THE ROAD TO ENDOR!

1 Samuel 28:1-25 ERV

Later, the Philistines gathered their armies to fight against Israel. Achish said to David, "Do you understand that you and your men must go with me to fight against Israel?" [2] David answered, "Certainly, then you can see for yourself what I can do." Achish said, "Fine, I will make you my permanent bodyguard." [3] After Samuel died, all the Israelites mourned for him and buried him in Ramah, his hometown. Saul had removed the mediums and fortunetellers from Israel. [4] The Philistines prepared for war. They came to Shunem and made their camp at that place. Saul gathered all the Israelites together and made his camp at Gilboa. [5] Saul saw the Philistine army, and he was afraid. His heart pounded with fear. [6] He prayed to the LORD, but the LORD did not answer him. God did not talk to Saul in dreams. God did not use the Urim to give him an answer, and God did not use prophets to speak to Saul. [7] Finally, Saul said to his officers, "Find me a woman who is a medium. Then I can go ask her what will happen." His officers answered, "There is a medium at Endor." [8] That night, Saul put on different clothes so that no one would know who he was. Then Saul and two of his men went to see the woman. Saul said to her, "I want you to bring up a ghost who can tell me what will happen in the future. You must call for the ghost of the person I name." [9] But the woman said to him, "You know that Saul forced all the mediums and fortunetellers to leave the land of Israel. You are trying to trap me and kill me." [10] Saul used the LORD's name to make a promise to the woman. He said, "As surely as the LORD lives, you won't be punished for doing this." [11] The woman asked, "Who do you want me to bring up for you?" Saul answered, "Bring up Samuel." [12] And it happened-the woman saw Samuel and screamed. She said to Saul, "You tricked me! You are Saul." [13] The king said to the woman, "Don't be afraid! What do you see?" The woman said, "I see a spirit coming up out of the ground." [14] Saul asked, "What does he look like?" The woman answered, "He looks like an old man wearing a special robe." Then Saul knew it was Samuel, and he bowed down. His face touched the ground. [15] Samuel said to Saul, "Why did you bother me? Why did you bring me up?" Saul answered, "I am in trouble! The Philistines have come to fight me, and God has left me. God won't answer me anymore. He won't use prophets or dreams to answer me, so I called you. I want you to tell me what to do." [16] Samuel said, "The LORD left you and is now your enemy, so why are you asking me for advice? [17] The LORD used me to tell you what he would do, and now he is doing what he said he would do. He is tearing the kingdom out of your hands and giving it to your neighbor, David. [18] The LORD was angry with the Amalekites and told you to destroy them. But you did not obey him. That's why the LORD is doing this to you today. [19] The LORD will let the Philistines defeat you and the army of Israel today. Tomorrow, you and your sons will be here with me." [20] Saul quickly fell to the ground and lay stretched out there. Saul was afraid because of what Samuel said. Saul was also very weak because he had not eaten any food all that day and night. [21] The woman came over to Saul and saw how afraid he was. She said, "Look, I am your servant. I have obeyed you. I risked my life and did what you told me to do. [22] Please, listen to me. You need to eat. Let me get you some food. Then you will have enough strength to go on your way." [23] But Saul refused. He said, "I won't eat." Saul's officers joined the woman and begged him to eat. Finally, Saul listened to them. He got up from the ground and sat on the bed. [24] The woman had a calf that she had been fattening. She quickly killed the calf. She took some flour and pressed it with her hands. Then she baked some bread without yeast. [25] The woman put the food before Saul and his officers and they ate. Then they got up and left during the night.

 

Deceit never advances righteousness, and worldliness can never be used to achieve spiritual ends. In God’s eyes, witchcraft falls under the category of idolatry.  People have been worshipping and seeking supernatural powers other than God since the beginning.

Satan has used witchcraft to prevent people from finding holy spirituality in God alone. He uses witchcraft such as mediums, horoscopes, and games to entice people away from God and toward a power that gives self-enlightenment.

Let’s face it, people love power, the deadlier, the better. In the last few years, witchcraft has steadily become an acceptable topic and practice in many areas of society, sadly, some “so-called Christians” practice witchcraft.

Unfortunately, people may not even be aware that they are involved in witchcraft because it is made to seem entertaining, and innocent and may even seem like a joke to many more as listed in Galatians 5:19-20.

Even Christians are on the bandwagon of witchcraft, adults and children alike are into programs like Harry porter, Sabrina the teenage witch, games that teach how to cast spells, tarot card readings and much more that look innocent but are deadly pastimes.

As the old saying goes, “The road to destruction is paved with good intentions.” Judgment will not be according to what we intend but what we did.

God does not reward us for good intentions but for righteous works. Saul died in disobedience because he didn’t obey God's words. Instead of seeking God, he went to a witch to seek guidance. Saul’s intention was “good,” to enquire of the prophet Samuel, there are just two problems here: Samuel was dead, and Saul was about to consult with a witch (a practice he had banned in the land in verse 3), so God’s judgment of Saul was not on his intention but his action.

According to 2 Corinthians 5:10, we will all appear before God for our actions and not intentions. Witchcraft, sorcery, magic, and the likes are strongly condemned in the bible in Exodus 22:18. It seduces people from their allegiance to God, whose judgment and guidance we should depend on. Peeking into the future is trying to assume God’s place, the foretelling of future events corrupts the minds of people and leads them away from God and the revelation of His truth. In verses 7-9, we find Saul, who knew how wrong witchcraft was, but because of desperation, he turned to the wrong thing he had outlawed for help, instead of the maker of all things. We can never find help or answers from the creation as Psalm 121: asks, “Shall I look to the mountain gods for help?

No! Only the creator knows and has what we need. God won’t have warned us of witchcraft if it was good and it would not be a secret practice, every evil work is done under the cover of darkness says Ezekiel 8:7-12. But this generation has brought witchcraft and every idolatry we can think of into the open and even into the church, like Halloween, solstice, séance, and hexing. They are celebrated and applauded. They may look innocent and outwardly normal but fully evil and destructive.  The wide road is easy to travel on, as described in Matthew 7:13 but it only leads to death. Dabbling in occultic or magic to gain sight of God and know His will are lies from the pit of hell says Isaiah 8:19-22, we do not find God by any means, only through Christ according to Acts 4:12. The road to Endor only leads to death.

REFLECTION QUESTIONS

·       In what ways might I be unintentionally opening the door to practices or influences that draw my focus away from God, even if they seem harmless or culturally acceptable?

·       Am I relying on God’s Word and the Holy Spirit for guidance, or am I seeking answers, clarity, or control through other means when God seems silent?

·       What “good intentions” in my life need to be aligned with righteous actions so that I walk in full obedience to God?

PRAYER: Lord God, help me to know the truth of your word that can set me free from the deceitful lies of the enemy so that I am not led astray in seeking you elsewhere in Jesus’ name. Amen. 

https://open.spotify.com/episode/2cL4w044lD65BChY4eNxJf?si=n6kf7c0ETp2x-E6hKm_Khw

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