|
Hello, sir, and thank you for writing to The Refiner's Fire! Since you found your way to The Refiner's Fire, you obviously know what we believe. Please understand that our response is in NO WAY intended to degrade you or your present belief. We are merely responding to your request for comments about the Sikh belief.
Bottom line up front: All "religions" - including the Sikh religion - are man-made and therefore, invalid. YHWH God gave us His Word in the form of the Bible, which was "God-breathed". Infallible and immutable, the Scriptures fit together, from Genesis to Revelation, like a perfect puzzle. Man has taken bits and pieces of the Bible and corrupted it to the point where it doesn't even resemble God's Word (take Islam, for example where 600 years after Messiah Yeshua, Mohammed chose what suited him from the Old Covenant in order to form his own religion).
Because humans could never "get right" with YHWH (Yahweh), He sent us His "Son" Yeshua (an "arm" [Isaiah 53:1] or aspect of God in human form so that we could identify with and better understand God) to be the final Sin Sacrifice. But even so, man STILL continues to come up with his own versions of God and His Word. Since man has continuously tried to understand YHWH with his own limited human mindset, he has spawned many "religions" - all of which are "off the mark". We sincerely believe that, since the Netzarim faith/Messianic Judaism embraces both the Old and New Covenants, it is the closest to the way that God demanded to be worshiped.
While we are certainly no scholars when it comes to the Sikh religion, here is a brief overview of its errors, taken from your attachment:
Sikhism preaches a message of devotion and remembrance of God at all times, truthful living, equality of mankind and denounces superstitions and blind rituals. Sikhism is open to all through the teachings of its 10 Gurus enshrined in the Sikh Holy Book and Living Guru, Sri Guru Granth Sahib. The word 'Sikh' in the Punjabi language means 'disciple', Sikhs are the disciples of God who follow the writings and teachings of the Ten Sikh Gurus.
While these ideals (along with many of the concepts of Sikhim) are very commendable, they are a HUMAN endeavors"....
Sikhism follows the teachings of ten human "gurus" - NOT GOD - who decided what you should think and believe. The Sikh Holy Book was written by humans, not "God-breathed", as was the Bible. It was founded only 500 years ago, which tells me it's an "offshoot" of something else, and totally man-made.
"The Sikh Holy Book, the Guru Granth Sahib, numbers some one thousand pages and includes writings from prominent Muslim and Hindu spiritualists. Sikhism has a total of Ten Gurus whose teachings Sikhs follow and many Hindu and Muslim Saints whose teaching are incorporated in the Sikh's perpetual authority, the Sri Guru Granth Sahib Ji." This tells me that Sikhism has incorporated the ideas of, NOT YHWH, but other "religions" - ALL of which are "off the mark" because they strayed from God's TRUE Word.
"A Sikh by definition must respect and accept all other world religions." Why? Gold TOLD us WHO He was and HOW He wanted to be worshipped. So, WHY must you accept all other man-made religions that have strayed from God's Word?
Sikhism proclaims:
One God: - There is only One God. He is the same God for all people of all religions. Then WHY are there so many "religions"? God wants us to worship HIM and ONLY Him, in the way He WANTS to be worshiped - not in a way of our own choosing!
There is only ONE God who has infinite qualities and names; S/He* is the same for all religions; God is Creator & Sustainer -All that you see around you is His* Creation; S/He* is everywhere, and in everything; S/He is fearless and with no Enemies; Only God is without birth or death and S/He* has and will exist forever.
The Bible tells us that God is MALE and that His main enemy is Satan! This can be evidenced by the way man has continued to be "carnal" and sinful, despite all his good intentions. The world is more decadent than ever; children no longer mind their parents; the Ten Commandments are totally ignored; there are more abortions and murders of all kinds than ever before. In the entire history of man, there have only been about three hundred years of peace. Why? Because NOBODY listens to GOD! The end of the world as we know it is here and the ONLY thing that can put a stop to man's decadence and sinning is the return of Yeshua. (Please see our End times questions.)
Re-incarnation, Karma & Salvation: – Every creature has a Soul; on death, the Soul is passed from one body to another until Liberation. The journey of the Soul is governed by the deeds and actions that we perform during our lives. The Bible tells us that the ONLY way to gain eternal salvation is through our belief on the shed blood of Yeshua Ha'Maschiyach. (Please see Who is He? More on Yeshua; and Accept Yeshua.)
The Bible is clear about reincarnation, magic, astrology, and all the other things Satan has put into the minds of men.
Many Paths lead to God: Sikhs are not Special: The Sikhs are not the chosen people of God – By just calling yourself a Sikh does not bring you salvation. Christian, Hindus, Muslim, Jews, etc have the same right to liberty as a Sikh. "The Jews" are the Chosen People of God, according to the Bible. God loves us all the same because we are all His children, and because of Yeshua, we can ALL be "grafted in to the Olive Tree" and be one in Messiah. NOTHING unifies mankind or brings salvation except belief in Yeshua's death on the cross, whom we accept into our hearts after we've asked for forgiveness of our sins.
No Special Worship Days: Sikhs do not believe that any particular day is holier than any other. Why not? God is very adamant about keeping His Holy Feasts (Leviticus 23:2-44). Each of His festivals also represents a future event! (Please see Jewish Holy Days, and Yeshua Fulfilled).
Conquer the 5 Thieves: It every Sikhs duty to defeat these 5 thieves: Pride (a'Hankar), Anger (Kr'odh), Greed (Lob'H), Attachment (Mo'H), and Lust (C'ham) (P.A.G.A.L) Excellent idea, but simply not "do-able" from a human perspective because Satan lives in our midsts and leads us astray. Try as we might, we ALWAYS end up succumbing to these things! Only the Holy Spirit can help us walk "the straight and narrow".
Reht Maryada, Sikh Code of Conduct includes:
Him I serve who at the last shall save. The Lord of universe of the Hindus, Gosain and Allah to me are one; From Hindus and Muslims have I broken free. I perform neither Kaaba pilgrimage nor at bathing spots worship; One sole Lord I serve, and no other. I perform neither the Hindu worship nor the Muslim prayer; To the Sole Formless Lord in my heart I bow. We neither are Hindus nor Muslims; Our body and life belong to the One Supreme Being who alone is both Ram and Allah for us."
Any human being who faithfully believes in: (i) One Immortal Being, (ii) Ten Gurus, from Guru Nanak Dev to Guru Gobind Singh, (iii) The Guru Granth Sahib, (iv) The utterances and teachings of the ten Gurus and, (v) the baptism bequeathed by the tenth Guru, and who does not owe allegiance to any other religion is a Sikh."
WHO is it, exactly, that saves? How does one become "saved"? The Bible tells us that we cannot be saved by "works" (Ephesians 2:8 and 2 Timothy 1:9)! How can Allah be the same as YHWH/Yeshua? Allah, while the word itself is Arabic for "God" - expects YOU to die for HIM, while Yeshua died for US! So HOW are they the same? That God is the same is a gross misrepresentation of God. Yes, there is only ONE Creator, but WE humans have made Him into something unrecognizable. We have put Him in box that suits our own agendas. And if you faithfully believe in the above Code of Conduct, it might make you a Sikh, but it does NOT make you a child of God who will end up in heaven....
I do not see Sikhs having any REAL relationship with God, whatsoever. Sikhism is nothing more than just another borrowed and "tailored-to-suit" religion that wishes to the see the world through rose-colored glasses and has good ideas about how to solve our human condition. The thing is, God has TOLD us who He is, what He wants us to do, and what will happen in the end times (which I believe our now upon us). Hundreds of Bible prophecies have already come true, and are continuing to come true before our very eyes. That is why I firmly believe that Yeshua is our ONLY salvation, and the Bible is the ONLY true Word of God. Everything else is a lie.
| 