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NOTE: This article or series has not been updated recently. As such, it may possibly contain some outdated information, and/or ideas and beliefs which I no longer embrace, or which have changed to some degree.



Before concluding this series, there is one final point that we need to discuss. I have purposely saved this issue until now, not only because some of you will find what I have to say rather challenging, but also because it exposes the real power of the Urantia Book. The question is this: Why do so many people find the Urantia Book so appealing? What exactly is its draw? In particular, what draws so many Christians to it? Is it because it offers amplified answers to some of the topics that are discussed in the Bible? Is it simply because it also discusses God, Jesus Christ, the Angels and the like?

While these may be some of the reasons why certain Christians find themselves drawn to the Urantia Book, personally, I do not believe that they are the main reason why this happens. While I could be wrong, I suspect that the primary reason why certain Christians find the Urantia Book so appealing, also relates directly to the biggest lie that it promotes; that is, the devilish belief that not only was the Crucifixion of Jesus Christ a horrid, barbarous act, but more importantly, it was supposedly an unnecessary act which has nothing to do with obtaining our Salvation. Stated another way, the Urantia Book's biggest lie is also its biggest bait.

"What?! What are you talking about?!" some of you may now be saying to yourselves. My friends, it is time to engage in a strong dose of personal honesty. You may have never shared your innermost thoughts with anyone -- perhaps out of a sense of embarrassment -- and I may have never told anyone either; but the fact of the matter remains that the bloody, inhumane Sacrifice of Jesus Christ is one of the most difficult parts of our faith to accept. I would put it right up there with the fact that in the Old Testament, God commanded the ancient Israelites to commit what are obviously clear-cut incidents of genocide and ethnic cleansing, by killing men, women and children. This is an issue which I also discuss in such controversial articles as "God of Peace, God of War".

We Christians -- particularly at this current time -- are so quick to condemn Muslim extremists due to their propensity for violence, and because their holy book -- the Qur'an -- mandates that they kill their enemies and infidels. Yet at the same time, we worship a God who not only condoned acts of genocide and ethnic cleansing, but also ordered animal sacrifices to be carried out in the Old Testament in order to appease His Divine Wrath, and then demanded the horrible, agonizing Crucifixion of His own Son as a ransom payment for our sins in the New Testament as well. Let me also remind you that the Patriarch Abraham was likewise on the verge of committing a human sacrifice as well, until an Angel of the Lord prevented him from doing so when it ordered him to stop.

Now, some of you may respond, "Well, yes, that is all true; but the Bible prophesied that all of these events had to occur in order that we might obtain our Salvation. Many of the events that occurred during the Old Testament period were foreshadows and archetypes of what Jesus Christ would fulfill in the New Testament." Well, obviously, I agree with you one hundred per cent; and I have taught these very same things for many years now. In fact, I discuss these issues in the companion articles entitled "The Blood Atonement: In Jesus' Own Words" and "The Urantia Book: An Attack on the Blood Atonement".

Nevertheless, the notion of a God who would require the sacrifice of innocent animals in order to appease His wrath, and then demand the violent, bloody death of His own Son, does bother you, doesn't it? You can't convince me that it doesn't make you feel at least a little bit uncomfortable. You can't tell me that you don't find it rather difficult to explain Jesus' Crucifixion to unbelieving family members and friends who probably view it as being an utterly repulsive act. When they ask you to explain to them why you worship a God who required such things, what do you tell them? How do you respond?

The truth is, to be repulsed by such things is actually quite natural. You may recall that in the Gospel of John, after the Lord had given His "eat-my-flesh-drink-my-blood" sermon, we are informed that many of His Disciples abandoned Him, as we see by the following verses:

"Many therefore of his disciples, when they had heard this, said, This is an hard saying; who can hear it? When Jesus knew in himself that his disciples murmured at it, he said unto them, Doth this offend you? What and if ye shall see the Son of man ascend up where he was before? It is the spirit that quickeneth; the flesh profiteth nothing: the words that I speak unto you, they are spirit, and they are life. But there are some of you that believe not. For Jesus knew from the beginning who they were that believed not, and who should betray him. And he said, Therefore said I unto you, that no man can come unto me, except it were given unto him of my Father. From that time many of his disciples went back, and walked no more with him."


I have always assumed that the reason why they abandoned Him is because they erroneously took His words in a very literal sense, which is not what Jesus meant at all, anymore than He intended to rebuild the physical Temple in Jerusalem in three days.

You see, the reason why I know that this is a difficult issue for many of you, is because it is a difficult issue for me as well. As some of you will know, I love animals. I would never intentionally kill one, except perhaps for a rat, a dangerous snake, or some other dirty, disease-carrying varmint that may find its way into the house. To be honest, I am thankful that I was not born as a Jew who lived in Israel during the Old Testament period. I really don't know how I would have dealt with having to kill so many animals and people all the time. I have never gone hunting, and have never killed any animal in such a fashion. In fact, I have never owned a single gun in my entire life, and don't intend to do so now. If I am incapable of killing animals because I like them so much, even more so I would certainly never kill another human being. I am, and have always been, a man of peace. As the Apostle Paul writes:

"If it be possible, as much as lieth in you, live peaceably with all men."


So, while I don't think about it often, when I do ponder the animal sacrifices, and particularly the Crucifixion of Jesus Christ Himself, sometimes I wonder why it had to be this way. Why did our God demand such things of the Jews? Why did He demand the horrible, agonizing death of His own Son? Why so much violence and blood? He is the Rule Maker, so why didn't He just forgive our sins without requiring the Death of His own Son on a Roman Cross? How could He even stand to watch such a gruesome act, not to mention the horrible flogging and other things which occurred before that?

As I said, it is time for a strong dose of personal honesty. Are you being honest with yourself right now? Does the fact that our God demanded these things of His people in the Old Testament, and then demanded the Death of His own Son make you at least a little bit uncomfortable? Does it make you wonder or ask "Why, God, why? Why did You demand such things of your people, and of Your own Son?". If so, now I have got you right where I want you.

What?!

You see, now you are beginning to understand why the Urantia Book is so demonic and dangerous. In fact, I would even call it the Devil's "Solution Book". You see, if we believe what is written in its pages, it acts as a soothing balm which takes away all of the ugliness and the uncomfortable feeling that is associated with Christ's Sacrifice. It tells us that this is not why Jesus died on the Cross. It tells us that His Act of Love was not really necessary for our Salvation. It tells us that our God is not the primitive God of the Old Testament who was constantly ordering the Israelites to kill people and offer animal sacrifices. It informs us that the "real" God in fact finds belief in the Crucifixion of His Son as Atonement for our sins disgusting, repulsive and barbaric. The Urantia Book offers a new, peaceful, more civilized "God" for a new age.

In short, the Urantia Book resolves all of the main problems that some people have with the Bible, and provides us with a much more comfortable and acceptable faith without all of the violence and blood, and without the necessity of the bloody Sacrifice of Jesus Christ. Many people find this a lot more appealing. This is the true power of the Urantia Book. This is why so many people like it and believe in it. By just accepting what it teaches, we are rid of the guilt and the hard questions. It also makes it so much easier to share our faith with other people, because we no longer have to deal with animal and human sacrifices, and the messy Crucifixion. The Urantia Book sounds so good, but beware, because it is a damnable and dangerous heresy exactly as the Apostle Peter wrote!

In conclusion, what we Christians believe requires faith. Whether it is our resurrection, transformation and new life in the Spirit Realm, or the necessity of the Sacrifice of Jesus Christ, or any other teaching that is found in God's Word, we must accept it as being true by faith alone. If we try to understand it all with our carnal minds and reason it out, we too will doubt, question and fall, exactly as the deceived followers of the Urantia Book have done. Consider these verses:

"Now faith is the substance of things hoped for, the evidence of things not seen . . . But without faith it is impossible to please him: for he that cometh to God must believe that he is, and that he is a rewarder of them that diligently seek him."


Let me leave you with a final thought for your consideration. If you ever do begin to doubt the necessity of the Atonement of Jesus Christ, just remember one thing. Sin is real, and you are a sinner. Even if you never read the Bible, you know in your heart that this is indeed true. You obviously know yourself better than anyone else. You are certainly aware of your personal mistakes, shortcomings and sins, even if no one else is. Just as human society punishes people who break the law, there is a penalty for sin -- or breaking God's Laws -- as well. As the Apostles John and Paul inform us:

"Whosoever committeth sin transgresseth also the law: for sin is the transgression of the law."


"For all have sinned, and come short of the glory of God;"


"For the wages of sin is death; but the gift of God is eternal life through Jesus Christ our Lord."


Sin must be dealt with. God simply cannot ignore it, any more than human society can ignore people who break the law. As the previous verse demonstrates, the way that God chose to deal with the penalty of sin was by sending His own Son into the world to act as a form of Vicarious Atonement and Propitiation for our sins. He alone is our "Get Out of Hell" card. That is why we need Jesus. That is why we must accept His Sacrifice on the Cross, regardless of what the Urantia Book teaches. Please consider the truth that is revealed in the following verses:

"But God commendeth his love toward us, in that, while we were yet sinners, Christ died for us."


"For I delivered unto you first of all that which I also received, how that Christ died for our sins according to the scriptures;"


"Grace be to you and peace from God the Father, and from our Lord Jesus Christ, Who gave himself for our sins, that he might deliver us from this present evil world, according to the will of God and our Father:"


"This is a faithful saying, and worthy of all acceptation, that Christ Jesus came into the world to save sinners; of whom I am chief."


"Who being the brightness of his glory, and the express image of his person, and upholding all things by the word of his power, when he had by himself purged our sins, sat down on the right hand of the Majesty on high;"


"So Christ was once offered to bear the sins of many; and unto them that look for him shall he appear the second time without sin unto salvation."


"Who his own self bare our sins in his own body on the tree, that we, being dead to sins, should live unto righteousness: by whose stripes ye were healed."


"But if we walk in the light, as he is in the light, we have fellowship one with another, and the blood of Jesus Christ his Son cleanseth us from all sin."


"My little children, these things write I unto you, that ye sin not. And if any man sin, we have an advocate with the Father, Jesus Christ the righteous: And he is the propitiation for our sins: and not for ours only, but also for the sins of the whole world."


"And ye know that he was manifested to take away our sins; and in him is no sin."


"Herein is love, not that we loved God, but that he loved us, and sent his Son to be the propitiation for our sins."


"And from Jesus Christ, who is the faithful witness, and the first begotten of the dead, and the prince of the kings of the earth. Unto him that loved us, and washed us from our sins in his own blood,"


With these verses I will bring this series to a close. I hope that you have found it informative, and I pray that it has been a blessing and an inspiration in your life. Please, whatever you do, do not allow yourself to become deceived by the poisonous, blasphemous lies of the Urantia Book. Do all that you can to keep yourself grounded in the true Word of God. As the Apostle John advises us to do, test the spirits and the prophets in order to determine if they are truly of God. If you determine that they are not, then please do your best to avoid them.

If you have enjoyed reading this series, please consider sharing its URL with your online friends. If you have an account with Facebook, Twitter, Tumblr or with any other social network, I would also appreciate if you would take the time to click on the corresponding link that is found on this page. Thanks so much, and may God bless you abundantly!

With these thoughts, I will bring this article to a close. It is my hope that you have found it informative, enlightening, and I pray that it has been a blessing in your life as well. If you have an account with Facebook, Twitter, Tumblr or with any other social network, I would really appreciate if you'd take the time to click or tap on the corresponding link that is found on this page. Thanks so much, and may God bless you abundantly!

For additional information and further study, you may want to refer to the list of reading resources below which were either mentioned in this article, or which contain topics which are related to this article. All of these articles are likewise located on the Bill's Bible Basics web server. To read these articles, simply click or tap on any link you see below.

Age of Deception, Age of Delusion
Alien Life, Extrasolar Planets and Universal Atonement
Biblical Cafeteria, Or the Whole Course?
From Armageddon to the New Earth
God of Peace, God of War
Hell, the Lake of Fire and Universal Atonement
Humility in Our Understanding of God's Word
In Defense of the KJV Bible
Is Jesus the Only Begotten Son of God?
Lies and Deceptions of the Roman Catholic Church
Lying Wonders of the Endtime!
Pontifex Maximus: Pagan High Priest to Roman Catholic Pope
Satan: His Origin, Purpose and Future
The Blood Atonement: In Jesus' Own Words
The Book of Enoch: Truth or Heresy?
The Urantia Book: An Attack on the Blood Atonement
Who Hindered the Antichrist?

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