Why We Should be Against Witchcraft: Part one

It is that time of year again when you see vampires, werewolves, and witches being celebrated. October is the time when our culture seems to dive into dark themes and celebrate some questionable characters. In this post we are not going to look at Halloween, rather I am going to give some reasons as to why I am opposed to witchcraft and why I am concerned for the Cedar Valley.

First, we need to get a Biblical foundation on witchcraft. As Christians, the Bible should always be our authority and we should follow the word of God. In Leviticus 19:31 it says, “‘Give no regard to mediums and familiar spirits; do not seek after them, to be defiled by them: I am the LORD your God.” Mediums and familiar spirits (or spiritists) are clearly referring to witchcraft, God doesn’t take to kindly towards it as He says we will be defiled by them if they are in our midsts. Now many will argue against this passage of Scripture due to it being from the Old Testament and specifically the Levitical law, but let me remind you that God is immutable, His morality doesn’t change. Leave no doubt about it, association with “mediums and familiar spirits” will defile your life. This word “defiled” was used throughout the Old Testament and was used to describe those who worshipped false idols (Psalm 106:39, Hosea 5:3), the sexually immoral (Genesis 34:5, Numbers 5:13, Ezekiel 18:6), and any action that violated the sacredness of the Lord (Jeremiah 32:34). It is clear that God takes witchcraft seriously. Witchcraft is also condemned as a work of the flesh in the New Testament. In Galatians 5:19-21 it says, “Now the works of the flesh are evident, which are: adultery, fornication, uncleanness, lewdness, idolatry, sorcery, hatred, contentions, jealousies, outbursts of wrath, selfish ambitions, dissensions, heresies, envy, murders, drunkenness, revelries, and the like; of which I tell you beforehand, just as I also told you in time past, that those who practice such things will not inherit the kingdom of God.” Here we find witchcraft by the name of “sorcery” and it is in a long list of sins that are condemned by God. We can see the seriousness of the sin as the passage proclaims, “those who practice such things will not inherit the kingdom of God.” This is saying that those who have a lifestyle of these things are not saved. That isn’t to say that God can’t or won’t save someone out of these lifestyles rather it is to echo the words of James 2:17 “Thus also faith by itself, if it does not have works, is dead.” We are not saved by works, but our works reveal if we truly are saved. It is impossible for a Christian to remain practicing witchcraft, not because I said so, but because God said so in Galatians 5:20. I will get deeper into the Biblical reasons against witchcraft in following articles, but for now, I want to present just the foundational stance the Bible takes against witchcraft.

I am also against witchcraft because of personal experience. Witchcraft runs in my family I can trace it at least as far back as my great-great-grandmother, she was a fortune teller who had people travel across state lines to hear her tell their fortune. My grandma was also involved in witchcraft as she held seances, read tarot cards, did palm readings, and even placed some curses on people. Due to witchcraft running in my family I have seen the destruction it brings in life and how outside of Christ there is no hope. In future articles, I look forward to going a little bit deeper into some of the stories from my family concerning witchcraft.  

This brings me to my concern for the Cedar Valley, as you can see from the Tweet above we are going to be having a “Pagan Pride” next year. This event will once again parade sin in our community, specifically sin that is mentioned as a “work of the flesh” and one that defiles us. This event is a highlight of what seems to be a growing Pagan population in the midst of our community. As Christians, we need to stand against this kind of sin as it will leave a spiritual “black eye” on our community for decades to come if we do not stand against it in its early stages. As Christians in this community, we need to be praying now for repentance and salvation of those who are caught in the dangerous sin of witchcraft. We also need to be contacting our city officials and letting them know that these kind of events are not good for our community and that we don’t want to be known as a pagan safe haven. Lastly, we need to keep an eye on what businesses support these kinds of events and we need to abstain from them being careful to not show support for a dangerous sin.

In Mattew 5:14- 16 it tells us “You are the light of the world. A city that is set on a hill cannot be hidden. Nor do they light a lamp and put it under a basket, but on a lampstand, and it gives light to all who are in the house. Let your light so shine before men, that they may see your good works and glorify your Father in heaven.” If we are no willing to be shining lights in the midst of the darkness of witchcraft and self-proclaimed paganism, then I truly wonder where our lights can shine. The question comes, to each of us in the Cedar Valley, are we willing to stand for Christ and against sin?