Sid: Hello. Sid Roth here. Welcome to my world where it’s naturally supernatural. My guest, Mike Shreve, is an expert on an area called New Age. Most people aren’t familiar with what the New Age is. As a matter of fact, many people that call themselves Bible believers, have a mixture. They have a little new age and a little true supernatural of God. So I asked Mike to explain what the counterfeit looks like and keep in mind you can’t have a good counterfeit unless it’s a counterfeit of something authentic. The authentic is the supernatural of God as defined in the Bible. The counterfeit looks like it, smells like it, tastes like it, but it really isn’t. Mike, what is exactly included in this term “new age”?
Mike: Well it’s a very comprehensive term, Sid, that can swing all the way to the left and embrace dark spirituality like Wicca and witchcraft, and then it can swing all the way to the right and embrace groups like mind science groups and positive thinking courses, and quite a few other groups in the middle.
Sid: Now you wouldn’t think that swinging all the way to the right, as you put it, that positive thinking would be under that, but it really is.
Mike: Well there are certain new age principles…
Sid: Aspects.
Mike: … they adhere to that unite them altogether under this banner. Almost all new age type groups believe in a coming new age of heightened spiritual awareness in the world that differ in how they think that’s going to pass. But it’s all based on astrology because actually the term “new age” stems from astrology, the idea that the sun passes through 12 houses as it goes around the earth, which is of course, opposite to the truth.
Sid: That’s why I said, it’s a good counterfeit.
Mike: But the new age is called the Aquarian age. And according to astrology, we are now in the Piscean age, which is an age of knowledge and reason and that we’re at the juncture where we’re passing into the Aquarian age, which is supposed to be an age of spirituality and God-consciousness in the world, where many of the world’s problems are solved. So it’s a very optimistic view of the future and it’s all tied in with an awakening in spirituality.
Sid: Now you said it covers so many different areas. But yet, there are certain things in common. What else does it all have in common?
Mike: New-agers usually embrace some of these beliefs. For instance, number one, they believe in the need for spirituality instead of religion. Most of them are burned out on religion.
Sid: Does that sound familiar?
Mike: But this is where the error comes in. They believe that all religions and all paths of spirituality are legitimate means to achieve the “in”, which is ultimate reality. Most new-agers are looking for an experience of ultimate reality. And number three, they believe that there are means or devices they can implement in order to achieve an experience of ultimate reality, like meditation or yoga or things like that. Then most new-agers also believe that, as I mentioned, there is a coming age of enlightenment, and the way we’re going to move into that new age is by individuals awakening their own divine nature. Now there’s a very key element. Most new-agers believe that we are God, that we are expressions of the Divine, and the key to bringing this planet to peace is realizing our own Godhood, if you would. And that’s the antithesis of the truth, we’ll never be God and we can awaken a God nature within. But that’s one of the basic teachings.
Sid: Well you know, the reason that Mike is so well knowledgeable, because, number one, he studied for many years, but before he knew the Messiah, he actually taught yoga at four universities in the Tampa, Florida area. Why did you even get into yoga? What was your goal?
Mike: When I was a freshman in college, I had a near-death experience because of drugs. I went into an overdose experience where I felt, I believe it was actually happening, my soul leaving my body, the life gathering from my hands and feet to the center of my chest, going out into this void that was quite frightening. And I realized then that I was throwing my life away and I needed to find something of eternal value. So I dropped out of college to study under an Indian guru and I became very devoted to a group called Kundalini Yoga, under a man named Yogi Bhajan. And I was spending from 3:30 in the morning to 5:30 at night in some kind of discipline doing Hatha Yoga, Raji Yoga, meditating, chanting, mantras, reading various scriptures.
Sid: You were really dedicated.
Mike: I was into it passionately for a long period of time.
Sid: If Bible believers were just as dedicated. And Mike, you were successful. There was a full-page article about you in a Tampa newspaper.
Mike: And I thought that would increase my classes. I was teaching at four universities.
Sid: About how many students?
Mike: I had about two to 300 students in four universities in the Tampa area. And this big article came out in the Tribune and I thought for certain my classes would go from 200 to maybe 900 or a thousand. Instead..
Sid: But wait a second? Were you materialistic? Did you want to make money? What was your goal?
Mike: No. In fact, I never charged for my classes. I just put a little basket in the back of the class and if they wanted to drop something in they did. I lived a very separated life. I was somewhat of a recluse and I didn’t know anything materially. So that was my focus. But I wanted to impact the world. I thought that what was teaching would help people bring their lives to a place of peace and a place where they could achieve God-consciousness and become more whole individuals.
Sid: But unbeknownst to Mike, what he thought the purpose of this full-page article was not the purpose at all.
Mike: No.
Sid: A group of born-again Christians read the article and decided they wanted to make a focus of their prayer, Mike Shreve. And did they pray a lot for you?
Mike: Every hour.
Sid: Every hour?
Mike: They assigned somebody to do fasting and praying over me every hour of everyday.
Sid: You didn’t stand a chance.
Mike: No. For a month, I was soaked with intercession.
Sid: Okay. So you decide you’re going to check the Bible out, check Jesus out and you say, I’m going to take one day.
Mike: Just one day
Sid: Tell me about that day.
Mike: Well what happened is during that month-long period I got a letter from an old friend and he told me how he had been born-again, which was a foreign term to me. I didn’t understand, but he described Jesus coming into his heart and how he finally had an encounter with God. I wrote him back and said, “That doesn’t make sense to me.” But the letter just weighed on my mind until one day, as you said, I decided, you know, I’ve got to be open-minded. So I dedicated that whole day to the Lord Jesus and I said I’m not going to do yoga. I’m not going to chant. I’m not going to do any meditation like I’m normally involved in. I’m just going to pray and read the Bible today. And if you really are the Messiah and if you really did come to die on a cross for the sense of humanity, then I believe you’ll show me today.
Sid: Alright. Hold that thought. I know you’re going anywhere. We’ll be back right after this word.
