carissa_vkl

what is everyones take on astrological signs? if it is not of GoD, and rather of " spirits and signs" that foretell our future, how is it right? GoD alone can know the future, so why do so many rely on the signs rather then turning to GoD...

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~*~Carissa~*~

Pastor Gary

This came up awhile back in another Christian forum. The discussion was argumentative at times, but what was discussed was the 'application of Astrology' and whether or not it is 'worshipped' as a religion. Some persons quoted scripture in reference to witchcraft and sorcery where those crafts were worshipped in direct violation of God's First Commandment. It was also argued that since God Created the heavens and the earth, that the heavens and the stellar arrays that are looked upon by Astrologers as 'signs', must be OK because those arrays were God's work. Well, to some that was a stretch, but what was finally agreed upon is what I mentioned earlier. It can be an interesting diversion as long as it is not worshipped. It was also qualified by the texts of scripture found in these verses:

Ephesians 6:11-12 KJV
Isaiah 47:10-14 KJV
Revelation 21:8 KJV
Deuteronomy 18:10-12 KJV
2 Kings 21:6 KJV
Micah 5:12 KJV
Ezekiel 13:18-20 KJV
Acts 8:11-24 KJV
Leviticus 20:27 KJV
Exodus 7:11 KJV

Just to name a few. Some were taken out of context while others were applied directly...



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Boanerges

Some people believe the constelations like everything else in the heavens are just reflections of God's grandure . It takes sinful man to make them corrupt- but as Pastor Gary said many use them for satanic ritual and purpose- to bad something so beautiful and awe inspiring has been tainted with such an association.
The Hebrew shepards use to have to constelations which they regarded as cheribum and thus one of the three applications of "under the shadow of His wings".

epistemaniac

kinda along the lines of what Silvanius said.... the fact that some of what be found out through the practice of witchcraft etc could be true, that alone is not something that determines whether or not it is good in the sight of the Lord.... remember that Satan often uses truth in order to further his greater objective of perverting the truth when he gets a chance.... think of Jesus' temptation as an example of evil using truth for evil means.... remember too that the Bible says that in the last days false prophets will do many signs that appear to be "true" or "good"... so much so that the very elect of God are almost deceived by them.....

Matthew 7:21-23 (ESV) 21 "Not everyone who says to me, 'Lord, Lord,' will enter the kingdom of heaven, but the one who does the will of my Father who is in heaven. 22 On that day many will say to me, 'Lord, Lord, did we not prophesy in your name, and cast out demons in your name, and do many mighty works in your name?' 23 And then will I declare to them, 'I never knew you; depart from me, you workers of lawlessness.''"

Matthew 24:24 (ESV) For false christs and false prophets will arise and perform great signs and wonders, so as to lead astray, if possible, even the elect. "

So the "mighty works". or "great signs and wonders", or accurately foretelling a future event are not themselves necessary and sufficient criteria by which to judge whether or not this practice is good in the sight of the Lord.

In Daniel we read that these astrologers etc could actually tell the King what his dream was, no small feat in and of itself! But only God, through Daniel was able to go the next step and say what the dream actually meant.

Daniel 4:7 (ESV) Then the magicians, the enchanters, the Chaldeans, and the astrologers came in, and I told them the dream, but they could not make known to me its interpretation.."

So too, astrologers today can see some truth, but their seeing this does not mean that they are seeing the truth truthfully, e.g. what this objective truth means in the greater scheme of God's plan.

Consider these sobering words from Isaiah on this subject:

Isaiah 47:9-15 (ESV) 9 These two things shall come to you in a moment, in one day; the loss of children and widowhood shall come upon you in full measure, in spite of your many sorceries and the great power of your enchantments. 10 You felt secure in your wickedness, you said, "No one sees me"; your wisdom and your knowledge led you astray, and you said in your heart, "I am, and there is no one besides me." 11 But evil shall come upon you, which you will not know how to charm away; disaster shall fall upon you, for which you will not be able to atone; and ruin shall come upon you suddenly, of which you know nothing. 12 Stand fast in your enchantments and your many sorceries, with which you have labored from your youth; perhaps you may be able to succeed; perhaps you may inspire terror. 13 You are wearied with your many counsels; let them stand forth and save you, those who divide the heavens, who gaze at the stars, who at the new moons make known what shall come upon you. 14 Behold, they are like stubble; the fire consumes them; they cannot deliver themselves from the power of the flame. No coal for warming oneself is this, no fire to sit before! 15 Such to you are those with whom you have labored, who have done business with you from your youth; they wander about each in his own direction; there is no one to save you.

cont

epistemaniac

A few other things to consider, which seem to indicate, to me anyway, that the practice of these dark arts are not to be practiced at all, for they are not harmless diversions or mere hobbies:

Isaiah 44:24-28 (ESV) 24 Thus says the Lord, your Redeemer, who formed you from the womb: "I am the Lord, who made all things, who alone stretched out the heavens, who spread out the earth by myself, 25 who frustrates the signs of liars and makes fools of diviners, who turns wise men back and makes their knowledge foolish, 26 who confirms the word of his servant and fulfills the counsel of his messengers, who says of Jerusalem, 'She shall be inhabited,' and of the cities of Judah, 'They shall be built, and I will raise up their ruins'; 27 who says to the deep, 'Be dry; I will dry up your rivers'; 28 who says of Cyrus, 'He is my shepherd, and he shall fulfill all my purpose'; saying of Jerusalem, 'She shall be built,' and of the temple, 'Your foundation shall be laid.' "

Leviticus 19:26 (ESV) "You shall not eat any flesh with the blood in it. You shall not interpret omens or tell fortunes.

Leviticus 19:31 (ESV) "Do not turn to mediums or wizards; do not seek them out, and so make yourselves unclean by them: I am the Lord your God.

Leviticus 20:6 (ESV) "If a person turns to mediums and wizards, whoring after them, I will set my face against that person and will cut him off from among his people.

Deuteronomy 18:9-14 (ESV) 9 "When you come into the land that the Lord your God is giving you, you shall not learn to follow the abominable practices of those nations. 10 There shall not be found among you anyone who burns his son or his daughter as an offering, anyone who practices divination or tells fortunes or interprets omens, or a sorcerer 11 or a charmer or a medium or a wizard or a necromancer, 12 for whoever does these things is an abomination to the Lord. And because of these abominations the Lord your God is driving them out before you. 13 You shall be blameless before the Lord your God, 14 for these nations, which you are about to dispossess, listen to fortune-tellers and to diviners. But as for you, the Lord your God has not allowed you to do this.

Isaiah 8:19-20 (ESV) 19 And when they say to you, "Inquire of the mediums and the necromancers who chirp and mutter," should not a people inquire of their God? Should they inquire of the dead on behalf of the living?
20 To the teaching and to the testimony! If they will not speak according to this word, it is because they have no dawn.

2 Thessalonians 2:1-12 (ESV) 1 Now concerning the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ and our being gathered together to him, we ask you, brothers, 2 not to be quickly shaken in mind or alarmed, either by a spirit or a spoken word, or a letter seeming to be from us, to the effect that the day of the Lord has come. 3 Let no one deceive you in any way. For that day will not come, unless the rebellion comes first, and the man of lawlessness is revealed, the son of destruction, 4 who opposes and exalts himself against every so-called god or object of worship, so that he takes his seat in the temple of God, proclaiming himself to be God. 5 Do you not remember that when I was still with you I told you these things? 6 And you know what is restraining him now so that he may be revealed in his time. 7 For the mystery of lawlessness is already at work. Only he who now restrains it will do so until he is out of the way. 8 And then the lawless one will be revealed, whom the Lord Jesus will kill with the breath of his mouth and bring to nothing by the appearance of his coming. 9 The coming of the lawless one is by the activity of Satan with all power and false signs and wonders, 10 and with all wicked deception for those who are perishing, because they refused to love the truth and so be saved. 11 Therefore God sends them a strong delusion, so that they may believe what is false, 12 in order that all may be condemned who did not believe the truth but had pleasure in unrighteousness."

Galatians 5:18-21 (ESV) 18 But if you are led by the Spirit, you are not under the law. 19 Now the works of the flesh are evident: sexual immorality, impurity, sensuality, 20 idolatry, sorcery, enmity, strife, jealousy, fits of anger, rivalries, dissensions, divisions, 21 envy, drunkenness, orgies, and things like these. I warn you, as I warned you before, that those who do such things will not inherit the kingdom of God."

Exodus 22:18 (ESV) "You shall not permit a sorceress to live.

Leviticus 20:27 (ESV) "A man or a woman who is a medium or a wizard shall surely be put to death. They shall be stoned with stones; their blood shall be upon them."

1 Chronicles 10:13-14 (ESV) 13 So Saul died for his breach of faith. He broke faith with the Lord in that he did not keep the command of the Lord, and also consulted a medium, seeking guidance. 14 He did not seek guidance from the Lord. Therefore the Lord put him to death and turned the kingdom over to David the son of Jesse.

2 Chronicles 33:6 (ESV) And he burned his sons as an offering in the Valley of the Son of Hinnom, and used fortune-telling and omens and sorcery, and dealt with mediums and with wizards. He did much evil in the sight of the Lord, provoking him to anger.

2 Kings 23:24 (ESV) Moreover, Josiah put away the mediums and the necromancers and the household gods and the idols and all the abominations that were seen in the land of Judah and in Jerusalem, that he might establish the words of the law that were written in the book that Hilkiah the priest found in the house of the Lord.

Hosea 4:10-12 (ESV) 10 They shall eat, but not be satisfied; they shall play the whore, but not multiply, because they have forsaken the Lord to cherish
11 whoredom, wine, and new wine, which take away the understanding.
12 My people inquire of a piece of wood, and their walking staff gives them oracles. For a spirit of whoredom has led them astray, and they have left their God to play the whore.

Acts 19:18-20 (ESV) 18 Also many of those who were now believers came, confessing and divulging their practices. 19 And a number of those who had practiced magic arts brought their books together and burned them in the sight of all. And they counted the value of them and found it came to fifty thousand pieces of silver. 20 So the word of the Lord continued to increase and prevail mightily.�

The point is, the means do not justify the ends…. Just because something about the future may be foretold (the ends) the means (witchcraft, divination, etc) does not justify coming to know the “truth� about the future. So in light if the many very negative things God’s word has to say on the subject, it seems it would be best to avoid the practice.

Blessings,
Ken