ghosts

[Guest Teditis]

What was that thing/ghost that the witch of Endor conjured up for Saul?

[missmuffet]

17 minutes ago, Teditis said:

What was that thing/ghost that the witch of Endor conjured up for Saul?

Question: "Did the witch of Endor really summon Samuel from the dead (1 Samuel 28:7-20)?"

Answer: The story of the witch of Endor summoning Samuel is recorded in 1 Samuel 28:7-20, the only biblical account of someone being visited by someone who was deceased. Saul, having deprived himself of every legitimate means of spiritual input as a result of his own disobedience and rebellion, walked in foolishness again by seeking out the very resource (a medium) he had previously removed from the land. By divine law, mediums and spiritists were banned from Israel (Deuteronomy 18:11), and Israel was not to be defiled by them (Leviticus 19:31). That the king would stoop to this indicates how far he had fallen from God’s grace.

The passage does not give us any reason to believe it was anyone other than Samuel, who is described by the medium as “an old man wearing a robe” (v. 14). Obviously, age and clothing do not exist in the realm of the spirits of those who have died, but God miraculously gave Samuel such appearances as would enable Saul perceive who the spirit was. The message Samuel gave Saul was completely accurate. God allowed the witch of Endor to summon the prophet Samuel in order to give King Saul the news of his coming defeat and death.

This does not mean that it is genuinely possible for witches or mediums to speak with the dead, only that God allowed it in this one exception. When a person dies, his soul is taken to heaven or hell, depending on whether he has placed his faith in Christ (Matthew 25:46). There is no reason to believe that a deceased person has any ability to leave heaven or hell in order to visit his living family members. Any such claim is a demonic deception (2 Corinthians 11:14-15). God declared such practices to be abhorrent to Him, and those who did practice such things in Israel were to be put to death (Leviticus 20:27; Deuteronomy 18:10-12). Satan would like nothing more than for people to dabble in the occult world of spiritism and necromancy. God’s commandments regarding these things are designed to protect us from the schemes of our enemy, the devil, who “prowls around like a roaring lion looking for someone to devour” (1 Peter 5:8)

https://www.gotquestions.org/witch-of-endor.html

[other one]

27 minutes ago, Teditis said:

What was that thing/ghost that the witch of Endor conjured up for Saul?

the Bible says it was Samuel.

[SOLOMONS PORCH]

Familiar spirits and also the spirits that once possessed the dead person. 

[Mike 2]

On 1/17/2017 at 3:18 PM, missmuffet said:

Question: "Did the witch of Endor really summon Samuel from the dead (1 Samuel 28:7-20)?"

Answer: The story of the witch of Endor summoning Samuel is recorded in 1 Samuel 28:7-20, the only biblical account of someone being visited by someone who was deceased. Saul, having deprived himself of every legitimate means of spiritual input as a result of his own disobedience and rebellion, walked in foolishness again by seeking out the very resource (a medium) he had previously removed from the land. By divine law, mediums and spiritists were banned from Israel (Deuteronomy 18:11), and Israel was not to be defiled by them (Leviticus 19:31). That the king would stoop to this indicates how far he had fallen from God’s grace.

The passage does not give us any reason to believe it was anyone other than Samuel, who is described by the medium as “an old man wearing a robe” (v. 14). Obviously, age and clothing do not exist in the realm of the spirits of those who have died, but God miraculously gave Samuel such appearances as would enable Saul perceive who the spirit was. The message Samuel gave Saul was completely accurate. God allowed the witch of Endor to summon the prophet Samuel in order to give King Saul the news of his coming defeat and death.

This does not mean that it is genuinely possible for witches or mediums to speak with the dead, only that God allowed it in this one exception. When a person dies, his soul is taken to heaven or hell, depending on whether he has placed his faith in Christ (Matthew 25:46). There is no reason to believe that a deceased person has any ability to leave heaven or hell in order to visit his living family members. Any such claim is a demonic deception (2 Corinthians 11:14-15). God declared such practices to be abhorrent to Him, and those who did practice such things in Israel were to be put to death (Leviticus 20:27; Deuteronomy 18:10-12). Satan would like nothing more than for people to dabble in the occult world of spiritism and necromancy. God’s commandments regarding these things are designed to protect us from the schemes of our enemy, the devil, who “prowls around like a roaring lion looking for someone to devour” (1 Peter 5:8)

https://www.gotquestions.org/witch-of-endor.html

 

1Sa 28:13  The king told her, "Don't be afraid; but what do you see?" The woman told Saul, "I see a divine being coming up out of the ground." 
1Sa 28:14  Saul told her, "What does he look like?" She said, "An old man is coming up, and he's wrapped in a robe." Saul knew that it was Samuel, and he bowed low to the ground and prostrated himself. 
 

Saul didn't see anything but someone claiming to see something.....seems he got completely sucked in

[RustyAngeL]

On 1/16/2017 at 5:06 PM, missmuffet said:

Question: "What does the Bible say about ghosts / hauntings?"

Answer: Is there such a thing as ghosts? The answer to this question depends on what precisely is meant by the term “ghosts.” If the term means “spirit beings,” the answer is a qualified “yes.” If the term means “spirits of people who have died,” the answer is “no.” The Bible makes it abundantly clear that there are spirit beings, both good and evil. But the Bible negates the idea that the spirits of deceased human beings can remain on earth and “haunt” the living.

Hebrews 9:27 declares, “Man is destined to die once, and after that to face judgment.” That is what happens to a person’s soul-spirit after death—judgment. The result of this judgment is heaven for the believer (2 Corinthians 5:6-8; Philippians 1:23) and hell for the unbeliever (Matthew 25:46; Luke 16:22-24). There is no in-between. There is no possibility of remaining on earth in spirit form as a “ghost.” If there are such things as ghosts, according to the Bible, they absolutely cannot be the disembodied spirits of deceased human beings.

The Bible teaches very clearly that there are indeed spirit beings who can connect with and appear in our physical world. The Bible identifies these beings as angels and demons. Angels are spirit beings who are faithful in serving God. Angels are righteous, good, and holy. Demons are fallen angels, angels who rebelled against God. Demons are evil, deceptive, and destructive. According to 2 Corinthians 11:14-15, demons masquerade as “angels of light” and as “servants of righteousness.” Appearing as a “ghost” and impersonating a deceased human being definitely seem to be within the power and abilities that demons possess.

The closest biblical example of a “haunting” is found in Mark 5:1-20. A legion of demons possessed a man and used the man to haunt a graveyard. There were no ghosts involved. It was a case of a normal person being controlled by demons to terrorize the people of that area. Demons only seek to “kill, steal, and destroy” (John 10:10). They will do anything within their power to deceive people, to lead people away from God. This is very likely the explanation of “ghostly” activity today. Whether it is called a ghost, a ghoul, or a poltergeist, if there is genuine evil spiritual activity occurring, it is the work of demons.

What about instances in which “ghosts” act in “positive” ways? What about psychics who claim to summon the deceased and gain true and useful information from them? Again, it is crucial to remember that the goal of demons is to deceive. If the result is that people trust in a psychic instead of God, a demon will be more than willing to reveal true information. Even good and true information, if from a source with evil motives, can be used to mislead, corrupt, and destroy.

Interest in the paranormal is becoming increasingly common. There are individuals and businesses that claim to be “ghost-hunters,” who for a price will rid your home of ghosts. Psychics, séances, tarot cards, and mediums are increasingly considered normal. Human beings are innately aware of the spiritual world. Sadly, instead of seeking the truth about the spirit world by communing with God and studying His Word, many people allow themselves to be led astray by the spirit world. The demons surely laugh at the spiritual mass-deception that exists in the world today.

https://www.gotquestions.org/ghosts-hauntings.html

But what is your opinion?  I too believe it is demons but what is your opinion?

[Mike 2]

On 1/17/2017 at 2:59 PM, missmuffet said:

Yes, any demon can pose as grandma or grandpa or Uncle Henry.

I think we have to be mindful of the language we use here because it can be misleading.

The demon cannot pose as someone because then the demon would have to be able to create something in the physical.

No, the demon has a very powerful influence over the weak spirit of the person.

The Grandparent or Uncle were already in existence and the demon came into their lives.

I recognize what you are saying but I think it may not be clear to some others.

Edited January 25, 2017 by Mike 2

[JTC]

I want to say something about the so-called familiar spirits. That's the wrong word. Word is family spirit, and I don't know how to spell it or pronounce it. But it's an evil spirit of some sort that stays within a certain family because it manages to wreak havoc continually from 1 generation to the next. I think 1 of these things are in some cousins family. It's a spirit of divorce. It seems to attack the men when they reach the ages of 38 to 42. I was discussing this with my mother my years ago. I wanted to know how many generations back the men divorced their wives. She was able to count back 3 generations plus the current one. A skeptic would say, But people get divorced all the time why blame it on a spirit? My answer is because these were very happy marriages, especially the most recent one. This cousin had what seemed like a storybook marriage. In addition when we were kids he swore to me that he would never do to his family what his father did to them. But when he hit about 40 he changed. The psychologist in me says he had a psychotic breakdown. But as a Christian I believe there's a spirit in that family responsible for this. 

As for ghosts, meaning the spirits of dead humans I don't think they stay on earth very long after death. I had friend who cleaned a funeral home and she used to hear them almost every night. She even saw 1 a few times. Her daughter went to work with her once and the daughter heard them too. But these were people who had just died. Maybe it was the spirits of the people or maybe it was mischievous spirits that God isn't letting into heaven. We really don't know. I do know it's not good to take an interest in this. God doesn't want us to and God always has our best interests in His rules. He's not trying to hide some awesome truth from us that would benefit us if we could learn it. But that's what typical New Age Spiritualists think. They're wrong but my experience is you will never convince them and eventually they die. Sad actually. 

[Dennis1209]

This is from memory and if need be I'll quote the scriptures.

Biblically, there's only one example of a 'ghost', if you want to term it that way. I believe it was the the witch of Endor that Saul sought to consult with Samuel. It was either God allowed a one time return from heaven of Samuel to confront Saul. Based on the recorded reaction of that witch on the appearance of Samuel, I lean towards God sent Samuel to set Saul straight. If it was not the preceeding, it was definitely demonic in nature, for...

There are only two places our spirit and soul goes to 'immediately' upon our death, Heaven or Hell and there's no inbetween. Scripture is absolutely clear on that subject. Any lingering spirits are not of God, so they must be unclean spirits, demons or devils. 

Edit: I didn't see MISSMUFFET'S post, sorry. It explains it much better.

Edited January 25, 2017 by Dennis1209
addendum

[missmuffet]

3 hours ago, RustyAngeL said:

But what is your opinion?  I too believe it is demons but what is your opinion?

What is more important? My opinion or God's Word?