Do Clones Have Souls?

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Question:

Cloning may still have its "debugging" before it gets to be fully operational, but leave that to the experts, what we tackle here is the spiritual repercussions.  So what do you think, does an entity made to exist through cloning have a soul?

My Reply:

That's a question I've often wondered about, too.
If we look at comics for the answer, I'd look at Spiderman during the cloning series...the clones had "souls", for they each thought they were the real guy.  But then, those may have just been their programmed memories.  Either way, if real-life clones become people, then the question is whether or not they would have souls.  MY thought is that they would, but I'd doubt they'd be connected in any way 
to that of the original, like the TV shows and movies suggest.


The Bible does mention a similar situation in the book of Ezekiel.  The Lord brought him out into the middle of a valley full of dried human bones.  There, God asked Ezekiel if these bones could live.  Do you know what Ezekiel answered?  "Sovereign Lord, you alone know."  Then God rebuilt the bones into bodies, binding them with ligaments, flesh, and skin.  Then God told him to prophesy.  When he did, Scripture says that breath entered them, they came to life, and stood up, a vast army.


Scripture doesn't say whether or not they were really like individual people who continued to live on.  But it was a great visual-aid for helping Ezekiel gain hope and understand the coming Messiah's accomplished work in rebuilding His Kingdom and the sending of the Holy Spirit into His people.


So would a cloned person actually have a spirit/soul in it, would it just be a breathing piece of meat, or would it be as a zombie is a good question.  I think the only answer I can give is, "Sovereign Lord, you alone know."

---Pastor Andy

Why do you think many people in the world are more threatened by Christianity than Islam?

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Question:

Radical Islam has declared Jihad on the West, Israel and Europe, has enslaved women, beheaded the innocent or infidel, and has declared Honor Killings and Sharia Law as the law of Islam.  Now, many Muslims are wonderful people, yet most of the terrorism in the world we see is a Radical form of the Islamic Faith....YET....the world is more concerned about ridding the Christian faith and the teachings of Jesus Christ (GOD), who came to earth in the flesh of MAN, the SON of GOD to bring Peace, Redemption and Salvation to the world.

The HOLY BIBLE even speaks of Demons on the Earth in the LAST DAYS before Jesus returns, running the world into the Ground of evil and dis-obedience of the one true living GOD, and the only thing that makes them *TREMBLE* is the NAME OF JESUS CHRIST....JAMES 2:19-You believe that there is one God. Good! Even the demons believe that—and shudder.

My Reply:

I think the term you used, "Radical" Islamics, could be a part of it, since then the finger can be pointed to a small group and say, "it's just them, not us." I also think more people are familiar with Christianity than they are with Islam, so being a mystery religion, it's easier for Muslims and others to make Islam look like the victim, or to mislead people into believing it's a pure religion that only focus' on peace and submission to God (even though it's not).

The Bible tells us that false prophets and teachers will come from all around, and their messages will be sweet to the taste, even turning strong Christian believers away from the Lord. And since the flesh is at war with the Spirit, and the Spirit is connected with Christ, it's only natural that anything of the flesh should see anything of the Spirit as a threat.
If you'd like some more resources on Islam, Christianity, and witnessing to Muslims, then I'd suggest "Persecution.com, also known as "Voices of the Martyrs".  Otherwise, please feel free to check out some of the links below.

---Pastor Andy

Some of these resources may be helpful for further study on this topic:

  

Iran: Desperate for God  
("Iran: Desperate for God" is also available through Persecution.com. I read a pre-released portion of the book and loved it...very explanatory, backed up by real events and experiences.)

This Resource May Be Helpful In Witnessing To Muslims About Jesus Christ:   

Trying To Figure Out Reincarnation

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Question:

I have heard non-religious folks say that energy doesn’t come from nothing, and that when you die, it is like your energy is released back into the earth. I think many religions with the belief of "reincarnation" actually share this similar idea...in a way, religions with a belief in reincarnation could be sharing fundamental ideas, because in both, there is some sort of cycle, like a recycling of energy.  In reincarnation, it is believed that the energy or soul, or whatever, is concentrated to "reappear" in another body: human, dog, cricket, etc... but what if the energy is actually released equally to the ground, plants, air, etc? Maybe the idea of reincarnation is partly right. What do you think? Do you think this energy releasing thing that non-religious people believe is similar to the reincarnation belief? Thanks.

My Reply:

Do I believe in reincarnation? No.
Do I believe in resurrection?  Yes, but the 2 are not the same (nor are they close).

Hindus believe in reincarnation in the sense that it's not something to glorify, but something to dread, or an ongoing hell. As I understand it, their hope is to one day stop reincarnating and finally go to whatever they consider to be like heaven or something, and the only way they can do this is by selfish works/deeds. As for things you jump into, that's why they often won't kill roaches or eat cows...because they believe such may be former relatives.

New Agers and the non-religious, on the other side, see reincarnation as something to glorify, a continuous of life in the physical world, like the "spark" or "energy” you mentioned. But in terms of things they jump into, instead of hearing that one was a sacrificed dove or squashed bug, you'll usually hear them say they were somebody of valor (or tragedy) in their "past lives".
I suppose they believe this because they can't (or won't) believe in a spiritual God who wants them to spend (a non-worldly) eternity with Him, who offers salvation freely through grace, should they accept it, versus selfish (or charitable) deeds/works. And though some may in fact believe in a spiritual being who is in charge of the way things work, it's not the Lord.

Christians (meaning those of us who have an intimate relationship with God through Jesus Christ), on the other hand, believe in resurrection. We're told that we'll die physically, but spiritually, we'll go to be with the Lord, and one day in the future, our bodies will be resurrected (but as resurrected bodies), as was Jesus' at His resurrection. We also believe that the Body and Spirit are one, not separate as those who believe in reincarnation believe.

So to reincarnate is to become carnate again...return to life in the physical, fleshy world. I suppose this could also mean plants, for even the Native Americans' religions often talked of the spirits of the trees (though I don't think they believed such were spirits of their ancestors).

But resurrection in the Christian sense is to live again, only in a completely non-fleshy world.  And honestly, among the 2, I suggest focusing your attention on this one.

---Pastor Andy