Searching for the Truth in the King James Bible;
Finding it, and passing it on to you.

EDITOR:
Steve Van Nattan

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THE RETURN OF SUPERSTITION

Superstition is increasing in modern culture,
but worse, it is taking over the thinking of the
People of God.

By Steve Van Nattan

PART ONE: SUPERSTITION IN OUR WORLD
PART TWO: SUPERSTITION IS DRIVEN BY RELIGIOUS FERVOR- You are here.
PART THREE: THE HANDMAIDEN OF SUPERSTITION
IS RELIGIOUS OBSESSIVE COMPULSIVE SCRUPULOSITY

PART TWO:
SUPERSTITION IS DRIVEN BY RELIGIOUS FERVOR

FAITH VERSUS SUPERSTITION

God is the lucky charm of the Charismatic movement.

A preacher claims that he demanded God fill the empty tank of his Volkswagen, and God did so. Another evangelist was late to a meeting at night, and he "bound" all the stop lights on the way and they all stayed green. Very recently a YouTube Charismatic guru has "bound" the Covid virus. A preacher said his toilet got blocked, and he dare not flush it. While shaving he got a rush of faith, and he reached over and boldly flushed the toilet. I am not making these up, dear reader. All such tricks are using God as a divine rabbit's foot..... a lucky charm.

Faith is based on revelation, not on tradition, supposition, or superstition.

2 John 1:9 Whosoever transgresseth, and abideth not in the doctrine of Christ, hath not God. He that abideth in the doctrine of Christ, he hath both the Father and the Son.

The truly born again Bible believer finds his truth in the Word of God. What appears to influence his life must be in complete context with the Bible. Any superstition or suspicion that depends on spooky or fearful assumptions will be totally rejected by the Bible believer. It is all about trusting God, not tricks.

Romans 8:37 Nay, in all these things we are more than conquerors through him that loved us.
38 For I am persuaded, that neither death, nor life, nor angels, nor principalities, nor powers, nor things present, nor things to come,
39 Nor height, nor depth, nor any other creature, shall be able to separate us from the love of God, which is in Christ Jesus our Lord.

If nothing, including sidewalk cracks, black cats, or poor Sunday School attendance, can separate you from the love of God, why are you taking ANY precautions to avoid any of life's strange ways. Take them in the power of God as they come, and keep walking.

2 Corinthians 11:3 But I fear, lest by any means, as the serpent beguiled Eve through his subtilty, so your minds should be corrupted from the simplicity that is in Christ.

There is NO science or Biblical teaching that tells you that a black cat can cross your way and cause any trouble to you. So, stop worrying about it.

CHURCH HOUSE SUPERSTITION
AS PROMOTED BY THE ROMAN CATHOLIC CHURCH

St. Christopher statue.

This saint was alleged to have carried Jesus across the river when Jesus was a child. But, Chris lived hundreds of years after Jesus returned to Heaven. Never mind, it is a cool legend. Because of Chris's interest in helping travelers, he was designated a saint, and Catholics prayed to him for protection for hundreds of years. Then, voile, someone in the Vatican did a study in the evidence that Chris even existed, and they drew a blank. Thus, Pope Paul VI demoted Christopher, and Catholics were told to stop praying to him because he probably never existed.

The notion that a plastic Christopher, Mary, or even a plastic Jesus can protect you, if you glue one to the dashboard of your car, is rank superstition. The Bible makes NO arrangement for a plastic, wood, gold, or silver Jesus.

John 4:23 But the hour cometh, and now is, when the true worshippers shall worship the Father in spirit and in truth: for the Father seeketh such to worship him.
24 God is a Spirit: and they that worship him must worship him in spirit and in truth.

When I was growing up in Tanzania, Africa, my parents heard many stories about the folly of Catholic priests who claimed to be missionaries. Their favorite method of making converts was to go around to a native beer drink, and after the Africans were stoned drunk, the priests would slip a Mary pendant around their necks, and when the drunks work up, voile, they figured they had become Catholics. The Africans would keep wearing the thing hoping it would add Mary to their other magic charms they wore.

Presence light

A sanctuary lamp, chancel lamp, altar lamp, everlasting light, or eternal flame is a light that shines before the altar of sanctuaries in many Jewish and Christian places of worship. Prescribed in Exodus 27:20-21 of Moses' law, this icon has taken on different meanings in each of the religions that have adopted it. The passage, which refers to prescriptions for the tabernacle, states....

Exodus 27:20 And thou shalt command the children of Israel, that they bring thee pure oil olive beaten for the light, to cause the lamp to burn always.
21 In the tabernacle of the congregation without the vail, which is before the testimony, Aaron and his sons shall order it from evening to morning before the LORD: it shall be a statute for ever unto their generations on the behalf of the children of Israel.

While we might be patient for modern Jews for having this lamp in their synagogue, it is NOT prescribed for the New Testament Church in any way. The Roman Catholic Church has this light in all their churches. It is their insurance policy that makes sure God is present in their churches, even when the people are not present. Since the biblical Church is the people, and NOT the real estate, this light is total nonsense and superstition.

Three magic ways the Roman Church has Jesus in a box

There are at least three talisman items in every Catholic Church that make the believers sure that God is there.

First is the presence light discussed above.

Second is the left over Host (wafer) from the Mass which is in the tabernacle behind the altar.

Third is the presence of the Holy Spirit in the flames of the votive candles constantly burning and allegedly sending aloft the prayers of the saints who paid the priest to burn them for them.

This is all pure superstition.

Now, what do Baptists and Charismatics do that parallels these fetishes in the Catholic Church?

How about the presence of God in greater power than normal at the altar? "Come meet Jesus at the altar..... he is waiting here for you." Tell me, is Jesus omnipresent and eternal? As far as Jesus was concerned he bought your salvation on a hillside outside of Jerusalem 2000 years ago. In fact, your salvation was settled by God in eternity past. So, the altar in your local church is NOT where Jesus is waiting. He has been waiting to finalize your salvation since the day you were born. ANYWHERE you figure that out is where Jesus is waiting to save you. The altar is all too often used to limit Jesus' power to act where and when he pleases. That makes the altar a fetish used to exercise Jesus and make him perform at the command of the preacher.

Do the doors being open indicate that God is more present than when the church house if empty? Wist ye not that Christ dwelleth in YOU, not in real estate?

That big huge King James Bible on the altar..... does that insure the presence of God more certainly? The physical Bible is not powerful in any way unless it is read, preached, and believed. Paper and ink are not your God.

That picture of Jesus on the wall, you know, the one that makes him look like and Irish farmer with blue eyes..... does that picture give you the feeling that Jesus is really present? Hmmmmmm Tell me that is not a talisman or fetish.

And, that baptistery tank up behind the pulpit, does that make you feel like a totally biblical Baptist? So, is a Baptist made one by water of by faith in Jesus Christ? That water may be another fetish. It all depends on whether or not the pastor is rightly dividing the Word of God on the doctrine of baptism.

So, where is Jesus most likely to be present?

Matthew 18:19 Again I say unto you, That if two of you shall agree on earth as touching any thing that they shall ask, it shall be done for them of my Father which is in heaven.
20 For where two or three are gathered together in my name, there am I in the midst of them.

So, invite your Christian friend out to coffee, do some Bible reading, and have church. Or, we might say, BE the Church. Stop using fetishes to try to charm Jesus into appearing. He is just as present IN YOU as he is present in Heaven right now.

"I saw Mary wiggle"

In the town of Knock, Ireland there is a church with a huge statue of Mary. Pilgrims come from all over the world and stare at the statue because it is claimed that Mary occasionally moves. What is accomplished spiritually is obviously zero, but seeing Mary move gives the superstitious Catholics a rush. During the Covid epidemic, the church was closed to pilgrims. It seems Mary could wiggle, but she could not heal the sick.

A convert from Catholicism, Montano, in The Monk Who Lived Again, told of using tricks to fake Mary's image crying and putting rouge on her cheeks to show that she approved of something the congregation did, probably adding generously to Peter's pence.

When I was a chaplain's assistant in the US Army, we filled the holy water font at the door of the chapel so that the faithful Catholics could dip their finger in it and touch their forehead. When the sponge was bone dry, they would still touch it and and their forehead because the act was enough to give the blessing. This is 100% superstition.

An explanation is needed. In the US Army, a Chaplain's assistant is required to be a helper to both Catholic and Protestant Chaplains. So, I had to do some things I did not appreciate when the Catholic Chaplain's Assistant was off duty. As with the account with Elisha and the Syrian Naaman, I figured that the idol was nothing, and I sometimes helped the Catholic priest.

Kissing the cross and the Monstrance.

A monstrance is a gold display device with a handle which holds a wafer (Host) which has been blessed during the Mass. The priest holds the monstrance and walks, or rides through town on the back of a vehicle, so that the faithful along the way can cross themselves and get another dose of good luck.

Catholics will cross themselves when they pass a church because Jesus is in there in the form of a wafer or cracker. The "hosts" left over after the Mass is finished cannot be stored just anywhere. They must be put in a pyx which is a silver round box. The pyx is put into a tabernacle which is a small fancy tent behind the altar. Thus, Jesus is always in a Catholic church, and if you cross yourself as you walk by the church, you will get a special blessing. This is 100% superstition.

The Catholic Church, and some Baptist preachers, pass off superstition as good works that believers do. NO! Works that are nothing but busy work for the hands and fears of the moment are NOT "good," They are no different than black cats and knocking on wood.

When I rode in taxi cabs in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia when we lived there as missionaries, occasionally a Coptic Orthodox priest would get into the cab. Cabs in Africa never have just one person in them. The driver stops and adds people until he has the taxi completely filled. This results in rides being rather cheap because of maximum cash slow. When a priest entered the taxi, he carried a brass cross. He would reach over and let the driver kiss the cross, and this was seen as his payment for the ride. The problem was, good luck did not fill the gas tank with gas.

WATCH VLADAMIR PUTIN KISS THE ICON IN A RUSSIAN ORTHODOX CHURCH

CLOSER TO HOME

But, do we who call ourselves Baptists, Charismatics, Reformed, Fundamentalists, Bible believers, or Evangelicals have any charm aspect to what we do and think about our practices? I think so.

Baptist preachers and altar calls

Do you not feel right with God unless you have made a trip down the aisle to weep and pray at the altar? Do you feel obligated to respond to the preacher when he tells you that you are not right with God because you do not walk the aisle enough? Do you, pastor, feel frightened and worried about your zeal if they are not responding to your knock down drag out altar calls? If you answered yes to any of the above, you are making a talisman or good luck charm out of the altar call. You will come up with a theological explanation, but you know very well that the altar call is a talisman to you.

Have you ever herd the preacher say, "Jesus is waiting at the altar. Now is the time to repent."?

When is the best time to repent?

Luke 11:32 The men of Nineve shall rise up in the judgment with this generation, and shall condemn it: for they repented at the preaching of Jonas; and, behold, a greater than Jonas is here.

When a pastor preaches sound doctrine, and you are hearing from the Holy Spirit in your conscience, REPENT. You can repent sitting right there in the pew, on the way home from church, or you can "walk the aisle" and repent at the altar call. God will accept your repentance anywhere you are. And, preaching is not the only time you can repent. You can repent sitting in your living room at home after reading something in the Bible that convicts you of sin. Why wait until you get to church to respond to the altar call? Do it at once, and walk on in victory.

A Baptist preacher online said he and his family were fighting horribly as they drove to church. They all got to church feeling guilty about it, and, instead of confessing sin to each other in the car, they rushed to the altar, as soon as they were inside the church, and they "got right" with God. But, did they confess sin to one another? The preacher did not say, so we must assume they thought that confession to one another was not important. I assure you, God was not impressed.

If you, pastor, belittle or degrade a saint for "getting right" with the Lord between Sundays, you are a witch doctor, not a Christian pastor. If you cannot be delighted when a saint gets right with God in his recliner in his living room, on Friday evening, you sir, are wicked. Your altar call is nothing but a place where you feast your ego on results. You do not love those members who walk the aisle at your command. If they have no other place to get right with God but your altar call, you are a heretic. Where did Moses get right with God?

Exodus 3:1 Now Moses kept the flock of Jethro his father in law, the priest of Midian: and he led the flock to the backside of the desert, and came to the mountain of God, even to Horeb.
2 And the angel of the LORD appeared unto him in a flame of fire out of the midst of a bush: and he looked, and, behold, the bush burned with fire, and the bush was not consumed.
3 And Moses said, I will now turn aside, and see this great sight, why the bush is not burnt.
4 And when the LORD saw that he turned aside to see, God called unto him out of the midst of the bush, and said, Moses, Moses. And he said, Here am I.
5 And he said, Draw not nigh hither: put off thy shoes from off thy feet, for the place whereon thou standest is holy ground.

Moses got right with God in the wilderness while herding sheep.

Now, consider a man who did not go to the temple to repent and receive restoration to victory:

Zacchaeus climbed a tree to see Jesus. Jesus saw him, and he invited himself to Zacchaeus' home. Zacchaeus entertained Jesus, but soon he voluntarily stood before Jesus and repented

Luke 19:7 And when they saw it, they all murmured, saying, That he was gone to be guest with a man that is a sinner.

The Pharisees would have undoubtedly have told Zacchaeus to go to the temple and make sacrifices for his sins as Moses' law prescribed..... at the altar. The temple altar was the right place to confess sins, not to some itinerant Rabbi.

8 And Zacchaeus stood, and said unto the Lord; Behold, Lord, the half of my goods I give to the poor; and if I have taken any thing from any man by false accusation, I restore him fourfold.
9 And Jesus said unto him, This day is salvation come to this house, forsomuch as he also is a son of Abraham.

If Zacchaeus came to your church and told you he stood before God on Wednesday and repented of sin and confessed his sins, would you tell him he needed to "walk the aisle" next Sunday to finish the job? If so, you are an infidel, for you do not believe God has the power to TOTALLY restore a saint between Sundays. You have also become a Papist in principle because you imagine that restoration to Christian victory must happen at your altar call within sacral real estate.

Pastor, if you fear that God will be angry with you if you don't give an altar call after every sermon, you have no faith in the power of the Holy Ghost. Do you believe Christ can add to the Lord's Church without your altar call? Is your altar call a good luck charm?

Acts 2:46 And they, continuing daily with one accord in the temple, and breaking bread from house to house, did eat their meat with gladness and singleness of heart.
47 Praising God, and having favour with all the people. And the Lord added to the church daily such as should be saved.

The context clearly implies that saints were added to the Church who did not "walk the aisle" of any building. Who adds to YOUR local church, Jesus or you? Is Jesus allowed to add to your church on Tuesday as well as Sunday?

One Sunday, Joyce came to me after the service and asked if she could visit my wife and I on Monday morning. She said she had something to take care of. I did not give altar calls except for very special reasons. I suggested people come to our home if they needed help taking care of some issue, or salvation, in their life. So, Monday morning she came and said she did not believe she had ever confessed her faith in Christ on purpose. My wife and I helped her do that, and she went away rejoicing. And, I did not tell her she needed to complete her salvation by walking the aisle next Sunday morning. That would imply that God cannot save anyone completely at my kitchen table. In fact, confessions of faith "stick" a lot better when they happen at your kitchen table. Altar call visits are easy believerism. Any honest evangelist will agree with me on that.

My uncle and aunt asked me to attend their Lutheran church with them. I was not too excited about it because in the 1960s the Lutheran Church at large was nearly all the way into the ditch. But, I loved my family, so I went with them. I was shocked when the pastor told the congregation of Lutherans that they could be baptized as a baby, catechized, confirmed, and become Lutheran church members and still go to Hell. He then gave the simple Gospel, and he invited anyone who wanted to make a open confession of faith in Christ to come to his office Monday morning and take care of it.

That church had grown from an attendance of 75 to 350 in the six months since the preacher arrived there. I asked him, after the service, how he had built attendance so rapidly. He said that it was nearly all by Lutherans who came around Monday morning to be born again. What a shame he did not use the altar call. He could have bragged about how many "came forward" at the next pastor's rally day. I trust those last two sentences sound absurd to you.

ARTICLE AT THIS JOURNAL ON ALTAR CALLS

Tithing

Do you believe tithing is about giving to the Lord, or does your tithe make you feel more secure in your salvation? If you said "Yes" to the latter, your tithe is nothing but superstition. You think you can buy good luck from God with your tithe.

The worst manifestation of this superstition is in the Charismatic Movement and Pentecostalism where preachers tell the people that they can give to God, and God is then obligated to do what they want him to do. This is no different from the heathen in Africa who set out food for demons at night so that the demons will do them favors. Hindus in India do the same thing. They take food to the Hindu temple at Benares and place it before their gods in order to bribe them into giving them favors. See photo

The pastor tells the people that if they do not give more, God will cause them physical problems. Ninety percent of the people present have at least one physical issue, even if it is only minor. And, the mind control factor kicks in, and the listener assumes his physical issue is because he is not giving enough. I have heard this trick used. It is wicked because the pastor has no authority to threaten the saints with punishment. That is the option of God alone. This money collection trick encourages Oppressive Compulsive Scrupulosity in the members. More on this below. But worse, the pastor is driving the sheep into a state of superstition. The power of superstition is often the fear of physical sorrow. Do you see how pastors can drive the saints into devilish fear? Such pastors are not very likely to be born again. Their motives are spiritually upside down.

I must say that Fundamental Baptist preachers almost ALL promote tithing as a way to charm God. They would deny this, but I have heard them give offertories, and their words damn them. Like the African witch doctors, these hireling preachers use the teaching of tithing to keep up the cash flow.

Witnessing, street preaching, and handing out Gospel tracts

I can tell when you are not serious about soul winning. If you hand out tracts, you toss them down as you walk away from the check out cashier and flee, like one preacher I know. That is because you are "witnessing" in order to win points with God and get something out of him. Serious soul winners make small talk and then say something like, "I have this pamphlet that I want to use. I need your opinion on it. Could you read it and then tell me what you think of it the next time I come through?" The target person is then drawn in to feel helpful. Now, do not do this if you don't intend to come back and ask them what they thought.

I knew a piano tuner who carried several Christian books in his grip. If a customer was not offended by his remarks about the Lord, he would then hand them one of the books, and ask them to read it before his next visit. That might be six months or a year later, but he would remember and ask them what they thought. This method resulted in several customers being born again. This is strategic soul winning, but it takes effort and attention to detail. If you don't have the patience to pursue the lost with diligence, please stop playing games with tracts. You are not serious, and sinners laugh at you and blaspheme Christ because of you cold hearted witnessing.

And, the same applies with street preaching. You stand on the corner and yell at drivers as they sit at the stop light. Or you jump in front of people and yell, "Do you know you are going to Hell?" Again, this has nothing to do with your concern that sinners confess faith in Jesus Christ. You are simply trying to impress God with your boldness so that he will do you a favor. Do you ever sit down at a bus stop and strike up a conversation to see if you can lead the discussion to Jesus?

Leviticus 10:1 And Nadab and Abihu, the sons of Aaron, took either of them his censer, and put fire therein, and put incense thereon, and offered strange fire before the LORD, which he commanded them not.
2 And there went out fire from the LORD, and devoured them, and they died before the LORD.

It is not told us what exactly the strange fire was. The incense was acceptable, but the fire was alien. That means Nadab and Abihu used some other fire source than the fire of the altar. Maybe they were just lazy, or maybe they used high technology fire like petroleum pitch which they found in nearby tar pits. They may have been trying to impress the people with their clever inventions. Are you using methods or tricks alien to the plain preaching of the Gospel to lead worship or hype the platform performance in your church? Do you think you can make a great performance that will charm God and convince the audience that you are clever? You have the right incense, but you have the wrong fire. Your efforts are nothing but knocking on wood to charm God, and he is not impressed.

Amos 5:21 I hate, I despise your feast days, and I will not smell in your solemn assemblies.

Trendy slick worship stinks to God.

God killed Nadab and Abihu for their unconventional worship plan. Have you no fear?

666

Much of superstition is based on fear..... of black cats, ladders, number 13, and a thousand other harmless bits and pieces of everyday life. Christians may mock at such things and claim to be delivered of them. But, Christians have their own personal silly fears and superstitions.

There has been a lot of panic among Christians, especially Fundamentalists, over the appearance of the number 666 anywhere. I have heard of people turning down products or even homes for sale because the address was 666. That number is meaningless until it is used by the Antichrist to control all world commerce.

Revelation 13:16 And he causeth all, both small and great, rich and poor, free and bond, to receive a mark in their right hand, or in their foreheads:
17 And that no man might buy or sell, save he that had the mark, or the name of the beast, or the number of his name.
18 Here is wisdom. Let him that hath understanding count the number of the beast: for it is the number of a man; and his number is Six hundred threescore and six.

The most believable explanation of 666 is not that it has mystical power. It seems to be the counterfeit of 777 which would be the number of the Trinity which is perfection or completeness. But, this explanation is NOT found in the Bible. It is only human reason. So, 666 has NO significance until it is used by the Antichrist. Stop going into breathless terror when you see it somewhere, even when used by Satanists. When these imps of Satan use such things from the Bible, they do it expressly to terrify superstitious Christian idiots who will react.

It is white hot superstition to go looking for 666 anywhere it turns up.

It is also very stupid to worry about the hand gesture of the goat horns, the sign of Baphomet. Do you believe it has any power? If so, you have Satan on the throne and Jesus is the victim. Whether done by witches, rock music stars, or your school mates, the hand sign of the goat is perfectly powerless if Jesus is Lord of your life. That goes for any other signs of signals sent by anyone, especially Satanists. They simply do not have power over you if you are truly born again.

President Bush and his daughter flashed this hand sign frequently. (See photo) Many Christians decided Bush was a Satanist because of this. This is how you can make a big donkey of yourself if you go witch hunting. The Bushes are from Texas, and the University of Texas football team is called The Longhorns, and this hand sign is used by fans of that team all over Texas. THAT is what the Bushes were doing. While riding along some parade route, a Texas fan would flash the Bushes, and the Bushes flashed back. What your silly pastor thought was a sign of Satan in the Bushes was just a lot of innocent fun. This is how superstition can make a fool of you.

Numerology- The Numbers Racket

This needs to be treated with a whole article later, but we need to talk about it here to understand the danger it represents.

Triskaidekaphobia (Fear of the number thirteen)

There was a famous King James Bible defender in Florida who preached a sermon in which he took the listeners through the Bible showing them all the places where Chapter 13, or Verse 13, involved Satan of something evil. If the number 13 were to teach us anything in the Bible, nothing good and precious would be under the number 13.

We see the three greatest manifestations of the Holy Spirit in the saints in I Corinthians 13.....

1 Corinthians 13:13 And now abideth faith, hope, charity, these three; but the greatest of these is charity.

I think I need to name names here. The Bible teacher who did this superstitious trick was Dr. Peter S. Ruckman of Pennsacola. Any of his disciples reading here need to understand that there is NO office in the Bible of guru. When your preacher can do no wrong, you are a dumb ass. Indeed, Balaam's Ass teaches us that asses are sometimes smarter than people.

Let us blast this childish fantasy with 13 into the loonie bin where it belongs. First, this is a violation of the exegesis of the Apostle Paul who did not call for the use of numerology. Second, it is a violation of common sense. I will not worry you with Ruckman's list of evil 13s in the Bible, but check out the good things that came at 13s:

Abraham circumcised Ishmael at age thirteen and received the covenant from God- Genesis 17:25

It took Solomon thirteen years to finish his palace- I King 7:1

Sodom rebelled after 13 years of servitude to Chedorlaomer king of Elam (Babylon) and Abraham rescued Lot. This brought on Melchizedek’s blessing and Abraham’s covenant with God,- Genesis 14:4

Jeremiah starts his ministry in the 13th year of Josiah (Jeremiah 1:2). Josiah had started purifying the land in his 12th year of being a king. The term for his age shows a child up to the age of becoming a young man.

Joseph was 17 years old when he was taken as a slave. He was 30 when Pharaoh put him in charge of Egypt (13 years). Genesis 37:2 to 41:46.

The Children of Israel went around Jericho 13 times before they shouted and the walls fell down. Joshua 6:1-27

I Corinthians thirteen is the love chapter of the New Testament.

John 1:12 But as many as received him, to them gave he power to become the sons of God, even to them that believe on his name:
13 Which were born, not of blood, nor of the will of the flesh, nor of the will of man, but of God.

John 13:13 Ye call me Master and Lord: and ye say well; for so I am.

Luke 13:13 And he laid his hands on her: and immediately she was made straight, and glorified God.

1 Corinthians 13:13 And now abideth faith, hope, charity, these three; but the greatest of these is charity.

2 Corinthians 13:13 All the saints salute you.

Ephesians 1:13 In whom ye also trusted, after that ye heard the word of truth, the gospel of your salvation: in whom also after that ye believed, ye were sealed with that holy Spirit of promise,

There are many more thirteens that turn up at good or blessed things. When God gives us a truth, it is consistent, not spotty. If the number thirteen were meant to teach us about evil and bad luck in the Bible, it would always be used that way. 1 Corinthians 14:33 For God is not the author of confusion, but of peace, as in all churches of the saints.

In the Bible, some things come to us in numbered patterns. The greatest is the Triune Godhead, the Father, the Son, and the Holy Ghost.

So, do the other uses of three in the Bible, mean the number three has a distinct power to bring certain good or God ordained qualities to life or faith? NO The only pattern is implied, not explicit. If the number three was explicitly meant to guide us spiritually or morally, we would be told clearly in the law of Moses to reverence the number three.

Five is the number of death. Four is the number of completeness. Seven is the number of perfection or completeness. Forty is the number of a generation or full period of time. There are more numbers used by numerologists who reduce biblical truth to such superstition. If we were meant by God to study his Word and exegete it by numerology, Paul would have said:

2 Timothy 2:15 Study to shew thyself approved unto God, a workman that needeth not to be ashamed, rightly numbering the word of truth.

I hope you saw the error in the verse. The way of study which God wants is to divide the Word, that is, cut the pattern and order it in my mind so that I can teach it to you.

2 Timothy 2:15 Study to shew thyself approved unto God, a workman that needeth not to be ashamed, rightly dividing the word of truth.

Thus, numbers in the Bible are not there for you to give them mystical power. If there is a pattern of a certain number being used for a specific concept, fine. But, we are not to make that number mystical and govern our theology or life by it. So, stop the shock and awe, and stop the reverence of some number you see associated with any biblical teaching. And, stop doing this in everyday life. If you can get a "baker's dozen" (13) donuts for the price of twelve, go for it. If you find a great home to live in at Number 13, 5th Street, grab it. You will not have bad luck by the 13, and you will not die because you live on 5th Street. Your God is simply bigger than any numbers.

The only numbering I can recall, in the Bible, that we are told to do is this:

Psalms 90:12 So teach us to number our days, that we may apply our hearts unto wisdom.

Make a total of your days, and ask God if you have gotten your work done that he had for you to do in that many days. If the Holy Spirit causes you to believe you are not up to date with God's number for you, get to work, saint. You have much to do for the Lord before he says to you, "Come up hither." If you don't stop your silly superstition of numbers, God may take you to Heaven on the 13th to get it out of your fluffy mind.

Sanctification by osmosis

Osmosis is a biological process in which factors or ingredients in a cell, and behind a membrane, ooze through the membrane and interact with things outside the membrane. The reverse is also possible, and it is most concerning when toxins are able to enter a cell through the cell wall by osmosis.

So what does this have to do with superstition?

When a young man or woman decides to get as close to a godly person as possible, this may be God's will. It certainly was for Samuel. But, when the young man or woman decides to marry into the family of a famous preacher, missionary, or evangelist in order to upgrade their social, genetic, and Christian heritage, this is wicked. It is nothing short of raw superstition on the order of the witchcraft of Africa.

The African tries to cozy up to the witch doctor so he can absorb the powers of the witch doctor. The Masai warrior eats the heart of any warrior he kills from another tribe in order to get the war making power of the victim. The Arussie warriors of Ethiopia, in past years, ate the testicles of their victims for the same superstition. Some Christians, and sadly some Fundamental preachers, get as close as possible to the testicles of some mighty Baptist patriarch in order to adsorb their power by osmosis. I am not making this up..... I saw it myself with Jack Hyles.

Here is an example from the Bible:

Acts 8:9 But there was a certain man, called Simon, which beforetime in the same city used sorcery, and bewitched the people of Samaria, giving out that himself was some great one:
10 To whom they all gave heed, from the least to the greatest, saying, This man is the great power of God.
11 And to him they had regard, because that of long time he had bewitched them with sorceries.
12 But when they believed Philip preaching the things concerning the kingdom of God, and the name of Jesus Christ, they were baptized, both men and women.
13 Then Simon himself believed also: and when he was baptized, he continued with Philip, and wondered, beholding the miracles and signs which were done.

Acts 8:18 And when Simon saw that through laying on of the apostles' hands the Holy Ghost was given, he offered them money,
19 Saying, Give me also this power, that on whomsoever I lay hands, he may receive the Holy Ghost.
20 But Peter said unto him, Thy money perish with thee, because thou hast thought that the gift of God may be purchased with money.
21 Thou hast neither part nor lot in this matter: for thy heart is not right in the sight of God.
22 Repent therefore of this thy wickedness, and pray God, if perhaps the thought of thine heart may be forgiven thee.
23 For I perceive that thou art in the gall of bitterness, and in the bond of iniquity.
24 Then answered Simon, and said, Pray ye to the Lord for me, that none of these things which ye have spoken come upon me.

I gave you this rather long text because it is a precise example of what I am talking about. Simon believed that the Apostles had the magic touch, and he realized he could exercise the same powers as the Apostles if he got the magic touch. He also wanted to start charging a fee for the power.

It is VERY clear that, when you go seeking a touch (laying on of hands) from an alleged "Man of God," you are reducing the power of God to Black Magic, which is a religion of Satan. You could become devil possessed playing this game, and God may step back and let you receive all the spiritual chaos you ask for.

But, in the context of becoming close to some Christian who seems to have great spiritual power, are you not making a superstition of being next to a man? Who should you get close to if you want the power of God in you.

Psalms 73:28 But it is good for me to draw near to God: I have put my trust in the Lord GOD, that I may declare all thy works.

James 4:8 Draw nigh to God, and he will draw nigh to you. Cleanse your hands, ye sinners; and purify your hearts, ye double minded.

This especially applies to marriage. You cannot become like Jesus by marrying a Christian. You answer to God for YOU. Only Jesus can offer you the proximity of himself that will change you. AND, you cannot become like Jesus by developing a fetish relationship with a pastor, college professor, TV preacher, or famous Christian book writer. When you quote a book writer more than you quote the Bible, you are practicing witchcraft.

A missionary family went to a missions conference at a large church to speak and present their work. The leader and his wife, of the mission to which the missionaries belonged, also went to the same conference. Attending the church was a young man who was being fawned over by many church people of influence. The missionary leader's wife heard about the young man, and she decided that the missionary's daughter was just the right one to marry the young man. It was made clear that the mission leader's wife thought that the young man would gain prestige in churches in the area if he married the daughter of a missionary. So, the mission leader's wife started a match making program, enlisting other women to try to force the two young adults into one another's arms.

Fortunately, the daughter had made friends with a young lady from the church who reported the plot to her, and she informed the daughter that the young man had no heritage of zeal for Christian service and was a church house hustler, giving the rush to every young lady in the church. The young man, under supervision of the mission leader's wife, approached the missionary father and asked permission to take his daughter on a date. The young man professed to have been totally smitten by the young lady, and she was the only lady who had ever pleased him so well. The father, not yet aware of the plot, told the young man he would have to ask his daughter. The young man did so, and the daughter refused the date. The mission leader's wife was furious when she heard this and vented to the missionary father. It was a virtual attack by a she wolf. By this time, the daughter had told her father what was going on, and the father let it be known that there would be no more interest, by his family, in the scheme. He nearly loaded the family in the car and fled that dating club.

The mission leader's wife rebuked the father, claiming that such a fine young men should not be refused by his daughter. She implied that the young man had a right to date the young lady. The father let her know that she was not in charge of his home, and it all was finally dropped, possibly because the mission leader finally found his manhood and took charge of his meddling wife.

I was that father. The story is NOT fiction.

The whole plot was based on the superstition that the young man could be transformed into a mighty future missionary, received into popularity among supporting churches, and make his way into great destiny by marrying the right sort of woman. It was all based on raw superstition rather than the will of God. Also, it was clear that the mission leader was too weak as a man to rein in his meddling wife up front.

Pastor, when you, OR YOUR WIFE, decide to turn your church into a match making club, you are not a shepherd of sheep, you are the owner of a dog breeding kennel. Try preaching the Word of God, and let the Holy Spirit do the matchmaking.

Be there every time the doors are open
Or, Magic Carpet Religion

Nearly all Fundamental Baptist preachers have a fetish relationship with the altar area in front of the pulpit. They believe that a person cannot get right with God unless that person "goes forward" during an alter call, kneels and weeps, and proves to the preacher and church that they are serious. No matter when a sinner repents and confesses Christ as his Savior, he is told by the preacher that he needs to "go forward, and finish the job." This means the altar, and about 20 square feet of carpet in front of it, are a fetish by which a pastor determines two things:

1. That some person is really serious about wanting to be a born again Christian. Those who are already born again, who make subsequent pilgrimages to the shrine "down front," are showing that they still believe they are sinners and in need of the pastor's services.

2. That the members of the church are submitting to their pastor by using his fetish. Many pastors use this response to determine whom he will raise to authority as deacons. If you do not walk the aisle, you will never be given responsibility in the church.

Any member who refuses to make regular trips to the altar hears the pastor, during the knock down drag out alter call, tell them that they will never again be right with God unless they do some serious weeping at the altar.

I know I am nailing this correctly because I have attended many preacher's rallies and heard them brag to other preachers about the number of people who "came forward."

The problem with the altar call fetish is that the people in the pew learn from their pastor that the only place to get right with God is during the altar call at the local church. So, they may be convicted of sin on Wednesday, but they put off getting right with God until Sunday morning in the altar call. Preacher..... What happens if the Rapture comes between Wednesday and Sunday? Will they ever be right with God? Hmmmmm You could not answer than one, right?

Pity poor Moses. He had to get right with God while herding smelly sheep on the backside of the desert.

Another problem is that there are those who did not truly confess Christ as Savior, but they caught the magic in the altar, and they "went forward" to collect life insurance, nothing else. They are trusting their works, and the magic altar visit, to save them. Many pastors do not make a serious effort to be sure these people are truly regenerate Christians.

If you deeply feel convicted of some need in your life, and if you want to get right with God, do it as soon as you realize the need, no matter where you are. And, stop trotting down the aisle every time the preacher threatens you with bad karma if you do not "go forward." Your relationship with God is not based on superstition and guilt. It is based on your faith in Christ and his life changing work in your life.

2 Corinthians 5:17 Therefore if any man be in Christ, he is a new creature: old things are passed away; behold, all things are become new.
18 And all things are of God, who hath reconciled us to himself by Jesus Christ, and hath given to us the ministry of reconciliation;

Your life in Christ is a done deal. Stop trying to get a magic retread on it.

Fake Signs from God- Coincidental phenomenon

A man was trying to learn if it was God's will for him to move from Boston to Michigan. Not content to wait for God to give him confidence in his soul and mind, he began to look for signs. He soon pulled up behind a car with a Michigan license plate that said, "Say yes to Michigan." This was his moment of epiphany, and he moved his family to Michigan thinking God had told him to.

What if the plate on the car had said, "Say yes to Alberta?" Would he have moved to Canada? Probably not. As with much superstition, people will often use it to justify what they already want to do. The "sign" is a sort of final verdict experience, and it is not from God.

Also, beware of pastors and evangelists, especially Charismatic gurus, who delight in telling people their fortune. Of course, they don't say it that way. They say, "The Lord is showing me that you will be doing great things for him soon. Just look for an opportunity to change your work place right now." He may have overheard you grumbling to someone in the foyer about your employment, and he is guessing you would love the green light to resign and go elsewhere. This way, he gets the credit when you get your next job. Gullible is not a gift of the Spirit. Stop this stuff now.

I want to emphasize this..... When a Baptist preachers tells you he knows God's will for you, he is a witch doctor. All of the promises in the Bible God, telling you how he will guide your life, are from him, not other men.

Isaiah 30:18 And therefore will the LORD wait, that he may be gracious unto you, and therefore will he be exalted, that he may have mercy upon you: for the LORD is a God of judgment: blessed are all they that wait for him.
19 For the people shall dwell in Zion at Jerusalem: thou shalt weep no more: he will be very gracious unto thee at the voice of thy cry; when he shall hear it, he will answer thee.
20 And though the Lord give you the bread of adversity, and the water of affliction, yet shall not thy teachers be removed into a corner any more, but thine eyes shall see thy teachers:
21 And thine ears shall hear a word behind thee, saying, This is the way, walk ye in it, when ye turn to the right hand, and when ye turn to the left.

God promises that he will preserve the teachers of Judah so that the people will be taught the law of God, But, Verses 18, 19, and 21 made it clear that it was God's voice which guided their lives. When your pastor tells you that he knows God's will for your life, find another church please.

Prayer

When you sit down to eat, do you give thanks for the food? I am sure you do. But, if you forget, do you imagine the food may be poisoned, or God may allow you to choke on something? That is superstition, NOT a feeling of regret at forgetting to give thanks to your Father whom you love. Are you any better than the Roman Catholic who crosses himself in crass superstition?

A friend of mine used to pray, "Lord, please remove the curse of sin on this food." His theology was not bad. Sin affects the creation, and there are thorns in the garden, and worms in the apple. But, you cannot pray the Round Up off of the corn. It is up to you to shop wisely for Non GMO Corn. God will not remove the Round Up for you. So, when you ask God to do something for you that you could have done for yourself, that is superstition.

The young adults took me along one Saturday night when they went bowling. Afterward, we went to Bob's Big Boy for treats. I ordered a strawberry sundae, and the others all ordered some rich gooey dessert. Except for one young lady. She ordered a salad.

After the orders all came, we were about to give thanks, and she asked a question. "Pastor, I was with some girls eating out. They all ordered rich fattening desserts, and then they all held hands, and one girl prayed, "In the name of Jesus we bind the calories in this food. Pastor, does that work?" I felt sorry for her. She was a bit plump and trying to slim down, and here she sat looking at a salad in the midst of desserts she had denied herself. I told her that that prayer was nonsense. The Bible tells us why:

James 4:17 Therefore to him that knoweth to do good, and doeth it not, to him it is sin.

Do not pray and ask God to do something for you that you can do for yourself. God is not a genie in a bottle you can rub and get a pass on your folly. That too is superstition.

Do you attend midweek prayer meeting to earn points with God, or do you pray because you want to be part of the power of the local church? If you go to prayer meeting to keep out of trouble with God, that is superstition.

When I have my prayer time in the late evening, it is the last thing I do before going to bed. This is because reading the Bible is the most helpful thing I can do to get sleepy. Some preacher once said that going to sleep while reading the Bible is a mortal sin, and he raged at the listeners about it like a drill sergeant in Basic Training in the Army. What a fool. Can God be upset with his child who goes off the sleep reading the Word of God? Would God rather I went to sleep watching the fake news at CNN?

But, alas, I usually have my prayer time after I read the Bible. But, if I drift off to sleep, I miss my prayer time. Is God mad at me? I wrestled with guilt over this for a while, until I realized that God is a lot more merciful to this aging sinner than the sinner is on himself. I decided that I would just keep trying to get all the way through the prayer list. One solution has been to only pray for a third of my prayer list each night. So, if you are on my prayer list, you may not get mentioned two days out of three. But, I am sure you are in good hands. If you worry that I am not praying for you some night, THAT is superstition.

When everyone stands to pray, do you kneel? Or worse, do you lay face down on the floor to pray while the others stand? That is not even superstition. It is public piety for the sake of exalting yourself as more noble a Christian than the others. If you want to pray laying on your belly, fine..... it is an act of humility, BUT only if you are alone or in your closet. Jesus rebuked anyone who made a show of their praying.

If you have superstitious fears about God loving you, or if you are fighting with religious scrupulosity, here is the most powerful verse for you. Memorize if at once:

Jeremiah 29:11 For I know the thoughts that I think toward you, saith the LORD, thoughts of peace, and not of evil, to give you an expected end.

Wearing a cross

A cross hanging from the rear view mirror, or hanging down in the lady's extreme cleavage..... why? Good luck? Coerce God into giving you his attention? The Roman Catholic Church, over hundreds of years, filled their churches with crosses and statues of saints, and the people kneel at these crosses and statues and imagine they are getting a direct line to God. This is 100% superstition. I personally prefer to see a Bible verse as decoration at the front of the local church. There is no shame in identifying with the Cross of Christ, but it is urgent that we determine why we put it on the wall of the home. If we feel more sanctified, or if we feel safer with a cross up there, it is nothing but a sacral rabbit's foot.

God spoke to women who made magic charms to do both good and evil to other people.

Ezekiel 13:18 And say, Thus saith the Lord GOD; Woe to the women that sew pillows to all armholes, and make kerchiefs upon the head of every stature to hunt souls! Will ye hunt the souls of my people, and will ye save the souls alive that come unto you?
19 And will ye pollute me among my people for handfuls of barley and for pieces of bread, to slay the souls that should not die, and to save the souls alive that should not live, by your lying to my people that hear your lies?
20 Wherefore thus saith the Lord GOD; Behold, I am against your pillows, wherewith ye there hunt the souls to make them fly, and I will tear them from your arms, and will let the souls go, even the souls that ye hunt to make them fly.
21 Your kerchiefs also will I tear, and deliver my people out of your hand, and they shall be no more in your hand to be hunted; and ye shall know that I am the LORD.

The Hebrew is terrifying here. All nouns in Hebrew are masculine or feminine. In verse 20 "soul" is masculine, yet the context of these verses are addressed to the women of Israel. This implies, according to Rabbi Rashi, that men were the target of these witches and their spells. God makes it clear he will destroy their magic in verse 20. This appears to be a very early case of Satanic feminism in which these woman charmers were attacking men. God hates it.

Thus, we see that when women start using charms or superstition to gain power over men, they have declared war on God. God will totally wreck their plans, and these women can expect horrors in their lives far worse then they were preparing for the men they attacked.

Why am I hammering this? What does that cross hanging down between your breasts do to men, dear lady? Answer: It causes them to be attracted to you sexually as you direct their eyes to that area of your body. If you don't like the truth to be dealt with in your life, click out of this journal. My calling is to teach, and that is what I do. Deal with it.

We see that the cross has long been used to seduce men, as with Catherine of Aragon, Henry VIII's wife who gave birth to "Bloody Mary" who launched a Roman Catholic inquisition on England and burned many Protestants at the stake. Catherine was clearly a devilish charmer.

While we are plowing deep, let us go on to another issue. When you, lady, put tattoos on your body, you are pulling men's eyes to your body. The same issue applies. You are charming those men to destroy their commitment to not look at a woman's body with lust. You are doing the work of the devil as you take power over men. "Me too" works both ways. Women who use any form of hustling to attract men to them sensually are just as wicked as men how offend women sexually. And, any woman who hustles in the church house is a Jezebel, and her husband needs to be soundly rebuked by a leader of the church.

Preacher, where were you before these women charmers in your church started working their magic? You are as much to blame as the feminazis who attack your men. You have failed to preach on superstition and charms. How about starting with Ezekiel 13:18-21?

 

Food

Critic William Deresiewicz wrote a fascinating editorial in the New York Times in 2012, in which he claimed that food has replaced art in our country’s high culture, that people talk about meals the way they used to talk about paintings:

"Food now expresses the symbolic values and absorbs the spiritual energies of the educated class. It has become invested with the meaning of life. It is seen as the path to salvation for the self and humanity, both."

Just imagine, you’re standing in front of the pearly gates and you come to the seat of judgment. Martin Luther and DL Moody, and David Livingston are there. Are you really going to step up to the mic and say, “Hi, my name is Dave, and I ate non-GMO only?”

David Zahl made this observation:

Alongside the renewed attention to diet and cuisine, food has become the focus of an enormous amount of moralism and anxiety. It has become an avenue for all sorts of judgments. That is, people feel judged by their food choices, and they’re right to feel judged by their food choices because they are being judged by their food choices. As comedian Jim Gaffigan so memorably observed, heaven forbid you run into a good friend at a fast food chain and have to fall all over yourself to make excuses: “Of course I don’t eat here. No, no, no, this is just for the kids.” “Actually, no, sorry, my kids never eat this garbage; this is for the baby-sitter.” You would think you’d been caught at an adult book store rather than a place where millions and millions of people dine.

But, the way some people are totally engrossed in safe versus unsafe food makes them sound like the Gospel of Jesus Christ takes a clear second place to their food doctrines. Is this not a form of superstition? Why do people watch high end chefs on TV cooking magic food with only safe ingredients? Why do we make personal law after law about how to buy, cook, eat, and poop food safely?

The answer is superstition. If I eat the right things, I can eat my way to happiness and success. There is almost a spiritual evil present in trans fats and GMO food. Except for Round Up in corn products, all other GMOS are only viable when the food is raw and fresh. Once cooked, the GMO genes are dead, and you digest them like any other cooked food. But, GMOs are evil spirits from the god Big Agra.

I know Christians who would feel totally ungodly and spiritually defiled if they ate GMO meat. This is nothing but superstition.

Here is what the Bible says about safe food:

1 Corinthians 8:4 As concerning therefore the eating of those things that are offered in sacrifice unto idols, we know that an idol is nothing in the world, and that there is none other God but one.

1 Corinthians 8:7 Howbeit there is not in every man that knowledge: for some with conscience of the idol unto this hour eat it as a thing offered unto an idol; and their conscience being weak is defiled.
8 But meat commendeth us not to God: for neither, if we eat, are we the better; neither, if we eat not, are we the worse.

In Corinth, long ago, the butchers would offer the meat they sold to idols because they believed that made it holy and safe to eat. This was a lot like the Jewish ritual today of Kosher, or Islamic Halal. Paul is telling the Christians to stop worrying about buying that meat because the idol was nothing and could not change the meat in any way.

The photo above is from India and is a offering of food to the gods. This pooja, worship, ritual makes the food sacred. Paul would tell you to go ahead and eat it..... the Hindu ritual has not changed the food.

What is the idol today?

Could it be the obsession to eat only organic food? Do we get the emotional willies inside if we eat something that we know very well is not organic? I eat organic for health reasons, but when I have generic food offered to me, I do not feel backslidden if I eat it. In fact, I like the very institutional tacos at Dairy Queen, and I don't bother to ask them where the beef came from. I already know. But, if I go to eat there and go slumming once in a while, I do not feel unspiritual as I leave the place.

If you have a deep fear, similar to your fear of Hell and damnation, when you eat food offered to the idol of modern farming and food production, you are a helplessly superstitious nut case. Lighten up, or you will become a flaming social pest to all your friends. Furthermore, many Christians cannot afford grass fed meat. It is horribly expensive, and we all should keep our mouth closed and stop hammering these poor saints with guilt as if they have fallen in worship to the god of modern food production.

You have heard from great wizards of health in high places that you should eat a "balanced diet." Consider please..... The Masai tribe in Kenya live on nothing but meat, blood, and milk all their life. They are slim, muscular, and have no diabetes, heart failure, or cancer at all. They can set out in the morning and walk forty miles in a day with only a gourd of sour milk as their food supply. The only fat Masai you will find in Kenya are the ones who run for Parliament and move to Nairobi and eat lots of carbohydrates and sweet rolls.

The Eskimos eat nothing but animal fat all winter, or they did long ago. And, they were healthy and thrived. I am not suggesting you get careless and eat garbage, but I am suggesting that you stop making food your lucky charm to a happy and deeply spiritual life. You can eat at Taco Bell, go to church and sing in the choir, and the Holy Ghost will not abandon you. Just show some moderation please.

Matthew 15:10 And he called the multitude, and said unto them, Hear, and understand:
11 Not that which goeth into the mouth defileth a man; but that which cometh out of the mouth, this defileth a man.

There is a lot more wickedness in what we say than in what we eat. Let us see if we can spend more time guarding our thoughts and words we speak, and eat healthy without making food our second religion.

Matthew 12:35 A good man out of the good treasure of the heart bringeth forth good things: and an evil man out of the evil treasure bringeth forth evil things.
36 But I say unto you, That every idle word that men shall speak, they shall give account thereof in the day of judgment.
37 For by thy words thou shalt be justified, and by thy words thou shalt be condemned.

Jesus did NOT say, "By your non-GMO diet shall ye be justified."

The only caveat with food, according the the Apostle Paul, is that we must not try to force someone to eat food they believe is defiled, either by idol worship or modern food production methods. If you sense that they will feel defiled by non-organic food, then be kind enough to serve them only organic. Their weak conscience must not be compromised lest they become wicked in their own eyes and sin in other ways. If you have a Muslim guest to dinner, buy Halal meat at the local market. You will have no testimony with them if you try to feed them anything else.

Otherwise:

1 Corinthians 10:27 If any of them that believe not bid you to a feast, and ye be disposed to go; whatsoever is set before you, eat, asking no question for conscience sake.

For you, the food dedicated to idols, or Halal from Muslims, or Kosher from Jews, you can eat because you do NOT consider their superstition of any consequence. Now, if they ask you if you can eat Halal or Kosher, you must decline so that they do not end up believing you do, in fact, participate in their superstition.

1 Corinthians 10:28 But if any man say unto you, This is offered in sacrifice unto idols, eat not for his sake that shewed it, and for conscience sake: for the earth is the Lord's, and the fulness thereof:

Supplements and Food

You cannot eat your way to Christian victory.

1 Corinthians 6:13 Meats for the belly, and the belly for meats: but God shall destroy both it and them. Now the body is not for fornication, but for the Lord; and the Lord for the body.

The "meats" (food) processing has been arranged for by God when he created us with a digestive tract. There is no way you can defile your soul by what you eat, and you cannot bring yourself to full sanctification by eating bean sprouts. In medical terms, sin will not pass from the small intestines, through the villi, and into the blood stream. Nor will righteousness.

Matthew 15:16 And Jesus said, Are ye also yet without understanding?
17 Do not ye yet understand, that whatsoever entereth in at the mouth goeth into the belly, and is cast out into the draught?
18 But those things which proceed out of the mouth come forth from the heart; and they defile the man.
19 For out of the heart proceed evil thoughts, murders, adulteries, fornications, thefts, false witness, blasphemies:
20 These are the things which defile a man: but to eat with unwashen hands defileth not a man.

Every ten year old would love that doctrine. Coming to the table with unwashed hands does the soul no harm. So, since God gave us a mind to reason, we can conclude, from verse 17, that we also cannot eat our way to godliness any more than we can poop our way to godliness. Did I warn you that my writing style can be a bit blunt at times? No? Well, I apologize, but I will not repent.

One lady we knew was so frantic to become sinless that, any time she was around anyone who smoked, she would open her purse and get out an over dose of Vitamin Cs and pop them into her mouth. It was not enough that she did not smoke. She had to try to improve on her holiness with a Vitamin supplement.

I take a lot of supplements, but I do not believe I have grown more holy, nor do I expect to become holy by that method. The only supplement you can receive that will make you more sanctified is the holiness of Jesus Christ himself.

1 Peter 1:16 Because it is written, Be ye holy; for I am holy.

Ashwaganda is called an ayurvedic herb. That means it has religious power to Hindus who follow the teachings of the Vedas. If you imagine that taking ashwaganda will give you any spiritual advantage, you are a heathen and full of superstition. Go to Benaries and burn a candle to Kali. Now, if you take ashwaganda to calm your nerves or to sleep, or you take it to block the flow of cortisol, that is a good idea. Any time a power, other than medical or physical, is attached to a supplement, the whole thing becomes witchcraft and pure superstition.

Broccoli will also not make you holy. You cannot eat your way to Christian victory. George H Bush knew this, so he simply refused to eat broccoli. I love it with cheese melted over it. Bur, the only spiritual thing I feel is a bit of guilt when I over indulge in cruciferous greens and get an acid stomach. There may actually be a low grade pun in that last sentence if you are an avid etymology freak.

1 Corinthians 6:13 Meats for the belly, and the belly for meats: but God shall destroy both it and them. Now the body is not for fornication, but for the Lord; and the Lord for the body.

There are no foods for the spirit. Food is for your body only.

Now, if you are way over weight, that could be a sin. Many years of obesity can definitely shorten your life, and that offends God. You simply may not get everything done in your life, which God wanted you to do, if you kill yourself with fat. So, choice of food, non GMO, Kosher, Halal, or oxidants do not come with a blessing. Only to much food can affect your state of mind and attention to spiritual things. To test my theology here, try to have a prayer meeting right after a Thanksgiving turkey dinner. Forget it unless you know people who can pray in their sleep.

But, there also is no magic herb to lose weight. Berberine may help, but the key to weight control is fork control. Stop pigging out on carbohydrates and Krispy Kreams.

All of the above applies to supplements to enhance health. Some of them are researched and work. Some simply grab your bank account and flush it down the toilet. I am reminded of the guy I knew who had to pump his septic tank. When the man had pumped out all the commonly known ingredients, he called my friend out of the house, and he asked him what all those red pills were in the bottom of the tank. Answer..... One a Day vitamins.

I suspect God does not think highly of the fool who wastes his substance buying out the herbal store in order to live longer. When my dear daughter-in-law asks me whether I really need all the supplements I take, I give her the same answer all boozers give, "I can stop any time I want to."

So, ask yourself if your supplements are only for known health needs, or do you feel safer taking some of them. If you say the latter, those herbs are your rabbit foot, not just meats for the belly. They are superstition. The herbs may not really hurt you any, but you are depending on something other than the love of God to keep you healthy.

Remember, ".....Now the body is not for fornication, but for the Lord; and the Lord for the body." The best supplement you can find anywhere is the Lord himself. There is no such thing as an over dose. And, it is free in that old Black Book there on the coffee table.

We need to move on..... I am getting under conviction.

 

Vaccinations

The Covid epidemic has caused people to take sides one against another over precautions. It is insane to mock at precautions during a pandemic. If you think precautions are silly, ask some African from Kenya, or someone from Indonesia, if pandemics call for precautions. Google "cholera," and read what is done to stop a cholera epidemic.

The big debate though is over vaccinations. Many Christians have joined the rebellion against vaccinations and claim they have Constitutional rights to decline vaccinations. You do, but you do NOT have the right to endanger your family and friends if you happen to catch Covid. The whole drama of vaccinations is driven by lies on the Internet.

One doctor reported that a patient of his refused to be vaccinated because he heard online that being vaccinated would make him turn into a faggot. That is total superstition. I find it astounding that any American adult would believe that stupid claim.

Are you living at risk to your self, and to your family, because you have allowed fake experts online to convince you that vaccinations are deadly? I have heard all the claims, and there is never any proof to back them up. It is all about, my friend heard from a talking head online Blah Blah Blah. And, the worst sources are doctors. I recall how Crest toothpaste claimed that, "Nine out of ten doctors recommend Crest." Which ten, and which nine? The same applies with doctors who post on YouTube. Who is this "expert"? Why is he supposed to be trustworthy?

If you have some legitimate reason why vaccinations would cause you a health issue, fine. Do what you have to do, but stop passing around fake information that you cannot prove. I do not care if it was a doctor with a YouTube channel. Do not forget, it was three sincere doctors who bled George Washington three times and killed him. They used the cure of choice of their day.

An expert is someone who does not know much more about the topic than you do, but he got the microphone placed in front of him, and he feels the hubris of the moment. What he says next may be 100% Mother Goose. The seduction of the Internet is such that anyone can get a YouTube site and spill his guts on the world. His alleged credentials may come from a doctorate mill in the basement of home in Wisconsin. The doctor may have lost his license to practice because of malpractice.

When you gamble your health on the claims of an isolated "expert" doctor, you very well could be following the advice of a medicine man no more qualified than a witch doctor in the Congo. THAT is superstition.

In Ethiopia, where my wife an I served, we were with a tribe in which the witch doctor and medicine man were two different men. In such a culture, the medicine man can actually have bush drugs which work. The problem is, his cure for malaria worked, but it destroyed your heart after several bouts. His cure for tropical diarrhea would give you sclerosis of the kidneys. Some of his cures were simply quack medicine. So, we could not tell the Africans that he was a total quack. He even did an appendectomy while we were there, and the lady lived.

One more thought..... Statistics can be used to prove almost anything. Do not rush to the conclusion claimed by the media or from the expert doctor. Do your own statistics collection, crunch them as fairly as you can, and see what you come up with.

Let us stop running to the mysterious medicine show on the Internet. It feeds peoples' lust for conspiracy and magic, which can be even more deadly than superstition.

Messages from the Dead by Christians

Charismatic gurus keep going to Heaven and coming back to tell us about it. I would think Saint Peter must be managing a tourist agency to accommodate all these deaths and resurrections as Charismatic gurus keep going and coming. One of these fake Pentecostal swamis even claimed he had a water fight with Jesus in the River of Life. Frankly, I think they either had too much oregano on their pizza, or they are into the ministry of ecclesiastical weed. The Bible absolutely rules out these superstitious fairy tales.

Hebrews 9:27 And as it is appointed unto men once to die, but after this the judgment:

These gurus all answer that verse by claiming they are the exception, and God was so desperate to send us all a new revelation that he just had to break the rule he made. These gurus of Charismania are damned to Hell fools. And, I say this, as always, in all good Christian charity.

If you believe the stories of dying, going to Heaven, and coming back again, let me know at once. I have a bridge in Brooklyn I want to sell you.

But, the most subtle seduction is when these flakes tell you that God gave them a message for you. Or, they tell you that your dear loving grandmother sent you a message back. God does not send messages to you from dead people. If he did, it would be more appropriate for you to go to the cemetery and sit by the grave of uncle Louie, and pray for a word from the good old boy.

Do you need a word from God? Here is how to find it:

Psalms 4:1 Hear me when I call, O God of my righteousness: thou hast enlarged me when I was in distress; have mercy upon me, and hear my prayer.
2 O ye sons of men, how long will ye turn my glory into shame? how long will ye love vanity, and seek after leasing? Selah.
3 But know that the LORD hath set apart him that is godly for himself: the LORD will hear when I call unto him.
4 Stand in awe, and sin not: commune with your own heart upon your bed, and be still. Selah.
5 Offer the sacrifices of righteousness, and put your trust in the LORD.

Hearing from God is not a spooky suspense thriller. It is all about you getting alone with God and yourself, his Word, and listen. God knows how to speak to your soul if you listen. Stop the spooky superstitious nonsense, dear saint.

Karma and Dharma
Are your works really double indemnity?

Double indemnity is when you are insured by more than one insurer. When you need the benefit of insurance payments because of death, or because of a car accident, the two insurance companies that wrote those two insurance policies will go to court and try to force the other company to pay up. In the end, it may cost you a fortune to finally force one of the companies to pay up.

So, you got saved by faith in Jesus Christ and confessing that faith to the world. Romans 10:9-10

When you come to trust in your works to give you peace with God, you are going to the witch doctor. You are double insured..... double indemnity. God may forgive you for this, but two things happen:

1. God is not pleased to see you stop believing you are saved by faith plus nothing.

2. You also become a miserable victim of Religious Oppressive Compulsive Scrupulosity.

More on OCS below, but suffice it to say that you will lose much of your joy in Christ as soon as you submit to the superstitious notions that you need to work to keep feeling saved.

ON TO KARMA AND DHARMA
These two terms are from Hinduism, and a lot of Christians, and some idiot preachers, practice these religious exercises in violation of biblical truth. Jack Hyles did a sermon called "Merits and Demerits" in which he claimed that if you were winning souls vigorously, God would overlook your sin. Blasphemy. The heretic from Hammond taught that your merits would pay off your demerits, and God would be impressed. Hyles then claimed he won 300 people a week to Christ. I did the math and provided for all the activities of life, and he would have had to win a soul every 45 minutes that he had free. It was clear he was lying. And, he thought God would overlook his lies and other sins because he was allegedly winning so many souls. It became clear that Jack Hyles had some ghosts in his closet, and he was preparing for the day when they might come tumbling out into the light of day.

In Hinduism, Karma is the bad things people do, and Dharma is good deeds that cancel out the bad. The object is to do enough Dharma to zero out the balance sheet and then move up in the order of the peck in the next reincarnation. Roman Catholic theology outright teaches this, while Baptists and Charismatics practice it out of superstition. You may teach that we are born again by faith alone, but when you teach so that the believers come to do good works to appease the wrath of God, you are just as much a damned heretic as the Pope.

WORKS SALVATION AND BACK LOADING THE GOSPEL

James does NOT say: "My works prove that you are not saved by your faith alone." Everything taught in the book of James is for people who have already been born again.

James 2:18 Yea, a man may say, Thou hast faith, and I have works: shew me thy faith without thy works, and I will shew thee my faith by my works.

Christians who, once they are 100% saved, and who love Christ, will do good works solely to prove their zeal and gratitude to Christ. But, their works follow their salvation. And, you do not have to do works to prove anything to the pastor. He is to watch your life, and when he sees godly fruit in you, only then can he come to any conclusion. So, when the preacher, during the altar call, says, "Why should I believe you are saved if you don't come to the altar once in a while?" that is a bastard son of Belial preacher who is trying to help you doubt your salvation. Hebrews 12:8

Revelation 14:13 And I heard a voice from heaven saying unto me, Write, Blessed are the dead which die in the Lord from henceforth: Yea, saith the Spirit, that they may rest from their labours; and their works do follow them.

Your works follow you, that is, you who are already born again. The whole truth in James is that WORKS PROVE I AM SAVED, NOT THAT WORKS SAVED ME. These are two very different concepts. Your works prove TO GOD that you love and obey him, and they prove to me that you were 100% saved when you confessed faith in Jesus Christ. If I do not see godly works in you, I am to wait to see your works or fruit of the Spirit in you. I have NO business assuming your confession of faith was still born.

Matthew 7:16 Ye shall know them by their fruits. Do men gather grapes of thorns, or figs of thistles?

Another superstition offered by works heretics is, "In order to be born again, you have to make Jesus Christ Lord in your life." I have news for you, friend, Jesus Christ IS Lord of your life and destiny. He does not need your promotion of him before he can do anything he wishes to do with you. He can strike you dead right now. Indeed, Jesus Christ has been Lord of your life since eternity past. I find it strange that Reformed Calvinist preachers are the most guilty of preaching lordship salvation. They also claim that Jesus is the eternal Lord and God. How can a Calvinist "make" anything about God happen?

Making Jesus anything, anywhere, is works on your part, and it is another case of double indemnity. Jesus paid it all, and he does not need you to make any improvement on Calvary. Thus, it is clearly superstition by you to promote Jesus to Lordship.

LISTEN TO DR J VERNON MC GEE MAKE THIS CLEAR

Sin is not forgiven by the point system. Sin is washed away by the Blood of Jesus. There is NOTHING you can do to pay off your debt of sin to God.

1 John 1:7 But if we walk in the light, as he is in the light, we have fellowship one with another, and the blood of Jesus Christ his Son cleanseth us from all sin.

Key word..... ALL. There is NO sin you can pay off by your own works. There is NOTHING you can do to convince God to overlook your sin. It has to be confessed to Christ and left behind in order to please God. But, the penalty for your sin has already been paid off on Calvary, 2000 years before you were born.

Here is a list of a few of the things superstitious Christians do to try to pay off God by their good works:

Be there every time the doors are open. God is not stuck with real estate religion. He is IN YOU, and he promised to never leave you or forsake you. Hebrews 13:5.

"We must be living right" This is said when God arranges something good in your life. It has nothing to do with how you live. The remark is pure superstition.

Fake gushing love to wear down adultery or perversion. You cannot rush and gush publicly to fool God. He knows your heart, and he knows when your libido is out of control. If you are saved, confess the sin, and stop trying to gloss it over with a cheap show of piety.

Work at the church house obsessively. You cannot do enough to please the pastor, or charm the members, which will make your salvation any more secure. Security is all of Christ.

Pray loud and long in prayer meeting but never spend time in prayer alone. Pray like a bishop, but live like a dog, and God will punish you severely, that is, if you are already born again.

Wearing a cross. Wearing Christian symbols, or sticking them to the walls of you home or the bumper of you car, will not convince God to keep you saved. He has already told you he will not disown you. Believe it.

All of these are superstition. They are works for the purpose of charming God into being impressed with our works so much that he overlooks our sin. That is what Samson thought. For some time God let him keep his power while he was also sinning against God's law and holiness. Then one day Samson went too far, and God took his power away from Samson. He ended up being blinded by the Philistines and walking round and round operating a flour mill. He had one more act of service to God in which he killed many Philistines, but he was also killed in the process. That is what Karma and Dharma religion will get you..... dead meat.

There is no happy ending in trying to do works to fool God.

Galatians 6:7 Be not deceived; God is not mocked: for whatsoever a man soweth, that shall he also reap.

When we get serious with God and want to know what he thinks of our life choices, he will tell us. At that point, we must confess the sin and determine to move on without the sin..... and, without superstition.

Psalms 139:23 Search me, O God, and know my heart: try me, and know my thoughts:
24 And see if there be any wicked way in me, and lead me in the way everlasting.

1 John 1:9 If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just to forgive us our sins, and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness.

Full Surrender

The word "surrender" is not anywhere in the Bible, let alone "FULL surrender." This concept came into common usage with the revival preachers like Billy Sunday and Charles Finney. The object is to make the believer totally uncertain whether or not he is completely empty of sin and anything fleshly. The message is clear that you cannot have peace or rest in your soul, nor can God use you for any purpose, if you are not fully surrendered. The result is that thousands of Christians use "full surrender" as a gimmick to charm God into giving them peace of mind. Many saints rush to the altar and surrender over and over, never satisfied that they are all caught up with God.

The very meaning of "surrender" implies a battle. This gives the impression that every spiritual landmark in the Christian's life is marked by a war with God. It so happens that some Christians do not like war with the Holy Spirit, and when they are convicted by something in their life that is not right, they confess it and abandon it at once. When we make war out of every visit of the Holy Spirit to our life, we make the Christian experience a life of misery and fear.

I have heard a number of testimonies by 15 year old punk church house brats in which they talk about waging war against God who was "calling me to preach." They then tell of being totally broken by the Holy Spirit until they "fully surrendered," and then they were happy. Their pastor then hands over his pulpit to them, and they show how totally unspiritual and immature they still are. What ever happened to those old fashioned pastors and missionaries who fell in love with the work of the Gospel and went chasing down the road trying to find a place in the Kingdom to serve God? No war..... just zeal for souls from the get go.

I am reminded of a quote of President Teddy Roosevelt:

"A special leniency must be shown to a soldier who uses influences to get himself a place near the flashing of the guns."

If I am patient with an immature young man for his zeal, it will be the young man who uses tricks to give the Gospel to the lost. With this fellow, the war is with the Devil, not with God.

My whole career as a servant of the Lord and his Church is marked by people who had unfinished sanctification and issues in their lives. But, some of them were happy in Christ, and some of them were clearly used by the Holy Spirit to minister to his Church.

The question is not whether or not we should examine ourselves.

Psalms 139:23 Search me, O God, and know my heart: try me, and know my thoughts:
24 And see if there be any wicked way in me, and lead me in the way everlasting.

The key is to be eager to hear from God after HE does the searching.

The issue is that we have no business telling the saints what God can and cannot do. God decides who he will use, and the Old Testament makes it very clear that God is a lot more patient with his children than some of you Fundamental Baptist preachers are. I give you one clear case of a man whom God used, though the man was imperfect in his works for God.

Jehu was appointed by God, at the hand of Elisha, to take the kingship of Israel away from the wicked king Jehoram. Jehu also ordered the servants of Queen Jezebel to throw her out of the upstairs window, where she was killed in the street and eaten by dogs. Here is what God thought of Jehu:

2 Kings 10:29 Howbeit from the sins of Jeroboam the son of Nebat, who made Israel to sin, Jehu departed not from after them, to wit, the golden calves that were in Bethel, and that were in Dan.
30 And the LORD said unto Jehu, Because thou hast done well in executing that which is right in mine eyes, and hast done unto the house of Ahab according to all that was in mine heart, thy children of the fourth generation shall sit on the throne of Israel.
31 But Jehu took no heed to walk in the law of the LORD God of Israel with all his heart: for he departed not from the sins of Jeroboam, which made Israel to sin.

Jehu was said to have refused to depart from the sins of Jeroboam, a paganized Israelite king. Verse 29 AND 31 make that clear. But, grab hold all ye jackboot Baptist preachers, God, in Verse 30 said Jehu had done well in doing what God called "right." Jehu was definitely NOT "fully surrendered" to the holy standard of God. But, God used him and rewarded him for what he did right. God promised Jehu that his children to the fourth generation would rule the throne of Israel.

Let me say this as kindly as I possibly can and be true to the Word of God..... To Hell with your doctrine of "Full Surrender." It is cheap superstition and slight of hand.

God will bless whomever he wishes to bless, and God will decide who deserves rewarding. You, preacher, are not the broker of God's blessing on his people. So, stop all this wretched altar call talk about, "God cannot bless you if you are not fully surrendered."

And, dear Christian father, if your pastor does this constantly, take your wife and kids, and find a church where the pastor TEACHES, and lets the Holy Spirit do the convicting of sin. If you hang around this bastard son (Hebrews 12:8), one day your kids will mature to the point where they see through that pastor's psychological mind control, and you will lose your kids to the world as they rebel.

Did God overlook the fact that Jehu did not finish the job of cleansing Israel of wickedness? No, of course not. But, the works of Jehu were not the criterion for what God did with Jehu's life. Jehu was clearly not 100% surrendered to Jehovah. God still used him. It is God's choice, and you and I should want to finish the whole job which God gave us to do. But, it is a waste of time to worry about whether you are fully surrendered. Just keep getting closer and closer to him in Christ.

This hymn is all about victory after you are 100% born again:

HERE IS A BATTLE SONG FOR THOSE WHO DO WARFARE ONLY WITH HE DEVIL

If God, in his mercy as a loving Father, wants to give victory to some Christian who has not gotten all the imperfections out of his life, will you let God do so?

YOU NEED TO READ THE STORIES AT MY JOURNAL OF UNLIKELY PEOPLE WHOM GOD USED

We talk more about Obsessive Compulsive Scrupulosity later in this article. But, let us stop the war with God. Let us seek to make a daily habit of presenting ourselves a living sacrifice to God, and wait until he shows us what is wrong. It is a horrible life to be constantly dredging deeper and deeper into our mind and soul looking for a little dust to clean up. God will show you what he wants you to deal with on his perfect schedule.

Romans 12:1 I beseech you therefore, brethren, by the mercies of God, that ye present your bodies a living sacrifice, holy, acceptable unto God, which is your reasonable service.
2 And be not conformed to this world: but be ye transformed by the renewing of your mind, that ye may prove what is that good, and acceptable, and perfect, will of God.
3 For I say, through the grace given unto me, to every man that is among you, not to think of himself more highly than he ought to think; but to think soberly, according as God hath dealt to every man the measure of faith.

Whatever God shows you, deal with it. If he does not show you something amiss, stop digging. God is NOT impressed when you do an autopsy on yourself. We need to be very thankful that God does not unload all of our imperfections on us at once. The Holy Spirit chooses when and how to show us things we need to deal with.

I had been a fan of Southern Gospel Music for years. I had a record collection of some of the classic SGM quartet groups that would pull some good money today. I was in Bible college and living in my parents' home. I knew my Dad did not like Southern Gospel Music, so I just did not play it while he was around. The swing beat reminded him of his days before he was saved when he went to him of the dance floor at the Hollywood Palladium.

God waited for quite a long while to hit me with reality. I was driving home from Wednesday evening prayer meeting, and along the side of the road was parked a bus with "Stamps Quartet" on the side of the bus. They were one of the big quartets that worked the Christian music circuit.

I stopped, and I thought I would go and knock on the door and get to meet one of my hero quartets. As I arrived at the door, it opened, and down the steps tripped a woman in black and white negligee. I instantly knew that I was looking at a whore. At the top of the steps stood the most famous bass singer in the Southern Gospel Music scene, and with a drunken lisp, he said, "We were jus stoppic to vist a frind of ours here in Norwalk, hic." SLAM went the door.

I got back into my car, and as I drove on down the road, I at once realized that this confrontation was no coincidence. God had arranged it. I had been hearing rumors of immorality among the quartet singers, but I needed to get hit by a load of damnation. Did I go to war with the Holy Ghost over my SGM music? No! There was no war to surrender to. I later took the record albums out to the dumpster behind the apartments, and I can still hear the clang of the lid dropping after I dropped them in. No war..... just peace with God, and the knowledge that my Dad turned out to have better instincts than I did.

Stop waiting to have a war with God before you find peace and victory in your life. Be a living sacrifice, and stop the chatter about "full surrender." This sub-Christian notion of surrender is a fetish that you cling to to feel sanctified. It is purely superstition. It is your lucky teddy bear you hug to feel right with God.

FOR A FULL DISCUSSION OF SOUTHERN GOSPEL MUSIC, SEE MY ARTICLE ON IT

For the record, I Googled "full surrender"+" Bible." I came up with 30 alleged verses that were supposed to be about surrender. ALL of them had nothing to do with surrender. None of them implied a battle with God that needed to end with surrender.

This is another case of, "You gotta put down the ducky."

It only pleases God when you FORGET instead of SURRENDER:

Philippians 3:13 Brethren, I count not myself to have apprehended: but this one thing I do, forgetting those things which are behind, and reaching forth unto those things which are before,
14 I press toward the mark for the prize of the high calling of God in Christ Jesus.

The Bible tells you that you are indeed in a spiritual war, BUT NOT WITH GOD THE HOLY SPIRIT. And, in this war you are NEVER to surrender:

Ephesians 6:11 Put on the whole armour of God, that ye may be able to stand against the wiles of the devil.
12 For we wrestle not against flesh and blood, but against principalities, against powers, against the rulers of the darkness of this world, against spiritual wickedness in high places.
13 Wherefore take unto you the whole armour of God, that ye may be able to withstand in the evil day, and having done all, to stand.

 

THE WORLD CAN FIGURE YOU OUT

The lost sinners who reject the Gospel are often quick to catch phony religion. They see your actions, and they hear your words, and they measure them against what little Christian teaching they had as children in Sunday School.

HERE IS A CLASSIC CASE OF THE WORLD MOCKING AT "CHRISTIAN" SUPERSTITION
These guys know that the plastic Jesus is not Christian truth. It is a graven image and violation of the Ten Commandments. What sort of plastic religion are we also hanging onto? Do you have any lucky charms in your Christian life?

This song would not have been so popular if it had not been based in the folly of superstitious people.

BURN THE FETISHES

My parents were missionaries in Tanzania, Africa during the 1950s. When an African became a confessing Christian, they would soon seek to be baptized. The church required them to burn all their fetishes and superstitious charms before baptism. One older lady asked the elders of the church to come and burn her fetishes, and my Dad was asked to officiate. The lady brought all of her fetishes out of her home to the fire as the elders sang Power in the Blood. She also dug fetishes up from the ground and from the thatch of her roof.

Finally, she said she had burned them all. But, the elder pointed to a shell on a cord around her neck. It was the spirit of her ancestor, and not wearing it could bring her vicious punishment by evil spirits. To crush it would, of course, cause great rage by devils. The elder put the shell on a rock and smashed it with another stone. My Dad said the lady shuddered violently when this happened.

While you might mock at taking this so seriously, the Africans did not mock. Many tales are told of people who made devils angry and were killed or troubled. To the lady and elders, this event was all about war with Satan, and Christ won.

So, what fetishes do you have around your home? What is on your wall which you feel lends good luck to your home? How about that cross? Is it there to identify your home as a Christian home, or do you feel you are safer with that cross there. If the latter, burn it. What about your music collection? What messages are in it that are blasphemous to the truth of the Word of God? And, that album of Dolly Parton singing hymns..... She played the madam of a whore house in a Hollywood movie. She is your fetish to make you believe you can let Nashville into your home and get away with it? Burn it.

A Christian couple one day decided to travel to Kenya and see missionary work up close. That is a very good idea. They visited missionaries in the Kamba area of Kenya. While they were there, the man wanted to find African curios that were not tourist trinkets. He went looking for African artifacts which had actually been used by Africans. He found a man with a carving of a witch doctor that had been used to cast spells and exercise devils. He bought it, and when the couple returned to the USA he placed it near the fire place in his living room.

Soon afterward, one night, he woke up to a loud klunk. He went to check, and he found the witch doctor had fallen over. He righted it and went back to bed, not giving it much thought. But, the carving kept falling over, night after night, The man went to visit a retired missionary, and the missionary told the man that he had brought Satanic power into his home, and he must burn the carving. The man finally got his mind right in the Lord, and he tossed it into the fire in the fireplace. I believe this was the story in which the devil involved screamed in rage.

Anything you leave in your home, which has ANY association with spirituality other than that of the Word of God, is giving Satan permission to play games with you. Burn it, or evil will prevail in your home.

Pastor, do you have a Freemason attending your church? Have you not noticed how dead he is spiritually? And, most likely, he has no opinion on any topic in conversation, right? He is probably not even born again. If you imagine you can leave him there, and nothing evil will happen, think again. Here is what he believes if he is a high degreed Freemason.

It is not uncommon for some member to have a ceremonial apron, which Masons wear, as a family heirloom from grandpa or their father. See photo at left. This apron is meant to cover the genitals of the phallus god and sanctify them. It is absolutely filthy. If any one thing will tell Satan he has access to a home, it would be this apron. The two pillars are known as Jachin and Boaz, and they represent the male organ. One of the pillars on the apron has the serpent god on top. This is the savior of Freemasonry according to Manly P. Hall himself. The serpent god, in all mythology, is also the phallic god which you read about in the link above to Albert Pike's Morals and Dogma.

For the record, any Bible with the Masonic symbol on the cover should be burned.

Be careful. If the Mason is at a low degree, he has been sheltered from the blasphemy of the higher degrees. The high degree members are ordered to lie to low degree recruits as to what Masonry teaches. But, you have to have a show down with the man. If he will not demit, that is, leave Freemasonry formally, send him on down the road. If you leave him in your assembly, you will see more and more evil in your church fellowship. He is a little green man.

For the record, every good old boys' club I have ever looked into has had mystic and superstitious doctrines and fetishes. This includes he Elks, Moose Lodge, the Grange, Scottish Rite, and many others.

Also, every pastor I have ever met, who was a Freemason, was totally dead spiritually and on his way to Hell. Give no quarter..... destroy them, if you can.

Freemasonry is far and away the most powerful collection of Luciferian superstition in the world. I know my topic on this one. I have studied Freemasonry from their teachings. I have my own copy of Albert Pike's Morals and Dogma. I have been in several Masonic lodges tuning pianos, and I have seen the Satanic symbolism for myself. I have had to deal with many Freemasons in my piano tuning career. I know whereof I speak.

Do Christian leaders become Freemasons? The most famous evangelist in America since 1938 was a 33rd degree Mason. If I name him his association has promised to sue me. Normal Vincent Peal and Robert Schuler were 33rd degree Masons. Bob Jones Sr. had three 33rd degree Freemasons on the board of Bob Jones University. Many men believe that Bob Jones was a Freemason. One powerful "Christian" Freemason in the US Senate is thought to have arranged for the murder of a man who was exposing him and other such leaders.

There is possibly no larger load of superstitious horse leavings on earth than in Freemasonry.

If there will one day be war in Heaven between God and Lucifer, there most certainly will be war here on earth, AND IN YOUR CHURCH, for the souls of men, AND YOU. Who is winning in your home and church?

Any fetish which God points out, by the voice of the Holy Spirit in you, and which you refuse to part with and burn, it will destroy your life. The fetish has no power, but it tells Satan you are NOT fully committed to the battle for Christ. That fetish will keep you partly committed to paganism in some area of your life. Superstition is a gross violation of God's commands to us in the Bible.

Deuteronomy 4:15 Take ye therefore good heed unto yourselves; for ye saw no manner of similitude on the day that the LORD spake unto you in Horeb out of the midst of the fire:
16 Lest ye corrupt yourselves, and make you a graven image, the similitude of any figure, the likeness of male or female,
17 The likeness of any beast that is on the earth, the likeness of any winged fowl that flieth in the air,
18 The likeness of any thing that creepeth on the ground, the likeness of any fish that is in the waters beneath the earth:
19 And lest thou lift up thine eyes unto heaven, and when thou seest the sun, and the moon, and the stars, even all the host of heaven, shouldest be driven to worship them, and serve them, which the LORD thy God hath divided unto all nations under the whole heaven.

"Lest thou lift up thine eyes....." It is all about turning your eyes off of Christ and his Word and looking at some fetish that feels to you like it gives you power. You need no other power but God. God has chosen some of his servants to camp around you and your home. Trust him, instead of charms, and you will see that God will deliver you.

Psalms 34:6 This poor man cried, and the LORD heard him, and saved him out of all his troubles.
7 The angel of the LORD encampeth round about them that fear him, and delivereth them.

Is there a precedent for burning charms and fetishes and objects of superstition in the Bible? Here is what the new believers did in Corinth with their fetishes and books of magic:

Acts 19:18 And many that believed came, and confessed, and shewed their deeds.
19 Many of them also which used curious arts brought their books together, and burned them before all men: and they counted the price of them, and found it fifty thousand pieces of silver.
20 So mightily grew the word of God and prevailed.

Do you have any "curious arts"..... toys that you need to burn?

PRECIOUS (?) MEMORIES, HOW THEY LINGER

You do not believe in superstition, right? But, do you still avoid walking on cracks? "Step on a crack and you break your mother's back." Well, if you still notice this when walking and have to mentally reject it, welcome to the real world. I have the same problem. I also avoid walking under ladders, but for obvious reasons of safety. Or, am I a bit superstitious about it? I have no problem with the number 13, but when I see 666 on something, my instinct is to ask, "Is this something Satanic," which is a very stupid response. And, I at once rebuke my weird imagination.

The latent power of superstition is everywhere. The key is to resist and never stop resisting.

James 4:7 Submit yourselves therefore to God. Resist the devil, and he will flee from you.
8 Draw nigh to God, and he will draw nigh to you. Cleanse your hands, ye sinners; and purify your hearts, ye double minded.

Submit to God.
Resist the devil.
Draw nigh to God.
Cleanse your hands.
And..... you will not be double minded.

The key to any latent cultural device, that is, any ritual human practice which is at variance with God, to keep resisting it.

In the 1970s, I was told that Winchell's Donuts in California was bought by witches, so I stopped eating their donuts. Was that because I did not want to help witches prosper, or was it because I thought the donuts might be infected with Satanic germs? The latter reason is stupid, but maybe even the first reason is suspect.

1 Corinthians 8:4 As concerning therefore the eating of those things that are offered in sacrifice unto idols, we know that an idol is nothing in the world, and that there is none other God but one.

The fact that a witch made a donut does not make it Satanic. I can eat it and ignore the imagined connection because there is no spiritual connection. Idols have no power, and Satan and his helpers do not have the power to make flour and sugar demon possessed. If you are a donut freak and live in California, you have my permission to eat Winchell's donuts.

I took the Lord's Supper at a Lutheran church once. Their doctrine of consubstantiation, that Christ is virtually present with the bread and wine, is heresy. The bread and wine are mere symbols of who Christ is and what he had to do in order to purchase my salvation. So, the heresy was nothing to me. My aunt, with whom I was attending, told me I did not have to take part. She knew that my Dad did not believe the Lutheran doctrine, and she did not want me to feel I was doing something heretical. I did not feel like a heretic because I had figured out how I Corinthians 8:4 above applied to the question. Would I do the same in a Roman Catholic Church? Never. There is a lot more very Satanic activity going on there than the issue of the bread and wine.

Beware of what I would call a Christian version of Obsessive Compulsive Scrupulosity (OCS). Ah, I realize I may have dropped a bit of a word bomb there. It is a rather high toned psychological term. So, here is the definition:

Obsessive Compulsive Scrupulosity: Repetitive thoughts about being sinful, dishonest, or lacking integrity. Ruminating about past mistakes, errors, or possible sinful behavior. Excessive fear of the possibility of committing blasphemy. Excessive focus on religious and moral perfection.

The Catholic monk in the monastery on Athos Island in the Aegean Sea did not tie the knot in his cinture correctly. The cinture is the belt-like rope they tie around their waist. So, the monk, smitten with guilt for tying the knot wrong, says 150 more Hail Mary's than usual, and he sleeps on the floor that night instead of in bed. That is Obsessive Compulsive Scrupulosity.

The Bible believer fails to say "in Jesus Name, Amen" at the end of a prayer. He suddenly fears that God could not possibly have heard his prayer, or if he did hear, God would be mad at the Christian, and God would take vengeance and punish him for failing to get the prayer just right. That is Obsessive Compulsive Scrupulosity also. So, the poor victim of superstition starts all over, prays the same prayer again, and ends "in Jesus Name, Amen." If God can sigh, this would be one time he did. Should we praying Jesus' name? Absolutely..... he told us to. But, God knows your heart, and when your words miss a beat and seem doctrinally off, God knows your heart.

Hebrews 4:12 For the word of God is quick, and powerful, and sharper than any twoedged sword, piercing even to the dividing asunder of soul and spirit, and of the joints and marrow, and is a discerner of the thoughts and intents of the heart.

God knows you better then you know yourself, and he is a lot more pleased with the fact that you come to him in prayer at all than he is worried about the precise wording of that prayer. He knew your heart wishes long before you even prayed. Consider what would have happened if Peter, having tried to walk on the water and losing faith, began to sink, and he pulled the Anglican Book of Common prayer out of his pocket and started looking for the ideal way to pray when in a panic. Glug glug glug.

It is a form of superstition to tear ourselves to shreds worrying more about the minute details of life than about just loving God and walking with him.

Micah 6:8 He hath shewed thee, O man, what is good; and what doth the LORD require of thee, but to do justly, and to love mercy, and to walk humbly with thy God?

Christian victory is not in the details. Victory is in the person of Jesus Christ. If you miss a detail along the way simply get your eyes back on Jesus Christ at once.

So, stop timing your pace so that you do not step on cracks. Relax and let our sovereign God take charge.

2 Timothy 1:7 For God hath not given us the spirit of fear; but of power, and of love, and of a sound mind.

PESKY PREACHERS, HOW THEY LINGER

When a preacher is hammering you with guilt and fear, and the Holy Spirit is not saying anything, there is a reason. That preacher is being used of Satan to destroy your peace. If the preacher is really a servant of Jesus Christ, his teaching will be used by the Holy Spirit to speak to your heart.

If there are hogs in the creek, either run the hogs off, or find another creek to live beside. You are drinking dirty water. If you choose to hang around, your kids will grow up to think that living in terror of God is normal.

GO TO PART THREE: THE HANDMAIDEN OF SUPERSTITION
IS RELIGIOUS OBSESSIVE COMPULSIVE SCRUPULOSITY

LINKS

JOHN PETERS SHOWS HOW UNIVERSALISM ENTERED CHRISTENDOM
This is possibly the best defining lecture on this topic which I have seen.

SUPERSTITIOUS KEEPING OF THE SABBATH AS TAUGHT BY SEVENTH DAY ADVENTISM
Anything you observe because you are law keeping will cause God to punish you. It is rank superstition.

You've Got to Put Down the Duckie
What do you have in your hand, or mind, that is keeping you from living in complete faith in Christ?

At the above right is a Chinese wishing tree with wishes tied on written on red paper. What is your fetish?

Read how God sends his servants to camp around about his children

John Piper discusses what is happening when your plans are totally shattered

Mark DeJesus on Religious Obsessive Compulsive Scrupulosity
Mark comes from the experience of having lived with OCS himself. This is a great start to deal with OCS.

How bad can Obsessive Compulsive Scrupulosity get.
Some poor language, but Jordan Peterson tells stories that illustrate where OCS can end up.

Learn to tell the difference between the profane and the holy
This article is at this journal.
With both superstition and Religious Obsessive Compulsive Scrupulosity the most deadly aspect is that the victim cannot tell what is profane and what is holy.

Revival Movement of East Africa- Obsessive confession of secret sin.
This video exalts the Revival Movement. But, if you pay attention, you will hear the narrator tell about confession of secret sin. This movement was still raging when I was growing up in Africa, and it was clearly based on run away Religious Obsessive Compulsive Scrupulosity. Many missionaries were sucked into it out of a desire to be more godly. They sat in groups and confessed wicked and sensual thoughts to one another which they should have confessed in their closet. The result was that they became suspicious of one another, and they lost faith in Christian fellowship.

SPIRITUAL ABUSE AND THOSE WHO CRAVE IT
By Mary Van Nattan
Superstition is at the root of spiritual abuse. The followers of the Indian guru or Baptist pastor are both holding the leader in awe as a supernatural manifestation whom they must adore and submit to in order to prosper spiritually. These leaders are virtual talisman.
Excerpt from the article linked:

"Just because you, or anyone else, chooses to think that spiritual abuse and brutality is helpful or satisfying or "serves a useful purpose" does not make it so. It is still destructive. It is destructive to both those who abuse and those who are abused. I don't care who it is - Phil Kidd, Lee Roberson, Paul Washer, Mark Driscoll, Kenneth Hagin, Bill Gothard, or your own pastor - men who are motivated to shame, berate and belittle Christians as a constant thread in their preaching or practice are abusers. Men who use fear and guilt to keep people performing to their expectations are abusers. An abuser, no matter how he is defined, is an abuser still. He may claim the title of pastor, preacher, evangelist, missionary, etc., but if he is beating the flock of God, he is an abuser. It is not necessary to beat the sheep in order to get God's work done. This is not the way to feed the sheep."

LEONARD RAVENHILL SOUNDS VERY PIOUS,
BUT HE WILL INSPIRE YOU TO TEAR YOURSELF TO SHREDS.
This is not the voice of Jesus who said.....
Matthew 11:28 Come unto me, all ye that labour and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest.
29 Take my yoke upon you, and learn of me; for I am meek and lowly in heart: and ye shall find rest unto your souls.
30 For my yoke is easy, and my burden is light.
Ravenhill's burden is not light. He inspires Religious Obsessive Compulsive Scrupulosity.
And, right next door is superstition, in which, you will add to your life the fear that, if you fail to do certain acts, God will cast you away.

THE BILL GOTHARD SCANDAL
Gothard used girls, whom he claimed to be rescuing, in his sexual perversion. You need to understand that the track record of family guidance gurus is horrible. Get your child raising guidelines from ONLY the King James Bible.

THE ALTERNATIVE TO SCRUPULOSITY-
DISCERN THE DIFFERENCE BETWEEN THE PROFANE AND THE HOLY
The word "profane" in King James English means a lot more than modern English usage.

SELF-PROCLAIMED EXORCIST, BOB LARSON, USING THE BIBLE AND A CROSS AS MAGIC FETISHES TO ALLEGEDLY DELIVER PEOPLE
This man never opens the Bible. He uses it as a battering ram. That is a fetish action. The use of a crucifix is pure paganism. I have to conclude that Larson is possessed of devils himself. The making of a video show of spiritual warfare is vain and blasphemous.
BIBLICAL EXAMINATION OF LARSON

SEND MAIL
What sort of superstition have you seen in the Lord's Church?

PART ONE OF THIS SERIES: SUPERSTITION IN OUR WORLD

PART THREE OF THIS SERIES: THE HANDMAIDEN OF SUPERSTITION
IS RELIGIOUS OBSESSIVE COMPULSIVE SCRUPULOSITY

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