Saturday, October 19, 2013

Knowing True Hope From False Hope

DD-764-c

Last night I was watching an episode of NCIS where there was a scene of a Navy destroyer at sea during a big storm.  It started with two men being tossed around in a cabin as if they were on the Bridge of Star Trek’s Enterprise during a Romulan attack.  They then stumbled outside to the bow section of the ship where a body was laying on the main deck.  Water was splashing over the bow and rain was blowing around the men as they went to check on the body.

My wife was laughing at me during  this because I was pointing out how fake this all was.  I had served in the Navy on a Navy destroyer. I knew that this scene was fake because I had lived for years on a destroyer.  I had experienced real storms.

Sailors are not tossed around like that during a storm.  We live on that ship and we know how to handle the ship’s rolling and pitching.  The men were on the bow of the ship being tossed from side to side, but the bow should also be plunging into huge waves, pitching forward and back.  The water should not have been splashing over the bow; it should have been pouring over the bow in huge waves, moving that dead body around, if not sweeping it off the deck entirely.  The men would not have been able to talk outside in a storm as big as they wanted us to believe it was,  they would have had to scream at each other to be heard.

Ok, I know.  It was only a TV show.  Nothing to get upset about.  They couldn’t really put the destroyer into a real storm and film the scene.  That would be ridiculous to expect.  Yet, I had to this feeling of being short changed simply because I knew the real thing from experience.  If I had never been on a ship I would have thought the scene was accurate and happily accepted it as what was depicted.

“For there shall arise false Christs, and false prophets, and shall shew great signs and wonders; insomuch that, if it were possible, they shall deceive the very elect.” Matthew 24:24

People in the world today are placing their hope for eternal life in false Christs and false prophets.  Muhammad is a false prophet.  People are afraid to say that for fear of offending someone, but it is the truth.  Bahá'u'lláh, Buddha, Joseph Smith, and any other spiritual leader, besides Jesus, are false prophets or false Christ.  Putting your hope in them will only lead to destruction and eternal death.

During these last days there will be other false Christ and prophets coming.  Eventually the Anti-Christ will appear and many will be deceived.  There is only one way to know that they are fake.  You must experience the true Christ who is Jesus.  I do not mean just accept Jesus as your savior and you will be fine.  I mean you must experience him everyday in your life.  You must live with him like I lived on that destroyer. 

I ate, slept, worked and played on that ship.  I was on board in port and out at sea.  I rode it in calm weather and in the biggest storms.  I knew it inside and out.  You must know Jesus the same way.  You must experience Jesus 24/7 in all kinds of environments.  Then you will know the true from the false.

True hope is known only when you experience the true Christ in your life.   

Photo is of my first ship, USS Lloyd Thomas DD 764.

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