The Hell of Reincarnation in Hinduism and the Hope of Resurrection in Christ

I was at the oncologist’s office. This was a specialist who specializes in the particular disease I have, mantle cell lymphoma. While I was in the office, a pharmacist came in, and I thought, he is going to be short; he’s going to tell me what my prescriptions are. It will be over and done. Instead, a half-hour later, I was saying, “Please, please, I don’t want to know anymore.” In other words, he was giving me all the information of what I would go thorough in the next six to eight months, and some of it posed for me a very tall mountain to climb. Anyway, this guy now is my pharmacist. I never thought I would have to say, “I had a pharmacist,” but this guy is my pharmacist, and he happens to be a Hindu. So, I want to say just a little something about Hinduism.

Hinduism is interesting in that it is multifaceted. Hinduism is not monolithic; it is multifaceted. So, I’m going to make some general statements about Hinduism to inform you, if you do not already know.

In Hinduism, all of reality is believed to be a simplified whole. In other words, in Hinduism, you cannot make a distinction between, let’s say, morals and mice, something that is metaphysical and something that is physical. Everything is a simplified whole. All of what is, is believed in Hinduism to be a continuous extension of Brahman, which is believed to be the impersonal — note that word impersonal — the impersonal cosmic consciousness of the universe. Atman, they say, is Brahman, and Brahman is Atman.

The Hindu scriptures, the Vedas and the Upanishads, they hold the goal of humanity. If you read them in short, in sum, you will get the idea that liberation is the goal of humanity. What are you being liberated from? An endless cycle of death and reincarnation. Until then, the law of karma will dictate that our deeds in previous lives will determine what we do in the next incarnation. Karma is a big part of Hinduism.

The Hindu idea I often call the hell of reincarnation. The Christian idea is the hope of resurrection. On the one hand, you have the hell of reincarnation; you go around and around and around until finally you become one with Nirvana or one with the universe. On the other hand, in resurrection, this body will be resurrected.

As I sat in the office today, I could not help but wonder how I would feel if my hope was reincarnation as opposed to my hope being resurrection, and then recognizing that my hope is not a blind hope, a desperation hope, a fantasy, a panacea that I am painting with unreal colors. No! What I’m actually placing my hope in is something that can absolutely be substantiated. Jesus Christ rose from the dead, and because He rose, we too: you, me, and everyone that faces his or her own mortality. You too, Christian, will rise immortal, imperishable, incorruptible.

To find out more about Hinduism, please check out the following:

What do Hindus believe? (Hank Hanegraaff)

What is yoga? (Hank Hanegraaff)

Does the Bible REALLY teach reincarnation? (Hank Hanegraaff)

Can reincarnation and resurrection be reconciled? (Hank Hanegraaff)

Witnessing to Hindus (Part One: Background) (Dean C. Halverson and Natun Bhattacharya)

Witnessing to Hindus (Part Two: Specific Suggestions) (Dean C. Halverson and Natun Bhattacharya)

Worse than a “Vale of Tears”: Karma in the Shadow of the Cross (C. Wayne Mayhall)

Reincarnation: Lifetimes for Enlightenment? (Robert Velarde)

The Yoga Boom: A Call for Christian Discernment (Part One: Yoga in Its Original Eastern Context) (Elliot Miller)

The Yoga Boom: A Call for Christian Discernment (Part Two: Yoga in Its Contemporary Western Context) (Elliot Miller)

The Yoga Boom: A Call for Christian Discernment (Part Three: Toward a Comprehensive Christian Response) (Elliot Miller)