Devotion Column: Erasmus Makarimayi
DOES God the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ work hand in glove with ancestral spirits? Can we appeal to both Jehovah God and the spirits of long dead people? After a milestone achievement we hear some people say that they want to thank God as well as their ancestors for making it possible. Some people think that God works in tandem with their ancestral spirits to bless them.
The assumption is that in case God is angry at them then their ancestors will plead their cause.
To some people God’s power is limited in certain areas where ancestral spirits will be the solution. There are some who think that they will be doubly secure to worship both God and their ancestral spirits. They call it comprehensive cover.
People experience dreams where they assume they are hearing instructions from their departed relatives and are thus convinced that their ancestors are involved in taking care of them.
The situation is made worse in our cultural setting where people think that there are issues that don’t need God but the ancestors who are deemed to be more versed and capable.
You have heard the expression, “Izvi zvakuda chivanhu” loosely meaning the issue is now beyond the scope of God’s power but within the jurisdiction of spirit mediums. Satan takes the form, and in some instances, the voice of the long dead so that you believe. Devils or demons are disembodied spirits, they look for bodies to possess.
Does God work hand-in-hand with ancestral spirits? Are there certain issues of our life that God cannot solve but our ancestors?
God makes it very clear in His Word that there is only one God and no one else and we should worship that one alone.
His glory is not to be shared among any other gods or anything that is placed to take His stead. In Deuteronomy 4:24, He states, “For the Lord thy God is a consuming fire, even a jealous God.”
The jealousy spoken of here is that if you choose God then it should be God alone otherwise if you bring in other gods, He excuses Himself. Deuteronomy 6:14, states, “Ye shall not go after other gods, of the gods of the people which are round about you;”
In case you doubt His ability, He emphasises it in rhetoric in Jeremiah 32:27, “Behold, I am the Lord, the God of all flesh: is there anything too hard for me?” There is nothing beyond the scope of His ability.
As the creator, nothing is impossible with Him. So you can put all your trust in Him, He is able. He commands us not to get answers from the dead. The dead cannot intercede on behalf of the living.
The Bible says of the dead in Ecclesiastes 9:5, “For the living know that they shall die: but the dead know not any thing, neither have they anymore a reward; for the memory of them is forgotten.”
The dead have no knowledge at all of what happens in the realm of the living. The devil manipulates the dead by bringing their images to you in dreams or when you visit the witch doctor and out of fear you believe the tricks of Satan. Because you used to love and respect the departed while they were still alive, the devil pins you down on that.
The formula to reach out to God is spelt out clearly in John 14:6, “Jesus saith unto him, I am the way, the truth, and the life: no man cometh unto the Father, but by me.”
The only medium to God is Jesus. John 1:18, Amplified, illustrates, “No man has ever seen God at any time; the only unique Son, or the only begotten God, Who is in the bosom [in the intimate presence] of the Father, He has declared Him [He has revealed Him and brought Him out where He can be seen; He has interpreted Him and He has made Him known].”
Any other medium, spiritual or physical connects you to Satan. If you are living an upright life, your success comes from God.
You cannot pray to God and to ancestral spirits at the same time. I know that when a thief, armed robber or professional prostitute goes out for business they trust their ancestors to lead them.
Do you suppose they pray to God and ask for success in their “business” venture? It is a waste of time to go to church to get a blessing to engage in evil deeds. If you brew beer to appease your ancestors and also go to an all-night prayer session to ask God to bless you, who would you give credit to if you get your desired answer?
God will not involve Himself where evil is practised. When you get a breakthrough from Satan, please be honest and tell us that you got it from the devil. Don’t give us a false testimony. I always hear cross border traders who smuggle goods and testify that God is good because He led them to go through customs undetected. Don’t play around with the name of God. We cannot attribute the coming of rains to God and the devil at the same time.
Leave your dear departed in the grave and worship the living God. If you want God then choose God and if you want Satan don’t drag the name of God into it.
I advise you to choose God and with all thy soul, and with all thy mind, and with all thy strength: this is the first commandment.” Grace and peace be multiplied to you through knowledge.
All Bible quotations are from the King James Version unless otherwise stated.
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