February 17, 2006

• I had a question given to me about mediums and how some of the new age thinking seems very Christian. I posted this answer when asked about the Witch of Endor. Most of you who know me (testimony 10/7/05) know that I spent years in the occult, and when I first came to Christianity I believed that the occult was not all that bad, for there were good witches and bad witches, good use of occult powers and bad use of occult powers. It took time for me to realize that this was not true. That often evil will disguise itself as good, to lure away an unsuspecting person, and then later reveal itself for what it is, until the person feels that they have been defeated and can no longer turn to God. This is a bold faced lie, and I thought that maybe the answer I posted might be helpful to some. I also look forward to hearing how you approach someone who is in the occult to show them that it is not what it seems to be.
  
  Having been in the occult, I know that answers such as you will go to Hell believing what you believe will not penetrate in most instances, that you have to take a person from where they are and show them how you come to the conclusions you come to in a loving and caring way. I really suspect that most that turn to the occult do so because they are seeking love and acceptance somewhere. That there is a lack in their life, and the control that the occult seems to offer is a safety factor for people, and less scary than trust or faith in God.

  
  

  Anyway, here is an answer I gave to someone.

  
  

  
  

  Thanks for coming to my site! I do wish you would read the book, The Beautiful Side of Evil by Johanna Michaelsen. I understand that you are believing that the medium work you are doing and the spirits that you are contacting are meant for good, but remember that there is satan who will deceive people, and seeks to mirror true experiences from God.

  
  

  Before speaking about the witch of Endor you may want to recall that the reason Saul sought her is because he did not obey God and God removed the Holy Spirit from Saul and passed it on to David. In those days, unlike Christians who have the Holy Spirit today, the Holy Spirit would stay with a selected person until there was a reason for Him to move on.

  
  

  In I Samuel 16 Saul realized that the Spirit of the Lord departed from Saul and that a distressing spirit troubled him. He became very jealous of David and repeatedly tried to kill David, but David acted honorably, choosing to let God deal with Saul. God is the one that made the commandment to come to Him, not to a medium or witch or sorcerer, and Saul initially forbade them to be in Israel. For a time he obeyed God, but when, after a life-time of disobedience to God, Saul’s encampment was surrounded by Philistines, Saul got scared (chapter 28), and disguised himself (did not go as whom he was) and sought the Witch of Endor because God was not speaking to Saul.  She might have physically fed him, but the message she gave him was not comforting. She saw Samuel (although I believe it was a familar spirit that looked like Samuel) who pronounced in verse 19 “Moreover the Lord will also deliver Israel with you into the hand of the Philistines, and tomorrow you and your sons will be with me…” That means that Saul and his sons were to be killed in this battle. That would not have been a comforting message.

  
  

  When people say that they are mediums I often wonder the source of what they are receiving. See, satan will counterfeit everything God does. You can see that in the book of Revelation when the beast receives a mortal wound and is raised up. The spirits that you may be seeking may look good externally, but pray and ask God to reveal what they really are to you. Often they are not the etheral spirits that one thinks.

  
  

  Once a person is dead they do not return to the earth as spirits, nor do they return in reincarnation. There is no Biblical proof of that. If we have asked Jesus to be the ruler in our lives and repented of our sins, and asked Jesus to forgive us, the Bible passage 2 Corinthians 5:8 “We are confident, yes, well pleased rather to be absent from the body and to be present with the Lord.” When we, as Christians die, we are present with Jesus, and I guarantee that we will not be seeking the earth or people on the earth, for we will be fulfilled in the place that Jesus prepared for us. He knows us so well that he knows the number of hairs on our head. No way will He not prepare a wonderful place for us.

  
  

  Those who do not know Jesus are sent to Death and Hades, where they will wait until the end times for a chance to face the judgement seat of God, and God will judge their deeds. I would not want to be in that group because I know that, while I do good, I could never do enough good, or be perfect, that there are sins that I needed forgiving for. I needed Jesus to cleanse me.

  
  

  There are many people, prophets, evangelists, pastors, teachers, who do speak words of truth and wisdom over people. This is not to be confused with mediums, for these people are getting their information straight from the Holy Spirit and God, and what they share with people will bring them closer to God.

  
  

  One interesting study to do is to check out the reaction of people whom Jesus healed. When they were healed they always praised God, they never praised Jesus. Jesus made the focus of the healed peoples’ worship– God, not himself. Many of the secular mediums are more intersted in THEIR prophesies, THEIR true statements, not that it would bring people to God.

  
  

  A demon can imitate an angel of light, a demon can imitate a spiritual being, a demon can imitate a dead person, a demon can read us so well by our actions and words to know what we want to hear and play back “comforting” words to us, to make us feel better, to get us to believe a lie. And a demon knows the word of God so well (look at the temptation of Jesus) for demons, before they became fallen angels, were up in Heaven in God’s praise and worship choir, they know what God said and can use the spiritual words, with a twist, to lead a person astray. Please be careful what and whom you invoke.

  
  

  Many people spend their lives looking for the supernatural, in big and grand things, but miss the supernatural in the little things like the Word of God, like the blessing of a new day, like a small act of kindness, a spiritual insight. Often God works so quietly that we don’t observe Him behind the scenes.

  
  

  From the occult studies I have done, I can honestly tell you that dealing in the realm of mediums can leave one open for trouble. But, God will use you if you are open, honest, humble, and willing to obey Him, and it may seem to be the same sort of power used, but trust me, the focus is different.

  
  

  I hope this is clear, I still recommend reading that book and finding a good pastor that you trust to talk with regarding these issues. Pastor Don spent endless hours with me sorting out much of this,

  
  

  Heather

  • 10:08 am
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