5, I Jn. 4:1, I Tim. 4:1).

Our purpose is not to unkindly attack SCJ (or sincere SCJ members), but help
others carefully test their fruit.

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Why So Many People Study with Shincheonji. Why Doubt it?

Dear reader,

Thank you for taking these topics to heart.

In the New Testament, there is a comment about angels being eager to know the full implications and
meanings of our future redemption. In the same way, we can assume that the supernatural kingdom of
darkness is also interested in these events.

For the last two hundred years, accounts of supernatural entities (angels, Jesus, a spirit of prophecy)
have appeared to apocalyptic leaders with detailed explanations about the last chapter of Christianity -
information about the Messiah's return to earth and the true meaning of ambiguous prophecies.

What makes these supernatural visions so appealing to people?

The visions are intriguing because they unlock puzzling Bible predictions on the end-times. Ironically,
they give answers to questions the Bible itself does not answer on its own. This makes it interesting.
Further, the information is used by their leader to convince others it must be from God. Leaders then
recruit people with detailed studies about their revelation-vision, which becomes their primary focus.

With discernment, of course, we know that just because explanations come from a supernatural
experience or vision, it does not necessarily mean it is true. Anyone who studies recent Christian history
knows that many sincere leaders have been deceived by spirit entities and visions. The Apostle Paul
warned that Satan and his messengers can masquerade as legitimate servants of God (2 Cor. 11:14,15).
In addition, many leaders set themselves up as the heroes of Christian history, claiming that all other
ministers, missionaries, Christian communities, etc. are deceived and in spiritual darkness. Only their
revelation brings light to the world. This is because their leader has been given a unique anointing or
has had seals opened and explained before their eyes. Further, any Christian who does not accept their
information is an enemy.

But, before rushing ahead, let's get back to the appeal and attraction people feel.

The new prophecy model and information from the leader brings a new freshness to the Bible. One
young lady admitted that she started studying with Shinchonji because she was attracted to the
freshness and newness of it all. The Bible had become routine at that point in her life.

Others on the SCJ testimonial page have said that it was amazing to hear Shinchonji give such clarity and
sureness when talking about biblical prophecies. They wrote that no Christian minister was able to
answer their Bible questions. Only SCJ's explanations and details were found to be clear. Newness and
certainty (in explaining the Bible and complex prophecies) were two reasons.

Another case is that some believers join final groups with a sincere heart. They desire to be a part of
something big or they are tired of the mediocrity in Christian circles. To paraphrase a SCJ member, ¨If
you hear that Revelation is being fulfilled in front of your eyes, why wouldn't you want to test it out for
yourself?¨ In these groups, there is much zeal and excitement. As pointed out by Christian thinkers,
members in apocalyptic groups often display more passion than a large percentage of church-goers
today.

So, why would many simple Christians or Christian leaders question the veracity of these visions to end-
time leaders? Why doubt SCJ? What causes devoted believers not to join them?

First, information directly from Jesus Christ´s revelation warns of deception, false messengers and
spiritual lies from deceptive spirits all masked as Jesus´ final representative or revelation (Mt. 24:4,5, I
Tim. 4:1, Lk. 21:8, I John 4:1, 2 Pet. 2:1, etc.). This means that the Christian world is to stay away from
any final messenger or spokesperson who appears in Jesus´ name.
It is equivalent to a father warning his son never to open the door to masked strangers. Yet, many
masked strangers continually appear claiming to be sent by the father. The warnings protect the son
from harm. The same is true with Jesus Christ and his words about final leaders in the end (Lk. 21:8).

Secondly, even though Christians have varying ideas about the end-times, one point that is evident in
the Bible is that Jesus Christ returns himself without a mask, not as an invisible spirit via a human leader
(I Thess 4:16, Acts 1:11, Mt. 24:30). The same resurrected Jesus is the one who returns (Acts 1:11).
When leaders declare that Jesus Christ´s spirit is working through them, embodying his return, it is a
different Jesus.

For example, one alarming teaching in Shincheonji is that Jesus' spirit is working through a human vessel
- Manhee Lee's flesh/body to such a degree that seeing Mr. Lee is seeing ¨the Lord¨. Manhee Lee
teaches he is the ¨white horse/flesh¨ in Rev. 19 upon which Jesus returns (The Creation of Heaven and
Earth, pp. 246,247) .

Third, Shincheonji follows the same pattern as other groups in history whose revelations and spiritual
knowledge distort precious truths from Christ. This casts doubt on the spiritual sources behind the
information. We observe this pattern in harmful movements in Christian history, such as Gnosticism,
and in recent organizations such as the Watchtower Society.

These groups emphasize secret or revealed visions from God, yet the information distors elementary
truths about salvation, Jesus of Nazareth, or some aspect of God´s identity. Shincheonji does this with
the Trinity, Jesus´ identity, the Holy Spirit, and redemption (i.e. more focus on being ¨in the know¨ than
salvation from sin).

Fourth, another reason Christians distrust final leaders is because they become the final authority in
their group. They exalt themselves above the Bible (in practice, not theory) because they claim a unique
anointing from God, which makes them the official interpreter/teacher of prophecies, parables, and
other passages. This means the Scriptures can be made to mean anything the interpreter reveals them
to mean.

The most obvious problem is when outside Christians see that meanings are ¨poured¨ into the
Scriptures instead of letting the Scriptures give us the meanings. One Shincheonji instructor told one
individual to put aside everything he thought the Bible was revealing and only listen to the revealed
word in SCJ. In Christian experience, this is backwards. God´s voice in the Scriptures correct end-time
revelations (2 Tim. 3:16, Mt. 4:4,7,10), not the other way around.

Lastly, Christians disregard messages from visions that are contrary to God's heart and character. When
two people know each other well, it is easy to recognize messages which are contrary to the way they
think or talk. A case in point is when someone hacks a friend´s e-mail account and sends messages that
they would never write. The content proves the author is someone else.

This is one of the reasons behind doubting SCJ´s practices or content. Some people said that the heavy
emphasis on knowledge in SCJ of prophecies did not seem right. Others mentioned that Jesus would not
use lies and deceit in recruiting others to promote his truths. Still others noticed a harsh and arrogant
tone on the SCJ website and in Manhee Lee's books.

In summary, although leaders with revelations from the invisible world bring freshness and new
explanations to Bible prophecies, it is important to be alert when other inconsistencies and signs appear.

In the articles that follow, we attempt to look at some of these and other points in more depth.

Thank you for your interest, and God bless.