Spiritual Warfare

[Nell]

Originally Posted by byHismercy

Nell, I have heard the idea floating around christianson that when people speak to (or try) the dead, what they end up communicating with are unclean spirits. I think that makes a lot of sense. What do you think?

BHM--

It does make sense because of verses like Isaiah 8:19. While this verse doesn't specifically say people who attempt to communicate with the dead are communicating with unclean spirits, it does say DON'T DO IT. Why talk at the dead when you can talk to God Himself? I'm looking at the specific language of other verses.

Isaiah 8:19 And when they say to you, “Inquire of the mediums and the necromancers who chirp and mutter,” should not a people inquire of their God? Should they inquire of the dead on behalf of the living?

Good questions: why should we not inquire of God? Why inquire of the dead on behalf of the living? How offensive must it be to the One who died for us that we would seek counsel from the dead?

I did a search on the word "necromancy" and found list after list of 25, 28, etc. verses on what the Bible says about necromancy. There is no shortage of information on the topic and so far, none of the verses say necromancy is OK.

And back to Minorus' thing with Lees' spirit, I do think there is an element of necromancy there, even though Aron very eloquently explains the foreign guangxi network. Or if it was just an attempt to honor Lee as guangxi nest building.....it seems to me this is straying dangerously close to the edge of what God asks us to avoid....necromancy.

As for Minoru, I don't know his heart. I would ask him the same questions Isaiah 8:19 asks. I would also ask, isn't it enough that Jesus lives in us?

When he says "the spirit of Witness Lee lives in me" we have no way of knowing what he actually means...Guanxi network or not. I don't know and I can't know. I do believe there is no context that makes such expression a Christian teaching, it's unscriptural if not heretical. As such, this teaching crosses a line that should never be taught by a Christian to other Christians. God's word commands us not to practice necromancy. Period.

I just checked shepherdingwords.org for any kind of response. Crickets.

Nell