At my grandfather's funeral, as my family and I mourned his passing, we were "comforted" by these words: "By this lambskin we are reminded of that purity of life and conduct so essentially necessary to our gaining ready admission into the Celestial Lodge above, where the Supreme Architect of the Universe presides."1 Because my grandfather had been a Mason for most of his life, we were assured that his death was not the end, nor was it something tragic; rather, he had gone to a better place. Yet from a Christian perspective, we must ask whether or not these words conveyed hollow comfort and false assurance. The Masons believe in and teach about a heavenly afterlife and a means of getting there — apart from Jesus Christ.

The Celestial Lodge Above
The belief in some sort of afterlife is quite clear in the teachings of Freemasonry. In the funeral service of the Kentucky Monitor (similar in scope to the Free Methodist Discipline) one reads, "As Masons ... we believe in, and depend upon the same God, [and] have the same hope, eternal life."2 Just as often, however, the afterlife is described as "the Celestial Lodge above, where the Supreme Architect of the Universe presides."3 (It is essential when talking with Masons about Freemasonry to quote from state Monitors and from Rituals. Quoting from Masonic authors can easily be dismissed by Masons as "just that person's opinion," just as a Wesleyan-Arminian might dismiss a quote from Calvin. But quoting from the Monitor or the Rituals is similar to quoting from the Bible; they are the only authoritative documents for Freemasonry.)

Regardless of the particular language used, even a cursory examination of Masonic literature reveals that Freemasonry holds to a belief in an afterlife, one that involves an eternal, glorious existence, and one that will be spent in the presence of God. Far more important than this simple belief in an afterlife, however, is the Masonic teaching concerning the path to that afterlife.

Gaining Ready Admission
If one believes in a glorious, immortal afterlife in the Celestial Lodge above, how does one hope to attain this? What is the path to salvation that Freemasonry teaches? It starts with Freemasonry, demonstrated in the ritual performed for a person just starting out as a Mason. During the ceremony for the Entered Apprentice level, "The candidate is asked, 'What do you now most desire?' He answers, 'Light.'"4 This statement has interesting implications. By admitting that he most desires light, the candidate, even if he is a Christian, is admitting that he is currently in darkness. The Kentucky Monitor further clarifies what this light is by saying, "Masonic Light is the object of every Mason's search."5 The light the candidate is given is the light of Masonic teaching. For Christians, this type of language ought to be disturbing, as it closely parallels what we would say only about the light of Christ. It is difficult to see how a Christian could claim to have the light of Christ and yet still be in spiritual darkness.

According to Freemasonry, Christ is only one of many paths toward the light and toward the ultimate blessing of the Masonic afterlife. All Masonic candidates "shall declare a belief in one God."6 The ceremony for the Entered Apprentice asks each candidate, "Do you believe in the existence of God, the Creator?"7 Freemasonry calls this god "The Great Architect of the Universe."8 This, however, does not mean that the candidate believes in the same God and Creator of the universe in whom Christians put their trust. On the contrary, Allen Roberts, a Masonic writer, states, "In his private devotions a Mason will pray to Jehovah, Mohammed, Allah, Jesus, or the Deity of his choice. In a Masonic Lodge, however, the Mason will find the name of his Deity within the Great Architect of the Universe."9 The Monitor explicitly says, "[Masonry] makes no profession of Christianity."10 Thus, one may join Freemasonry without believing in Jesus Christ yet still be taught "that true Freemasonry gives to a man a well-spent life, and assurance of a glorious immortality."11

The path to this assurance of a glorious immortality can only be entered through the light of Freemasonry and can be found apart from Jesus Christ. If Freemasonry is the gate to the path toward the Masonic afterlife and if belief in any deity is the fence on either side of this path, good works are its stepping stones. In the closing prayer of its closing ceremony, the Kentucky Monitor states:

"Make us sensible of the renewed obligations we are under to love thee supremely, and to be friendly to each other. May all our irregular passions be subdued, and may we daily increase in Faith, Hope, and Charity; but more especially in that Charity which is the bond of peace and the perfection of virtue. May we practice thy precepts, that we may finally obtain thy promises, and find an entrance through the gates into the temple and city of our God."12 (italics mine)

This quotation, which includes biblical allusions, indicates that the entrance to the afterlife may be obtained, as is evident from the use of the word that, through friendliness toward others, through perfecting our virtues, and by supremely loving the Great Architect of the Universe, a god who has subsumed God the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ.

Throughout all of the Masonic literature, one is taught time and time again that the path to the afterlife is a pure life accomplished through good works. This path of salvation is dependent not on God's grace, but on the actions of the Mason. This course of action, with or without Jesus Christ, but definitely not apart from the light of Freemasonry, results in the "assurance of a glorious immortality."13 Thus Freemasonry teaches a works gospel devoid of the grace or atonement of Jesus Christ.

A Biblical Response
This works gospel taught by Freemasonry leaves its followers with a false hope and assurance in a heavenly afterlife. Indeed, from a biblical and Christian perspective, this "path of salvation" is anything but. In fact, this path is a deceitful, heretical one that leads to a false sense of eternal security.

Candidates for Freemasonry implicitly confess that they are in darkness and in need of light. This is true even of Christians who join the Masons. For a Christian — one who has already found the light of Jesus — this is completely contradictory to Scripture. In the Gospel of John, Jesus says, "I am the light of the world. Whoever follows me will never walk in darkness, but will have the light of life" (John 8:12). Freemasonry teaches that "the full glory of Masonic Light will shine in his heart and he will go forth to bear the light aloft and let it shine among men."14 This is difficult to understand if one holds to biblical teaching that, with Christ in our lives, "[We] are the light of the world" and that we should "let [our] light shine before men, that they may see [our] good deeds and praise [our] Father in heaven" (Matthew 5:14-16). It appears that the position of a Christian Mason is untenable in that both the light of Christ and the "light" of Freemasonry are to shine in him. As Steve Tsoukalas, a Christian expert on Masons, says, "For this reason (and others), one cannot be a Christian and an informed Mason at the same time."15

Another concern involves the Masonic understanding of the person of God. Freemasonry is clear in its indication of God as "the Great Architect of the Universe."16 He is the real god, while all others — Jesus, Allah, the Buddha — are subsumed into him. No matter what name you may personally call him, Freemasonry teaches that all worship and serve the same God. Yet the Bible is quite clear in its teaching about worshiping other gods. The first of the Ten Commandments says, "You shall have no other gods before me" (Exodus 20:3). Yet a Christian Mason may join his fellow Masons in worshiping Allah, Buddha or any other god, all under the canopy of "the Great Architect of the Universe." As Tsoukalas points out, "Nowhere does the Bible teach that God can be called by various names when the content, character, and attributes of the gods known by those various other names clash with Yahweh."17 Yet this is the very thing that a Christian who joins the Masons engages in. This clearly makes the Christian an idolater.

The impossibility of rectifying Christianity and Freemasonry in regard to the path of salvation is perhaps most clear in the teaching concerning the actual path itself, since according to Freemasonry, it is "purity of life and conduct which is essential to his gaining admission to the Celestial Lodge above."18 Christianity teaches, however, that this purity of life and conduct can only be gained through the grace of God and through the sacrificial atonement of Jesus Christ. Even the non-Christian Mason is given the assurance that a pure life will gain him admittance into heaven. But this is a false claim.
This is the real tragedy of Freemasonry. Men may openly reject Christ yet truly believe they are assured a place in the Celestial Lodge above. Jesus, however, taught that "If you do not believe that I am the one I claim to be, you will indeed die in your sins" (John 8:24b). By trusting in their own righteousness, a righteousness gained by works, they miss out on the free gift of God's grace. By trusting in whatever god they claim and in the false assurances of Freemasonry, they miss the one true path to salvation. Jesus said, "I am the way and the truth and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me" (John 14:6). The book of Acts reiterates, "Salvation is found in no one else, for there is no other name under heaven given to men by which we must be saved" (Acts 4:12).

My heart breaks for people like my grandfather, people who have heard the hollow assurances and false hope of Freemasonry in a heavenly afterlife, one that can be reached apart from the grace and sacrifice of Christ. Freemasonry does indeed hold to a belief in an afterlife. It teaches a path of salvation that has at its core the "light" of Masonic teaching and a form of works righteousness, but it is a path devoid of the atoning work of Jesus. It holds out this plan of salvation as a hope and an assurance to people who may claim a belief in any god whatsoever while rejecting the Lord Jesus Christ. Ultimately, though, this is a false hope and a deceitful assurance, and one that is incompatible with the teachings of Christianity. My prayer is that others like my grandfather might be delivered from this lie and might come to know the True and Living God and accept the free gift of grace through our Lord Jesus Christ and thereby gain admittance into God's eternal heaven.