DOCTRINES OF CULTS
Doctrine 35 / 36: The Occult
When Jesus went into the wilderness, Satan tempted Him by telling Him to worship him. It seems that beginning at the fall of Lucifer in Isaiah 14, Satan's desire is that people would worship him, by following him and not following God. There are many ways in which he does this; some of them are not as frequently recognized as being of him. For example, liars and murderers are said to be people whose actions take after the father of lies, the devil (John 8:44). However, in recent times, the following of Satan has not been hid, and there are people that claim to simply be worshippers and followers of Satan.
The First Church of Satan started in San Francisco in the 1960's by Anton La Vey. He promoted the worship of Satan by name, and said that since man was simply full of carnal passions, he may as well just give in to them. Sex has always played a large part in the church of Satan and its religious ceremonies. Sacrifices, animal and even human, are also known to be performed in certain rituals of devil worship as well. People are drawn to this occultic worship for numerous reasons. Some of them partake in devil worship simply to rebel against the standards. For example, many young people find interest in it because they know that their parents would be opposed to it. Others join because of the sexual acts that are accompanied with it. Since these sexual perversions are allowed in that society, people join them to simply allow their lusts to run uncontrolled and remain accepted.
Spiritism is another way in which Satan draws people to follow him. Spiritism is the interaction of humans with spirit beings of different forms. This includes necromancy, divinations, and speaking with familiar spirits. The Bible gives an example of this type of activity in 1 Samuel 28, when King Saul went to the witch at Endor, and asked counsel of her. To her surprise, the dead prophet Samuel actually spoke to her. Some of these spiritist practices are proven to be hoaxes, however these things do exist, and there can be communication between spirits and humans. Some of these spirits, which are devils, fallen angels, will pretend to be a dead relative of the person seeking them. Due to the knowledge that devils have of people that have lived (Satan is not omniscient, but he is very observant and knows of people from the past), they are able to communicate facts about them that nobody else living could possibly know. These devils deceive people that the spirits of the dead are actually speaking to them, however the Bible teaches that those that are dead without Christ are in hell already (Luke 16:19-23). In Deuteronomy 18:10-11, the Bible directly forbids the practices of divination (foretelling the future), consulting with familiar spirits, and necromancy (speaking with the dead). Ouija boards are another medium through which access into occultic practices begin. They are not just harmless board games.
Another from of following the devil that has become prominent in America as a result of the Harry Potter series of books is that of witchcraft. Witchcraft is the art of using magic, or supernatural powers, to accomplish something. As with Spiritism, some have disregarded witchcraft, considering it a hoax, or some other illusion. While certainly there have been cases of these, the Bible teaches that Satan does have the power to perform signs and lying wonders (2 Thessalonians 2:9). Wicca is the name of the practice that came from the Celts in Ireland, from which came the name witch. A witch is a female practitioner of Wicca, and a male would technically be called a wizard or a warlock. Witchcraft is often accompanied by drugs, which tend to open up people to devilish influences and possessions. The man possessed with a devil in Mark was able to break chains; it is no surprise that supernatural events would take place around such situations. Enchantments (magic spells), witches, charmers and wizards are also forbidden in Deuteronomy 18:10-11.
A less obvious practice of the occult is in the area of fortune-telling and astrology. In most, if not all, newspapers in America, there is included a horoscope. The word horoscope comes from the Greek words meaning "hour" and "sight." It means looking at the times, and specifically divination based upon the time of a person's birth. A horoscope is an astrologer's prediction about a person's life based on the position of the heavenly bodies and the date of the person's birth. Horoscopes should not be treated as a game or as a silly comic in the paper. Rather, God again directly prohibits the "observer of times" and him that "useth divination" (Deuteronomy 18:10).
Satan has power to perform signs and lying wonders, and he has a desire to deceive and to devour (John 8:44; 1 Peter 5:8). Care must be given to avoid being sucked into his traps. God has promised power through His Holy Spirit by the humiliation of man. Satanism and other occultic practices promise power through self-exaltation and the desire to satisfy carnal lusts.
"Greater is he that is in you, than he that is in the world."
Showing posts with label Satan. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Satan. Show all posts
Wednesday, April 16, 2008
Wednesday, April 2, 2008
Thesis 22/36: The Spirit World
DOCTRINES OF ESCHATOLOGY
Doctrine 22 / 36: The Spirit World
It is easy today for Christians to mistake what they can see, as being the "real world," while 2 Corinthians 4:18 says that what can be seen is only temporal, but the eternal is invisible. The Christian life is a war, fought against spiritual forces, principalities and powers, which are led by Satan (Ephesians 6:11-12). The warfare is not carnal, but spiritual, and must be recognized as such before it can be fought properly (2 Corinthians 10:3-4).
The Bible speaks of angels all the way back in the book of Genesis. Two angels went to Sodom, to pull Lot out of it before they destroyed it (Genesis 19:1, 12-13). They are described as "men" (Genesis 19:12), and throughout the Bible it can be seen that angels can often take the form of ordinary men. So much so, that in Hebrews, Christians are admonished to be hospitable to all men because they may be entertaining angels without knowing it (Hebrews 13:2). Contrary to modern folklore, in the Bible, angels are never described as having wings nor being female. They are incredibly powerful beings. They destroyed the cities of Sodom and Gomorrah. One angel is said to have slain 185,000 Assyrians in one night (2 Kings 19:35). An angel smote king Herod so that he died in an instant because he did not give God glory (Acts 12:23). Nowhere does it ever plainly state when angels and other spiritual beings were created, but we do know that they were around when God laid the foundations of the earth, as the angels were there singing at the time (Job 38:4-7).
Angels were created for God's purposes, along with other spiritual beings. However, Isaiah 14 tells the story of one such being that puffed himself up and desired more for himself than God had designed for him. His name is Lucifer (Isaiah 14:12-15). This fall of Satan (Luke 10:18), must have happened before Genesis 3, as he then shows up in the Garden of Eden tempting Eve (Genesis 3:1-6; Ezekiel 28:13). It appears that when Satan fell, he took some of God's angels with him, possibly one third of them (Revelation 12:4). These fallen angels now help Satan with his purposes of lying, murdering, and stealing (John 8:44). Satan still desires the worship that he wanted in Isaiah 14, and he is walking around the earth today seeking whom he may devour (1 Peter 5:8).
Satan's fallen angels first show up in Genesis 6, where "the sons of God" came upon the daughters of men and produced giant offspring. This intermixing was one of the reasons that God determined to destroy the world with a flood. These fallen angels show up again in strong force during the Gospels. During the life of Christ and of His apostles, they are found often possessing the bodies of men and women (Matthew 4:24; 8:16; 9:32; 12:22; Acts 8:7; 16:16). They are able to give supernatural strength, they cause men to hurt themselves, and be naked (Mark 5:3-4, 15). However, they are always subject to Jesus' word (Mark 5:8). Also, as Satan himself pretends to be a good thing, "an angel of light," even so do his ministers make a show of being something good to deceive people (2 Corinthians 11:14-15).
Satan himself is not somebody that a Christian ought to take lightly. The Bible describes him as a roaring lion (1 Peter 5:8). He is not someone to make jokes against or to rail on, "Michael the archangel, when contending with the devil he disputed about the body of Moses, durst no bring against him a railing accusation, but said, The Lord rebuke thee" (Jude 1:9). An angel is able to kill 185,000 men in a night, and Michael is a chief of the angels, an archangel. Yet, Michael himself did not even dare to rail on Satan when disputing over Moses' body, but rather turned it over to the Lord. How foolish are people when they assume that they can rail on evil powers, or to make fun or light of them. Foolish songs such as, "And if the Devil doesn't like it he can sit on a tack," should have no place in the church. The sons of Sceva in Acts 19:13-17 could help teach this lesson. Seven of them came in to exorcise an evil spirit, yet they were overcome and ended up departing "naked and wounded." The spiritual warfare is not a game.
While certain care must be taken in dealing with Satan and spiritual forces, knowing that there is a great war going on between Christians and the Devil, it is necessary to realize that this war is not a war between God and Satan. Dualism teaches that there is an eternal battle between good and evil, between God and Satan, and only time will tell which force will end up being stronger. The fact of the matter is that God created Satan and at times uses him as His tool. There is no contest for God to deal with Satan; simply at His word, the battle would be over. And in fact, His word has already been pronounced in Revelation 20. Satan will be bound for 1,000 years, and then after that will be "cast into the lake of fire... and shall be tormented day and night for ever and ever" (Revelation 20:10). God is sovereign over all of His creations, including the spiritual ones. The Christian must look to Him and His power to win the war. Stand in His might (Ephesians 6:10).
"Greater is he that is in you, than he that is in the world."
Doctrine 22 / 36: The Spirit World
It is easy today for Christians to mistake what they can see, as being the "real world," while 2 Corinthians 4:18 says that what can be seen is only temporal, but the eternal is invisible. The Christian life is a war, fought against spiritual forces, principalities and powers, which are led by Satan (Ephesians 6:11-12). The warfare is not carnal, but spiritual, and must be recognized as such before it can be fought properly (2 Corinthians 10:3-4).
The Bible speaks of angels all the way back in the book of Genesis. Two angels went to Sodom, to pull Lot out of it before they destroyed it (Genesis 19:1, 12-13). They are described as "men" (Genesis 19:12), and throughout the Bible it can be seen that angels can often take the form of ordinary men. So much so, that in Hebrews, Christians are admonished to be hospitable to all men because they may be entertaining angels without knowing it (Hebrews 13:2). Contrary to modern folklore, in the Bible, angels are never described as having wings nor being female. They are incredibly powerful beings. They destroyed the cities of Sodom and Gomorrah. One angel is said to have slain 185,000 Assyrians in one night (2 Kings 19:35). An angel smote king Herod so that he died in an instant because he did not give God glory (Acts 12:23). Nowhere does it ever plainly state when angels and other spiritual beings were created, but we do know that they were around when God laid the foundations of the earth, as the angels were there singing at the time (Job 38:4-7).
Angels were created for God's purposes, along with other spiritual beings. However, Isaiah 14 tells the story of one such being that puffed himself up and desired more for himself than God had designed for him. His name is Lucifer (Isaiah 14:12-15). This fall of Satan (Luke 10:18), must have happened before Genesis 3, as he then shows up in the Garden of Eden tempting Eve (Genesis 3:1-6; Ezekiel 28:13). It appears that when Satan fell, he took some of God's angels with him, possibly one third of them (Revelation 12:4). These fallen angels now help Satan with his purposes of lying, murdering, and stealing (John 8:44). Satan still desires the worship that he wanted in Isaiah 14, and he is walking around the earth today seeking whom he may devour (1 Peter 5:8).
Satan's fallen angels first show up in Genesis 6, where "the sons of God" came upon the daughters of men and produced giant offspring. This intermixing was one of the reasons that God determined to destroy the world with a flood. These fallen angels show up again in strong force during the Gospels. During the life of Christ and of His apostles, they are found often possessing the bodies of men and women (Matthew 4:24; 8:16; 9:32; 12:22; Acts 8:7; 16:16). They are able to give supernatural strength, they cause men to hurt themselves, and be naked (Mark 5:3-4, 15). However, they are always subject to Jesus' word (Mark 5:8). Also, as Satan himself pretends to be a good thing, "an angel of light," even so do his ministers make a show of being something good to deceive people (2 Corinthians 11:14-15).
Satan himself is not somebody that a Christian ought to take lightly. The Bible describes him as a roaring lion (1 Peter 5:8). He is not someone to make jokes against or to rail on, "Michael the archangel, when contending with the devil he disputed about the body of Moses, durst no bring against him a railing accusation, but said, The Lord rebuke thee" (Jude 1:9). An angel is able to kill 185,000 men in a night, and Michael is a chief of the angels, an archangel. Yet, Michael himself did not even dare to rail on Satan when disputing over Moses' body, but rather turned it over to the Lord. How foolish are people when they assume that they can rail on evil powers, or to make fun or light of them. Foolish songs such as, "And if the Devil doesn't like it he can sit on a tack," should have no place in the church. The sons of Sceva in Acts 19:13-17 could help teach this lesson. Seven of them came in to exorcise an evil spirit, yet they were overcome and ended up departing "naked and wounded." The spiritual warfare is not a game.
While certain care must be taken in dealing with Satan and spiritual forces, knowing that there is a great war going on between Christians and the Devil, it is necessary to realize that this war is not a war between God and Satan. Dualism teaches that there is an eternal battle between good and evil, between God and Satan, and only time will tell which force will end up being stronger. The fact of the matter is that God created Satan and at times uses him as His tool. There is no contest for God to deal with Satan; simply at His word, the battle would be over. And in fact, His word has already been pronounced in Revelation 20. Satan will be bound for 1,000 years, and then after that will be "cast into the lake of fire... and shall be tormented day and night for ever and ever" (Revelation 20:10). God is sovereign over all of His creations, including the spiritual ones. The Christian must look to Him and His power to win the war. Stand in His might (Ephesians 6:10).
"Greater is he that is in you, than he that is in the world."
Tuesday, August 14, 2007
What are you walking according to?
What are you walking according to? Forgive the bad English: "According to what are you walking?" just didn't sound as good to me for a title...(Eph 2:1) And you hath he quickened, who were dead in trespasses and sins;
(Eph 2:2) Wherein in time past ye walked according to the course of this world, according to the prince of the power of the air, the spirit that now worketh in the children of disobedience:
(Eph 2:3) Among whom also we all had our conversation in times past in the lusts of our flesh, fulfilling the desires of the flesh and of the mind; and were by nature the children of wrath, even as others.
This is part of the passage that I am working on memorizing right now, and when thinking on these verses some things have made me think.
- First of all, I think of the greatness of God for His grace in making me alive, in quickening me as I was dead in trespasses and sins, and had no hope apart from Christ (vs. 12)
- "In time past" is when a Christian was supposed to walk according to the course of this world. It should not be said of us, that we presently walk according to the course of this world. When someone comes face to face with the Almighty God, there will be a change in that person's life.
- That phrase in bold was the most powerful one to me. When I walk according to the flesh and not the Spirit, and my life demonstrates the works of the flesh, then it could be said of me that I am walking according to the prince of the power of the air - that's Satan. When I am not walking in the Spirit of God, then I am walking according to Satan. I am acting just like my arch-enemy that is trying to kill me. I want to be different from the children of disobedience and the children of wrath. I want the Holy Spirit of God to be so real and so protruding from my life that there would never be any similarities between my walk, and the walk that is according to the spirit working in the children of disobedience.
So, what are you walking according to today? Just a thought...
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