Deception by Near Death Experiences

I want to share with you a conversation I had with a friend several months ago which really opened my eyes to how people are being deceived. This is a man I’ve known for over four decades, and our friendship started as we were on the same wrestling team at Wesleyan University. For many years he has owned a business in Middletown but he’s now retired. Not too long ago I happened to meet him at a restaurant and we had an opportunityto chat together.

I should also share that prior to this meeting I thought this man was a Christian believer based on some things he had shared with me in the past.
My conversation with him on this particular day was very disappointing.

In the course of our conversation I was sharing with him my concern for someone who had rejected the things of the Lord. And to my surprise he tried to assure me that even unbelievers will be okay and will get to heaven. I replied, “No, if a person has never received Christ as his Saviour, that person will not get to heaven. Jesus is the only way to the Father (John 14:6).” He said, “No, that’s not true. Even unbelievers will be okay.” I said, “No, the Bible is very clear about the eternal destiny of unbelievers. The wrath of God will be upon them (John 3:36); they will not have eternal life. Even John 3:16 teaches that those who do not believe will perish.” He said, “No, God will take care of them in a wonderful way.”

Frustrated by his refusal to submit to the authority of Scripture I finally asked, “Why are you saying these things? What makes you think that unbelievers will be in heaven?” His answer: “It’s because I’ve been studying these accounts of near-death experiences and about people who have been incomas and have actually gone to heaven.”

And nothing I could say from the Bible would convince him otherwise.

Here is a clear example of a man who was getting information based on people’s personal near-death experiences, and he was willing to believe what these experiences seemed to suggest rather than to believe the clear testimony of the Word of God. He was willing to reject the clear teaching of the Bible in favor of these experiences.

What are we going to go by, experiences or the Bible?
Another example comes from one of my former professors at Grace Seminary, Dr. Charles Smith. Dr. Smith related the following incident: “Not long ago in a small town in Ohio, I invited a lady to attend meetings where I was preaching. Her response startled me. “I’m not interested in religion anymore and I have no fear about what will happen after death,” she said, “since they have proved now that there is no hell and that God accepts everybody when they die.” Where did she get this idea from? By reading books by Raymond Moody and another author, Elizabeth Kubler-Ross.

There was also a man by the name of Dr. George Ritchie, a psychiatrist who also happened to be a Presbyterian. Dr. Ritchie had an out of the body experience which he said changed his conventional views on heaven and hell. “I saw no hell-fire, no heads rolling in the streets. I know beyond a doubt that the Christ I saw will accept everyone, good or bad, even those who don’t believe in Him.”

You know something is terribly wrong if people are rejecting the true gospel of the grace of God in favor of near-death experiences.