In Times of War

In Times of War
Words of Faith 1-9-2023
Dr. Jeffrey D. Hoy © 2022
Jeff.Hoy@faithfellowshipweb.com
Faith Fellowship Church - Melbourne, FL
www.faithfellowshipweb.com
<>< <>< <>< <>< <>< <>< <>< <>< <>< <>< <><

Exodus 22
[18] "Do not allow a sorceress to live.
[19] "Anyone who has sexual relations with an animal must be put to death.
[20] "Whoever sacrifices to any god other than the Lord must be destroyed.

I remember one day, we received a call in the church office asking a question. "What do you believe about Harry Potter and Halloween?" asked the inquirer. Interesting question.
There was a time when churches received calls about doctrinal positions or modes of baptism. "Are you Premillennial, and what is your position on the Tribulation?" Not anymore. The change in the question reveals something significant about the change in the battles we face.
But none of this is new. The Israelites had to deal with a highly pagan environment as they sought to answer the call of God to walk in freedom. The task ahead for Israel was to carve out a place and a nation wholly dedicated to the Lord God. This was not a neutral endeavor. It was a spiritual war, and the sins described here amounted to consorting with and aiding the enemy during a war. Such crimes always drew a penalty of death in a time of war. This was the most straightforward way to prevent such spiritual treason during war.
The first sin was the practice of sorcery. More than just "magic," this involved "telling the future" or controlling others by demonic power. Sorcery among the Israelites was essentially joining with the enemy from within the camp.
Bestiality (sexual relations with animals) seems exceedingly grotesque to us, but it was a prominent part of Baal worship in the Canaanite religion. Bestiality, like homosexuality, violates the primary injunction to be fruitful and multiply. It also blurred the categories of creation by intermixing species. Such practices were forbidden even among the ancient Hittite people, who did not forbid much.
The third critical sin of consorting with the enemy was sacrificing or worshipping any god other than the true One, the Lord God. To actually worship other gods within the camp was a betrayal that could not be tolerated.
These prohibitions may seem to be somewhat distant, but our postmodern world is really no different from the environment the Israelites faced. We live in a hostile spiritual environment. The war is raging. The people of God live in a state of war that is being fought against the powers and principalities of this dark age. As people of God, redeemed and called out of slavery, we are not to consort with the enemy or pay homage to gods of this age.
These laws speak mainly to the corporate movement of God's people. Individual faith is critical, but the Lord has called us to be the Body of Christ, the church of the Lord Jesus Christ. The Body of Christ will never be perfect, but we are indeed called to NOT consort with the enemy. The death penalty is not an option because we are not a theocracy. But clearly, within the church, we are not to engage in sorcery, pagan sexual practices, or worship other gods in any way.
Sadly, the culture around us is filled with the celebration of sorcery. The culture gladly accepts all sorts of sexual deviance as it laughs and winks at bestiality. The culture bows down and makes every possible sacrifice to the gods of this age-- anything that promises wealth, power, eternal youth, or sexual prowess.
The church today is at a critical crossroads in determining whether it will adopt the ways, practice, and religion of the world and, in doing so, commit spiritual treason against our God and Father. Sorcery is much more than Harry Potter, although some reasonably argue that this series sets a worldview that accepts all sorts of occult practices.
Clearly, this is a time for prayer. Prayer for the church and for the nation.

Father God, show us how to follow You as You wage the war that goes on around us. Show us how to walk in purity. Show us how to honor You alone in all we do. Show us how to resist the temptation of idolatry that is all around us. In Jesus' name.

<>< <>< <>< <>< <>< <>< <>< <>< <>< <>< <>< <><
© Jeffrey D. Hoy 2023
Dr. Jeffrey D. Hoy - Faith Fellowship Church (EFCA)
2820 Business Center Blvd.
Melbourne, Florida 32940 (321)-259-7200
Jeff.Hoy@faithfellowshipweb.com
- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -
SUBSCRIPTIONS - To receive the Words of Faith devotion five days a week, send an e-mail message addressed to join-words-of-faith@hub.xc.org. To stop receiving Words of Faith, send an e-mail message addressed to unsubscribe-words-of-faith@hub.xc.org. The daily devotion and archive are posted at https://www.faithfellowshipweb.com/blog
- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -
The Words of Faith devotion is published five days a week by E-mail, excluding Federal holidays. Please feel free to forward this devotion to a friend who might be blessed by this devotion. Unless otherwise noted, all Scripture is quoted from the New International Version (R) of The Holy Bible. Copyright (c) 1973, 1978, 1984 by International Bible Society. Used by permission of Zondervan Publishing House. All rights reserved. Words of Faith (c) 1997, 2022 Jeffrey D. Hoy. All rights reserved. Permission is granted to forward this copyrighted material or use portions of it with appropriate notation of the source for non-profit purposes.