IS THERE A MORE SIMPLE APPROACH TO THIS HARRY POTTER THING?
"WHY DO SOME CHRISTIANS GET SO UPSET ABOUT HARRY POTTER," YOU ASK?
A few months ago I released an article about Harry Potter. Many
applauded. Some were furious.
The odd thing is, some Christians, even ones I know personally
were irritated that I would suggest that Harry Potter was
anything more than fun entertainment for kids. Christian OR
non-Christian kids. "It's just a great and entertaining story,"
some protested.
I have to be honest. I was stymied. I'm still perplexed.
Have I read the books? No. Have I seen the movie? No to that
question too.
Then, perhaps I should be seen as uninformed, unwilling to look
at the facts... Just ready to make a judgment without doing my
own investigating.
I TAKE A DIFFERENT APPROACH-- A SIMPLE ONE
When the Harry Potter books came out, I didn't buy them or
encourage my kids to buy them--right from the start. The thing
was, it was clear from the beginning that this was about
"wizardry." There's another word for wizardry. It's called
witchcraft.
Now, before you tune me out, read on . . . it gets interesting. I
think it does anyway.
I'm a Christian parent and so I take my "job" seriously that if I
am to train up my children to serve the Lord, I ought to warn
them about those things that are dangerous--IF they are
dangerous. And so I have. And so ought you.
THE FIRST MOVIE TRAILER
Perhaps more than a summer ago, I saw the first trailers at the
theatre for this upcoming movie about Harry Potter. My
"different" approach was to watch the "ad" and simply see what it
was about.
"Oh, I see," I said to myself. "This is about a kid. A very cute
little boy. He goes to Witchcraft school to learn how to do
witchcraft better."
The trailer makes it pretty clear.
"There seems to be good people and bad people," I noted. "So,
Harry Potter goes to witchcraft school. He's good. But there are
those who are bad. So, if he's a witch and he's good, then the
message is clear without reading the book or seeing the movie....
That is . . . "If you have the GIFT, you can be a good witch. And
. You can get better at it IF you go to witchcraft school. And
you can fight evil better if you go to witchcraft school--using
your witchcraft. Because witchcraft can be used to fight evil."
It's all quite apparent in the movie trailers. As the expression
goes, "My momma didn't raise no fool." This movie is about a boy
learning to do witchcraft better. Thus, my amazement that so
many Christians ask, "What's all the fuss about?"
I can tell some other things by watching the ads that have come
on TV since:
a) This boy is very appealing. What a neat kid!
b) This film appears astounding. If you like special affects,
you would love this movie, I'm sure.
c) The colors, lighting, animation, sounds, and acting are
brilliant. You can see it all from the ad.
d) Then there's the story line! It sure looks interesting--even
to me!! You'd have to be "dead" to not think that the story-
teller is going to amaze kids and adults alike. You like good
stories? Come on! This is going to be interesting!
However...
A MINOR BUT SIGNIFICANT PROBLEM
The problem is, according to "The Good Book," --- there are no
good witches!
In fact, just the opposite.
The Creator of the World, God Himself said so when HE brought
"His Chosen People" Israel--- into the PROMISED LAND. In the
church we speak of this often as being symbolic of the Lord
bringing US into OUR Promises that He's made to us.
SO, HERE'S AN IMPORTANT QUESTION
Are you waiting for God to fulfill a few yet-unfulfilled promises
in YOUR life? To bring you into your own "Promised Land?" I am.
Most of us are.
Then you might find the following Scripture fascinating, because
it's talking about YOU-- and the promises God wants to bring you
into. Oh, and you've got to remember one thing. . . when He
brings you INTO your promised land . . . it's because He's also--
at the same time--- KICKING SOMEONE ELSE OUT! He wants to do
that--- For you! That's kind of how God works. Who does HE kick
out?
He dispossessed the bad guys. And He brings IN the good guys.
---Keep reading! Who were the bad guys?
God tells HIS KIDS (ISRAEL) how it will go--and how it will go
well with them. The Lord is pretty specific here. . .
"When you enter the land which the LORD your God gives you, you
shall not learn to IMITATE the DETESTABLE things of those
nations. "There shall not be found among you anyone who makes his
son or his daughter pass through the fire, one who uses
DIVINATION, one who PRACTICES WITCHCRAFT, or one who INTERPRETS
OMENS, or a SORCERER, or one who CASTS A SPELL, or a MEDIUM, or a
SPIRITIST, or one who calls up the dead. "For WHOEVER DOES THESE
THINGS is detestable to the LORD; and because of these detestable
things the LORD your God will DRIVE THEM OUT before you. "You
shall be blameless before the LORD your God. For those nations,
which you shall dispossess, listen to those who practice
witchcraft and to diviners, but as for you, the LORD your God HAS
NOT ALLOWED YOU TO DO SO." Deut 18:9-14
Now, I'm pretty simple. But it seems to me that if God kicked out
nations for practicing witchcraft, divination, interpreting
omens, casting spells, etc etc.--- then (and perhaps it's just
me) He wouldn't think it Godly or Holy to glorify kids who do
just that? Or is it Godly to reward Hollywood for glorifying
--for actually IMITATING witchcraft?
Is it then "ok" for you as a Christian to entertain yourself by
watching kids and adults casting spells--using witchcraft?
Am I missing something? Or should this seem rather straight
forward to the average follower of Christ?
CHILDREN WOULDN'T TAKE THIS STUFF SERIOUSLY, WOULD THEY?
I recently visited a family who does not claim to follow the
Lord. I found it interesting that they read all the Harry Potter
books to their daughter. They showed me the little playhouse
they made out back for their daughter. They showed me where she
mixes all her spells and potions. She had many multicolored
substances from which she did this. It was all over her
playhouse.
The mother just chuckled at the creativity of her daughter.
It may be just a coincidence, but this daughter has tremendous,
overwhelming fears in her life. There are many things that
children do, in daily life that scare her to death. In fact, she
is controlled by many of these fears.
Can I say theses two are related? No. I have no way to prove
they're related.
But what are the chances that there is SOME relationship?
"CAN'T I JUST READ THESE BOOKS AND SEE THE HARRY POTTER MOVIES AND EXPLAIN TO MY CHILDREN THAT THIS IS JUST ENTERTAINMENT?" you ask.
Believe it or not, the main response from Christians who protest
to me is that this is just good fantasy story-telling and that no
harm can come from it. You would be AMAZED at how many followers
of Christ hold this view.
If you are one of them, let me ask you this question:
"Would you sit down with your children and watch videos of adult
activity (you know what I'm talking about) and then explain to
your children, "We don't actually believe in DOING this. This is
just entertainment! For our enjoyment. But please never do this!"
Of course not. You understand that Satan himself wants you to
watch just such movies.
Yet it is not fully understood by the church that participating
in the "entertainment" of movies about witchcraft has the same
effect.
I believe this will literally come as a shock to some that
what/who is behind witchcraft is none other than fallen angels,
demons of hell, Satan's minions. What this means is that for
those who entertain themselves by Harry Potter, whether they
intend it or not (and 100% don't intend it), they simply give
themselves and their children to be entertained by the activities
and the creative ideas of Satan himself.
It's like this (to be simplistic), You are just as good as
saying, "Let's go watch Harry Potter. He's this great kid that
has no interest in God, his creator or the Lord Jesus Christ.
What's happened in his life is that without any proper training
(in the story), he's given himself so fully to demons from hell,
that he's going to witchcraft school, to learn how to serve Satan
better, by doing better witchcraft--but he'll use it for good!"
SLAVES AND LED BUT BY WHOM?
Scripture says, one way or another we are slaves or are led:
"Do you not know that when you present yourselves to someone as
slaves for obedience, you are slaves of the one whom you obey,
either of sin resulting in death, or of obedience resulting in
righteousness?" Rom 6:16
and:
". . .You know that when you were pagans, YOU WERE LED ASTRAY TO
THE DUMB IDOLS, HOWEVER YOU WERE LED. Therefore I make known to
you, that no one speaking by the Spirit of God says, "Jesus is
accursed"; and no one can say, "Jesus is Lord," except by the
Holy Spirit. 1 Cor 12:2-3
KIDS ARE AMAZINGLY SMART AND CONSISTENT
Have you noticed? If you tell a child that something is wrong,
and then you LIVE by those words...you turn off the TV when that
stuff comes on...they will TEND to believe you. However, if you
teach them that something is harmless or somewhat harmless, and
you compromise a bit, they will tend to believe you also . . .
that it's ok to compromise for them too, when no one is looking.
OUIJA BOARD'S AND SUCH
I was startled a few years back. I was at "Toys R Us" shopping
for my kids. I wasn't prepared for what was about to happen. A
boy, about 9-12 years old said, "Mr., can I ask you a question?
He said, with concern on his face?
"Is it wrong to play with a Ouija board?" he asked. Then I
realized he was pondering buying one that was right in front of
him. I knew it was a divine appointment. (that means God set it
up--the time and the place for me to intersect with this boy's
life).
"Well, yes, I do believe it is wrong. I think it's playing with
something that is very dangerous. I believe that you are opening
yourself up to demons and Satan to work in your life." (Best I
can remember, this is about what I said.
"Thank you, he said," as he turned, "That's kinda what I
thought." and hr walked out WITHOUT THE OUIJA BOARD.
I was dumbfounded. This was the furthest thing from my mind. In a
moment, I saved a kid for welcoming the work of demons into his
life. Go figure the way God works!
The same thing with Harry Potter, a cute kid sold out to the work
of Satan. It's just packaged so nicely, that kids love it and so
do many adults. But demons are part of it, no matter how you
slice it.'
THE REALLY "HARD" QUESTIONS
What has been thrown up at me when I sent out the last article by
John Paul Jackson about Harry Potter was this, "What's the
difference between this and things like some fantasy Christian
fiction, or even the Wizard of Oz, or some things that Disney
does?"
Let's just keep things simple, can we? No matter what answer you
or anyone comes up for those things, it in no way undoes what
we've already discussed. That's like the diversion when people
are asked if they want to accept Jesus Christ, and they say, "No,
because their are so many hypocrites who are Christians." That
there are hypocrites is true. That it has anything to do with the
question is UNTRUE.
Want to know what the dictionary defines "witchcraft" as?
Here it is: "Witchcraft: The art of sorcery"
So how does the same dictionary define sorcery? Here it is:
"The belief in magical spells that harness occult forces or evil
spirits to produce unnatural effects in the world."
I don't know if it was Noah Webster or simply written by a
definition specialist, but whoever came up with the definitions
understood that this thing-- witchcraft/sorcery had to do with
evil spirits.
THE GOOGLE TEST
Some may know that the single largest search engine on the
Internet is "www.google.com" I did a search tonight, typing in
the words "harry potter."
Here's what I got. It's the same thing your kids will find if
THEY use the search engine:
On only the FIFTH listing under that search, I found the
following. The title was "KIDSPEAK." They want kids to speak out
on free speech related to Harry Potter. Here is what one person
wrote on that page. I can't tell who wrote it but this is what it
said,
". . .. To the Christian people out there, who says that your
religion is correct? If someone said that to you in an e-mail or
on the street, what would you do? The Wiccan religion is mainly
for nature. They use herbs for healing, and use other natural
material for GOOD uses. Keyword: GOOD. I am not saying that I
believe in Wiccan religion, and I am not saying I believe in
Christianity, but I am just stating the fact that I keep an open
mind on ALL religious beliefs. And you obviously don't!!! Do not
judge others on their religion. Do not go off saying that the
Wiccan religion is wrong. Religion is one the main reasons we had
war in the past, and we still have that problem in Ireland today.
The bible says (I got this from a friend...a CHRISTIAN friend) to
get rid of the evil within you before you get rid of the evil
around you. Clearly you are so worried about others, it causes
you to become a hypocrite on everything against YOUR religion.
Have you ever thought of other people's religion, and how they
feel when you are criticizing them?
As your own children research Harry Potter, this site will come
up quickly in their search. By the way, the 11th ranked search
under Harry Potter found a contest (also under kidsreads.com) to
see who could come up with the best spell?
Here is one of the top "spell entries. . . "
11th engine finding. . .
"The Never Sick Always Healthy Spell
Wake up and turn in three circles. Jump up and down once then
blink three times. Say "I'm never sick always healthy today"
three times! When Harry does this, he is guaranteed to be happy
and healthy all day long!"
Please make a note . . . since Harry did it, it is ok to do
it--from a kid's perspective! Rather than calling upon the Lord
for healing, a spell is said, (which is calling upon demons) to
bring healing and happiness all day long.
Oh, by the way, the 8th-ranked listing under google.com is this:
"The Unofficial Harry Potter Fan Club"
This site is innocent enough--- that is, if you don't mind your
children being introduced on this site to TAROT CARDS--just two
clicks from the search engine listing. We must not make the
assumption that many forms of the occult won't be introduced to
children when they research Harry Potter on the Internet. You
children will learn a great deal about the occult by researching
Harry Potter.
WHAT DO THE PROPHETS SAY?
Isaiah, a major prophet said this:
". . . Woe to those who call evil good, and good evil; who
substitute darkness for light and light for darkness; who
substitute bitter for sweet, and sweet for bitter! Woe to those
who are wise in their own eyes, and clever in their own sight!
Isa 5:20-21
If there ever was a time when some Believers are saying, "What
some think is evil is really good" --this may be that time. We
cannot find ourselves joining with the scornful who say that what
is evil...is after all, really good...that Harry Potter is really
good, and not an evil story.
Jesus warned that in the last days . . .
"And because lawlessness is increased, most people's love will
grow cold." Matt 24:12
TERRORISM --RECOGNIZED AND UNRECOGNIZED
It's easy to recognize evil when two planes slam into the World
Trade Center and thousands die. How much easier it should be for
the church to recognize when the enemy is terrorizing the Church
and our households by causing our love to grow cold.
The Scripture says that BECAUSE lawlessness is increased, most
people's love WILL grow cold. Wouldn't it be ironic, that while
we are proclaiming "If my people, who are called by my name, will
humble themselves and pray and turn from their wicked ways, I
will heal their land. . . .." ----- wouldn't it be ironic that
while quoting this text, we said, "It's fine to go to movies that
glorify the activities of Satan---because it's just good
compelling story telling?
That would be most ironic.
It just might mean that--- timed perfectly with the lawlessness
of terrorism, our love is growing cold.
The greatest irony is that those whose love is growing cold....do
not actually recognize it or believe it to be the case, because
quite honestly, Satan is very good at HIS JOB.
If you've bought into his lie that enjoying Harry's experiences
with demon-inspired witchcraft is just good entertainment . . .
perhaps you ought to ask the Lord to reveal to you if you are one
in whom "love has grown cold." (Matt.24:12).
"IF YOU CONCLUDE THIS, THEN WHERE WILL IT STOP?" Many are asking
I hear the voices of well-meaning Christians protesting, "Look, if you say
this is wrong, then you'll next be saying that such and such is wrong, and
if that's wrong, then the next thing will be wrong to watch or do. WHERE
DOES IT STOP?" they are asking?
I heard the Lord say, "It stops HERE!"
Blessings,
Steve Shultz
THE ELIJAH LIST
www.elijahlist.com
steve@elijahlist.com
Please forward this only to those who believe that God is on the throne
and that the Bible is true. They can subscribe to THE ELIJAH LIST by sending a note to: elijahlist3@mindspring.com
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