Jason Silver | Pastor and Author
Hosea 4:6 | “My people are destroyed from lack of knowledge.”
The context of this passage refers to priests who knew what was right and wrong and that it would destroy the people; but they ignored God. And thus said nothing to the people.
God grew very angry with these leaders.
As a Pastor, it is my responsibility before God to provide knowledge that can save people from harmful ways, and destructive deceptions of our one true enemy….the Devil.
Ephesians 6:11-12 | For we are not fighting against people made of flesh and blood, but against persons without bodies-the evil rulers of the unseen world, those mighty satanic beings and great evil princes of darkness who rule this world; and against huge numbers of wicked spirits in the spirit world.
One of the more prominent ways the Devil is becoming more active in our society today is through the fascination and actual practice of witchcraft… or named the more innocently sounding “white magic or wicca”. Which by the way could be pretty much likened to saying “Good evil”.
As a Christian leader, I refuse to sit back and watch people fall into this dangerous curiosity without saying a word.
A number of Christians try to defend such practices, whether watching it in shows, movies, games entertainment, or some even in outright practice of it! If you can believe that? But the more important question for the Christian to ask is not. “What do people think about? Rather, “What does God think about it?” Because at the end of the day, it doesn’t really matter what you or I think about it.
Galatians 5:19-21 says… “The acts of the sinful nature are obvious: sexual immorality, impurity and debauchery; idolatry and WITCHCRAFT; hatred, discord, jealousy, fits of rage, selfish ambition, dissensions, factions and envy; drunkenness, orgies, and the like. I warn you, as I did before, that those who live like this will not inherit the kingdom of God.”
Deuteronomy 18:9-13 | “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.”
So What’s the Attraction to Witchcraft Anyway?
1. It provides a sense of quick power control. In an out of control world, we feel more secure if we think we can personally have power to control it.
2. It promises you personal control of the affections of your life – money, people you have infatuations towards, and material extravagance.
Note the word CONTROL!
The reality however, is that the only control going on, is your free will being controlled to perform mantras, spells, incantations. All this out of a drive to please our selfish nature, which is now controlling you! And that’s not good at all because, “Those controlled by the flesh cannot please God.” (Romans 8:9)
We see an example of this in Acts 8:9-24 | “Now there was a certain man named Simon, who was practicing magic in the city, and astonishing the people of Samaria, claiming to be someone great; and they all, from smallest to greatest, were giving attention to him, saying, “This man is what is called the Great Power of God.” And they were giving him attention because he had for a long time astonished them with his magic arts. But when they believed Philip preaching the good news about the kingdom of God and the name of Jesus Christ, they were being baptized, men and women alike. And even Simon himself believed; and after being baptized, he continued on with Philip; and as he observed signs and great miracles taking place, he was constantly amazed.
Now when the Apostles in Jerusalem heard that Samaria had received the word of God, they sent them Peter and John, who came down and prayed for them, that they might receive the Holy Spirit. For He had not yet fallen upon any of them; they had simply been baptized in the name of the Lord Jesus. Then they began laying their hands on them, and they were receiving the Holy Spirit. Now when Simon saw that the Spirit was bestowed through the laying on of the apostles’ hands, he offered them money, saying, “Give this authority to me as well, so that everyone on whom I lay my hands may receive the Holy Spirit.” But Peter said to him, “May your silver perish with you, because you thought you could obtain the gift of God with money! “You have no part or portion in this matter, for your heart is not right before God. “Therefore repent of this wickedness of yours, and pray the Lord that if possible, the intention of your heart may be forgiven you. “For I see that you are in the gall of bitterness and in the bondage of iniquity.” But Simon answered and said, “Pray to the Lord for me yourselves, so that nothing of what you have said may come upon me.”
The severe response of the Apostle Peter showed that there was zero tolerance on this matter.
Yet, it’s not uncommon to see witchcraft throughout all kinds of areas we are touched by every day. Horoscopes…fortune tellers… movies… music… and one of the more prominent form of medias today… computer games.
Just look at the names of a few computer games like this: Diablo, Hexen, Heretic. Just listen to the names. It’s quite obvious. In one of these games, you can actually play as the Baal’s, the false Gods mentioned throughout scripture that caused Israel to fall time and time again.
We try to justify everything we like to do… but deep down we know that God does not approve of these things. Our involvement in them does not bring glory to Him in the least.
So what am I saying in all of this?
That at all costs, we must stay away from witchcraft IN ALL FORMS, even fictional books (ie. Harry Potter) music, and games. And if you’re involved in it now, you can ask God for forgiveness, and ask for Him to free you from its control.
Ask for forgiveness? Yes… witchcraft is sin. Remember God clearly called it a “detestable practice”.
The Bible, equates rebellion to “the sin of witchcraft”. This is what it comes down to. You can make a choice to obey God fully in this, and view witchcraft in any form for what it really is; or you can try to sooth your conscience by justifying it with human reasoning.
It never ceases to amaze me how many people use “Well it’s just entertainment.” as a justification. Pornography is also considered entertainment, yet that fact does not somehow justify a Christ-follower watching it.
In all of this however, we do not need to fear witchcraft, we need to deal with it. “For greater is He who is in us, than he that is the world, that is the Devil!!!”
2 Timothy 1:7 says, “For God has not given us a spirit of fear, but of power and of love and of a sound mind.”
Ephesians 6:10-13 | “Finally, be strong in the Lord and in His mighty power. 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. Therefore put on the full armor of God, so that when the day of evil comes, you may be able to stand your ground, and after you have done everything, to stand.”
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ABOUT THE AUTHOR
Jason currently pastors New Victory Church in Calgary, Alberta Canada. He holds a Bachelor’s Degree in Theology, authored two books, and has been in full-time pastoral ministry for over 18 years. He passionately loves God and people with a heart to see everyone walk out of their full potential in Christ living out the kingdom of Heaven on Earth.
Copyright 2024 | Permission to copy, print, or use material is freely granted. Provided that the integrity of the material is not compromised in any manner.
one pastors thoughts 
Interesting article. Now here’s a question:
What’s your take on Tolkien’s use of magic in the Lord of the Rings, or on Lewis’ use of magic in the Narnia series?
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I’m not going to reinvent the wheel so to speak, so here’s some excerpts from a good article I found on the topic including the link.
Excerpts taken form http://www.edocere.org/articles/harry_potter.htm
“Rowling says that she had no intention of luring children into the world of witchcraft when she wrote these books.This might very well be the case. However, what’s happening is precisely that. Kids want to find out more about casting spells, predicting the future, and witches and wizards in general. They just don’t see it as fantasy, as something that they can never even hope to attain themselves. The scary thing is —they can do it, and they know they can do it, because Rowling and her world of Harry Potter are telling them they can.
The most typical response to this disdain for magic is, “But if magic is so terrible, why do we allow and even encourage our children to read The Chronicles of Narnia or The Lord of the Rings?” My answer is that these classics are on a completely different plane than Harry Potter. Most people that are familiar with C. S. Lewis and J. R. R. Tolkien agree that they are writing from at least a Christian point of view, if not completely Catholic in their writing and thinking. Rowling is most definitely not. The “magic” contained in their works is not the same at all. The major difference between the two types of magic is that Harry Potter characters are involved in occult magic. With Tolkien, Lewis, and most other fantasy authors, the word magic is not even an apt term for what takes place in their books. Those authors never use the word “magic” themselves —it is almost always ascribed by an outsider, namely the reader.
Magic is actually defined as the art of using supernatural intervention (in Tolkien and Lewis “divine”) means to conform events to man’s will. Witchcraft has, in its very definition, an evil connotation, and reference to discourse with the devil. Sorcery is defined as “the use of power gained from the assistance of evil spirits…divination by black magic…necromancy, witchcraft…synonymous with magic.” The word “occult” comes straight from Latin, and means “hidden” or “secret.” The strict definition of the word “occult” in the English language refers to things that are deliberately hidden or secret.
The Chronicles of Narnia do, in fact have a witch. She is regarded as and clearly shown to be evil, and no question remains on that matter. As far as her magical ability goes, she has taken for herself powers that are not even rightfully hers. In other words, Aslan, the representation of goodness, uses powers that come from a source of goodness. That source is the one who, as creator of Narnia, has “legitimate authority over all things” and has ultimate control of that power. Where do the powers come from that are used in Harry Potter?
In The Lord of the Rings and The Chronicles of Narnia, the power that the good beings possess is used for the good of everyone involved. It is not used to satisfy the whims of any particular character. Nor do they use their powers to stop someone else who is trying to interfere with their own personal plan. There is always a bigger picture involved, and that picture has been determined by someone else, who has the authority to do so. The evil witch/wizard characters use their powers to serve themselves, contrary to what has already been determined. This is clearly shown to be wrong in both Narnia and Middle Earth. There is never a question whether an evil character is evil. In Hogwarts, though, one never can tell.
Just because Lewis uses the word “witch” and Tolkien uses the word “magic” does not mean Rowling can be compared with them. Rowling, though she relies heavily on occultism for her creatures, does create a few of her own. Does this automatically mean that she is on the same plane as Tolkien? Rowling’s characters all speak in various British dialects. Does that mean she is on the same plane with Lewis? Their stories might have a material similarity here and there, but their spirit is different. It is the difference between the way the authors think. Certainly, how a writer thinks affects his work. How does Rowling think? In an interview with Rowling she says, “Do what you want, not what your parents want.” 20 Is this along the same vein as Tolkien and Lewis? I think not.”
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Good article, I concur!
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