Saturday, February 5, 2011

Deuteronomy 18:10-12 The Evil of the Occult

Deuteronomy 18:10-12  "There shall not be found among you anyone who makes his son or his daughter pass through the fire, one who uses divination, one who practices witchcraft, or one who interprets omens, or a sorcerer,  or one who casts a spell, or a medium, or a spiritist, or one who calls up the dead.  For whoever does these things is detestable to the LORD; and because of these detestable things the LORD your God will drive them out before you.” (NASB)

I see it every time I drive to Fresno – the little house with the big neon sign that says, “Palm Reader”.  Although it is kind of unsightly it seems harmless enough.  Or is it?

What may seem harmless enough is actually something God hates.  How do we know?  Scripture tells us in Deuteronomy that He does.  My initial observation is that these things are nothing new.  The list includes witchcraft, sorcery, those who speak to the dead and etc.  Why would God hate these things?  Simply put, it is because they are a path into the spiritual realm that are apart from Him.  These are pathways into the spiritual realm provided by Satan.  They are evil.

You may say, “That was a long time ago” or “That was the Law and things have changed”.  Yes, God revealed a long time ago His hatred for this kind of evil.  That has not changed.  When you challenge that these taboos were done away with under the freedom of the believer in Christ I’d have to say – hold on a minute.  While it is true that some of the strict behavioral requirements of the Law were done away with in the Church era, those changes are articulated in Scripture.

When Peter was confused about the acceptance of the gentile’s diet he received a vision from the Lord telling him it was okay.    “A voice came to him, ‘Get up, Peter, kill and eat!’  But Peter said, ‘By no means, Lord, for I have never eaten anything unholy and unclean.’  Again a voice came to him a second time, ‘What God has cleansed, no longer consider unholy.’" Act 10:13-15 Now had God done something similar with these spiritualist activities there might be an argument.  But no such adjustment in what is acceptable is given regarding these occult activities.

Why does this matter?

Scripture tells us, “For our struggle is not against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the powers, against the world forces of this darkness, against the spiritual forces of wickedness in the heavenly places”. Ephesians 6:12  My friends, the spiritual realm is real and it is the primary place where the forces of holiness and evil are at war.  That war spills over into the physical realm, our realm, often enough.  When Satan rebelled against God Scripture says one third of the heavenly host (angels) went with him. (see Rev. 12-4)  Satan and His demons are at work today with strong influence in human behavior.

But some say, real evil is obvious; Hitler was evil.  Witches practicing their Wicca are harmless.  Poppycock!  Palm Readers at the carnival or in their neon lit little house on the highway are harmless too.  Double Poppycock!  These and others actively engaged in the occult are in direct violation of God’s instructions and they’re engaging evil directly.  Maybe they don’t know this but that’s what is going on.  It’s not the only place Satan is at work but it is one place.  If you think it seems harmless Satan is happy; his plan is working.  Although this form of evil is thinly veiled, it isn’t Satan’s plan to be up front with his nature.  Satan is all about the counterfeit and will deceive in any way possible.  “No wonder, for even Satan disguises himself as an angel of light”.  2Corinthians 11:14 

So what does all this mean to the believer?  It is important for the believer to know that Satan and his ways are real and to be able to recognize evil for what it is.  Why?  Because we are to avoid evil.  We are called to live decent and holy lives so it is completely inappropriate for a Christian to dabble in the occult.  “Be of sober spirit, be on the alert. Your adversary, the devil, prowls around like a roaring lion, seeking someone to devour.  But resist him, firm in your faith, knowing that the same experiences of suffering are being accomplished by your brethren who are in the world”.   1Peter 5:8-9  AMEN!

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