“The Chosen” Biblical Consultant met Christ via New Age/Eastern Meditation?

Many of the people involved with The Chosen are now very influential–Christians listen to them. Which is proving more and more unfortunate as some things these folks are involved with or advocate are far from biblical.

As Don Veinot notes, “If Richard Rohr, the Eastern practices of Contemplative Prayer and the Enneagram are spiritual tools that those associated with The Chosen admire and advocate, fans are very likely to trust these “tools” as safe and helpful in their personal spiritual pursuits. That would be a tragedy.” [1]

While concerns about The Chosen are being revealed on an almost daily basis, it is nevertheless shocking to learn that Rabbi Jason Sobel, one of three Biblical Consultants for The Chosen, claims to have met Christ in heaven through Eastern/New Age meditation.

Speaking on Sid Roth’s, It’s Supernatural, Rabbi Sobel states:

I wanted a real relationship, a real encounter with the Lord. So I was going to synagogue, study with my rabbi, but through martial arts and yoga, I became a Jew Bu, a new age Jew, a Jewish Buddhist. I’d meditate for hours a day. One day as I was meditating, my soul began to vibrate. It left my body. I could see my body there. It went through the clouds, and the next thing I know I was in heaven and I saw this King on this throne, in this glorious light. I felt the power of God pulsating through every cell of my body. (emphasis mine) [2]

Every fabric of my being began to come alive with the power and the presence of God. I had never felt anything like this. And this King on this throne told me I was called to serve him. And I knew that that King was Jesus, that it was Yeshua. [3]

But was it Jesus? The Christ of the Bible?

Sobel was not engaging in biblical meditation, where the mind is active while thinking about the scripture. As Ray Yungen has explained, our minds are like rushing rivers. Our thoughts go here, go there, our thought process is active and continuous. In contemplative prayer, Eastern meditation, and New Age meditation, all thought is stilled. The active river of our minds is dammed up–the rushing river is now a still pool of water. This can be done by repeating a word or phrase over and over until thought ceases and one enters the silence.

But, this repetition of a phrase or word is exactly what the Bible says we should not do:

But when ye pray, use not vain repetitions, as the heathen do: for they think that they shall be heard for their much speaking. (Matthew 6:7)

The silence of Eastern and New Age meditation (and contemplative prayer as well) is rich ground for false visions, lying “Christs,” and supernatural experiences. This practice can addle or alter theology, and often seems to lead to an inability to distinguish or be concerned about the difference between Catholic teaching on Salvation and the Truth of the Bible.

Some time later, after Jason Sobel became what Sid Roth describes as a “strong believer,” Rabbi Sobel claims he was taken up to heaven again. He told Roth:

Oh, it was incredible. So, after all of this happens, I’m like, Lord, I want to encounter you. I want to have a supernatural encounter with you. So I’m praying, and again, all of a sudden my body begins to vibrate. And the next thing I know, I’m standing in heaven and I’m standing before the throne and there’s a throng of worshipers around the throne of the Lord. And every time a syllable comes out of their mouth, my entire body shakes like a bass drum under the power of the worship and of the presence of God in heaven. And I hear two songs being sung. One is a Hebrew song, okay. It sings about the rock of Israel. And one was like a contemporary worship song. [4] (emphasis mine)

And I say, Lord, what does this mean? And the Lord brought me to the book of Revelation, where it says, they sang the song of Moses and the Lamb and spoke to me saying this represents the great revival that’s going to happen and is going to happen as a result of Jew and Gentile coming together. The song of Moses represented the song of the Jewish people and the song of the Lamb represented the New Testament and the believer song. And when those two songs merge, it’s a picture of Jew and Gentile, the one new man coming together, that’s going to help usher in a great move of God. The greatest move of God, the world has seen. [5] (emphasis mine)

It seems that Sobel has some spiritual alignment with Bill Johnson of Bethel Redding. Johnson has prophesied over Jason Sobel, and Sobel claims that after Johnson prayed for him, “there was activation in my life.” [6]

Activate or activation are terms closely associated with the New Apostolic Reformation, and are also used by hyper-charismatics. We will be back with Part 2, the Jason Sobel/Bill Johnson article as soon as possible.

Source Notes:

1. https://midwestoutreach.org/2022/01/06/the-chosen-dilemma/

2. https://www.fgbt.org/Testimonies/jason-sobel.html https://sidroth.org/television/tv-archives/rabbi-jason-sobel/

3. Ibid

4. https://www.fgbt.org/Testimonies/jason-sobel.html https://sidroth.org/television/tv-archives/rabbi-jason-sobel/

5. Ibid

6. Jason Sobel on Sid Roth’s It’s Supernatural 5/16/21