HOW DEMONS MISLEAD

To  mislead people, the demons use spiritism, (among other things)  The practice of spiritism is involvement with the demons both in a direct way and through a human medium.  The Bible condemns spiritism and warns us to keep free from everything connected with it.  (Galatians 5:19-21)  Spiritism does for the demons what bait does for fishermen.  A fisherman uses a variety of baits to catch various kinds of fish. Similarly,  wicked spirits use different forms of spiritism to bring all sorts of people under their influence.

One type of bait used by the demons is divination. What is divination?  It is an attempt   to find out about the future or something unknown.  Some forms  of divination are astrology, the use of tarot cards, crystal gazing, palmistry, and the search for mysterious omens, or signs, in dreams.  Although many people think that practicing divination is harmless, the Bible shows that fortune-tellers  and wicked spirits work together.  (like selling your soul to the devil)  For instance, Acts 16:16-18 mentions "a demon of divination" that enabled a girl to practice "the art of prediction." But she lost the ability when the demon was cast out of her.   

Another way that the demons mislead people is by encouraging them to inquire of the dead.  People grieving over the death of a loved one are often deceived by wrong ideas about those who have died. A spirit medium may give special information or may speak in a voice that seem to be that of a dead person. As a result, many people become convinced that the dead  are really alive and that contracting them will help the living to endure their grief.  But any such "comfort" is really  false as well as dangerous.  Why? Because the demons can imitate the voice of a dead person and give a spirit medium information about the one who died.  (1 Samuel 28:3-19) Moreover, as we learned in Chapter 6, the dead have ceased to exist.  (Psalm 115:17) So "anyone who inquires of the dead" has been misled by wicked spirits  and is acting contrary to the will of God.  (Deuteronomy 18:10, 11; Isaiah 8:19) Therefore, be careful to9 reject this dangerous bait used by the demons. 

Wicked spirits not only mislead people but also frighten them. Today, Satan and his demons know that they have only "a short period of time" left over before  they are put out of action, and they are now more vicious than ever.  (Revelation 12:12, 17) Even so, thousands of people who once lived in daily dread of such wicked spirits  have been able to break free.  How did they do this?  What can a person do even if he is already involved in spiritism? 

Next time: HOW TO RESIST WICKED SPIRITS

From the Book: What Does the Bible Really Teach? 2005 and 2006