In the Service of Demons

# 216 - Today's Du-votional comes from: 1Sa 15:23a For rebellion is as the sin of witchcraft,” (1 Sam 15:23a) Last time, we defined the sin of rebellion as resisting authority to the point of wanting to be your own authority. The Holy Spirit likens this sin of rebellion to witchcraft. The biblical commentator Paul Kretzmann calls witchcraft “the service of demons in any form.” We better let that sink in a little. When you and I determine what is right and wrong, we are in reality serving demons! What does the Bible say about this sin of witchcraft? De 18:9-12 "When you come into the land which the LORD your God is giving you, you shall not learn to follow the abominations of those nations. 10 "There shall not be found among you anyone who makes his son or his daughter pass through the fire, or one who practices witchcraft, or a soothsayer, or one who interprets omens, or a sorcerer, 11 "or one who conjures spells, or a medium, or a spiritist, or one who calls up the dead. 12 "For all who do these things are an abomination to the LORD, and because of these abominations the LORD your God drives them out from before you.” Witchcraft is an abomination. It, and all these other things are detestable in the sight of God. Sacrificing children (abortion) an abomination. Engaging in or practicing any of the black arts, an abomination. Ouija boards, seances, physic hotlines, horoscopes...all of these things put you in the service of demons. Oh come on Duane, what harm is there in reading your horoscope? Well, let me ask you this, “Who is behind that horoscope? Who is behind those tarot cards? Who's really on the other end of the hotline? It's the demons telling you what you want to hear, and isn't that exactly what we do when we set ourselves up as the ruling authority in our own lives? We read the Scriptures through the lens of picking and choosing what we want to believe and obey. No wonder the Holy Spirit calls the sin of rebellion witchcraft! It's the same thing! The solution? Same for all sins. Confess them, take them to the cross, receive God's forgiveness, and turn from them.