dren, keep yourselves from idols." Saul's throne had become his idol. God tore it away from him. Jim Elliott, one of the five Ecua dorian martyrs some years ago, tes tified, "He is no fool who gives what he cannot keep, to gain what he cannot lose." Oh, that God's people might claim that reality. Why are we not willing to place all on the altar for the Lord? A per son who does this can never lose. Samuel tells the king, "Because thou obeyedst not the voice of the Lord, nor executedst his fierce wrath upon Amalek, therefore hath the Lord done this thing unto thee this day" (vs. 18). Do we really lis ten to the voice of God? Do your children see that you trust Him and seek to obey His perfect will? As the Lord judged Saul, so He will chastise us if we fail to serve Him as the Bible instructs us. Samuel continues, "Moreover the Lord will also deliver Israel with thee into the hand of the Philis tines, and tomorrow shalt thou and thy sons be with me" (vs. 19). The doom is settled and sealed. There is nothing more he can do. God brought physical destruction to Saul prematurely because of his disobedience to His will. If you will read on into chapter 31 you will see the disgraceful death of the king who had formerly sought to live pleasing to the Lord. May his life be a lesson to us in our path way of faith and trust. NO ROOM FOR THE OCCULT Walking by a cathedral a small girl noted that the clock in the steeple was apparently broken. It did not stop after striking twelve but kept on going. She was alarmed and ran back home exclaiming, "Mommy, Mommy, come quick! It is later than it has ever been be
fore!" We are living in just such times today. It is indeed later than it has ever been before. One of the classic examples is noted in the rise of interest in spiritism, occult ism and the whole area of necro mancy. For this study we call your atten tion to I Chronicles 10:13-14. These two verses give us further commen tary on Saul's seeking the witch of Endor, recorded in I Samuel 28. Here we read of his death because of the sins he had committed. From this situation we should learn that Satan and his demons are extremely subtle, possessing supernatural powers. We cannot emphasize that too strongly. The searchlight of God's Word must continually be turned on the ene my of our souls, exposing him for what he really is. The devil is at tacking in the realm of the mind today. We see this on many college campuses where pagan, humanis tic, godless philosophies are being taught. Paul warns us in II Cor inthians 11:13-14, "For such are false apostles, deceitful workers, transforming themselves into the apostles of Christ. And no marvel; for Satan himself is transformed into an angel of light." For all that God has, Satan has a counterfeit. He is extremely subtle and we dare not underestimate his power. This is why we should take on the whole armour of God to be able to withstand in the evil day. The second lesson we learn is that God despises all forms of the occult. Saul was destroyed because he was involved in it (I Chronicles 10:13). The third thing that stands out is the fact that there is no room in the life of the believer for any form of the occult (II Timothy 2:5). This is why we should constantly
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