The Unseen World. Part 2: Making Contact

Transcription

1 The Unseen World January 22-23, 2011 Andy Richardson Part 2: Making Contact Please open your Bibles to 1 Samuel 28 as we continue this teaching series about the Unseen World. We ll be looking at that passage of Scripture in just a little while. I want to talk today about making contact with the Unseen World of the supernatural. How does one contact the spirit world? Can you send a text message to an angel, dial up an ancestor, or summon a spirit like you would log onto an internet site? What does God s word say about contacting the Unseen World? Is it even a smart idea to do such a thing? These are the kinds of questions that I want to try and answer this weekend as we continue this study into the world of the supernatural. These are also the kinds of questions that fascinated two of the most famous celebrities of the late 19th and early 20th centuries: Harry Houdini and Sir Arthur Conan Doyle, who at one time were close friends. Houdini, the magician, was known for his amazing ability to escape the most difficult and ingenious imprisonments: handcuffs, straightjackets, water-filled cases in which he was enclosed while completely wrapped in chains. He was hung from cranes upside down from tall buildings while padlocked, and he was even buried alive on several occasions, but escaped to the amazement of everyone. He also had a fascination with the Unseen World and especially with communicating from beyond the grave. There was nothing he yearned for more than evidence that death was not the final, unescapable lock for him. He put it this way, If anyone can break the shackles of death, I can. And yet, as a magician, he had the knowledge and skills to expose the false claims of the many fraudulent spiritualists and mediums who attempted to fool the public. Although he spent the final years of his life as a skeptic debunking all the claims of the supernatural that he could find, he never gave up the hope that one day he would be the one who could communicate with the Unseen World. Sir Arthur Conan Doyle was the creator of the most famous fictional detective of all time, Mr. Sherlock Holmes, the master of deduction and logic. And yet Sir Doyle was also such a staunch believer in the supernatural that he was gullible and naive in the extreme. He was an avowed spiritualist right up to his death. He once said, My experiences with mediums, good, bad and indifferent, are probably as wide as those of any living person. Hence, I have formed conclusions they have been based upon wide experiences. I have always taken copious notes of my cases. Fraud I have discovered, and helped to expose in several cases, but on the whole I should not put it at more than ten percent - if that much - of the everything I have experienced. In other words, Sir Arthur Conan Doyle believed 90% of everything he did when it came to contacting the Unseen World. Unfortunately for these two men, their friendship was broken apart because of their failed attempt to contact Houdini s deceased mother using a medium. Houdini knew that the

2 attempt was a fraud, but Doyle insisted that contact had really been made. Houdini was hurt that his friend would attempt to deceive him, and Doyle was insulted that Houdini didn t believe his faithfulness to their friendship. The two men who tried so hard to contact the dead lost the special relationship they had enjoyed while they were living. We no doubt should see this as a warning to those who want so badly to communicate with the Unseen World. Now, it is important to understand that the Unseen World has two parts: (1) the kingdom of darkness, terrorized by Satan and his demons; and (2) the everlasting light, empowered by God and enjoyed by the angels and other heavenly beings like the Seraphim and Cherubim. The Bible puts it this way, we should walk in a manner worthy of the Lord... strengthened with all power, according to His glorious might... giving thanks to the Father who has qualified us to share in the inheritance of the saints in Light. For He rescued us from the domain of darkness, and transferred us to the kingdom of His beloved Son. (Colossians 1:10-13). Now, it would be a mistake to equate these two parts of the Unseen World as equal to each other. Take a look at the screen where you will see the image of the Tai Chi which symbolizes the complimentary nature of the two basic forces in the world according to Eastern philosophy. With this concept, there is the sense of balance between the light and the darkness, an equal power, positive and negative. This is not the biblical picture of our world, both seen and unseen. With such a picture you would get the idea that the kingdom of darkness and the kingdom of light are equals, and that Satan is therefore an equal to God. This, however, is not the truth of the Scriptures. Isaiah the prophet said that God is the everlasting light (60:19-20); and the apostle John said that God is Light, and in Him there is no darkness at all (1 John 1:5). In contrast to God, Satan is the prince of darkness (Ephesians 6:12), a created being who rebelled against God. They are not equals any more than darkness is an equal to light. Darkness always recedes in the presence of light, and the devil and his kingdom is no match for God and His. When men and women sin, they love the darkness (John 3:19-20), and the devil fills them with hatred toward God. But when the Light shines on them who are sitting in darkness (Matthew 4:16), the darkness flees away. Jesus put it this way just before He triumphed over Satan at the cross: Now judgment is upon this world; now the ruler of this world will be cast out. And I, if I am lifted up from the earth, will draw all men to Myself (John 12:31-32). The death and resurrection of Jesus was the ultimate victory over Satan and his kingdom, with the result that men and women are freed from the clutches of sin and the devil and are drawn to the Savior instead! So, it is important to understand that God sets out the rules of engagement in this matter of contacting the Unseen World. In other words, we find in the Bible all we need to know about this matter in three simple rules for communication with the supernatural and the spirit world. The first rule is this: Have No Contact With The Dark Side! The apostle Paul expressed this best in Ephesians 5:11-12, Do not participate in the unfruitful deeds of darkness, but instead even expose them; for it is disgraceful even to speak of the things which are done

3 by them in secret. Moses put it this way, You shall not practice divination or fortune-telling. Do not turn to mediums or spiritists; do not seek them out or be defiled by them (Leviticus 19:26; 31). Let s put this into today s terms so that we might know exactly what God is talking about here. When God says to Have No Contact With The Dark Side, He means things like the following activities which the devil uses to open a person to demonic control, and as such should be avoided with all diligence and sound discernment: (1) astrology [following the horoscope]; (2) contemplative prayer and centering; (3) channeling spirits; (4) consulting a clairvoyant; (5) Dianetics [Scientology]; (6) divination [fortune tellers, palm readers, crystal balls, ouija boards, dream watching, psychics, Tarot cards, seances, candle reading, consulting a medium]; (7) drug abuse; (8) Freemasonry; (9) goddess worship [Gaia]; (10) good luck charms, amulets, talisman; (11) hypnotism; (12) Kabbalah [Jewish mysticism]; (13) levitation, table lifting; (14) magick rituals and spells; (15) Roman Catholic mysticism & exorcisms; (16) New Age practices; (17) occult phenomena; (18) Oprah Winfrey philosophy; (19) psychic healing; (20) certain role playing games; (21) Transcendental Meditation; (22) VooDoo; (23) Witchcraft and Wizardry; and (24) Yoga. And I could have listed more! Admittedly, this list is pretty obvious. Some folks might get upset with one or two of the items on this list, but for the most part, people know that these sorts of things belong to the dark kingdom. But there are other activities in our society that minimize the dangers involved, especially in fantasy worlds. They embrace the idea of the these things, but give them an innocence that they don t deserve in the name of entertainment. With these things, as well, we should note the warning of Scripture: "Be careful! Watch! Because your enemy the devil, walks around like a roaring lion looking for any he may devour" (1Peter 5:8). Remember this Rule of Engagement #1 HAVE NO CONTACT WITH THE DARK SIDE! Or, as Moses put it to the children of Israel, There shall not be found among you anyone who makes his son or his daughter pass through the fire, one who uses divination, one who practices witchcraft, or one who interprets omens, or a sorcerer, or one who casts a spell, or a medium, or a spiritist, or one who calls up the dead. For whoever does these things is detestable to the Lord (Deuteronomy 18:10-12). The Bible tells about another famous man who tried to contact the dead, and he was someone who knew better than to do so. His name was king Saul, and if you will look with me now at 1 Samuel 28, you will see what happened when Saul went looking for the prophet Samuel who had died and gone beyond the grave. The situation was a dire one for king Saul because the Philistines were gathered for war against Israel (28:1), and Saul was afraid that this was one battle they couldn t win (28:5). When he tried to consult the Lord and gain his counsel about this situation, God refused to speak with him because of his previous disobedience to His commands (28:6). When Saul failed to hear anything from God, he turned to a witch in the town of Endor to discover what fate lay before him (28:7). It is usually the case with people who want to contact the dark side of the Unseen World that they have already rejected the guidance of the Lord in their lives, just like king Saul.

4 A careful examination of your motives is required if you have any interest in contacting the spirit world apart from God s leading. Notice that such seeking after the dark side also results in fear and trembling rather than peace and comfort. King Saul was terrified. And even though lip service might be given to the things of God, it isn t surprising that a secret plan is hidden in the heart to consult the devil if God doesn t come through. And so, even though the king had outlawed spiritists and mediums and witches from the land, probably because he himself had been tormented by evil spirits, he now turned to the dark side for support in his time of need. He promised that nothing would happen to the witch if she would just call up the prophet Samuel from the dead so that he could get some advice from his former adversary (28:11). While Samuel lived, the king rarely consulted him, but now that he was dead, Saul was eager for his help. How strange! Whenever someone leaves the light in order to serve in the darkness, and then finds out that the darkness is a scary and dangerous place to be, they often long for the light again, or at least the advantages they once had enjoyed from living in the light. Now, the interesting part of this story is that God permitted Satan to impersonate the prophet Samuel in order to deepen king Saul s despair. The demonic apparition of Samuel was a further judgment on the disobedient king. It isn t unusual that the devil who appeared both as a serpent to Eve and as an angel of light to the churches, might appear as a prophet of Israel to her king. He is the master of deceit and disguise, after all. God permitted the devil to put on the shape of Samuel so that the king who would not receive the truth, would wind up believing a lie, and by so doing, be driven to desperation. We have then the conference between Saul and Satan (28:15-19). The king, who had come disguised in order to hide his identity, was easily discovered by the devil. But, the devil who came disguised as the prophet, was never uncovered by the king. Such is always the way with those who would make contact with the dark side. You will think that only good spirits are involved in your activities, but it is really the whole world of demons opening up to you without you even knowing it. Had it been the true Samuel who appeared to king Saul, he would have told him to repent and beg God s forgiveness, but the message from Satan was one of hopelessness and torment. Anyone who expects to receive good comfort or counsel from the dark side of the Unseen World, will be as wretchedly disappointed as was king Saul. It is well to remember the first Rule of Engagement: Have No Contact With The Dark Side! And just like Judas, whom the devil deceived and tormented, king Saul and his sons were dead within just a few days. Now, the second Rule of Engagement concerning contacting the Unseen World is that we Can t Initiate Contact With The Angels. Of course, we want the help of angels whenever we can get it, and to be able to communicate with them would be fantastic. But, the Bible indicates that the communication channel with angels is one-way only, and we are not on the transmitting end of the conversation! We read in Hebrews 13:2 that we should not forget to

5 show hospitality to strangers, for in so doing, some have entertained angels without knowing it. In the coming weeks we are going to learn much more about these wonderful servants of God, but for our purposes in today s lesson, just notice that we don t know when it is we actually encounter angels in our lives. They hide their identities from us for the most part. They carry out God s missions in our lives without our even being aware. We aren t supposed to pray to them or worship them. They talk to God, they hear His plans, and then they come alongside of us to help. That s it. We can t make contact with them even if we wanted to do so. Just let it go for now, because Rule # 3 is really a great one! The third Rule of Engagement is: Better Make Contact With God! If someone wants to make contact with the Unseen World of the supernatural, then God is the best place to do so! After all, who is more supernatural than God? And what s more, He wants you to communicate with Him! The Bible puts it this way, Seek first the kingdom of God and His righteousness (Matthew 6:33). Jesus said that His sheep hear His voice and follow Him (John 10:27), and James said that if you draw near to God, He will draw near to you (James 4:8). The apostle Paul said to keep seeking the things above where Christ is seated (Colossians 3:1). And remember that scene we discussed last week when Peter and the others were with Jesus on the Mount of Transformation and the voice from heaven called out? This is My Son... Listen to Him! (Luke 9:35). God has been communicating with people ever since the dawn of creation. The writer of the book of Hebrews put it this way, God spoke long ago to the fathers in the prophets in many portions and in many ways, and in these last days has spoken to us in His Son (Hebrews 1:1-2). God wants us to make contact with Him! Take a look with me on the screen at another passage of Scripture and see that there are three things involved in making contact with God, namely: faith, the Holy Spirit, and the Word of God. Ephesians 6:16-18 says this: In addition to all this, take up the shield of faith, with which you can extinguish all the flaming arrows of the evil one. Take the helmet of salvation and the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God. And with all requests and petitions pray in the Spirit at all times. Notice that in order to make contact with God, you first need to have faith. Without faith it is impossible to please God (Hebrews 11:6). We can t even enter into a meaningful conversation with the God of the Unseen World unless we believe that He exists! And the call to faith goes out to every man and woman, every boy and girl, in each generation and in all parts of the globe! Jesus put it this way, whoever who hears My word and believes Him who sent Me, has eternal life, and does not come into judgment, but has passed out of death into life (John 5:24). If you want to talk with God, you must first come to Him by faith. I wonder, have you ever in your life done this? It s not too late, and there is no better time than right now to begin making contact with God by coming to Him in believing faith. That s what it means to take up the shield of faith here in the Ephesians passage. But, then notice that the Holy Spirit is the facilitator of the communication exchange between you and God. When you place your faith in Christ, the Holy Spirit takes up residence

6 in your heart in order to bring your spirit to life and enable you to have a relationship with the Father in heaven. The Son of God paid the price for the forgiveness of your sins on the cross, and the Spirit of God provides the means by which you can communicate with heaven. It is the Holy Spirit inside you who teaches you how to pray, who strengthens you when you are weak, who encourages you when you have doubts. It is the Holy Spirit who leads you and guides you and who corrects you when you stray away from the path that God knows is best for you. And the Spirit does all this according to the written Word of God. God doesn t leave us guessing about what He wants us to know. He writes it down. Even my wife knows that I need a list when I go to the grocery store or else I will forget what I was supposed to purchase! How much more does God want us to remember His words to us! So, He wrote them down in this good book which we call the Bible. It was written by men who were inspired by the Spirit of God to record God s exact truth for us in words we can understand. God doesn t want us to be stuck with spooky paranormal experiences when we make contact with the Unseen World, so He gave us His Spirit and His written Word. If you want to make contact with heaven, then pick up your Bible and start reading. You don t need a Ouija Board. You don t need to go to a seance or enter into a trance or even be touched by an angel. All you have to do is read your Bible and pray. That s right, just read your Bible and pray. Look at the verse in Ephesians again. Take the helmet of salvation and the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God. And with all requests and petitions pray in the Spirit at all times. Have faith in the Son of God who saved you. Embrace the Spirit of God who lives within you if you are a child of God. Read God s words to you in the Bible with the knowledge that it will help you tap into the Everlasting Light, because it will. And then pray. Pray in the Spirit at all times. That is what it means to Make Contact With The Unseen World! And there is just one more question now to answer: what happens if the Unseen World contacts you? What if you have a dream or a vision? What if you hear a voice or experience a miracle? The answer is still the same. God wants all our communication with the Unseen World to be interpreted by these three things: faith, the Holy Spirit, and God s written word. Remember that the first condition regarding all supernatural experiences is that they must draw us closer to Jesus and His truth. We saw this last week. No spiritual experience will ever contradict God s written word if it is from the Lord. The Holy Spirit will never cause you to disobey the Word or disregard God s revealed will. If your experience causes you to doubt God, or to tempts you to harm yourself or others, it is from the devil, no matter how awesome that experience may have been. The devil is a liar and a destroyer, and he will gladly give you a wonderful experience in order to get you to disobey God. So, whenever you want to contact the Unseen World, the only choice that you have that will please God is to seek Him in faith, by His Spirit, through His Word. When you do these things, then you can say with David, The Lord is my Light and my Salvation; Whom shall I fear? The

7 Lord is the strength of my life; Whom shall I dread? (Psalm 27:1). In Christ, there is no power of darkness that can keep God from blessing your life with His good purposes for you. He is your Light and Salvation and the strength of your life! We Better Make Contact today! Let s pray.