Today’s Scripture Reading (February
13, 2016): 1 Samuel 28
I recently read
the Twitter description of a lady who was following me and she described
herself as being a medium, ghost hunter and conservative Roman Catholic. The
description caused me to stop. It was an interesting mish mash of beliefs that
seemed to be in conflict each other. How could a Roman Catholic be both, or
either, a medium and a ghost hunter? The problem does not lie, as some seem to believe,
with the understanding that the tasks of chasing ghosts or raising the dead are simply impossible. It is just that they are both forbidden by the Mosaic Law. The
law clearly says “Do
not turn to mediums or seek out spiritists, for you will be defiled by them. I
am the Lord your God” (Leviticus 19:31). The
basis for the idea is that we are to depend on God, and not on these other
things. It is this idea that actually makes me a little nervous with the church’s
current fascination with End Time prophecy. Why has this line of thought so captivated
the Christian Church. If our fascination with End Times prophecy is to reassure
ourselves that God is in control, then I am all for End Times prophecy. But, if
our desire is to provide a road map into the future, if what we want to do is
prove to the unbeliever – and the believer – that Jesus return is imminent,
then I wonder if we have gone wrong. What amazes me is that a number of people
involved in End Times prophecy seem to want to do anything to stop the End
Times from happening. The Fundamental Christian Church is horrified that Barak
Obama might be the Antichrist (back when I was a kid the name that was thrown
around was Henry Kissinger.) But if that is true (which just to be clear I do
not believe that it is), then shouldn’t we be rejoicing in that fact because it
means that Jesus is coming soon. Why would we want to stop it?
1 Samuel 28 is one of the hard passages of the Bible because it just
seems to contain so many unanswerable questions. For instance, how is it
possible that this spiritual medium in Endor was confronted by the king in
disguise and did not know who he was? Saul was supposed to be the tallest, or
at least one of the tallest, men in the land. How do you disguise that height? How
could a medium possibly command Samuel’s spirit, one of the great men of God?
Does this passage prove that ghosts really do exist, or is there something else
at play here? What was really happening?
We can’t really answer any of these questions, but we might be able to
make some guesses. It would seem logical that the medium of Endor recognized
Saul in spite of his disguise. She was caught and decided that all she could do
was play along. Whether she was actually able to speak with the dead or just
another entertainer trying to make some money, it is likely that she had no
intention of actually doing what this Saul in disguise had asked of her. It
might go easier if she was charged with fraud rather than with speaking with
the dead. So when Samuel actually appeared to her, it was a big surprise. She
gasps in surprise and then also remembers that now she is really in trouble –
because this disguised man is the king who has ordered everyone in her line of
work be put to death. Samuel’s actual appearance would seem to have sealed her
fate.
Apparently it wasn’t just the medium of Endor that was playing along. God
had decided to have his fun with the game as well, because it is logical that
he would be the only one who could allow Samuel’s appearance in medium’s
chambers – much to the surprise of the medium. But the plot turn of the story is
that, with Samuel’s appearance, it isn’t the medium whose fate is fixed – it is
Saul’s.
Tomorrow’s Scripture Reading: 1
Samuel 29
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