Freemasonry is Straight From Hell!
Freemasonry & Christianity
INTRODUCTION
The question of the Christian stand regarding Freemasonry seems to confront many believers lately. The fact is that the esoteric doctrines of Freemasonry separate it from the Christian theology just as unequivocally as do those of Mormonism. This holds true for every branch of Masonry, from the Shriners to the Blue Lodge, the Eastern Star, the Demolay, Job's Daughters and the Rainbow Girls. It holds true for the Scottish rite or York rite.
I know that this will cause offense to Masons, and for that I am truly sorry. But I would rather that the Mason be offended at me and be restored to true fellowship with Jesus Christ than to remain silent on this matter.
This word of warning is not to the Masonic fraternity at large, but to those Masons who claim to be both Masons and Christians.
A recent newspaper insert called "FREEMASONRY - A WAY OF LIFE" appeared in many metropolitan areas. It pictured Freemasonry as a family-centered, fraternal, benevolent organization, "as American as apple pie."
Not only does the article demonstrate the strength of Freemasonry among our political leaders, but makes much of its use of the Bible and its foundational belief in God. Indeed, Masonry has a very strong representation in the Christian denominations throughout the world. In many churches Masons are involved as deacons, elders, board members and even pastors.
Their claim and the claim of every Mason to the outside world is that Masonry and Christianity are totally compatible. They say that religion is the experience of relating to God, and Masonry the experience of relating to mankind. While separate, they can and do naturally coexist.
The article mentioned above explains its religious position this way:
"Masonry is NOT a religion in any sense of the word, yet it is religious. Church membership is not a requirement, yet membership in ANY church is no bar to admission. There is nothing in the requirements of Masonry to prevent a Catholic, a Mohammedan, a Jew, a Buddhist, a Protestant, a Mormon, or any member of any religion from becoming a member."
On the surface, this might seem quite reasonable. Certainly, there is no offense in being involved in social, civic and benevolent activities with people of other religious backgrounds. In fact, it's really an integral part of the excitement of life. But, when it comes to worshipping God and His revelation of His Word, there are some very clear guidelines.
If Freemasonry is truly what it professes publicly, then "Bravo!" -- it is a welcome fellowship. If it is being deceptive, then it should be exposed.
Let's see what Masonry truly teaches within its closed doors, and through its own published documents. No anti-Masonic publications will be cited in explaining their true theological positions. Consider the following to be MASONRY: IN THEIR OWN WORDS.
MASONRY DESCRIBED
The key document from which I quote is the most readily available and universally approved doctrinal book of Freemasonry, "Morals and Dogma of the Ancient and Accepted Scottish Rite of Freemasonry," by Albert Pike, Grand Commander, 1859-1891. Its title page states that it was prepared for the "Supreme Council of the 33rd Degree and Published by its Authority." Originally published in 1871, I have used the 1966 Edition. Except where other sources are noted, I cite page numbers only when using this work.
CUSTODIAN OF TRUTH
(Masonry)..."The custodian and depository [since Enoch] of the great philosophical and religious truths, unknown to the world at large, and handed down from age to age by an unbroken current of tradition, embodied in symbols, emblems and allegories." (Page 210)
A RELIGIOUS INSTITUTION
"Masonry is, in every sense of the word, except one, and that its least philosophical, an eminently religious institution - that it is indebted solely to the religious element which it contains for its origin and for its continued existence and that without this religious element it would scarcely be worthy of cultivation by the wise and good."..."Freemasonry is not Christianity, not a substitute for it"..."But the religion of Masonry is not sectarian. It admits men of every creed within its hospitable bosom, rejecting institutions; and on this ground mainly, if not alone, should the religious Mason defend it." (Encyclopedia of Freemasonry, Albert G. Mackey, Revised Edition, 1921, pages 618-619)
THE FOUNDATION OF RELIGION
"It [Masonry] is the universal, eternal, immutable religion, such as God planted it in the heart of universal humanity. No creed has ever been long-lived that was not built on this foundation. It is the base and they are the superstructure." (Page 219)
TEMPLE OF RELIGION
"Every Masonic Temple is a Temple of Religion, and its teachings are instructions in religion." (Page 213)
BUDDHA: THE FIRST LEGISLATOR
"The first Masonic legislator whose memory is preserved to us by history was Buddha, who, about a thousand years before the Christian era, reformed the religion of Manous." (Page 277)
REVERENCES ALL REFORMERS
"It [Masonry] reverences all the great reformers. It sees in Moses, the lawgiver to the Jews, in Confucius and Zoroaster, in Jesus of Nazareth, and in the Arabain Iconoclast, great teachers of morality, and eminent reformers, if no more; and allows every brother of the order to assign to each such higher and even divine characteristics as his creed and truth require." (Page 525)
NOT CREED-BOUND
"The true Mason is not creed-bound. He realizes with the divine illumination of his lodge that as a Mason his religion must be universal: Christ, Buddha or Mohammed, the name means little, for he recognizes only the light and not the bearer. He worships at every shrine, bows before every altar, whether in temple, mosque or cathedral, realizing with his truer understanding the oneness of all spiritual truth." (The Lost Keys of Freemasonry, Manly P. Hall, 33rd, page 65, Macoy Publishing and Masonic Supply Co. Richmond, Va., 1976.)
THE BAALIM
"Masonry, around whose altars the Christian, the Hebrew, the Moslem, the Brahmin, the followers of Confucius and Zoroaster, can assemble as brethren and unite in prayer to the one God who is above ALL the Baalim, must needs leave it to each of its initiates to look for the foundation of his faith and hope to the written scriptures of his own religion." (Page 226)
The word Baalim is simply defined as "false god or idol." The Masonic author has included the God of the Bible in that category.
THE SOURCE OF ALL GOOD
"Everything good in nature comes from Osiris - order, harmony, and the favorable temperature of the seasons and celestial periods." (Page 476)
Osiris was the ancient Egyptian god whose annual death and resurrection personified the self-renewing vitality and fertility of nature. "The All Seeing Eye" is a Masonic representation of Osiris.
MASONRY CONCEALS ITS TRUTHS
"Masonry conceals it secrets from all except the Adepts and Sages, or the Elect, and uses false explanations and misinterpretations of its symbols to mislead those who deserve only to be misled; to conceal the Truth, which it calls Light, from them, and to draw them away from it. Truth is not for those who are unworthy or unable to receive it, or would pervert it." (Pages 104-105)
THE BLUE LODGE TO BE DECEIVED
"The Blue Degrees are but the outer court or portico of the Temple. Parts of the symbols are displayed there to the Initiate, but he is intentionally misled by false interpretations. It is not intended that he shall understand them, but it is intended that he shall imagine he understands them." (Page 819)
WORSHIPFUL MASTER THE SOURCE OF LIGHT
"Worshipful Master: The Head and Chief of the Lodge, the Source of Light, of Knowledge and instruction in Masonry. He personifies the Sublime Art of Masonry and is the Spokesman thereof." (Arthur Waite, A New Encyclopedia of Freemasonry, 1970, page xxiv)
OBEDIENCE THE FIRST RULE
"The first duty of every Mason is to obey the Mandate of the Master...The order must at once be obeyed; its character and its consequences may be matters of subsequent inquiry. The Masonic rule of obedience is like the nautical, imperative: 'Obey orders, even if you break owners'." (Encyclopedia of Freemasonry, Albert Mackey, page 525)
THE INCOMPREHENSIBLE BIBLE
"The teachers, even of Christianity, are in general the most ignorant of the true meaning of that which they teach. There is no book of which so little is known as the Bible. To most who read it, it is as incomprehensible as the Sohar." (Page 105)
THE INCOMPLETE BIBLE
"All truly dogmatic religions have issued from the Kabalah and return to it. Everything scientific and grand in the religious dreams of the Illuminati, Jacob Boehme, Swedenborg, Saint-Martin, and others, is borrowed from the Kabalah; all the Masonic associations owe to it their secrets and their symbols.
"The Kabalah alone consecrates the Alliance of the Universal Reason
and the Divine Word...
"The Bible, with all the allegories it contains, expresses in an incomplete and veiled manner only the religious science of the Hebrews. The doctrine of Moses and the Prophets, identical at bottom with that of the ancient Egyptians, also had its outward meaning and its veils.
"The Hebrew books were written only to recall to memory the traditions; and they were written in symbols unintelligible to the profane...thus was a second Bible born, unknown to, or rather uncomprehended by, the Christians; a collection, they say, of monstrous absurdities.
"One is filled with admiration, on penetrating into the Sanctuary of the Kabalah, at seeing a doctrine so logical, so simple and at the same time so absolute." (Pages 744-745)
The "Kabalah" is a book of ancient Jewish mysticism and magic.
DEITIES OF MASONRY
THE ENERGIES OF LUCIFER"When the Mason learns that the Key to the warrior on the block is the proper application of the dynamo of living power, he has learned the Mystery of his Craft. The seething energies of Lucifer are in his hands and before he may step onward and upward, he must prove his ability to properly apply [this] energy." (Lost Keys of Freemasonry, Manly P. Hall, page 48)
LUCIFER IS GOD
"That which we must say to the crowd is - We worship a God, but it is the God that one adores without superstition.
"To you, Sovereign Grand Inspectors General, we say this, that you may repeat it to the Brethren of the 32nd, 31st, and 30th degrees - The Masonic Religion should be, by all of us initiates of the high degrees, maintained in the purity of the Luciferian Doctrine.
"If Lucifer were not God, would Adonay (The God of the Christians) whose deeds prove his cruelty, perfidy and hatred of man, barbarism and repulsion for science, would Adonay and his priests, calumniate him?
"Yes, Lucifer is God, and unfortunately Adonay is also god. For the eternal law is that there is no light without shade, no beauty without ugliness, no white without black, for the absolute can only exist as two gods: darkness being necessary for light to serve as its foil as the pedestal is necessary to the statue, and the brake to the locomotive.
"Thus, the doctrine of Satanism is a heresy; and the true and pure philosophical religion is the belief in Lucifer, the equal of Adonay; but Lucifer, God of Light and God of Good, is struggling for humanity against Adonay, the God of Darkness and Evil." (Instructions to the 23 Supreme Councils of the World, Albert Pike, Grand Commander, Sovereign Pontiff of Universal Freemasonry, July 14, 1889. Recorded by A.C. De La Rive, La Femme et l'Enfant dans la Franc-Maconnerie Universelle, page 588)
The Word of God, the Bible, clearly puts Lucifer in his proper place, and gives God's reasons. "How Art thou fallen from heaven, O Lucifer, son of the morning! How art thou cut down to the ground, which didst weaken the nations! For thou hast said in thine heart, I will exalt my throne above the stars of God; I will sit also upon the mount of the congregation, in the sides of the north. I will ascend above the clouds; I will be like the most High. Yet thou shalt be brought down to hell, to the sides of the pit." (Isaiah 14:12-15)
THE GRAND ARCHITECT OF THE UNIVERSE
Masonic ritual is concerned with the recovery of the "Lost Word," presumed to be the name of God - lost through the murder of the architect, Hiram Abiff, during the building of Solomon's Temple. This quest is attained during the ritual of the Royal Arch Degree. It is here that the secret name of the deity of Masonry is revealed. That name is JAOBULON. "JAO" is the Greek word for Jehovah. "BUL" is a rendering of the name, Baal. "ON" is the term used in the Babylonian mysteries to call upon the deity "Osiris” The secret ritual book of the Craft prints the letters J.B.O. It states that: "We three do meet and agree - in peace, love and unity - the Sacred Word to keep - and never to divulge the same - until we three, or three such as we - do meet and agree." Thus, no Royal Arch Mason can pronounce the whole sacred name by himself.
What you see represented, then, as the god of Freemasonry, is a three-headed monster so remote from the Christian trinity and so blasphemous as to damn the eternal soul of anyone who would dare to pronounce its name in a ritual of worship.
THE GOD OF THE MYSTIC SHRINE
The candidates for this ritual kneel at the Altar of Obligation with arms bound, leaning upon the top, heads bowed. There they are required to "assume a most powerful and binding oath, inseparably uniting yourself with us, and once taken, it can never be retracted or departed from."
The oath itself is four pages in length. Its penalty includes "having my eyeballs pierced to the center with a three-edged blade."
The revelation of truth is in the candidates' sealing of the oath, revealing the true nature of the Masonic god of the "Mystic Shrine”: ...and may Allah, the god of Arab, Moslem and Mohammedan, the God of our fathers, support me to the entire fulfillment of the same, Amen, Amen, Amen. (The Ancient Arabic Order, Nobles of the Mystic Shrine, pages 35-39, Allen Publishing Co. NY, NY.)
I AM THAT I AM
During the ceremonies of the ritual for the Royal Arch degree, the candidate is asked, "Brother Inspector, what are you?" and he replies, "I am that I am." Can you imagine that? When Moses asked God to name Himself, God said, "I AM THAT I AM" and He said, "Thus shalt thou say unto the children of Israel, I AM hath sent me unto you." (Exodus 3:14)
Tell me how a Christian can take to himself the Biblical name of the God of Israel? The God of the Christian faith said, "Ye are even my witnesses! Is there a God besides me? Yea, I know not any! They that make a graven image are all of them vanity; and their delectable things shall not profit; and they are their own witnesses; they see not, nor know; that they may be ashamed." (Isaiah 44:8, 9)
THE MASTER MASON - A GOD IN THE MAKING
"Man is a god in the making, and as in the mystic myths of Egypt, on the potter's wheel he is being molded. When his light shines out to lift and preserve all things, he receives the triple crown of godhood and joins that throng of Master Masons who, in their robes of Blue and Gold, are seeking to dispel the darkness of night with the triple light of the Masonic Lodge."
"The glorious privileges of a Master Mason are in keeping with his greater knowledge and wisdom...For him the Heavens have opened and the Great Light has bathed him in its radiance. The Prodigal son, so long a wanderer in the regions of darkness, has returned to his Father's house. The voice speaks from the Heavens, its power thrilling the Master until his own being seems filled with its divinity, saying, 'This is my beloved Son, in whom I am well pleased.' He [the Master Mason], in truth has become the spokesman of the Most High. He stands between the glowing fire light and the world. Through him passes Hydra, the great snake, and from its mouth there pours to man the light of God." (The Lost Keys of Freemasonry, Manly P. Hall, pages 92, 54-55, Macoy Publishing and Supply Co., Richmond, Va, 1976)
There is only One for whom the Father uttered those words and it wasn't a Master Mason...nor will it ever be so. Jesus Christ is God's only mediator for you and me. Do not let any man ever tell you that he is, or you may become, the spokesman of the Most High. Further, if you think that God speaks through Hydra, the great snake, your god comes right out of the pit.
OTHER TEACHINGS AND PRACTICES USURPING THE PRIESTHOOD OF JESUS
In the 19th level of Scottish Rite Freemasonry, the Initiate receives the degree of Grand Pontiff. It is during this ritual that the candidate swears an oath of secrecy and an oath of total obedience "to any Chapter of this degree to which I may belong; and the edicts, laws and mandates of the Grand Consistory of Sublime Princes and Commanders of the Royal Secret, as well as those of the Supreme council of the 33rd degree..."
It is then that the "Thrice Puissant" anoints him with oil on the crown of his head and says "Be Thou a Priest Forever, after the order of Melchizedek."
After receiving the password (Emanuel) and the sacred word (Alleluia), he is dressed in a robe of white linen and given a cordon (a ribbon or sash of honor worn across the breast) of crimson color, with 12 starts representing "the 12 gates of the "new city, " and the twelve signs of the Zodiac, the twelve fruits of the tree of life, the twelve tribes of Israel and the twelve Apostles." (Scottish Rite Masonry Illustrated, The Complete Ritual, Vol. 2, pages 26-27, E. Cook Publications, 1974)
It must be pointed out that what has taken place here, is the Masonic priesthood taking upon itself the Holy Priesthood of Jesus Christ. That is a Priesthood that can be held by only one person and that one person is clearly defined in scripture as Jesus Christ.
Chapters 7 and 8 of the Book of Hebrews clearly explain that it was another priest to be raised up, not a group of priests! This Priest would be our High Priest and would be able to save from the Uttermost. He would have "endless life". The holder of this Priesthood would be "holy, harmless, undefiled, separate from sinners and made higher than the heavens." (7:26) This is Jesus, our Holy Lord and God!
This ritual takes Christ's Holy Priesthood from Him, and the Grand Pontiff boldly puts it upon his own breast. Even the use of Biblical words fails to cover up the adding in of the "signs of the Zodiac", a direct alliance with the powers of darkness and a demonstration of disobedience to God's Word. In Deuteronomy 18:10-12, it says that he who "useth divination" (consulting the signs of the Zodiac to tell the future), "or is and observer of times" (which is an ancient description for Augury or Astrology - again dealing with the Zodiac) "is an abomination unto the Lord".
Again, we see a mirror image of Biblical truth. The Priesthood power of Jesus is given to the deceiver, Lucifer, the true god of Masonry, who hides behind its mystery, ritual and allegory to snare his prey.
WASHED IN THEIR OWN BLOOD
In the seventeenth degree, or Knights of the East and West, after the candidates have completed the initiation and after revealing the password (Jubulum) and the Sacred Word (Abaddon), "the Senior Warden conducts the Candidate to the elevated vacant canopy at the right of the All Puissant."
"This is supposed to represent the end of the world when all good masons receive their reward by being conducted to a throne at the right hand of the All Puissant, having been purified by washing their robes in their own blood."
In the lecture which follows between the All Puissant and the Senior Warden, the Book with Seven Seals - which none but one can open (Rev. 5:5) - is twisted to represent "A Lodge or Council of Masons which the All Puissant alone has the right to convene and open."
The Fourth Seal is represented by a skull or "Death's Head" and Masons are told it "is the image of a brother who is excluded from a Lodge or Council." The Fifth Seal is represented by a "Cloth Stained with Blood." The All Puissant identifies this as a symbol "that we should not hesitate to spill ours for the good of masonry." (Scottish Rite Masonry Illustrated, The Complete Ritual, Vol. 1, Pages 453, 457, E. Cook Publishing, 1974)
What a gross misrepresentation of God's Holy Word! First and foremost, it is Christ and He alone who "hath prevailed to open the book and loose the seven seals thereof." To presume that honor and power is to deny Christ, or yet in deeper perversity, to replace his power and authority with that of the All Puissant, even in the representation of the power to save and to enthrone. This is the very spirit of the Antichrist.
Again, another clue to the true identity of the Masonic deity is revealed in the "Sacred Word" of this ritual,
"Abaddon." In Revelation 9:11, we learn that "they [the demons and workers from hell] had a king over them, which is the angel of the bottomless pit, whose name in the Hebrew tongue is Abaddon".
BLOOD OATHS NOT OF CHRIST!
Throughout the initiation rituals of the "BLUE LODGES" and through all 33 degrees of Freemasonry, the candidates are sworn to secrecy by bloody oaths. Such as is the oath swore by the Entered Apprentice of first degree, "...binding myself under no less penalty than that of having my throat cut across, my tongue torn out by its roots, and my body buried in the rough sands of the sea, at low-water mark." The Master Mason swears, "...under no less penalty than that of having my body severed in two, my bowels taken from thence and burned to ashes, the ashes scattered before the four winds of heaven..." (Duncan's Ritual of Freemasonry by Malcolm Duncan, Third Edition, pages 36, 39, D. McKay Publishing Co., N.Y., N.Y.)
RAISING THE DEAD
It is in this final "Blue Lodge" degree that that candidate is laid out "in death" and is raised from the dead by the "Worshipful Master" of the Lodge (representing King Solomon), using the "strong grip" (or "Lion's Paw") of the Master Mason.
Let no Mason deceive you! We again face this replacement of our Savior by the power and authority of Lucifer. Paul said that if anyone should preach any other gospel "than that which we have preached unto you, let him be accursed." (Gal. 1:8, 9)
The simplicity of the Gospel is this, "Moreover, brethren, I declare unto you the gospel which I preached unto you, which also ye have received, and wherein ye stand; By which also ye are saved, if ye keep in memory what I have preached unto you, unless ye have believed in vain. For I delivered unto you first of all that which I also received, how that Christ died for our sins according to the scriptures; and that He was buried, and that He rose again the third day according to the scriptures." (1 Cor. 15:1-5)
The infinite power of Jesus was confirmed by Him when He said, "All power is given unto Me in heaven and in earth." (Matt. 28:18) This power is His alone. "For if by one man's offense death reigned by one; much more they which receive abundance of grace and of the gift of righteousness shall reign in life by One, Jesus Christ" (Romans 5:17)
Jesus was the One who rose from the dead. Jesus is the only One with the power to rise from the dead. Jesus is the only One who frees us from the sting of death.
How can a Mason who calls himself Christian allow himself to partake of a ritual resurrection by the power of Lucifer? This is Satanic because he stands, having been born again and raised from the dead as a Master Mason, through the power of the Masonic god, whom the God of Israel cast into the pit.
MASONIC OATHS ABOVE THE LAW
One the "five points of fellowship," he and his "savior" pass the sacred word, Mah-Hah-Bone.
Also, while in this position, the new Master Mason solemnly vows "3d, Breast to Breast: that you will ever keep in your breast a brother's secrets, when communicated to you and received as such, murder and treason excepted." (Duncan's Rituals, Revised and Complete, pages 35, 96, 120, 121, E. Cook Publications, 1974)
It should further be noted that in the Royal Arch Degree, the candidate swears to protect the "brethren, " "Murder and treason not excepted!" This places the Masonic oath above that of our courts and our country. What hope would you have against a Mason in a criminal or civil court with a Judge who is a 32nd or 33rd degree Mason? None, by the nature of their oaths.
PAGAN COMMUNION - EATING THE DEAD
"QUESTION: What is to us the chief symbol of man's ultimate redemption and regeneration?
"ANSWER: The fraternal supper, of bread which nourishes, and of wine which refreshes and exhilarates, symbolically of the time which is to come, when all mankind shall be one great harmonious brotherhood; and teaching us these great lessons: that as matter changes ever, but no single atom is annihilated, it is not rational to suppose that the far nobler soul does not continue to exist beyond the grave: that many thousands who have died might claim to be joint owners with ourselves of the particles that compose our physical bodies; for matter ever forms new combinations; and the bodes of the ancient dead, the patriarchs before and since the flood, the kings and the common people of all ages, resolved into their constituent elements, are carried upon the wind over all continents, and continually enter into and form part of the habitations of new souls, creating new bonds of sympathy and brotherhood between each man that lives and all his race. And thus, in the bread we eat, and in the wind we drink tonight may enter into and form of us part of us the identical particles of matter that once formed parts of the material bodies called Moses, Confucius, Plato, Socrates, or Jesus of Nazareth. In the truest sense, we eat and drink the bodies of the dead; and cannot say that there is a single atom of our blood or body, the ownership of which some other soul might not dispute with us." (Page 539)
COME OUT FROM AMONG THEM
I exhort you who claim to be a Mason and a Christian, "Come out from among them and be ye separate, saith the Lord and touch not the unclean thing; and I will receive you." (2 Cor. 6:17)
"This is the stone which was set at nought of you builders, which is become the head of the corner. Neither is there salvation in any other: for there is none other name under heaven given among men, whereby we must be saved." (Acts 4:11-12)
"For there is One God and One Mediator between God and men, the man Christ Jesus." (1 Tim. 2:5)
"According to the grace of God which is given unto me, as a wise master builder, I have laid the foundation and another buildeth thereon. But let every man take heed how he buildeth thereupon. For other foundation can no man lay that that is laid, with is Jesus Christ." (1 Cor. 3:10-11)
"Wherefore God also hath highly exalted him and given him a name which is above every name: that at the name of Jesus every knee should bow, of things in heaven, and things in earth, and things under the earth; and that every tongue should confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father." (Phil. 2:9-11)
"Be ye not unequally yoked together with unbelievers; for what fellowship hath righteousness with
unrighteousness? and what communion hat light with darkness? And what concord hath Christ with Belial? Or what part hath he that believeth with an infidel?" (2 Cor.6: 14, 15)
ONE OR THE OTHER
Even as Elijah called out "Ye have forsaken the commandments of the Lord and thou has followed Baal!" I cry out "How long halt you between two opinions? If the Lord be God, follow Him. But if Baal, then follow him!" (1 Kings 18:18, 21)
I am sorry, but there is not other choice. If you are a Mason who professes to be a Christian, either renounce your Christian faith or renounce Masonry. One is from on high and the other is from the pit! You cannot cling to both!
Dare you risk laying your good works before the Lord on that last day only to be told, "I never knew you, depart from me!" (Matt. 7:21-23)
Every Blue Lodge member who happens to read this can no longer maintain his defense of ignorance. Today, it stands revealed. Today, you must make your choice. Every Mason, through the highest degree, has had the mask of secrecy ripped away. You are without defense. Choose Jesus or choose Lucifer. Renounce Jesus if you must, but do not stand in the assembly of His saints and mock Him. Your unrepentant presence in the congregation of a Christian body is a grieving of the Holy Spirit.
I pray that you will repent, and be set free from this wicked power unto which you have submitted your very soul! If this is your desire, remember that we have this promise, "If we confess our sins, He is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness." (1 John 1:9)
I have two texts: Matthew 12:30-"He that is not with me is against me"; John 12:48-"He that rejected me, and receiveth not my words, hath one that judgeth him in the last day."
Will you listen carefully while I present three propositions?
(1) Jesus Christ is God manifest in the flesh, and apart from Him the true God can neither be known, worshipped, nor acknowledged.
(2) Salvation is by faith in the atoning blood of the Lord Jesus Christ, apart from all human works and character.
(3) It is the supreme obligation of every saved person to obey the Lord Jesus Christ in all things.
These three propositions are the pillars of the Christian faith - the deity of Christ, salvation by faith in Him, obedience to His word. Do you believe these three things? I am going to ask every person who does to stand! [Nearly the entire congregation stood.] Thank you! I knew you believed them, but I can preach to you better after that testimony.
About four weeks ago I called over the telephone one of the highest officers of the Grand Lodge, at his office at the Masonic Temple in Philadelphia. I told him frankly that I was not a Mason and that I desired to obtain some authentic information regarding Freemasonry and its religious position. This officer suggested three books by Masonic authorities. I told him one would be sufficient and asked him which of these books was the best. Without hesitation he answered, "Get the Encyclopedia of Freemasonry, by Mackey. It is, without question, our highest and best authority. He then referred me to a man at the Masonic Library. I called him and asked for the highest and most authentic Masonic authority. Without a moment's hesitation he answered "Get the Encyclopedia of Masonry, by Mackey." I have that Encyclopedia here with me tonight. In the main, my analysis of Freemasonry will be based on its statements and claims. Surely no Mason can question the fairness of this method.
The author of this encyclopedia, Albert G Mackey, is one of Masonry's most learned and famous men. Besides being a Thirty-Second Degree Mason, he has held many high offices in the organization. At the writing of this work he was the "Past General Grand High Priest of the General Grand Chapter of the United States." Practically his whole life was devoted to research work on behalf of Masonry. His industry was amazing! A stream of books came from his pen, among which are A Lexicon of Freemasonry, Manual of the Lodge, The Book of the Chapter, A Text Book of Jurisprudence, Cryptic Masonry, The Symbolism of Masonry, and The Masonic Ritualist. This encyclopedia, however, is the crowning work of his life. He was engaged in its preparation of it for thirty years.
This encyclopedia contains about a thousand pages, with articles on almost every conceivable subject that is in any way related to Freemasonry. During the past four weeks I have gone through the book carefully and have read hundreds of its articles. I am impressed with the exhaustive manner with which the author treats the various subjects. Certainly I am not in agreement with the doctrines of the institution which Dr Mackey defends, but that does not keep me from admiring his able scholarship, his painstaking research work, his sober and fair presentation of Masonic subjects. And my admiration increases when I remember the extreme difficulty under which Dr Mackey was compelled to prepare the encyclopedia. The authors of other encyclopedias never faced such a difficulty. Dr Mackey was expected to give the public the fullest possible exposition of Masonry and at the same time reveal none of its secret work. In spite of this difficulty, Mackey has produced a monumental work and all Masons may justly point to the man with pride.
My explanation of Freemasonry tonight will be absolutely from the viewpoint of a Christian. I have nothing to say to Masons who are not Christians. If I were not a Christian, I would undoubtedly be a Mason tonight, as I was preparing to enter when Jesus saved my soul. I am speaking to those who own Jesus Christ as Lord and God.
I shall not assume to speak for Freemasonry tonight - Freemasonry shall speak for itself. By its own utterances, by its own words, freemasonry must stand justified or condemned. Matthew 12:37 - "For by thy words thou shalt be justified, and by thy words thou shalt be condemned."
Masonry claims to be a religious institution. This claim is made not once in this encyclopedia but literally dozens of times in different articles. We have not the time to hear all these references. I shall ask you to hear only one. Under the article on "Religion," Dr Mackey discusses fully the right of Masons to be called a "religious institution." He says that some of the more "timid brethren" have been afraid to declare its religious character lest the opponents of Masonry should use this fact against the lodge. But he insists that the truth should be told. I quote from the encyclopedia (pp. 618-619):
"I contend without any sort of hesitation, that Masonry is, in every sense of the word except one, and that its least philosophical, an eminently religious institution - that is indebted solely to the religious element which it contains for its continued existence, and that without this religious element it would scarcely be worthy of cultivation by the wise and the good. But, that I may be fully understood, it will be well first to agree upon the true definition of religion. There is nothing more illogical than to reason upon undefined terms."
Dr Mackey then gives in full Webster's definition of "religion." The quotation is too lengthy to give in full, but Dr Mackey proves conclusively that Freemasonry meets every requirement of Webster's three primary definitions of religion, and sums up the proof in the following words:
"Look at its ancient landmarks, its sublime ceremonies, its profound symbols and allegories - all inculcating religious doctrine, commanding religious observance, and teaching religious truth, and who can deny that it is eminently a religious institution? ...."
Masonry, then, is indeed a religious institution; and on this ground mainly, if not alone, should the religious Mason defend it.
This should settle for all time the question as to whether or not Freemasonry is religious. According to its own claims, it is proper to speak of the "religion of Masonry." The man who contends that Freemasonry is not a "religious institution" is childishly ignorant of the organization or else he is a willful deceiver! Masonry is religious - it teaches religion. But this fact alone does not necessarily condemn Freemasonry.
Now I desire to lay down a Biblical truth - an axiom of Christianity. Here it is: There is only one true religion. That religion is Christianity. All other religions are false.
I need not argue that proposition. No Christian has ever denied it. But listen to the word of the Lord Jesus Himself on that point. Jesus said, "I am the door." The door to what? The door to God; the door to heaven; the door to eternal life. But that is not all. Listen to this same Jesus as He continues: "All that ever came before me are thieves and robbers." (John 10:7-8)
We are now in a position where we can determine absolutely whether or not the religion of Freemasonry is false or true. Here are the propositions:
(1) There is but one true religion - Christianity
(2) Freemasonry has a religion!
(3) If it is Christianity, it is true!
(4) If it is not Christianity, it is false!
The issue is perfectly clear. The logic of these propositions cannot be evaded. We shall now go to Masonry's highest authority and say: "You have told us that your institution is a religious institution. We believe you, but we would ask one more question. Is your religion Christianity or is it not Christianity?" Freemasonry has answered this question. Mark carefully the answer on page 618 of the encyclopedia:
"THE RELIGION OF FREEMASONRY IS NOT CHRISTIANITY!"
These are not my words! They are the words of Masonry's own encyclopedia, prepared by one of the greatest Masonic authors, recommended to me as authentic by one of the highest officers in the Grand Lodge in Philadelphia! It declares FREEMASONRY has a religion and that religion IS NOT CHRISTIANITY!
I have not condemned Freemasonry. Freemasonry has condemned itself.
Let us use a little logic here: If the religion of Freemasonry is not Christianity, then it is false! If the religion of Freemasonry is false, then it is not of God! If the religion of freemasonry is not of God, then it is of the evil one.
Does any man care to stand up and say that a Christian can belong to and support an institution which teaches a religion which is not Christianity? If so, let him face the apostle Paul, who said: "But though we, or an angel from heaven, preach any other gospel unto you than that which we have preached unto you let him be accursed." (Gal 1:8-9) The curse of God is upon every religion outside of Christianity.
I might pronounce the benediction and go home, but there is more to be said.
Again I quote from the encyclopedia:
"The religion of freemasonry is not sectarian. It admits men of every creed within its hospitable bosom, rejecting none and approving none for his particular faith. It is not Judaism ... it is not Christianity ..." (pp. 619).
"If Masonry were simply a Christian institution, the Jew and the Moslem, Brahman and the Buddhist, could not conscientiously partake of its illumination; but its universality is its boast. In its language, citizens of every nation may converse; at its altar men of all religions may kneel; to its creed, disciples of every faith may subscribe." (pp. 439).
I came here tonight determined to discuss the subject of Masonry deliberately and calmly, but I find it difficult in the face of the audacious blasphemy of such statements and claims as I have read. Can you see a Christian unmoved by such a dastardly comparison between Masonry and Christianity?
According to this noted Masonic authority, Christianity is a sectarian religion! Christianity can be compared with Mohammedanism, Buddhism, and Brahmanism! Masonry cannot be compared with these religions! Christianity teaches a sectarian creed! Masonry teaches a creed of fundamental religious truth!
Do I need to tell this audience that all these great swelling words are a lie? If you want the truth, just reverse all these statements! It is the religion of Masonry that is sectarian! Christianity is the universal religion! It is the religion of Masonry that belongs in the market place along side of Buddhism, Brahmanism, and Mohammedanism! Christianity belongs above them all!
Oh, you Christians here tonight, is our Christ only a sectarian Christ, deserving only a place alongside of these false prophets? Is that blessed faith which He came to inaugurate by His sinless life, His atoning death, His resurrection from the dead - is this faith, after all, only a sectarian faith like that of Mohammed and Buddha? I tell you, No! But let the Bible answer.
"I saw in the night visions, and, behold one like the Son of man came with the clouds of heaven, and came to the Ancient of days, and they brought Him near before Him. And there was given Him dominion, and glory, and a kingdom, that all people, nations, and languages, should serve Him, which shall not pass away, and His kingdom that which shall not be destroyed." (Dan 7:13-14).
"Behold the Lamb of God, which taketh away the sin of the world" (John 1:29).
"And if I be lifted up from the earth, will draw all men unto Me" (John 12:32).
"He is the propitiation for our sins: and not for ours only, but also for the sins of the whole world" (I John 2:2).
Wherefore God hath highly exalted Him, and given Him a name which is above every name; that at the name of Jesus every knee should bow ... And that every tongue should confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father" (Phil 2:9-11).
Masonry has a god - you cant have a religion without a god. And this god has a name. Over and over in the encyclopedia you meet with the initials "G.A.O.T.U." This is the god of Masonry. The initials stand for the name "Great Architect of the Universe." This is the god that Masons worship at their altar. This is the god to whom Masonic prayers are offered. Sometimes other names are applied to him, but according to Mackey, "G.A.O.T.U." is the technical Masonic name for him (pp 290, 310).
Now I shall present the Christian view of God. Every intelligent Christian is acquainted with it, but let us refresh our minds. I shall present it in three statements:
(1) There is only one true God. This one true God exists in three persons - Father, Son, and Holy Spirit. But there are not three Gods. There is only one God, indivisible in substance and being.
(2) This one true God became incarnate in the flesh, and is none other than Jesus Christ. "In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God .... And the Word was made flesh, and dwelt among us, (and we beheld his glory, the glory of the only begotten of the Father,) full of grace and truth" (John 1:1, 14).
"Philip saith unto him, Lord shew us the Father, and it sufficeth us. Jesus saith unto him, Have I been so long with you, and yet hast thou not known Me, Philip? He that hath seen Me hath seen the Father..." (John 14:8-9).
"We know that the Son of God is come, and hath given us understanding, that we may know Him that is true, and we are in Him that is true, even in his Son Jesus Christ. This is the true God, and eternal life" (I John 5:20).
(3) The one true God cannot be confessed, honoured, acknowledged, worshipped, believed on, or prayed to, apart from Jesus Christ.
"Whosoever denieth the Son, the same hath not the Father ..." (I John 2:23).
"That all men should honour the Son, even as they honour the Father. He that honoureth not the Son honoureth not the Father which hath sent him (John 5:23).
This is the Christian doctrine of God. Let me sum it up briefly: There is one true God. This true God is revealed in the person of Jesus Christ. Apart from Christ there is no true God. If a man confesses Jesus Christ, he is worshipping the true God. If he refuses to worship Jesus Christ he is refusing to worship the true God.
Now are we ready for the question, "Is the god of Masonry the true God, or is he a false god?"
The answer depends absolutely upon Masonry's attitude towards Jesus Christ! If Masonry asks its initiates to acknowledge and confess Jesus Christ as Lord and the true God, then Masonry's god is the true God. But if Masonry does not require its members to confess and acknowledge the true God, then the god of Masonry is not the true God! There is no escape from one of these two conclusions. Which conclusion is right should be apparent to the merest novice.
Masonry has thousands of members who would never have entered it if they had to confess Jesus as Lord and God to get in - the Jewish members for instance. But let Masonry speak for itself (pp 619):
"THERE IS NOTHING IN IT TO OFFEND A JEW!"
Do you know what this means - "There is nothing in Masonry to offend the Jew"? Let me tell you -Jesus Christ one day came to the Jews and said, "I and My Father are one." The Jews promptly picked up stones to stone Him. "Jesus answered them, Many good works have I shewed you from my Father; for which of these works do you stone Me? The Jews answered Him saying, For a good work we stone Thee not; but for blasphemy; and because that Thou, being a Man, makest Thyself God" (John 10:30-33).
The Jews condemned Jesus Christ to death and delivered Him to the Romans for crucifixion because He claimed to be their own God, the mighty Jehovah! To this day the Jews regard Christianity as a blasphemous religion because we worship and confess Jesus Christ as Lord and God.
I tell you, if there is nothing in Masonry to offend the Jew, then Masonry does not confess Jesus Christ as Lord and God, nor ask its initiates to do so. And if Masonry does not confess Jesus Christ, then Masonry does not confess the true God. And if Masonry does not confess the true God, then Masonry confesses a false god. And, if Masonry confesses a false god, let us be plain and call Masonry what it really is, by its own utterances, in the light of the Bible - nothing but paganism and idolatry!
This is the exact teaching of the Bible. All worship and acknowledgement paid to any god apart from Jesus Christ is idolatry. "And we know that the Son of God is come, and hath given us an understanding, that we may know that which is true, and we are in Him that is true, even in His Son Jesus Christ. This is the true God, and eternal life. Little children, keep yourselves from idols" (I John 5:20-21). "Be not deceived; neither fornicators, nor idolaters ... shall inherit the kingdom of God (I Cor. 6:9-10).
But some may say: "It is true that Jesus Christ is not confessed in the first three degrees, but He is confessed as God in some of the higher degrees in Masonry."
Well, I will have to take your word for it. This Masonic encyclopedia contains articles on almost every false god of the pagan world, but it contains not even the trace of an article on Jesus Christ, the Son of God. This is a significant and ominous omission.
But suppose it is true that Christ is recognized as God in some of the higher degrees, such as the Knights Templar. What of it? Does that clear the skirts of the organization? Let me ask you a question: Can you reach those higher degrees, can you become a Knight Templar without passing through the first three degrees? No, you cannot. That settles the question. Will any intelligent Christian affirm that it is permissible to become an idolater first in order that afterwards he may become a Christian? Will he affirm that it is right first to bow the knee at the altar of a false god in order that afterward he may bow the knee to the true God? Will Jesus Christ accept a confession of His deity from the mouth of a man whose lips are defiled with the confession of a false god? How foolish!
Suppose a Buddhist should come to me and say: We have an organization we would like you to join. In order to take the first three degrees, you will have to acknowledge a god, but not your Christ. Afterwards we will fix up a place in the organization and invent some new degrees where you Christians can get together and confess your Christ."
Suppose I start an organization here in this church with secret work and several degrees. The first three degrees would eliminate the name of Jesus Christ and demand that every candidate confess a god named "G.A.O.T.U." We would accept Christians, Jews, Mohammedans, Buddhists. After they had passed the first three degrees, we would say: "Now, if you Christians want to get together and confess your Christ, go up in a room by yourselves. You Mohammedans do the same, and so forth. But don't drag your particular views into these three degrees."
That's what Masonry does. What a pitiful sop to throw to our blessed Lord Jesus Christ! As a Christian, I spurn it.
But all this discussion is altogether unnecessary. The encyclopedia declares that - "The germ and nucleus of all Freemasonry is to be found in the three primitive degrees." (pp 753).
And only last week a thirty third Degree Mason, a friend of mine, said to me; "When a man has taken the first three degrees, he is as much of a mason as he ever can be! All the higher degrees are merely additions, superfluous."
Oh, the insult of it! To exclude Jesus Christ from the main building of Masonry, the foundation and basis of Masonry, and then offer Him a place in a side room along with Mohammed, Buddha, and the rest of the "thieves and robbers." Masonry had better left Him out altogether than to offer Him this crowning insult. Even if some of His professed followers seem to be strangely blind, Masonry ought to have known that Jesus Christ would accept no place at all unless it be the place of preeminence. Colossians 1:18 declares that "in all things" Christ must have "the preeminence." Masonry refuses Him the place of preeminence!
Masonry even goes so far as to mutilate the Word of God in order to exclude Jesus Christ. I have here another work by the author of the encyclopedia. It is called "the Masonic Ritualist." Don't get excited - it is not "The Ritual." It doesn't contain any of the secrets. According to the author, it contains "all that may be lawfully taught in print of the degrees." It gives the prayers and scriptures which are to beread in the opening and closing of the lodge. Every Scripture is emptied of Jesus Christ, but there is a particularly glaring mutilation on page 271. I shall give the quotation exactly as it appears in the "Ritualist" followed by the authors explanatory note;
"CHARGE TO BE READ AT OPENING THE LODGE:"
"Wherefore, brethren, lay aside all malice, and guile, and hypocrisies, and envies, and all evil speakings. If so be ye have tasted that the Lord is gracious, to whom coming as unto a living stone, disallowed indeed of men, but chosen of God, and precious; ye also as living stones, be ye built up a spiritual house, a holy priesthood, to offer up sacrifices acceptable to God ... (The passages of Scripture here selected are peculiarly appropriate to this degree. ... The passages are taken, with slight but necessary modifications, from the second chapter of the First Epistle of Peter ...)"
You will note that Dr Mackey says "some slight but necessary modifications" have been made in these Scriptures. What are these "modifications"? Let me read I Peter 2:5 from the Bible and you will see. "Ye also, as lively stones, are built up as a spiritual house, an holy priesthood, to offer up, spiritual sacrifices, acceptable to God by Jesus Christ"
Do you see it? The name of Christ is struck out by the profane hand of Masonry! And mark you, this is said to be a "slight modification"! And still further, it is said to be a "necessary modification"! Certainly it is necessary, because Masonry pretends to be able to approach God and offer service to Him without coming through Jesus Christ. There are in this "Masonic Ritualist" 28 prayers, and not one of them is offered in the name of Jesus Christ!
This is the insolent answer of Masonry to the ultimatum of Christ - "No man cometh unto the Father but by me" (John 14:6).
Now I am ready to classify Freemasonry in the light of its own utterances and statements of the Word of God.
Masonry admits that it confesses a god, but does not confess Jesus Christ. Let me read you one passage - (1 John 4:3) “And every spirit that confesseth not that Jesus Christ is come in the flesh is not of God: and this is that spirit of antichrist, whereof ye have heard that it should come; and even now already is it in the world.” These are not my words. These are the words of God. Do you dare, as a Christian, wear the emblem of such an organization?
Obedience to the Lord Jesus Christ is the first and supreme duty of every Christian. Christ said in John 14:15, "If ye love me, keep my commandments." And I John 2:3 and 4 declares: "And hereby we do know that we know Him, if we keep His commandments. He that saith, I know Him, and keepeth not His commandments, is a liar, and the truth is not in him."
Now let me read you something that was commanded by the Lord Jesus in the most solemn manner. "Swear not at all; neither by heaven; for it is God's throne; nor by the earth; for it is His footstool; neither by Jerusalem; for it is the city of the great King" (Matt 5:34-35). Our Lord considered this so important that He caused it to be written a second time in the Scripture (James 5:12). Nothing is more plain in the Bible. The Christian is commanded by the Lord not to swear by any oath. The government of the United States recognizes this and makes provisions for Christians who believe in following the precept of the Lord. No Christian is obliged to take a civil oath. He is permitted to make a simple affirmation.
Now suppose I came to the door of Masonry and knock for admittance. Almost the first thing demanded of me is disobedience to the Lord Jesus Christ. before I can listen; "He that entereth not by the door .... but climbeth up some other way [mark the words], the same is a thief and a robber" (John 10:1, 9). Any organization which ignores the Lord Jesus Christ as the Door of heaven, and puts up a ladder of its own, is a thief and a robber! Christ said that!
Speaking of the "working tools" of the "Entered Apprentice," Mackey says; "The Common Gavel is an instrument made use of by the operative masons to break off the corners of rough stones, the better to fit them for the builder's use; but we as Free and Accepted Masons, are taught to make use of it for the more noble and glorious purpose of divesting our hearts and consciences of all the vices and superfluities of life; thereby fitting our minds as living stones for that spiritual building, that 'house not made with hands' eternal in the heavens (The Ritualist, pp. 39)."
Oh, my friends, let me tell you upon the authority of God's Word that you can never get rid of your sins and vices with the "common gavel" of Masonry! You can never fit yourself for "the house not made with hands, eternal in the heavens." There is just one thing that can take away sins and make you fit to enter the blessed house - the blood of Jesus Christ! "Unto him that loved us, and washed us from our sins in his own blood ... to him be glory and dominion for ever and ever. Amen" (Rev 1:5-6).
You say, "If Masonry is such a terrible institution, why don't other men condemn it?" They do. John Adams condemned it! Also John Quincy Adams, James Madison, Millard Fillmore, Daniel Webster, Charles Summer. Of the great evangelists, Finney condemned it. Moody condemned it. Torrey said; "I do not believe it possible for a man to be an intelligent Christian and an intelligent Mason at the same time." George F. Pentecost, late pastor of the Wanamaker Church in this city, said, "I believe that Masonry is an incalculable evil and essentially antichrist in its principles and influences." He should have known something about it, for a Thirty-Second Degree Mason told me last week that church had a lodge within its own membership.
Why do Christian men stay in it? I can think of only four reasons why you find professing Christians affiliated with the Masonic lodge:
FIRST - Some do not know what Christianity really is. Many have the prevalent but erroneous opinion that Christianity and religion are one and the same thing. If an organization is religious and talks about God, they conclude it is Christian. Such people are sincere but untaught. Because they do not know what Christianity is, they see nothing wrong with Masonry. These deserve our sympathy. If there is to be any blame, it belongs to the pastors who have failed to teach the truth.
SECOND - Some do not know what Masonry really is. It is possible that some here may scoff at the idea of a Mason not knowing what his lodge stands for. Nevertheless, it is true that there are thousands of Masons who are not acquainted with the religious position of Masonry as an institution. I have met Thirty-Second Degree Masons who frankly admitted that they had never read even one Masonic authority such as this encyclopedia. Within the past month I have actually found Masons who deny the existence of such works! Yet the Masonic Temple of this city has a fair sized library of books on Masonry, many of which are accessible to the general public.
You may think that such ignorance is impossible. Not at all! You find it in every organization. I think I could find members of this church here in this place who have never read a book setting forth the position of the denomination and who would be unable to state it. It is the same in every church, whether Presbyterian, Methodist, or Baptist. If such ignorance can be found in organizations where public instruction is given several times each week, it is not surprising to find it in Masonry. The average Mason is like some church members. He only does what is absolutely necessary to become a member and stops there. His knowledge of Masonry is based upon his little experience in a local lodge, and he never makes any effort to ascertain exactly what is the religious position of Masonry as a great institution.
Permit me to say in all kindness, that the gentleman who rose at the beginning of this sermon to protest against the charge that Masonry is not Christian is an illustration of what I am saying. He has admitted before you all, in answer to my question, that he has never read even one Masonic authority. We have no denunciation for such men, but in the name of Jesus Christ we beg that they will investigate the institution to which they are giving their allegiance.
THIRD - A few professing Christians continue their relation with Masonry in spite of the fact that they know what Christianity is, and also what Masonry is. Such as these are without excuse. They are living every day in deliberate disloyalty to the Lord Jesus Christ, who died for their sins! They deserve blame - not sympathy.
FOURTH - There are some professing Christians in Masonry who are apostate from the true faith. Some of the preachers in Masonry belong to this classification. They have relegated such truths as blood atonement and the deity of Christ to the place of the nonessentials. They are virtually Unitarian in belief, and therefore it is not surprising to find them in an institution which in its three main degrees is Unitarianism, so much so that ex-president Taft, a prominent Unitarian, feels at home in it. The presence of such men in Masonry is an argument against it, not for it.
“But ," you say, "there are good men in it. Washington was a Mason." Yes, and Washington was a slave owner as well. You are not to follow men. If you follow men you are heading for disaster. Christ says to the Christian, "Follow thou Me."
I must close, though I have only begun. This encyclopedia contains enough that is anti-Christian to keep me preaching for the next ten weeks every Sunday. I have said enough to condemn this institution forever in the eyes of you who know Jesus Christ and love Him. I have tried not to be unkind or harsh. I have tried to tell you the truth. Jesus Christ is the only hope for men. My only motive
tonight has been to get you to be loyal to Him. A man may say. "It will hurt me if I leave Masonry now!" I know it will! But oh, Christian, did your Christ fail you at the cross because it hurt? By the blood of His cross I plead with you; "Come out from among them, and be ye separate." Be ye not unequally yoked together with the unbeliever; for what fellowship hath righteousness with unrighteousness? and what communion hath light with darkness? And what concord hath Christ with Belial? or what part hath he that believeth with an infidel? And what agreement hath the temple of God with idols? ... " (II Cor 6:14-17).
THE END