Sermon Tone Analysis

A World Of Evil

A Pocket Paper \\ from \\ The Donelson Fellowship \\ *______________*

*Robert J. Morgan \\ *February 28, 1999

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*Today we are continuing *our study entitled "Double, Double, Toil, and Trouble" on the subject of witchcraft in the Bible, and I would like to begin by reading the story of the most effective spy who every lived.

There was a man in the Bible who was a mastermind of espionage and military intelligence, 2500 years before James Bond or the CIA.

He was the prophet Elisha, and the story about him that I want to read is in 2 Kings 6:

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/Now the king of Aram /[ancient Syria, the nation whose capital is still Damascus and whose president today is Hefez Assad.

They are still in a state of conflict with Israel]/ was at war with Israel.

After conferring with his officers, he said, "I will set up my camp in such and such a place."

The man of God [the prophet Elisha] sent word to the king of Israel: "Beware of passing that place, because the Arameans /[the Syrians]/ are going down there."

So the king of Israel checked on the place indicated by the man of God.

Time and again Elisha warned the king, so that he was on his guard in such places.

This enraged the king of Aram.

He summoned his officers and demanded of them, "Will you not tell me which of us is on the side of the king of Israel?" "None of us, my lord the king," said one of his officers, "but Elisha, the prophet who is in Israel, tells the king of Israel the very words you speak in your bedroom."/

/"Go, find out where he is," the king ordered, "so I can send men and capture him."

The report came back: "He is in Dothan."

Then he sent horses and chariots and a strong force there.

They went by night and surrounded the city.

When the servant of the man of God got up and went out early the next morning, an army with horses and chariots had surrounded the city.

"Oh, my lord, what shall we do?" the servant asked./

/"Don’t be afraid," the prophet answered.

"Those who are with us are more than those who are with them."

And Elisha prayed, "O Lord, open his eyes so that he may see."

Then the Lord opened the servant’s eyes, and he looked and saw the hills full of horses and chariots of fire all around Elisha./

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This passage gives us graphic evidence that we are surrounded by an invisible supernatural, spiritual world.

Syria was seeking the destruction of Israel, but God was giving his prophet Elisha inside information about Syrian troop deployments and military tactics.

When the Syrian king realized what was happening, he sent his army to surround the city of Dothan and to capture Elisha.

But God encircled the city with a legion of angels, invisible to human sight.

When Elisha’s servant awoke and looked out the window, all he could see were thousands of Syrian troops encircling the city.

But Elisha said, "Those who are for us are more than those who are against us.

Lord, open his eyes."

And suddenly the servant saw the hills full of angelic, heavenly troops, and those angelic troops kept Elisha and his servant absolutely safe.

This story teaches us that our planet is a spiritual battle zone, and it is blanketed with spiritual forces, both good and evil.

The Bible teaches that God’s people are surrounded by angels who are ministering spirits sent to serve those who inherit salvation.

Psalm 24 says, "The angel of the Lord encamps around those who fear him, and he delivers him."

Psalm 90 says, "For he will command his angels concerning you to guard you in all your ways."

But there is also an invisible army of evil angels, of demons and evil spirits, all around us, enveloping this world.

The apostle Paul said, "Put on the full armor of God so that you can take your stand against the devil’s schemes.

For our struggle is not against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the powers of this dark world and against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly realms."

Some people like to dabble and speculate about this strange, dark, invisible world of evil.

One of the popular movies currently showing in theaters is called /Practical Magic./

According to the reviews, it is about two young ladies who are taught skills in casting spells and practicing the ancient arts of white magic that have been handed down through the family from generation to generation.

Their family is under a curse, and their actions release a swarm of supernatural forces.

Witches have been a regular feature of modern entertainment, with everything from the Wicked Witch in the /Wizard of Oz,/ to the good, everyday housewife on the old television program /Bewitched,/ to the popular Friday night family program /Sabrina the Teenage Witch./

But apart from television and movies, there is a resurgence of serious witchcraft in the United States and around the world.

I found thousand of web sites on the Internet devoted to witchcraft.

In the US today there is an estimated 80,000 people practicing white magic, and every high school in the nation is said to have its own witch.

In France, an estimated two hundred million dollars are spent each year on witches and sorcerers.

CNN recently did a major story on a coven of witches and wizards who used their supernatural powers to try to change Moscow’s weather, with the backing of the city government.

The nation of Haiti is totally given over to witchcraft and voodoo, having been dedicated to Satan in 1791.

Africa today is filled with its witchdoctors who still hold sway over entire tribes and nations.

We have a lady in our church who is a home-school mom.

The other day she was approached by a woman who wanted to become part of a home school group, but the woman said, "We don’t want to be part of a Christian home-school group; we want one that is pagan.

Our religion is that of witchcraft."

Well, while witchcraft is very old, dating back to biblical times, most of today’s witches are part of a neo-pagan movement that reflects New Age thinking, and there are many different approaches to witchcraft.

In researching this subject, I found a variety of definitions of witchcraft.

Here, for example, is a sample definition I pulled off the worldwide web: A witch is a practitioner of a nature-based religion which recognizes the femininity of divinity and follows the seasonal cycles.

A witch believes that the divine exists within himself or herself as well as without, and therefore feels a direct connection with the god or goddess of self.

One witch said she did not believe in Satan, but she believed that if she practiced black or harmful magic, her soul would be punished via the laws of karma.

Karma can follow a person from one life to the next, and effect the process of reincarnation.

She said that witches can be either male or female, they do cast spells, but they consider a spell something like a prayer.

She also said that in witchcraft there are no rules prohibiting homosexuality, nudity, or premarital sex.

*What The Bible Says*

In this series, I do not want to explore or elaborate on the darker side of witchcraft.

I scanned a few of the web sites on witchcraft and read some of the material on this subject; but I did not review any of it very closely or study any of their magical arts or spells.

I didn’t want to expose my mind and soul to that kind of darkness and evil.

Instead I went to the Scriptures to see what God has to say, and this is where I would like to take you as well--on a little tour through the Bible, isolating some of our Lord’s words and warnings on this subject.

In Exodus 22, Moses was establishing the legal system for the newly-formed nation of Israel.

In verse 18 he had very strong words regarding witchcraft: "Do not allow a sorceress to live."

The King James Version uses the word "witch."

The NIV and the NKJV and most modern translations use the word "sorceress," but there is little difference.

Moses was referring to one who practiced sorcery or witchcraft.

In ancient Israel, in other words, witchcraft was considered a capital crime, no doubt because it opened the door for satanic infiltration and influence into God’s holy people.

I am by no means suggesting that our nation today should view witchcraft as a capital crime as they did during one unfortunate period of history in Salem, Massachusetts.

Our society isn’t regulated by the legalisms of ancient Israel.

But this verse in Exodus 22 is a reflection of what God thinks of witchcraft and sorcery, that it is a dangerous evil that runs counter to his character and his will for his people.

The same theme crops up in Leviticus 19:26—"Do not practice divination or sorcery."

And in the same chapter, Leviticus 19, verse 31 says: "Do not turn to mediums or seek out spiritists, for you will be defiled by them.

I am the Lord your God."

Leviticus 20:27 says: "A man or woman who is a medium or spiritist among you must be put to death.

You are to stone them; their blood will be on their own heads."

Deuteronomy 18:9 says: "When you enter the land the Lord your God is giving you, do not learn to imitate the detestable ways of the nations there.

Let no one be found among you who sacrifices his son or daughter in the fire, who practices divination or sorcery, interprets omens, engages in witchcraft, or casts spells, or who is a medium or spiritist or who consults the dead.

Anyone who does these things is detestable to the Lord, and because of these detestable practices the Lord your God will drive out those nations before you.

You must be blameless before the Lord your God."

In 1 Samuel 15:23, Samuel told Saul, "For rebellion is like the sin of divination (KJV: witchcraft), and arrogance like the evil of idolatry."

The writer of 2 Kings 17 explained why God allowed the northern kingdom of Israel to be defeated and exiled by the Assyrian Empire.

He said that the Israelites "forsook all the commands of the Lord their God and made for themselves two idols cast in the shape of calves, and an Asherah pole.

They bowed down to all the starry hosts, and they worshipped Baal.

They sacrificed their sons and daughters in the fire.

They practices divination and sorcery and sold themselves to do evil in the eyes of the Lord, provoking him to anger."

2 Kings 21:3 describes Manassah, one of the most wicked man who ever lived.

He "bowed down to all the starry hosts and worshipped them.

He built altars in the temple of the Lord, of which the Lord had said, ‘In Jerusalem I will put my Name.’

In both courts of the temple of the Lord, he built altars to all the starry hosts.

He sacrificed his own son in the fire, practiced sorcery and divination, and consulted mediums and spiritists.

He did much evil in the eyes of the Lord, provoking him to anger."

In 1 Chronicles 10:13 we read that King Saul died because he "was unfaithful to the Lord; he did not keep the word of the Lord and even consulted a medium for guidance and did not inquire of the Lord.

So the Lord put him to death and turned the kingdom over to David son of Jesse."

Isaiah predicted that during his days the Egyptians will lose heart, and "I will bring their plans to nothing; they will consult the idols and the spirits of the dead, the mediums and the spiritists" (19:13).