Dear Lighthouse Trails:
Warren Smith did an excellent job on his booklet, Heavenly Visions of Jesus Or “Lying Signs & Wonders” of a False New Age Christ?—Akiane Kramarik and Heaven is for Real. He provided so much detail and documented evidence. In thinking over what happened to both Akiane and Colton Burpo, it seems quite unfair that the devil has used children with the visions, dreams, and experiences they encountered—but since when does the devil play fair! Yet, not only have these two, along with their families, been led into serious deception, but look at the impact, as Warren described, on countless millions through the paintings, the book, and the movie that promote a false Jesus. Plus, the way in which the experiences of these two – Akiane and Colton – merge together make a stronger impact for the dark side, pulling more people into it.
I, myself, was also led into the deception of New Age teaching in my twenties, and for seven years, I attended a New Age church that included Yoga, going to fortune tellers, and being hypnotized. The woman pastor read from the Bible every week but never once mentioned sin, the devil, or Hell, and I had no idea I needed to repent and be born again. It was a true miracle God did for me as I just lost interest and left even before I was saved. Now, though, because of my experience in New Age, I can easily recognize it in others who follow it.
What concerns me most about Akiane’s beliefs is that she professes to be a Christian, but I see no evidence that she actually understands the teaching in the Bible about what a true believer is; yet she has and will continue attracting many to her paintings and exposure to New Age lies by professing herself to follow Jesus Christ. Sadly, many Christians have no idea there even is a false “Christ” and a false “Gospel.”
I did learn something new from Warren’s report about the Jesus that Colton Burbo encountered. Colton said that the “Jesus” he saw looked just like the painting by Akiane! I had never read Colton’s book (Heaven is for Real) and was not interested to learn of the details of his experience. Second Corinthians 11:4 is a critical warning we have as believers—to be on guard to this type of deception relating to the false Jesus that Akiane and Colton are promoting.
I thought Warren’s statement, that most Christians don’t understand how far our spiritual Adversary will go to deceive people—even little children! It also seems utterly amazing that many people report that Akiane’s portrait of Jesus is the same image as what many people say they saw in a near-death type of experience of Heaven and the appearance of Jesus.
Warren included details of an interview at the conference called “Heaven Is Real” between John Burke and Akiane. I could hardly believe when I watched it that John Burke affirmed her as a Christian especially after he asked her to describe how she daily met with the Lord to draw near to him, and her answer was to go to her art studio first thing and said nothing of reading the Bible or prayer. That answer revealed so much.
In reference to Warren’s description of “automatic painting,” I believe lying spirits could do this through a person inviting it and yielding to it. I tried the automatic writing when I was on the New Age path, but it did not work for me (Thank you, Lord!). And I completely agree with the admonition that Warren ended with and the Scriptures from Acts 17:11 and Matthew 26:41.
May God help us in these last days. I thank Him for the many warnings He gives us in His Word because He loves us and does not want to see us overtaken by the devil and his schemes. I pray that Warren Smith’s information in this booklet will influence many people for good and for the glory of our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ.
Carolyn K.
Related Information:
Autistic Children and “the Telepathy Tapes”—Not a Good Situation for the Kids or for Anyone
Dear Skywatcher,
Thank you for sharing your concerns regarding comments made about John Burke. We weren’t sure if you were commenting on the Letter to the Editor above by one of our readers or if you were referring to Warren B. Smith’s booklet on Akiane and “Heaven Is for Real.” If you are referring to Warren’s booklet, he was stating some facts about an interview John Burke had with Akiane. Just so our readers can see what Warren said about Burke, we are posting that small section of his booklet below:
As you can see, Warren was explaining what took place. Be that as it may, the Editors at Lighthouse Trails do have concerns about what appears to be a lack of discernment (at least in this area) from John Burke. There is a difference in judging a person’s motives and being discerning regarding a person’s actions or teachings. We hope you can see that. As for the reader above who wrote the Letter to the Editor, she expressed some surprise that Burke couldn’t see Akiane’s misguided beliefs. Keep in mind that over 161,000 people have now viewed the Burke/Akiane interview, and if someone watched the interview and saw Burke’s accepting and welcoming comments and demeanor, that person would naturally think Burke sees nothing amiss about Akiane’s spiritual beliefs.
Please don’t be too quick to judge (write off) John Burke because he didn’t dig deeper into how Akiane met daily with God. We all make mistakes, get distracted from a main point of discussion, or overlook certain things; nobody’s perfect.
Sometimes, my day gets interrupted first thing in the morning, and before I know it, it’s day’s end, and I was too busy to acknowledge God with more than a few minutes. Thank God, His love is unconditional and not works-based!
John Burke’s well-researched and scientifically supported books have greatly encouraged and given me a renewed enthusiasm about going to Heaven! Worldwide, there are too many commonalities between Christian and non-Christian NDE’rs to pooh-pooh it away as something devilish. Sometimes, we’re just too critical for our own good, and I’m really good at that!
His theology in his books is as sound as sound can be, and I’ve very grateful that he delved into theology in “Imagine Heaven” and “Imagine the God of Heaven”! He did it with such expertise, without missing a beat! He exalted Christ and glorified God throughout, touching upon theological points that most pastors today will not do. His writing style has made God more personal and real to me, like no other pastor could ever do.
I am so grateful for Warren and his work. I’ve been sounding the alarm on this stuff for years, but to no avail. God bless you all and Maranatha!