In recent years, the religious belief of “Christ Consciousness” has gained popularity as celebrities and social media influencers claim they have “found truth” in it. The movement has even infiltrated some churches and other Christian circles. I believe Christ Consciousness is the repackaged version of the Eastern religious beliefs. You would probably be surprised to learn that many religions believe in the person of Jesus as a man but not His deity as God.
Hi, I’m Jonnathan Zin Truong, a pastor, and author who grew up a devout Buddhist before receiving salvation while in college, minutes before attempting to take my life. I grew up deeply entrenched in mysticism and the dark arts of Buddhism, Taoism, Eastern witchcraft, and wing chun, a form of kung-fu. Upon my salvation, I was astonished to find that many churches and “Christians” openly embraced and practiced many Eastern religious traditions, wearing occult symbols on their clothing and jewelry while proudly displaying many Eastern religious relics in their homes. And once I heard about Christ Consciousness and researched it, I instantly recognized it as a rebranding of Eastern spiritual practices.
Let’s dive into this odd but dangerous phenomenon infiltrating churches.
WHAT IS CHRIST CONSCIOUSNESS?
The Center for Christ Consciousness defines Christ Consciousness as “the highest state of intellectual development and emotional maturity.” In layman’s terms, it’s a religious philosophy mixed with some psychology. Followers of Christ Consciousness believe that Jesus was completely human, not God and that He achieved this higher state, known as Christ, through meditation, spiritual, and good works. The removal of the deity of Jesus makes this belief completely blasphemous because Christians believe that Jesus Christ is the Son of God and is God. Furthermore, this belief makes the path of consciousness available for anyone to achieve, regardless of spiritual belief, just as long as a person is willing to become a living vessel of love and truth on the planet, giving anyone who achieves the coveted consciousness the title of Christ.
The teachings and warnings of Jesus are clear that there is one Christ. The Greek word for Christ is Christos, meaning The Anointed One, The Messiah, and The Christ. The word is a singular noun. The word Christ in the Bible was never mentioned as a state of consciousness but rather always referred to a singular person, a man. In Matthew 24:4-5, Jesus warns His first disciples about the emergence of many false christs.
Matthew 24:4-5 NKJV
And Jesus answered and said to them: “Take heed that no one deceives you. For many will come in My name, saying, ‘I am the Christ,’ and will deceive many.”
If you notice, Jesus used the word Christ as a singular noun, referring to one person while clearly defining anyone else claiming to be “The Christ,” as being false. Then a few verses later in Matthew 24:23-24, Jesus doubles down on his statement:
Matthew 24:23-24 NKJV
“Then if anyone says to you, ‘Look, here is the Christ!’ or ‘There!’ do not believe it. For false christs and false prophets will rise and show great signs and wonders to deceive, if possible, even the elect.”
If Christ was merely a consciousness, a state of being anyone could achieve, Jesus Christ would not have warned against the emergence of false christs.
Although man was made in God’s image, the desire to be God or God-like, independent of God, has plagued mankind since our creation, shared in Genesis 3:4-5.
Genesis 3:4-5 NKJV
Then the serpent said to the woman, “You will not surely die. For God knows that in the day you eat of it your eyes will be opened, and you will be like God, knowing good and evil.”
I believe Christ Consciousness is a deception rooted in the pits of hell, used by the devil to expose the pursuit of power and pride within man’s wicked heart, designed on good works rather than our salvation and obedience to a good God.
The danger in this repackaged version of Eastern mysticism is the inclusion of Bible verses and Christian idioms, which can easily lead those who do not have intimate knowledge and understanding of scripture astray.
When it comes to Christ Consciousness and other demonic spiritual beliefs, every believer must remember that the enemy is sly and cunning, knows the Bible more than we do, and won’t hesitate to use it to deceive even the elect. Whenever presented with “new” things, fads, beliefs, and concepts, remember that God is the same yesterday, today, and forever. When evaluating these new things, you must measure them according to the written Word of God and include the Holy Spirit and wise counsel in helping you discern good from evil, light from dark, authentic from counterfeit, and truth from lies.
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