WITCHCRAFT 3

One thing that doesn’t take too much to work out if you read the history of Judaism is that the Jews must be the most tormented race on earth. It seems that everyone has had a go at them and tried in one form or another to extinguish their flame.

It all began in Egypt thousands of years ago and it happened on a regular basis, much of the time it was their own fault because they disobeyed God. But he has never abandoned them totally only temporarily. Somehow he always forgives them and they return to their land or to God’s favour.

In our lifetime, it wasn’t more obvious when God gave them back their homeland, Israel in 1948 and he has defended them ever since in the face of continuous and relentless attacks from surrounding countries, some of whom are committed to their annihilation.

This of course is not going to happen as they are back home permanently. Until the Arabs realise this they are going to be wasting a lot of time and effort propping up a failed ideology.

I read recently that the strength and perpetuity of the Jews did not happen by chance. Regardless of where they were and what was happening to them, the central core of their way of life and identity was always intact.

That central core was and is the family. Whatever situation they find themselves in, the family gets together every Friday evening for a Sabbath meal. I am told that Judaism is based on this concept.

The New Testament Church was built on family meals. The only difference was that it included everyone who was a disciple of Jesus, not just Jews.

I notice today that where the church is persecuted, the meetings of the church often take place in homes. It is harder to detect and persecute people having a meal together than people who meet in a public building to sing songs and hear a sermon from a man in a pulpit up front.

God knew that his church was going to be persecuted so that is why he wanted them to meet in homes. Very logical when you think about it. Of course we don’t know what persecution is in the western church so we can bask in fine, expensive buildings; meetings that are more entertainment than a call to arms; and religious ritual that demands very little.

This only indicates the extent that the spirit of witchcraft has taken control of the church. Focusing on form, show, entertainment and keeping people happy means that we don’t have time to get serious about God and his kingdom. That spells one word…witchcraft.

When witchcraft rules, when all is said and done, more is said than done. I could count on one hand the number of sermons that I have heard where you can actually do something with it. Most of them are little homilies about something that most people listening have no interest in hearing about.

Most of the time it is a way of giving a job to someone who thinks that he has special powers and ability given to him by God. If only they realised….