Deuteronomy 18: 9 – 14
The Romper Room teacher in Boston when I was a little kid was Miss Jean. I watched every day hoping that she would be able to see me in her “magic mirror” and either wish me a happy birthday, or tell me that I was being a good boy. Of course it was fake, but I was young enough to believe it for awhile. As a teen we played with an Ouija board trying to “contact” the spirit world. That turned out to be foolish too.
Why did I do these things?
Or maybe the real question is why do “we” do these things?
I think that we all have this fear based need to know the future.
The ancient Israelites were desperate to know their future, and God knew that they would be tempted to consult ungodly sources for answers. So He warned them to stay away from mediums and those who contact the dead
9 When you enter the land the LORD your God is giving you, do not learn to imitate the detestable ways of the nations there.
10 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,
11 or casts spells, or who is a medium or spiritist or who consults the dead.
12 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.
13 You must be blameless before the LORD your God.
14 The nations you will dispossess listen to those who practice sorcery or divination. But as for you, the LORD your God has not permitted you to do so.
God knew that these practices would prevent ancient Israel from being a holy, set-apart people who would be a blessing to all nations. The future for Israel was determined by their faithfulness to God’s covenant, not the words of soothsayers and psychics. Reliance on these evil practices indicated a failure to trust the Lord with their lives.
When we are desperate for information about our future, we should turn to the sovereign God of heaven. He is the only One who holds the answers we seek
The Romper Room teacher in Boston when I was a little kid was Miss Jean. I watched every day hoping that she would be able to see me in her “magic mirror” and either wish me a happy birthday, or tell me that I was being a good boy. Of course it was fake, but I was young enough to believe it for awhile. As a teen we played with an Ouija board trying to “contact” the spirit world. That turned out to be foolish too.
Why did I do these things?
Or maybe the real question is why do “we” do these things?
I think that we all have this fear based need to know the future.
The ancient Israelites were desperate to know their future, and God knew that they would be tempted to consult ungodly sources for answers. So He warned them to stay away from mediums and those who contact the dead
9 When you enter the land the LORD your God is giving you, do not learn to imitate the detestable ways of the nations there.
10 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,
11 or casts spells, or who is a medium or spiritist or who consults the dead.
12 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.
13 You must be blameless before the LORD your God.
14 The nations you will dispossess listen to those who practice sorcery or divination. But as for you, the LORD your God has not permitted you to do so.
God knew that these practices would prevent ancient Israel from being a holy, set-apart people who would be a blessing to all nations. The future for Israel was determined by their faithfulness to God’s covenant, not the words of soothsayers and psychics. Reliance on these evil practices indicated a failure to trust the Lord with their lives.
When we are desperate for information about our future, we should turn to the sovereign God of heaven. He is the only One who holds the answers we seek
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