Opus 2025-187: Witch Reality

Was the witch of Endor really a witch or was she just a reporter for the New York Times?  Or let me put it another way, was the witch of Endor really capable of raising the dead and thus demonstrating great power or was she just a charlatan living off the foolishness and gullibility of other people?

Take a look at the account in I Samuel. It begins,

1 Samuel 28:7 (KJV) Then said Saul unto his servants, Seek me a woman that hath a familiar spirit, that I may go to her, and enquire of her. And his servants said to him, Behold, [there is] a woman that hath a familiar spirit at Endor.

At this point we can assume that Saul and his servants believe there is something to being a witch.  One thing follows another, Saul meets the witch and she agrees to raise Samuel.  Here is where it gets really interesting.  It works.

(1Sa 28:12 KJV)  And when the woman saw Samuel, she cried with a loud voice: and the woman spake to Saul, saying, Why hast thou deceived me? for thou art Saul.

I could be totally wrong but every time I read this I get the feeling that she is really surprised to see a genuine specter.  My opinion is that she usually had time to prepare her stage and her mark so that they saw what she wanted them to see.  

C.S. Lewis had a comment on how our culture deals with the demonic powers,

p. ix, “There are two equal and opposite errors into which our race can fall about the devils.  One is to disbelieve in their existence.  The other is to believe, and feel an excessive and unhealthy interest in them.  They themselves are equally pleased by both errors,...”  

Ever since the Garden of Eden mankind has been involved in a war between Almighty God and Satan.  Everyone picks sides whether they know it or not.  The battle is coming out in the open in our modern era.  Satan feels like the citizens of the world are ready to join his team.

Don’t be one of those foolish enough to go in that direction.

Lewis, C.S.  The Screwtape Letters.  Norwalk, Connecticut:  The Easton Press, 2002.

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Opus 2024-449: Full Strength

I enjoyed watching Star Wars, at least the first three to come out.  I remember a phrase that I might have heard there or I could have heard it somewhere else, “The force is strong in this one.”

I think perhaps that we as Christians have a similar thought.  We believe that there are some people where the Spirit is strong within them.  One big difference is that we believe everyone has access to the reality of the Holy Spirit being strong in them.

Keep in mind the differences between the Christian view of the Holy Spirit and the pagan Star Wars view of the Force.  The Force represents the Ying and Yang.  It says that the Force is the same but you have the dark side and non-dark side.  You will notice in drawings representing this duality that there is a small circle of black in the white and a small circle of white in the black.  I don’t know what adjective they use for it.  It is not moral or personal.  It is neutral.  It depends on you to direct it.  Both evil and good are the same power but are channeled differently.

The Holy Spirit is a personal, moral “being” that wants to work through us.  He, and the Bible refers to the Holy Spirit as He, wants to empower us to be able to live the righteous life that God wants.  

They are two different views of humanity and the nature of reality.  Feel free to enjoy the fantasy of Star Wars but be aware that it presents a world view that Satan would love you to embrace.

May the Spirit be with you.

homo unius libri

Opus 2024-105: Spiritual warfare

I have been listening to a podcast by Michael Heiser, which deals with the spiritual realm.  He talks about something called The Divine Council, and how God seem to have a group of spiritual beings that He sat with as He ruled and oversaw the world.  The jury is still out on that for me.  But one of the things he said dealt with the world view that they had in ancient times.  They were much more aware of the spiritual realm.  As I think about that, I believe that is true.

We have not had to deal with the forces of evil in the same way that they did in the ancient world.  The 17th, 18th, 19th and 20th centuries were a time when the Holy Spirit was filling believers.  The Holy Spirit kept the forces of evil at bay.  Evil was still active but forced to work in different ways.

At the end of the 20th century and in the beginning now of the 21st century, we find that the church is turning away from God and I’m wondering if He is withdrawing His Holy Spirit in such a way that demonic forces have less to check them now and can move more in the open.

Does this also affect us in the area of health and medicine?  We have a real uptick in cancer and other illnesses right now.  We have blamed that on these vaccines going around.  Could it be that the removal of the Holy Spirit coincides with the vaccines in such a way that the forces of evil are much more able to impose sickness and illness on human beings?

As I look at my personal circle, I don’t see a lot of the illnesses that the world is experiencing.  My family, friends, church, and others that I have contact with are not reporting massive cancers and other things like that.  The reports we get are at least one step away.  I am not seeing lots of deaths from this type of thing.  This has to be more than coincidence because these people seem to be serious followers of Jesus.

Is the other shoe just waiting to drop?  Or the cancer is growing and we just don’t know about it yet?  Am I going to drop dead tomorrow?  It’s hard to know.  Disease, sickness, cancer, accidents are all a part of life.  But I wonder.  I remember the book None of These Diseases, where it is made clear that God provides for our health often through the regulations of the Law. An example is circumcision.  We know that God commanded it for his people.  The modern gentile world adopted it largely.  I would imagine the areas that would be labeled as white supremacist have been largely circumcised.  We know that it reduces cervical cancer in women.  We now know that it makes it much harder to catch HIV.  How many other diseases and sicknesses are held at bay by obedience to God?

This is one of those things that we could never prove scientifically, but we have reason to believe, in faith, is true.  It would fit with the personality of God.  It would reflect His desire to care for His people and yet still maintain our free will.  It could be one of those secret benefits that we don’t know about until later.

Spiritual warfare or coincidence?  As someone once said, it amazing of much coincidence there is when God is involved.

homo unius libri

Opus 2023-195: A Nefarious Review

I don’t know if you have seen the movie “Nefarious”.  It was well done and stimulates the mental synapses.  Biblically and theologically it had a lot of rough edges and holes but it gives insight into what is happening in our country and what the two sides are like.

If I were a demon trying to bring down the United States I would stage a demon possession that would look just like what we have in president Biden:  An empty suit with a past that deserves possession, often himself but with key moments of announcements and signings where he is taken over to advance the agenda.  It would explain a man who can on occasion actually complete a sentence and other times just wanders around looking for Jill.

Reversed, it might be like the filling of the Spirit in the OT.  There you had the Spirit bestowed only on selected individuals and for a period of time.  Saul is a good example.  That changed at Pentecost when the Holy Spirit became available to all believers.

We are in a spiritual battle in this country and we are finding out what would happen if they had a war and nobody showed up.  The one side that came late has the whole field to themselves.

I am not worried about the type of encounter in Nefarious.  Why would the devil waste his time manipiulating people who are already doing his will?  Believers don’t need to worry about demon possession as much as the drunk coming toward us at night.  Remember,

(1Jn 4:4 KJV)  Ye are of God, little children, and have overcome them: because greater is he that is in you, than he that is in the world.

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Opus 2016-147: Ignoring the Problem

A long time ago Alistair Begg was talking about the apostle Paul’s comments on spiritual warfare.  He said Paul doesn’t try to present a case for the existence of the devil, he just assumes it.  I can’t find the reference at his point but Hebert Schlossberg maintained that one of the assumptions we should have is that there is a spiritual realm and we are battling in it.  Remember the well known statement of C.S. Lewis about the devil.  He said there are two mistakes people make.  They either totally ignore him or give him too much attention. 

The problems that our world faces are based on spiritual malnutrition, not material shortages.  Take world hunger.  People are starving to death all around the world.  It isn’t because there isn’t enough food to feed them.  The problem is governmental coercion and personal selfishness.  It is in distribution and management, not production.  The same case can be made for most shortages.

How about unemployment.  Obviously there are some big issues but one of the contributing factors is an unwillingness to work.  It always amazes me then young men who seem alert and capable ask me for money outside a store when across the parking lot there is a sign saying, “Now hiring”.  Two things are necessary for a person like this.  They must be willing to work and willing to cut their life style to match their income.

We do live in a physical world.  There are physical needs and demands.  Those are real.  Our problem comes when we forget the spiritual forces and priorities that propel how we deal with those demands.  Saving is wise.  Hoarding is destructive.  Feasting is glorious.  Gluttony is a sin.

As long as our leaders and teachers refuse to address the spiritual we will continue to be like natural water, always running down hill and following the path of least resistence. 

Schlossberg, Herbert.  Idols for Destruction.  Nashville:  Thomas Nelson Publishers, 1983.

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Opus 2012-29, Angels to the Right of Me...

Angels have come up in our teaching and discussions at church recently.  To be honest, I don’t think about angels much.  Maybe I should.  I remember a book that I think was called This Present Darkness by Frank Peretti?  Someone gave me a copy.  It sat on my shelf for a couple of years before I got serious about reading it.  I don’t like the genre on the whole but I am glad I read the book.  It gave me some possible insights into spiritual warfare and the place of prayer.  Angels played a big part in the conflict of the plot.

Angels are part of the reason that we believe in blessings and grace not luck and chance.  We  Christians often forget this and tend to fall into the chance trap.  In reality, God is in charge and the angels are there keeping an eye on things.  We need to walk in joy in that assurance.

When I fell a few weeks ago I was groggy and in pain.  I had a glorious bloody scab on my head.  I had a big blood stain on the carpet.  As my brain began to clear I began to see how just a few inches either way could have spelled major injury in my life.  I could have been blinded, killed or crippled.  Maybe I could have a T-shirt made up that paraphrases one you have seen.  It has the words “all I got was this crummy T-shirt.”  Mine would say, “I had a glorious moment of life threatening stupidity and all I got was this stupid scar.” 

I am convinced as I reconstruct what happened that my guardian angel (angels?) decided that since I insisted on acting stupid all they could do was minimize the damage.  I think they turned me into a guided missile and caused me to hit in the one way that would allow me to walk away from my mistake.  I continue to thank them for their protection and God for His grace in action.

Have you thanked your angels today?

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