Messiah will be called Yehoshua (Joshua) or the Aramaic, Yeshua (salvation). Of course, believers know that the returning Yeshua HaMashiach will not be an Israeli man but will come "in just the same way as you have watched Him go into heaven" (Acts 1:11)....
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The Refiner's Fire would like to pose a few questions to whoever ends up being that particular "Yeshua", a mere man, who ends up fooling the world into thinking he's God:
- Do you meet all the Tanach (OT) "qualifications" of Messiah?
- Has it occurred to you that, since the "soul" of Mashiach attached itself to you, this denotes that there must have been an original Mashiach, which means you're not him....
- Who are you, and why did the "soul of Mashiach" choose you?
- As the new "Mashiach", what are your plans and what will your message be - and could you please explain why the Books of Daniel and of Revelation are coming true NOW, before our very eyes? What are you going to do about it?
- Were you born of a virgin in Bethlehem (Isaiah 7:14, Micah 5:2)?
- Were you preceeded by a messenger (Isaiah 40:3)?
- Have you ever died on the world's behalf as an offering for sin (Isaiah 53:5, 6, 8, 10, 11, 12)?
- As "Messiah", have you been rejected or "cut off" yet (Daniel 9:24-26), or been betrayed by a friend for 30 pieces of silver?
- Have you ever been wounded or whipped, or nailed to a cross (Isaiah 53:5) so that "by your wounds we are healed"?
- Can you please explain how you could possibly fulfill the already-fulfilled 109 Tanach prophecies (of more than 300 Tanach prophecies) that could ONLY have been fulfilled by Yeshua HaMashiach Himself? Has it ever occurred to you that some of the Tanach prophecies HAD to be fulfilled two millenia ago?
- Since Yeshua has already done so, how do you plan on fulfilling Isaiah 49:6 which speaks of a servant of God who would be a light to Gentiles (non-Jews) so that God's salvation could reach the ends of the earth?
- Deuteronomy 18:15-18 informs us that God would raise up another prophet like Moses. How do you compare to Moses?
- And last but certainly not least: Have you ever been resurrected (Psalm 16:10-11)?
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Romans 11: 25 For, brothers, I want you to understand this truth which God formerly concealed but has now revealed, so that you won't imagine you know more than you actually do. It is that stoniness, to a degree, has come upon Isra'el, until the Gentile world enters in its fullness; 26 and that it is in this way that all Isra'el will be saved. As the Tanakh says, "Out of Tzion will come the Redeemer; he will turn away ungodliness from Ya'akov and this will be my covenant with them, ... when I take away their sins."
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So, who are these other so-called "Messiahs" we discussed above? Let's briefly examine them:
About Mahdi:
Several people have called themselves "Mahdi" ("divinely guided one"), but, for anyone who is interested, there is an indepth description of the history and future of the Mahdi in an article entitled Al-Imam al-Mahdi, The Just Leader of Humanity.
According to the January 6, 2006, WorldNetDaily, Mahdi is the Savior figure in Islam for which there are several different interpretations in Sunni Islam; and one dominant interpretation in Shi'I Islam. In Islamic eschatology, he is the prophesied redeemer of Islam, who will change the world into a perfect society before the "Day of Resurrection" or the end times.
The figure of Mahdi and his mission, is not mentioned in the Koran. As a matter of fact, the idea of the Mahdi appears to be a development in the first 2-3 centuries of Islam (according to the above website). In the case of the Shi'i Mahdi many scholars have suggested that there is a clear inspiration coming from the Messiah-figure of Christianity and its ideas of a judgment day in the hands of a religious renewer.
The "Prophet" Muhammad stated:
"Even if the entire duration of the world's existence has already been exhausted and only one day is left before the Day of Judgment, Allah will expand that day to such a length of time, as to accommodate the kingdom of a person out of my Ahl al-Bayt who will be called by my name. He will then fill the Earth with peace and justice as it will have been filled with injustice and tyranny before then."
Sahih Tirmidhi, V2, P86, V9, P74-75.
According to one Islamic website, we are warned:
Please do not confuse Imam Mahdi with Hadhrat Isa (Jesus) Alayhis Salaam. They are two different persons, and both will come during the last days. According to Hadeeth, Imam Mahdi will appear first, and Hadhrat Isa (A.S.) will appear during Imam Mahdi's lifetime. Furthermore, only Hadhrat Isa (A.S.) will be able to kill Dajjal (the "anti-Christ").
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NOTE: It is clear from the content of the above paragraphs that the Koran contains many similarities to the Tanach. In fact, Muhammed "borrowed" from the Tanach and twisted its holy Scripture in order to form the religion of Islam some 600 years after the death of Yeshua. Since his "notes" weren't consolidated in any particular order, his disciples eventually arranged them from the longest to shortest "surahs". According to MidEast Web:
The internal organization of the Qur'an is somewhat ad hoc. Revelations consisted of verses (ayat) grouped into 114 chapters (surahs). The arrangement of the suras is mechanical: the first, al-Fateha or "the Opening," is a short prayer exalting God that has become an essential part of all Islamic liturgy and prayer. The rest are graded generally by length, from longest to shortest. It is impossible to tell from the book the chronological order of the surahs. Some of the Surahs begin with letters of the Arabic alphabet, as though meant to be numbered, others do not. Some Surah of the Qur'an refer or allude to religious and historical events but seldom provide comprehensive accounts. God in the Qur'an speaks in the first person. The Qur'an is written in an especially elegant and difficult Arabic that is not easily interpreted or rendered into other languages.
Lucky for believers in Yeshua, the BIBLE - containing documented prophecies of which at least 300 have so far come true - is an accurate historical document that flows in chronological order from beginning to end....
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About Maitreya:
Maitreya (Arabic for "friend"), according to some, is a man who is supposedly alive and living in Europe awaiting the appropriate time to make his world appearance. He supposedly will appear to each form of religion as their particular messiah, which means that Christians know "Maitreya" as Christ, Jews await him as the Messiah; Hindus look for the coming of Krishna; Buddhists expect him as Maitreya Buddha, and Muslims anticipate the Imam Mahdi or Messiah....
Besides the illustrious, all-knowing Rael, there is another Maitreya: Shoko Asahara, a forty-something guru of Aum Supreme Truth, a Buddhist sect, who offers his followers spiritual enlightenment through mystical practices, painful religious rituals, and purchasing "sacred goods". According to an article on the Christian Information Ministries Asahara, as a guru or teacher, teaches the oneness of all things and that salvation only comes through achieving his brand of enlightenment. He has taken the name Maitreya as his own in an attempt to establish himself as the World Teacher.
Many Buddhists, however, desire the arrival of another Buddha - Maitreya Buddha, to lead them to personal enlightenment. Maitreya is not only believed to be the World Teacher but also the head of the Spiritual Hierarchy, a group of "enlightened masters" who rule the world.
According to one Benjamin Creme, a Scottish esotericist and spokesman for the ascended Master, Maitreya has already returned. He is believed to be the most highly evolved being (physically or spiritually) and is the head of what is believed to be the Hierarchy or the Masters of Wisdom. Crème says Maitreya's priorities are to: establish peace; inaugurate a system of sharing; remove guilt and fear - cleanse the hearts and minds of man; educate mankind in the laws of life and love; an introduction to the Mysteries; and create a pool of knowledge for all mankind.
...Creme declared that "very soon now, a most unusual event will allow the world to know that the Masters do, indeed exist . . . When men see Maitreya, they will know that the time has come to choose; to go forward with Him into a future dazzling in its promise - or to cease to be."….
The one thing that all the above "Messiahs" have in common is their similarities to the Biblical description of Messiah: Savior of the world, peace maker, etc. The major difference is their respective approach to "messiah-hood", while the one thing they have in common is their lack of Biblical qualifications for Messiah. The supposed "Christian" Bible-believing "messiahs" mentioned above, are similar to the Muslim Allah in that they expect US to die for THEM, whereas Yeshua, the one and only Savior of the world, died for US....
Believers in Yeshua HaMashiach (Jesus Christ) believe in their heart of hearts that the biggest deceiver of all time is yet to come - the Anti-Christ who will make his appearance and introduce the period of the 7 years of what many refer to as the "Tribulation". (Actually, this is the period wherein the Anti-Christ will make a seven-year peace treaty with Israel; and, after three and a half years, he will show his "true colors" and begin to terrorize the world. Please see Roy A. Rheinhold's article, Biblical Proof for an End-Times 7 Year Period.
Today evil men holding positions of great wealth and/or political power are working feverishly to implement Satan's plan to enthrone his "christ" as the supreme ruler of the Earth. They apparently believe their efforts are close to being fulfilled because the arrival of the "Maitreya" continues to be predicted by their respective spokesmen. On the other hand, many Christians and Messianic Jews and Gentiles believe that current events point to the Biblical Second Coming of Christ.
Oddly, for the first time in history, both sides are expectantly waiting for something to happen....
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Matthew 24: 24 For there will appear false Messiahs and false prophets performing great miracles - amazing things! - so as to fool even the chosen, if possible.
2 Corinthians 11: 13 The fact is that such men are pseudo-emissaries: they tell lies about their work and masquerade as emissaries of the Messiah. 14 There is nothing surprising in that, for the Adversary himself masquerades as an angel of light; 15 so it's no great thing if his workers masquerade as servants of righteousness. They will meet the end their deeds deserve.
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How can we discern these imitators sent by Satan who are teaching doctrine of demons? 1 John 4:1-3 tells us to "test the spirits":
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1 John 4: 1 Dear friends, don't trust every spirit. On the contrary, test the spirits to see whether they are from God; because many false prophets have gone out into the world. 2 Here is how you recognize the Spirit of God: every spirit which does not acknowledge Yeshua is not from God - in fact, this is the spirit of the Anti-Messiah. You have heard that he is coming. Well, he's here now, in the world already!
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We, at The Refiner's Fire pray that God will open the eyes those He knows are, or will be His, and give them His wisdom concerning the matter of the coming Messiah. May He also supernaturally protect His people in the perilous times ahead.
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