📖 Madhehebu Potofu & Dini za Ulimwengu — Sehemu ya 1: Dhehebu Potofu Ni Nini? Kipimo cha Biblia📖 Cults & World Religions — Unit 1: What Is a Cult? The Biblical Test

Msingi: Wagalatia 1:6-9 — pamoja na 2 Wakorintho 11:3-4; 1 Yohana 4:1-3; Yuda 3 (SUV)Anchor: Galatians 1:6-9 — with 2 Corinthians 11:3-4; 1 John 4:1-3; Jude 3 (NKJV)

Neno Kabla HatujaanzaA Word Before We Begin

Kozi hii inachunguza vikundi ambavyo mafundisho yao yanaiacha injili ya Yesu Kristo — vingine vinajiita vya Kikristo, na vingine ni sehemu ya dini kubwa za ulimwengu. Njia yake ni rahisi, na haitabadilika: tunachukua mafundisho ya kila kikundi kama yalivyo hasa, tunayapima kwa Neno la Mungu, na pale yanapoiacha injili tunasema hivyo waziwazi. Huo si ukosefu wa wema; ni jambo moja ambalo upendo unalidai kwa kweli, kwa kuwa kila mtu tunayemsoma ameumbwa kwa sura ya Mungu na ni mtu ambaye Kristo alimfia, na jambo la upendo kuliko yote tunaloweza kumtendea mtu ye yote ni kumwambia kweli kuhusu Kristo. Kwa hiyo tunaiongoza kozi yetu kwa mstari mmoja tu, na hatuhitaji kurudia wazo hili katika kila sehemu inayofuata: tunanena "kweli katika upendo" (Waefeso 4:15) — kweli yote, na katika upendo. Kinachobaki ni kujifunza dhehebu potofu ni nini hasa, na jinsi ya kulitambua.This course examines groups whose teaching departs from the gospel of Jesus Christ — some that call themselves Christian, and some that belong to the great religions of the world. Its method is simple, and it will not change: we take each group's teaching as it actually is, and we test it by the Word of God, and where it departs from the gospel we say so plainly. That is not unkindness; it is the one thing love truly requires, for every person we study is made in God's image and is someone for whom Christ died, and the most loving thing we can do for anyone is to tell them the truth about Christ. So we set our course by a single verse, and need not repeat the sentiment in every unit that follows: we speak "the truth in love" (Ephesians 4:15) — all the truth, and in love. What remains is to learn what a cult actually is, and how to tell one.

Tunamaanisha Nini kwa "Dhehebu Potofu"?What Do We Mean by "Cult"?

Neno "dhehebu potofu" linatumiwa vibaya kwa urahisi, kwa hiyo ni lazima tulifafanue kwa uangalifu. Katika kozi hii dhehebu potofu ni kikundi kinachodai kushika kweli kuhusu Mungu — mara nyingi kikidai kuwa ndio namna ya kweli ya Ukristo — lakini kinakana jambo moja au zaidi kati ya mambo ya msingi ya injili ya Biblia, hasa Yesu Kristo ni nani na jinsi mtu anavyookolewa. Dhehebu potofu si kikundi tu tusichokipenda, na neno hili si tusi la kuwarushia watu. Ni maelezo ya makini ya uhusiano wa fundisho fulani na injili.The word "cult" is easily misused, so we must define it with care. In this course a cult is a group that claims to hold the truth about God — often claiming to be the true form of Christianity — yet denies one or more essentials of the biblical gospel, especially who Jesus Christ is and how a person is saved. A cult is not simply a group we dislike, and the word is not an insult hurled at people. It is a careful description of a teaching's relationship to the gospel.

Ni lazima tutofautishe mambo matatu. Dhehebu potofu linamdai Kristo lakini linakana jambo la msingi la imani — kama tutakavyoona kwa Mashahidi wa Yehova na Wamormoni (Kanisa la Yesu Kristo la Watakatifu wa Siku za Mwisho). Dini ya ulimwengu, kama Uislamu, Uhindu, au Ubudha, ni imani iliyo tofauti kabisa ambayo haidai kabisa kuwa Ukristo. Na mapokeo ya Kikristo — dhehebu la kweli — yanakubaliana juu ya mambo ya msingi (Utatu, Uungu kamili wa Kristo, wokovu kwa neema kwa njia ya imani) huku yakitofautiana katika mambo ya daraja la pili, kama vile namna ya ubatizo au mfumo wa uongozi wa kanisa. Wale wanaokubaliana juu ya injili lakini wanatofautiana katika mambo madogo ni ndugu, si dhehebu potofu. Kuyachanganya mambo haya matatu ni kuwatendea wengine isivyo haki na kuwa wazembe kwa wengine.We must keep three things distinct. A cult claims Christ but denies an essential of the faith — as we will see with the Jehovah's Witnesses and the Latter-day Saints. A world religion, such as Islam, Hinduism, or Buddhism, is a wholly separate faith that does not claim to be Christianity at all. And a Christian tradition — a genuine denomination — agrees on the essentials (the Trinity, the full deity of Christ, salvation by grace through faith) while differing on secondary matters such as the mode of baptism or the form of church government. Those who agree on the gospel but differ on lesser things are brothers, not a cult. To confuse these three is to be unfair to some and careless with others.

Alama za Dhehebu PotofuThe Marks of a Cult

Madhehebu potofu yanatofautiana, na hakuna kikundi kimoja kinachoonyesha kila alama. Lakini sifa fulani zinajitokeza tena na tena, na kujifunza kuzitambua kunatusaidia kupima kwa hekima. Ya kwanza na nzito kuliko zote ni Kristo tofauti: kikundi kinakana Uungu wake kamili, au ubinadamu wake wa kweli, na kinatupa Yesu aliye mdogo kuliko Mwana wa Mungu wa milele. Ya pili ni injili tofauti: wokovu unafanywa kutegemea, kwa ujumla au kwa sehemu, matendo na utendaji badala ya neema ya Mungu inayopokelewa kwa imani. Ya tatu ni mamlaka iliyoongezwa: kitabu kipya, nabii aliye hai, au shirika linawekwa kando ya Maandiko au juu yake. Mara nyingi hufuata dai la upekee — kwamba kikundi hiki peke yake ndicho kilichookolewa — na pamoja nalo kiwango fulani cha udhibiti, hivi kwamba kukiacha kikundi kunafanywa kuonekana kama kumwacha Mungu. Nyuma ya hayo yote kuna mtindo mmoja: kitu kimeongezwa, au kimeondolewa, katika kazi iliyokamilika ya Kristo.Cults differ from one another, and no single group shows every mark. But certain features appear again and again, and learning to recognize them helps us test wisely. The first and gravest is a different Christ: the group denies His full deity, or His true humanity, and gives us a Jesus who is less than the eternal Son of God. The second is a different gospel: salvation is made to rest, in whole or in part, on works and performance rather than on the grace of God received by faith. A third is an added authority: a new book, a living prophet, or an organization is placed alongside or above the Scriptures. Often there follows an exclusive claim — that only this group is saved — and with it a measure of control, so that to leave the group is made to feel like leaving God. Behind all of these lies a single pattern: something has been added to, or taken from, the finished work of Christ.

Vipimo vya BibliaThe Biblical Tests

Hatuvipimi vikundi hivi kwa maoni yetu wenyewe, bali kwa Maandiko, yanayotufundisha waziwazi jinsi ya kupima. Paulo anaandika kwamba mtu ye yote akihubiri "injili yo yote" isipokuwa ile ya kweli, hata "malaika wa mbinguni," na alaaniwe (Wagalatia 1:6-9): injili ya neema haiwezi kuongezewa wala kupunguzwa. Anawaonya Wakorintho kwamba mdanganyifu huja akihubiri "Yesu mwingine," "roho nyingine," na "injili nyingine" (2 Wakorintho 11:3-4) — kitu bandia kinaweza kufanana sana na kitu halisi. Yohana anatuamuru "msiiamini kila roho, bali zijaribuni hizo roho" (1 Yohana 4:1), na kipimo anachotoa kinamhusu Kristo: kama mtu anakiri kwamba "Yesu Kristo amekuja katika mwili" (1 Yohana 4:2), Mungu kweli na mwanadamu kweli. Na Yuda anatuhimiza "kuishindania imani waliyokabidhiwa watakatifu mara moja tu" (Yuda 3) — kuna injili ya mitume iliyo imara isiyobadilika, na "mafunuo" ya baadaye yanayoibadilisha ni lazima yakataliwe.We do not test these groups by our own opinions, but by Scripture, which teaches us plainly how to test. Paul writes that if anyone preaches "any other gospel" than the true one, even "an angel from heaven," he is to be accursed (Galatians 1:6-9): the gospel of grace may not be added to or subtracted from. He warns the Corinthians that a deceiver comes preaching "another Jesus," "a different spirit," and "a different gospel" (2 Corinthians 11:3-4) — a counterfeit can look very much like the real thing. John commands us not to "believe every spirit, but test the spirits" (1 John 4:1), and the test he gives centers on Christ: whether one confesses that "Jesus Christ has come in the flesh" (1 John 4:2), truly God and truly man. And Jude urges us to "contend earnestly for the faith which was once for all delivered to the saints" (Jude 3) — there is a fixed apostolic gospel, and later "revelations" that change it are to be rejected.

Yote haya yanarudi kwenye maswali mawili ambayo tutayaita jaribio la mzizi, kwa kuwa mti mzima wa imani unakua kutoka kwayo. Kwanza: Yesu ni nani? Je, Yeye ni Mungu Mwana wa milele, Mungu kweli na mwanadamu kweli? Pili: Mtu anaokolewaje? Kwa neema peke yake, kwa njia ya imani peke yake, katika Kristo peke yake — au kwa matendo? Ukipata haya mawili sawasawa, mti ni mzima; ukikosea moja wapo kwenye mzizi, ni mti mwingine na injili nyingine, hata kama sehemu kubwa ya gome inaonekana sawa.All of these come down to two questions we will call the root-test, for the whole tree of faith grows from them. First: Who is Jesus? Is He the eternal God the Son, truly God and truly man? Second: How is a person saved? By grace alone, through faith alone, in Christ alone — or by works? Get these two right, and the tree is sound; get either one wrong at the root, and it is another tree and another gospel, however much of the bark may look the same.

Jinsi TutakavyoyasomaHow We Will Study Them

Njia yetu katika kila sehemu itakuwa ileile, nayo ni njia ya uaminifu na upendo. Kwanza, tutaeleza imani ya kila kikundi kwa haki, kwa maneno yao wenyewe na kutoka katika vyanzo vyao wenyewe, si kutoka katika picha za kubeza au uvumi. Hii ni Kanuni ya Dhahabu tu ikitumika katika kutokubaliana: tunawaeleza wengine kama ambavyo tungependa sisi tuelezwe. Pili, tutaupima mzizi kwa Maandiko — tukiuliza yale maswali mawili na kuliacha Neno la Mungu litoe hukumu. Tatu, tutamlenga mtu kwa nia ya ukombozi. Paulo aliposimama katikati ya sanamu na wanafalsafa wa Athene, hakuwashutumu tu; alihojiana nao, akanukuu washairi wao wenyewe, na akawaelekeza kwa Kristo aliyefufuka (Matendo 17:22-31). Hilo ndilo lengo letu pia: si kukanusha kosa tu, bali kumpata mtu.Our method in every unit will be the same, and it is a method of both honesty and love. First, we will state each group's beliefs fairly, in their own words and from their own sources, not from caricatures or rumors. This is simply the Golden Rule applied to disagreement: we describe others as we would want to be described. Second, we will test the root by Scripture — asking the two questions and letting the Word of God render the verdict. Third, we will aim at the person redemptively. When Paul stood among the idols and philosophers of Athens, he did not simply denounce them; he reasoned with them, quoted their own poets, and pointed them to the risen Christ (Acts 17:22-31). That is our aim too: not merely to refute an error, but to win a person.

Lengo la UkomboziA Redemptive Aim

Kwa hiyo hii si kozi ya kushuku, na hata kidogo si ya kiburi. Tukiijia tukiwadharau wengine, tayari tumeshindwa. Neema ileile iliyotupata ndiyo neema tunayotamani wao waipate. Wengi walionaswa katika madhehebu potofu ni waaminifu, wenye maadili mema, na wacha Mungu — mara nyingi wenye bidii kuliko sisi — na wengi wanaofuata dini za ulimwengu wanamtafuta Mungu kadiri wanavyojua. Kazi yetu ina sehemu mbili, na ni lazima tuzishike zote pamoja: kuishika injili ya kweli bila maafikiano, na kumfikia kila mtu kwa upendo wa kweli. Tunalitaja kosa kwa usahihi ili tuwarudishe watu. Tunapoanza, na tuelekeze lengo letu kwenye shabaha hiyo: kuijua kweli, kuinena katika upendo, na kuona wanaume na wanawake wakirudishwa nyumbani kwa Kristo wa kweli aliye hai.So this is not a course in suspicion, and still less in pride. If we come to it looking down on others, we have already failed. The same grace that found us is the grace we long for them to find. Many who are caught in cults are sincere, moral, and devout — often more zealous than we are — and many who follow the world's religions are seeking God as best they know how. Our task is twofold, and we must hold both parts together: to hold fast the true gospel without compromise, and to reach out to every person with genuine love. We mark the error precisely so that we may reclaim the people. As we begin, let us fix our aim on that goal: to know the truth, to speak it in love, and to see men and women brought home to the true and living Christ.

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