Are We On the Way to a One-World Religion?

In this regular feature Dave and Tom respond to questions from listeners and readers of The Berean Call.  Here is this week’s question:Dear Dave and Tom, I’m a big fan of prophecy, yet the more I read, the more confused I get.At least it seems that way sometimes.I am particularly interested in the development of the one world religion.Since I believe in the Rapture of the church before the antichrist is revealed I know true believers won’t be around when that religion is fully established.However, since it won’t arise overnight, there should be evidences of its development right up until the Rapture.What do you see coming together to form the one world church?

Tom:

Dave, this writer, I identify with something.It’s really getting confusing.

Dave:

He apparently hasn’t read any of my books or newsletters because we’ve given plenty of indications that we’re heading in that direction.

Tom:

Yes, well I would agree with it but they just want something a little—

Dave:

More concrete?

Tom:

A synopsis maybe, an update.

Dave:

Well they’re asking specifically about the world religion and we certainly are practically there.We have the Catholics joining up with everybody and the Pope has been visiting Muslims, Hindus, Buddhists.The evangelicals are joining in with the Catholics.

Tom:

But Dave I just read an article in a prominent magazine written by, I assume, a Catholic woman who said that the church is being attacked.It is not a part of the one world religion.It is standing apart and she goes on to talk about globalism and Green Peace and new paganism and so on so forth.You see she, I assume from reading the article, sees the Catholic Church as not a part of this one world religion, but being attacked by the forces that are trying to put the one world religion apart.Now that’s kind of confusing especially on the basis of what you just said.

Dave:

Well there are and always will be people who will attack anything.But that is not the big wave of the future.You had the Lutherans and the Catholics joint declaration on justification by faith.They made their statement.These are the leaders of both churches saying the Reformation was a mistake.What Martin Luther complained about was a misunderstanding.We are in agreement.You had the Pope Paul VI tell Sri Chinmoy, the Hindu guru at the United Nations, your message and my message are the same. And then we have ECT, evangelicals, evangelical leaders saying to the Pope that your message and our message is the same.

Tom:

Well certainly enough to all be brothers and sisters in Christ.

Dave:

You had the Pope in India saying we haven’t come here to teach you anything.We’ve come here to learn from your rich spiritual heritage.You had the Pope gathering at Assisi and he’s done this on more than one occasion now and sometimes at the Vatican the leaders of the world’s religions:Buddhist, Hindus, Muslims, North American Indian witchdoctors and so forth and evangelical Christians along with it, representatives of various Christian organizations there and the Pope saying we’re all worshiping the same God.

Tom:

Dave, as we mentioned earlier about the Vatican II recognition of the god of Islam, Allah being the same God they worship.Now here’s something interesting from a numbers standpoint.There are a billion and a quarter at least Muslims.There are a billion Roman Catholics.Supposedly Christianity if you talk about professing Christianity and consider all of the different groups talking about really two billion.Now those are big numbers so wouldn’t you guess based on the fact that Christianity numbers wise, professing Christianity has the greatest numbers that at least Christianity’s going to be involved in this one world religion in some form?

Dave:

Definitely.It will be a form of Christianity, false Christianity. But look, we had the memorial services since September 11^th in memory of those who were killed.You had Buddhists, Hindus, Muslims, Sikhs, various ones there at these memorial services.

Tom:

With Oprah presiding.

Dave:

Oprah Winfrey over one of the large gatherings.You just had a gathering at the Crystal Cathedral.The memorial for Samantha, this girl that was kidnapped and killed.And you had various religious leaders there, I mean from various religions and Robert Schuller’s son Robert said the great thing about this is that it’s bringing all religions together.Robert Schuller as you know has hosted a Muslim on the Hour of Power.It’s happening everywhere and it will accelerate after the Rapture, but I think you can see that the great desire for the whole world politically, religiously, and in every way is unity.And they are undoing what God did at the Tower of Babel.He confounded the languages and scattered the people and the whole world wants unity.Europe is uniting.It’s incredible what is happening over there Tom.You can go from one country to another.You don’t even pass customs agents or border guards anymore over there in many of these countries.And Eastern Europe is going to join in as well.So, are we heading in that direction?Definitely we are heading in that direction.

Tom:

The world wants it.There’s no doubt about it.But the scriptures tell us that he who comes and does not bring the doctrine of Christ—

Dave:

You don’t receive him in to your home and you don’t say God bless you.

Tom:

Well, they don’t have Christ, that’s my point.And certainly with regard to doctrine, this is something that has to be put away, put aside because you cannot have unity of religions. You can’t even have unity of Christian groups if you are going to hang in there with doctrine.

Dave:

So what you must do then is compromise.