Ghosts

[Guest]

What is the Christian view of what ghosts are? Does the Bible tell us?

There are so many people who do say they have seen them. What do we as Christians tell them as explanation? 

My own view is they are evil spirits pretending to be those who have died in order to confuse and mislead the living. The best thing if you see such a thing is pray to be protected by Jesus Christ and never tackle such apparitions directly. Leave it to Christ. Am i however correct? 

I have never seen a ghost but i have certainly sensed an evil presence a few times. It was unmistakable. Luckily i was already a christian and immediately prayed, the presence disappeared as soon as i uttered the name Jesus. I felt instantly totally safe. 

I do worry about a Christian friend who has a family member at her home who is an addict and suicidal. She senses evil presences in his room. He hears voices and there are strange noises when the room is empty. I would like advice please for her. So far we pray together when she comes to my home, i pray for her son and home. I've told her keep praying. We pray for her son to come to Christ but he is very resistant as he is surrounded by evil tempations both earthly and spirit. 

Please give me good advice Bible based and Christian as to how we cope. Her son will end up taking his life we fear - he has tried many times. He is under medical attention, not schizophrenic just very depressed. 

Thankyou. 

 

 

[Tzephanyahu]

Shalom @Melinda12

The only incident I know of where a ghost appears in the Bible (in the traditional definition) is the incident with the witch at Endor.  King Saul speaks to a medium who actually raises the prophet Samuel through some dark arts.  However, it seemed the witch had to be present and that the moment was fleeting. 

Of all the reported incidents of ghosts across the world, probably only 10% are true, which would be demonic activity. The remaining 90% is probably a mix of misunderstandings, psychological phenomena and hoaxes.

But with regards to your friend's son, if there is an evil presence in his room, prayer can help but it may not be enough. There may be a demonic platform or authority for the demon to take authority on. This can be in the form of a statue, an image, a badge, item of passed on jewellery etc.  Deut 7:26.  Is he into any strange practices or habits? If he is into rock and metal, SOME bands use the evil symbol of the goatgod (whose name I won't mention) and the inverted pentagram in their logos and art.  Such symbols and images are really bad news anf have their history go back to Ba'al. But if you are unsure, perhaps ask your friend to pray for spiritual discernment into identifying the stronghold object/image. 

If nothing can be found or discerned, continue in prayer for the son and ask that whatever the cause is for his issue is brought to the surface in a way that will be clearly identified by you or the mother. 

May Yahweh fill you with wisdom and boldness on this matter for the sake of this poor boy. 

Love & Shalom 

[Justin Adams]

We do not know too much about this subject. Most shy away from it until it faces them.

There are things you can do and in this case we do not know what has 'been allowed and entertained' by this person. One of the very first things Yeshua did when on earth was to send demons packing. He told us the 'the Kingdom is nigh unto you'. As believers, the bad spirits have no hold on us and we can take authority over them. As far as principalities and powers go, their authority has been rescinded, but they still put up a fight in governments and 'people crowds'. The King of Kings and Lord of Lords said that we believers are now the Children of the Most High, and are moved from this world's dominions into the Kingdom of Light. The Dominion of our God.

There is a Court called the divine council. This is where ha-satan would bring accusations against sinners. However he also has been cast down, so he has no portfolio in regards to those saved and believing in Yeshua. So now we can come boldly to the throne of grace, His Heavenly Council, and plead with Yahweh thru Yeshua/Jesus our cause here on earth.

We therefore have to make known our petitions to the Most High, with Yeshua as our Advocate.

[Guest]

57 minutes ago, Tzephanyahu said:

Shalom @Melinda12

The only incident I know of where a ghost appears in the Bible (in the traditional definition) is the incident with the witch at Endor.  King Saul speaks to a medium who actually raises the prophet Samuel through some dark arts.  However, it seemed the witch had to be present and that the moment was fleeting. 

Of all the reported incidents of ghosts across the world, probably only 10% are true, which would be demonic activity. The remaining 90% is probably a mix of misunderstandings, psychological phenomena and hoaxes.

But with regards to your friend's son, if there is an evil presence in his room, prayer can help but it may not be enough. There may be a demonic platform or authority for the demon to take authority on. This can be in the form of a statue, an image, a badge, item of passed on jewellery etc.  Deut 7:26.  Is he into any strange practices or habits? If he is into rock and metal, SOME bands use the evil symbol of the goatgod (whose name I won't mention) and the inverted pentagram in their logos and art.  Such symbols and images are really bad news anf have their history go back to Ba'al. But if you are unsure, perhaps ask your friend to pray for spiritual discernment into identifying the stronghold object/image. 

If nothing can be found or discerned, continue in prayer for the son and ask that whatever the cause is for his issue is brought to the surface in a way that will be clearly identified by you or the mother. 

May Yahweh fill you with wisdom and boldness on this matter for the sake of this poor boy. 

Love & Shalom 

Thankyou. Very very helpful. 

[R. Hartono]

For accute depression n suicidal, don't rush to force him to repent.

Take him regularly  to the sea or public garden, let him breath the air, watch his response. Introduce him to music instrument, or sport or hobbies, take him to public places

 

[R. Hartono]

For haunted room, hv a regular fasting for let's say one week than enter the room n combat the spirit with gospel songs together n rebuke it.

[dhchristian]

5 hours ago, Melinda12 said:

What is the Christian view of what ghosts are? Does the Bible tell us?

There are so many people who do say they have seen them. What do we as Christians tell them as explanation? 

My own view is they are evil spirits pretending to be those who have died in order to confuse and mislead the living. The best thing if you see such a thing is pray to be protected by Jesus Christ and never tackle such apparitions directly. Leave it to Christ. Am i however correct? 

I have never seen a ghost but i have certainly sensed an evil presence a few times. It was unmistakable. Luckily i was already a christian and immediately prayed, the presence disappeared as soon as i uttered the name Jesus. I felt instantly totally safe. 

I do worry about a Christian friend who has a family member at her home who is an addict and suicidal. She senses evil presences in his room. He hears voices and there are strange noises when the room is empty. I would like advice please for her. So far we pray together when she comes to my home, i pray for her son and home. I've told her keep praying. We pray for her son to come to Christ but he is very resistant as he is surrounded by evil tempations both earthly and spirit. 

Please give me good advice Bible based and Christian as to how we cope. Her son will end up taking his life we fear - he has tried many times. He is under medical attention, not schizophrenic just very depressed. 

Thankyou. 

Hi Melinda,

if you are in a position to intervene, remember, we do not have the power to cast out devils, But it is only by Christ in us that we can do so. So When we invoke Jesus Name, we are saying he will do the casting out. If You go into acts, there is the story of the sons of Sceva who invoked Jesus and Paul's name, thinking they could cast out a devel, but they were overcome by those devils because they did not know Jesus, and have him in their hearts. (You can find this in Acts 19:14ff) 

Then there is the episode in Jude where Michael, and archangel invoked the LORD to rebuke the Devil, Meaning there are some entities we have no power over and we need to understand this.... I recommend if this is the first time you have handled this sort of thing you follow Michael's example. Yet Michael the archangel, when contending with the devil he disputed about the body of Moses, durst not bring against him a railing accusation, but said, The Lord rebuke thee. (Jude 1:9)

The Spiritual world is very real and unseen by most. Invoking the Blood of Jesus as a covering over you will protect you when you are dealing with the spirits of devils. "I plead the Blood of Jesus over you as you deal with these principalities, That they may not overcome you, In Jesus Name, Amen"

Remember, You are Just the earthen vessel, Jesus and the Holy Ghost in You are the Power by which you cast out devils. All Glory and Honor are the LORD's. I have seen many men go into these situations with religious pride thinking they are demon fighters, and come out of these situations overcome by those devils as the sons of Sceva did. Your heart must be right with God and you must be totally trusting in His power to overcome them.

Sending up prayers for you, God bless. 

[BeauJangles]

6 hours ago, Melinda12 said:

My own view is they are evil spirits pretending to be those who have died in order to confuse and mislead the living. The best thing if you see such a thing is pray to be protected by Jesus Christ and never tackle such apparitions directly. Leave it to Christ. Am i however correct? 

You are correct. There are no ghosts. As Christians however, we do have power over evil spirits in the name of Jesus.

Mark 16:17 ¹⁷And these signs shall follow them that believe; In my name shall they cast out devils;  KJV

We must take authority under which Christ gave us the power to do so. I'm speaking from personal experience concerning the issue. 

[Dennis1209]

Hi Melinda12,

I have to ask myself what I would do in your position? Yes, first and foremost humble prayer and there's some good and not so good advice above. Demons are body-less spiritual beings whom can not materialize, seeking a home to enter and possess. 

I don't believe the professional secular medical world is willing nor capable of distinguishing mental illness from demonic possession. Their go to alleviation is normally medication. Therefore, whom is to diagnose the root problem, is it a spiritual problem or physical one? I'm by no means qualified to give you or anyone advice with such a serious problem. So take my thinking with a grain of salt. Mental illness is real, as is demonic possession and influence. Modern medical science can help one but not the other.

If I personally had a loved one or family member with symptoms you described, of course earnest prayer would be #1 on my list. If I strongly suspected and seen evidence the source of the problem might be spiritual, I would think modern medical science would be of no effect. Is it possible as Christians, we could do more harm than good attempting to intervene in a demonic matter/

I believe I would seek out some Godly Pastor's and ask for a conversation on the matter; and ask if he has any experience in the matter or can recommend someone; all the while continuing with prayer and the Lord's guidance. 

[JohnD]

6 hours ago, Melinda12 said:

What is the Christian view of what ghosts are? Does the Bible tell us?

There are so many people who do say they have seen them. What do we as Christians tell them as explanation? 

My own view is they are evil spirits pretending to be those who have died in order to confuse and mislead the living. The best thing if you see such a thing is pray to be protected by Jesus Christ and never tackle such apparitions directly. Leave it to Christ. Am i however correct? 

I have never seen a ghost but i have certainly sensed an evil presence a few times. It was unmistakable. Luckily i was already a christian and immediately prayed, the presence disappeared as soon as i uttered the name Jesus. I felt instantly totally safe. 

I do worry about a Christian friend who has a family member at her home who is an addict and suicidal. She senses evil presences in his room. He hears voices and there are strange noises when the room is empty. I would like advice please for her. So far we pray together when she comes to my home, i pray for her son and home. I've told her keep praying. We pray for her son to come to Christ but he is very resistant as he is surrounded by evil tempations both earthly and spirit. 

Please give me good advice Bible based and Christian as to how we cope. Her son will end up taking his life we fear - he has tried many times. He is under medical attention, not schizophrenic just very depressed. 

Thankyou. 

 

 

Ghosts or spirits have been around since long before we (or the physical universe) were.

Obviously, since God is spirit:.

John 4:24 (AV)
24 God is a Spirit: and they that worship him must worship him in spirit and in truth.

The actual Greek text says "God is spirit..."

Often the person of the Trinity we call the Holy Spirit / Holy Ghost...

The persons we call angels are spirit and were around since [our] beginning:

Job 38:4–7 (AV)
4 Where wast thou when I laid the foundations of the earth? declare, if thou hast understanding.
5 Who hath laid the measures thereof, if thou knowest? or who hath stretched the line upon it?
6 Whereupon are the foundations thereof fastened? or who laid the corner stone thereof;
7 When the morning stars sang together, and all the sons of God shouted for joy?

They already existed.

Mankind has a spirit:

1 Thessalonians 5:23 (AV)
23 And the very God of peace sanctify you wholly; and I pray God your whole spirit and soul and body be preserved blameless unto the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ.

It's really rather foolish to claim one doesn't believe in Ghosts.

Curious... just suppose (meaning this may or may not be true) but I am working on a hypothesis about the very fabric / nature of our universe

proves the existence of another sister universe (which the Bible calls heaven or more specifically the third heaven). From which physical beings from that

universe can only manifest themselves in this universe as Ghosts, Spirits, Poltergeists...   something like {SPOILER ALERT} Luke Skywalker in The Last Jedi in the fight scene...

Just a thought.

Christianity is a thinking man's faith, after all.