As a Christian Bible teacher, I have listened to numerous testimonies about NDEs, and I must say that evaluating these experiences can be quite complex and challenging. While they can provide valuable insights into God’s nature, human existence, and the afterlife, there is also a significant risk of exposure to false doctrines and erroneous interpretations.
After several sessions, I noticed a distinct difference in the near-death experiences (NDEs) of individuals from various religious backgrounds. The experiences of Christians stood out as quite different from those of individuals from other religions. To summarize this contrast, I’ve created a brief table below:
NDEs: Christians | NDEs: All other Religions |
| – People experience an overwhelming sense of love, acceptance, and security. – They all come to realize that repentance is necessary, as without turning to Christ Jesus, they will face eternal condemnation. – Through their experiences, they witness the stark contrast between heaven and hell, understanding that their choices and obedience will determine their eternal destination. – They learn that worshiping other gods is not an option, as there is only one true God, and salvation comes solely through Jesus Christ, the Son of God who sacrificed himself on the cross for our sins. | – People experience a profound sense of love, acceptance, and security. – Heavenly entities assure them that they can’t do anything wrong and that their well-being and security are unconditionally guaranteed, regardless of their actions. – They’re all promised that if they’ve failed, they’ll still go to heaven, where they can choose to stay forever or try again through reincarnation by returning to earth as a baby to improve themselves. – Worshiping other gods is not a problem. – Their experiences are often more colorful and detailed than those of Christians, with a much richer abundance of information. |
One major issue is that people who have had NDEs often struggle to explain the meaning and implications of their experiences. Moreover, many interpretations of NDEs do not align with Scripture. As Christians, it is our responsibility to scrutinize these testimonies and ensure they conform to biblical teachings.
What are the factors that make near-death experiences and the way that we deal with them so complex and dangerous to people?
First of all, as with dreams and visions, people who have experienced such an event, normally have no problem describing what they have seen, heard, and experienced but they do find it challenging to explain what it all means and what it entails. I do understand that the language of dreams and visions is symbolism, which is not the case with near-death experiences or visitations, but, there is a similarity in the reasons why errors and mistakes creep in.
The problem that I have experienced in the past with many of the interpretations of dreams and visions is the fact that many of the interpretations of such dreams and visions do not conform to the Scriptures. When God speaks, it never contradicts the Bible. This is always true whether He speaks to us directly, in a dream or vision during a near-death experience or other type of heavenly visitation in the spiritual realm.
As children of God, we as Christians always have the responsibility to check if the statements made by people who had near-death experiences conform to Scripture. Too many times I have noticed that people ignorantly believe anything and everything that people say, just because they testified that Jesus appeared to them in a vision or a dream or because they had a near-death experience or some type of spiritual visitation. We should always bear in mind that these people may have erred in interpreting what Jesus, God, an angel, or a spiritual guide said. God or the heavenly entity may have said one thing, but, considering their own doctrinal beliefs, people may have heard another thing. Some people also, while digesting what Jesus meant by what He said in the vision, start adding things to what He said, and the experience sometimes keeps changing as time passes. What was said slowly but surely expanded with detail and aspects of their own religious beliefs.
The argument I am making here is well known to those in the legal and regulatory fields, including investigators, public prosecutors, attorneys, judges, and presiding officers. Most of the time, what someone claims to have learned from their experiences is not necessarily what they have observed or heard. These people don’t deliberately spread misinformation among other Christians. No, these people genuinely want to confirm exactly what happened to them and share exactly what Jesus revealed to them in a dream, vision, or even near-death experience (NDE). When digesting the information later, people often don’t follow the exact words that were spoken. They do make conscious adjustments, withdrawals, and even changes. They in all actuality do carry their doctrinal convictions into the situation. Sadly, these understandings at last become pieces of “what God expressed” when truth be told it was not the situation.
So, for the person who listens to such testimonies, this is the first problem that makes near-death experiences difficult to evaluate.
Another concern is that not all NDEs are from God; some may be orchestrated by dark forces seeking to deceive. These experiences can be incredibly convincing, making it difficult to discern their origin.
The only method to distinguish between the two is to find claims that are at odds with the Bible. These evil powers are aware that in order to avoid exposing themselves, they must adhere to biblical or supernatural experiences and only selectively and cautiously incorporate false teachings. For them, it is helpful to take the entire content and structure of the Gospel of Christ and apply it, essentially in almost the same way, to the structures of all these other faiths that are false. This is why pagan religions tend to mimic Christianity.
When evaluating NDEs I have found that hundreds if not thousands of Biblical Scriptures are almost constantly contradicted and ignored and this is the case because of the factors that I discussed above. The problem is that many Christians are not able to deal with this at all. They are not able to separate the chaff from the hay.
One of my favorite heavenly visitation testimonies is the one by Jesse du Plantis. It is just a joy watching it because the word of God was not contradicted or ignored a single time and Christians could obtain a lot of information never heard and seen before. What a testimony! I have seen a few good ones but I am afraid most testimonies were partially or seriously contaminated with false statements and doctrines and, based on the typical reactions of people, not even noticed or realized by most of them.
Needless to say, some individuals may fabricate their NDEs to promote false doctrines and beliefs.
In my experience, many NDE testimonies contain a mix of Christian, pagan, and demonic beliefs, which can be harmful to unsuspecting Christians. The Bible warns us in 2 Timothy 3:16 that Scripture is the ultimate authority for doctrine, reproof, correction, and instruction in righteousness. However, many Christians lack a deep understanding of the Scriptures, making them vulnerable to false teachings.
The false teachers quickly agree that the God of the Christians is the “Great Source of Energy” or the “Core”, but they immediately state that the god of all religions is, in fact, this same God of the Christians. We are all serving the same God they say and we can call Him whatever we want. The God of Abraham and Isaac and Jacob, Jesus Christ, or Allah, or Buddha, or Mohammed or Brahma, Vishnu, Shiva, Waheguru, or the Great Spirit, or whatever name we have been taught, is in fact the same God.
What some of them don’t know is that this God of the Bible, whom they accept as God or the “Source Energy” has said in his word that there is no other God but him. They have no problem with this because they also believe that there is only one God and that we just call him something else. We do agree on this they say. However, when you tell them that this God of the Bible said in his word that the only way to salvation is through His Son Jesus Christ and the cross of Cavalry, they immediately differ. When you tell them that contrary to what they believe, there is a hell and we have only one chance to attain salvation, they differ.
They will tell you, according to what they have been told and observed in their near-death experiences, that everybody goes to heaven, even the bad ones, and that they can come back numerous times to try over and over again to improve themselves and be elevated to a higher standard of living or level of energy. This is reincarnation and all their false beliefs, religious practices, and principles are all part of ages-old pagan religions.
The truth, however, is that Christianity is the only true religion and the God of the Christians is the only true God. He is not the God of the world. There is no other God. Buddha, Allah, and all other gods are fabrications. They are false gods and in reality, they are devils and demons.
I’ve come to the conclusion that there’s a dark explanation for why certain people’s NDE experiences tend to be more vivid, in-depth, and filled with a greater variety of knowledge. The reason for this is that they base their doctrines on this kind of fabrication.
In conclusion, while NDEs can be a blessing, they can also be a danger to one’s faith. We must approach these experiences with caution and discernment, ensuring that they align with Biblical teachings and do not contradict the Word of God. As Christians, we must remember that our God is the only true God, and there is no other.
