Truth really can be stranger than fiction.
First Page - Now launched! All the stories are true, or based on real events. Unlimited reading for $4.99 / month. No downloads. Read on your phone, tablet or computer.
La verdad puede ser más extraña que la ficción.
First Page - ¡Ya está en marcha! Todas las historias son verídicas, o están basadas en hechos reales. Lectura ilimitada por $4.99 / mes. No hay que descargar nada. Lea en su teléfono, tableta u ordenador.
Manna Minutes Podcast: Eye-opening Bible study in less than five minutes! Access all episodes here.
Manna Minutes en español:
Estudio bíblico que nos hace abrir los ojos en menos de cinco minutos! Acceda a todos los episodios aquí.
Manna Minutes Podcast auf Deutsch:
Augenöffnendes Bibelstudium in weniger als fünf Minuten! Alle Episoden finden Sie hier.
Was There A Curse On Helen's Romantic Life?
The Third Man by Angela Sheffield is based on a true story. Read chapter one now!
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¿Qué tiene que ver conmigo? por Teófila Gottfried
Lo que leemos en la Biblia tiene que ver con todos los seres humanos, sean cristianos o judíos, ateos o agnósticos, budistas, musulmanes o adherentes a alguna de las filosofías o nuevas religiones que surgen en el mundo. ¿Por qué? Ver mayor información sobre este interesante libro.
Scripture of The Day - St. John 14:6
Jesus saith unto him, I am the way, the truth, and the life: no man cometh unto the Father, but by me.
Escritura del día - San Juan 14,6
Jesús le dijo: Yo soy el camino, y la verdad, y la vida; nadie viene al Padre, sino por mí.
Bibelstelle des Tages - Johannes 14,6
Jesus spricht zu ihm: Ich bin der Weg und die Wahrheit und das Leben; niemand kommt zum Vater, denn durch mich!
Questioning The Law of Karma
What Is Karma?
The law of karma, in a nutshell, states that an individual's actions, thoughts, and words are actual experiences for which he or she will receive reward or punishment. Actions, thoughts, and words that are good are rewarded. Actions, thoughts and words that are evil are punished. Those who believe in the law of karma might say that people who suffer bad things in life have bad karma--called bad luck by others who believe in the simple law of you reap what you sow. Is belief in the law of karma the same thing as belief in reaping what you've sown? No, it isn't. In fact, there are very sharp differences in these two belief systems. However, it's becoming increasingly popular to align the law of karma with God's law of reaping and sowing which is found in scripture of the Christian Bible.
Reincarnation and the Law of Karma
Most believers in this law state that it takes an individual several life times to attain perfection in his or her actions, thoughts, and speech to eliminate any bad karma. If he or she practices certain religions and adheres to certain doctrines such as Hinduism and the doctrines of the various forms of yoga, he or she will eventually evolve into a perfect spiritual being and be one with God.
Bad Karma Versus Reaping Bad Things
If we say that all who are suffering are in their situations and conditions because they have bad karma, we are essentially assigning guilt to everyone who suffers. Does this accurately reflect the teachings of the Christian Bible on the reasons for suffering? No, it doesn't. God's word clearly addresses various reasons for suffering in this present world and it does not automatically accuse the suffering of reaping bad for having done bad deeds.
The apostle Peter spoke of various reasons for suffering. Sometimes it's caused by a person's conscious decision to do evil. Peter even names some of the evil deeds that people do and explains that those deeds invite suffering into their life. He mentions the deeds of theft, murder, and meddling into the affairs of others as examples of the actions, thoughts, and speech that can bring suffering. Peter also teaches that some people are suffering because they are a Christian. He wrote, "But let none of you suffer as a murderer or as a thief or as an evil-doer or as a busybody in other men's matters. Yet if any man suffer as a Christian, let him not be ashamed; but let him glorify God on this behalf" (KJV, I Peter 4:15-16).
We know that entire groups of people invite suffering on themselves when they persist in rejecting God and in serving idols. The scripture of Psalm 16:4 warns, "Their sorrows shall be multiplied that hasten after another god...." We also see other reasons in God's word for which some people suffer. They include suffering as a result of the careless or wicked deeds of others, direct punishment from God, and as a form of being "molded" and "shaped" into the vessel that God is calling for one to be. Scripture even speaks of suffering simply because of the fallen condition of the world. The law of karma and belief in bad karma is in sharp disagreement with scripture of the Christian Bible and is not the same thing as reaping what you've sown.
Rescue from Bad Karma
Millions of adherents to the law of Karma believe that there are four types of suffering that union with God, through the practice of various religions from the East, will eliminate: birth, sickness, old age, and death. There's serious disagreement between the teachings of the law of karma and those of God's word. The Christian Bible does not teach that a man can escape birth, sickness, old age, or death by practicing the things promoted in the doctrine behind yoga and other belief systems originating in the East. God's word does not even say that these things can be avoided for the Christian or anyone else in this present world. What does the Bible say about birth, sickness, old age, and death?
Hebrews 9:27 says, "And as it is appointed unto men once to die, but after this the judgment." This is only one of several scriptures in the Christian Bible that refute belief in reincarnation. If a man is appointed to die only once, he will live on this present Earth only once, because he can never be reborn. Why should he attempt to escape rebirth, something that does not happen? The idea of being reborn multiple times physically is a falsehood.
Complete and perpetual freedom from sickness while in this present world is not viewed as reality while a person lives--at least not according to God's word. Although God healed and continues to heal his people, they don't always escape suffering the illnesses that plague man. God's word never automatically accuses everyone who falls sick of having bad karma or even of being in wrong standing with the Lord. The scripture of James 5:14-15 reads, "Is any sick among you? Let him call for the elders of the church and let them pray over him, anointing him with oil in the name of the Lord. And the prayer faith shall save the sick; and the Lord shall raise him up, and if he has committed sins, they shall be forgiven him." The scripture says, "If" the person has committed sin; it does not say that we are to think that everyone who is sick has committed sin. Why should we think that everyone who is sick has something called bad karma?
The Christian Bible reminds man that, "...Childhood and youth are vanity" (Ecclesiastes 11:10). It also reminds that man, if he continues to live, will either grow old or he will die; this is why childhood and youth are vanity. If a man keeps living, he must go through both "sufferings." He will get old, and then he will die. The prophets of the Old Testament, the servants of God in the New Testament, and the servants of God in these modern times are growing old and they are dying. The same can be said for practitioners of any and every other religion. Who has escaped birth, sickness, old age or death?
The law of karma is not in agreement with the law of Christ. All that is in disagreement with Christ is anti-Christ (Matthew 12:30).
Highly Recommended Related Reading:
The Christian Bible on Past Life Memories and Reincarnation
True Identity of the AntiChrist
The Search for Extraterrestrial Intelligent Life: A Waste of Time?
The Afterlife According to the Bible
Based on true events, The Third Man by Angela Sheffield, brings the Bible up close and personal as the characters face real issues of life: Betrayal, deceit, romance, bitterness, anger against God, hopelessness, will power, perplexity, triumph, unforgiveness, mental illness, and the "Alcohol made me do it" excuse. Read chapter one FREE now.
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