In 2 Corinthians 4:3-4 Satan is seen as blinding unbelievers. How does he do this? By the
thinking of the cosmic system that rejects both man’s need and God’s solution. Satan does not
care what you believe as long as it is just not the Truth of faith alone in Christ alone through
grace alone as the only means of receiving eternal life and being made right with God.
God is both willing and ready to remove the blindness if the person is responsive to the
Message.
John 1:9 (NASB) There was the true Light which, coming into the world, enlightens every man.
Every form of religion, spiritual belief system, or atheism is from the god of this world, Satan.
Demon-inspired false doctrines and spiritual practices; demon inspired acceptance and
promotion of false religions in the name of unity, tolerance, and love; or anything else that leads
an unbeliever away from the Truth.
Satanic attack against the believer through the cosmic system
Do not think that cosmic thinking lies only outside the church – it may be in the church and
Satan is deceiving believers. Read the following carefully:
•
2 Corinthians 11:3-4: to follow lies is to be disobedient to Christ! “Different” a Jesus and
a message that does not bring eternal life.
•
2 Corinthians 11:13-15: they look like the real deal (Christ, light, righteousness) but are
deceived and are deceivers.
How can you tell the difference? By the gospel they preach and the doctrine they teach.
2 Timothy 3:13 (NASB) But evil men and impostors will proceed from bad to worse, deceiving
and being deceived. [promoting false doctrine]
Matthew 13:20-23
INSIDE THE CHURCH he desires to divert the believer from spiritual maturity (spiritual fruit
production, divine good, by the means of the Holy Spirit). In this portion of the parable Jesus
refers to the general types of pressure that come from the cosmic system that will prevent a
believer from spiritual advancement and production.
First note: Vv.20, 22, 23 – in all three illustrations the plant comes to life.
Note: receives = believe: this person has received eternal life John 1:12
Matthew 13:20-21: the plant springs to life (believer, eternal life) present participle: he
hears and while he is hearing he believes and receives life.
”the word” – logos the word of God, specifically the word to be believed to receive eternal life
for when the person believes this is what happens: life eternal springs forth
The Angelic Conflict
326 | P a g e
The issue in this parable is not the LIFE it is the soil. There is genuine LIFE – ETERNAL LIFE.
The soil is the person who believes; how effective the life in the plant becomes depends on the
soil – the believer
V.20-21: the “stony” soil – thin soil over a layer of solid rock - rock layers close to the surface;
shallow ground
The problem is the soil that hinders a root from taking hold – the “root” of the plant, that which
feeds it, stabilizes it, and causes growth is the Word of God: Bible Doctrine. When a believer
does not have sufficient doctrine in their soul (their thinking under its authority) to endure under
the various pressures of life then they “fall away” (stumble) back into the cosmic system.
When they “fall away” they go back into the demon-inspired looking at life from the standpoint of
the cosmic system.
“affliction” thilipsis = pressure - crush, press, squeeze, compress – general pressures in life to
distract the believer from spiritual growth and advancement to the production of spiritual fruit.
“persecution” = family and social pressure over their having believed in Jesus and the Truth of
the Scriptures “because of the Word.” This is often the attack on a new believer.
The rock – stone block - under the surface is human viewpoint, cosmic thinking.
Because this believer never studied consistently with focused attention under a pastor-teacher
and on their own they never developed any depth of biblical understanding of Bible Doctrine.
This takes dedication, concentration, and repetition to learn and this is where the majority of
believers fail.
This person certainly received the Message of Life with joy but they failed to be interested in
Bible Doctrine and they have negative volition to Bible teaching. The result is when pressure
comes on them they fold up and take the easy way out of pressure.
As an example Jesus mentions two specific types of pressure that can come on a person
causing them to have an emotional negative response to the situation and they then have
negative volition to advancing g in the faith.
•
Satan loves blockhead believers!
•
Don’t be a blockhead
•
soul!
Don’t block Bible Doctrine from being learned and entering your
The Angelic Conflict
327 | P a g e
Matthew 13:21
(1) “affliction” thilipsis = pressure - crush, press, squeeze, compress – general pressures in life
to distract the believer from spiritual growth and advancement to the production of spiritual fruit.
(2) “persecution” = family and social pressure over their having believed in Jesus and the Truth
of the Scriptures “because of the Word.” This is often the attack on a new believer.
(1) The pressure of circumstances, and
(2) Persecution because of the Word
___________________________
>>>> BOTH ARE FROM THE COSMIC SYSTEM <<<<
•
1 -“How come everything seems to be going wrong?”
•
2 - “My family is rejecting me since I became a believer and started going to Bible class
all the time!”
All believers have the same privilege and opportunity to advance in the faith and experience the
plan of God for their lives; yet so many are simply occupying space and burning up time as they
dilly-dally around and never get anywhere spiritually. They are losers in time and will be losers
at the Judgment Seat of Christ.
There is no short-cut to spiritual maturity: it takes time and consistent effort to learn and apply
Bible Doctrine.
Do not be a shallow-soiled believer! You will live to regret it.
Matthew 13:22
This is the believer who starts well and even begins to have positive spiritual production. Notice
that it says “becomes unfruitful”: you can become unfruitful unless you first become fruitful, at
least to a certain extent.
This believer develops a root of Bible Doctrine but they get distracted and fail to endure over
time. The “dailyness” of life and making a living, both unavoidable and necessary, become their
focus instead of the learning and application of Bible Doctrine.
Compare Mark 4:19
They see these things from human viewpoint and these become their priority

the worry (anxieties) of the world (age in which they live)

the deceitfulness of wealth

the (passionate) desires for other things enter in
The Angelic Conflict
328 | P a g e
These then choke out the effectiveness of the Word in the believer’s life and they fail to endure
The “other things” are those not included in the previous two. The issue is a shift of the
believer’s priorities and they become spiritual losers and dead-beats. The general things of life
have to be dealt with; however, they do not have to enter in and become a destruction for your
spiritual production.
What do you think about? Thinking is a choice of the soul. Thinking determines motives and
motives determine action. You can think divine viewpoint or human viewpoint!
Philippians 4:8
Matthew 13:23 good soil brings spiritual production
Ephesians 2:10 (NASB) For we are His workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works,
which God prepared beforehand so that we would walk in them.
What are the basic requirements for positive spiritual production?

Staying in fellowship

Daily intake of Bible Doctrine

Consistent attendance at Bible class under a Bible doctrinal teacher

Prayer

Application of doctrine to moment by moment decisions – reach the correct doctrinal
conclusions when you make decisions
Galatians 5:22-23 (NASB) 22 But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness,
goodness, faithfulness, 23 gentleness, self-control; against such things there is no law.
This is character transformation into being like Christ’s character.
Help one another to succeed
This is where the Body of Christ, the Church comes in to help encourage these believers.
Hebrews 3:12-14
See also the requirement in Hebrews 10:23-25
The Angelic Conflict
329 | P a g e
Resist cosmic thinking
The believer is told to resist the cosmic thinking and activity of this world and the means of
resisting is, as we have seen, the armor of God (the armor of light): Bible Doctrine learned and
applied while in fellowship to every aspect of life
The believer who does not do this is under the deceptive influence of demons.
James 3:15: cosmic thinking has its source in demons.
Romans 12:2: Do not be conformed to this world – cosmic thinking. Letting your thinking be
framed by something other than the Bible. Rather, have your mind renewed from the ground up
by maximizing the learning of Scripture.
Only Bible Doctrine will renew the mind and transform the person
John 8:31-32 (NASB) 31 So Jesus was saying to those Jews who had believed Him, "If you
continue in My word, then you are truly disciples of Mine; 32 and you will know the truth, and the
truth will make you free."
Without the Truth in your soul you are and will be in bondage – and will not even know it
because you have been deceived.
When you believe false doctrine and live your life with false thinking you are in bondage to
deception and lies
1 Timothy 4:1: this is demon influence on believers who are falling away from the faith – the
body of correct Bible Doctrine. This is demon influence through false teaching.
Doctrines of demons are those teachings and ideas that are designed to undermine the
absolute truth of the Word of God. “in the later times”: the situation will get worse as we
approach the end of the age.
•
“fall away”: to stand off from, to leave, declining doctrine in the mind and actions
•
“the faith”: the specific content of Bible Doctrine.
•
“paying attention”: joining themselves to, giving their mind to, and willfully following – this
is why they re falling away from the Truth
•
“deceitful spirits”: may be demons themselves or those through whom the demons are
teaching (see 2 Cor. 11:13-14; 1 Cor. 10:20-21; 1 John 4:1, 6) - deliberately misleading
the believer who does not have doctrine in their soul, doctrine as the guiding principles
for all of life’s decisions and activities – deceitful because it looks like a good thing, it
feels good (emoting), to the person from human viewpoint.
Misleading them into false, unbiblical religion – teachings or doctrines
The Angelic Conflict
330 | P a g e
v.2: “seared” or branded so that what once was a willful action of refusing to learn and apply
doctrine now becomes a judgment and they are not able to see the Truth The branding iron is a
callousness to the Truth (see Ephesians 4:19).
Revelation 2:24 – the “deep things of Satan” are the doctrinal teachings of Satan – they are the
opposite of the “depths of God” Paul mentions in 1 Corinthians 2:10.
2 Timothy 4:1-4: under demonic influence they are turning away from “the truth” - the body of
correct Bible Doctrine. It is believers – born-again, heaven bound believers – who turn away
from the Truth of the Word of God.
angelic conflict
772
Romans 1:25 (NASB) For they exchanged the truth of God for a lie, and worshiped and served
the creature rather than the Creator, who is blessed forever. Amen.
We will return to this topic of the satanic / demonic influence on the Church at a later point in
this study.
More specific demonic influence
Matthew 16:21-23: Peter had wrong thinking about the role of the Messiah Jesus. Peter did not
want Jesus to die at all much less on a cross; Satan did not want Jesus to die on a cross (the
Father’s will) so he strongly influenced Peter in a personal way to say this to Jesus
Note Peter’s words in 16:15-16 – how quick the strong demonic influence can come. Does not
this help us to understand why Peter wrote what he did in 1 Peter 4?
The Angelic Conflict
331 | P a g e
1 Peter 5:8 (NASB) Be of sober spirit, be on the alert. Your adversary, the devil, prowls around
like a roaring lion, seeking someone to devour.
Acts 5:1-4
This filling by Satan is not an internal control as in demon possession – Ananias was in control
of his faculties (v.4 – “you have conceived this”). Satan is the father of lies (John8:44) and he
strongly influenced Ananias to lie probably by appealing to the trend toward greed in his sin
nature.
Dean and Ice, Spiritual Warfare, p.144
Ananias, like every believer, is in control of his thoughts and responsible for his thinking,
decisions, and actions, not Satan. Therefore, this situation is an example of Satan’s
using the rebellious thinking of a Christian as a base of operations, influencing him with
“doctrines of demons” (1 Tim. 4:1)
1 Samuel 15:1-23: This is an example of very strong and personal demonic influence, but not
possession. King Saul – a believer - was guilty of extended rebellion and disobedience;
therefore God rejected him and David was anointed to be king in his place.
Under divine discipline, God allowed a demon to attack him:
1 Samuel 16:14-16, 23; 18:10-12; 19:8-10
Notice; the demon came to him, on him, or came upon him, but not into him. Pay attention to the
intense and seemingly out-of-control mental turmoil and “crazy” actions of King Saul.
Remember the “black box” from our chart (above)?
Saul experienced it as a terrorizing or troubling thing (Strong’s #1204). The word means “to be
or to make afraid, to startle.” Baker and Carpenter write: “the basic ideas of this word can be
summarized as an individual’s realization that he or she is less powerful than someone or
something else and can be overcome” (The Complete Word Study Old Testament)
The Theological Wordbook of the Old Testament, Harris, Archer, Waltke state:”to be overtaken
by sudden terror, to terrify.” What makes this demon attack even more troubling or terrifying is
that it is from the Lord (Yahweh).
Merrill adds:
This verb occurs 16 times in the OT and generally signifies the terror of a lesser
individual who stands before a greater individual (1 Chron. 21:30; Esth. 7:6; Dan. 8:17).
When the verb has this nuance, the fear is not necessarily triggered by some impending
judgment, but broadly connotes fright and astonishment. The verb can describe terror in
the face of threatened judgment (2 Samuel 22:5; Job 3:5; Isa. 21:4). This evil spirit had a
The Angelic Conflict
332 | P a g e
disastrous impact on Saul. From this day forward Saul experienced constant misery and
discouragement (The Bible Knowledge Key Word Study, Joshua-2 Chronicles, p.152).
v.14: “the Spirit of the Lord departed from Saul. ”Unlike the Church Age, in the Old Testament
economy the Holy Spirit did not permanently indwell believers. The Holy Spirit was in a person
to accomplish certain tasks such as, in this case, to function as the king of Israel. The Holy Spirit
departing from Saul meant that as far as God was concerned Saul’s kingship was removed at
this point. In v.13 we see that David has been anointed as king and the Holy Spirit came upon
him for the task of ruling Israel. Even though Saul remained king for a number of years, he ruled
without the help of the Lord (see 18:12; 28:15).
The presence or absence of the Holy Spirit in Old Testament times did not indicate anything
about the individual possessing eternal life. It only indicates that the person was selected by the
Lord to accomplish some task or service.
Activity scale
Outside the body
General
satanic
attack /
temptation
Personal
demonic
influence
Believer or
unbeliever
Unbeliever
only
Strong
personal
oppression
Demon
possession
Mimic
Less direct and intense
more direct and intense
angelic conflict
779
Refer to the chart above: The small black box is the area of intense personal influence and on
occasions this might mimic demon possession in some ways. The Scripture is not specific in
this area.
King Saul seems to fall into this area of severe demon oppression as a judgment from the Lord.
Unger: “believers who stubbornly reject God’s Word and go on in self-will and rebellion expose
themselves to demon control to a greater or lesser degree” (Unger’s Commentary on the Old
Testament, p.385).
The Angelic Conflict
333 | P a g e
Even though the demons followed Satan in his rebellion God still can command and control
these evil beings when He so wills. In this case God used the demon to discipline Saul. In the
case of Job God allowed Satan to attack him to demonstrate certain things about the angelic
conflict, suffering, and human viewpoint.
In 1 Kings 22:20-23 the Lord Himself sent a deceiving (lying) demon to influence another
rebellious king of Israel – King Ahab - to go into a battle where he would be killed. See 1 Kings
16:33)
Back to 1 Samuel 16:15-16: This is attack of an evil spirit is recognized as being “from God.”
While we are not told how those who observed Saul knew this evil spirit to be from God, they
certainly did. I believe it is simply a statement that recognizes the sovereignty of God and that
this could not have happened unless he allowed it.
Saul is a prime example of what happens to a believer when the go into reversionism.
Reversionism is when a believer turns away from Bible Doctrine. When any believer – young or
old – begins to have negative volition to Bible Doctrine they are on their way to reversionism
and divine discipline. God had placed a Bible teacher into Saul’s life, the prophet Samuel, to
instruct him in God’s Word and ways. But Saul kept rejecting, ignoring, and rebelling; as a
result, he loses all the satisfaction God wanted him to experience, all the stability he wanted,
and all the success he desired. Instead, he got misery and, ultimately, physical death all as a
part of divine discipline.
Saul had been warned but Saul would not listen. And even when God’s hand of discipline was
on him he refused to honestly confess his sin and get back into the plan of God for his life.
This reminds me of a verse in Isaiah: speaking of the nation of Israel and the discipline God had
been giving the nation in an attempt to get them back onto the right path, it says,
Isaiah 42:23-25 (NASB) 23 Who among you will give ear to this? Who will give heed and listen
hereafter? 24 Who gave Jacob up for spoil, and Israel to plunderers? Was it not the Lord, against
whom we have sinned, And in whose ways they were not willing to walk, And whose law they
did not obey? 25 So He poured out on him the heat of His anger And the fierceness of battle;
And it set him aflame all around, Yet he did not recognize it; And it burned him, but he paid no
attention.
How often believers today experience the discipline of the Lord for their own ignoring of his
Word and rebellion yet when trouble comes they do not recognize it as divine discipline and
they do not make the connection between their sin and their troubles.
Usually, they will not even admit they have sinned! We need to be very careful, beloved, with
our responses to the Word of God!
The Angelic Conflict
334 | P a g e
Saul was under divine discipline:
Because he failed to respond to God’s discipline he eventually crossed the line of the sin unto
death: 1 Samuel 28:15-19; 31:1-6
The Lord will not allow His people to continue just to live according to their own thinking,
attitude, and behavior without taking action.
Hebrews 12:10
The four levels of divine discipline:
•
Advancement discipline (testing - like academic training): Hebrews 12:7-9; James 1:4
•
Warning discipline: Hebrews 6:4-8
•
Intensive discipline; Heb. 10:26-39; John 15:6 – it may go on for years if we do not
confess and return to growth
•
Dying discipline – Saul; 1 Cor. 11:30; James 5:16-17; 1 John 5:16-17; Acts 5:1-11; 1
Cor. 10:1-13
Advancement discipline: To know the difference between testing and discipline you have to
examine your own self: are you in fellowship? Are you working to grow in the faith? Are you in a
persistent rebellion in any specific area of your life?
1 Corinthians 11:31-32: Discipline in time (temporal judgment). The idea of “being
condemned with the world” is not an eternal judgment but rather a judgment in time which would
include a range of divine discipline including sickness and death.
1 Cor. 10:1-13
v.1 = brethren – believers – “our fathers” is a reference to the wilderness generation
v.1 = they experienced God’s leading
v.2 = baptizo = identification with Moses
v.3-4 = drank from the spiritual rock – Jesus Christ
They are seen by Paul as believers; however,
v.5 = God was not pleased with most of them
v.6 = their discipline is a warning example for us – there is a real danger to the rebellious
believer
v.8 = Dying discipline = they had various acts of persistent rebellion with the result that 23k died
in one day (Numbers 25);
The Angelic Conflict
335 | P a g e
v.9 = some were killed by snakes (Numbers 21)
v.10 = some by a destroying angel (Numbers 16 and the rebellion of Korah)
v.11 = the “end of the ages” = the Church Age, the time before the Tribulation
1 Corinthians 5:1-5
The word destruction in verse 5 is olethros and can mean strong physical suffering or total ruin.
There are two major views of what Paul means here.
(1) destruction of the flesh – to make him so miserable under the cosmic system and under,
perhaps, demonic attack, that the person puts to death the deeds of the flesh and comes
back into fellowship and spiritual growth. Though the sin nature cannot be “destroyed” as
in “cease to exist” it’s power to control the believer can be removed through confessions
and spiritual growth (Romans 6:12-14).. This is further seen in the phrase “so that his
spirit may be saved in the day of the Lord.” “Saved’ (sozo) can often mean healthy or to
be healed. So Paul’s desire is that the person be healthy at the “day of the Lord Jesus” time of the Judgment Seat of Christ, the Bema (1 Cor. 3:10-15. Paul’s desire was for the
man to respond positively to this church discipline and be restored. This is not the Day of
the Lord, the Tribulation period.
(2) The second meaning is that this person is handed over for Satan to afflict him
specifically even to the point of physical death. The believer is about to undergo the “sin
unto death” mentioned in 1 Cor. 11:30 and 1 John 5:16. This would prevent him from
any further sin and loss at the Judgment Seat of Christ as well as any other damage to
the spiritual life of other believers. usually a person can always get back into fellowship
and learn from the discipline; but it may be a line has been crossed and physical death
will happen.
I am more inclined to the first handling, but I will not be dogmatic.
2 Cor. 2:1-11: This seems to refer to the same man Paul referred to in 1 Corinthians 5:1-5. The
divine discipline and the church discipline had its desired effect and Paul says that they are to
return the man to full church fellowship
Hebrews 10:26-27 (NASB) 26 For if we go on sinning willfully after receiving the knowledge of
the truth, there no longer remains a sacrifice for sins, 27 but a terrifying expectation of judgment
and THE FURY OF A FIRE WHICH WILL CONSUME THE ADVERSARIES.
A note on the phrase “there no longer remains a sacrifice for sins: The Jewish believers to
whom this was written seem to have come to the erroneous conclusion that they could return to
Judaism to avoid persecution and then later “get saved again.” The writer to the Hebrews is
repudiating such an idea! Once a person has believed they belong to the Lord forever and the
sacrifice on the Lord Jesus Christ on the cross for them is not a repeatable event – they cannot
get “unsaved” and then “saved” again later. Rather, as believers, they were going to undergo
severe divine discipline in time.
The Angelic Conflict
336 | P a g e
The very specific danger for these believers was that in returning to Judaism they would
undergo the divine judgment on Israel that occurred in 70 A.D. when multiple thousands of
Jewish people were killed under the Roman general Titus.
Divine discipline includes a loss of divine protection
When a believer is put of fellowship they are automatically in the cosmic system and they may
come under the various more intense levels of demonic influence due to a loss of divine
protection – the loss of our spiritual armor we have studied.
In this case it is not a direct sending of a demon to discipline the believer but the believer places
themselves in harm’s way and the Lord may allow a more direct attack of the demonic world on
the believer.
Believers can also take part in other activities that opens them up to serious demonic influence.
By such rebellion against the Lord through these activities the Lord will allow demonic
oppression (not possession)
We are now going to take on the topic of the various ways individuals can place themselves
under strong and direct demonic influence. Many people see these things as no big deal” or
they may even become confused and see some of these things as from God; the reality is that
these are all satanic / demonic means of influence over humanity.
Believers may also fall into these activities and come under direct demonic influence.
Pathways to strong demonic influence
Deuteronomy 18:9-12
Divination: Hebrew
#7081 quesem; N.T.
#4131 puthon (python)
Divination
Witchcraft, sorcery,
fortune-telling, omen, lot,
oracle
.
angelic conflict
666
Zodhiates (N.T. word):
“Python, the Gr. Name given to the mythological serpent or dragon which lived at Pytho beneath
Mount Parnassus and guarded the Delphic Oracle. The name then became the surname of
Apollo, the god of divination in Greek mythology, and hence applied to all oracular and
divinatory spirits.”
The Angelic Conflict
337 | P a g e
Divination - definition and explanation:
R. B. Thieme: “Divination is the attempt to foresee or foretell future events or discover hidden
knowledge usually by means of interpreting omens or by the aid of supernatural powers”
(“Satan and Demonism,” p.23)
Unger: “Divination, the art of obtaining secret information, especially of the future, is a pagan
counterpart of prophecy. Careful comparison of Scripture will reveal that inspirational divination
is by demonic power, whereas genuine prophecy is by the Spirit of God.”
W.K.C. Guthrie (secular writer, not Christian but helpful on this point), referring to the Greek
religions: “There are two kinds of prophecy” [what the Bible refers to as divination] “carefully
distinguished by Plato. One is the conscious art of the augur, who has learned to interpret signs
and omens, telling the will of the gods from the flight of birds or the entrails of a sacrificial victim.
He remains perfectly self-possessed, but because of his skill (techne) claims to be able to read
what heaven has to say. The second is the prophecy of inspiration. When the prophet speaks
he is not himself. He is wrought upon and changed in a manner sometimes terrifying to behold
and exhausting to himself. He is possessed by the god and becomes for the time being only the
mouthpiece for the utterance of the divine voice. The Pythian prophetess of Apollo was of this
sort. She was a true mantic” [relating to or having powers of divination or prophecy], “giving
voice in a state of possession” (The Greeks and Their Gods, p.199).
Key Scriptures:
Exodus 22:18 (NASB) "You shall not allow a sorceress to live.
Leviticus 19:26 (NASB) 'You shall not eat anything with the blood, nor practice divination or
soothsaying.
Leviticus 19:31 (NASB) 'Do not turn to mediums or spiritists; do not seek them out to be defiled
by them. I am the Lord your God.
Leviticus 20:6 (NASB) 'As for the person who turns to mediums and to spiritists, to play the
harlot after them, I will also set My face against that person and will cut him off from among his
people.
Leviticus 20:27 (NASB) 'Now a man or a woman who is a medium or a spiritist shall surely be
put to death. They shall be stoned with stones, their bloodguiltiness is upon them.'"
Deuteronomy 18:9-11 (NASB) 9 "When you enter the land which the Lord your God gives you,
you shall not learn to imitate the detestable things of those nations. 10 "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, 11 or one
who casts a spell, or a medium, or a spiritist, or one who calls up the dead.
1 Samuel 15:23a (NASB) "For rebellion is as the sin of divination, And insubordination is as
iniquity and idolatry
The Angelic Conflict
338 | P a g e
Isaiah 8:19-20 (NASB) 19 When they say to you, "Consult the mediums and the spiritists who
whisper and mutter," should not a people consult their God? Should they consult the dead on
behalf of the living? 20 To the law and to the testimony! If they do not speak according to this
word, it is because they have no dawn.
The various forms of divination are a primary pathway to strong demonic influence
believer and unbeliever) and possession (unbeliever only).
Divination is form of the occult. The word “occult” means “concealed” or “hidden” (from the
Latin). It refers to hidden or secret knowledge from the spirit world; knowledge from beyond
normal human understanding.
“The masters of occult power are known as medicine men (or women), witch doctors, witches,
psychics, priests, sorcerers, astrologers, gurus, yogis, shamans, mediums, seers, or healers”
(Occult Invasion, Dave hunt, p.39)
While much of these practices are nothing more than people good at playing tricks and
deceiving, there is and can be real communication from the spirit world. But with one exception
we will see from the Bible, it is always a demonic communication no matter how good, nice,
encouraging, or helpful it might be. When information – teaching, doctrines – are communicated
it is from the deceiver and the demons that also deceive people into believing that what they say
should be listened to in spite of what the Bible says.
Deuteronomy 18:10-11 - nine forbidden practices
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
Making a child pass through the fire (idolatry) (abortion!)
Divination (fortune telling is one aspect)
Witchcraft
Interprets omens (including astrology)
Sorcerer (masculine witch – wizard, magician)
Casting spells (charmer, creating “good luck” and avoiding “bad luck,” charms)
Spiritist (consulting demons: “familiar spirit”)
Calling up the dead (necromancy)
Why do people practice the occult? Five primary reasons:
1. For personal control over people or the environment
2. For the expression and experience of power
3. For self-enlightenment and personally defined truth; it is spirituality through hidden or
secret wisdom where spiritual experiences define reality (I define truth/reality/spirituality)
4. To know the future so one can make certain decisions to influence a perceived positive
outcome or avoid a negative one for self or others
5. To have feelings of psychological well-being and self-esteem
The Angelic Conflict
339 | P a g e
These have to be answered in the negative: Are all spiritual practices alright if they seem to
work? Are they alright ff they make me feel good about myself? Are all religions essentially the
same including ancient pagan religions?
Spiritual techniques: “Is it harmless to use any kind of spiritual technique that seems to work?
Well, first we must understand that, in contradistinction to Christianity, paganism majors in
spiritual techniques, all of them designed to produce a sense of mystical identification with the
divine. These techniques are surprisingly universal.” (On Global Wizardry, Peter Jones, ed.,
p.13)
The steady growth today in churches and the world around us is that doctrine divide but
experiences unit; all religions and all “faith expressions” are acceptable if we base such
acceptance and unity on experience and not doctrine.
On p.19 of the same book the authors write:
The notion that a spiritually-gifted elite can garner information directly from beings in the
spirit realm, or perhaps from another planet, is now a widely component of religious
thought. Spirit contact, once limited to occult works and practices, surfaces today in
popular fiction, the personal accounts of New Age gurus, the UFO movement, spiritual
biographies, the literature of angelic visitations, countless movies, video and online
games, and in other popular cultural sources” (p.18)
The result of all this is a growing influence of demonic influence not only in the world but also in
the modern church.
To participate in the occult is to participate in the demonic rebellion against God. It is to join
hands with the enemy of all that is right and true. It is to open oneself up to ever increasing
levels of demonic influence
Divination and the ancients
• When archeologists have dug into the ancient cities
they found many clay tablets with writing on them. The style of
writing is called cuneiform.
“Texts dealing with divination represent the second largest
single category of the cuneiform literature of Mesopotamia
(after economic texts)…. The pagans believed that one could
use human skill and ingenuity to acquire from the gods
knowledge about certain situations” Nelson’s Illustrated
Encyclopedia of Bible Facts, Vol.2 The Land and the People,
p.96
But that was not just a danger then – it remains dangerous today. While divination has always
been around, today divination has returned to society in an ever increasing way as we will see.
The Angelic Conflict
340 | P a g e
Divination: communication with “the gods” – the spirit world of the demons
Leviticus 17:7: goat-demons: demons who have the animal form of a goat. The Hebrew
word is seirim. This is the source of using the head of a goat to represent Satan, demons,
and satanic cult religion. Used in 2 Chronicles 11:15; Isaiah 13:21 and 34:14 where it tells
us that during the Millennium Babylon in Iraq will be the dwelling place of demons including
the goat-demons and they will be a public spectacle for all to see.
Deuteronomy 32:17
Psalm 106:35-37
1 Corinthians 10:19-21
Any form of attempted communication with the spirit world or any attempt to receive
information or guidance from the spirit world is to communicate with demons. This includes
so-called communication with relatives or friends who are dead (séances/necromancy).
Any such communication is the teaching (doctrine) of demons – 1 Timothy 4:1; James 3:15
The Lord alone is the one true God above all the demonic world (the gods, little “g”)
Psalms 96:4-5 (HCSB) 4 For the Lord is great and is highly praised; He is feared above all
gods. 5 For all the gods of the peoples are idols, but the Lord made the heavens.
All forms of divination is an attempt to communicate with demons or is literally a
communication with demons. Divination / occult go hand in hand with the demonic attempt
to influence mankind.
We need to remember these important points:
•
•
•
Satan is a created being and cannot be in more than one place at one time.
The demons, who are other fallen angels, seek to influence mankind in any way possible
so that people will turn from God and the Scriptures; this is to join them in rebellion
against their Creator
Demons are very active in this endeavor: they work together (Matt. 12:45; Mark 5:8-13)
and have the vast knowledge of human beings that has been accumulated through all
human history
Divination and the ancients: an example from the Bible: Ezekiel 21:21
R.B. Thieme: “After the battle of Carchemish , while pursuing the fleeing element of the
Egyptian army, Nebuchadnezzar came suddenly upon the spectacular city of Jerusalem (Dan.
1:1). He hesitated: Should he continue the chase or besiege Jerusalem?” “Satan and
Demonism,” p.24
The Angelic Conflict
341 | P a g e
•
“shakes the arrows”: Belomancy (also bolomancy) was divination by special arrows
usually having various occult symbols. It was practiced in ancient times by the
Babylonians, the Assyrians, the Greeks, the Arabs, and the Scythians, and many others.
(Source Wikipedia; R. B. Theime)
•
“he consults the household idols”: these were the teraphim which were
small human-looking idols of various materials usually no more than 23 inches in length. The images were used with various magical or
occult rites. In Genesis 31:17-19, 30 The idols that Rachel took were
the teraphim
•
“he looks at the liver”: hepatoscopy (also haruspicy) – “the use of the
liver of an animal to determine the future” (Thieme). A sheep’s liver
was most commonly used. FYI: Entrail reading is called extispicy.
An ancient Babylonian clay “liver” probably
used to train people how to “read” the message from the gods.
All of these methods are called “augural divination”:
Speaking of divination, C. Fred Dickason writes: “It includes two
divisions: (1) artificial or augural divination, interpreting signs and
omens under demonic control, and (2) inspirational divination,
using a demon-controlled medium to forecast what he sees”
(Angels: Elect and Evil, p.p. 21-22)
Inspirational divination – communication from the spirit world of demons
Isaiah 8:19-20 - if there is “no light” what is the only other source? Darkness: the demons
Isaiah 47:12-13 – they wore themselves out trying to get spiritual contact and advice!
Avoid such “secret knowledge”: God prohibits all attempts by human beings to discover
anything about the future or to receive advice or information of any kind from any source other
than Him – He alone is the source of all Truth and reality.
To seek any such knowledge is to rebel against God who has revealed the knowledge He wants
us to have in the Word of God
There is a lifetime of learning in the Word – concentrate on that alone to master its truths. Do
not seek any advice from any source outside of His Word – especially not anything from the
spirit world.
Deuteronomy 29:29: There are things He has not told us and these are not for us to know. The
only source that can be trusted about the supernatural and the future is the Word of God.
The Angelic Conflict
342 | P a g e
Deuteronomy 29:29 (NLT) “The Lord our God has secrets known to no one. We are not
accountable for them, but we and our children are accountable forever for all that he has
revealed to us, so that we may obey all the terms of these instructions.
All knowledge is compared to what God has in His written revelation; NO spiritual knowledge of
any kind is to be sought outside of the written Word.
The only source for Truth
John 17:17 (NASB) Sanctify them in the truth; Your word is truth.
Psalm 119:9, 142, 151
In knowing Truth the ultimate questions are these: “What is the authority for the claimed truth?”
“Does what is being said agree with the Bible?”The great common claims today are: “I have
experienced it! I know it is true!” “We discover truth in mutually-affirming dialogue with others!”
Both are open to the teachings and influence of demons!
Beloved, we do not discover truth from experience or dialogue – we discover it from revelation!
The revealed Word of God is our only source for absolute truth.
Experienced-based knowledge even in so-called “Christian” circles
From Danielle Shroyer, pastor at Journey Church, Dallas Texas:
I cannot say exactly what we believe except that experience is a higher authority than
Scripture. I do not believe the Bible is the Word of God, I believe Jesus is…Scripture is
inspired and inspiring the way a quantum physics book is.
(From a lecture by Mark Perkins given at the Chafer Seminary pastor’s conference in 2011 in a
presentation on mysticism in the church today)
From their Core Values statement off their website:
We realize that people of deep faith come to divergent beliefs on certain issues. Our task
is not to seek full agreement on all things but to dialogue respectfully and listen for God's
voice. We welcome people from all spheres of life to join us on this journey to become
whole people of God.
By the way, this church was established by a
group of people leaving a Baptist Church! How is
that possible? A total lack of the teaching of Bible
Doctrine or the rejection of the teaching of Bible
Doctrine!
Divination and the ancients: An example of an
experience: The Oracle of Delphi and inspirational
divination
When demons speak
The Angelic Conflict
343 | P a g e
The Pythia, a demon-possessed priestess,
would sit over a fissure below the temple of
Apollo where gasses came out and she
would utter her “prophecies.”
They made claim that she was inspired by
pneuma (a spirit of the gods) rising from
below. Answers to questions were given;
guidance in decision making was provided.
Often these were meaningless babbling
sounds (so-called “tongues”) which were
thought to be the gods speaking through
her.
Sometimes she would utter very clear statements and there are certain historical records that
indicate that, at least sometimes, her statements and prophecies were accurate. Such indicates
strong demonic activity and probably possession.
R. B. Theime, in his booklet, “Satan and Demons,” give us this historical event which will help us
understand how the demons can sometimes work to make accurate statements which then
deceive the hearers:
In the sixth century B.C., a king named Croesus was the last and most renowned ruler of
Lydia. Located in present Turkey. Lydia expanded from a small kingdom to a mighty empire
after the fall of the Hittites. Sardis, the capital city, was acclaimed for its splendor and
legendary wealth. Croesus, rich beyond imagination, is credited with originating coined
money as the medium of exchange.
When the victories of Cyrus the great of Persia began to threaten Lydian supremacy,
Croesus grew uneasy. He hastily allied himself to Amasis II of Egypt and Nabonidus of
Babylonia. But these alliances failed to provide him with a sense of security. He sought
advice from supernatural sources to assist him in making decisions.
Croesus’ first act was to determine which sources of divination were valid. He sent
emissaries to various heathen temples throughout the land. His carefully conceived plan
was for a synchronized action on the part of his messengers. One hundred days after they
received their order, each of the couriers was to enter a specific temple and inquire, “What is
Croesus, King of Lydia, doing today?”
At the appointed hour, Croesus would be at the seashore. He would meticulously
dismember a tortoise and a lamb and then boil them in a brass cauldron fitted with a brass
cover. Whichever temple most accurately described this bizarre royal behavior would be
considered the most reliable of the oracles.
As the king expected, the temples vied with each other for royal patronage. The appeal to
each oracle involved complicated ritual and mysterious jargon. Only the oracle of Delphi
described exactly the king’s whereabouts even before the courier asked the crucial
questions. Pythia, the demon-possessed priestess, pronounced:
The Angelic Conflict
344 | P a g e
“I can count the sands and I can measure the oceans; I have ears for the silent, and
know what the dumb man meaneth; Lo! On my sense there striketh the smell of a shellcovered tortoise boiling now on a fire, with the flesh of a lamb, in a cauldron, brass is the
vessel below, and brass the cover above it”
Elated, the courier hastened back to deliver his message to the king. Upon hearing the
pronouncement, Croesus immediately the right oracle had been found. Once again, he
dispatched envoys to Delphi. They arrived laden with priceless gifts intended as a
magnificent sacrifice to the Delphian deity. Ancient historians report an offering of three
thousand oxen, resplendent robes and royal tunics, immense vessels of silver and gold,
ingots of precious metals – opulent gifts that amazed even Herodotus, who saw them a
century later at Delphi.
These treasures, Croesus thought, would be consigned to the flames atop an enormous
sacrificial pyre in exchange for an answer to this critical question: Should Lydia attack the
Persians? The reply came back from Delphi: If Croesus crosses the Halys River he will
overturn a mighty empire. Croesus misconstrued this ambiguous advice to be a promise of
success. The armies of Croesus marched across the border. Indeed, the demon was
accurate in his prediction: Croesus’ attack on Cyrus did overturn a mighty empire – his own
(pp. 25-26)
Acts 16:16-18: Paul and a girl with the spirit of the pythia.
The spirit of the Python (divination): the girl was possessed and controlled by a demon. Those
who owned her cared nothing for her personally but only for their business profit. They were
profiting from the information being given by the demon through the young slave girl – she could
foretell the future. The reason she was good at this was because of her demon possession.
It is very possible – as in this example – for people to find “good things” to come from the
demons (like making money!). Never, ever think that just because you get good or pleasing-toyou results that some activity or prophecy or “good luck” it is from God. Satan can bring good
things to deceive you! To the Word!
How can demons “foretell” the future? By knowledge, experience, power
Five suggestions as to how it is possible:
1.
2.
3.
4.
Their vast knowledge of humanity can result in relatively accurate predictions of actions
They can influence events to fulfill their prophecy
They can work together and share information
They can be vague enough to make it seem as if they accurately predicted events (e.g.
Nostradamus the French astrologer who lived from 1503 to 1566)
5. They can plant thoughts into people’s minds to encourage fulfillment – but they cannot
enforce action unless the person is demon-possessed and even then there are
limitations
Demons do not know the future but they are better at predicting it than we are because of their
knowledge, experience, and power.
The Angelic Conflict
345 | P a g e
Why was Paul upset? Why, wasn’t she speaking the truth?
Because the demon possessed girl was seen as a source of truth – demons may tell the truth
but only with the intent to later lead the person into deception.
This is the same reason why Jesus never allowed demons to tell others who He was (Mark
3:11-12; Luke 4:41).
Counterfeits always have within them some elements of truth – that is why it is deceptive. This
is why one must know the Scriptures and to interpret them accurately so as not to be deceived.
Divination: pathways to strong demonic influence in the world today.
All of the following are, in one way or the other, aspects of divination:
•
Fortunetelling, astrology, horoscopes, palm reading, psychics, Ouija boards, tarot cards,
tea leaf reading, channeling, “familiar spirits,” “ascended white masters,” crystal balls,
necromancy (communication with the dead - séances), pendulums, water dowsing,
“ghost hunters,” angel contact, dream interpretation and visions, witchcraft – including
Wicca (sorcery), mind-altering drugs, and methods for altered states of consciousness
including eastern style meditation (e.g. yoga) and religion would all be included in the
broad definition
Thieme: “When anyone, however innocently, visits a fortuneteller, whether it involves reading
palms, tarot cards, or tea leaves, contact with demons is possible. When divination accurately
foretells the future, demons are operating. Certainly not all fortunetelling indicates demon
possession; much of this frivolous dabbling may be nothing more than clumsy deception or
clever fakery. Yet those who participate in divination are flirting with possible demon
involvement.
When people resort to divination before making decisions, they are susceptible to demon
influence or demon possession. Divination is merely an extension of witchcraft and idolatry.
Sponsored by demons, these are strictly forbidden by God.” (p.27)
A special note: Even some aspects of the modern Charismatic movement practicing forms of
occult divination.
The only source for the Christian life
If there is anything God wants you to know it is written in the Bible. Everything about the future
and everything necessary for living out the Christian life is given in the Bible
Isaiah 8:19-20: Do not seek information from any other spiritual source. The only source that
can be trusted about the supernatural is the Word of God.
2 Peter 2:2-4: when Peter under the inspiration of the Holy Spirit said “all things” did he mean
“all things”? Do we really know that Scripture is sufficient for every believer in every
circumstance and for every decision?
The Angelic Conflict
346 | P a g e
Whenever we turn to anything in seeking information from a source beyond the Scriptures, or
contrary to them, we are in direct opposition to the provision of the Lord – we are rejecting the
Scriptures which give Truth and define reality.
TO THE SCRIPTURES!
In the times before the completion of the written Word – which was completed by 96 A.D. – God
communicated His truth to a few certain individuals by visions, dreams, and prophetic inspiration
by the Holy Spirit
2 Peter 1:21; Luke 1:70; 2 Timothy 3:16
Everything we need to know to guide us in daily living and decisions come from His written
Word, the Bible. We are to know it and to seek no other source.
1 Corinthians 2:16 (NASB) For who has known the mind of the Lord, that he should instruct
Him? But we have the mind of Christ.
“The Bible is ‘the mind of Christ’ (1 Cor. 2:16) and doctrine in your soul is your protection
against the evils of demon influence” (Thieme, p.27)
What about “prophecy”? What if it comes true? What if it comes true but the prophet
contradicts the Bible?
If it comes true does this indicate it is from God? If they say it is from God is it?
Deuteronomy 13:1 -5
This is under the Mosaic Law given only to Israel and never to Gentiles and never in the Church
Age.
If it does not come true exactly, could it still be from God? Deuteronomy 18:19-22
Three sources of “prophecy” both ancient and modern:
1. The One True God gave the truth in the past as the Bible everywhere claims and
demonstrates. However, revelation (including prophecy) has ended since the completion
of the cannon (1 Cor. 13:8; Rev. 22:10). No one has this spiritual gift today.
2. The human mind - either deliberate deception or through self-deception
3. The demons
Both the human mind and the demons can claim to speak from God as we will see from an
incident in 1 Kings.
Prophecy has ceased:
1 Corinthians 13:8-13
56 A.D 1 Corinthians was written: v.9 – know in part, prophesy in part
The Angelic Conflict
347 | P a g e
70 A.D. the Temple destroyed – v.8 – spontaneously spoken human languages (tongues) will
cease on their own (see 1 Corinthians 14:21-22)
96 A.D. The Bible is completed – v.10: this is full or mature knowledge. V.8: prophesies cause
to cease, knowledge caused to cease (the revealed knowledge necessary for the early church
before the completion of the Scriptures)
There is NO legitimate practice of prophecy in the church today nor has there been since
96 A.D. The gift has ceased.
1 Kings 22: prophecy from the demons
Vv.1-4: Aram (NASB) is Syria (NKJV): different translations translate the same word differently.
Aram is the name the Greeks called Syria. The territory is roughly the same as today although
modern Syrians have no kinship to the ancient Syrians.
The general area of Aram / Syria
Ahab and Jehoshaphat: Ahab was the king of the Northern Kingdom, Israel – he was an
unbeliever, an idolater, and very wicked (see 21:25-26).
Jehoshaphat: king of the Southern kingdom, Judah – a believer and generally a godly man
(22:41-50)
Jehoshaphat had made an alliance before this my marrying his son Jehoram to Athaliah, the
daughter of Ahab and Jezebel (2 Chronicles 18:1; 2 Kings 8:16-18).
The principle of separation
The Angelic Conflict
348 | P a g e
2 Chronicles 19:1-4
In this alliance through marriage as well as the joining in battle Jehoshaphat is violating the
biblical principle of separation from unbelievers in any kind of joining or alliance. It was seen by
Jehoshaphat as being politically and militarily to his advantage; but it was a serious spiritual
defection and it led to very tragic results.
2 Chronicles 21:5-6
This incident also ends with the death of Ahab
The New Testament principle of separation: 2 Corinthians 6:14-17
The prophets speak lies: 1 Kings 22:5: Jehoshaphat wants to hear from a true prophet of
Yahweh – he wants truth
V.6: Ahab gathers 400 prophets who claim to speak for the one true God – they do not claim to
speak in the name of any idol or false gods. These were false prophets none the less because
they said what the king who paid them wanted to hear – Ahab does not want truth.
Vv.7-8: Jehoshaphat knows that something is up with all this – he probably knew that Ahab only
wanted “yes men” around him. Perhaps too he sensed that these “prophets” were not men who
truly spoke from Yahweh even though they spoke in His name
V.8: Ahab hates the Truth and is so arrogant that he thinks he can do as he pleases and not be
accountable to the one true God.
The basic operation of the sin nature
Robert Dean points out in his 1 Kings series that autonomy from the Word of God and
antagonism to the Word of God are basic operations of the sin nature and are clearly seen in
Ahab: “I hate him” = this is blasphemy against God’s Word and a rejection of authority.
This also defines the world around us in which we live and as we approach ever closer to the
end times such antagonism and open hostility to the Word will be strong.
1Timothry 4:1; 2 Timothy 3:1-5
Ahab wanted him to only speak “good things” but this prophet did not and could not because
Ahab was so evil.
“Tell me what I want to hear not what I need to hear” is the same issue with most people and
the church today. So many Christians want to be seen as “good little Christians” but do not want
the Truth when it goes against what they want to hear.
2 Timothy 4:3-4 (NASB) 3 For the time will come when they will not endure sound doctrine; but
wanting to have their ears tickled, they will accumulate for themselves teachers in accordance
to their own desires, 4 and will turn away their ears from the truth and will turn aside to myths.
The Angelic Conflict
349 | P a g e
Anyone who claims to know and proclaim the absolute Truth even in America today has been
referred to as “a Christian terrorist.” Christian beliefs about God, salvation, heaven and hell,
morality, marriage, abortion, the exclusiveness of the Bible as the source of Truth is considered
bigotry, hatred, hate speech, and the ways of the past which were so wrong.
The kings forgot the real King
V.9: Micaiah is sent for
Vv. 10: the place of the city gates where business and political meetings were held and they
were sitting on their thrones – perhaps to try and impress Micaiah.
Vv.11-12: what the false prophets are saying in the name of the Lord but it is exactly what Ahab
wants to hear – he is confident in himself that he will win a great victory
they forgot there is the real King whose will alone they should have sought
Micaiah: His name means “who is like God.”
He only appears in this situation in Scripture but we discover He could not be bought!
He stood alone against 400 others, against another leading prophet (Zedekiah), and took
persecution but he did not waver. God’s Word was more important to him than any personal
gain or discomfort.
Vv. 13-14: what they are saying is this: “go along to get along – if you know what is good for
you!” But Micaiah stands firm on being determined to speak only the Truth from the Lord.
V. 15a: Ahab asks for the Truth but only as a show – he does not want it and has already
chosen deception; he wants to be deceived
V.15b: Micaiah speaks in obvious sarcasm! He was not very tactful! “This is what you want to
hear – so here it is! Go for it!” Even though either king could with a word have him killed, these
kings do not impress him – he is only impressed by the King of kings!
Micaiah’s two visions
V.16: Ahab repeats his request
V.17: Micaiah tells him of the first vision: the sheep (Israelites) are scattered because the
shepherd (Ahab) is gone – he is dead.
V.18: Ahab rejects the Truth because it is not what he wants to hear. Micaiah tells Ahab of his
second vision: the throne room of Heaven. This is one of the most unusual scenes in the Old
Testament.
The angelic convocation
Vv. 19-23: the Lord pulls back the veil of the spiritual world to let us see behind the scenes: God
called all the angels, fallen and elect (faithful), to appear before Him - Job 1:6; 2:1: an angelic
convocation when they have to appear before the Lord
The Angelic Conflict
350 | P a g e