By Mark Ellis
Howard and Marcia Storm
In some near-death experiences, people report they were drawn toward “the light.” But in this horrifying near-death experience for an atheist art professor, he was drawn into the darkness of hell, which dramatically altered the course of his life.
“I was a double atheist,” says Howard Storm, who became a tenured art professor at Northern Kentucky University by age 27. “I was a know-it-all college professor, and universities are some of the most closed-minded places there are,” he notes.
On the last day of a three-week European art tour he led, his group had returned to their hotel in Paris after a visit to the artist Delacroix’s home and studio. As Howard stood in his room with his wife and another student, suddenly he screamed and dropped to the floor in agony.
“I had a perforation of the small stomach, known as the duodenum,” he recalls. At first, Howard thought he was shot, and he glanced around the room to see if he could spot a smoking gun. As he writhed in pain on the ground, kicking and screaming, his wife called for a doctor.
“They said I needed surgery immediately,” Howard says. “It’s like having a burst appendix. I was told that if they don’t get to it within five hours, you’re probably going to die.”
Howard had the misfortune of a falling ill on a Saturday in a country with socialized medicine, and no doctor could be found. “French doctors do seven surgeries a week, and after they do the seven surgeries, they take the weekend off,” he discovered.
They placed him on a bed without sheets or a pillow and offered no pain medication. He waited in the room for 10 hours. “I was just lying there going south,” Howard says. Meanwhile, intestinal contents were leaking into his abdominal cavity, which would soon lead to peritonitis, septic shock and certain death.
At 8:30 p.m. a nurse came in and said they were still unable to find a doctor, but they would try to find one the next day, Sunday.
“I had been struggling very hard to stay alive, but when she said there was no doctor, I knew it was time to stop fighting,” Howard says.
Yet the thought of death scared him. “I was terrified of dying because it meant lights out, the end of the story,” he notes. “It seemed horrible that at 38-years-old, when I felt powerful and successful in my life, it would all come to an end in such a ridiculously pitiful way.”
Howard made an impassioned farewell to his wife, and told her to tell their friends and the rest of his family goodbye. Then he lost consciousness.
It wasn’t long after he lost consciousness that he had a very unusual out-of-body experience, and found himself standing next to his bed, looking at himself lying there. As he stood there, he noticed he didn’t feel the pain in his stomach. He felt more alive than ever, and his senses seemed more heightened than usual.
He tried to communicate with his wife and another man in the room, but they didn’t respond, which frustrated him. “I was glad I didn’t have the pain, but also I was very confused and disturbed by the situation.”
“I saw my body lying on the bed, but I refused to believe it was me. How could that be me if I was standing there,” he wondered.
Suddenly he heard people outside the room calling for him by name. They spoke English, without a French accent, which seemed strange, because everyone in the hospital either spoke French or heavily accented English.
“Come with us,” they said. “Hurry up, let’s go.”
Howard went to the doorway. “Are you from the doctor?” he asked. “I need to have surgery. I’m sick and I’ve been waiting a long time.”
“We know all about you,” one said. “We’ve been waiting for you. It’s time for you to go. Hurry up.”
Howard left the room and started to walk with them down a long hallway, which was very dimly lit – almost dingy. “They took me on a very long journey through a grey space that got increasingly darker and darker,” he recalls.
They walked a long time, and Howard wondered why he was not tired when he had just suffered the worst day of his life.
“Where are we going? Howard asked. “How come it’s taking so long? What is the doctor’s name?”
“Shut up,” one said. “Be quiet,” another said. “Don’t ask questions.”
Howard’s fear and apprehension grew at the same time he lost trust in his guides. “Finally it was so dark I was terrified and I said, ‘I’m not going any farther. I want to go back.”
“You’re almost there,” one replied.
Howard dug in his heels. “I’m not going any farther,” he said firmly.
A fight ensues
His guides began to push and pull at him. Howard fought back, but he was horribly outnumbered.
“We had a big fight and the fight turned into them annihilating me, which they did slowly and with much relish,” he says. “Mostly they were biting and tearing at me. This went on for a long time. They did other things to humiliate and violate me which I don’t talk about.”
When Howard was no longer “amusing” to them, he collapsed on the ground, ripped apart, unable to move.
He lay there motionless for a few moments, completely spent. Then he was surprised by a small voice inside his head that said, ‘Pray to God.’
He thought, ‘I don’t pray. I don’t even believe in God.’
Then he heard the voice a second time, ‘Pray to God.’
‘But I wouldn’t know how to pray even if I wanted to pray,’ he thought. Whose voice was this, he wondered? It sounded like his voice, but the words were completely foreign to his own thinking.
Then he heard the voice a third time repeat the same message. His mind drifted back to his days in Sunday school as a child. “I tried to remember things I memorized when I was very young,” he says. He struggled to think of something he could pray.
Then he managed to blurt out, “The Lord is my shepherd and I shall not want…”
When the people around him heard his attempt to pray, they became enraged. “There is no God and nobody can hear you,” they cried, along with other obscenities. “If you keep praying we will really hurt you.”
But Howard noticed something curious. The more he prayed and began to mention God, the more they backed away from him.
Emboldened, he began to shout out bits and pieces of the Lord’s Prayer, “The Battle Hymn of the Republic,” and “God Bless America.” Finally, he was screaming any fragments of God’s truth he could muster from the moldy recesses of his memory bank.
It seemed to work! Even in the darkness, he could tell they had fled, but not too far away.
As he lay there, Howard began to review his life. “I came to the conclusion I led a crummy life and I had gone down the sewer pipe of the universe. I had gone into the septic tank with other human garbage. I was being processed by the garbage people into garbage like them.”
“Whatever life was supposed to be about, I missed it,” he thought. “What I received was what I deserved and the people who attacked me were people like me. They were my kindred spirits. Now I will be stuck with them forever.” Feelings of self-loathing and hopelessness filled his mind.
His thoughts floated back again to himself as a nine-year-old in Sunday School, “I remembered myself singing “Jesus Loves Me,” and I could feel it inside me. As a child, I thought Jesus was really cool and he was my buddy and he would take care of me.”
“But even if Jesus is real, why would he care about me? he thought. “He probably hates my guts. I’m not going to think anymore; I’m going to ask him.”
“I’ve got nothing else to lose. I’ll give Jesus a try.”
A cry for help
Then he yelled into the darkness, “Jesus, please save me!”
Within an instant, a brilliant light appeared that came closer and closer. He found himself bathed in a beautiful light, and for the first time he could clearly see his own body’s miserable condition, ghastly for his own eyes to behold. “I was almost all gore.”
Immediately he recognized Jesus, the King of Kings, the Rescuer, the Deliverer. “His arms reached down and touched me and everything healed up and came back together,” he recalls. “He filled me with a love I never knew existed.”
Then he picked up Howard, like one football player picking up a fallen teammate on the field, put his arms around him, and Howard cried like a baby in His arms. “He carried me out of there and we headed to where God lives.”
In his mind, Howard began to think that Jesus made a terrible mistake. “I’m garbage and I don’t belong in heaven,” he thought.
They stopped moving, and both Howard and Jesus were hanging in space, somewhere between heaven and hell. “We don’t make mistakes,” Jesus said tenderly.
“He could read everything in my mind and put His voice into my head,” Howard recalls. “We had very rapid, instantaneous conversations.”
Then Jesus told Howard He had angels who would show him his life. “It was a terrible experience because my life deteriorated after adolescence. I saw I became a selfish, unloving person. I was successful, a full tenured art professor at 27, the department head, but I was a jerk.”
In this replay, he saw his heavy drinking and adultery. “I cheated on my wife proudly. It was horrible.”
For the first time he realized the way he lived his life hurt Jesus. “I was in the arms of the most wonderful, holy, loving, kind person and we’re looking at this stuff. Embarrassing doesn’t even begin to describe it.”
As they watched together, Howard could see the pain and disappointment on the face of Jesus. “When I did these things it was like sticking a knife into his heart.”
“Do you have any questions?” Jesus asked.
“I have a million questions,” Howard replied, and proceeded to unburden himself of anything and everything he could imagine asking an omniscient being. Jesus answered Howard’s questions kindly and patiently.
When Howard couldn’t think of anything else to ask, he said, “I’m ready to go to heaven now.”
“You’re not going to heaven. You’re going back to the world,” Jesus replied.
Howard began to argue, but it was to no avail. Jesus told him to go back and live his life differently.
Going back
At 9:00 p.m., Howard was back in his hospital room in Paris. Less than 30 minutes had elapsed since he lost consciousness.
As Howard opened his eyes, he heard the nurse say, “The doctor arrived at the hospital and you’re going to have the surgery.”
As they wheeled him out of his room on a gurney, he saw his wife in the hallway. “Everything is going to be really good now,” he said to her. When she heard him, she cried, thinking they were brave words.
When Howard emerged from surgery, with the effects of the anesthesia wearing off, he spoke to his wife. “It’s all love,” he told her. “You don’t have to suffer anymore.”
“You need to sleep,” she replied, thinking he was slightly addled from the drugs. Then he awakened again and began to tell her about Jesus and the angels and heaven and hell.
“She was an atheist and she didn’t like it. She thought I lost my mind.” Sadly, Howard’s marriage ended in divorce after she left him many years later.
When his strength returned, Howard began to devour the Bible. “Since none of my atheist friends believed me, I started memorizing verses and I would give them Bible lectures, but that didn’t go over very well,” he recalls.
He grew “desperate” for fellowship in a church, and began to attend Christ Church in Fort Thomas, Kentucky, part of United Church of Christ. Howard’s pastor worked with him patiently, and after three years, Howard was ordained as a lay minister in his church.
Sensing a deeper call into ministry, he attended United Theological Seminary in Dayton, Ohio and later pastored a church in Covington, Ohio.
He also wrote a book about his experience, “My Descent Into Death,” which he says was written primarily to non-believers.
book cover
Howard and his second wife, Marcia, a strong Christian, are both involved in missionary work in Belize. He maintains a passion for painting, with much of his art devoted to spiritual themes.
Do you want to know God personally? Here are four steps...
Howard Storm's painting of Jesus
Halleluiah!
It’s not about being a catholic in the future it’s about following the call of the king of kings on your life. it’s about coming out from under the religious spirit whether catholic lutheran baptist and walking with the King
Amen!
Those of us who are Catholic believe that “submission to the Roman Pontiff” is a divine command, one which comes from Jesus Christ Himself. To refuse submission to the Pope is to refuse submission to the Triune God.
Of course, we Catholics pray for those who are outside the Catholic Church, as well as for those who are inside her.
I know, that I know, what I know! Bless you brother. This is one of many divine experiences I have had. I’m so weak in my flesh that I constantly need prayer even now. He has never left me. But I have at times left him, even though I know what I know. And no one really believes us when we tell them. But we have to, because it is the truth; March 1988. North Side Free Will Baptist Church, Tulsa Oklahoma. Pastor: Curtis Linton.
This Happened.
I was a new husband and father and wanted the perfect life for my first born son. My wife and I attended church regularly and that was good but something was missing in my life. I remembered when I was a young man of 14 and wanted to be a preacher when I grew up. I had that inner peace and feeling of comfort that comes with being close to God.
My son was only in his second month and we gave him to God. I however did not feel that peace that I felt when I was a young teenager in Missouri. I wanted that again. Every Sunday morning, evening, and Wednedsday night would come and I desperately wanted that peace again.
I would go to the alter every time and beg,,,, I would make a fist and pray for forgiveness of my sins and please forgive me. I did this at every service and I was always the only one. I knew the congregation must think that I was really a busy sinner. I didn’t care, I was searching.
After 6 or 8 weeks of this I became very depressed. I realized that there was no way for me to get that peaceful feeling I once had…… I believed that I must surely be going to hell and there was absolutely nothing that I could do about it.. I accepted it as a fact. I gave up on any chance of my salvation. But let me tell you how good Jesus is!
The next Sunday as I sat in the congregation I thought: Just one more time,,,,,,, But this time I am saying goodbye……. I went to the alter and it was different when you have given up all hope… I felt that peace now but it was a sad acceptance of my fate…….
This is what happend:
I knelt at the alter and lowered my head…….. I accepted that I was going to hell and there was no way around it…….. I searched in my deepest heart and ask only that God hear one last and final prayer from me……
I said: Dear God…….. I know that I am unworthy and must be going to hell…….. I accept it…………I am truly sorry…… I have only one last request if you willl hear this sinners prayer………………...
God I pray for those in the congregation that do not know you…….. those who would come to know you if they could only take that first step Lord………. Please Lord I pray that you will give them the strength to take that first step….. Send them an Angel Lord, to help them take that first step……… I have given up on me Lord……. but please for them Lord…. I’ll go for them Lord….. Don’t let them suffer the fate that I am to suffer………
* At that moment……. I left that church…….. All conscious thought left my mind,,,,,,, I can only recall what I saw…….. I was surrounded by a white gold color light all around………. I looked in front of me and before me there were two images……… One in the distance up high and powerful to the extreme in his reverence and on a large throne………. The other was between me and the one on high……… As I looked upon the one closer to me he turned to me and away from the one on high……… As he truned and reached out his hand,, He said:
This One Father………. Then he touched me…………Instantly I felt every darkness and weigtht being lifted from my heart and soul……………. It was literally like a flushing of darkness and being filled with lilght…………….. The scene lingered but for only a moment and then this happened.
I felt myself kneeling at the alter with my eyes closed…………. I felt someone with their hands on mine,,,,,,,,,,, I opened my eyes and saw the wood graing finish of the alter me with my tears puddled in a circle……….. I felt a peace that can not be described by the language we use…………. Looking up I saw that the hands on mine belonged to one of the deacons in the church…….. I looked to the right and saw people kneeling at the alter all the way from me to the wall on both sides……… I looked to the other side and saw the same thing the other direction………… A church of 500 and nearly half of them were there meeting God………… There hadn’t been anyone at that alter in months other than me…….. I only went because of my selfish search for God and salvation………….
I came to realize something that day………. God hears the unselfish prayers of sinners,,,,,,
and he answered my prayers that day……… I slowly raised myself from the alter and left them all receiving Christ………. I turned and went to sit beside my wife and child…….. As I walked it was as though I didn’t weigh a pound……. I felt as though I was literally walking on air……………. when I sat beside my wife she was looking at me very strangely………. I said: I just saw Jesus……………. She said: Thats Nice!…….. I kept smiling and when we left church that day on the way home we had the worst fight of our marriage…….. Satan was furious. For he lost the battle of more than a hundred souls that day. Thank You God, Praise You Jesus. Holy Spirit Lead Me…….
The Lord Bless you into your Godly destiny. Thank you for sharing His wondrous work.
I also live in the Tulsa area. Your testimony really touched my heart. Thank God!!!! Thru one small act of selflessness many souls were led to Christ. Keep up the battle!!!
We all learn sooner or later. Sceptics take note.
Wonderful.
May god bless your ministry.
God is so merciful. I wonder who was praying for Howard.
A story worth sharing.
A nun who was in Howard’s art class told her that he didn’t want any religion talk in his class and that he was an atheist. She started praying for him also had the other nuns praying for him for about 13 years.
Read “Rome sweet Home” by scott Hahn
I have read Howard’s book and watched the Focus videos of his tv interviews “His Descent Into Hell”, Parts 1 & 2, and “The Warnings” . He states that God revealed to him that people can continue their spiritual development after death by living again on other planets, possibly in other dimensions, and some people get out of hell by repenting. Both of these concepts are opposed to what is contained in the Bible.
There are many things that you do not know and that you cannot know because you interpret the “law”, as Jesus would say it, so narrowly, as did the Pharisees. God is the law and God is love, all merciful, all knowing, and all powerful. God has created all planets, all dimensions, and all laws and all creatures are subject to Him and His ways which are not man’s ways. Read your Bible again and read it this time with the love of God in your heart, not the fear of the vindictive, demented, destructive god (small g intentional) that mainstream Christianity teaches. This is the time of an awakening. We no longer have to fear God. We now have to truly love and respect Him for the great and loving being that He is. Perfect love casts out all fear and with love (God), all things are possible. I will serve my God on whatever planet and in whatever dimension He chooses for me to be. Do not fear to tell Him that you will as well.
The Bible says to fear God, and also to love God.
Which you should obviously do both. Why wouldn’t you fear God? He knows everything, He can do anything, He can send anyone to Hell for all of eternity if he would please. However, God is loving, and forgiving. He loves all of us and wants us to love Him back. He’d much rather take care of his children than cast them away. I don’t know how to put it in lighter words, that don’t seem so against God, but if He was not merciful, He could do what kids do to ants. Step on and kill them.
That being said, I can’t stress enough that He IS merciful and loving. He wants us to call to him and praise him. We should all of our lives. We owe everything to our great God. Lord of lords.
This very concept could lead people to live a life however they want, and think that after they die, they can change their mind. I do not find anywhere in the Bible that supports this. The Bible says, that after death comes judgement. (Hebrews 9:27) The judgement for believers according to what they have done for Christ, as to what rewards they will receive (not salvation; they have already accepted Christ before death.) Then the White Throne judgement for those who have not received Jesus Christ. There is no second chance after death. Test everything by the Word of God.
I have to say that I am in agreement with Cathy Schroader….the Bible does teach very clearly that it is appointed unto man once to die and after this the judgment….that is why we are to spread the good news of the gospel to as many as we can….so that they won’t have to go to hell…if we could call on the name of Jesus after we die then that makes the Bible wrong….sorry…I choose to believe the Bible over mans experiance…I mean this testimony sounds so good and it had me until I read what cathy wrote and that brought me back to reality….you must be born again to enter into the kingdom of God, you can’t be born again when you are dead, it happens when you are alive and have the choice to choose Jesus or to reject him…
One important point: Howard was unconscious when he had this experience. He was not dead.
This is the argument scientists who are researching these NDEs use too. They are studying people who were clinically pronounced dead (i.e no pulse, no brain activity, cessation of breathing, etc) in order to test their hypothesis that the brain generates these experiences before actual death. One significant fact is that all these experiences are almost identical across countries, ages, religion, non-religion, even time. Plato’s writings reflect to small details very similar descriptions of near death or death and resucitation. I have no idea how in Plato’s time one could be resucitated but his descriptions are eerily similar to modern NDEs.
I also would have to agree with Cathy, it says that which ever way we go, it is eternity after we die, that means for ever and ever and ever..
I am afraid that now that Howard says that there are other chances in other ways to get spiritual after death, and that you can live on other planets etc etc, that I find what he says is now hard to believe, or it was not from the God of Abraham that his message came from…
One key fact here is that Harold never died; he had a near-death experience. I don’t think Howard would say that non-believers have a second chance after death to receive Jesus.
You forgot something — he was not dead. Until you’re dead there is hope. God was allowing him to see the other side of things so that not only he could change but that he could cause others to change as well. I do agree with you that after death is the judgement — BUT he wan’t dead.
Jesus is the Word. The Bible is the written account of the Word. Jesus is alive today and lives in the hearts of believers for those who accept Him. He gives Word for today. Those who follow Him “have an ear to hear.” Scripture says if all that Jesus taught were written, the world could not hold the books. Growing in Christ brings more Word of God through Jesus Christ by the Holy Spirit of God.
Amen!! Test everything you hear or believe with God’s Word.
Thank you Cathy.
The Bible tells us of false prophets and teachers. It is not mine to judge Howard’s testimony but I will follow scripture for myself. I find nowhere in scripture any other teaching than what you have provided here. As you say that is the test we must live by.
You have a good point, but there is a serious flaw in your argument, because the man hasn’t died yet, remember? He’s still here talking to us. It was a “near death” experience. God may have purposely tried to give his soul to the demons to let me see what happens when we die, but he’s not dead yet.
The Bible is not big enough to contain everything there is to know about God and eternity. The dramatic change in Howard’s life is indication enough that what he wrote is true. Other accounts of near death experiences are very similar to this one, and Howard is not the only one to speak about repentance in hell and life on other planets. God is loving, kind and merciful. Who are we to say that Howard’s account of heaven and hell are not true?
However, the best place in eternity is near God’s throne and anything less is second best. To live with Him in that glorious place called heaven, we must live for Him while still on this planet, proving our love for Him by loving and serving others to the best of our ability. Jesus is the Way, the Life and the Truth. There is no other way.
I nearly wept, Jesus is so good!
You will probably be a Catholic in the near future. Pontius Pilate asked
Jesus why he did not know Him. Jesus’ reply was, “Because you have not
searched.” Keep searching Howard. You are on your way. We will be
praying for you and your family.
I am unfamiliar with that quotation. Can you give a bible reference?
It’s not about being Catholic or any other man made religion. It’s ALL about our relationship with God and His beloved son Jesus. No pope, priest or saint can get you to heaven, and no amount of money can save you from hell. Only Jesus can do that through the acceptance of His love and sacrifice for us on the cross.. He is the Way, the Truth and the Life. No man comes to the Father except by Him. And it’s free!
Many years ago a friend gave me 2 CDs on which Howard Storm told his story. It has inspired me so many times, because he is told that, 200 years from then, this world will be a different place. People will love each other & the most important thing in their lives will be their children. As a pro-lifer, that means that abortion WILL come to an end. That day can’t come soon enough! We have to keep up the good fight!
Why the comments assuming Rev. Howard Storm (now a United Church of Christ minster) will convert to Roman Catholicism? On what basis do you make such claims? Triumphalistic, much? And as to the person who claims Storm’s account is “unbiblical”, why do you say that? The bible doesn’t address such possibilities at all, so Storm’s account contradicts nothing. However, what is lifted up in Storm’s experience is the tremendous Love and Grace of God in Christ. Shouldn’t we celebrate that instead of trying to hijack the man?
That the individual ( “particular”) judgment of a person occurs right after death and that there is no reincarnation is indicated in Heb. 9:27. As far as I know, the Bible does not clearly state that the wills of those in heaven and hell are unchangeable, although it is implied in Dan 12:2, Luke 16:25-26, Mat. 25:46, Prov. 10:28, and Prov. 24:16. It seems logical that hell would be empty if the fallen angels and condemned souls could get released by regretting their past mistakes. An essential characteristic of hell is that residents there are unable to love. Howard’s after death experience of pure uncaring hatred fits this bill, but I would suggest that he might have experienced the conditions in the lower reaches of purgatory as opposed to hell. (I believe that there are 7 levels of heaven (see St. Paul’s mention of being taken up to seventh heaven) and also 7 levels of hell and 7 levels of purgatory (see The Biblical Basis for Purgatory by John Salza). Fits in nicely with the 7 choirs of angels, don’t you think.
There are nine choirs of angels, not seven: Seraphim, Cherubim, Thrones, Dominions, Powers, Principalities, Virtues, Archangels, and Angels. They are all mentioned in the Bible.
Seraphim. Isaias 6:1-3:.
In the year that king Ozias died, I saw the Lord sitting upon a throne high and elevated: and his train filled the temple. [2] Upon it stood the seraphims: the one had six wings, and the other had six wings: with two they covered his face, and with two they covered his feet, and with two they hew. [3] And they cried one to another, and said: Holy, holy, holy, the Lord God of hosts, all the earth is full of his glory.
Cherubim. Psalms 17:11.
And he ascended upon the cherubim, and he flew; he flew upon the wings of the winds.
Thrones, Dominions, Powers, Principalities. Colossians 1:16.
For in him were all things created in heaven and on earth, visible and invisible, whether thrones, or dominations, or principalities, or powers: all things were created by him and in him.
Virtues and Angels. 1 Peter 3:22.
Who is on the right hand of God, swallowing down death, that we might be made heirs of life everlasting: being gone into heaven, the angels and powers and virtues being made subject to him.
Archangels. Jude 1:9.
When Michael the archangel, disputing with the devil, contended about the body of Moses, he durst not bring against him the judgment of railing speech, but said: The Lord command thee.
There are 9 choirs of angels, aren’t there?
OK, so I read this beautiful story of Redemption and the first response is “Hallalujah!” within a dozen responses the discussion has sunk to how many angels there are?!? Doesn’t anyone see the irony of this? We aren’t supposed to be involved in these arguments between brothers and sisters. Love is the only answer and Howard found that out.
Let’s be clear. First, Paul said he was taken to the third heaven. (2 Cor 12:2) There is no language which would indicate that there are any ‘levels’ in heaven. Second, if you study jewish literature, you would realize that this third heaven is the dwelling place of God, withe first meaning simply the sky of Earth, the second being space. Secondly, ther is no purgatory, nor even a need for one. Before the death of Jesus, there was a holding place where all who died went, called Abraham’s bosom, with the righteous separated from the unrighteous. (Luke 16:19-31) When Jesus ascended to heaven, he took all the righteous dead with him. (Psalm 68:18, Eph 4:8) Since then, every believer who dies goes straight to the presence of Jesus. (2 Cor 5:6-8). But there is nothing in the word to indicate the chance of salvation after death. That’s what life is for. To decide what your eternal relation to God will be; either communion or separation. There is no description of levels in heaven or hell, only degrees of punishment and reward.
Please, everyone, make certain your doctrine comes only from the Word. The teaching of men and other books is heresy, and will neither save nor sanctify.
Walk the narrow path. (Matt 7:13-14)
GOD Bless
To Tony R:
Thank you so much for your refreshing “literal” response to those who appear confused.
Purgatory exists. It’s referred to in Sacred Scripture, in both the new and old testaments. Although the WORD “purgatory” is not in the Bible (like the word “Trinity” is not found there either), Christ Himself referred to it, as well as Saint Paul. You just don’t understand the Bible; that’s all. And you interpret according to a Protestant mindset.
Plus, you don’t accept the entire Bible, and the parts you accept are then privately interpreted according to your oral, manmade, Protestant tradition, which is the heresy you lament.
You accept only a 66 book Bible, but you have no biblical basis upon which to do so. Where did you get the idea that the Bible contains only 66 books? Chapter and verse, and Bible only, please.
Where does the Bible tell us which parts are supposed to be taken literally and which are not? Chapter and verse, and Bible only, please.
Where does the Bible say we are saved by faith ALONE (1 Peter 3:21 and Romans 8:24)? Chapter and verse, and Bible only, please. And, yes, we want to see the word “alone” there.
How does a Protestant go about getting married? Where did he get the idea that he has to go before a minister, with a best man and a maid of honor, and pronounce some type of vows? Chapter and verse, and Bible only, please.
What is God’s definition of Sola Scriptura? Chapter and verse, and Bible only, please. And, remember, we want God’s definition, not the opinion of any man.
Finally, is infant baptism consistent with Sola Scriptura? Millions upon millions of Protestants since the Reformation say yes, and millions upon millions of other Protestants say no. And what that means is that millions upon millions of Protestants do not understand their own doctrine of Sola Scriptura, as both sides cannot possibly be right on the issue.
It also means that the Holy Ghost does not guide millions upon millions of people who THINK they are guided by Him, as the Holy Ghost cannot guide millions of people to believe and practice something and at the same time guide millions of others to believe and practice its exact opposite.
So much for the “perspicacity” of Sacred Scripture.
Your quote: Since then, every believer who dies goes straight to the presence of Jesus. (2 Cor 5:6-8).
Saint Paul states that there are those who are saved BUT THEY FIRST PASS THROUGH FIRE. 1 Corinthians 3:15.
In the so-called first letter to the Corinthians (it’s actually not the first one, as the first one is lost, which is problematic to a Protestant, as that means part of his sole rule of faith is lost; see
1 Corinthians 5:9) Saint Paul first refers to Heaven, then to Purgatory, then to Hell.
[11] For other foundation no man can lay, but that which is laid; which is Christ Jesus. [12] Now if any man build upon this foundation, gold, silver, precious stones, wood, hay, stubble: [13] Every man’s work shall be manifest; for the day of the Lord shall declare it, because it shall be revealed in fire; and the fire shall try every man’s work, of what sort it is. [14] If any man’s work abide, which he hath built thereupon, he shall receive a reward. [15]
(NOTE: HEAVEN)
If any man’s work burn, he shall suffer loss; but he himself shall be saved, yet so as by fire. (NOTE: PURGATORY)
[16] Know you not, that you are the temple of God, and that the Spirit of God dwelleth in you? [17] But if any man violate the temple of God, him shall God destroy. (NOTE: HELL).
And, of course, there is the most blatant reference to Purgatory contained in the Book of Macchabees, which has been ruled as canonical by the Catholic Church, which is the same institution that ruled all the books of the New Testament to be canonical:
2 Machabees 12:46
It is therefore a holy and wholesome thought to pray for the dead, that they may be loosed from sins.
I’ve read the Bible numerous times and it says nothing about purgatory.
Purgatory is in the Bible. You just don’t interpret the Bible correctly.
no I disagree with you…i have a son who claims to be an athiast and my thought while i was reading this is…I would hate him to read this and think that he can continue living like the devil and then when he dies he will be able to choose Jesus and go to heaven….Can you see how this would deceive people…Yes God is love…He doesn’t have love He is LOVE….I had a girl lead me in the sinners prayer when i was 19 and receive Jesus, but i remember thinking at that time i really wasn’t a sinner…but then a year and a half later i did something that I knew was sin and when I went to bed at night I asked God to forgive me. Shortly after that little miracles started happening in my life and one day I was standing in my living room and had this thought….”Read the Bible” “Read the Bible”…it just wouldn’t go away and so I found a Bible in my closet and opened it up randomly and began to read….as I did I got bathed in this cloud of love inside and out…I was so excited that ran over to my next door neighbors house and told her “Jesus loves me” and I smoke pot and drink etc….and he loves me…as I daily read the Bible after that the pot and drinking went because the Lord opened my eyes to see what they were doing to me…and of course he is still working on me but the point is there was a repentance in my life….the Bible says our sin separates us from God….He is just waiting for opportunities to shower His love on people but they have to repent from there sin ….where was this mans repentance…..the Bible says we are to repent and put our trust in Jesus in the finished work of the cross or we will perish…..We must be Born Again (John 3:3) to enter the kingdom of God…Jesus did not come to bring religion but to bring us into a relationship with himself….if you are a devout catholic or any other religion, but have not been born of Gods spirit then you also will go to hell when you die…God doesn’t send anyone …people send themselves by refusing to repent of their pride and religion and accept Jesus as the ONLY Way To God …..The Only way to heaven….Repent and be baptized everyone of you….Make sure your name is written in the Lamb’s book of life before you take your last breath….John 17:3…and this is eternal life, that they may know You, the Only true God, and Jesus Christ whom You have sent….Do you know God today….Read the Bible and find out while your still alive….
Beautiful story! Welcome back, Mr. Storm…
The reason someone would suggest he’ll eventually become Catholic is probably because all the instantaneous conversions are ending this way….when Jesus converts you Himself, He won’t do it halfway. He leads to the fullness of truth. He is the the Second Person of the Holy Trinity…true God and. True Man.
I know the idea of conversion to the Catholic Church freaks people out. That is because of their ignorance about the teachings.
I invite a challenge. Pray, fast…ask to be shown the Truth…read the Catechism of the Catholic Church. Every belief is all in there with Holy Scripture cited.
http://www.vatican.va/archive/ENG0015/_INDEX.HTM
This is the whole truth.
The Roman Church is a False Church – a man-made Religion based on works & man-made traditions & not on the redemptive saving power of Jesus Christ. 99% of Catholics don’t even know what scripture says-if they did they wouldn’t be in the Roman Church. I was a Catholic for years with my husband & never heard the gospel preached once! We went to Jamaica & the Priest from our church was laying on the beach in a speedo bathing suit with his lover – that’s when I left the church. Several years later I got saved in a Church that preached the Gospel – No one comes to the Lord except the Holy Spirit draws him .. that was 27 yrs ago. I am now a Bible College Graduate. Not every one who says “Lord-Lord will enter the Kingdom of Heaven.
Sheree-
Wow! Glad for you. The Roman Catholic Church has prevailed ONLY because she is Jesus’ church. Founded by God, And she, Holy Mother Church will prevail in the storms to come. Men are indeed corruptable, God is not. Divide and conquer seems to have worked wonders to create
over 18,000 different churches worshipping Christ. Indifference! You bet.
When your church has NO authority, just go make one up that suits YOUR beliefs…for the time that is.
Sheree…where do you find any of that in the Bible….The word of God has the final say so not man……Find out just what Jesus thinks of religion….
Saying you were a Catholic did not make it so! Catholics go to Mass every Sunday and Holy Day of Obligation. The gospel is read and preached about (along with 2 other readings and a Psalm) at EVERY Mass. Who, afterall, do you think put the Bible together. Who is the only church given the Holy Spirits protection to interpret correctly? The devil can only pull those away who are Catholic only in name. Anyone who truly understand the Catholic Church’s teachings will NEVER be able to be swayed by the evil ones tactics!
You must have slept through Mass if you never heard the gospel preached. The gospel is read at each Mass, Monday through Sunday, and the Homily is the “preaching” part.
The only Catholics that leave the “One, True, Church” are the ones that never knew their faith to begin with.
The one true Church is the body of believers that follow Christ. Jesus is more concerned with ones heart than what Church we attend.
What she means by the fact she never heard the gospel preached is that she never heard in the Catholic Church that you need to be “born again”. I was a Catholic for 40 years and never in that time did I hear it either. I began to read the bible from Genesis 1:1 and all the way through (even the Apochrypha). Eventually I came to Romans 3:23 “for all have sinned and fallen short of the glory of God” and I knew it was not possible to save myself by my good works. I have heard that there are born again Catholics, but in my experience they are in the vast minority. Best to you, Catholics, may God’s greatest and highest and best be yours in Truth.
Amen to this…….
How can you all the Roman Catholic Church a false church? It was the FIRST church created by Jesus Christ himself. I hear sermons from the Bible every Sun. Evidently, the priest you claim to have seen on the beach in a speedo with his lover was tempted by the flesh. No one ever said priests nor anyone else is perfect! That might have been one priest without your consideration of the thousands of faithful priests throughout the world. I pray that you will find your way back to the Roman Catholic Church, but in the meantime, I hope you are happy and feel loved by God.
Howard,
I read your book, My Descent into Hell, years ago. It really inspired me, and still continues to inspire me. As a Catholic, I have no problems with it, BECAUSE….you are alive now, having once been dead both in body and soul, and NOW…you love Jesus with all your heart and serve Him the best you know how. Who can speak ill of this? If it is God’s will you embrace the Catholic faith, this will transpire over time when the time is right. You do love His WILL after all! >smile!<
Everything has it's time and purpose, as we love Him one day at a time.
Blessings!
Howard. Thank you for your testimony. God is good. In this era I believe many will experience a examination of conscience. Gods mercy is so extraordinary, and He wishes that All come to the banquet table. Please continue to be of His service, and I will continue to be concerned with His
Fathers affairs.
Hi! My name is Tom. I had a life and death experience almost 2 1/2 years ago now. Almighty God, the God of LIFE! placed me in the right place at the right time. It’s a long story, but I had a massive heart attack and didn’t no anything for 6 days and 6 nights. I now tell everyone about what happened to me. Alot of people don’t want to hear my story, but I still tell it. (:-). Folks! There is a great, loving, merciful almighty God. He is a God of miracles. Every day He does a miracle for me. And Yes! The power of prayer is AWESOME! and so is God. Have a Safe & Happy Day! Sincerely! Tom
Would you be kind enough to share your life and death experience?
Tom, I agree…will you please tell your experience?
Quite inspiring for some of us who love and adore Jesus Christ. This reminds me very well about the great apostle Paul’s conversation on his way to Damascus. Praise God.
Take a look at Stafford Betty’s account of the afterlife based on many years of paranormal research. He’s a professor of religious studies at a California university. The book is “The Afterlife Unveiled.” Howard’s account only scratches the surface.
I read Howard’s book many years ago also and have watched several You Tube videos of his experience. He said nothing about reincarnation or anything about being released from hell. Yes one will be released from purgatory after sins have been atoned for as the bible says “he will not be released until he has paid the last penny” Luke 12: 59, Mathew 5:25, but once in hell – that’s forever. Also Storm indicated that he believed that people could continue to develop their spiritual lives after death but did not say that Jesus told him so. As for living on other planets, again that was an opinion, not a fact. I was and still am deeply impressed by his experience and I believe God is using him in a powerful way.
Howard’s account of Jesus is beautiful, like the same Jesus I have encountered in my life through various personal events…but speaking of life on other planets, etc. sounds similar to mormonism. There are no accounts of these things in the bible as someone mentioned above, because it is NOT biblical, it is not an omision by God! The bible tells us not to add to or take away from it. The fact that it may be his opinion or belief is entirely his choice, not founded on the.”word”. That does not discredit his testimony regarding Jesus, etc. But he is misguided in the other areas. Satan walks about like a roaring lion ready to devour. We must be vigilent in protecting our hearts & minds. The enemy pursues believers “big time”….I will pray for him…blessings!
Nice creative fiction.
Responding to the individual that says that the Catholic Church is a false church. # 1 where do you get your statistics from! #2 The reason that we have the Bible today, is that Catholic monks spent their lives copying Holy Scriptures by hand. #3 In every Mass that we attend the scriptures are proclaimed. #4 If there are Judases within the Church, that is not a reason to leave, it is a reason to remain and be faithful to Christ.
Check out Chick.com comic style tracks that have been around since the 70′s I believe, you should see what it says about the catholic church, it will blow you away!
Hi Dolores,
Please allow me to answer some of your questions. 1) The Bible says clearly who the false churches are 2) We do not have to spend our lives copying Holy Scriptures by hand but copy them into our hearts and put them into practice. 3) That was excellent to proclaim the Good News in the church but we have to read the Bible day and night. Search, pray, read and ask the Holy Spirit to guide you and you will know the truth and the truth shall set you free. May God bless you and your loved ones.
I don’t understand athiests, how could they possibly not know of God?? I’m so glad Mr.Storm is saved, I had a feeling that when we sin we break God’s heart of heart’s. I love his painting of Jesus….after all he saw and spoke to him!
Jesus the same yesterday, today and forever. What a loving Lord and Saviour! He is the only one that can save dieheard atheist like Howard. Glory be to His holy name.
Dear Sheree,
I have a hard time believing you were ever a Catholic…if you were you would know that there are two Scripture readings and one gospel reading from Matthew, Mark, Luke or John’s during each Mass. So, how you missed those and the homilies given on the Scriptures after, is beyond me.
Are you aware of the history of how the Holy Bible came about? The Book you claim as your authority was compiled from councils of
Catholic bishops choosing which writings were “inspired” by God and which weren’t. Are you sure you want to embrace a Catholic
book? How do you know all the right gospels & letters, of many,
made the cut? It’s odd to me that a Protestant like yourself loathes
and rejects the Catholic Chuch, when the Church was obviously the Holy Spirit’s choice to bring the Bible into fruition through the actions of Catholic heirarchy.
Sheree, I don’t know what predudices or grudges you have against the Catholic Church…but likely it was a bad Catholic that soured you. Jesus came for sinners and you will find us in the Catholic Church, sure enough. But, just as you identified yourself as once Catholic, can you see how easy it is for people to claim Catholicism yet know absolutely zip about it? I invite you to learn in the link I provided above. Everything believed by the Church is biblical.
True; in fact, it is THOSE individuals who DO scour the bible that end up finding themselves in the Catholic church. You can’t get any more biblical than that. How is it that those who proclaim “Sola Scriptura” can’t even find THAT in the bible???
Look at conversion stories and you’ll find that those who left the Catholic church really had no sound basis for it, yet those who converted INTO the Catholic church did so BECAUSE of Sacred Scripture.
For ever four (weak) Catholics who leave the church there is one really good, sound and strong Catholic coming in the front end. The church will get smaller but stronger.
The bible is a Catholic book. I would like to see someone prove otherwise.
Mairin,
i try very hard not get into debates with people about what the Catholic church believes, because i know that what is taught at mass, and what is proclaimed by the church are two different things. Anyone who goes to a mass would have to agree that the word is preached. However, there are huge portions of official catholic doctrine that are unbiblical. And when i say “official” i mean directly from the pope and the cardinal sect that determines doctrine. The whole concept of the papacy and the priesthood is obviously unscriptural if catholics would just read their bibles for themselves. I went to catholic school and catholic church, and have studied the teachings for years, as my passion is for the lost sheep. Protestant, catholic, mormon, witness, bahai, christian scientist, SDA, or ‘spiritual but not religious’; all the pseudo-christians who believe they are saved, but are not, whether because of corrupt doctrine, or prideful self-deception. While i know there are many saved people in the catholic church, the truth is, i can say with certainty, and back it up with scripture, that anyone who knows and believes the full teaching of the catholic church will find themselves unsaved when judgement comes. Just the stuff about Mary is enough to separate a person from God forever. To diminish the deity and uniqueness of Jesus and/or elevate man to godhood is blasphemy. True catholism is NOT true christianity. I’m sorry, but it’s not.
I have not read any of Mr. Storm’s other accounts or statements about his beliefs, so i cannot comment, but i will say in response to those attributed to him, there is no choice after death.
Please, everyone, read your bibles carefully, and reject ANYTHING that does not come directly from it. If you don’t read it at all, or don’t yet believe, then please start reading it, and the truth will soon be revealed to you.
GOD Bless.
I’ve read NDEs where people have witnessed others in the afterlife arguing back and forth about religion and the bible. Don’t you get it? Its not about the details. Religions all have it wrong. Its about love. You are loved. You are here to share and express your love. That’s it.
I searched and read the Bible and now I thank God for He has enlightened me. I do not have to confess my sins to anyone but to Him only thru Jesus. John 3:16 is enough for me and I do not need any other mediator for Jesus is the only Mediator between God and man. I do not have to memorize my prayers but only things that are from my heart. I am saved because of His grace and not by my good works. To Him alone be the glory forever and ever; and not even my religion.
Excellent response to the whole Protestant/Catholic debate going on here!! Very well ‘said’! If only everyone would choose to live in the freedom from religion you clearly do. So do I! It’s truly the only life worth living this side of eternity!
AMEN Rido!
Thank God for this testimony. I am so encouraged. It’s good to know that despite our shortcomings, he doesn’t and can nevergive up one us.
Howard is one of many Protestants who believe in Purgatory.
Where is purgatory in the bible? or limbo?
His touch still has the ancient power!!
Very much like our second book, A Place For Farmer & Emile, except scenes are heaven, not hell.
John Probst
I loved this because it shows the mercy of God, Christ Jesus.Jesus went into hell and rescued the people who had died in Noahs day at the flood. And He took the keys of hell and death from our enemy satan. God is good. I hope this will draw others to Jesus and make them realise there is a way that does lead to Heaven through Christ Jesus. This man has been used by God to bring Hope to those who maybe had no hope, haliluyah. To those who have mentioned about different denominations I don’t think that matters, it is about our walk with God and John 3:16 ” God so loved the World” ( it doesn’t say this denomination or that one ) that He gave us His begotten Son that whoever believes in HIM will not perish but have eternal life.” I am so glad it isn’t a particular denomination because can you imagine the pride that would come from that. He died for all of us so we could live eternally with Him and it is just a case of accepting his precious offer and recognising we are all sinners and we need His grace. Gods redeeming action thru Christ for All Eternity = GRACE.
Ohh… my sweet Jes, I thank you for your deep love for us all. I bless You Jes…I bless Your Name indeed!!!
What amazing story, instead of fighting over doctrine, let us celebrate the glory and mercy of the Lord. And remember their are millions of people like Howard who are going to hell unless they have a revelation of who Jesus is. His not angry with you, He loves you!
LORD Jesus Christ is the Exalted Jesus Christ of Nazareth(prophesied thousands of years earlier) who died on the Cross so you and I can be restored BACK to the UNITY of the Godhead (Father-Son-Holy Ghost/Spirit) via my/our membership(Grafted to the True Vine-Jesus) in His Kingdom(Righteousness-Peace & Joy in the Holy Ghost/Spirit). Therefore, His Name is exalted above every other names in heaven, on earth and below the earth[Read Phillipians ch.2](Pictures of heaven, pictures of earth and pictures of Hades/Purgatory-death without Christ MUST come into ones in-built (God-made) Memory system powerful than any computers built or yet to be built- power of imagination (restrospection-reflection-meditation etc) yeah???
Hence, Jesus the Name or Jesus the WORD continues to RESOUND over the Entire (heaven earth and Below the Earth concept) so the Deceased in Hades/Purgatory-NOT HELL as it is still empty but getting heated up and ready to be filled with Satan, his demons and goats*after the Great White Throne Judgement in Revelation…end of the Millenial in which satan and his entire army is finally being judged(apart from defeats).
So, as LORD JESUS CHRIST(LJC) Name is echoed via the entire spectrum, souls in hades/purgatory will REPENT and TURN to the Risen JESUS of Nazareth in that domain and thus be saved-joined to the Kingdom of God(Lord Jesus Christ) in that side of the spectrum.
How I know it, is a long story, but we lost a daughter in Christ from our Youth group via self-harm(suicide in the Pastors house) in 2008.
She was a loving Babe in Christ, singer, guitarist etc etc..but she came from a from a devastating family abuse system..she died tragically but her soul/spirit began to appear in our vivid dreams seen by about 6-7 people including myself…so my family(5 of us) began to FAST and Pray for her FREEDOM from that Bondage to Purgartory/Hades through her Guilt by association to the self-harm(suicidal spirit) which is an AFFRONT to the Giver (Creator) of LIFE/LOVE/PEACE etc etc etc…the bible clearly states that WE must not harm this body given to us for our Spirit/Soul- a God Given/Gifted entity to dwell in, as Our body is the Temple of the Holy Spirit…see 1 corinthians chptrs. 5,6 & 7.
After a period of about 1 months our inner peace and tranquility returned and so does a dream confirming her SAFE-PASSAGE from Hades to Paradise was made complete ONLY Because We were holding to that BIBLICAL-FACT(TRUTH) that by FAITH we, Gods CHILDREN(Sons & daughters) can and MUST PRAY for our DEAD relatives to be RESCUED/SAVED FROM Hades/purgatory, as JESUS is still the Same Yesterday-Today & Forever–Didn’t he descend(down=”Under the earth”) to Purgatory/HADES to FREE up those who were there(Suffering; like Judas Iscariot/ Guess where he is now?..you right! he(Judas) is saved-I can Garantee that… as Jesus of Nazareth went down(Under the earth) there after Judas had died(hanging himself-biblical story) at the moment of His death at the Cross??? It is still TRUE today, that when a person dies AND his/her relatives pray for the deceased(Faith-fully & consistently)….GODS GRACE & MERCY & COMPASSION & LOVE reaches down to the Underworld(Under the earth concept) and the Deceased is Given a Choice…Guess what??? with all the countless stories about Hades/Purgatory written and heard from Testimonies about its REALITY where the death-without-Christ dwell therein, WHO in their right mind would not choose LIFE/LOVE with Christ as THEChoice in Hades/Purgatory!!!
But the KEY is for the Faithful to PRAY for the Deceased (FullSTOP) particularly those that died without the Peace of God of knowing where they are heading to after this life…
One thing further plse…You know what? the Pastor that was the young(14yr old)girl’s uncle; died of a heart attack at the Parliament Great Hall in Canberra in 2007, about 8 months prior to his niece taking her own life..Our Dad’s-Fathers MERCY reaches to the heavens, the earth and below the earth..He came back from his death experience to let everyone know of the reality of Hades/heaven/demons/spirits/idols/family unity/church unity etc. of how, so..so.. Important for family to LOve each other and NOT to take for granted their relationship here on earth..the Pastor still preraches today and goes on Missions overseas preaching teaching people what the LORD JESUS CHRIST Asked him to Teach/Preach/Encourage/Admonish Gods People on earth today…you know what? the very cruel of the cruelest, violent offender,Rapist, Robber, Adulterer, Lesbian/Homosexual/Moslem or Communist or Bhuddist, Hindu or Far-Right(neo-Nazi) extremist terrorist are all Gods children who are still blind and rebelling, they are those who need the GOSPEL (Good News) about what I’m just talking about now…God-Our Fathers Judgement includes Mercy and in His Mercy He remembers Salvation to be given out to repentant souls…you and I.
Thank you for your patience with my article above, so, for any clarification please email me at: [sqtj60@gmail.com] I’d love to have some dialogue with you, and I’m a so called Protestant that attend Catholic Mass as well, from time to time, and many other congregation in my past experience. By the way, All congregations are VALID to our Father in Heaven, ask LJC our Mediator, He’ll tell you about it. All are an expression of the faith He imparted to our forefathers but NONE is perfect Until the PERFECT ONe comes(1Corinthians chptrs. 12 & 13 & 14)
God bless….see Numbers 6:24-26 to you and Yours
Pastor Solly
Mt Isa Mine
Australia
Pastor Solly You’re not a Pastor from God.You’re right by saying you’re a pastor but not from God.Why?because you nothing of the scriptures you believe that there is purgatory,there is no such word in the bible as purgatory that is purely a doctrine of men and not biblical either.Please read Luke 16:19-31.There are only 2 places mentioned in the bible the word heaven and the word Hell.Revelation 21:8 and all liars and those who worship idols are to be thrown into hell.Acts 2:38 Repent and be Baptized in the name of the Lord Jesus and ye shall receive the gift of the Holy Ghost. Jesus said except a man be born of water and the spirit you will by no means enter the kingdom of God.John 3:5.
the word rapture or trinity does not exist either
That’s why Purgatory wasn’t mentioned in the Bible is because it’s also part of Heaven. You know that anything/anyone unclean cannot enter Heaven; hence, there’s still a need to “purify” saved souls/souls who believed Jesus but still lead not-so-good lives. There are many accounts of this. The punishments are similar to Hell but the difference is, they have the chance to go to Heaven. Their torments are temporary.
Why all the running each other down? This is not what God tells us to do. When it is all said and done-it won’t matter what the sign on the front of your church says. What will matter is what is in your heart. God searches our hearts, He knows what is in there. Search the scriptures wether it is the Catholic bible or Protestant bible, it doesn’t natter. Seek God the Father, the Son and the Holy Spirit. Ask and you shall receive, ask God to show you the truth-He will. The bible nor God says anywhere that Ye must be members of any specific church. He says Ye must be born again. Seek and you will find. Our God is mighty, loving, forgiving, truthful, and full of grace and mercy. He will forgive anything if you just ask. Seek Him and His word and don’t worry about what church or religion you belong to. Belong to God. That is all that matters-love God, love your fellow man, forgive others and seek after good. God bless all of God’s children, He loves us all.
To ljsedivy:
You said the “Bible” is a Catholic book; so that means that G.OD is not the G.OD of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob (ISRAEL), it’s a god you Catholics have invented?, that means the Bible wasn’t given to Israel and the Jewish people (G.OD’s specific people), that means tha Jesus/YESHOUA was born Catholic?, that means that BethLehem and Nazareth were catholic at that time already. WOW!!! thats the real story, how come no one knows Jesus/YESHOUA was and is catholic?
I want to think you are not denying YESHOUA was a JEW, because you’ll have to be in HIS HOLY Presence one day and you will faint to see a typical Jew in front of you. Please don’t ofend G.OD, the real ONE, the only ONE, the G.OD of Israel, saying the Bible is a catholic book, they didn’t even think to exist when G.OD gave HIS HOLY world and book to the Jewish people, if you read the New Testament you’ll discover how Jewish it is; and let me tell you something else, just for your knoledge: G.OD did 2 covenants and guess what, HE did it only with the Jewish people, twice!!!, that shows you how much HE loves HIS Jewish people. The first church was only Jewish in Jerusalem, and let me tell you that many Jewish people at that time followed Jesus/YESHOUA but not the most of them and that’s why YOU the nations were given the oportunity to get into the kingdom.
Please ask G.OD to open your eyes and ears to the TRUTH and stop offending G.OD with those lies you are saying in this blog, repent and meet the true MESSIAH, the JEWISH MESSIAH the G.OD of ISRAEL, the only G.OD that leaves has given to the world, for the Jews first and then to the rest of the nations. G.OD has not forgot HIS covenants with HIS Jewish people; that’s why today so many Jewish people are accepting YESHOUA as their JEWSIH SAVIOR. Read the Bible (but the real one, not the catholic one) and you will understand what Paul the Apostle (not Saint Paul) said again and again. Read the book of Romains and stop being blind.
5000 christians in us become jews each year 2000 jews become christians
Thank you for pointing us again to the Jewish Messiah who was before Abraham, Moses, Peter, Paul and all those later called Popes, evangelists, etc.
The Messiah is the Saviour of Jewish people, Catholics, Protestants, Evangelicals and atheists too. That Messiah calls us to love one another, as GOD loves us all. We all can be wrong about doctrine because our thoughts are not GOD´s thoughts, even though our Messiah does send the Holy Spirit to reveal GOD´s love to us and so our Messiah can dwell in us.
Let us remember Jesus´ command to love one another and to abide in the Messiah and that love is the fulfillment of the law and the prophets. Jesus does not overturn the law, but fullfils it by showing true love for all people even though we fail to love and trust in GOD´s love for us and for all.
Science and Medicine do not understand what life or death or consciousness are so fighting over whether people can be saved after dealth is perhaps meaningless. God uses whatever GOd wills to bring people to learn how to love God, themselves and others.
I didn´t die, but as a child I had overburbened and neglectful Christian parents who didn´t have the time to show me love. God used a judgement experience to show me God´s love and acceptance of me as I was, to show me God´s perspective on my actions so I could repent of my harmful actions and shared with me the feelings of others so that I could feel compassion and forgive them for their harmful things directed to me and others.
I believe all will have a similar experience, possibly in the process before or while dying so they will want a relationship with GOD , so they´ll repent and ask the Messiah for help before it is too late.
Tell your atheist family and friends that Jesus already loves them and saved them. God will always want them to ask for their Messiah to come and be with them and transform them by their accepting God´s love for them and all others, leading them to love others, as well.
Now can we pray for enough love to love each other inspite our differences of belief?
Only God has the full truth.
I think it’s wrong to argue about denominations. Scripture indicates that it’s foolish to do that. Relationship with God is what it’s about. There are people who believe that the reason that there are denominations is because each one (in succession), became so polluted, that God’s Spirit left, and went looking for a people who would embrace and submit to His Word – with their whole being – spirit, soul, and body – and He’d pour out His Spirit on them. They’d flourish until the ’3rd generation death’ of ‘their’ church,’ and so on. Each one has some good aspect remaining, but not one is the end all, or be all. That’s because God does require that there is a personal relationship with Him, which anyone in any denomination can find if they seek after God with your whole heart. (How many of you would enter into a marriage without any personal relationship? Where would the fruit (children) of such a relationship be? Zilch, right? When Jesus said “on this rock, I’ll build My church,” He wasn’t saying ‘on Peter, I’ll build My church.’ He was saying ‘on the revelation of who I am, and who each member of My body is – in their place in Me, I’ll build My church.’ To me that says that we need to know who God is and who we are in His body, our place. God’s Spirit will help us know that, just like he did for those who were called in the Bible. He created each and everyone of us with a purpose. Peter recognized that Jesus was God, and the Son of God, Messiah. Peter had that revealed to his inner man, and to his soul. Sheree was sharing something of utmost importance. Even though she sat in a church building where scriptures were being read, she didn’t have revelation of the knowledge of the truth from and by the Spirit of God. Why? Most Americans have a ‘logic,’ or ‘Greek’ mindset. They lean on their own understanding. I’m thankful that Sheree saw the ‘fruit’ of the priest of the church building that she sat in for so long. It’s no wonder that she didn’t receive revelation from the Spirit of God, as obviously sin was being ‘ purposefully practiced’ by the man reading the scriptures, so the spirit he was functioning under was not God’s Spirit, even though he was reading scripture. Sad, but truth. Some would say, ‘we are all sinners.’ God’s Word tells us ‘once you functioned as worldly people do, but now you are changed.’ In other words, once you’ve asked Jesus into your heart, there should be an outward evidence of an inward change. Read Romans 7 & 8, and Galatians 5, and ask Holy Spirit to shed light so you understand what’s written, in your ‘inward’ man. Spiritual things are spiritually discerned – with your spirit man. That’s what Sheree experienced – truth came from God through His Spirit, shedding light in her soul, so she got the revelation of the knowledge of the truth – from the spirit realm into her soulish person (soul is mind, will & emotions.) That’s called the ‘new birth’ experience. It’s a type of birthing of a new creation, because the soul (of which women are a type and picture), gets ‘pregnant’ with God’s Word to the point that the soul is changed and begins the process of growing into the image of Christ. The potential for the entire being: spirit, soul, and body – to change, is there. It’s a faith walk in which a person decides to engage with God, and God’s Spirit confirms within the human spirit that He is real, as the person reads the Word and then begins to walk according to what he reads. For those who embrace the truth, life will never be the same. Walking with Jesus is an adventure that can’t be compared to any other adventure. Wow!
THE DIFFERENCE IS RELIGION OR RELATIONSHIP WITH THE LIVING GOD IN THE FLESH (JESUS CHRIST) AND UNTIL YOU GET IT, YOU HAVE NO HOPE. THERE IS A GREAT DEAL OF DIFFERENCE BETWEEN THE READING OF THE WORD AND HOLY SPIRIT REVELATION OF IT.
I HOPE FOR YOUR REVELATION AND FREEDOM FROM DENOMINATIONAL RELIGION.
Chuck Missler’s (Khouse.org) CD “The Bible – an Extratresstrial Message” should be listened to by all, then you will have a better understanding about the supernatural power of God to reach out to fallen mankind.
may god bless u and everyone-else that is a non believer.
ron.
I’m so thankful Jesus does not ever mention a denomination of any church. His love sustains me and I fully trust only Him for my salvation. “not wanting any to perish but have everlasting life”
Did The Roman Catholic Church Give Us The Bible?
I have been told it was the Catholic church who actually put together the New Testament. Another source says the Orthodox Christian church put it together. If the New Testament was indeed put together by the Catholic church, what does that say about what it is? I believe there is but one way, but it’s near impossible to find. – David C.
Dear David: Thanks for your letter inquiring about the development of the New Testament and the role of the Roman Catholic and Orthodox Churches in that procedure. The origin and develop of the New Testament is classified as the study of the “Text and Canon of the N.T. You will find extended discussion and information on this subject in F. F. Bruce’s book, “The Books and Parchments” and articles in the International Standard Bible Encyclopedia, Schaff-Herzog’s Encyclopedia or Religious Knowledge, or M’Clintock and Strong’s Encyclopedia of the Bible.
Briefly it occurred as follows: God inspired chosen men to write the various books of our New Testament. It seems that the Thessalonians Epistles were first written, about 50 A.D. The last written was Revelation in c.a. 96 A.D. Each book was produced as a separate document. Being inspired of God, it was perfect in content and language. Christians were eager to have books written by the apostles and prophets of Christ and when they learned that any church held a book or letter from Paul or others, say in Corinth, they would arrange to get a copy of it. Remember that all documents were prepared by hand.
By the end of the first century most of the books of our New Testament enjoyed a wide circulation among the churches. There were however other books written by Christian writers who were not appointed and inspired by the Holy Spirit of God as Scripture writers. These books varied in value and spiritual correctness. They too circulated among the churches.
Gradually over a period of many years, a common consensus arose as to which books were Scripture and which were just religious writings by Christian men… such as I might write today.
Books written by apostles were cherished as were those written by prophets closely associated with the apostles, such as Mark and Luke. The internal contents were also a key indicator as to whether it was a divinely given book. By the second century, some churches had all or most of the 27 books in their possession.
The large reference series of books called the Ante-Nicean Fathers contains all of the surviving writings of the early Christian teachers up to 325 A.D. It is interesting that those writers cite or quote from all of the books of our New Testament. The New Testament could be reproduced from those writings.
Another important fact to know is that apostasy appeared early in the life of the church. Paul repeatedly warned that a falling away would come (I Timothy 4:1-3; II Thessalonians 2:3-12). In his day he said the “mystery of iniquity” was already at work.
In the beginning there was the church of Christ (Romans 16:16), which He had established. It was some time before a congregation was established in Rome. There was no Roman Catholic church that can legitimately be linked with the modern church of that name until well into the 6th century. True there was a congregation in Rome as well as in many of the larger cities throughout the Roman empire, but it bore no resemblance to what is now the Roman Catholic Church. It finally emerged after some 500 years of apostasy and was not the church that Jesus built.
As is often the case with institutions and organizations that are illegitimate and phony, Rome seeks to create respectability and acceptance for itself by revising the history of the early church, claiming that it is the original church and that it gave us the Bible, plus many other unfounded claims.
The New Testament of Christ was fully written, completed and circulated four hundred years before that institution can document its beginning. By 130 A.D. the Four Gospels and the 13 Epistles of Paul were unanimously accepted as Scripture equal to the Old Testament. Gradually the other books found acceptance. By 400 A.D. there was no longer any discussion as to the validity and authority of the 27 books we now have.
The Council of Carthage formally pronounced our 27 books the “Canon of the N.T.” But, the men who met in that Council had no authority from God to convene such a Council or to issue decrees in His name.
The Roman Catholic church has a vital purpose in claiming that they gave us the Bible. Since so much of her doctrine and practice is contrary to the teaching of the N.T. she claims that since she gave us the Bible she has priority and therefore authority over it and is not therefore bound by its precepts. This is her official dogma.
Now as to the Orthodox Church you mentioned. The word orthodox means that which conforms to the established doctrine. Although the Bible never uses the term, we could say that the church under the guidance of the apostles was “orthodox” by this definition. There is a religious denomination called the Orthodox Church… usually identified as the Greek Orthodox church. It emerged as a separate body as a result of a division in the apostate Church in 1054 A.D. This was in large part a political struggle.
Emperor Constantine (280-337) had divided the political Roman Empire into Eastern and Western Divisions. The two regional elements in the corrupt church struggled for supremacy. The Greek Orthodox Church, often called the Greek Catholic Church, likewise bears little or no resemblance to the church of the Bible. This church had no more to do with giving us the New Testament than did the Roman Church.
Our plea as churches of Christ is that we can be Christians in the same way as were those of that first generation… long before there were any of the modern denominational churches, including Catholicism.
I urged you to “go and see” at a church of Christ near you.
http://www.cfcindia.com
Please watch the bible teachings of Br. Zac
Jesus is the way, the truth and the life! Without accepting Him as Lord and believing that He died in our place and was raised again in three days by God, we are utterly hopeless. Beware of deceitful teachings influenced by Eastern religion which say that all we have to do is love God and live a good lifestyle. Without Jesus there is NO HOPE!
so is Christianity a western religion-ah yes the non racist God whom made western religon the correct one! oh and wasnt the most important commandment made by jesus to love God and to love thy neighbour as thy self
Wow.
Like my pastor says, you will be surprised how many “Catholics” are in heaven and how many “Christians” are not. In other words, people will be judged by their true beliefs, not by their religious observance or denomination.
I am a non-Catholic who is aware via Catholic friends and due to some degree of direct exposure, of the great variation between the different Catholic churches in mass styles, languages predominently used, scriptures chosen for reading from the pulpit, and subjects taught in the homily. I certainly am aware that in some Catholic churches, at least in Europe, the Queen of Heaven is worshipped and featured on the alter, but in others, Jesus is the focus. That is why said Catholic friends take such care to seek certain types of churches and avoid others.
Therefore, the arguments above about who is and is not correctly reporting about the procedures and teachings in the Catholic church must simply be because all these Catholics attend different churches so their experiences and observations are different!!! Good grief.
May all and every catholic in this blog and in the world open their eyes to the truth and the ONLY true MESSIAH YESHOUA/Jesus (Jesus was not his name, HE was a Jew Rabbi, HIS name was YESHOUA BEN YOSEFF). May you one day understand YESHOUA’s words when HE said that NO ONE comes to the Father and the Kingdom if you are not born again from water and in the spirit. The catholic church is still far away from that state but I agree that many catholics will be in the Kingdom of G.OD and many sooo called christians won’t specially the Anti-Semitic, Anti-Zionist and Anti-Jewish church. In Genesis 12 G.OD promisses to Abraham “I will bless those who bless Israel and I will curse those who curse Israel”. People (believers=the real ones) from the nations have to pray for their one countries cause G.OD is going to bring judgement against the nations(actually HE already started) according to their treatment to Israel and HIS Jewish people. I also want to remind you folks that YESHOUA is not coming back to Rome or the vatican that it’s an abomination in G.OD’s eyes, but to ZION-JERUSALEM=ISRAEL to save HIS people, don’t ever forget that; please read the whole Bible=66books and understand G.OD’s word by the HOLY SPIRIT and if you don’t have it ask G.OD to give you and fill you with it. Your eyes will finally be open, you see when a muslim finds YESHOUA the Jewish MESSIAH they don’t go to the catholic church, they seek to find a born again Christian Church, cause at the same time they have this incredible encounter with the Jewish MESSIAH their are automaticly filled with the HOLY SPIRIT and they inmediately star to love the Jewish people and Israel, they even learn Hebrew and want to worship in Hebrew, the SAVIOR’s language. This can happen to all of you too if you only humble yourself and ask G.OD you want to know the truth and be filled by the HOLY SPIRIT. G.OD bless you and Shabbat Shalom
I cannot usefully add anything to most of what has been written above. This is a ‘classic’ – and honest – NDE. May I recommend two books which may inform, interest and guide other non-believers and semi- believers; viz “Consciousness Beyond Life” by Pim van Lommel, MD, and my own “God, Ghosts, and Independent Minds”. Newton Green
I don’t write to blogs, but I feel compelled to after reading Mark Ellis’ article. I had a near-death experience (NDE) when I was 7. I’m now 53. I had one of the “good” NDEs when I almost died from pneumonia. It’s difficult to describe the intensity and power of the experience because there are no equivalents I know of on Earth.
I’ll skip almost everything and mention a little bit about my meeting with the “Being of Light”. Jesus in the Gospels is the closest match I’ve read that best describes this “Being of Light”. To this day, I can’t read read more than a few paragraphs from the Gospels without having to put the Bible down.
During the NDE, the “Being of Light” initially appeared as a small white star in a black universe. As I was pulled closer, I detected intelligence and warmth. As I got even closer, I saw a human form glowing with intense, warm, white light, I sensed incredible love and gentleness; he could put a newborn chick in a nest and not disturb a single feather. I also sensed incredible power with absolute self-control; a wayward thought from him could obliterate the universe in a microsecond, yet his overwhelming love and utter self-control made this impossible.
I don’t think this is mentioned much in the literature, but the “Being of Light” is also incredibly funny!
I’ve run out of time and space for this comment. I’m certainly not special. I suspect I had the NDE because I am fundamentally too stubborn and left-brained (spiritually stupid) to have gotten the message any other way.
Thank you for pointing out the warm humor of the being of light. I experienced that too.
I experience that same presence in the Gospels and the Jewish Scriptures. As Jesus said (I know Jesus was not his Jewish name but it is the personality we trust in which literally can and does cast out demons, whatever they are), “Before –Abraham was, I am.”
Good news!
The wages of sin is death, but
the gift of God is eternal life
through Jesus Christ our Lord
(Romans 3:23)
Amen…
Such experiences are not unknown in the Eastern traditions.
The Tibetan Book of the Dead, for example, refers to them, very
specifically, as the “vision of the wrathful deities”, in which the
“self”, after death, goes through a variety of “hell worlds” in which
it is mutilated and suffers various injuries…
All of which, however, occur before its next life, ‘incarnation’, or
‘rebirth’.
In other words, such experiences do NOT contradict the Revelation
of the “resurrection”; which was taught by Isaiah, Daniel, Jesus
and Mohammed as a Doctrine of ‘Rebirth’.
Thus, Christians are going to have to decide what it is that they
are going to believe:
Will they believe in the pagan doctrine of a metaphysical existence
of rewards and punishments, which was believed in by even the
Egyptians in their worship of the ‘god of the dead’ (Chapter 20:38
of the Gospel of Luke)–in direct and flagrant violation, however,
of the Law as set out in Deuteronomy Chapter 28–or will they believe
in the revelation of the memories of previous lives, as cryptically
described in Chapter 27:52-53 of the Gospel of Matthew and
Chapter 20:34-36 of the Gospel of Luke?
Michael
Do you actually think that you will SUCCEED by continuing to censor the Truth about the Doctrine of “resurrection” as a Doctrine of ‘Rebirth’?
The days of Jewish, Christian and Muslim theology–and their Satanic contradiction of the Teaching of Isaiah, Daniel, Jesus & Mohammed–are NUMBERED (Revelations 12:12).
Millions upon millions of people will die as a result of the initiation of a war with Iran, which will morph into the fulfillment of the Prophecies of Daniel, Ezekiel & Zechariah.
But their blood will be on YOUR hands because of your censorship of this Truth; something that will NOT be widely known until AFTER the eruption of the “time of trouble” Prophesied by Daniel.
After reading the story of Howards near death experience and reading the posts. I am left wondering what exactly should I believe…….
Thankfully having recieved my own experience of God and His goodness……I have to say quite honestly it is the fear of God which set me on the course to find Salvation and the truth…..just like the words from the old hymn, Amazing Grace……It was grace that taught my heart to fear, and grace my fears relived. All of you writing here, will do well to remember nothing ever changed about Gods word and we will all be judged accordingly. What I find difficult is so many who have written here seem to have forgotten or avoid what the Bible clearly states about death, resurrection, Judgement, heaven and hell.
This looks like an interesting discussion from many points of view,… not to mention the wonderful testimonies! I’ll be reading through it all carefully, as time permits,… meanwhile,…
God Bless everybody & wishing you all a Happy/Blessed Easter/Resurrection time of Praise, Worship, Rejoicing and Love for God our Father, Jesus Christ our anointed Savior, and the Holy Spirit, Who All seem to be much less confused about these things than we are,…
… but I have a strong Faith that everything will work out just as it’s supposed to “in the end!”
Please stop arguing people about the religion and the Bible!!! If you are truly Christian love each other and lift up your hearts and Follow Jesus Christ and have peace on earth… Jesus said don’t judge…Peace be with you all!!! Pray for the world we are sinking and the world turn up side down..
My father was President of a Christian University. He started sexually abusing me at such an early age. He always told me while beating me that I was the worse person in the world. I have always loved God, but want to understand His love for me because I know I am so undeserving. I can tell by some of your writings that you are aware of His great love. I am thankful for you.
You know that abusers and Satan tell you you are bad and things are your fault. Jesus said that those who caused a child to sin or sinned against a child were the ones who truly have reason to fear. You are still the child that GOD wants brought to GOD to be loved and washed clean of everything that was done to you.
Only Jesus shows us GOD´s love and acceptance of us and can make us whole so our scars don´t cause us to hurt others. We all need to put our hurts in GOD´s hands, to ask for healing and the ability to change so we don´t continue to hurt ourselves or others. God will bring justice for our wrongs, teach us to forgive those who have sinned against us and bring us to ask for forgiveness of those we sin against.
The discussion seems to have strayed from Howard’s near death experience directly and more into the accounts of what happens after death in the Bible. Why is the discussion about purgatory when Howard seems certain it was hell?
Anyway, if we are to assume that the account given as given is true then we can only approach it from a human interpretation as we can not begin to understand God’s will. Howard is special to God and perhaps what happened was the only way that he would turn to God, but it’s great that he did.
Does anyone know when this experience happened?
God’s website – PROPHECIES . ORG (Surprises)
*
(Checkout the chapter called ‘The Secret Equation of Life’ – revelation given by God directly in communion with a former Atheist) — Secondhandprophet . com/toppage5.htm
*
Revelations (Out-of-Body-experiences) of Heaven and Hell —
http://www.InsightsofGod .com
http://www.Spiritlessons.com
http://www.Prophecy.org
http://www.Secondhandprophet.com
Daily messages from Jesus posted daily @ http://www.Youtube.com/Lastrumpet08
Thanks for this nice and loving jesus experience …. lets tell people about
Jesus to change the world and unbelieving people
I was born, baptised and still am a Roman Catholic. I believe in Jesus and all the teachings of the Church; I read the bible, old and new testament and I believe that there is one true God (Father, Son, Holy Spirit). I also do not judge people for what church he or she attends. I believe that Jesus is the only way to Heaven. I believe that I should be loving, kind, forgiving and believe in the Word of Our Lord, Jesus Christ. I have many wonderful friends, Jewish, Protestant, Catholic, Born Again, Baptists, Evangelists, and all sects of religion. If a person is good and lives a decent and respectful lifestyle and lives by the Word of God, I believe we shall all enter the Kingdom Of Heaven. We must live our lives as Jesus Christ has taught us and if we are truly sorry for our sins and wrongdoings on earth, that we will be taken to Heaven to meet our beloved Savior one day.
Everyone knows that JC has blonde hair
Pingback: Neurosurgeon has seen heaven - Christianity, Judaism, Islam, Hinduism, Buddhism, Atheism, God, Universe, Science, Spirituality, Faith, Evidence - Page 2 - City-Data Forum
I believe in God. But his NDE all could be fake. For all we know, he is an Atheist. An atheist trying to sell a book. For all we know, he is mocking us for making him rich as he enjoys his life as an Atheist, enjoying life to the fullest no matter what the cost. Again, an atheist would enjoy life no matter what the cost. I just find his story quite inconsistent with other who had NDEs…So is God reallybeing creative in every person’s NDE?…very inconsistent.
To Howard Storm:
I’ve spent 4 years of my life in a (Catholic) charity institution and the founder is already beatified. His works are great and till these days the this charitable organization still tend to thousands of poorest of the poor.
Currently I became an ATHEIST because I don’t really understand the too many religions of this world and in fact even in Christianity alone it already stemmed to many sects, all claiming to be the right one.
Additionally, there are also other religions with their own beliefs that they are the right one which adds more to my confusion. Thus, I turned into an ATHEIST (also because of other reasons).
Would you kindly tell me if you ever asked Jesus when He asked your questions about my situation (about the many different religions)? I’m sure you too have this kind of sentiment. Please enlighten me to straighten up my decision although I admit that if your answer is not satisfactory I might search for other answers or just remain an ATHEIST.
Appreciate in advance your earliest reply.
Thanks
Jun (and all)
This article does not represent everything that Howard Storm went through. Sadly, this article makes it sound like God told Storm that Christianity is the true religion. In actual fact, if you read the full excerpt, he says:
“I asked them, for example, which was the best religion. I was looking for an answer which was like, “Presbyterians.” I figured these guys were all Christians.
The answer I got was, “The best religion is the religion that brings you closest to God.”
http://www.near-death.com/storm.html
http://www.near-death.com/experiences/storm03.html
- To answer your question, Howard Storm does not say Christianity is the only way to God, or the only true religion. He joined the United Church of Christ because it is one of the more liberal and open-minded denominations that does not believe they are the only way. They believe in gay rights, women’s rights and civil rights, and it’s the denomination that brings him closer to God.
This is a nice story, but obviously a work of fiction. For one, I find it hard to believe that it was so so so difficult to find a doctor in France. A quick google search tells me that their medical system is better and more responsive than the U.S.
Second, there is no way that Jesus has blond hair and blue eyes. That is a caucasian complexion. Every NDE I read about (from a Christian person) says that is how Jesus looks, however if his body is the same as it was on earth, why would he be caucasian? Jesus was born in Jeruslum, so he would therefore have a middle eastern complexion. Yet I have never ever heard of a NDE where he has a middle eastern complexion. (One NDE I read about…about a boy who had a NDE… the boy said that our spirtual bodies are the same after death as they are in life. Yet Jesus was also caucasian with blue eyes when he met him. Was Jesus the only caucasian in the middle east when he was born? I find that hard to believe.)
Also interesting thing to note- people who have NDE and belong to other religions, (or originally came from other religions) often have different NDEs. There are similarities of course, but if they are not Christian they do not see Jesus. They may see Allah or their Hindu god or whatever.
I think this article is neatly written to convince an atheist to believe in Jesus, however I think that there is a special place in hell for those people who lie to others (or hurt others) so that they can convert to their religion. (It’s a good thing that cases of people hurting or forcing others to be Christian is a thing of the past, and mostly occurred centuries ago. However it is one of the reasons why Christianity is the number one religion in the world, with Islam (doing similar things) at a number two.
A religion should sell itself; It should not need people to lie for it. And if this person is not lying, then it is obviously a delusion (for the above stated reasons).
I think that NDE and the afterlife are quite likely to be true, but I don’t think this account is a good example of one.
Satan is the great deciever so every one should beware of that. I do agree with a couple of things you said,but every one we need to stop focusing on what Our Lord Jesus Christ looks like and focuse on what He accomplished for His Father God and for all of us and the world, which is giving His life so we do not perish but have everlasting life, and so we can be reconnected with The One True God our One True God (the God of Moses). And I do understand what you’re saying (and I’m African American)which don’t mean anything, so no disrespect and may God Bless You and every one on this website and may the Lord keep his image out your heart but only His Perfect Love, God Bless!
What a dreadfully silly story.
Do people – adults – really believe this kind of stuff?
I interviewed Howard Storm and found him to be credible. The fact that he lost his wife and friends as a result of the incident tells me it was not a hoax.
DEAR AARON HATHCOCK,
IF I WASN’T AT WORK WHEN I READ YOUR STORY, I WOULD HAVE CRIED. I’M STILL LOOKING AND WAITING ON THE HOLY SPIRT TO GIVE ME THE PEACE, COMFORT AND REVELATION THAT YOU WERE LOOKING FOR. I’VE DEFINATELY BEEN THE BLESSED PARTICIPANT OF THIS IN THE PAST. I SUPPOSE I’M NOT READY TO SURRENDER ALL, TO GET BACK MY CLOSENESS TO THE LORD. GOD IS AMAZING! HOW HE USES CHRISTIANS. I TRY TO EXPLAIN WHY A LOVING GOD ALLOWS BAD THINGS TO HAPPEN. YOUR STORY EXPLAINS THAT TO ME PERFECTLY. LOOK HOW YOU HAD TO COME TO A PLACE OF GIVING UP IN ORDER FOR MANY PEOPLE TO COME TO KNOW JESUS!! FOR THOSE THAT DON’T THINK THAT THE DEVIL IS ALIVE AND WELL….HE’S WORKING OVERTIME THIS DAY AND TIME!!!
We were missionaries in Mexico for 10 years. Here is a story/testimony from there. A man who was a witch doctor died. He had two sons who were saved and did not want their father to go to hell. These two saved sons prayed to The Lord to bring their father back to life. The Lord brought their father back from the dead. And he had a story to tell. When our missions leader spoke with him he talked of meeting a man in a white robe…..and basically was talking about Jesus in the book of Revelation. This was a man with no knowledge of the scriptures. This man was saved after coming back to life but had met Jesus while he was dead. This kinda messes with our theology but it did happen.
What about Jairus’s daughter and Lazarus? They were dead but Jesus said they were asleep. How de we as man determine when someone is dead? The doctors say someone is dead when they can’t detect certain physical things. But in the Lord’s eyes could that person still be “alive in the spirit realm”? What about Job 33:14-18?Job 33:14-18 (KJV)
14For God speaketh once, yea twice, yet man perceiveth it not. 15[In a dream, in a vision of the night, when deep sleep falleth upon men, in slumberings upon the bed;] 16[Then he openeth the ears of men, and sealeth their instruction,] 17[That he may withdraw man ] from his[ purpose, and hide pride from man.] 18[He keepeth back his soul from the pit, and his life from perishing by the sword.] Job’s counselors talk of speaking to someone in a deep sleep and not letting one go to hell. This tells me there is the possibility of The Lord speaking to one in a coma or in a dream.
The concept of people going either to hell or heaven at death is unBiblical. Also, people living in hell for eternity is unBiblical. The wages of sin is death, NOT eternal life in hell! Romans 6:23. Please see http://www.amazingfacts.org
Pingback: Atheist Professor's Near-Death Experience in Hell Left Him a Changed Man « Mission Reporter
Thank you so much for sharing your story. I’m the worst kind of sinner (a back slider) meaning I was saved and became a sinner again, so I am no better and I know God’s perfect love and what our Lord Jesus Christ sacrificed for our sinful ways.I just want to get back into God’s good grace but sometimes I don’t think I know how since I back slided. I have sinned against God in some of the most terrible ways, don’t get me wrong I’m also a good person in my opinion and sometimes (knowing that satan is the father of lies) is putting in my heart because of some of the nature of my sins against God before and after I was saved God won’t forgive me this time.I pray in the Precious Mighty Name of Jesus who ever is going through such a similar situation as I am that OUR Lord will reemove this doubt out of all your hearts and mine so that we all can get back in God good grace Amen. This is the plea from yours truly a back slider . Help Please
Jabbar,
Read Howard Storm’s whole story on: http://www.near-death.com/storm.html
And after that read all the rest of other people’s accounts. I hope you will realise very quickly that God appears in many forms, and is not judgmental. You can’t get ‘out of God’s good grace’ because everything that you’re doing right now even the so-called ‘backsliding’ is part of God’s plan.
You think you’re sinning against God, but in reality it is all part of God’s plan…have a read of Storm’s full NDE, and read the rest!
You will be surprised to see that you don’t need to worry so much about it.
In the last few weeks I’ve been reading more about life after death, heaven and hell and various people’s testimonies of hell. I came across some youtube clips of Howard Storm and was very interested in what he had to say. I believe he had his near death experience as far back as 1985.
He has truly seen the light and would seem to be on the path of salvation. For others sadly this is not the case, and I hope more and more people really start to believe in God again, and not just in name only, but carry out his work and wishes through their thoughts, deeds and actions.
Today too many people are blind to the truth and what God is all about and his plan for humanity. Too many people put too much faith in themselves and their own reason, rationalisation and thinking. The problem is the price for doing so can be horrific and unimaginable pain and suffering.
I hope people of all Christian denominations can find common areas to bind them. It’s pointless to argue over petty, minor differences in doctrine. I’m sure God must laugh at people arguing. If people don’t stray far from the Bible’s teachings, I’m sure God accepts all the different denominations equally. Variety is the spice of life after all.
I was also moved by the testimony of another man who was spared hell after an accident. His story is also truly inspirational:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NhK4jwBmUX4
This woman’s testimony of life after death is also very moving.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OInyUxD6CF0
LOL
Why didn’t you take the chance to ask God:
Dear/wanted God, why a matter of belief would save my soul from torture?
Dear/wanted God, absolute as you are, why did you turn ugly feelings and meanings possible, why did you create them….. WHAT ARE YOU?
I seem to believe this as NDE and not that he died. However, I don’t believe that someone will truly have an encounter with Jesus and yet remarry while his first wife is alive. Such a person will be a very serious believe of the whole Bible.
If a believer is abandoned by an unbelieving spouse, most commentators would say this is biblical grounds for divorce and remarriage.(1 Cor. 7:15)