The Impact of Freemasonry within the Church

The jealous nature of our God

Our God is a jealous God. He hates the worship of false gods. When God's people, Israel, were about to enter the promised land, God gave them specific instructions. Those instructions are found in the book of Exodus:

Obey what I command you today. I will drive out before you the Amorites, Canaanites, Hittites, Perizzites, Hivites and Jebusites. Be careful not to make a treaty with those who live in the land where you are going, or they will be a snare among you. Break down their altars, smash their sacred stones and cut down their Asherah poles. Do not worship any other god, for the LORD, whose name is Jealous, is a jealous God. Be careful not to make a treaty with those who live in the land; for when they prostitute themselves to their gods and sacrifice to them, they will invite you and you will eat their sacrifices. And when you choose some of their daughters as wives for your sons and those daughters prostitute themselves to their gods, they will lead your sons to do the same.

(Exodus 34:11-16)

The penalty for preaching a false gospel

False gospels are nothing new. The were present in the first century. Paul addressed the issue and spoke of the consequences of teaching a false gospel in his letter to the Galatians:

I am astonished that you are so quickly deserting the one who called you by the grace of Christ and are turning to a different gospel-- which is really no gospel at all. Evidently some people are throwing you into confusion and are trying to pervert the gospel of Christ. But even if we or an angel from heaven should preach a gospel other than the one we preached to you, let him be eternally condemned! As we have already said, so now I say again: If anybody is preaching to you a gospel other than what you accepted, let him be eternally condemned! (Galatians 1:8-9)

Consider the issue of Freemasonry within the church from two perspectives.

First, let us assume that the Masons in the church are really Christians.

Masonic Christians have made a treaty with the pagan people who worship other god's, namely the Hindus, the Moslems, the Buddhists and those of all other false religions. They gather around a strange altar, the altar of Freemasonry, and worship a god named the Great Architect of the Universe (GAOTU). If a pagan offers a prayer in Lodge to the GAOTU, is he praying to the God of the Bible? Of course not. He worships a demon. 1 Corinthians 10:20 states: "No, but the sacrifices of pagans are offered to demons, not to God, and I do not want you to be participants with demons." Freemasonry disagrees with the teaching of the Bible and claims that the pagan is praying to the same God that Christians worship. That fact alone demonstrates that Freemasonry does not know the God of the Bible. If Freemasonry does not know the God of the Bible, how can their god, the GAOTU, actually be the God of the Bible? If the GAOTU is a demon, the Christian Mason is gathering around a strange altar to worship a false god. He has become ensnared just as God warned the Israelites they would become ensnared. Our tract Fatherhood of God -Brotherhood of Man expounds on the problem.

Continuing with the assumption that Masons in the church really are Christians, consider the false plan of salvation which is taught in Masonic ritual. Freemasons are led to believe that all Master Masons will go to heaven, including the Buddhist, Hindu and Moslem Masons. Masons are encouraged to imitate the Masonic savior, Hiram Abiff, so that they might welcome death and be translated into heaven. Jesus Christ is not mentioned in Blue Lodge (the first three degrees) ritual. All present in lodge participate in the ritual. Certainly those conducting the ritual participate to a larger degree. However, at the point in ritual where the blindfold is removed from the initiates eyes, all present stamp their foot and clap their hands. (It is known as the shock of entrance; it startles the initiate.) The Christian Mason is participating in the promotion of a false gospel. What is the important issue here? Does it matter if the Christian Mason actually is depending on faith in Jesus Christ for his own salvation? Will that save the soul of the man who believes what he is taught in Masonic ritual? If he believes he has salvation as a result of the Masonic gospel, is he more or less likely to be open to Jesus at a later time? How would the witness of a Christian Mason be affected by participating in a ritual which teaches salvation without Jesus? Salvation Without Jesus expounds on this issue.

Second, let us assume that the Masons in the church are not Christians.

In this case, all of the Christians in the congregations which allow Masons to be members have made a treaty with the pagan people of the land. They have encouraged Masons to join the church, but have not demanded that they stop worshiping the GAOTU, or promoting the false Masonic plan of salvation. In this second case, the Christians in the church are in sin because they have not remained separate, but have embraced the pagans. 2 Corinthians 6:11-7:1 makes it clear that remaining separate is not just an old testament idea. If you look around, you will notice that the sons and daughters of Masons have been taking the sons and daughters of Christians as their spouses for several generations now. The church has become ensnared just as God warned the Israelites they would be ensnared. God demands that we remain separate if we are to be His Children. (2 Corinthians 6:17-18)

How does the presence of Masons in the congregation affect what is said from the pulpit?

The majority of pastors know that there are problems with Freemasonry. A minority are unaware of the problems. Many of those pastors who are aware are afraid to preach a message which is critical of the teachings of Freemasonry. They avoid the topic like the plague. They will not discuss it in public and usually will not take a strong position in private. If they know that Freemasonry is incompatible with Christianity, but hold their tongue in public and when in the pulpit, we can easily see that they have compromised their ministry. They are not taking the steps necessary to ensure that additional members of the congregation do not become ensnared through marriage into a Masonic family or through direct Masonic involvement. If a pastor is aware of the evils of Freemasonry and says nothing to the Masons in the congregation, then he will be held accountable. God's warning in the book of Ezekiel makes this crystal clear:

But if the watchman see the sword come, and blow not the trumpet, and the people be not warned; if the sword come, and take any person from among them, he is taken away in his iniquity; but his blood will I require at the watchman's hand.

(Ezekiel 33:6)

Why are the majority of pastors afraid to deal with the issue of Freemasonry from the pulpit?

Pastors don't work in a vacuum. They talk with other pastors, even those from other denominations. Whenever a pastor takes a stand against Freemasonry, or clearly teaches those aspects of the Gospel which oppose the teachings of Freemasonry, he ends up with a tremendous battle on his hands. The testimonies of Southern Baptist pastors, Stewart Bedillion, Pierce Dodson and Stoney Shaw provide classic examples. All a pastor has to do in order to meet Masonic opposition is preach the word. Masons, in general, cannot stand hearing about the Gospel of Grace, which states that a man cannot work his way toward heaven though good works. If Masons are present in a congregation and things are running smoothly, it is an indictment against the pastor. If he were preaching the word, in season and out of season, not hesitating to correct, rebuke and encourage, he would either be facing opposition, or see Masons leaving. In general, few Masons repent - although some do. It is not a pastor's responsibility to obtain repentance. He is merely responsible for watching over souls and preaching as one who must give account. If men choose to leave the church when offended by the truth in God's word, it is not the pastor's problem.

Satan loves Freemasonry

Look what it does for him. When Freemasonry is present, the church is tolerating the teaching of a false gospel by members of the congregation. In addition, Freemasonry ensnares its participants in the worship of a false god. As the accuser of the saints, Satan is given ground within the church. The battle may appear to be flesh, but there are powerful spiritual forces at work behind the scenes. Some pastors have been forced from pulpits almost immediately after they preached a sermon critical of Freemasonry. Others have simply made comments in private conversations. Later, those private conversations become known to Masons in the congregation and they begin to work against the pastor. Pastors who hold their tongue on Freemasonry do so because they are afraid of the battle. They would rather compromise than fight the good fight. They choose to let men go to hell rather than risk being forced from the pulpit. Either they have a job, rather than a calling, or they don't have enough faith that God will provide for them. It's a terrible thing to say, but it is true.

What is the worst that could happen in the church concerning Freemasonry?

Some would think that the worst possible scenario would be for Christian Churches to examine the gospel of Freemasonry, compare it to the Gospel of Jesus and then choose to embrace and preach the Masonic gospel rather than the Gospel of Jesus. To do so, they would have to preach imitation of Hiram Abiff as the key to being able to welcome death and get into heaven. They would necessarily negate faith in Jesus as the necessary requirement for salvation. Actually, this scenario would have no impact on the church. It would have no impact, because they would cease to be the church and Christians would recognize the error immediately. Separation would occur quickly. There would be many who remained, imitating Hiram Abiff, who claimed to be Christians. But those sealed by the Holy Spirit would not be fooled by their claims. This scenario would eliminate a necessary requirement of Masonry: SECRECY. If secrecy, or the appearance of secrecy, is not maintained, Masonry will be quickly recognized for what it is.

Others believe that the worst possible scenario which could occur would be if a Christian Church were to examine the gospel of Freemasonry in detail, compare it to the Gospel of Jesus and then proclaim from the pulpit that they had examined the issues thoroughly and have concluded that participation in Freemasonry was not a problem for a Christian, but only a matter of personal conscience.

The implications of this second scenario reach far and wide.

Since the god of Freemasonry is a demon and one of the primary purposes of Freemasonry is worship, Freemasons are all involved in idolatry. The Bible is clear; idolaters will not inherit the kingdom of God:

Know ye not that the unrighteous shall not inherit the kingdom of God? Be not deceived: neither fornicators, nor idolaters, nor adulterers, nor effeminate, nor abusers of themselves with mankind, Nor thieves, nor covetous, nor drunkards, nor revilers, nor extortioners, shall inherit the kingdom of God.

(I Corinthians 6:9-10)

The consequences of participating in the promotion of a false gospel, found in Galatians 1, were discussed above. Since Freemasonry involves a man in the promotion of a false gospel, coupled with idolatry, it is questionable whether or not any Mason will get into heaven. The only possible hope is if a man does not know what he is involved in. How much do they know discusses this question. Few will be able to claim ignorance. It is very dangerous to teach that a man can participate in the promotion of a false god and still get into heaven. Such teaching does away with the requirement of repentance. Jesus left little doubt about the need for repentance:

. . .But unless you repent, you too will all perish.

(Luke 13:5)

To teach that a man could continue in an activity which is idolatrous and promotes a false gospel would be to deviate from the teachings of Jesus and the apostles. What did John say about those who do not follow in the teachings of Jesus? John warned that they would not have God.

Anyone who runs ahead and does not continue in the teaching of Christ does not have God; whoever continues in the teaching has both the Father and the Son.

(2 John 9)

We can see that this scenario could easily result in a lamp stand decision. (See Revelation 2:5)

The worst case scenario has come to pass
within the Southern Baptist Convention

In 1992-1993, the Southern Baptist Convention (SBC) investigated Freemasonry and published A Study of Freemasonry and issued a A Report on Freemasonry which contained the following recommendation:

In light of the fact that many tenets and teachings of Freemasonry are not compatible with Christianity and Southern Baptist doctrine, while others are compatible with Christianity and Southern Baptist doctrine, we therefore recommend that consistent with our denomination’s deep convictions regarding the priesthood of the believer and the autonomy of the local church, membership in a Masonic Order be a matter of personal conscience. Therefore, we exhort Southern Baptists to prayerfully and carefully evaluate Freemasonry in light of the Lordship of Christ, the teachings of the Scripture, and the findings of this report, as led by the Holy Spirit of God.

The study and report were produced by the Home Mission Board (HMB) of the SBC. The trustees of the HMB (about 80 people) were notified in writing of the existence of a Masonic savior prior to reviewing A Report on Freemasonry which contained the recommendation that membership be only a matter of personal conscience. Even though they had direct evidence that Freemasonry has a secret savior, the trustees voted to approve the heretical position. The report was carried before the entire convention in 1993 and approved by the messengers from the various churches. At that point, the Southern Baptist Convention, as a denomination, voted to continue to allow Freemasons to use the churches as a cover while they meet in secret in the lodge to teach salvation on the basis of imitating Hiram Abiff. Since that time, the Home Mission Board has been renamed the North American Mission Board. The NAMB distributed the report issued by the HMB after the name change. Additional evidence of the intentional dishonesty by leaders of the Southern Baptist Convention came to light in 2001. Supporting Masonic documents which were "quoted" in A Report on Freemasonry were obtained by Ephesians 5:11, Inc.. The report contains intentional misquotes of these Masonic documents which demonstrate collusion, and/or intentional dishonesty. The details are revealed in The Myth of the Christian Lodge. Source documents are available. The false report with the officially sanctioned misquotes can be found on the NAMB website. Godly people do not put forth intentional falsehood. Once falsehood is identified, they do not continue to embrace it.

Most of the churches within the convention have embraced the position and continue to allow Masons to be not only members, but pastors, deacons and teachers within the congregations. A relatively small number have taken issue with the study and report and have taken a position against Freemasonry. Some exclude Freemasons from membership. Others exclude them from leadership, as if it is acceptable for the membership to meet in the lodges and take part in ritual which teaches salvation on the basis of another savior.

Northside Baptist Church, in Indianapolis, is a representative SBC congregation which has decided to condone and even defend Freemasonry. They have done so, even though they have seen evidence which substantiates the existence of a Masonic savior. Leadership has examined copies of Masonic Monitors, including the Kentucky Monitor which states that Jesus is a savior for Christians, while Hiram Abif is a savior for Masons. The congregation has received multiple mailings over time which documented the facts. Our tract, Should we ignore their secret savior to maintain unity in the church? was provided to those on the church mailing list. In addition, Xerox copies of Grand Lodge documents which documented the existence of a Masonic savior, Hiram Abif were provided. A final letter was published in the Ephesians 5:11, Inc. newsletter and mailed to them during September, 1999. A copy of the newsletter with supporting documents which substantiate the Luciferian nature of Freemasonry and the existence of the Masonic savior may be download in PDF form. Permission is given to duplicate the document.