It is ironic that some Christian apologists, self-appointed cult watchers, have said that the teachings of Jesus on faith were derived from eastern religions. Jesus said that if a man has faith, he can even speak to a mountain and command it to move. He said that if the man does not doubt in his heart, but if he believes that what he himself says will happen, then he will have what he says. And he added that whatever a person asks in prayer, if he believes he receives it, then he will have it. This faith teaching has been almost universally rejected in church history. Jesus has always been contradicted by historic orthodoxy on this issue.

When this doctrine of Jesus is taught nowadays, some cult watchers condemn it as eastern religion. They do not attack Jesus in the open, but they make this accusation against the people who repeat his teaching. The real target is Jesus himself. Some of us are actually from the east, and we think the accusation is laughable and bizarre. This is because the teachings on prayer in western churches sound exactly like the teachings of eastern religions, only they use different terms.

No eastern religion teaches that a man can speak to a physical object or condition and command it to obey, and is in reality able to demonstrate it in front of people, such as when a Christian preacher curses a cancer to death or pulls up a person from a wheelchair. And like the confrontation between Moses and the sorcerers, when a witch or somebody tries to do something by an evil spirit, the Christian is able to shut down the whole thing in a word by the name of Jesus, so that the evil power fizzles and disappears. Eastern religions cannot do this. On the other hand, eastern meditation seems to have the same intention, principle, and effect as prayer in historic western Christianity.

They say that prayer does not change circumstances but ourselves. Right, so it is like eastern meditation. Then they say that, well, they mean that prayer does not change God but it changes us. And right…so it is like eastern meditation. Historic western Christian prayer is fake prayer. It is eastern religion in Christian terminology. Yes…yes, of course there are those who pray with confidence that God will change our hearts, and that he would produce spiritual changes in other people too. And…since this is as far as they go, it is just like eastern religions, only that they teach false gods. But do you believe in the true God, if you refuse to accept what he tells you about faith and prayer? You confess the true God, but you do not have true faith if you contradict what he says. And then you treat him like how eastern religions treat their false gods.

The Bible teaches the kind of faith that can physically throw a mountain into the sea. It teaches the kind of prayer that can heal the sick, and raise a man up from his deathbed. We are not trying to change God when we pray, but we are counting on God to stay the same, so that he would keep his promise to change our circumstances. If God promises you something, but he changes, then you might not get it. But if he promises you something, and he never changes, then you will surely get it. If your circumstances do not reflect his promises to the prayer of faith, then this means that your circumstances are guaranteed to change when you make the prayer of faith. So the fact that God does not change does not mean that your situation will not change, but when you have faith, the fact that God does not change guarantees that your situation will change. In contrast, followers of eastern religions can only change themselves, because they have no God.

They claim that it is wrong to say, “Prayer changes things.” We admit that prayer itself does not change things — if there is no God, prayer would change nothing (except ourselves, of course). Once this is acknowledged, there is nothing wrong with the statement. We would mean that God changes things when we pray in faith. As the Bible says, “The prayer of a righteous man is powerful and effective.” There it refers to the prayer of faith changing even the weather, and working miracles of nature and of healing. They do not want to say that prayer changes things, not because they wish to avoid being crude or because they wish to uphold the sovereignty of God (the sovereign God says prayer changes things), but they do not want to say it because their prayers never change anything, usually not even themselves. Sometimes their prayers indeed manage to change their mental states, and produce a little comfort, but often they cannot even do that. Their prayers are often less effective than Buddhist meditation.

Forget about changing the weather by faith! Most of them do not even have enough faith to use God as a psychological crutch. Jesus’ doctrine of faith and prayer is a threat to their religious pride, so they must persecute anyone who repeats his teaching. But they are church leaders, and they are supposed to teach what Jesus said. What to do? Instead of admitting the truth and repenting of their inferior faith, they work hard to redefine the very nature of prayer for all of God’s people. However, as long as God is not dead and the Bible is not gone, they will never totally succeed. Jesus said that I will receive whatever I ask from the Father. When I ask for spiritual things, I will get spiritual things. When I ask for material things, I will get material things. My prayers will be fulfilled in ways that are impossible for men, even in ways that are utterly unnatural. This is authentic Christianity. No eastern religion is like this.

I have never believed anything but the Christian faith, but I can imagine the disappointment of a Chinese convert to Christianity, perhaps from Buddhism. He thinks that he has found a Father who cares for him. He comes over to America, supposedly a stronghold of Christianity, hoping to fellowship with others who could teach him more about this Father God. And what does he find? Christian Buddhism! This is not real Christianity, but fake Christianity. It is something that uses Christian terms, but rejects its doctrines and effects. Real Christianity is exactly what Jesus said: You will have what you say. You will get what you pray. You will perform the same miracles and greater miracles. You will receive whatever you ask from the Father in the name of Jesus, so that God may be glorified, and so that your joy may be complete, showing yourselves to be the true disciples of Christ. You will receive miracle power when the Holy Spirit comes upon you, and you will receive visions, dreams, prophecies, and signs and wonders. This is truly different from any other religion, eastern or otherwise.