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The Heavenly Competition
As we delve into our new study of the various kinds of activities and character traits that can potentially provide a point of access, or “legal ground,” for Satan’s work in our lives, I’d first like to sharpen our focus on the nature of the battle we are caught in between God and Satan. In our last issue I stated that I believe that God created Lucifer to be an alternative object of devotion for mankind. He wanted us to have a choice between Himself and another alluring, supernatural being. So God and Satan, as he is now called, are constantly vying with each other for our love and devotion. They are very different in their motives and what they have to offer, however. God sincerely loves us and desires us to enter an
everlasting love relationship with Him that will fulfill every longing of our God-created hearts as well as fulfill His own divine love nature.



Satan, on the other hand, is incapable of love. He is a master of deception, however, and can offer thrilling and tantalizing experiences as a means of luring man away from God and into his own camp. His purposes are (1) to hinder man’s entrance into the Kingdom of God (Mat. 13:19), (2) to destroy his usefulness in God’s Kingdom should he enter it (2 Peter 1:5-9; Rev. 12:17), and (3) ultimately to use him for his own hidden purposes of gaining world domination (Rev. 19:19). (The latter requires extensive demonization and connection to highlevel
cosmic beings.) When we understand the nature of this competition, we can more wisely evaluate to whom the various activities in our lives are paying
homage—God or Satan. The two are intensely jealous for our loyalty (1 Cor. 10:21-22). When we, as Christians, choose to yield to Satan’s temptations and engage in thoughts and pursuits that are in line with his mindset, it strikes a grievous blow to God’s heart, just like infidelity in a marriage would do (cf. Hosea 4:12).



Occult Activities

Probably one of the most obvious ways we can “flirt” with Satan is to be involved in any of the many occult activities occurring in the world today. The focus of many of these is on gaining hidden knowledge or experiencing supernatural abilities. This is precisely the nature of the allurement that Satan used on Eve in the Garden of Eden, telling her that if she listened to him, she would have greater knowledge and be more like God Himself (Gen. 3:5). God makes Himself very clear in stating that anyone who participates in such activities is “detestable” to Him (Deut. 18:10-12). This blatant entering of Satan’s camp instantly attracts the attention of his demonic henchmen. They will claim any evidence of interest in these activities as legal grounds for “hanging around” the person in an effort to draw him deeper and deeper. As a foothold is established in the person’s life, the effects will begin permeating his thought life, inner character, and behavior. The deeper he involves himself in occult activities, the more apt he is to establish a stronghold that connects him to increasingly higher forces of darkness.



A partial list of such activities includes:

Astral projection

Astrology

Black/White magic

Casting hexes or spells

Clairvoyance

Conjuration

Crystal ball

Divination

ESP

Use of evil eye or third eye

Fortune telling

Horoscopes

Levitation

Mediumship

Mental telepathy

Necromancy

Ouija board

Palm reading

Pendulum reading

Psychic reading

Reading tea leaves

Seances

Spirit guides

Table tipping

Tarot cards

Voodoo

Werewolves & vampires

Water witching

Wicca

Witchcraft



For more articles by Diane Hawkins go to: www.rcm-usa.org