Is It OK to Consult a Psychic? by David K. Bernard Podcast recording (no venue stated in the delivered transcript) Kind: teaching Scripture: Deuteronomy 18:9-14, Isaiah 47:12-15, Acts 16, Acts 19, Galatians 5:19-21, Revelation 21:8, James 4:7, 1 John 4:4 Source: https://acts238.life/repository/sermons/david-k-bernard--is-it-ok-to-consult-a-psychic Published by Acts 2:38 Life from the sermon transcript on that page. Free to copy and share with attribution. ------------------------------------------------------------ we Christians absolutely should not be involved in anything like that fortune telling card reading astrology Ouija boards all that kind of stuff and I'll give you two reasons first of all uh I do believe there are real spiritual forces of evil so if we con connect in these ways we're denying faith in God instead of praying to God trusting to God reading and studying and following the word of God as the will of God we're looking to other things besides God which could only be at best human spirits and at worst evil spirits now the second thing is some people say well I I I just read the astrological stuff just for fun just or I play I we we you know play with the Ouija board or tarot cards just for fun well wait a minute if you're not really meaning it you're trivializing something that really does have a spiritual connection so you're opening the door to things maybe you don't even believe in or intend you're also leading others uh into these dangerous Realms now if you think I'm overstating the case let's read from scripture I'd like to go to Deuteronomy I'm going to use the new King James uh Deuteronomy 18 starting in verse 9 now somebody says well this is the Old Testament this is the law but the yes there it's true that God gave some commands to the nation of Israel to separate them from other nations but God also gave many commands that of a moral and spiritual nature that would apply to his relationship to his people of all times I think it's very obvious that's what we're dealing with here so in Deuteronomy 189 when you come into the land which the Lord your God has giv you you shall not learn to follow the Abominations of those Nations Abominations means something detestable hated and it's obvious this is things that God hates and God's not going to change in what he loves what he hates there shall not be found among you anyone who makes his son or his daughter pass through the fire so of course that's child sacrifice Human Sacrifice or one who practices witchcraft or a soothsayer so that's a fortune teller one who interprets Omens or a sorcerer or one who conjures spells or a medium or a spirus or one who calls up the dead so whether they're playing at it or really doing it you know some things are fakery but some things I believe the devil can do certain level of miraculous things demonically but we're he's saying you're not supposed to be involved in that for all who do these things are an Abomination to the Lord so it's not just like don't eat this food it's going to be Abomination to Israel but don't practice these things because this is an Abomination to God for all who do these things are Abomination to the Lord and because of these Abominations the Lord your God drives them out from before you you shall be blameless before the Lord your God for these nations which you will dispossess listen to soothsayers and divers but as for you the Lord your God has not appointed such for you so that's Deuteronomy 18 9-14 I also want to read from Isaiah and Isaiah's warning people as they turn away from the true God and put their trust in false gods judgment is going to come upon them and all these things won't protect them so reading Isaiah 4712 new King James stand now with your enchantments and the multitude of your sorceries in which you've labored from your youth perhaps you'll be able to profit perhaps you will prevail you are wearied in the multitude of your counselors let now the astrologers the stargazers the monthly prognosticators stand up and save you from what shall come upon you behold they shall be a stubble the fire shall burn them they shall not deliver themselves from the power of the flame it shall not be a cold to be warmed by nor a fire to sit by thus shall they be to you with whom you have labored your Merchants from your youth they shall wander each one to his quarter no one shall save you so he starts off by saying okay trust in these maybe they'll help you no the answer is they can't even help themselves they will be destroyed and you'll be destroyed along with them now if you go to the New Testament you see the New Testament confirms this because for for example in Acts chapter 16 Paul encountered a girl who was possessed of evil spirit and she could uh tell Fortune so apparently she was able to do some real stuff but it was by an evil spirit so Paul rebuked the evil spirit cast it out that should be our response not to cooperate or listen or participate but to rebuke and if necessary cast out the evil spirits likewise in Acts 19 uh there were some um that it said the in in Ephesus as people were converted to the faith they brought all kinds of books of magic and sorcery they were very expensive and they burned them all because they felt like they were evil they were not just neutral they were not just something to uh you know enjoy or amused themselves with but there were something actually were evil and therefore it should be destroyed now going further Galatians 5 19- 21 when it talks about the work of the works of the flesh that people that involv in El and such things will not inherit the kingdom of God it does witch list witchcraft in that likewise in Revelation 218 when it talks about people that come under Eternal judgment uh it again mentions witchcraft or sorcery so they are very strong condemnations through the Old Testament and the New Testament and the reason is as I stated in the beginning these become substitutes for God instead of faith in God you're placing faith in at best false things at worst evil and demonic things so I I think Christians should not have anything to do with this we don't want to be on the borderline of anything questionable uh uh anything that has even Superstition or good luck charms or astrology charts or anything that might seem harmless uh but yet they partake of this kind of Spirit uh we should avoid that and we should have our faith in God we should pray only to God we should trust only to God and um God is the one who will protect us and we have power in the name of Jesus Christ if we ever feel that we're encountering forces of evil or demons we can rebuke them in the name of Jesus Christ James says resist the devil and he will flee from you and John first John greater is he who's in you than he who is in the world so we have confidence that through faith in Jesus Christ the power of the Holy Spirit the name of Jesus we can firmly res resist evil and all these kind of uh spiritual influences that are not of God and we should maintain our relationship solely to the one God In The Name of Jesus Christ well I think humans are inherently Spiritual Beings God has created us for relation with him so when we when people turn away from the worship of the true God they don't just become neutral and that's why uh you know secularism and Atheism only go so far and even if people intellectually believe that their soul is dissatisfied so they reach out to these substitutes so yes people are are are still spiritual and some will say well I'm spiritual but I'm not religious well I understand if they're talking about a kind of a false religion or hypocrisy or legalism but uh just being spiritual is not enough we have to have a relationship with the one one true God