WHEN the State of California officially recognized the First National Church of Satan as a church authorized to perform marriages and baptisms in the name of Satan, the rebellious race of mankind took another step toward fulfilling the words of Revelation 13. "The whole world went after the beast in wondering admiration. Men worshipped the dragon because he had conferred his authority upon the beast." 1 Since the formation of the First National Church of Satan in 1966, it is claimed that there is hardly a major city in America without a branch of this apostate religion.
But this isn't all. Marching across printed pages, television, and motion picture screens is a flood of material that can be described by the single word occult. Adventist evangelists occasionally used this word some years ago, and most people probably wondered what it meant. Meaning: "hidden, secret, beyond human understanding, mysterious, concealed, dark, and esoteric." The word occult is used loosely to cover all forms of the so-called supernatural. Kurt Koch in his book Occult Bondage and Deliverance points out that the term applies to astrology, palmistry, card playing, psychometric clairvoyance, and other forms of fortunetelling, plus all types of magic, such as healing and the inflicting of diseases, love-and-hate magic, curses, fertility charms, persecution-and-defense magic, witchcraft, spiritism, Satan ism, telepathy, and ESP.
Some years ago Ellen White declared, "It is fondly supposed that heathen superstitions have disappeared before the civilization of the twentieth century. But the word of God and the stern testimony of facts declare that sorcery is practiced in this age as verily as in the days of the old-time magicians. . . .
"The magicians of heathen times have their counterpart in the spiritualistic mediums, the clairvoyants, and the fortunetellers of today. . . . Could the veil be lifted from before our eyes, we should see evil angels employing all their arts to deceive and to destroy." 2
Cash Register Music
Of course, much of the occult is a fake, but not all. The commercial world couldn't care less whether it is a fake or a demonstration of supernatural power. It is capitalizing on the fact that millions around the world are deeply interested, if not involved, in various aspects of the occult. Publishers, movie makers, and TV-program producers are pushing this theme for all it's worth, since their cash registers are ringing out the glad news of higher profits. The tragedy is that man's eternal destiny is at stake in this circus of supernatural intrigue.
Grab for Power
One basic ingredient runs through the occult desire for power! Whether it be the desire to control another person's mind or to exalt self through some display of the miraculous, the love for power, for the supernatural, is involved. This in itself is an indication of who is behind the whole occult operation. Was it not the arch deceiver who boasted, "I will ascend ... I will exalt ... I will sit... I will be like the most High" ? 3 We are told that Satan's grab for power is best seen in his replacing the Word of God with supernatural manifestations. "Here is a channel wholly under his control; by this means he can make the world believe what he will." 4 The next step is a natural one, which is the infecting of his earth-being followers with the same lust for power and control. And since the majority of earth's masses cannot find the exhilarating effect of power in the business, political, scientific, or entertainment fields-- they think they can find it, hopefully, in the realm of the occult. Seemingly there is something for everybody who cares to become an occult practitioner of one sort or another.
Stand and Love
We have already noted that if we could have the veil lifted from before our eyes, we would see the forces of evil "employing all their arts to deceive and to destroy." The working of miracles is perhaps the most powerful form of Satan's deception, but let us discuss another type, which is so prevalent today, yet few recognize it as a spiritualistic manifestation. Ellen White emphasizes the fact that spiritualism in modern times veils its more objectionable features with the robes of Christianity. In place of denouncing Christ and His Word, spiritual ism professes to accept both. But note the catch! "The Bible is interpreted in a manner that is pleasing to the unrenewed-heart, while its solemn and vital truths are made of no effect. Love is dwelt upon as the chief attribute of God, but it is degraded to a weak sentimentalism, making little distinction between good and evil. God's justice, His denunciations of sin, the requirements of His holy law, are all kept out of sight." 3 Anyone who reads this statement is faced with the jolting thought that these words accurately describe much of the religious scene today.
Now think for a moment. If you or I were the devil what more subtle method could we employ to deceive the professed Christian world than to get every body talking, singing, praying, and witnessing to the wonderful, beautiful love of Jesus and at the same time downgrade obedience to God's law? Then inspire another group to begin harping on standards and obedience to the law in a harsh, critical manner to the exclusion of love? The broad way to hell has the two extremist groups marching along. One shouting love and the other screaming law and both thinking God is on their side. Faith may stagger at the promises of God if we preach law without love. But Christ is denied just as much when love without law is stressed. And never forget that this latter evil is classed as a subtle, dangerous, spiritualistic deception!
Anything Goes in the Name of the Lord
There is a need to examine more critically this conflict between Christ and Satan, between the seed of the woman and the seed of the serpent. Not only has the leader of darkness attacked the human race in a blatant, open-handed fashion, as evidenced in the Church of Satan and other sinister occult demonstrations, but he has succeeded in planting his banner of death within the walls of the Christian church.
Christ implied this fact when He declared that, " 'Not everyone who calls me "Lord, Lord" will enter the kingdom of Heaven, but only those who do the will of my heavenly Father. When that day comes, many will say to me, "Lord, Lord, did we not prophesy in your name, cast out devils in your name, and in your name perform many miracles?" Then I will tell them to their face, "I never knew you: out of my sight, you and your wicked ways!" ' " 6 Note the three categories of supernatural actions--all done in the name of the Lord--prophesying, casting out of devils, and other miracles. This pretty well covers the spectrum of spiritual phenomena. Again note care fully the only delineating feature between the true and the false. The true are "those who do the will" of God.
In the final analysis there will be those who will have performed mighty miracles in the name of Christ, even to the casting out of devils, which is presumably the most difficult of all miracles. Even the disciples failed to perform this miracle on at least one occasion.7 The point is, some, and perhaps the majority, who do these things are professed Christians, but they will be operating under a delusive power. Where is that group? Who are they? How can we distinguish those followers of Satan who perform miracles in Christ's name from the true followers of Christ, who may or may not perform miracles in His name? For certain, there must be some carrying the Christian label but working for the devil himself. In all probability they have no idea that they are controlled by Satan's power or they would never-make such statements as Christ said they would make in the judgment.
Sheep's Clothing Seems So Real
Ellen White specifically states that "The people here described, who make these pretentious claims, apparently weaving Jesus into all their doings, fitly represent those who claim modern sanctification, but who are at war with the law of God. . . . Satan has come down in these last days, to work with all deceivableness of unrighteousness in them that perish. His satanic majesty works miracles in the sight of false prophets, in the sight of men, claiming that he is indeed Christ Himself. Satan gives his power to those who are aiding him in his deceptions; therefore those who claim to have the great power of God can only be discerned by the great detector, the law of Jehovah. The Lord tells us if it were possible they would deceive the very elect. The sheep's clothing seems so real, so genuine, that the wolf cannot be discerned only as we go to God's great moral standard and there find that they are transgressors of the law of Jehovah." 8
Our role as ministers is to have hearts saturated with divine love and yet be firm as steel in upholding God's law. This is not an easy task to perform, and it certainly will not become any easier in the future. The day is not far distant when those who stand for the right will be classed with the devil himself. With utmost tact and tenderness, balanced with firmness, we can go forth under God's blessing to wrest souls from the enemy's grasp.
REFERENCES
1. Revelation 13:3, 4, N.E.B. The New English Bible. © The Delegates of the Oxford University Press and the Syndics of the Cambridge University Press, 1970. Reprinted by permission.
2. The Acts of the Apostles, pp. 289, 290.
3. Isaiah 14:13, 14.
4. The Great Controversy, p. 557.
5. Ibid., p. 558.
6. Matthew 7:21-23,"N.E.B.
7. Mark 9:14-29.
8. The SDA Bible Commentary, pp. 1087, 1088, Ellen G. White Comments, on Matt. 7:21-23 (italics supplied).
