Exodus 22:18
"Thou shalt not suffer a witch to live."
Imagine you're working as a crossing guard at an elementary school entrance. Your job is to protect the crowds of children who are coming and going along the sidewalks and helping them to safely cross the road. And as you're doing your duty, you see running across the road towards the crowd of kids, a large dog that is foaming at the mouth and obviously suffering from rabies. Do you think you are being righteous if you were to kill that dog however you can? Wouldn't you think that it is best to take drastic measures against the disease and its carrier rather than to allow it to attack the children?
The Divine Lord views witchcraft, sorcery, wizardry, and necromancy as idolatry. They who practice these things are seen as seducers of the people, drawing them away from their allegiance to God. Witchcraft is seen as an attempt to manipulate the divine powers that are inherent in nature, by means of incantation and rituals apart from faith in the divine Lord, His trust, or ethical behavior. Another word for witchcraft is "divination" which entails all manner of spiritual practices such as fortune telling and conjuring spells for various purposes. The Greek word for the Hebrew word "witch" is pharmakeus, closely related to our modern word "pharmacy", and so much of what is done in witchcraft is drug use and herbal remedies. Whatever the means for their craft, God regards the entire conception of witches as, idolatry, counterfeit faith, and one word describes it all - fraud!
From God's standpoint it's seen as a rebellion against His word and law, and, as such, it is a capital crime.
1 Samuel 15:23
“For rebellion is as the sin of divination, and insubordination is as iniquity and idolatry. Because you have rejected the word of the Lord."
Witchcraft is diametrically opposed to the biblical faith. In short, it is unholy.
“Holy” means, given over to the Lord and thus reflecting his nature. And unholy spiritual practices are a counterfeit of that covenant. They give a false impression, a false hope. Now, this isn't to say that some good doesn't occur in their activities. Take for instance this analogy, a Witch is doing her work, she's grinding out her séances and readings, and she earns a good living doing it. A patron of hers pays her with a counterfeit twenty-dollar bill. She then takes that bill and pays her electric bill for her little palm reading shack, she likes to pay in cash. Then the electric company takes those twenty dollars and pays their employees with it, who then purchase food for their children. And the grocery store takes that twenty and attempts to deposit it at the bank where they finally discover that it's counterfeit. Now, look at all the good that came from that original commercial transaction. Many different people received spiritual goods, energy, and food. But ultimately it was all founded upon a lie, the counterfeit bill. Like it or not, God takes the 80,000-foot view. He sees the counterfeit in all of it. And he isn't kind about his judgment on these false gods and their practitioners. God sees them as rebels, as his enemies.
Leviticus 20:27
‘A man or woman who is a sorcerer [who pretends to consult the dead] or who is a witch shall most certainly be put to death and be stoned with stones; their blood is on them.’”
Recently, it has been reported that some self-proclaimed witches have said that spells being cast against President Trump during this election season will not work. They believe that President Trump has a powerful energy surrounding him in a hedge of protection. Certainly, Christians have been covering him in prayer for some time now. And apparently the occult has taken notice.
In NYC witches are casting spells over vote ballots and in favor of the Kamala Harris campaign. That should be a red flag for most any Christian, no matter your political views.
All this spiritual nonsense is happening as we are nearing the Halloween season. But how much power does the devil really have? Can these spells and demonic powers do harm to a Christian who has the Holy Spirit within them?
I don't think so...unless there remains an avenue for deception.
These "powers" are falsehoods really, materialism and humanism. At worse they confuse and fog the minds of people who are weak in faith. They misled. They draw our attention away from what is holy. They are unholy and therefore cannot enter into a person in whom the Holy Spirit dwells. As the Bible says, their house is clean and filled with the power of God. These wicked spirits have no power to overcome that. They can only hang around looking for an opportunity to lie and deceive and make a way if they can.
But there is a very real danger in fooling around with the occult just the same.
Matthew 12:43-45
“When the unclean spirit has gone out of a person, it passes through dry places seeking rest but finds none. Then it says, ‘I will return to my house from which I came.’ And when it comes, it finds the house empty, swept, and put in order. Then it goes and brings with it seven other spirits more evil than itself, and they enter and dwell there, and the last state of that person is worse than the first. So also, will it be with this evil generation.”
And it is for this reason that God commands that we put to death any access to all forms of idolatry and witchcraft. Because it's a disease that will worm its way into your spirit. And if you give in to it and give it an in, it will bring wicked friends with it.
What are we to do? We live in a society filled with occultism and reflections of idolatry and witchcraft that permeate every aspect of our lives. You can't escape it in America, this curse is everywhere, and our nation is living under that curse and judgement.
"So also, will it be with this evil generation."
We must understand that we are dealing with demonic forces. An unclean spirit is a demonic spirit. And the fact of the matter is there is an evil going out of the man. It was there and now it's gone. But it was there. And it is here among us now. Our culture has become enchanted and hypnotized by them. Literally people of all faiths and unfaiths are living with these familiar spirits within them and even tattooed upon their bodies. It has become more than simply accepted; it has become expected. And furthermore, these spirits are celebrated by young and old.
A demonic spirit cannot enter into someone unless it's been invited. There are spiritual laws in operation that prevent them from entering without permission. Common means used by these demons are occult beliefs such as witchcraft, and also by means of drugs, and alcohol. Just participating in any of these activities is not a guarantee that a demonic spirit will enter. What truly needs to happen is a rebellion against God. What happens is communion with God and his Spirit is cut off. Either by deception, or by direct disobedience to God's law. And then that evil spirit is free to work on entry.
Rebellion against God is the thing.
This is why God is a jealous God. He's jealous for you. He loves you and wants you to put to death ALL your rebellious desires. He knows the Prince of lies will come and deceive you if you allow him an opportunity. And the demons will not voluntarily give up their position once they are inside. And worse yet is a person who has been freed from those evil spirits but has not put to death ALL the evil things that have given them access in the first place.
When the returning demonic spirits come again they look for a legal right to return. They search the heart and mind of that soul and look for their legal permissions to come inside again.
I've experienced this.
One night, many years ago now, I was awakened by God's messengers who spoke in my thoughts saying, "wake up! And pray!" For about an hour I prayed over and over. And they kept saying to my thoughts, "you are under attack, pray." Over and over again they said this to me. And for a while after they stopped speaking to me I continued to pray. I've got to tell you at the time, as it was going down, I had an extreme anxiety and feeling of panic. I was lying in bed, and a dread sense of fear was overtaking me. This kind of thing doesn't happen to me. I'm not known for being irrationally afraid of anything. I generally am the one who faces fear directly, unmoved, and with confidence.
The next day I was in God's word, specifically Matthew 12:43-45, and I understood then that I was experiencing the return of many evil spirits that wanted back inside of me. A long long time ago I played around with spirituality and occultism, and I didn't understand then that I was welcoming in a spiritual force that would follow me for much of my life. I know now that those demons can no longer exist within me. They were defeated by prayer and obedience to God's word, and some have lingered for a time, but have now moved on. One came a little close and was completely destroyed for his attempt.
I know...this all sounds crazy.
It's not.
I'm not that kind of person.
The spirits are real, good and bad.
Take them seriously. Encourage the good, invite goodness not wickedness. Invite the Holy Spirit to inspire you and build up your shield of faith so that you can resist the lies. And pray for a hedge of protection against those returning demons. Draw the sword of truth when confronted and use it. It's your best offence against these spirits. Stay true to God's word and his word will protect you.
God bless you and keep you holy and pure, free from all the lies and deceptions of our materialistic humanist culture.
Amen