If you had any doubt that the Torah Clubs (FFOZ) following Daniel Lancaster's teachings are purposefully subverting, more than that, outright jettisoning, the sole authority of God's Word, the proof is there to be seen in the actual Torah Club materials. Now, you could also look at Rethinking the Five Solae - by Jacob Fronczak, First Fruits of Zion's failed attempt to label Protestantism as inherently anti-Semitic, a book that FFOZ is publishing and selling to see just how antagonistic this organization is to scriptural authority.
Here in The Beginning of Wisdom lesson 7, the Jewish mystical teaching of a pre-existent soul, a concept not found anywhere in scripture, is fully embraced to the extent that this idea becomes the very rationale for our time here on earth, "That's why we came to this place." (p. 6) We came here, according to FFOZ, to learn things that our souls in heaving couldn't because they were already in God's presence. In other words, God needed us to disconnect from him so we'd learn to want to come back though life's "innumerable difficulties, trials, and temptations." (p. 6) Thus FFOZ is not only imagining our purpose, but God's as well, both dependent upon the notion that we don't remember our time spent with God before birth.
Once you have this extra-biblical idea firmly in place, FFOZ will teach you that Jacob's journey out of the Promised Land and back (necessary because of how thoroughly he had cheated his brother) is an analogy for our journey from heaven, to earth, and back again. Why on earth (no pun intended) would Bible believing Christians sit under this teaching? Are you going to strain this filth out of the food they're serving?
Lancaster isn't finished, he's cheeky enough to invent God's dialogue with your pre-existent soul, of course we can't remember that warning because our memory was wiped clean when we slipped on our bodies "like clothing." {see: Torah Club lesson #6 takes a bizarre turn toward Gnostic Dualism in support of an anti-Trinitarian view of Jesus}
The Group Discussion question in section 3 of lesson 7 is this, "What do you think of the Jewish idea of the preexistent soul?"
*FYI, it isn't a Jewish idea, it is one form of Jewish mysticism. FFOZ wants you to view Judaism and Jewish thinkers as some sort of monolith that they can represent to you and teach you about, it is as pathetic as saying, "What do you think of the Christian idea of Calvinism?" or "What do you think of the Church's idea of priestly celibacy?" Anyone with an ounce of knowledge of Christianity and the Church knows that some Christians adhere to Calvinism but many do not, and a portion of the Church has embraced priestly celibacy, for a portion of that segment's history, but most do not and never have. Note: Torah Club/FFOZ materials rarely, if ever, cite sources for what they define as "Jewish thought" or when they say, "Judaism teaches."*
What do I think about the idea? (1) It is extra biblical, (2) more akin to the ideas of Eastern religions about reincarnation than to anything Jesus taught, and (3) a dangerous wedge to begin teaching people to embrace an authority beyond, and ultimately against, the Word of God.
And somehow Lancaster was the only one to remember this conversation God “probably” had with you.
ReplyDeleteThat is a definite hole in his thesis. If we've all forgotten everything we knew when we existed with God before our birth, how does he know about it? The only possible answers are some sort of mystical knowledge (that's the one he's pulling from) or direct divine revelation, but the scriptures are not cooperating on backing up this notion as it is foreign to them.
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