Nine Forbidden Practices of the Occult
Let’s look at the nine illegal practices of the occult forbidden by God.
What is the occult?
The word occult refers to what is hidden, concealed, or secret. The occult involves the spirit world – but the spirit world of darkness. The occult is particularly deceptive because the spirit world is very real. Practitioners are dealing with reality but dark, forbidden, and evil reality. Unfortunately, it can have 90% truth and 10% error and still be dangerous.
Many new age practices and occult practices misuse the Word of God for their benefit to pull innocent people into occult processes forbidden by God.
There are two kinds of spiritual reality. The first is God’s spiritual kingdom of truth and light, where Christ is King, the nature of righteousness and peace and joy in the Holy Spirit (Romans 14:17), and where God’s holy angels dwell, worship, and serve Him.
The second is the world of Satan (a fallen angel); a world of deceit and hopelessness, void of God, where other fallen angels ( demons) who hate God work to advance this evil kingdom under their leader, Satan. Satan knows the Word of God and what better way to deceive than to twist the Word of God to deceive God’s sheep.
God forbids nine practices in His word. The occult, as He warns the Israelites to avoid and abhor it. Pronouncing it as towebah God, in His wisdom, lays out the Nine Forbidden Practices. They are:
1) Human Sacrifice We call that abortion today!
2) Divination The Heart of the Occult. Manipulation from demonic sources.
3) Astrology We either trust God or the Zodiac, but not both!
4) Enchanter Someone satanically endowed to produce seductive spells.
5) Witchcraft and Witches Include its modern, organized counterpart, Wicca.
6) Charmer One manipulates objects or beings via demonic power.
7) Consulter with Familiar Spirits One who gleans knowledge from demonic contact.
8) Wizards Practitioners of magical arts
9) Necromancers Those who claim to be in contact with the dead.
Furthermore, Romans 1:32 declares that those who entertain themselves with the images of evil, including the many brands of occult-based entertainment, are under the same judgment and curse as those who actually do the occult deeds! Wow!
Being filled with all unrighteousness, fornication, wickedness, covetousness, maliciousness; full of envy, murder, debate, deceit, malignity; whisperers, Back biters, haters of God, spiteful, proud, boasters, inventors of evil things, disobedient to parents, Without understanding, covenant breakers, without natural affection, implacable, unmerciful: Who knowing the judgment of God, that they which commit such things are worthy of death, not only do the same but have pleasure in them that do them.
Doesn’t that sound exactly like our culture today; having pleasure in or being entertained by the things God condemns?
Stilling or emptying the mind, meditating, focusing on one thought or object to meet a peaceful state or subjective spiritual
experience.Visualizing the breath moving in unnatural ways.
Speaking with the dead, including prayers to saints or entering trance states to speak with dead people, pets, or Mother Mary (necromancy).
Channeling spirits and prophesying in another voice.
Channeling animal spirits: roaring like a lion, etc., through wrong types of meditation (centering prayer, contemplative prayer, listening prayer), being passive with your mind.
Soaking prayer involves a trance-like meditative or contemplative state in which the adherent is encouraged to empty their mind. This type of prayer seeks to experience God’s presence through mystical exercises which teeter dangerously on the edge of the esoteric. New Age practice that is adherent of Hinduism would take part in.
Passing electrical currents or waves of heat through laying on hands.
Waving flags to keep demons away or anointing with oil. To keep demons away is to repent and renounce any sin that opened the door to the enemy. Repentance closes the door.
Calling down a spirit to feel its ecstatic influence (soaking in the spirit, called samadhi in yoga).
Submit to a spirit so it can have its way with you (manifestations, spiritual drunkenness).
Calling down the spirit to work with it digging in the heart, etc. – calling down fire.
Seeking supernatural knowledge from dreams or visions with the wrong motive.
Waiting for prophetic words or supernatural insight into people’s illnesses or problems (taught in Alpha).
Casting spells or curses.
Yoga, Tai Chi, Reiki, and Acupuncture channel spiritual energies (as they imagine).
We are attempting to develop supernatural prophetic powers such as gifts of healing or prophetic gifts (divination).
We are developing spiritual eyes (called opening the third eye in yoga) to see angels and demons (clairvoyance).
Conjuring gold dust and ˜manna miracles (pure magic)
Occult worship includes endless repetition of verses in a song, so the meaning is lost, and one enters into a dulled state.
Not everything that manifests in the spirit is from God. Learn to discern good and evil. Knowing the Word and the Word will keep you on a narrow path.
Men and women find and commune with their spiritual Father in 3 ways, and this is what true, life-giving spirituality is all
about:
Reading, learning, and studying the Father’s Word, the Bible.
Praying to the Father with thoughtful, intelligent prayer.
Doing the Father’s will, i.e., walking in obedience.
Any degree of occult involvement can produce problems of oppression, depression, despair, hopelessness, and many physical problems, sometimes bringing self-destruction and even death.
Demonic influence can produce obsession, phobias, bizarre behavior, violence, homicide, and sexual perversion. Worse, it can deceive a person into eternal darkness. The occult is a form of idolatry and a sin expressly forbidden by God (Deuteronomy 18:9-12).
By Traci Morin
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