The Idolatry and False God of the Masonic Lodge

Freemasonry is not among the most well-known cults in the world. This is partly due to their major emphasis on secrecy. On the surface, it appears that masons are merely a group of men who seek to become better people through charity and civil service. After all, they tout their organization as one that “makes good men better.”

Unbeknownst to most, freemasons fill the pews of a large majority of evangelical churches around the world. They serve as pastors, deacons, elders, and laity. I would like to examine some of the teachings of the Masonic Lodge and compare them to Scripture to see if masonry is compatible with true Christianity.

The Lodge System of Masonic Education, published by the Grand Lodge of North Carolina states,

Freemasonry is neither a religion, a political organization, nor a social club. It interferes with none of these. It has for its foundation the basic principles of the Fatherhood of God and the Brotherhood of Man. It teaches a belief in a Supreme Being, in the immortality of the soul, and that the Holy Book is the inestimable gift of God to man as the rule and guide for his faith and practice

The implication here is that freemasonry tries to distinguish itself from a religion, yet, it believes and operates the way a religion does. By requiring that its members believe in a “Supreme Being,” members must implicitly deny the exclusivity of Jesus Christ. In other words, this “Supreme Being” can be the Christian God, the Hindu god(s), the Jewish God, the Muslim God, Allah, or any number of other false gods.

On page 47 of this publication, it is required that freemasons hold a belief in God as the “Grand Architect of the Universe,” a universal god that freemasons come together in ecumenical unity to worship. According to California Freemason, an online publication, in an article titled “The Meaning of the Great Architect of the Universe,”

No one owns God, just as surely as no one owns “truth.” Not one among us can be truly certain about the nature of God, so “Great Architect of the Universe” is a particularly apt reference to the Deity, as the reference acknowledges both the design and the designer without staking a claim on some exclusive jurisdiction. Deists, Christians – both Catholic and Protestant – Hindus, Muslims, Buddhists, and men of many other faiths have been welcomed into our Fraternity. One point of commonality is their belief in the one God. Masons believe there is one God and one God only. Masons also know that since time immemorial, people have employed many different ways of seeking and expressing what they know of God, of their experiences and relationship with that which transcends all knowing…Masonic use of the title “Great Architect of the Universe” is our reverential denotation of the Deity, of that eternal name which cannot be named.

This is clearly a denial of the Scriptures as the final authority of the Christian faith, and clearly a denial of Jesus Christ, who states, “I am the way, and the truth, and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me. (John 14:6)” The true God of the Bible is not a universal god among multiple false religions.

Masons deny the biblical concept of Heaven, an eternal fellowship with Jesus Christ, and hold a false belief of the afterlife in a place called “The Grand Lodge Above.” In the Handbook for Masonic Memorial Services, published by the Grand Lodge of Iowa, Ed Armstead states as part of the York Rite of Freemasonry for masonic funeral services,

In the New Testament Jesus said, “In my Father’s house are many mansions – I go to prepare a place for you.” This scripture gives us a vision. As we are bidding farewell to a Brother, someone in the Grand Lodge above is saying “Welcome my Brother – follow Me and I will seat you with the Craft.”

This concept of a grand Masonic lodge in heaven is found nowhere in Scripture and this is a complete twisting of John 14:2, where Jesus states, “In my Father’s house are many rooms. If it were not so, would I have told you that I go to prepare a place for you,” where the King James Version uses the word “mansions” instead of “rooms.”

Freemasonry also denies the biblical doctrine of man’s fallen state by teaching that man is not sinful, only imperfect, and can achieve perfection by good works. The Michigan Masonic Monitor states,

By the Rough Ashlar we are reminded of our rude and imperfect state by nature; by the Perfect Ashlar, of that state of perfection at which we hope to arrive by a virtuous education, by our own endeavors, and by the blessing of God.

Scripture, of course, teaches that all men are born into a state of rebellion against God (Romans 5:12) and that nobody seeks Him (Romans 3:11). Further, Scripture teaches that it is by grace alone through faith alone, and not through meritorious works, virtuous education, or our own endeavors, that we are saved (Ephesians 2:8-9). The Michigan Masonic Monitor continues, appealing to the Scriptures but redefining the very meaning and purpose of them,

And by the Trestle Board we are reminded that, as the operative workman erects his temporal building agreeably to the rules and designs laid down by the master on his trestle board, so should we, both operative and speculative, endeavor to erect our own spiritual building agreeably to the rules and designs laid down by the Supreme Architect of the Universe in the Book of Life, or the Holy Scriptures, which is our Spiritual Trestle Board.

According to the Candidate Guide published by the Masons of California, prayer to the universal god of Freemasonry is a central act of the lodge.

A lodge cannot be opened or closed without prayer, which is offered by the master or chaplain. The prayer is universal in nature, and not particular to any one religion or faith. The act of invoking the blessings of Deity before and after our Masonic labors, however, is central to Masonic practice. At the end of prayer, each brother responds with the words “So Mote It Be,” which is an archaic phrase meaning “So may it ever be.”

The same publication discusses how, much like the Roman Catholic church, freemasons venerate and “hail” the saints, particularly John the Baptist and John the Evangelist, as “patrons” and “protectors,” stating,

These two venerable Christian gentlemen are represented in every lodge by “a central point (you) within a circle (your world, physically and spiritually), supported by two parallel lines (the Holy Saints John acting as your guardians and guides) surmounted by a Volume of Sacred Law (your faith).”

Taking the blood oath of the Masonic craft, as you can see, requires one to either explicitly or implicitly deny the doctrines of God and man that are taught in Scripture, and affirm that which God deems sinful. The idea that freemasonry holds to some form of secret knowledge outside of Scripture that holds the power to make men “better” is simply blasphemous. 2 Timothy 3:16-17 explicitly states that Scripture is sufficient to make the man of God complete,

All Scripture is breathed out by God and profitable for teaching, for reproof, for correction, and for training in righteousness, that the man of God may be complete, equipped for every good work.

The god of Freemasonry is an idol, a universal god that has no power to save. Prayer to this universal god is an act of worship to a being other than the Most High God, who says,

I am the LORD, and there is no other, besides me there is no God; I equip you, though you do not know me, that people may know, from the rising of the sun and from the west, that there is none besides me; I am the LORD, and there is no other. –Isaiah 45:5-6

If you or someone you know is caught up in this idolatry, particularly if you are a professing Christian, it is time to repent of this spiritual darkness and foolishness. Repent and believe the Gospel, because your craft is blasphemous against the true God, and He will not share His glory with your false God.

I am the LORD; that is my name; my glory I give to no other, nor my praise to carved idols. –Isaiah 42:8

[Contributed by Pulpit & Pen]

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