"The Heart of the New Age Movement, Part 2"

The Heart of the New Age Movement

Part 2: “The Second Lie!”

By Gary L. Clendenon, (c) 2025

“I am concerned that just as Eve was deceived by the lies of Satan, so your minds may be tricked into turning away from the pure love and devotion to Christ.”

~ The Apostle Paul, 2 Corinthians 11:3 (1)

In “Part 1” of “The Heart of the New Age Movement”, I introduced how this so-called “New” movement is actually based on the Universe’s three oldest lies introduced to this world by Satan speaking through the serpent in the Garden of Eden. If you haven’t already read “Part 1”, please go HERE and read it now to fully understand the context of what I will be sharing here in “Part 2”.

If at any point during this reading, you find yourself wondering, “I thought this essay was about the New Age Movement?” Remember this: it all goes back to the heart of New Age Movement: Satan’s lies in the Garden of Eden. To understand these lies is to understand the New Age Movement.

Now, let’s go back again to the Garden of Eden, where we find Satan speaking to Eve in response to her comment that GOD had told them that they would die. In Genesis 3 verse 4, Satan says through the serpent, without any subtlety, “You will not die.” This is the second lie.

In short, in “Part 2”, I’m going to look at two “False Truths” in current religion and spirituality that directly come from this lie, and I will show how this lie has continued on down through history up until this very day in these false truths:

False Truth #1:  “You won’t die. See you’re still alive! You are entitled to live.”

False Truth #2:  “You cannot die. You have an immortal soul that lives forever!”

FALSE TRUTH #1: “You are entitled to life.”

The first “False Truth” was set up by the fact that when Adam and Eve did eat the fruit, they did not die. Based on this, Satan could say, “See, I was right! You didn’t die. You’re still very alive. GOD was just trying to scare you into not becoming self-aware, like He is.” This gave Adam and Eve the opportunity to doubt this so-called “Death” thing—which they had never seen or experienced. Yes, things were different—they felt naked and ashamed—but they were still alive.

Imagine waking up every day for 900 years thinking “I did not die. I’m still alive.” It would be very easy to also think, “Turns out that snake Satan was right!” We humans tend to most believe in what we see and experience. When we wake up alive every day for years and years, that becomes our “norm”, our default. We easily come to take life for granted. We assume life is ours and owed to us, and death becomes the strange thing—life, taken away from us. We even get angry when death does eventually happen, as if we or our loved ones have been deprived of some right that is ours!

We all know that the “Truth” to this lie is that death is a real thing. It happens every day. In fact, so much so that there is an oft-used quote from wise Benjamin Franklin who humorously put it this way: “In this world, nothing is certain except death and taxes.” GOD was clear with Adam and Eve regarding the consequences of the choice to eat that fruit, and the Bible is very clear, also, about the cost to pay for sin: “The payment for sin is death…” (Romans 6:23, GWT) Of the certainty of this payment, Christian Commentator, Ellen G. White, writes: “This was the position of the human race after man divorced himself from God.... Then he was no longer entitled to a breath of air, a ray of sunshine, or a particle of food.” (2)

So, what’s going on here? Was Satan right? How did he take advantage of our not dying to lead us into becoming entitled humans—thinking we had a right to life? Why didn’t Adam and Eve die soon after they ate the fruit? Ironically, the fact that Adam and Eve continued to live was not, as Satan twisted it—in a classical case of projection—proof that GOD lied to them, but proof of the love and mercy of GOD. You see, GOD always has a “Plan B”.

In the Trinity’s infinite wisdom before the Creation of any beings or worlds, in the un-hoped for event of a citizen of the universe making the choice to opt out of GOD’s Kingdom, a rescue plan was created to bring them back into the Kingdom of GOD—should they desire to make that choice! Ellen G. White references this plan and one of the Bible texts acknowledging it with these words: “The plan of salvation had been laid before the creation of the earth; for Christ is ‘the lamb slain from the foundation of the world’ (Revelation 13:8).” (3)

Explaining further, White wrote:

God and Christ knew from the beginning, of the apostasy of Satan and the fall of Adam.... The plan of salvation was designed to redeem the fallen race, to give them another trial. Christ was appointed to the office of Mediator from the creation of God, set up from everlasting to be our substitute and surety. Before the world was made, it was arranged that the divinity of Christ should be enshrouded in humanity. (4)

So, the real truth is, we will die—“But by the grace of God” it just might take a while. (5) As Danish writer Janne Teller so rightly put it: “From the moment we are born, we begin to die.” In an interesting article on this topic, Bodie Hodge points out that the original Hebrew in Genesis suggests that the process of dying would begin, but not be completely carried out instantly. (6) I find it interesting that this process is even acknowledged by “Science” in its “Law of Entropy” which basically states that it is the tendency of things to move naturally towards falling apart or becoming more disorganized over time. In this law, death is the inevitable “maximum entropy”.

One final point on this part of the topic. If you are like me and are quite convinced that death is very real and have, frankly, seen enough of it already to last a lifetime, this is the Bible text I always fall back on in this mental and emotional state: “The Lord isn’t slow to do what he promised, as some people think. Rather, he is patient for your sake. He doesn’t want to destroy anyone but wants all people to have an opportunity to turn to him and change the way they think and act.” (2 Peter 3:9, GWT) As ugly as continued death is, it serves GOD’s purpose in this way: GOD wants everyone to have the chance to be saved. I love a God who is all about giving people more chances.

FALSE TRUTH #2: “You will live forever!”

Well, of course, by now we know that Adam and Eve and their descendants figured out that they were going to die. So, that gig was up for Satan. So, Satan’s “Plan B” to keep the “You won’t die” lie going was—and still to this day is—this: “You cannot die. You have an immortal soul that lives forever!”

Going back to the Genesis story, notice carefully what Genesis 3:22-24 says:

The LORD said, “They now know the difference between right and wrong, just as we do. But they must not be allowed to eat fruit from the tree that lets them live forever.” So the LORD God sent them out of the Garden of Eden…. Then God put winged creatures at the entrance to the garden and a flaming, flashing sword to guard the way to the life-giving tree. (CEV, emphasis mine)

This verse makes it very clear that the ability for humans to live forever was tied to eating from the “Tree of Life”, not an automatic internal condition of being born. Three separate times in the book of Revelation, it mentions that after Jesus returns and gives His faithful followers their new lives, they will then be given access to the Tree of Life, which will then give them immortality! (7)

I cannot overstate this: Human immortality of the soul is a Satanic lie! Belief in this lie has led to two basic, separate amalgamations in religious beliefs in our world. I invite you to take a look at those now.

Immortality of the Soul in Non-Christian Belief Systems

The first amalgamation of the belief “You will not die” shows up strongly all around the world in most all of the available belief systems—“even among those who don’t identify as religious.” (18) Is this just an interesting coincidence or is there something deeper going on here? I’m reminded of what Jesus said, “You come from your father, the devil…. He has never been truthful. … Whenever he tells a lie, he’s doing what comes naturally to him. He’s a liar and the father of lies.” (John 8:44, GWT) To me, then, it’s no surprise that almost all of the belief systems in the world believe this lie (See also: 1 John 5:19).

One of these belief systems, Hinduism, has an additional wrinkle to the idea of the immortal soul: “Reincarnation”. Hinduism teaches that when you die, you will be re-born on this earth as either an insect, animal, or human—depending on how well you lived in the previous life. In simple terms, this is called your “Karma”. Live well, move up the chain. Live poorly, move down the chain. The goal, over however many reincarnations it takes, is to climb the ladder of good behavior until one achieves full liberation from the reincarnation cycle to live forever in a state of “Nirvana” (also called “Moksha”).

I would like to strongly state that any system of belief—religious or otherwise—that has as its main focus “One’s works” is off-base, with the proverbial “cart before the horse”. GOD’s Kingdom and Salvation are based on the work of Jesus Christ on our behalf. Any positive works that we do are as a gift from GOD acting with us through the Holy Spirit. So, all works-based belief systems—“Christians” included—are being deluded by another one of Satan’s many lies (“We are saved or not saved by our own efforts”). In Constance Cumbey’s book on The New Age Movement, she states: “The Movement teaches that man is saved by initiation and works rather than through the grace of God and faith in the sacrifice of Jesus.” (20)

Surprising fact: “24% of US Christians believe in reincarnation!” (21) It would not be possible for this fact to exist without the belief in the immortality of the soul. Speaking of Christians….

Immortality of the Soul in Christianity

Unfortunately, the second amalgamation shows up currently in almost all of Christianity with “most Christians believing in an immortal soul” (8). It seems that over the thousands of years of Christian History, Satan’s lie has become very deeply woven and embedded into “Christian” belief!

If you look online, you will find—as one would expect based on the above paragraph—statements, articles, and Bible studies that confirm what “most” of “Christianity” believes on this topic. You may also find it mentioned that Seventh-day Adventists and Jehovah’s Witnesses believe in something different: “Soul Sleep” or “Conditional Immortality”.

I don’t have the space here to do a full Bible study on the “State of the Dead”, but if you want or need that, I recommend you detour to the link in footnote #9 below. Here is the really short version: Ecclesiastes 9:5 says, “For the living know that they will die, but the dead know nothing….” If the dead know “nothing”, then they can’t be alive in Heaven (or Hell) or anywhere else. Paul writes in I Thessalonians 4:13 “...we do not want you to be uninformed about those who sleep in death…. 15-16 “...we who are still alive...will certainly not precede those who have fallen asleep. For the Lord himself will come down from heaven...and the dead in Christ will rise first.” (emphasis mine)

In the Bible, the word “sleep” is used for “death” in 53 different places (10), as it was used by Jesus, also, in referring to both Lazarus and Jairus’ daughter (John 11:11-13, Matthew 9:24). So, I and others who believe in “Soul Sleep” believe the Bible teaches, in complete opposition to Satan’s lie, that those who die are in, from the standpoint of timekeeping, a long period of figurative sleep, but they will be awoken by the sound of the “trumpet call of God” (11) when Jesus returns at the promised “2nd Coming”, and “...the dead in Christ will rise….”

But, though many, many years may have passed, the nature of their “sleep” will be such that the time between their last memory alive and their first memory of being awakened will be as if they blinked (the Bible calls this “the twinkling of an eye” I Corinthians 15:52). So, in this way, when the Pastor at the funeral service says, “the next face they see will be the face of Jesus”, Soul Sleepers agree. The only thing we disagree with is what happens in between and why that matters.

A little history regarding this belief called “Soul Sleep”. Neither the name nor the ideas in the belief of Soul Sleep were created or invented by Seventh-day Adventists or Jehovah’s Witnesses—both founded in the late 1800s. In the Wikipedia article “Christian mortalism”, it says that “Soul Sleep” was a term made popular by John Calvin in the 1500s; though he did not believe in it himself, he used the term to describe this belief system, and the term caught on. (12a)

The doctrine of Soul Sleep is based on numerous Bible verses in both the Old and New Testament, as I mentioned several paragraphs ago. (9) In regards to this, The Blackwell Encyclopedia of Modern Christian Thought says, “There is no concept of an immortal soul in the Old Testament, nor does the New Testament ever call the human soul immortal.” (13)

Non-Catholic church fathers from the Middle Ages, John Wycliffe (1320-1384) and William Tyndale (1494-1536), “taught the doctrine of soul sleep as the answer to the Catholic teachings of purgatory and masses for the dead.” Tyndale said: “ye, in putting them [departed souls] in heaven, hell and purgatory, destroy the arguments wherewith Christ and Paul prove the resurrection… And again, if the souls be in heaven, tell me why they be not in as good a case as the angels be? And then what cause is there of the resurrection?” (14)

Martin Luther (1483-1546), Father of the Protestant Reformation, defended “Soul Sleep” saying “so the soul after death enters its chambers and peace, and sleeping does not feel sleep”. (15a) Luther, never shy about speaking his understanding of Bible truth, called the theory of the immortality of the soul “monstrous fables”! (15b)

As alluded to in the quotes above, the Catholic Church had—according to their website Catholic.com: “The doctrine of purgatory” based on the belief in the “immortal soul” as “a part of the true faith since before the time of Christ.” (16)

In response to the Early Church Reformers teachings and beliefs about “Soul Sleep” quoted above, the Catholic Church strongly condemned as “heresy” such thinking in the Fifth Council of the Lateran (1513) calling these beliefs “erroneous statements” and “heresies”. It was at this time that the Catholic Church made the belief in the immortal soul the “official” doctrine of their church. (17)

In spite of the Early Church Reformers teachings and beliefs, over time, almost all of the Protestant Christian Church also came to embrace the same beliefs as the Catholic Church regarding the immortality of the soul, and therefore also, the soul’s definite future in either heaven or hell. However, still true to the Early Church Reformers in one way, today’s Protestants do continue to not believe in any intermediate stages, like Purgatory.

Fascinating! So, after Satan, speaking through the serpent in the garden, introduced the concept of immortality of the soul to humanity, where in modern history does the concept of immortality of the soul show up?

The Wikipedia article states that one Mortalist writer, Thomas Hobbes, argues that “the doctrine of natural (or innate) immortality stems not from Hebrew thought as presented in the Bible, but rather from pagan influence, particularly Greek philosophy [6th century BC] and the teachings of Plato [c. 428-347], or Christian tradition.” (12b) (Note how Hobbes statement matches the Catholic statement above perfectly in regards to the timing of the acceptance of this belief!)

Given this huge “influence”, I think it’s important at this point to clearly define the term “pagan”: “someone who practices a religion or spiritual path that is not one of the major Abrahamic religions (Judaism, Christianity, or Islam), often with a focus on nature, polytheism, or ancient traditions.” (18) Over the centuries, Christians have referred to pagan beliefs as “ungodly” or “heathen”. Given what I have shared with you so far, I think you can see how one could make the argument for an even stronger term: “Satanic”.

So, there you have it. Over the thousands of years of Earth’s history, Satan’s lie slowly and subtly became the Church’s lie: “You will not die.” If what I am saying is true—“Satan’s lie became the Church’s lie”—This is a really big deal!!!

WHY IT MATTERS!

Earlier I said regarding the issue of going somewhere immediately after our death versus just being “asleep”: “The only thing we disagree with is what happens in between and why that matters.” I will now tell you why I and other “Soul Sleepers” believe it matters. In a nutshell, I would say it matters because the original lie of Satan “You will not die”, if believed, opens up the opportunity for Satan to add more, terribly-horrific lies, to his original lie. And, this is very much a huge advantage for him and his agenda.

Upon its death, if there was such a thing as an “immortal soul”, since it could not be killed, it must go somewhere! Naturally, this leaves open the question of “Where does it go?” Most people are comfortable with the idea of that soul going to Heaven, so that’s fairly easily accepted—especially given the other alternative (Wink).

Though, besides the clear, Biblical arguments against this “having to go somewhere”—“dead in the grave”, “dead know nothing”, “dead will be resurrected” (9), I have seen a good argument made on just a practical level. Wouldn’t it almost be a form of torture for those “in Heaven” to have to watch their loved ones lives go on without them and without being able to interact with them, not to mention watching their loved ones deal with all the challenges and suffering that life brings?

The biggest challenge with this false doctrine of the “Immortality of the Soul” is that it allows Satan to introduce another, even more sinister, works-based, un-Biblical doctrine: The doctrine of an Eternally Burning Hell for all those “immortal souls” supposedly rejected by God. Through this fake “Hell”, Satan can project his own cruelty onto the Loving GOD! Now, he can point to GOD as the evil monster, not himself! Another classic case of psychological projection! I love how Ellen G. White describes this:

It is beyond the power of the human mind to estimate the evil which has been wrought by the heresy of eternal torment. The religion of the Bible, full of love and goodness, and abounding in compassion, is darkened by superstition and clothed with terror. When we consider in what false colors Satan has painted the character of God, can we wonder that our merciful Creator is feared, dreaded, and even hated? The appalling views of God which have spread over the world from the teachings of the pulpit have made thousands, yes, million, of skeptics and infidels. (19)

See how in a subversively evil way the original lie—“You will not die”—has been turned into something even worse? Now, it has turned our Loving GOD into an unspeakably-evil monster who can’t wait to torture us for rejecting Him! I have a numbered collection of “Gary-isms”. Number 13 speaks to this topic: “Hell is a Satanic plot!” (Please note the two different but true meanings of the word “plot”) (23). Is it possible to take this completely twisted, Satanic view of Hell and biblically reframe it as an act of a loving God—the way I believe the Bible intended? I absolutely believe so. Again, I’m trying to keep this short, so, for a more detailed perspective on this, please see Footnote 22.

The very shortest way I can think of to reframe this topic as it ought to be understood—Hell as honoring a human’s free choice to reject GOD and salvation—is with an excellent quote by C.S. Lewis:

There are only two kinds of people in the end: those who say to God, "Thy will be done," and those to whom God says, in the end, "Thy will be done." All that are in Hell, choose it. Without that self-choice there could be no Hell. No soul that seriously and constantly desires joy will ever miss it. Those who seek find. Those who knock it is opened. (24)

Again, keeping this short, Revelation 20:9 says regarding those who have chosen to reject GOD’s loving offer of life eternal: “They marched across the breadth of the earth and surrounded the camp of God’s people, the city he loves. But fire came down from heaven and devoured them.”  Then, in verse 14, it says, “The lake of fire is the second death.” Then, in the next chapter of Revelation (21), it starts with this verse: “Then I saw ‘a new heaven and a new earth,’ for the first heaven and the first earth had passed away.” So, no eternally-burning hell. These people receive the second death. That is their “Hell”. That’s it—it’s all over. Period. THE END. Then, the Earth is cleansed and recreated all new.  

Those who, rightly so, cannot comprehend a God who would torture and punish those who reject Him sometimes—to make sense of this topic—go to the other extreme, as Ellen G. White eloquently points out in this quote:

A large class to whom the doctrine of eternal torment is revolting are driven to the opposite error. They see that the Scriptures represent God as a being of love and compassion, and they cannot believe that He will consign His creatures to the fires of an eternally burning hell. But holding that the soul is naturally immortal, they see no alternative but to conclude that all mankind will finally be saved. (25)

This “opposite error” is called “Universalism”, and the above author rightly calls it “Satan’s own doctrine” reiterating the lie spoken by the Serpent in Eden, “You will not die.” (26) I will reiterate two problems with this belief system: 1. It goes against what is made very clear in the Bible: “The payment for sin is death…” (Romans 6:23, GWT) and 2. It takes away the respect for a person’s freedom to choose—which is the foundation of GOD’s government (Unconditional Love = Unconditional Freedom. (27)

The last huge challenge I will share is also a result of this false doctrine of the “Immortality of the Soul”. The lie “You will not die” allows for Satan and his evil angels to trick us into believing, as said in the words of the famous movie The Sixth Sense, “I see dead people!”

This misguided belief that when a person dies, they go somewhere, has logically led to another misguided belief: Dead people can visit us and communicate with us! This experience is called “Spiritualism”. According to Wikipedia’s entry on “Spiritualism”, it “is a 19th and 20th century religious movement, according to which an individual’s awareness persists after death and may be contacted by the living.” (Although that is true of the “movement”, it is also quite clear that this practice has existed all throughout Earth’s history and is discussed in the Bible.)

Though it might be very comforting to believe that a dead loved one could communicate with us, this absolutely bogus charade is based on the very dangerous lie exposed in this essay. Belief in this lie can have huge and dangerous implications and ramifications! Here’s how Ellen G. White describes all this in her chapter entitled “Can Our Dead Speak to Us?”:

Multitudes have come to believe that it is spirits of the dead who are the “ministering spirits sent forth to minister for them….” [Hebrews 1:14] If, as is taught by popular theologians, spirits of the dead are hovering about their friends on earth, why should they not be permitted to communicate with them, to warn them against evil, or to comfort them in sorrow? Here is a channel regarded as sacred, through which Satan works for the accomplishment of his purposes. The fallen angels who do his bidding appear as messengers from the spirit world. While professing to bring the living into communication with the dead, the prince of evil exercises his bewitching influence upon their minds.

He has power to bring before [humans] the appearance of their departed friends. The counterfeit is perfect…. Many are comforted with the assurance that their loved ones are enjoying the bliss of heaven, and without suspicion of danger, the give ears “to seducing spirits, and doctrines of devils.” [1 Timothy 4:1]

Then, as confidence is gained, they present doctrines that directly undermine faith in the Scriptures. With an appearance of deep interest in the well-being of their friends on earth, they insinuate the most dangerous errors. …their false teachings are accepted by the multitudes as readily, and believed as implicitly, as if they were the most sacred truths of the Bible. (28)

Can you see how the Devil and his angels can use this to their advantage? Taking advantage of the loved one’s innocent belief, they can say anything they want and have it believed—even if it goes against what the Bible says!!

Knowing all this, we can understand why GOD, in the Bible, so very clearly and strongly speaks out against this practice: “Do not defile yourselves by turning to mediums or those who consult the spirits of the dead. I am the LORD your God.” (Lev. 19:31) As you’ll remember from the story of Israel’s first king, Saul, this very thing was one of the signs that Saul had rejected GOD: “So Saul died because of his unfaithfulness to the LORD: He did not obey the word of the LORD. He asked a medium to request information [from a dead person].” 1 Chronicles 10:13 (GWT)

Again, from “Can Our Dead Speak to Us?”:

Many will be confronted by the spirits of devils personating beloved relatives or friends and declaring the most dangerous heresies. There visitants will appeal to our tenderest sympathies and work miracles to sustain their pretensions [claims]. We must be prepared to withstand them with the Bible truth that ‘the dead know nothing’ and that they who thus appear are the spirits of devils. (29)

In addition to the light of this truth, one day when I was reading, I stumbled upon a very mind-shattering idea that shook me to my core! Check out these prophetic words—again from “Can Our Dead Speak to Us?”:

The apostles, as personated by these lying spirits, are made to contradict what they wrote at the dictation of the Holy Spirit when on earth. They deny the origin of the Bible, and thus tear away the foundation of the Christian’s hope and put out the light that reveals the way to heaven. … Here is a channel wholly under [Satan’s] control; by this means he can make the whole world believe what he will. (30)

OH MY!! Can you imagine this happening? When I imagined this scenario, as I said, I was shook to my core!! Who are Christians and the rest of the world going to believe in: the apostles standing right there and explaining what they meant or the Holy Bible which the apostles have just explained away? The last solid rock that Christians have always held onto is “the Word—the Holy Scriptures”. “GOD said it, and I believe it, and that settles it for me!” What happens when this is challenged?? The quote says it well: “tear away the foundation”. ALL THIS FROM A SIMPLE, FOUR-WORD-LIE: “YOU WILL NOT DIE.”

Finally, in conclusion, I hope you now understand the absolutely-genius-level, completely-insidious and satanic conspiracy against all who claim to believe in GOD and the Bible. This is way, way beyond next-level villainous! I am honestly surprised that this overview of just a “four-word-lie” took me over 5,500 words to explain! But, it did, and I stand by every word.

To summarize it all:

1. All humans who die will sleep in the grave.

2. Immortality is a gift of GOD granted through Jesus’ death at the 2nd coming of Jesus.

3. There is no eternally-burning “Hell”.

4. Ghosts are demons pretending to be dead people.

Friend, I want to thank you for taking the time to read this. I know it’s been a long read, but I hope you have found it worth your time. This is the end of “Part 2”, but not the end of this series. I hope you will stay tuned for “Part 3” of “The Heart of the New Age Movement”. In this last and final essay, I will share the 3rd lie of Satan to Eve in the Garden of Eden and its current formulation in the New Age Movement and our society today.

FOOTNOTES:

1. The Remedy, New Testament Paraphrase, by Timothy R. Jennings, M.D.

2. Faith and Works, p. 21.2, emphasis mine.

3. Patriarchs and Prophets, p. 63, emphasis mine.

4. Selected Messages, Vol 1, p. 250.1, emphasis mine.

5. I Corinthians 15:10.

6. https://answersingenesis.org/adam-and-eve/why-didnt-adam-and-eve-die-the-instant-they-ate-the-fruit/ Ellen G. White concurs with these words: “The warning given to our first parents—‘for in the day that you eat of it you shall surely die.’ (Genesis 2:17)—did not imply that they were to die on the very day when they partook of the forbidden fruit. But on the day the irrevocable sentence would be pronounced. ... That very day would be doomed to death. (Patriarchs & Prophets, p. 60)

7. Revelation 2:7, 22:1-3, 22:14.

8. Google A.I. Interesting quote from Ellen G. White on this idea: “the declaration of the serpent… ‘You will not die’—was the first sermon ever preached upon the immortality of the soul. Yet this declaration, resting solely on the authority of Satan, is echoed from the pulpits of Christendom and is received by the majority of mankind as readily as it was received by our first parents.” The Great Controversy, p. 533.

9. https://www.amazingfacts.org/media-library/study-guide/e/4987/t/are-the-dead-really-dead- Note: in this Bible study, they refer to Satan’s first lie as “You will not die”. Though I call it the second lie, regardless of the numbering, the lie itself remains, completely false and untrue.

10 https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cx3qkX3zfmw

11 First Thessalonians 4:16.

12 a: https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Christian_mortalism, emphasis mine. 12 b: “ibid” The term “Christian Tradition”, as used here, I take to mean teachings or beliefs that were outside of the Bible that were added on as time went by becoming “Tradition”—“that’s just the way we’ve always done it.”

13 The Blackwell Encyclopedia of Modern Christian Thought (1995), McGrath, p. 101, as quoted by Ibid.

14 “An Answer to Sir Thomas More” (1530), pp. 119-120, as quoted by article in Footnote 12a, emphasis mine.

15 a: As quoted by article in Footnote 12a. 15 b: As quoted by: The Great Controversy, by Ellen G. White, p. 549.

16 “What the Early Church Believed: Purgatory”, includes quotes from Augustine (400s AD) Catholic.com

17 See Footnote 12a.

18 Google A.I. search.

19 Ellen G. White, The Great Controversy, p. 536.

20 Constance Cumbey, The Hidden Dangers of the Rainbow, p. 67, emphasis mine.

21 2009 Pew Study

22 On this topic, I highly recommend the book Love Wins by Rob Bell, and my blog post here: https://notesfromthegc.blogspot.com/2021/09/thegrace-of-hell-grace-note-75-g-ary-l.html

23 For the full list of “Gary-isms”, go here: https://notesfromthegc.blogspot.com/2022/01/gary-isms.html

24 C.S. Lewis, The Great Divorce, emphasis mine.

25 Ellen G. White, The Great Controversy, p. 536.

26 Ibid, p. 538-39.

27 Gary-ism #24 states: The GOD of the Universe, Creator of Everything, has a poster on His wall that says, “If you love something, set it free. If it comes back to you, it’s yours. If not, it wasn’t meant to be.” Ironically, this is also the answer to the question: “Why does a God of Love allow evil and suffering in the World?” (For the full list of Gary-isms, see Footnote 23.)

28 Ellen G. White, The Great Controversy, p. 551-52, emphasis mine.

29 Ibid, p. 560, emphasis mine.

30 Ibid, p. 557, emphasis mine.