Christians, Ghosts, And Haunted Houses

(October 15, 2008)

 

 

 

The Biblical account of Saul and Samuel does not serve as proof that the dead can return. The prophet Samuel did not communicate with Saul.  Keep in mind that the witch of  Endor whom Saul consulted had an evil spirit in her as she was a powerful medium or one who supposedly talked with the dead.  Mediums rely on information from familiar spirits who just happen to be those demons assigned to every human being’s living moments. They know your secrets. The Word of God forbids His people from having anything to do with mediums or any one who supposedly communicates with the dead (Leviticus 19:31). Communicating with the dead is the abominable practice of necromancy and is absolutely forbidden by God Almighty! When rebellious Saul went to the witch he did not ask her to “seek the Lord” but asked instead that she “…divine unto me by the familiar spirit, and bring me him up, whom I shall name unto thee” (I Samuel 28:8). In that request, Saul disobeyed God’s Word that says: “… the soul that turneth after such as have familiar spirits, and after wizards, to go a whoring after them, I will even set my face against that soul, and will cut him off from among his people” (Leviticus 20:6). Though God had already ceased speaking to Saul through dreams and prophets, Saul’s determination to hear from God through a medium placed him passed the point of no return.  God was completely finished with him. 

 

          Saul outright asked for council from demons and not God, and demons know how to give answers that convinces the human that they are hearing from God, which was the case with alleged Samuel when he said, “…Why hast thou disquieted me, to bring me up” (I Samuel 28:15)?  After Saul told the alleged Samuel why he had him brought up, the response from the alleged Samuel was “…Wherefore then dost thou ask of me, seeing the LORD is departed from thee, and is become thine enemy” (I Samuel 28:16)? That sounded so much like a real man of God such as Samuel, who, in his lifetime had obeyed the Lord and was already in Paradise, and yet, it sounded so much like a deceiving demon. It was a demon!  It was a demon because of what alleged Samuel said to Saul about him and Israel being delivered into the hands of the Philistines: “… to morrow shalt thou and thy sons be with me…” (I Samuel 28:19). Be with him where? Considering God had completely rejected Saul, upon his death there was no way he would go to Paradise where the prophet Samuel was in eternal bliss. Hence, hell was where Saul was headed. “Hell from beneath is moved for thee to meet thee at thy coming…” (Isaiah 14:9). Hell is beneath and it is hell that stirs up the dead as was with the demonic impersonation of Samuel.  That’s why the spirit was “brought up” from the dark pit – an evil spirit who was impersonating Samuel the Prophet.    

 

If Saul was going to be where the alleged Samuel (demon) was, that would be hell since he died in his sins totally rejected by God. The story of Saul and the witch calling up Samuel the prophet is not ironclad proof that the dead can and do return to the living nor ironclad proof that mediums are gifted by God to communicate with the dead. No, dear Church, it was not God allowing Samuel to return from the dead with a word for Saul; and it is “never” God allowing deceased loved ones to return assuring those left behind that they are in the presence of God.  The survivors of the dead will see him no more – not in the flesh and not in spirit.  

 

The eye of him that hath seen me shall see me no more: thine eyes are upon me, and I am not. As the cloud is consumed and vanisheth away: so he that goeth down to the grave shall come up no more. He shall return no more to his house, neither shall his place know him any more (Job 7:8-10).

 

The dead are dead! Besides, if descendants return in a recognizable form – appearing as he or she looked when they were on earth, you have to know that it is not of God or else His immutable Word (Malachi 3:6) changed; and that will never be.  “… thou takest away their breath, they die, and return to their dust” (Psalm 104:29). Spirits do not have flesh and blood (Luke 24:37-39) and if one is manifesting as a recognizable fleshly being, it is clearly demonic trickery such as in ghostly appearances and activity. The dead go away and there they stay – gone.       

 

What Is Said About Ghosts 

 

A ghost is believed to be someone who has died but supernaturally communicates with the living. They are sometimes called spooks, spirits, bogeymen, goblins, haunts, and a host of other names.  Being that they are of the supernatural realm, ghostly phenomena cannot be explained by natural means. 

 

Ghosts are said to be:

 

1.     restless souls whose lives were cut short on earth 

2.     disembodied spirits

3.     trapped souls on earth

4.     souls who have decided to remain on earth because of what they perceive to be unfinished

        business

5.     spirits who are trying to get the attention of humans

6.     spirits who fear going to the light because they will be judged and don’t want to be assigned to

        hell

7.     spirits who don’t know that they are dead and have to be told that they are and that they need

        to move toward the light

8.     spirits of people who died suddenly and remained where they died

9.     spirits who died but are permitted to remain on earth with survivors

 

The presence of so-called ghosts is sometimes made known by shadowy moving figures and by noises.  Noise making ghosts are commonly called poltergeist or “noisy spirits.”  Generally, when there is the supernatural presence of so-called ghosts, the living may or may nor experience some of the following: apparitions ♦ cold spots ♦ flickering lights ♦ televisions and radios turning on and off ♦ sound of voices, laughter, crying ♦ footsteps where no one is walking ♦ rapping, rattling, banging, thumping, knocking ♦ objects dropping ♦  objects levitating ♦ items missing ♦ unattended doors opening and shutting ♦ unattended faucets turning on and off ♦ objects thrown across the room ♦  the feel of someone watching you; touching you ♦ chills and goose bumps ♦ orbs of light floating ♦ animals acting odd ♦ strange odors ♦ smoke ♦ fog ♦ unattended musical instruments playing ♦  whistling, and a host of other attention-getting disturbances.   

 

So-called ghosts oftentimes appear in places that they frequented when alive.  They not only appear in homes, especially when alterations or repairs have begun, but they appear on sites where murders or suicides took place.  They appear in graveyards and battlefields and are often seen on campuses of very old educational institutions, hotels, motels, and castles. All of those places can be the dwelling place of so-called ghosts. Yet, in places where nothing traumatic took place or is time-honored, so-called ghosts are present because they have been invited and the invitation was extended through the practice of the occult on the premises at some time or another. When invited, so-called ghosts have every right to haunt a place, and follow the host wherever they go. They do tend to follow those individuals who have been involved in the occult no matter where they go, yet leaving behind ghostly activity as well.  Occult literature or accursed objects such as Ouija boards also summon paranormal or ghostly activity.

 

          Ghosts are placed in two broad categories: helpful or harmful. Messenger ghosts are considered helpful ghosts because they supposedly bring comforting words to people they left behind letting them know that they’re okay after having died. Other helpful ghosts are believed to return to the world of the living to correct a wrong they have done or a wrong someone else did.  The harmful ghosts delight in striking fear in people.  They are known to choke, scratch, and bite people.  They even push people down with the aim of severally injuring or killing them. While destroying property, harmful ghosts hurl all size objects at people intending to hurt or kill them. They also bring mental and physical illness upon individuals and much, much more.

 

Episcopal cleric, Mark Pearson, is of the persuasion that ghosts are real. He claims that   

 

 Many Spirit-filled pastors and Bible teachers throughout the church speculate that a third reason for unquietness in a place [where ghosts appear] is the presence of the souls of unsaved people who died without being commended to the Lord. They believe their souls are trapped here until someone tells them to go to God for their eternal fate.  They’re not demons trying to harm us or spirits trying to enter into a relationship with us, but souls seeking our help to be freed from being trapped on earth (Pearson, Mark A. “The Truth About Haunted Houses.” Charisma Magazine. October 2007, p 47).    

 

Ghosts are souls who have not been commended to the Lord! Souls trapped and seeking help to be freed! They’re not demons! Certainly, the Creator of all things and the giver of life does not have a flaw in His design for the life and death process.  If unsaved people can hang around on earth because they haven’t been commended to the Lord, that means unsaved people don’t necessarily ever have to go to hell if they don’t want to.  In any case, what human being on earth has the power to commend someone’s soul to God so that they get peace? Absolutely no one!  No priest, no medium, no one. Once a person dies he is d-e-a-d!  There is nothing in the Word of God that says, even after the last breath is drawn in a person they can return to earth or remain on earth until they see the light or are told to go to the light.  “For when he dieth he shall carry nothing away: his glory shall not descend after him. …He shall go to the generation of his fathers; they shall never see light” (Psalm 49:17-19). There is no coming back and that means there are no trapped souls roaming around because they were never told that they must go toward the light, crossover, or be commended to God. 

 

Ghosts Are Really Demons

 

But man dieth, and wasteth away: yea, man giveth up the ghost [spirit], and where is he?  As the waters fail from the sea, and the flood decayeth and drieth up:  So man lieth down, and riseth not: till the heavens be no more, they shall not awake, nor be raised out of their sleep (Job 14:10-12).   

 

So-called ghosts can be seen by the living but only because they are really demons feigning themselves as beings who once lived in a body. God does not permit the dead to return.  In the Biblical account of Lazarus and the rich man (Luke 16: 19-31), who both died but only Lazarus went to Abraham’s Bosom (Paradise) while the rich man went to hell.  The rich man wanted God to allow Lazarus to go back and warn his five brothers to live right to avoid hell where he was, but he was told that he could not pass to where Lazarus was nor could Lazarus pass to where he was.  The rich man's reply to that was: “but if one went unto them from the dead, they will repent” (Luke 16:30). It can be drawn from this that no one returns from the dead, not even to warn people to live right, let alone letting loved ones know that they’re in Heaven.  Once people die, they are dead and their spirit cannot choose to remain earthbound or to return to earth after death.  It’s not Scriptural.  What is perceived as returning from the dead or having never crossed over is nothing but demon spirits deceiving human beings. Supernatural deception is what it’s called.

 

          So-called ghosts are really evil or demon spirits who are not disembodied because they were never humans – they never had bodies. They were once holy angels – spirit beings, who rebelled against God and lost their place in Heaven, and are not yet confined to hell (Revelation 12:7-9).  Since demons never had bodies, they are always looking for a place to call home – the body of some human or that of an animal. Demons have a tremendous amount of power that was not rescinded when they fell from grace, but yet, they cannot call up the dead because they are not God.  They can, however, impersonate the dead perfectly in voice, physical appearance, and behavior and are able to do so because, as familiar spirits, they lived side-by-side for a life time with the person who is now deceased but claiming to be present after death.  In the spirit world, demons or familiar spirits can be called upon to report to the duty of impersonating in less than a micro-second, even if they are on duty some 10,000 miles away. After all, it is the spirit world and demons are travelers who are everywhere. They are very intelligent, and to a large degree rational. They are extraordinarily cunning – super sly and cannot be trusted even though they may come across as helpful, affectionate, and in goodwill. As much as God is for good actions prevailing over evil actions, He would never allow a spirit to return to earth for the sole purpose of correcting a wrong, aiding in finding missing persons, comforting loved ones left behind after death, and whatever else reasons. Yes, those seem like moves of goodwill and therefore must certainly be of God, but none of that is of God. It is demonic trickery! Demons want to trick humans into trusting and believing in them before they make their move toward possessing or dwelling in them. Demons need a home such as a body and trickery is one avenue used to secure that home.

 

          Helpful or harmful, all so-called ghosts are dangerous in that they are a false representation of someone who once lived in the flesh. That is cunning.  Demons are liars beginning with them claiming to be ghosts of dead people. They will trick you if you are not spiritually acute, but thank God He has set boundaries that demons cannot cross; otherwise they would be able to have their way with humans. God placed restrictions on demons so that they cannot, at liberty, annoy humans when they want, cannot possess whom they want, and cannot, at liberty, destroy what they want.  In the meantime, all who believe in God the Creator should see ghostly activity for what it really is – demonic activity, and stand your ground as a True Born Again Spirit-filled Believer (“True Believer”) doing warfare against the demon spirits behind so-called ghosts. Remember, the mission of demon spirits is to steal, kill, and destroy (John 10:10) before they take possession of human beings.

 

Getting Rid Of So-Called Ghosts/Demons    

 

Mediums are communicators with the dead and are supposedly able to assist so-called ghosts in crossing over from this world to the light.  They are believed to encourage ghosts to accept their own death and to move on. When mediums go into a trance, they communicate with the dead by allowing themselves to be taken over by demons/familiar spirits for the purpose of speaking through them.  Mediums willingly become demon “possessed”, for that is the only way for them to get help from familiar spirits who provide information on the deceased person that is being impersonated.  There will be no permanent deliverance through the workings of mediums because they themselves are of the spirit of darkness and a house divided will not stand (Matthew 12:25-26). Why would the demons operating in mediums drive away demons who are on so-called ghostly missions?  The ghosts may quiet down their activity for a period of time, but it does rise again and likely more ferocious.

 

          To rid places and objects of so-called ghosts, oftentimes a Catholic priest is called in to bless the place or object that is haunted but he will not do an exorcism.  Catholics believe exorcism is not required for ghostly activity because there isn’t an evil spirit to be cast out so a mere blessing of the house “might” take care of the matter. Through the Catholic blessing of having so-called holy water doused around the place and on objects as prayers are said, has proven to be useless.  The demons know how to play the game and they do it by either being quiet to make one think they are gone or by screaming as though much pain is inflicted upon them when hit with so-called holy water.  Those are delay tactics so that they are rushed out and eventually left alone to continue in their folly even longer.

 

          Repeating the trinity or repetitiously speaking “The Father, the Son, and the Holy Ghost” along with the combination of three crucifixes, three candles, in addition to having a bottle of so-called holy water, does absolutely nothing to alleged ghosts and they remain steadfast in their ghostly game of terrorizing human beings to the point of destruction. So-called ghosts are demons! True, the ghosts may lay low for a period of time, anywhere from a few days to even a few months, but they do resume their activity. If ghosts are not in actuality demons, why do they almost always return to continue annoying humans with their cruel and deceptive terror? If so-called ghosts are not demons, why are they known to categorically state that they want for themselves a certain person who resides in the dwelling of the ghostly activity? They want that because there ultimate end, as demons, is to dwell in a human body and that is nothing but the desire of a demon and not a so-called ghost.  The ultimate accomplishment of all so-called ghosts is to, in his ghostly activity, end up dwelling in a human body – demon possession. 

 

          Reverend Mark Pearson is convinced that ghosts are not demons and he offers another method of removing them.  The funeral service is what he believes works in getting rid of so-called ghost.         
 

Others may hypothesize that these ‘trapped souls’ are really demons pretending to be lost souls.  Yet several people have told me that when they use a funeral service, they get results – though performing exorcisms or commanding in Jesus’ name don’t solve the problem. Commanding a demon to leave will not change things if there is no demon to dispel (Pearson, Mark A. “The Truth About Haunted Houses.” Charisma October 2007, p 128).

 

The Reverend Pearson and his ghostly “trapped” souls!  Pearson maintains that ghosts are not demon spirits because he has been told that when people used a funeral service  in expelling ghosts, they get results whereas commanding in the name of Jesus didn’t do a thing because there were no demons there. In the funeral prayers, the Episcopal or Catholic priest commends the so-called lost or trapped soul of the dead to God in hopes of the decedent being resurrected to eternal life. Come on! Demons are not stupid! They have supernatural power, they are very organized (Matthew 12:24); and they roam the earth (Matthew 12:43-45). If demons commanded to go in Jesus’ name was not effective that’s because demons know the True Believers who walk in the real power of Jesus Christ from those who do not.  And no, they will not go any place when a powerless person attempts to send them away. No human being, priest or medium, has power to send spirits to God or to “the other side.”

 

          The Native American traditional practice of spiritual cleansing or smudging in the home supposedly gets rid of so-called ghosts.  That’s done by lighting dried bundles of sage or sage sticks and walking throughout the entire dwelling reciting a command for the spirits to go as the smoke circulates and purges the negative energy. Yes, even that “hocus-pocus” will bring a quiet time to the haunted place or object, but the ghostly activity does resume after days or even weeks of being quiet.

 

          A ghost is a demon who needs to be chased out! The only permanent deliverance or purging of places and objects of ghostly activity is in Jesus Christ working through True Believers. Outside of a True Believer praying over a place or object where there is so-called ghostly activity, the prayers of cleansing or deliverance through any other means is only temporary, if that. To get rid of so-called ghosts requires a True Believer going in the name of Jesus Christ and reclaiming a place or object from so-called ghosts.  It takes someone who is not afraid of the terror brought on by demonic portrayal of ghosts and is willing to test the so-called ghosts who will prove themselves to be nothing but demons as they manifest. True Believers will ask questions such as:  

 

“Is Jesus Christ the only begotten Son of the Most High God at whose right- hand He sits”?

“Is Jesus Christ your Lord and Savior”?

“Did Jesus shed His precious blood for mankind’s redemption from sin and their reconciliation to God the Father”?      

 

Quite naturally the reply will be so irreverent that all present will know that the so-called ghosts are one-hundred percent demons who have no love for the Lord.

 

When True Believers go in to take back the place or object from ghosts, some of them should be used exclusively as a prayer group made up of as few as one to two persons. This prayer group will, out loud, do nothing but praise God Almighty and sing songs about the blood of Jesus Christ. As the prayer group is doing so, the other True Believers, with a designated leader, must go throughout the place from room to room anointing every nook and cranny with oil as they bind evil spirits, plead the blood of Jesus, and command the demons to go in Jesus’ mighty name. Remember this, while the True Believers may speak in the name of Jesus, demons know whether they walk upright before the True God of Israel.  If the True Believers do not have a genuine holy walk, demons know that and will not fear.  They will not obey anything they are told to do because they know that the team operates as powerless and they will remain right where they are. (They may make believe they are gone, but they’ll be right where they were from the beginning.) In the power and authority of Jesus’ name, the so-called ghosts will go! They will go because they are nothing but demons who must go when True Believers command them to in the name of Jesus Christ of Nazareth.    

 

In Closing

 

          Supernatural manifestations are about power and people automatically believe everything supernatural to be of God, the most powerful. It’s easy to believe that though because people don’t really know their Bible nor do they have a sincere relationship with God. Everything supernatural is not of God! Though the supernatural is brought into being by God who is light, it is also made visible by Satan and his demons who are darkness. The reason demons have such power is because before they were demons they were holy angels of God with supernatural powers but after their failed attempt to overthrow God, they became evil – demonic spirits and were allowed to retain that power. (In spite of all the power, Satan and his demons cannot read the minds of humans even though they begin their diabolical works with poisoning the minds with lies.) Though powerful, there is absolutely nothing good about demons. In fact, demons can never be good or “helpful” to anyone but themselves.

 

Demonic power is nowhere on par with the power God imparts to True Believers. Demons and True Believers both have power but they demonstrate their powers differently. The power of the Spirit of the Lord dwelling in True Believers is even far greater than the power of Satan himself because the Believer has the authority in Jesus’ name to bind and loose on earth and it be recognized in heaven (Matthew 18:18), and to trample on serpents (sly and cunning demons) and scorpions (stinging and tormenting demons) and over all the power of the enemy and again, nothing will happen to the True Believer (Luke 10:19). True Believers’ power is far greater than demonically demonstrated power such as them transforming into ghosts, going through walls, and so on. Even though demons have the will to resist, as so-called ghosts almost always do, they will go at the command of a spiritually steadfast deliverance team of True Believers who will not cease commanding them to go in the power of Jesus’ name. For demons to be commanded by True Believers to desist and go away and never to return; that is the real power of God.  They may go whining every breath of the way, but they will go and stay gone unless invited back.

 

Reverend Pearson’s message to the Church of Jesus Christ about who ghosts are and who they are not is very disturbing.  His message is truly one from hell in an attempt to prevail against the Church of Jesus Christ through misinformation.  Pearson, just like Satan and his demons, want to rob God’s people of the truth in their hearts through deception as he attempts to sway Christians over to his side of the camp by challenging them to have open minds when it comes to the supernatural.   

 

…as Pentecostals and charismatics we experience many things in our church services and supernaturally that are of God but are not spelled out in Scripture.  Where do we find in Scripture, for example, the practice of having altar calls? What about the experience of receiving gold fillings in one’s teeth during a spiritual meeting…. many things that are of God are not specifically cited in His Word….We must approach anything that Scripture neither mandates nor forbids with openness and humility” (Pearson, Mark A. “The Truth About Haunted Houses.” Charisma October 2007, p 128).

 

Many things are not written in God’s Word just as John 20:30 and 21:25 state.  Yes, Jesus did do many other miracles, signs, and wonders that are not recorded in the Gospel, but that does not mean that everything supernatural is of God and Christians should have an open mind to whatever the phenomena, even if not cited in the Bible.  Dear Church, if the supernatural seems suspect, it should be left alone just as the gold fillings should be looked upon as suspect and not from God. (Why would God put fake gold fillings in the midst of beautiful enameled teeth that He created?) Pearson also used altar calls as an example of what is not in the Bible but yet is received in the Church. The altar call illustration was not a good choice to show unbiblical practices in an attempt to convince Christians to be open-minded with respect to the supernatural. Having an open mind to  supernaturally bizarre occurrences is not the same as having an open mind to the practice of giving altar calls.    After Peter preached to the people about Jesus they were convicted in their hearts and said to “…Peter and to the rest of the apostles, Men and brethren, what shall we do” (Acts 2:37)? Those people needed advice on what the next step should be after hearing the Gospel of Jesus Christ. The altar call is the answer and comes after hearing the Gospel. The modern-day altar call comes at the end of the Gospel as well, but the initiator of the call is the pastor where as in Acts, it was the people asking what the next step was to receiving Jesus as Savior. Once the Word of God is planted in the hearts of the people, they should not be allowed to walk away not knowing what to do next.  

    

          Christians should not have open minds as they humbly try to understand and accept the supernatural even though it’s outright bizarre. Christians should be wise as serpents; they should be able to spiritually discern the source of supernatural phenomena. If genuinely not of God, Christians should dismiss them immediately and head in the opposite direction unless they are willing to rebuke those demons and rid places and objects of their so-called ghostly presence.    

 

He heard the sound of the trumpet, and took not warning; his blood shall be upon him.  But he that taketh warning shall deliver his soul (Ezekiel 33:5).   

 

Church, you are to pay heed to the warning against believing ghosts to be spirits of the dead who have not crossed over because they are either afraid to go to the other side or they have some unfinished business here on earth.  Death is “crossing-over.” The dead cannot choose to delay facing God’s judgment and instead choose to remain on earth and communicate with the living. Reverend Pearson believes the opposite.   
 

Frequently God will allow Christian loved ones to appear once, just after their death, to assure survivors that they are now made whole and in the presence of God.  This is good and of God.  But such appearances, when they happen, are singular occurrences (Pearson, Mark A. “The Truth About Haunted Houses.” Charisma Magazine.  October 2007, p 47).

 

Frequently!  How about never! Christian loved ones do not hear from their dead assuring them that they are okay. (How often do loved ones come back assuring relatives that they’re in hell?)  Single appearance or not, it is not “good” as Pearson says, and it most certainly is not of God. The dead do not return!  The dead do not communicate with the living and vice versa. Death is going to the other side!  When one dies or gives up the spirit, he has crossed-over to where he shall spend eternity because there is no such thing as lingering on earth after death, let alone coming back to earth giving assurances that they’re in Heaven.  Death is but once. “… it is appointed unto men once to die, but after this the judgment” (Hebrews 9:27). Brothers and Sisters in Christ, what you believe to be ghosts are demons and you must now repent before the Lord for believing in the reality of ghosts.   

 

           Trust in the Lord God and His Word and lean not on the understanding and teachings of apostate Christians who believe in so-called ghosts.     
 

There shall not be found among you any one that maketh his son or his daughter to pass through the fire, or that useth divination [attempt to predict the future], or an observer of times [charting the stars/horoscope reading], or an enchanter [casting spells], or a witch, Or a charmer, or a consulter with familiar spirits [mediums], or a wizard, or a necromancer [communicating with the dead].  For all that do these things are an abomination unto the LORD: and because of these abominations the LORD thy God doth drive them out from before thee. Thou shalt be perfect with the LORD thy God (Deuteronomy 18:10-13).

 

God said it then and as it was meant for then, it is also meant for now. That edict wasn’t nailed to the cross with Jesus. So when Christians believe in so-called ghosts and go so far as to call in mediums or other paranormal experts to help get rid of the ghosts, they are committing an abominable act before The Lord God and need to repent.