OCCULT AND CULTS

INTRODUCTION:

The twofold topic for our discussion is “The Occult and the Cults.” In this study we
shall take a look at some of the occults and cults and search the scriptures to see
what they have to say about these two subjects.

Brother Mantooth notes: We urge all class members to bring pencil and paper to
every session so as to take notes, because we only retain about 10% of what we hear
in the classroom, and we shall be sharing important information which will equip us
to meet the challenges presented us by this generation’s pre-occupation with the
occult and cults; we can’t afford to let these things which we have heard slip, Heb.
2:1.

I. THE BIBLE TELLS US THAT THERE ARE ABOUT TWELVE SIGNS

INDICATING THAT WE ARE IN THE LAST DAYS.

These signs are as follows:

1. Post-Millennial Scoffers, 2 Pet. 3:3-4
2. False Teachers, 2 Pet. 2:1-2
3. Apostasy, 2 Tim 4:3-4
4. Spiritism, I Tim. 4:1
5. Perilous Times, 2 Tim 3:1-5
6. Heaped Treasure, James 5:1-5
7. Laodicean Church, Rev. 3:14-18
8. Zionism, Ezek 37, 38, 39 and Luke 21:28: 9.
9. Gentile Nations, Luke 21:25-26
10. Noah’s Days Conditions, Matt. 24:37 and Luke 17:26,27
11. Rebuilding of Temple, Ezek. 37 and Dan. 11
12. Anti-Christ (or Man of Sin), 2 Thess. 2:3-4, Sam 11 and Rev. 13:11

You will notice that two of the above-named signs are:

A. (2.) False Teachers 2 Pet.2:1-2. This prophecy involves the cults as does Matthew
24:24. One important distinguishing characteristic about a cult is that the cult
always has some person other than Christ as its head and/or object of worship. Also,
someone other than God or Christ is always the founder. An example of a cult would
be the “Moonies.”

B. (4.) Spiritism, I Tim. 4:1. This prophecy has to do with the occult. The occult
always has to do with the hidden things of the spirit realm, and dwells upon the
past and the future and not so much with “today” in your life. An example of the
occult is astrology. Other examples would be witchcraft, fortune-telling and sorcery.
In the book Occult Experimentation (a small booklet which can be obtained for out
.15) Pat Brooks writes: Occult is defined as “beyond the bounds of ordinary
knowledge; mysterious; concealed, or hidden from view; pertaining to certain
reputed sciences, such as magic, astrology, and other arts and practices involving
use of divination, incantation, magical formulae, etc.” The King James Bible uses
the word sorceries as the general term to include all occultism and call occult
practitioners “sorcerers.”

II. THE SIGNS MENTIONED ABOVE ARE CURRENTLY BEING

FULFILLED.

A. First, we consider the prophecy of occultism on the rise.

1. Some statistics. Kathy McNeil in her booklet (unpublished) DEMONS a Bible

Study -- Rom. 8:8-39 (provided me by Louis Leistra) gives the following:

-In France 60,000 sorcerers are taking in $200,000,000 a year.

-In Frankfurt, Germany, there are reportedly tens of thousands who believe in
witches.
-The bishop of Exeter said that more Britons are turning toward black as their
interest in traditional religion declines.
-The chairman of the psychology department at the University of the Pacific in
Stockton, ----California advertised for a woman who felt she was a witch or had
unusual psychic powers to assist in a course on extrasensory perception.
-The Golden State is the new holy land of Satanism, and its occult flood has divided
itself into two main streams, two types of witches -- the drugged and the drugless.
-One estimate says there are five hundred witches in Manhattan.

a. An example of how large this problem is today is seen in an interview of

Commander Vernon of the LA Police Department as found in Kathy McNeil’s
booklet on Demons. “Do you see indications of witchcraft or Satanic cults in the Los
Angeles area?” -- “Yes, and they’re increasing all the time. We’ve found evidence of
animals, mostly dogs, who have been skinned all the blood drained from them. We
discovered through talking with some of the cult members that the blood is put into
caldrons, mixed with LSD, and then used as a drink during their rites or
ceremonies.”

b. Many other examples could be produced to show that the practice of occultism, is
decidedly, on the increase.

2. Now, let’s see what the Bible says about mixing Christianity with the occult.

OPENING SCRIPTURE: Isaiah 47:12-15

II. A.2.

Group Assignments (first session)

Group 1 Saul’s Séance and It’s Results, I Sam. 28:3-19, 31:8-9

Group 2 Isaiah’s Challenge to Those who Trust in the occult, Isaiah 47:12-15
Group 3 People Under a Spell Set Free, Acts 8:5-13
Group 4 A Sorcerer’s help Rejected, Acts 16:16-24
Group 5 Victory of God’s Word Over the Occult, Acts 19:11-20

3. If, today, we will preach and practice God’s Word, we shall never be taken captive
by astrology, witchcraft or any of the occult, The Bible says we are to have no
dealings with any form of sorcery, Deut. 18:9-13

4. However, because many churchmen will not preach and practice the undiluted
Word of God, the prophecy of I Tim. 4:1 is clearly being fulfilled. Consider the
following quotation: “Americans would do well to ponder the fate of other nations in
recent years, before we plunge any deeper into occult involvement, Dr. Kurt Koch, a
German Christian who is a foremost authority on occultism, states that 50% of
present-day Britons are involved in some way with the occult (whereas only 2
percent attend church). In Brazil the situation is even more grave, for this nation
has 150 spiritist newspapers. Returning missionaries report that séances are A
PART OF MANY ‘CHRISTIAN’ WORSHIP SERVICES IN BRAZIL.” -- Occult
Experimentation, A Christian View by Pat Brooks God warns: “The wicked shall be
turned into hell, and all the nations that forget God.” Psalm 9:17

Consider this quote from Occult Experimentation: “The Bible says in Isaiah 47:13
that the Lord challenged ‘the astrologers’ (horoscope readers) to save Babylon from
His curse. Genesis 11 records the beginning of this occult practice, for the tower of
Babel was not a naïve and ridiculous attempt of man to reach toward heaven in a
physical sense. Instead, it was an attempt to search out the heavens in exactly the
way that modern astrologers do. The meaning of the word translated ‘tower’ in Gen.
11:4 is ‘ziggurat,’ on whose top was a zodiac. Since this was the forerunner of the
modern horoscope, it is doubly significant that God came down and confounded
man’s first attempt to satisfy his curiosity by occult means.”

(See Also: Isaiah 8:19-20; Deut 18:10-14;22; Deut 13:1-5; Rev 21:8. Sorcerers include
workers of magic, mind readers, etc)

Never-the-less, man continues disobediently to dabble and delve into the forbidden -
- occult. We should have learned from Eve, Gen. 3, but the Ouija Board now outsells
Monopoly and the popularity of many kinds of occult games is at an all-time high:
games such as ESP, Telepathy, Voodoo, Mind over Mater, Kabala, Clairvoyant, and
Mystic Eye flood the market with ever wider acceptance. Yes, prophecy is being
fulfilled.

B. Now, let us turn our thoughts to the other prophetic sign mentioned earlier, the
rise of more and more cults -- false prophets and false christs, Matt. 24:24; 2 Pet.
2:1-2; 2 Thess. 2:3-12 (this prophecy has not yet been fulfilled, but the rise of cults
with their false prophets and false christs is preparing the way for the fulfillment of
this scripture following the rupturing out of the saints.) (You will notice that some
of the cults listed are, also, properly termed occult. The reason for this is that many
cults delve deeply into the occult and vice versa.)

1. Astrology
2. Spiritism
3. Theosophy
4. Christian Science
5. Rosicrucianism
6. The Unity School of Christianity
7. Baha’ism
8. Destiny of America (Anglo-Israelism)
9. Swedenborgianism
10. Mormonism
11. Jehovah’s Witnesses
12. Moral Re-Armanent
13. Unitarianism- Modernism
14. Moonies
15. Hare Krishna
16. Kingdom of Peace

1. At this point, we shall break up into groups (it will not be necessary to leave your
pews for this phase of tonight’s session) and consider some important scriptures.

Group 1: Moses’ Victory over False Prophets and Occultists, Exodus 7:10-13, 21, 22;
8:6,7; 8:16-19. 1. Were the magicians able to counterfeit any of Moses’ miracles? 2.
What was the conclusion drawn by the magicians when they could not duplicate
Moses’ miracles?

Group 2: Jesus’ Warning about False Christ’s and False Prophets, Matt. 24:21-27. 1.
What did Jesus say about the Tribulation? 2. What were some of the things the
false christs and false prophets would do? 3. What did He say about going out into
special places to meet Christ? 4. What will His coming be like?

Group 3: Prophecies about a Certain Ruler, Daniel 11:35-45. 1. Against whom will
this ruler speak “marvelous” things? 2. Whom will he honor? 3. Who will help him
at his end?
Group 4: Prophecies about a Certain Ruler, 2 Thess. 2:1-12. 1 How and where will
this ruler sit? 2. Why hasn’t he been revealed as yet? 3. After whose working will
this person come (or behave)? 4. Who will be “damned,” v.12?

Group 5: Prophecies about a Certain ruler, Rev. 13:11-17; Rev. 14:10,11. 1. From
where does this beast come? 2. To what did he give life? 3. What law did he make?
4. What happened to the people who received his mark?

III. KNOWING AND OVERCOMING SATANIC AND DEMONIC FORCES

THROUGH CHRIST.

A. Avoid (Do not Participate in) the occult and cults, 2 John 1:9-11; I Thess. 5:22.
Consider this quotation from Occult Experimentation: “The claim is often made that
if the dabbler in the occult doesn’t believe in it, all will be well; there will be no more
aftereffects than from playing any harmless game. Increasing evidence proves
otherwise, however. A missionary who once attended a séance, on a dare, suffered
nightmares and insomnia for twelve years after the experience. With alarming
regularity accidents, suicides, insanity, depression, family discord, illness, and often
a marked resistance to biblical truth follow involvement with the occult arts.

“A Christian is not immune to such distresses when he experiments with

unknown spiritual forces.” No one would suggest that Christian young people
involved in sexual experimentation are immune to pregnancies out of wedlock or
venereal disease, yet many seem to believe that they are immune to the spiritual
consequences which follow occult involvement. The Word of God tells us to ‘cleanse
ourselves from all filthiness of the flesh and spirit, perfecting holiness in the fear of
God.

B. Overcome Satan (combat him) with the Holy Scriptures, Matthew 4:1-11 (Jesus
is our example); Eph. 6:10-13.

1. Know what the Bible says about your adversary, the Devil and his angels
(demons).

WHAT THE BIBLE SAYS ABOUT THE DEVIL.

1. Who is he? Isaiah 14:12-17; Ezekiel 28:12-19; Job 1:7,8; I Peter 5:8; Rev. 20:2
2. Where did Satan come from? Why? Isaiah 14:12-14; II Peter 2:4; Rev. 12:9.
3. What are his characteristics? I Pet. 5:8; John 14:30; II Cor. 4:4; Ephesians 2:2;
John 8:44; Matt. 12:24; Rev. 9:11, I John 3:8.
4. What are his purpose and motivation? Job 1:7-11, I Pet. 5:8; John 8:44; Acts 5:3;
II Cor. 11:13-15; Job 10:10; Matt 4:1-11; Genesis 3:1; Rev. 2:10; I Chron 21:1; I
Thess. 2:18.
5. What is Satan’s domain now? Job 1:7; John 14:30; II Cor. 4:4; Ephesians 2:2; Rev.
9:11; Matt. 12:24 I John 5:19.
6. What are Satan’s Powers and Limitations? Job 2:6; Genesis 3:15; Rev. 20:2, 3; Job
1:12; Romans 16; 20.
7. What is Satan’s destiny? Matt. 25:41; Rev. 20:7,8,10; Jude 6; John 12:31; John
16:11

WHAT THE BIBLE SAYS ABOUT DEMONS.

1. Who or what are they? Rev. 5:11; II Peter 2:4; Jude 6; I John 4:1
2. Are they real? Ephesians 6:12; Luke 8:26-39; Mark 9:14-29; Matt. 4:24; Luke
13:10- 17
3. What are their characteristics and nature? Matt. 8:29; Acts 19:15; James 2:19;
Acts 13:6-11; Acts 8:6,7; Luke 8:26-39; Mark 5:1-19; Mark 1:23-24; Matt. 9:32, 33;
Acts 16
4. Where do they live? Matt. 9:32,33; Acts 8:6,7; Acts 16:16; Mark 5:1-13
5. Where are they from? Jude 6; II Peter 2:4
6. What are their limitations? Matt. 8:16; Mark 16:9; Matt. 8:30-33; I Cor. 2:7,8;
Luke 13:10-17; Mark 1:34; Luke 6:18
7. What is their destiny? Matt. 25:41; Rev. 12:7-12

SIX CURES OF DEMONIACS

1. A Demoniac in the Synagogue, Capernaum - Mark 1:21-28; Luke 4:31-37

2. A Blind and Dumb Demoniac - Matt. 12:22; Luke 11:14
3. Gerasene Demoniacs - Matt. 8:28-34; Mark 5:1-20; Luke 8:26-39
4. A Dumb Demoniac - Matt. 9:32-34
5. The Syro-Phoenician’s Daughter - Matt. 15:21-28; Mark 7:24-30
6. The Epileptic Boy - Matt. 17:14-21; Mark 9:14-29; Luke 9:37