Many of my most recent posts have contained some harsh words for Glenn Beck. There was a time, on a different blog site, when many of those who considered themselves my allies would have accused me of being a Glenn Beck sycophant — and they would have had more than a little reason to consider such accusations justified. I admit it: I used to be in almost total agreement with Beck. But that was before I started reading my Bible. Still, I need to thank Beck for that. Had it not been for him, I may not have done so. You see, as much as I liked and agreed with him, I couldn’t justify his religion with his words, so I turned to the Bible to find the answer. What I found has caused me to step back a little from him, and to pray for him even more than I already had.Glenn Beck often speaks about God on his radio and TV programs. He claims to believe in the God of the Bible, and in Jesus Christ as his Savior. His language sounds like anything you might hear from the pulpit of any orthodox Protestant church. I even saw him do a segment on FOX News in which he described how a person is saved, and appeared to be straight off the pages of Scripture. Sadly, this is one of those times where appearances can be very deceiving because the truth is, while Beck may use the same words as Christ’s disciples, he has a very different understanding of what they mean.
Beck is a Mormon, and Mormons — like Muslims — believe the Bible has been corrupted. Well, if you believe in an all-powerful god, but also believe that this god is not capable of protecting and preserving his word, then how ‘all powerful’ is your god? Personally, I would think he is no god at all. This is the first problem with Beck’s faith: they do not believe the Bible is the true word of the Living God.
The next problem is that — again, just like Muslims — they have changed their concept of who God and Jesus are. Both Muslims and Mormons deny the trinity, and while Islam acknowledges Jesus as a prophet, they deny that He is God, or that was crucified and resurrected. Mormons, on the other hand, believe Jesus was born of a physical union between the first man, Adam (who became god), and Eve, his wife. They also believe Satan is the brother of Jesus. None of this is Biblical. In fact, according to the Apostle, John, whom Jesus loved, both Muslims and Mormons adhere to religions that meet the Biblical definition of ‘antichrist.’
Still, I could not get past all the good Beck does. He teaches peace, and service. Yes, I understand that — as a Mormon — he thinks he can become a god through good works and enlightenment. I just couldn’t understand how a person who appears to be as good as Beck (and I believe him to be sincere in his desire to do good), how could he possibly be on the path to perdition? This is one of the answers I was searching for in Scripture, and the Lord revealed that answer to me. Sadly, and alarmingly, that answer applies to many more people than I’d like to believe — possibly even myself!
The Lord led me first to this verse:
Mark 9:38-41 New American Standard Bible (NASB)
Dire Warnings
38 John said to Him, “Teacher, we saw someone casting out demons in Your name, and we tried to prevent him because he was not following us.” 39 But Jesus said, “Do not hinder him, for there is no one who will perform a miracle in My name, and be able soon afterward to speak evil of Me. 40 For he who is not against us is [a]for us. 41 For whoever gives you a cup of water to drink [b]because of your name as followers of Christ, truly I say to you, he will not lose his reward.
And then to this one:
Matthew 7:21-23 New American Standard Bible (NASB)
21 “Not everyone who says to Me, ‘Lord, Lord,’ will enter the kingdom of heaven, but he who does the will of My Father who is in heaven will enter. 22 Many will say to Me on that day, ‘Lord, Lord, did we not prophesy in Your name, and in Your name cast out demons, and in Your name perform many [a]miracles?’ 23 And then I will declare to them, ‘I never knew you; depart from Me, you who practice lawlessness.’
These passages, from Christ, Himself, clearly teach us that there are people who can and will do good works in His name, yet, on the day of judgment, they will not be saved. Then I remembered that Scripture also tells us no one is good but God (Mark 10:18). What’s more, nothing we do — as humans — is good, for all our efforts to do good are as filthy rags:
Isaiah 64:6 New American Standard Bible (NASB)
6 For all of us have become like one who is unclean,
And all our righteous deeds are like a filthy garment;
And all of us wither like a leaf,
And our iniquities, like the wind, take us away.
All of this reminded me of something else, from the book of Isaiah:
Isaiah 10:5-7 Easy-to-Read Version (ERV)
God Will Punish Assyria’s Pride
5 The Lord says, “I will use Assyria like a stick. In my anger I will use Assyria to punish Israel. 6 I will send Assyria to fight against the people who do evil. I am angry with them, and I will command Assyria to fight against them. Assyria will defeat them and take their wealth. Israel will be like dirt for Assyria to walk on in the streets.
Isaiah 14:24-25 New American Standard Bible (NASB)
Judgment on Assyria
24 The Lord of hosts has sworn saying, “Surely, just as I have intended so it has happened, and just as I have planned so it will stand, 25 to break Assyria in My land, and I will trample him on My mountains. Then his yoke will be removed from them and his burden removed from their shoulder.
7 “But Assyria does not understand that I will use him. He does not think of himself as my tool. He only wants to destroy other people. He only plans to destroy many nations.
Assyria was an enemy of Israel and of God’s people. It’s rulers worshiped false gods, yet the One True God used Assyria to deliver His judgment against Israel when it had turned away from Him. Afterward, God punished Assyria, as well, but the point is simple: if God will use those who fight against Him to work His will, how much more will He use those who do not openly oppose him? This — at least for me — was the answer I was given to my questions about Glenn Beck — at least so far as matters of God are concerned.
Where I once thought Beck had to be on the narrow path because he was ‘good,’ I now realize my mistake. I trespassed against God by assigning a quality to a man which belongs to no one but God. How this change of heart manifests in my posts now is not a work, but a fruit: an outward sign of my repentance. I only pray it will be acceptable to the Lord…
[NOTE: If you do not recognize and understand Isaiah 10, you really need to read Isaiah 9 — then watch ‘The Harbinger.’ We — America — are under the very same warning/curse as Israel was at the time Isaiah wrote those prophecies, and we are being attacked by the very same people. If you think the end will be any different this time, you are fooling yourself.]
The Oil for Your Lamp 