Occult

How can you tell if a religious group is a cult or if it is dangerous? Here are some answers.

I had been saved and baptized at the age of 13. I was pulled away from my relationship I had with Jesus because of lack of knowledge, sin and not keeping up with prayer and reading my Bible. I had been involved with a couple of seances and Ouija boards with some friends even though I hadn't believed in them or worshiped that kind of thing. I only did it to go along with my friends and actually thought it was all rigged. Boy, was I in for a rude awakening! Shortly after I had been saved I had been visited by satan in my bedroom. I believe that night his demons had attached themselves to me because within a short period of time after that night there was such a sudden change in my behaviour and moods that it was thought that there was something medically wrong.

The manifestation of Neo-Paganism (e.g., nature worship, self-worship, Satan worship) in many world cultures today has brought with it the ghastly phenomenon of ritualistic abuse. Ritualistic abuse, a term almost unheard of in some ministerial circles, is the lawless mistreatment of persons against their will during or as a result of pagan religious rites or exercises. Ritualistic abuse occurs in either cultic or occultic (secret worship) ceremonies. God declares ritualistic abuse to be sin and reveals in Deuteronomy 18:10: "There shall not be found among you anyone who makes his son or his daughter pass through the fire [ritualistic abuse], or one who practices witchcraft, or a soothsayer, or one who interprets omens, or a sorcerer.…"

What is the difference between white and black magic?

What is the difference between white and black magic?

I have heard this basic differentiation: Black magic is intended to cause harm and is evil; white magic seeks to heal, not harm. While that may be true, you have to ask the simple question, "What is the source of the power?" If it is anything but the power of Almighty God, then it is to be avoided at all costs.

God will never allow himself to be degraded to the point of being summoned to cast a spell or to levitate an object. I can promise you that will never happen. So, right away, you can rule out most "magic" as being of the devil.

What is witchcraft?

Witchcraft, also called black magic, is the evil use of supernatural powers. Webster's defines witchcraft as the act or instance of employing sorcery, especially with malevolent intent: a magical rite or technique. Witchcraft calls upon the powers of the devil much like a believer prays and believes in the power of God.

If you believe in God, and believe in what the Bible says, then you must believe in the powers of evil as well. You cannot take one side and then completely discount the other side. So, evil power is real and witchcraft is the use of it.

How can I recognize a cult?

A cult is very different from the occult, which is Satan worship. A cult is a religious sect that often consists of enough sprinkling of truth that it is accepted by many, but that never teaches the full Gospel. To determine whether a sect is a cult, you can ask several questions:

1. Whom do they say Jesus is? Do they teach that He is fully God and became man to save the world from sin? Or, do they teach that He was a good man, maybe even a prophet, and that we should all try to be like Him? When Jesus asked Peter, "Who do you say I am?" Peter replied, in Matthew 16:16, "You are the Christ, the Son of the Living God."