Occult Practices verses Prophetic Revelation
November 29, 2022
Commentary
When God divided the Promised Land among the 12 tribes, the Levites did not receive a portion of land. Instead, 48 cities were set aside for them (Numbers 35:1-8). The Lord was their inheritance. The Israelites were to support the Levites as they served the Lord. The Levites carried out tasks related to the temple, but they also taught the Law of God and instructed the Israelites concerning the will of God. The Levites were the usual means by which God communicated His Word and His will to men. Only the descendants of Aaron were permitted to serve as priests (Numbers 3:10), and the rest of the tribe was to serve as ministers to the priests (Numbers 18:1-7). Priests were a minority in the tribe of Levi. To have their physical needs met the priests and Levites received food from the offerings and sacrifices that were brought to the Lord. Also, the priests were allowed to visit in the homes of Israelites who did not live near God’s chosen place of worship. When they visited in a home, they were to expect food and provisions for their need (vv. 6-8).
Next, this chapter lists the illicit sources of “spiritual mediation” which the Israelites were forbidden to employ (vv. 9-14). It prophesies the coming of the greatest Prophet of all time, the Lord Jesus Christ, the “Prophet like Moses” (vv. 15-19). Our task is to focus on the light, and not concentrate on the darkness. God had more than adequately provided for the instruction and the guidance of His people through His true prophets (like Abraham and Moses). Israel did not need to turn elsewhere for divine guidance. Men turn to illegitimate sources of guidance because they have rejected God. In the last half of this chapter Moses contrasts between the false prophet and the prophet of God (vv. 18-22). He says there are two tests that you can use to determine whether a prophet was speaking God words: The prophet’s message had to be in accordance with God and His Word (vv. 18-19) and His prophecy must come true (vv. 20-22).
Application
In Moses day the Israelites were curious about the occult practices of the Canaanites. Today people are still fascinated by fortune-telling, horoscopes, witchcraft etc. I want to make sure that what I do and say is in accordance with God’s Word and trust Him to fulfil His will in my life.
Deuteronomy 18:1– 22 (NET)
1 The Levitical priests —indeed, the entire tribe of Levi—will have no allotment or inheritance with Israel; they may eat the burnt offerings of the Lord and of his inheritance. 2 They will have no inheritance in the midst of their fellow Israelites; the Lord alone is their inheritance, just as he had told them. 3 This shall be the priests’ fair allotment from the people who offer sacrifices, whether bull or sheep—they must give to the priest the shoulder, the jowls, and the stomach. 4 You must give them the best of your grain, new wine, and olive oil, as well as the best of your wool when you shear your flocks. 5 For the Lord your God has chosen them and their sons from all your tribes to stand and serve in his name permanently. 6 Suppose a Levite comes by his own free will from one of your villages, from any part of Israel where he is living, to the place the Lord chooses 7 and serves in the name of the Lord his God like his fellow Levites who stand there before the Lord. 8 He must eat the same share they do, despite any profits he may gain from the sale of his family’s inheritance.
9 When you enter the land the Lord your God is giving you, you must not learn the abhorrent practices of those nations. 10 There must never be found among you anyone who sacrifices his son or daughter in the fire, anyone who practices divination, an omen reader, a soothsayer, a sorcerer, 11 one who casts spells, one who conjures up spirits, a practitioner of the occult, or a necromancer. 12 Whoever does these things is abhorrent to the Lord, and because of these detestable things the Lord your God is about to drive them out from before you. 13 You must be blameless before the Lord your God. 14 Those nations that you are about to dispossess listen to omen readers and diviners, but the Lord your God has not given you permission to do such things.
15 The Lord your God will raise up for you a prophet like me from among you—from your fellow Israelites; you must listen to him. 16 This accords with what happened at Horeb in the day of the assembly. You asked the Lord your God: “Please do not make us hear the voice of the Lord our God anymore or see this great fire anymore lest we die.” 17 The Lord then said to me, “What they have said is good. 18 I will raise up a prophet like you for them from among their fellow Israelites. I will put my words in his mouth and he will speak to them whatever I command. 19 I will personally hold responsible anyone who then pays no attention to the words that prophet speaks in my name.
20 “But if any prophet presumes to speak anything in my name that I have not authorized him to speak, or speaks in the name of other gods, that prophet must die. 21 Now if you say to yourselves, ‘How can we tell that a message is not from the Lord?’ — 22 whenever a prophet speaks in my name and the prediction is not fulfilled, then I have not spoken it; the prophet has presumed to speak it, so you need not fear him.”
Illustration: Occult Practices Are to be Avoided by The Christian
Occult means “hidden”. It covers practices that are not approved of by God. (Example; astrology) (Is. 47:13), casting spells (Deut. 18:11), consulting with spirits (Deut. 18:11), magic (Gen. 41:8), sorcery (Exodus 22:8), witchcraft (Deut. 18:10), and spiritism (Deut. 18:11). Occult practices such as ouji boards, tarot cards, astrology charts, contacting the dead, seances, etc. are to be avoided by the Christian. (Sources unknown)